imii Cornell Utttorjsiitg §ih«pg BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME EROM THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF 1891 A-^nM-135 '•j-rpqi^ Cornell University Library DC 335.V86 Republican France, 1870-1912; 3 1924 028 177 669 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31 9240281 77669 REPUBLICAN FRANCE n<:' //2 /i £' ry /ice l-s! . REPUBLICAN FRANCE 1870-I912 HER PRESIDENTS, STATESMEN, POLICY VICISSITUDES AND SOCIAL LIFE BY ERNEST ALFRED yiZETELL^ AUTHOR OF 'THE COURT OF THE TUILERIES, 1852-1870,' ETC. 'La R6publique, c'est la forme de gouvernement qui nous divise le molns.' — Thiers, WITH NINE PORTRAITS BOSTON SMALL, MAYNARD AND COMPANY PUBLISHERS TO MY DEAR DAUGHTER MARIE ERNESTINE VIZETELLY I DEDICATE THIS EECORD OF HER mother's LAND AND PEOPLE K.-Ln^T^^ PREFACE This work is an attempt to tell the story of the present French Republic from its foundation onward, and, in particular, to recount the careers of its most eminent public men. For well nigh fifty years I have been much attached to France and her people. I was taken to France in my boyhood, I found there my home and my alma mater, I loved and married there, and it was there-too that I formed some of the firmest friendships of my life. But remembering that it is incumbent on any writer who attempts to recount some period of a nation's life, to tell the whole truth, as far as he can ascertain it, and that no useful purpose is ever served by shirking unpleasant facts, I have not penned in the following pages any panegyric of France and the French. I have certainly tried to show the nation rising from the depths of disaster, gathering fresh strength, and again taking the position due to it by right of its genius. I have also tried to show the Republican idea — limited, at first, to a portion of the population, — spreading gradually through the country, and developing into something far beyond what several of the most prominent founders of the regime would have thought either likely or advisable. Again, I have striven to depict that rSgime resisting every assault, triumphing over every enemy, and demonstrating, by its stability, the existence of far greater stability of character among the natioi^han the latter had been credited with for many years. But if I have spoken of progress made, of great achieve- ments accomplished, I have not hesitated to chronicle faults wherever I have found them. I have felt constrained to write with some severity of certain trends of policy, ambitions, occurrences, and other matters ; and I have not overlooked the occasional foolish impulses of the masses, for the most part viii REPUBLICAN FRANCE happily checked before too much harm was done, and entitled, after all, to the leniency which should be extended to the errors of those who are deceived by self-seeking leaders. In sketching my principal characters I have endeavoured to set forth all the good points they displayed, yet allowing their warts to be seen, if warts they had. My one desire has been to make my portraits as true to life as possible. Moreover, there are pages in which I have sought to justify and rehabili- tate certain prominent men, judged with undue harshness, in my opinion, by the majority of their compatriots ; and it may so prove that, being able to look at certain things more dispassionately, more impartially, than would be possible for most Frenchmen, I have now and again got nearer to the truth than they could get. In any case, whatever may be the imper- fections of this book, it has been written in good faith, with a sincere desire to place before its readers an accurate account of the period of French history which I have dealt with. I must add, however, that the work has long been in pre- paration, and that for a considerable period a variety of circumstances delayed its publication ; in such wise that it has become necessary for me to draft several errata and addenda which will be found at the end of the volume. Moreover, as some, of my readers may be acquainted with my history of the Anarchists, I would point out that the account of the French branch of the sect which will be found in my present pages, embodies, in a slightly abridged form, much the same informa- tion as that given by me in the work in which I dealt with the Anarchists generally. It was, however, incumbent on me to include this matter, for no history of the Third Republic could be deemed complete if it omitted an account of the French Anarchist Terror and the assassination of President Carnot. E. A. V. Paris, 1912. CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE I. INTRODUCTION ........ 1 II. THIERS THE GERMANS IN PARIS THE COMMUNE . . 30 III. THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY THIERS, FIRST PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC THE PRETENDERS ...... 70 .IV. THE ELYSEE PALACE PARISIAN LIFE FALL OF THIERS MACMAHON, PRESIDENT. . . . . . .108 V. UNDER MACMAHON THE ROYALIST FUSION THE WHITE FLAG THE THRONE LOST BAZAINE AND HIS TRIAL . 136 / VI. THE SEPTENNATE PARIS SALONS AND CLUBS THE REPUBLI- CAN CONSTITUTION AND ELECTIONS THE^'GREAT CHURCH CRUSADE ......... 170 ^^'TO. THE SIXTEENTH OF MAY GAMBETTA AND THIERS THE GREAT EXHIBITION MACMAHON's DEFEAT AND FALL . 200 VIIL GREVY's PRESIDENCY AND GAMBETTa's PREDOMINANCE STATE, CHURCH, AND EDUCATION EGYPT AND TUNIS . 227 lXr'"THE GREAT MINISTRY*' GAMBETTa's LAST YEARS AND DEATH ......... 247 X. JULES FBTRRY AND THE FRENCH COLONIAL EMPIRE THE EXPULSION OF THE PRINCES BOULANGER AND GERMANY THE WILSON SCANDAL AND GREVy's FALL . . . 277 ix X REPUBLICAN FRANCE CHAP. PAGE XI. CARNOt's presidency BOULANGEr's apogee and AFTfiR- WARDS ......... 307 XII. THfi GREAT PANAMA SCANDAL ...... 343 XIII. THfi ANARCHIST TERROR THE ASSASSINATION OF CARNOT . 372 XIV. THE PRESIDENCIES OP JEAN CASIMIR - PERIER AND fIlIX FAURE ......... 404 XV. THE PRESIDENCY OF ^MILE LOUBET THE RUSSIAN ALLIANCE AND THE ENTENTE CORDIALE ..... 449 XVI. THE PRESIDENCY OF ARMAND FALLIERES CONCLUSION . 466 ADDENDA AND ERRATA ....... 489 INDEX 493 ILLUSTRATIONS I. ADOLPHE THIERS . . Frontispiece II. IJON GAMBETTA IN 1870 . To face page S2 III. MARSHAL MACMAHON . 128 IV. JULES GEEVY 226 V. SADI CARNOT 312 VI. JEAN CASIMIR-PERIER . 