Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-12-18

present magistrates remain in office the re.
public will nurse in its bosom it's most i'm
placable enemies, for the present Judges
were all chosen by the empire and have
openly vouched their hatred for the pres
emit Government, and yet do not hesitate to
be paid by it. Mr.. Blanc said that the
Judges throughout France were exceed
| ingly honest, lnasmuch as not one of them
could be bribed to give Judgment against
his conscience in civil affairs, but that III
political affairs they were
NOT To BE TRUSTED.
The reform of the magistrates is question
importing such great revolution in long
established affairs, that the Deputies who
never dare anything, will hardly have the
courage to take this important STEP al
though the interests OF the country urgently
demand it. Even though the bill should
pass the Chamber of Deputies, it would
never get safely through the Senate except
by miracle, for these good Judges are the
only support left to the Bonapartists aud
monarchists, and not to leave these magis-
trates, appointed for life and chosen by a
crowned head, in possession of the law,
would be to overturn all the rules of order.
Scarcely any reform seems possible in
| France until in the Senate, filed with old
| fogies and reactionists, some of the Senators
| for life die off and the elections renew this
august body by sending more patriotic and
republican members to fill the important
seats. There is hope of some reform being
| accomplished in the course of time, pro-
| vided what is called the scrutiR de &ste is
adopted by the two houses. The scrntin
de Este existed, and was replaced by the
scrutia d'arrondissenleat, which consists in
| electing a person chosen from each arron-
| basement, whose extent of territory is very
small, and it is generally the rich man with
| the personal influence riches give who is
elected to the position of Deputy. He usu-
| ally knows nothing of the important CUES
tions relative to the progress of his coun-
try, but promises if elected to have certain
roads made, to have fountain erected, to
find advantageous positions at Paris for
| each or at least number of his electors,
and to perform commissions for their wives,
so that his ideas of reform are very limited
and his scope of vision very narrow. He is
in direct communication with each one of
his electors, and the poor man actually suf-
fers martyrdom in trying to please them
all, and in fearing by the slightest act to
! give offense. When once elected, should
any of their constituents happen to come to
the capital, they besiege him with petitions,
imagine he is the entire Government him.
self, possessed of unlimited power, and if
he does not accomplish all their
UNREASONABLE DEMANDS
They place it to the account of his unac.
commodating nature and swear they will
never again vote for such a man. As may
be seen, great Inconvenience results from
the scr'utin darrondiSsemeat, and therefore
the desire of all intelligent statesmen of
| replacing it with the scratin de HSte, which
consists in having a committee form list
of names of persons known for their talents
and administrative abilities throughout the
entire department. The department con-
tains number of ACCOMPLISHMENTS, and
when this list is presented to the electors
| they are to vote the entire or portion of
| the list on the recommendation of the
known reputation of one or more of the
names, although they may be personally
unacquainted with any of the candidates.
This permits the electing of men of talent
who may not be rich enough to spend the
usual amount of money required to insure
election, and permits the possibility of
having men as Deputies whose minds and
interests are not restricted to the circle of
their personal surrounding. The Deputies
themselves would then escape the nuisance
of being bothered and harassed by their
constituents, and being for the most part
unacquainted with them would not be con-
fined to forwarding simply their particular
interests. The only inconvenience of the
scr1ttin de HSte is that there is danger of
the committee chosen to make out the list
falling under the
DoNIINATIoN OF ONE MAN,
Who would make use of them for his own
personal ambition. The great bugbear in
this case is Gambetta, and those who i'm
agine themselves his enemies ascribe to him
more ambitious and personal motives than
he has ever entertained, and an i'm portance
/ in all things which does not belong to him.
| Whatever may be Gambetta's designs, the
Scr1diR de iste will not aid him any better
in their accomplishment than other means
he would be able to employ. Louis Blanc
said that although the scrutin de liste pre-
sented some inconvenience as well, it was
preferable to the scYttin d'Grrondissement,
although it was almost sure to be defeated
in the Chamber of Deputies, for the reason
that all the Deputies have been elected
through this last method and would have
just reason to suppose they would not be
chosen to fill the lists, as neither the inhu-
ence nor reputation of the majority extend
as far as an entire department They will
therefore find other than the true reasons
for defeating the measure, which, should
it be successful in the Chamber, would
certainly find favor with the Senate
That which is remarkable in the character
of Mr.. Louis Blanc is, that although no
person has carried social reform to higher
standard than he, he is devoid of all pas
sion and impotence, almost the necessary
attributes of the reformist. l am sure he
never gets angry, and he looks upon all
things from such broad point of view
that those who express thecontrary opinions
to his own, have never been able to vex him.
| His principles are the same as those he en-
tertained when young, and he has continued
for near half century in bringing them to
light, laboring with faith and earnestness
| without in his eagerness rudely overturn-
ing obstacles in his way. We discussed the
Cissey affair, incidents related in his His
totre de Dir Ans, and which he more fully
explained and enlarged upon, besides other
subjects, when, fearing to further impose
on his patience and time, thanked him
for his kindness, and withdrew with feel
ings of increased respect and admiration
for this grand patriot and Republican
VAL.
| - s1r--nnss
/