Year: 1870

The Present Status of Napoleon-Vhe Imperial


Exile stiil Emperor of France.


The North German Correspondent, which is
said to be an official organ of Bismarck, in its
issue of September "a contains the following
important article:-


IA great deal of wrath has been unnecessarily
wasted by the neutral, and particularly by some
OF the English papers, on an imaginary 'diabo-
lcap project of King William to replace the
Emperor Napoleon by force of arms on the
throne of France. The sole foundation for this
perfectly gratuitous supposition appears to be
the kind and respectful treatment accorded to
the captive of Wilhelmshohe by his Prussian
Majesty, for we cannot believe that any one in
his senses will attach political Specification to
the joke imputed to Count Bismarck last July,
that If the French were beaten, the best pun
ishment they could get would be to make them
keep their Emperor 1t is rather mystifying
to find Germany one day represented by some
of the London organs OF public opinion as vigo..
rously prosecuting the war with the intention of
giving Bonapartism the coup de grace, while
week later we are pilloried as the sworn allies
and upholders of ruined and 'effete empire


I'm former number we endeavOred to show
that King William could not we'll refuse to
regard his prisoner as being still the Emperor of
the French. When Napoleon surrendered his
sword at Sedan, no one will contend that he was
not the acknowledged ruler of France-recog-
nized as such both at home and abroad-and
this undoubted fact decided the reception he
was to find in Germany, and the character of
his Imprisonment 1t must be recollected that
buc hlDS VI ITuSSld WAS uOJ HIS JuOSc anu nau
only to dispose of the captive in manner COM
patible with the honor of the allied govern
ments Louis Napoleon is as truly O sovereign
at Wilhelmshohe as Francis | was at Madrid:
and war, among civilized nations, does not
abolish International courtesy


IF it be asserted that the proclamation of the
republic must be regarded as the knell of the
empire, we must confess our inability to see
how eleven private persons supported by
tumultuous street rabble, could put themselves
in the place of government regularly elected
and solemnly confirmed by the French people.
Nor, to do the Committee of Defense justice,
do they claim to be regarded as the successors
of the regency. The country is to decide next
month, by its legitimate representatives, on the
fate of the Empire and the Republic. Should
the deposition of the Emperor be then adopted
by the people of France, he will of course become
private individual, but till that time comes we
are required, both by courtesy and regard for
legality, to treat him as Napoleon III. Count
Bismarck. as we know, has consented to receive
NJ. Jules Favre, and there is no doubt he will
point out to that able lawyer the almost insuper-
able difficulties in the way of negotiating or
concluding treaty of peace with the provisional
government, since it has as yet met with only a
partial recognition in France, and is quite
unable to offer any guarantees that the terms it
may make with Germany will be accepted by
the Constituent French Assembly next month.


Should Louis Napoleon be definitely deposed
by the formal decision of the French people,
we can assure the neutral press that Germany
will not move finger in the cause of Bona
partisan. Such course would be incompatible
both with our feelings and our interests. 1t is
absurd to talk of the legitimist sympathies for a
family whose present head has described him
self as a p0rUenu. Till France, however, has
decided on her future destinies, Louis Napoleon,
for us, is still the Emperor"