392 VII. FELIX FAURE 424 VIII. EMILE LOUBET 448 IX. AEMAND FALLIERES 466 REPUBLICAN FRANCE CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The Revolution of 1870 : An Episode — L^on Gambetta — General Trochu — Jules Favre — Other Members of the Government of National Defence — Some of its Errors — The Germans and the Continuance of the War — The Fighting in the Provinces — Disadvantages and Hardships of the French — The Army of the Loire — The great Battle of Le Mans — The Arctic Retreat — A Recollection of Lord Kitchener — The Siege and Capitulation of Paris — France and her Armies at the Armistice — Gambetta's Efforts — The Necessity of Peace — Fall of Gambetta — The Elections— Thiers Chief of the Executive Power. It was the afternoon of Sunday, September 4, 1870 — the third day after the disaster of Sedan. The Second Empire had fallen, Napoleon III. was a prisoner of war, the Empress Eugenie a fugitive. While thousands of Parisians were still streaming towards the H6tel-de-Ville, there to acclaim the Government of the new Republic, a little cortege passed along the Avenue Marigny in the direction of the Place Beauvau, adjacent to the j^lysee Palace. At the head of it came a dozen red-shirted Francs-tireurs de la Presse, whose bugler sounded the familiar strains of " La Casquette du Pere Bugeaud," while their young officer flourished his sword as if to warn all inquisitive folk from venturing too near. This officer, it happened, was a certain Henri Chabrillat, who, prior to the war, had already acquired some reputation as a journalist. In later years he leased a Paris theatre, the Ambigu, where he staged ^mile Zola's Nana, confiding the title-role of the play to the fair and fickle Leontine Massin, with whom he became 2 REPUBLICAN FRANCE infatuated. When she had ruined and deserted him he put a pistol to his head. Behind Chabrillat and his men as they marched along the Avenue Marigny came one of those old-fashioned four-wheel cabs, drawn by two little Breton nags, which were familiar enough to the Parisians of that period. In addition to the driver, seven persons had found accommodation in or on the vehicle. There were four passengers inside, a fifth sat beside the cabman, while on the roof were two others, each tightly grasping the rails which usually served to prevent luggage from falling to the ground. One of these two passengers, a thick- set man of five-and-thirty, with light hair and a red scrubby beard, answered to the name of Eugene SpuUer. Born in Burgundy, but of Teutonic — some have said Bavarian, and others Badener — origin, he was known more or less in French art and newspaper circles by some bludgeon-like criticisms both of Meissonier's battle-pictures and of the foreign policy of the Empire. With his friends, however, he was fonder of talking of Schopenhauer, Schlegel, and Fichte, on whose works, which he knew by heart, he mused, when alone, for hours at a stretch, a pipe in his mouth the while, and a glass mug of beer before him. But he was destined to play a very considerable part in French politics, long as a kind of Eminence grise, and ultimately as one of the Republic's Ministers for Foreign Affairs. Behind the cab, laden as we have described, came a small troop of enthusiastic citizens exchanging cries of "Vive la Republique ! " with the onlookers whom they passed ; and tvhile the bugle sounded yet another fanfare the procession crossed the Place Beauvau and halted outside the lofty wrought-iron gates of the Ministry of the Interior. Some of the cab's passengers then alighted, the first to do so being a man of two-and-thirty, of average height and of a robust but still fairly slim figure. He had somewhat long and wavy black hair and a full, glossy, black beard. His nose was aquiline, almost of the Semitic type ; his under-lip full and sensual ; one eye attracted you by its ardour and mobility, whereas the other, being false, stared with a vitreous blindness. Garmented in one of those black frock-coat suits then favoured by all French professional men, with his shirt-front badly rumpled, his narrow black neck-tie all awry, and his seedy-looking silk hat set on the back of his head, thus allowing one to note both LlfiON GAMBETTA 8 the height and the breadth of his brow, this individual stepped towards a chubby provincial infantryman standing as sentry at the Ministry gates, and exclaimed imperatively : "Au nom de la Republique, faites ouvrir cette grille ! " The injunction was heard by the concierge, who had already come forth from his lodge and who hastened to open the gates ; which done, he stood aside, bowing humbly, his velvet-tasselled smoking-cap dangling from his hand, while, at Chabrillat's command, the sentry presented arms, and the cab, preceded by the passengers who had alighted, rolled into the gravelled courtyard. Another shout of " Vive la Republique ! " then went up from the onlookers, who seemed very desirous of following, but the same individual who had ordered the gates to be opened, now caused them to be shut, and turning to the little crowd he addressed it hastily, to this effect: "Citizens, be calm, I conjure you. I am here in the name of the Republic. There is much to be done. We have thrown off the despotism of twenty years, but we must not forget that France is invaded. Great duties, great responsibilities, great dangers confront us, and must be grappled with at once. If we do so unflinchingly victory will assuredly be ours, for it is only the Empire which is dead — not France, she is but wounded, and her very wounds will inflame her with renewed courage. But, now, retire in confidence to your homes. Await the call of the Republic, it will come swiftly, and I know that you will all respond to it. I promise you that the whole nation shall be armed. What- ever effort may be needed we shall make it, so courage and confidence, trust in us as we shall trust in you ! " ^ Then again came a shout of "Long live the Republic!" mingled this time with cries of " Death to the Prussians ! " and " Long live Gambetta ! " But Gambetta — the reader will have already divined, we think, that it was he who had spoken — tarried at the gate no longer. Followed by his friends, he hurried away across the courtyard, and took possession of the deserted Ministry of the Interior. He had come thither in hot haste from the H6tel-de-Ville, which with his parliamentary colleagues Cremieux and Keratry he had been the first to reach after the tumultuous proclama- ' From our somewhat imperfect notes made at the time. We were then hving in the Rue de Miromesnil dose by, and were returning from the invasion of the Palais Bourbon, etc. , when we witnessed the incident we have narrated. 