New-York tribune., 1886-05-02
BONAPARTE AS A PLOTTER,
ALBANIA OF HISTORY.

Fauricl was an intimate of the family before
| Madame Mohls marriage and close sympathy
OK sted between him and the brilliant girl then
known as Mary Clarke who was afterward to be
celebrity of the intellectual world of France. lie
was critic and student of history ana literature
with accompli shments of which he made but mad
equate nse in his few published works; and when
he died in Is IT, lie lett the reputation of scholar
who had never done what he might have done. 1t
appears however, that, unknown to moro than two
or three Of his confidential as ociatcs, he had
employed himself during the first years OF the En-
pire, in the composition OF a minute historical
narrative of the great political drama enactihg
before his eyes, beginning with Bonapartes hrst
omen assauit upon the Republic by the establish
ment of the consulship for life. and following the
progress empire through the successive steps OF
intrigue fraud and violence Fauriel bad been
secretary to FouchG, the Minister OF Police, and it
appears to have been shortly after Ieslgnng tins
uncongenial post that he began to write the mar
rative OF what he had seen. lie ardent Re-
publican and he Diet, sted Napoleon, of whose per
sonal character he had the very worst possible
opinion. His position in tho Ministry OF Police
during very important period, and his connection
with political per>onagcs, gave HIM exceptional
facilities for learning the secret history OF the te
| and he spared no pains in accnmuairg ana sIitlng
! the facts BIT It was dangerous to know TOO much
under the first empire That WAS a time when, as
Faurie complains to inform ones self OF the truth
was the greatest Of all dangers. next to telling IT,
This state of affairs will account for the proiounc
secrecy with which his historical laborS were con-
/ ducted lie appears To have been IN commnnica-
ton with Madame Condorcet. Madame de Stael,
and BENJAMIN Constant. all of whom were able to
SIMPLY him with materials and suggestions. Re
| marks of theirs are j0ttcd down on the margin ol
his manuscript The manuscript itself was found
among the papers Of Madame COndorcct some
years ago. but there no clcw to ITS oilgln, ana
the authorshp has only recently been discovered
by the Identification of the hanIwTitlng with that
| Of letters of Fauriel to Madame Mohl. BY a fortn-
nate chance the CondCrcct papers and the Mohl
papers were both lett to the library of the Institute
and were both classified and arranged by NJ La
| lanne to whom owe this publication.
| For some reason of which we have no hint
! Faurie abandoned his literary project and the
page, which now see the light eighty years after
their composition. form only fragments imperfectly
tied together Tne title gives a sufficiently Just
indication of their scope, they now stand, but 1t
Isl title Chosen by the ed tor. not by the author
The first CHAPTER Is complete in itself and gives
remarkable narrative of the course OF events from
| the rsnrpation of the 18th Brnmalre November
! l799l. whea Bonaparte overthrow the DlIcctoIy'
| TO the Seuatus- Consultum of SOP which declared
! Bonaparte Consul tor iife Tins was really the end
! of the Republic, although republican forms were
/ preserved "a little while longer. Faurlcls account
of the progress OF the plOt-fOr the changc or gov
crnlnent is never regarded by him as the result OF
anything less than longprcmeditatel and un-
| scrupuou,y managed scheme Of the First Consul
to restore ab,olutism in his own person-is highly
dramatic the description of the final scenes IN the
! Senate is graphic and cXciting; and all through
| the CHAPTER The reader is moved by the mastery
delineaton of }onapartes meanness and perldy, the
| miserable lack OF moral courage aAd public virtue
IN French polit cal leaders. the decentralization OF
/ parties the decay of popular spirit, and the hne.
/ tempered scoru with which the historian surveys
the dlsLracetu sccne. This first chapter is yau-
ablo addition to the copious literature oil the
Napoleonic period. Almost equal praise belongs
to that part of the second chapter which sketches
the condition of TIE various mcnarchical and
republican factions on the eve Of the establishment
of the Empire and the forces with winch Napoleon
had 10 deal in carrying his plot to Its ncXt stage
The only rival whom he really dreaded was
Moreau. This brilliant soldier seemed 10 unite tho
character. prestige. ability. and principles which
would make him formidable leader Of the genu-
inc republicans: and 1t became the fixed purpose
of Napoleon to destroy him. All attempts to con-
meet Aoreau with any conspiracy against the Gov
ernmcnt failed. The First Consul determined to
foment a conspiracy in order to drag Moreau into
it, "Hi,torv" says Fauriel " records the deeds
of tyrants who cypress their enemies, without aim
iug ut any other hOuors and advantages than those
of getting rid of them. The French Revolution
will furnish examples at different periods OF op.
nressors VINO ncite those whom they desire to de-
sroy to the commission OF crime, in order thai they
may destroy them with all the forms intended Tor
the preservation o. innocence from the undue exer-
else of power" This was the underlying motive OF
the police Intr.gu with English officials and roy
ali,t refugees, of which the story has been told
before with more less inaccuracy-a series of
ntrigues winch eliminated in what was long
known in France as " the English plot" embracing
| the disastrous undertaking of PIchegru and
| GEORGES Cadoudal. and tho tragedy of the Duke
d'Enghien. FauIle is half ready to believe, and
does plainly wish to believe. that t.c whole con-
spracy was framed by French police spies. No.
body is credulous enough to accept such theory at
this day but it is clear that the cOnspirators re-
ceived every assistance and encouragement IRON
the First Consups secret agents AM perhaps IL Is
not gong too far to say that these creatures
directly and deliberately inspired their victims
with resolution and audacity which they did not
naturally possess 1t was part of the plot that
the royali,t cxiles she ud place themselves in COM
municatlon with n JacobIn commit IN Pans pro-
Tossing to DO ready to corporate with them III
getting rid of the First Consul As there was no
such committee Bonaparte proceeded to create onc
taking pains TO be Informed OF everything
that it did and of the first acts of this conf
mttee was to make compromising proposal 10
Moreau. but the general was too wary.
The agent OF Douaparte i'll all these paridies was
Fouch6 and of this celebrated iunCtlonary Iauriel.
then fresh from his service draws Il striking pOr-
trait
This man. who was to accumulate upon bis own
al a al II
self i'm the most opposite tNcesseS of the KcNOlutlon
ne who AS a prUconsul in the depaItnents.had com.
mittel 80 many fsrOcUus deeds, and had appiauucl
those which he had only witnessed With almost
lrirIous enthusiasm; who declared that the sinok-
ing ruins of Lyons furnished the KIND OF spectacle
That republics need Will perhaps furnish poSterlty
IL In. ~ ilI>Im4 nALmnln of The LAClllty Mltll