4 REPUBLICAN FRANCE tion of the Republic on the steps of the Palais Bourbon. At the H6tel-de-Ville he had proclaimed the new regime afresh, and had participated in the summary selection of the so-called Government of National Defence — a name which was suggested by Henri Rochefort, who had just been released from the prison of Ste. Pelagic. The actual members of the Government were Emmanuel Arago, Adolphe Cremieux, Jules Favre, Jules Ferry, Leon Gambetta, Louis Gamier-Pages, Alexandre Glais- Bizoin, Eugene Pelletan, Ernest Picard, Henri Rochefort, and Jules Simon — that is, all the deputies of Paris excepting Thiers, who refused office. They eventually accepted General Trochu, the military governor of the capital, as their President, and apportioned, as we shall see, various ministries and other offices among certain of their friends. But Gambetta did not remain at the H6tel-de-Ville while all such matters of detail were being settled. Before the actual constitution of the Board of Government, as one may call it, he had appointed, without consulting his colleagues, Emmanuel Arago's brother Etienne, Mayor of Paris ; but for the rest he quitted the H6tel-de-Ville as soon as an opportunity presented itself, and, accompanied by his henchmen, proceeded by devious ways — owing to the great crowds in the streets — to the Ministry of the Interior, of which he was eager to obtain possession. He knew indeed that this particular department was coveted by his colleague, Ernest Picard, and he feared lest the discussions at the H6tel-de-Ville should result in the latter securing it. With all despatch, then, he seized it himself, organised his cabinet, and in other ways exercised authority, while his colleagues of the new Government were still discussing the distribution of various administrative offices. At that moment Gambetta was certainly not the man whom the majority of them would have chosen for the Home Department, but they soon had to bow to the fait accompli. Very opportunely had the young orator remembered the Latin tag about Fortune favouring the audacious. It is not unworthy of note that in that hour of Revolution Gambetta in no wise aspired to the control of military affairs. He was a civilian, an advocate, and had never even been called upon to serve in the ranks of the army. Thus he knew little or nothing of military matters, the direction of which he was content to leave to others, his own ambition being to secure L^ON GAMBETTA 5 the most important civilian post of the new regime. Before long, however, circumstances, far more than actual desire, placed the supreme control of military as well as civil affairs through- out the uninvaded provinces of France in his hands. From the time when he left beleaguered Paris he had to defend as well as govern the country, becoming virtually its Dictator. Although Gambetta thus rose to be the most important, he was not at the outset the best known member of the Government of National Defence ; for he was comparatively a new-comer in the political world. In the days of Louis Philippe his father had migrated from Genoa to Cahors, an interesting little town of southern France, the birthplace of Clement Marot, and once the capital of the quaint region of Quercy. At Cahors, on the Place de la Cathedrale, Gambetta's father established a so-called Bazar Ginois, where olive -oil, wine, sugar and sundry other groceries, together with metal and glass ware and crockery, were sold. It was, however, in the Rue du Lycee that the future statesman was born on April 2, 1838. One day, some nine or ten years later, while the boy stood watching a cutler who was piercing rivet holes in some knife-handles, a drill, bounding from the appliance used in the work, struck his left eye, the sight of which he lost. As regards his education he first attended, it seems, the school of the Christian Brothers, going later to the college of Cahors, where he was known to his school - fellows by the nickname of Molasses junior {Melasse jeune). But at last his thrifty father, having saved suiEcient money, sent him to Paris to study for the profession of the law. Alphonse Daudet first met him about that time, at the bohemian Hotel du Senat in the Quartier Latin, and subsequently traced a repulsive, malicious, and doubtless exaggerated portrait of him, some portion of which we here venture to exhume : How unbearable those young Gascons were ! What a fuss they made over nothing, how silly, how full of bounce, how turbulent they were. I particularly remember one of them, the noisiest one, the greatest gesticulator of the whole band. I can still see him entering the dining-room, his back bent, his shoulders swaying, his face aflame, and one-eyed also. As soon as he appeared all the other equine heads around the table were raised, and he was greeted with loud neighs of: "Ah! ah! ah! here's Gambetta ! " . . . He sat down noisily, spread himself over the table, or threw himself back in his chair, perorated, struck the 6 REPUBLICAN FRANCE table with his fists, laughed loudly enough to break the windows, pulled all the table-cloth towards himself, sent his spittle flying about the place, got drunk without drinking, snatched the dishes away from you, took the words out of your mouth, and after talk- ing the whole time, went off without having said anything. He was Gaudissart and Gazonal combined, that is to say the most rustic and loudest mouthed bore that can be imagined. ^ For a time Gambetta certainly vegetated. But in the first- floor room of the famous Cafe Procope, of which he became a frequenter, he made the acquaintance of all the aspiring young men then dwelling in the Quartier Latin, all the embryonic revolutionists in politics, literature, and art. And though after becoming an advocate he remained for a time comparatively briefless, he began to exercise no little influence at the Confer- ence Mole, the famous debating society of young Parisian barristers. At last his hour came; he defended the revolu- tionary journalist Delescluze, when the latter was prosecuted by the Imperial Government for promoting a subscription for the erection of a monument to Baudin, the Republican deputy shot down at Louis Napoleon's Coup d'Etat ; and by the speech which the young man made on that occasion (November 14, 1868) — a speech indicting the Second Empire and its origin in the most uncompromising fashion — he leapt into sudden notoriety. Becoming in the following year a deputy, he pitted himself against Emile Ollivier and other partisans of the " Liberal " Empire. He defended Rochefort in the Legislative Body, denounced the last Imperial Plebiscitum, demanded — in vain as it happened — the production of diplomatic documents when hostilities were pending against Prussia, and repeatedly intervened in discussions on military and other important measures after the earlier reverses of the war. He asked, for instance, that the National Guard should be armed, that Paris should be placed in a proper state of defence, and that the Emperor should lay down the chief command. At that diffi- cult period, indeed, Gambetta displayed great vigour in the discharge of his parliamentary duties, and each day saw his influence increase among the enemies of the Empire. Finally, when the Palais Bourbon was invaded on September 4, he played the supreme part in the proceedings, though not a ^ For the rest we must refer the reader to Alphonse Daudet's Lettres d un Absent — first impression only ; the sketch being omitted from all subse- quent editions. GENERAL TROCHU 7 completely successful one, for he wished to compel the Legis- lative Body to vote in due form the dethronement of the Emperor and his dynasty — a course which seemed advisable in view of future possibilities, but which could not be followed owing to the impatience of the multitude. To that impatience Gambetta ultimately yielded like his colleagues of the Opposi- tion, and the Revolution was forthwith consummated. If, however, the strenuous part played by Gambetta for some time past had made him, like Henri Rochefort, one of the idols of the Parisian masses, he did not inspire anything like the same confidence among more thoughtful Frenchmen, who regarded him not only as a very advanced Republican but as a somewhat dangerous one also. Again, General Trochu, who became President of the new Government, was more esteemed in certain military circles than actually famous or popular among Frenchmen generally. Born in 1815 on Belle- Ile, off the coast of Brittany, he had been in Louis Philippe's time the favourite aide-de-camp of Marshal Bugeaud. Under the Empire he had largely organised the Crimean Expedition, and had served as aide-de-camp to St. Arnaud. Familiar with the many defects of the Imperial military system, he had de- nounced them in a work entitled VArm.ee fian^aise en 1867, which, while it gave much offence in French official regions, attracted the attention of military circles all the world over, in such wise that no fewer than eighteen large editions of it were issued in the course of a year or two. Suspected of " Orleanism " and disliked as a reformer, Trochu had failed to secure any important command at the outset of the Franco-German War, and it was mainly the pressure of the parliamentary Opposition and the popular Parisian newspapers which procured him the post of Governor of the capital after the earlier French reverses. Even then he was distrusted by the Empress and. her entourage as well as by the Minister of War, General Cousin-Montauban, Count de Palikao.^ At the Revolution Trochu was virtually powerless by reason, largely, of Palikao's action in depriving him of effective command ; still, according to his own account, he wished to save the Legislative Body from invasion, and was on his way to the Palais Bovu-bon when he encountered Jules Favre, who ' Other particulars concerning Trochu will be found in our Court of the Tuilmea, 185Z-W0. London : Chatto and Windus, 1907. 8 REPUBLICAN FRANCE told him that all was over and begged him to repair to the H6tel-de-Ville. Trochu at first refused to do so, and returned to his quarters at the Louvre, whither presently came a deputation consisting of Glais-Bizoin, a member of the new Government, Steenackers, soon to be director of the telegraph services, and Daniel Wilson, an Opposition member of the Legislative- Body and subsequently son-in-law of Jules Gr^vy, President of the Republic. These ambassadors renewed the request that Trochu would go to the H6tel-de-Ville and support the new administration. Before replying, the general, like many Frenchmen at critical moments of their lives — we in no wise blame them — consulted his wife ; and she assenting, he went to the H6tel-de-Ville. Favre thereupon begged him to assume the direction of military affairs and rally the troops, who, officers and men alike, had dispersed through Paris. Trochu's reply was to inquire if the new Government intended to respect religion, property, and family ties, a question answered affirmatively by the eight members present. There- upon the general declared that he also needed the "moral adhesion" of the War Minister, whose subordinate he deemed himself as long as the Minister remained at the War Office. He therefore called on Palikao, who advised him to assume the proffered direction of military matters, as otherwise, with the prevailing confusion, "all might be lost." Trochu then returned to the H6tel-de-Ville, and, premising that, in the existing situation, military considerations were paramount and that it was necessary he should be unhampered in his actions by any division of authority, he claimed, as the price of his adhesion, the Presidency of the new Government, which had been previously assigned to Jules Favre. To that course the others assented, even as Trochu, on his side, assented to the inclusion of Rochefort (whom he now first saw) among the members of the administration. The new President, then five-and-fifty years old, was a little man, short and slight, with a waspish waist. Completely bald, he had a curiously-rounded cranium, strong jaws, and a very prominent chin. On the whole, his face was perhaps more expressive of stubbornness than of energy. A fervent Catholic, possessed of many private virtues, an excellent son, husband, and brother, his competence for the position he assumed resided chiefly in his powers of organisation. As a divisional general GENERAL TROCHU 9 he had given a good account of himself at Solferino in 1869, but that had been his only notable command in the field. Though he possessed real ability as an organiser he had a curious defect, such as seldom appears in a man of that stamp. He was verbose, he not only spoke and " proclaimed " far too often, but on every occasion he used three times as many words as Napoleon I., for instance, would have done. Verbosity was indeed the sin of many members of the Government of National Defence, of many of its officials, and many of its most famous adherents, such as Hugo, Quinet, and Louis Blanc. Glancing in these later times at all the literature of that period, pro- clamations, circulars, addresses, speeches and so forth, one is struck by their redundancy, their interminable length. Colonel Lecomte, an able Swiss officer, has pungently remarked : " Composed so largely of eloquent advocates and clever litth-ateurs, and presided over by a general who was even more of a litterateur and an advocate than all his colleagues put together, the National Defence Government was better suited to adorn the French Academy than to fill, as it said, the breach." One of its number, Jules Favre — its Vice-President when Trochu took the higher post — was indeed an Academician. Later, his colleague Jules Simon became one ; so did Eugene Pelletan, and so too did Charles de Freycinet, Gambetta's coadjutor in the provinces. Moreover, Favre, Cremieux, Gambetta, Picard, Ferry, Arago, and Glais-Bizoin were all advocates ; Pelletan and Jules Simon were literary men, Rochefort was a journalist. Some, however, had occupied political offices under the Second Republic — that of 1848. Among these were, first, Gamier-Pages, who had then for a short time controlled the national finances, and contributed by his obnoxious measures to bring the Republican regime into odium ; and, secondly, Jules Favre, who had served for a brief season as Under-Secretary for Foreign Affiiirs. He now became Minister for that Department, though he was in no wise the man to contend at all successfully with one so astute as Count Bismarck. Born at Lyons in 1809, renowned for his oratory which was more mellifluous than stirring, chief spokesman of the Re- publican parliamentary Opposition to the^ Second Empire, bdtormier of the Bar of Paris, leading counsel for the defence 10 REPUBLICAN FRANCE in the Orsini conspiracy and other famous political cases of the period, Favre was probably the best known and most respected of the members of the new Government. A man of rugged exterior, heavy and fairly tall, with a mass of more or less tangled wavy hair, a lofty brow, kindly eyes, and a large mouth with a thick pendent under-lip, he wore no moustache — advocates, indeed, were then debarred from wearing any — but he had a full and somewhat unkempt beard. A Protestant in religion, though he pleaded for Mile, de la Merliere in the famous affair of the "miracles" of La Salette, Favre enjoyed a great reputation for integrity, even austerity, but unfortunately there was a skeleton in his cupboard, as was shown subsequent to the war. While he was still quite a young man he had fallen in love with a Mme. Vernier, who had been known in her maiden days as Mile. Jeanne Charmont. She had contracted a very unhappy marriage with a certain Louis jAdolphe Vernier, who dabbled in shady financial affairs; and finding her life with him intolerable, and reciprocating the passion which Favre had conceived for her, she at last quitted her husband and lived with her lover as his wife. There was then no divorce law in France, and consequently no means of regularising the position. For the rest, everybody believed the young couple to be duly married. Favre, at the time, was virtually unknown, but even when he had made his way in the world people still imagined that the charming and good-hearted woman who shared his life was legally entitled to the position she occupied. Children were born of the connection, and Favre, although a barrister, well acquainted with the law and the penalties it specified, registered those children as his legitimate offspring. By doing so he rendered himself liable to fine and imprisonment, but he was carried away by his desire to hide the truth from his children in order that they might not at some future time blush for their origin and reproach their parents. That he committed an offence against the law is certain, but from the standpoint of equity he wronged no one. However, that was not everything. Vernier, the husband, raised no public scandal at the time of the elopement, being content to let his wife go. But some suspicious financial transactions having compelled him to quit Paris, he took up his residence in Algeria, and subsisted there by levying black- JULES FAVRE 11 mail on Favre, who, to avoid exposure, paid him a regular allowance. For many years this highly successful man, head of his profession, leader of his party, member of the French Academy, encompassed by all the home affections which usually conduce to happiness of life, lived in daily dread of seeing himself denounced by Vernier, if he should fail to com- ply with the latter's demands for money. Had the divulgation of the truth preceded the downfall of the Empire, Favre would certainly have been prosecuted, for the opportunity of ruining such a redoubtable adversary would have been one which the supporters of the Imperial institutions would have eagerly seized. But the facts did not become known until the time when Favre and Thiers, each striving to do his best for France, were anxiously negotiating with Bismarck the peace following the Franco-German War. That was considered a proper moment to stab the un- fortunate Minister for Foreign Affairs in the back, to com- promise and discredit him in full view of the enemy. A Frenchman was guilty of that grossly unpatriotic action, a Frenchman, however, who was also a Socialist, a lean, spectacled, ranting individual named Milliere, whom extremist Parisians had lately elected as a deputy. This man contributed the whole story of Favre and the Verniers to a newspaper called Le Vengeur, which was conducted by the most cowardly of all the revolutionaries of that period, Felix Pyat, a plotter who always egged on others, but who invariably contrived to save his own particular hide. At first nobody believed the story, but after it had been repeated and enlarged upon in various directions,^ the National Assembly called upon Favre to vindicate his reputation. The unhappy man could only hang his head, and confess — -weeping bitterly the while — that he had, indeed, made false declarations respecting his children's legitimacy. The Assembly listened to him in deep silence — too shocked, it seemed, for words. He was no favourite with the majority, he had simply retained office because apart from Thiers himself it was difficult to find anybody willing to accept the humiliating duty of treating with Germany and setting his name to the instrument which would finally sever Alsace and Lorraine from France. Favre was never prosecuted for ' The truth had previously become known to just a few of Favre's intimates, but they had kept it secret. 12 REPUBLICAN FRANCE his infringement of the registration law, but the exposure, falling on a man whose reputation as a politician and diplomatist was already tottering, proved terrible, and after the conclusion of peace and the fall of the Commune he resigned office. As for Milliere, he was shot by some of the Versailles troops on the steps of the Pantheon during the Bloody Week. Four members of the National Defence Government, Emmanuel Arago, Gamier-Pages, Pelletan, and Glais-Bizoin, abstained from taking charge of any particular Ministerial department. The first, a tall, long-jawed, clean-shaven, and extremely loud-voiced man of fifty-eight, was a son of the great Arago, and became chairman of a committee appointed to report on judicial reorganisation. To the career of the second, an amiable, tall, slim septuagenarian, with rugged features and long white hair curling over his shoulders, we have previously referred. The third, Pelletan, then fifty-seven years old, had written books on the rights of man, family life, and royal philosophers, besides some trenchant philippics directed against the alleged demoralising influence of the Empire. Further, he had directed a Republican organ called La Tribune in conjunction with Glais-Bizoin, another septua- genarian of the band, who had sat as an ardent democrat in the various French legislatures ever since 1830 and had made a distinct reputation, not by any speeches of his own but by the caustic, galling, and irrelevant manner in which he per- petually interrupted the speeches of others. Glais-Bizoin was short and lean, with a glistening cranium, hollow cheeks, a scrubby beard which he dyed, and a nose like a hawk's beak.^ He became one of the Defence delegates in the provinces, where he often inspected camps of instruction and reviewed new levies, to whom he would say with as much majesty as he could assume : " Soldats, je suis content de vous ! " That phrase was, of course, borrowed from Napoleon, even as Jules Favre, consciously or unconsciously, derived the words, " Not a stone of our fortresses, not an inch of our territory," from the ancient oath of the Knights Templars, as Gambetta derived his boast about a compact with victory or death from ^ The above description of Glais-Bizoin has been borrowed from our book, Emile Zola, Novelist and Reformer, in which a few further particulars concerning him are given. Zola became for a time his secretary. MEN OF THE NATIONAL DEFENCE 13 Comeille, and as Rochefort, moreover, derived the rfghne's very name — Government of National Defence — from Michelet's History of France, in which it is assigned to the Armagnac party of the fifteenth century. But let us say something of the other new rulers of France. Jules Simon,^ who was well known by his writings on natural religion, liberty of conscience, duty, education, juvenile and female labour, and whose high-perched flat on the Place de la Madeleine had been the favourite rendezvous of the Opposition deputies of the Empire's Legislative Body, became Minister of Public Instruction. Simon was then fifty-six years old, stout, with curly hair and whiskers, and a Semitic cast of countenance. His colleague Cremieux was really a Jew. He had been Minister of Justice in 1848, and again took that post in spite of his four- and -seventy years. Moreover, he was actually the man first chosen to govern provincial France on behalf of the Government generally, his colleagues wishing to remain in Paris, whither the Germans were marching. Ernest Picard, a jovial-looking and extremely corpulent advocate, just under fifty years of age, became Minister of Finance; while Jules Ferry, another advocate and forty-seven years old, took the post of Secretary- General, which he afterwards relinquished for that of Mayor of Paris — an office that made him largely responsible for the rations measured out to the Parisians in the latter days of the German Siege. We shall have to speak more particularly of Ferry in other sections of this book. Finally, among the members proper of the Govern- ment, there was Henri Rochefort, the famous pamphleteer imprisoned by the Empire for his attacks upon it, and now raised to office. But thirty-nine years old, slim and straight as a dart, with a wonderful toupet of very dark curly hair, a lofty brow, deep-set flashing eyes, high and prominent cheek- bones, a curiously misshapen nose, a small moustache and goatee, he was the most popular member of the National Defence among the extremists of the capital. He became President of the Committee of Barricades. Of him as of Ferry we shall have to speak again. Let us now pass from the twelve actual members of the ' His real patronymic was Suisse, but his Christian names having served as his noms de plmne when he produced his first books, he remained knovi'n by them, and virtually discarded his surname. 14. REPUBLICAN FRANCE Government of the Defence to the more important men, whose co-operation they secured. First there was General Le Flo, an old Republican soldier, who had been cashiered by Napoleon III. for resisting the Coup d';6tat in 1851. He became Minister of War under Trochu. Vice- Admiral Fourichon, an oflScer of considerable merit but a sexagenarian, was appointed Minister of Marine, and afterwards accompanied Cremieux into the provinces ; while Magnin, a provincial iron-master and landed proprietor, obtained the portfolio of Agriculture and Commerce, in which respect, like Ferry, he had to deal with the provisioning of the Parisians. Count Emile de Keratry, a Breton who had seen service in Mexico, became the first Prefect of Police, being succeeded for a short time by Edmond Adam, the urbane and liberal-minded husband of a lady who subse- quently exercised much influence in the parliamentary world of the Republic. An energetic lawyer named Cresson took Adam's place after an insurrection which, breaking out in besieged Paris on October 31 when the surrender of Metz became known, would have overthrown the Government had it not been for the vigour of Jules Ferry and Ernest Picard. Last but not least in the long list of the Defence Ad- ministration came Frederic Dorian, Minister of Public Works, a handsome, frank, pleasing man, in his fifty-sixth year, who, of all the Government's coadjutors, was the most practical, active, and competent. A native of Montbeliard, a great iron-master and manufacturer in the St. Etienne district, he had also been a deputy since 1869, but had never been looked upon as one of Radical views. He was the only man of the ruling band who emerged from the trials of the Siege of Paris with an enhanced reputation. He largely provided for the defence of the city, he cast cannon and mitrailleuses, perfected ramparts, constructed redoubts, built armoured locomotives, trained engineers, and generally acquitted himself of his office in a way which left no cause for reproach. At the insurrection of October 31, such was his popularity that he might have become Dictator, but he was too loyal a man to seize such an opportunity. Great as was his usefulness in Paris, it might have proved greater still in the provinces, had he been sent out as one of Gambetta's assistants. He died prematurely, amid universal regret in 1873. ' The Government of National Defence was completely MEN OF THE NATIONAL DEFENCE 15 installed by September 6. On the 19th the investment of Paris by the Germans was completed. Jules Favre, who had passed through their lines, was at that moment conferring with Bismarck respecting both an armistice for the election of a National Assembly, and the ultimate conditions of peace. Those fixed by the German statesman were the cession to Germany of the two Alsatian departments of the Lower and Upper Rhine and a part of the Moselle department inclusive of Metz, Chateau Salins, and Soissons. Even the conditions for an armistice were onerous and humiliating, and Favre returned to Paris after a fruitless journey. One great mistake of the National Defence Government was that it remained in the capital. Instead of sending delegates into the provinces — as it did on September 12 and 15 — it should have left delegates in Paris and have transported itself to some other city, there to organise both the capital's relief and the defence of the country generally. Moreover, the provincial delegates were at first Cremieux (74 years old), Glais- Bizoin (70 years old), and Fourichon (66 years old), who, as General Trochu afterwards admitted, had been chosen on account of their great age ! To them, fortunately for France, Gambetta (then 32 years old) was ultimately adjoined. He had proposed at the very outset that at least the Ministers of the Interior, Finance, War and Foreign Affairs should quit the capital even if others remained there ; and a month after he and his secretary SpuUer quitted Paris by balloon (October 7) he urgently renewed that request. But he did so in vain. It was also a great mistake to accumulate and lock up such large military forces in the capital. The city did not need nearly half a million defenders. When the German Siege began there were in Paris about 90,000 regulars (including all categories), a naval contingent of 13,500 men, and 110,000 provincial Mobile Guards — that is a force of 213,000 men in addition to all the National Guards — whereas 100,000, over and beyond the National Guards (280,000 in number), would certainly have sufficed for all defensive purposes, with due allowance also for the suppression of any riots which malcontents Jmight provoke in the city. As General Chanzy said in his evidence at the Inquiry held after the war: "The Government made a tremendous mistake {vme favie Snorme) in keeping in Paris everything that might have been so useful in the provinces. 16 REPUBLICAN FRANCE The necessary forces had to be left there, of course, but not over 400,000 men." At the same inquiry Trochu admitted that the Government had erred in refusing to quit Paris — as it might have done, leaving him behind. Jules Favre was unanimously begged to go to Tours, but refused, and not till then was Gambetta sent out. The latter, at the same inquiry, spoke as follows : "Only one thing was thought of — the defence of Paris, and that idea became so exclusive that no heed was given to any- thing else. It occurred to me that the rest of the country was being somewhat overlooked. But it was thought that Paris would suffice not only to deliver herself,^ but even to drive the enemy out of the country. ... I think that among the mistakes which may have been made that was the capital one." On Cremieux, Glais-Bizoin, and Fourichon assuming the direction of affairs in the provinces they found very few forces at their disposal and did little to increase them. But when Gambetta had joined them at Tours, where they were established, armies sprang up as if by magic. Trochu and Favre, shut up in Paris, were, as the former relates, astonished at the rapidity with which the provincial armies were got together. They had formed a poor opinion of provincial resources generally. On the German side Moltke had imagined that the war would end with the advance on Paris. Until then there had been only a few slight mistakes in his arrange- ments ; but when the provinces rose, at the inspiration of the Delegate-Government of Defence, he found himself at a loss. The truth, long hidden from the world by the German General Staff, was at last established peremptorily by Hoenig, Goltz, Blumenthal, and others. King, afterwards Emperor, William and Bismarck held views very different from Moltke's ; under- standing better than he did the character of the French nation, they foresaw the further campaigning in the provinces. Again, while Moltke was fully acquainted with the country between the Rhine and Paris he had much less knowledge of other regions of France, and of the possibilities of effective warfare on 1 Yet history shows that it is well-nigh impossible for an invested army to raise a siege without the co-operation of relief forces. Trochu himself admits it in his Memoirs, and his " plan," at first, was purely and simply one for the defence of Paris. THE WAR AFTER SEDAN 17 the part of the French. At the outset, after Sedan and the investment of Paris, the great strategist made several mistakes which might have proved disastrous had the French been stronger ; and, curious to relate, it was chiefly King William who set Moltke right, at times even overruling his decisions. Sufiicient evidence has been produced of recent years to establish that statement as historical fact, and to show that the present Kaiser's "illustrious grandfather" was a far more capable soldier than the admirers of Moltke — and of Moltke only — were in former times willing to acknowledge. It is not our purpose here to relate in detail either the many episodes of the siege of Paris or of the war in the provinces. The recital of either would require a bulky volume. With respect to the war in the provinces, it is to be regretted that no complete independent work on the subject exists in our language. The able record produced by Colonel Lonsdale- Hale^ extends, unfortunately, no further than the second occupation of Orleans in December 1870, and gives no account of either the operations in the North or in the East of France. Had a complete book on the subject been available among our officers some time before the Boer war, it would have imparted to them a far greater amount of useful knowledge than could ever be acquired from the deluge of works on the campaign which ended at Sedan. We have invasion scares in this country, and those who would form an idea of the possibilities of defence possessed by a nation having only a small force of regulars at its disposal, must refer to what was done in France in the latter part of 1870. Early in the war the French Francs-tireiu-s, often somewhat theatrically costumed, were laughed at by foreigners ; but there is plenty of evidence to show that as time went on they worried the Germans exceedingly, the latter even being unnerved, when in small detachments, by their fear of those guerillas. Again, the heroic resistance oflered in October, first by the villages of Varize and Civry, and immediately after- wards by the little town of Chateaudun in Eure-et-Loir, on which last occasion Francs-tireurs and inhabitants, 1200 in number, fought valiantly against 6000 infantry, a regiment of cavalry and four batteries of artillery under General von ' The People's War in France, by Colonel Lonsdale-Hale. London : H. Rees, 1904. C 18 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Wittich, fairly staggered the Germans. The reprisals were terrible: the seventy-four houses of Varize, the fifty-three houses of Civry, and two hundred and thirty-five at Chateaudun were committed to the flames, while a number of non-combatant inhabitants, including women, were massacred. It was hoped that this terrible lesson would suflice, but for some time the Germans feared lest the example set by Chateaudun, Civry, and Varize might be repeated. Had the temper of the people been everywhere the same it is certain that the progress of the invasion must have been retarded. While France made great efforts during the latter part of 1870, she was, as in the earlier stages of the war, very unfortunate. Only two of her generals — Chanzy and Faidherbe — were at all of the first class. The winter, too, was one of the most cruel of the century, and its efiects were felt more by the raw French levies than by the more seasoned Germans. Again, the French supplies, derived so largely from abroad, were often terribly defective, the rifles and carbines useless, the boots soled with some abominable composition whose durability was of the briefest, and the cartridges a mockery and a sham. The United States and Great Britain may divide that disgrace between them. Many a time did we handle Springfields and other firearms which were absolutely unserviceable, but with which, none the less, unlucky Mobilises were sent into action. Many a time, too, did we find men wearing English-made boots, only the "uppers" of which remained ! One particular hardship endured by the French troops was that of having to camp at night in the open. General d'Aurelle de Paladines, when commanding the Loire army, made that a strict rule, holding that the men might become demoralised and desert if they were billeted on the villagers. It is certain that the older peasantry in Toiu'aine were against the pro- longation of the war. Faidherbe had a similar experience in northern France, and issued a similar regulation. Only in the large towns were the soldiers billeted on the inhabitants. Elsewhere they slept in tents— if they had any — or absolutely unsheltered, and this amid the slush of autumn and the snow of winter, and although villages were generally close at hand. Further, owing to the enemy's proximity — particularly during the long retreat of General Chanzy with the second army of THE LOIRE ARMY 19 the Loire — an order went forth that no camp-fires should be lighted. The effect of all this both on the physique and on the morale of the men was very marked. Next day they fell back, and the Germans advanced to their positions ; but they did not quarter their men in the fields, they occupied every village and hamlet, appropriated every available house, cottage, barn and shed, so as to be as comfortable as possible. Further, the French commissariat was often deplorable, and the peasantry, in their folly, secreted food and fodder which they might easily have sold to their fellow-countrymen (who would have been grateful for it), but which was extorted from them, under menace of death and without payment, by the invader on the morrow.i Metz, where Marshal Bazaine had long been shut up with the flower of the former army of France, capitulated on October 27, and a terrible blow was thereby inflicted on the country, for the German Headquarters Staff was then able to transfer the troops which had hitherto blockaded Metz to other regions and prosecute the war there more actively. The force on which the Government at Tours set most of its hopes was the Army of the Loire, which under D'Aurelle de Paladines gained an incomplete victory over the Bavarians under Von der Tann at Coulmiers on November 9. The enemy then had to evacuate Orleans ; but a series of French defeats, due largely to the enemy's superior strength — the engagements of Beaune-la- Rolande (November 28) and Loigny (December 2), followed by the two days' battle of Orleans (December 3 and 4) — brought about the reoccupation of that city by the Germans under Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia and the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Further, the French forces were now dislocated, some being on one, and some on the other side of the Loire, and (D'Aurelle being removed from his command) they were divided into two distinct armies, one of two corps under General Bourbaki and one of three corps under General Chanzy. The former force was styled officially the First and the latter the Second Army of the Loire. As it happened, the operations of the First Army were gradually transferred to the more central and then to the eastern part of France, • The above is written from personal knowledge. We quitted Paris with American " papers " during November, passed through the German Lines and joined the Loire army. 20 REPUBLICAN FRANCE for which reason the name of " Army of the East " ended by prevailing. Chanzy, with the three ccwps di'armee he had rallied, executed a masterly retreat towards the forest of Marchenoir, and gave the Germans no little trouble. Indeed, even Moltke subsequently declared that he was, without doubt, the best French commander with whom the invading armies came in contact. For three days (December 8 to 10) he contested the German advance at Villorceau, but being compelled to resume his retreat, he fell back to the line of the Loir near Vendome. The Delegates of the Defence were now obliged to quit Tours, and installed themselves at Bordeaux. On December 15, after engagements at Moree, Freteval and other localities near Vendome, Chanzy had to retreat again, and this time he with- drew the bulk of his forces to positions in front of Le Mans, the old capital of Maine. The German advance had not gone on without resistance ; it had often been well disputed, the French striving to put the enemy to trouble and inconvenience even if they could not prevent his ultimate success. At Le Mans, and in its vicinity, had been gathered all the supplies for the relief of besieged Paris : a vast amount of railway stock — some scores of locomotives and thousands of vans and trucks laden with provisions, stores of every kind ; and it was certain that a great effort would be made at this point to stem the tide of the invasion. That effort was made, but it failed like others. After some preliminary fighting came a battle of three days' duration (January 10 to 12, 1871) amid snow and ice in the dilBcult country before Le Mans. There were about 170,000 combatants. Though the French forces were no longer such as they had been — having been sorely tried by prolonged retreats— they held their ground well, and the fighting, despite adverse climatic conditions, was marked on most points by gallantry and endurance. Occasional weakness was counter- balanced by the energy of certain commanders, such as Post- Captain Gougeard of the French navy, who, serving as a brigadier, had two horses killed under him and his cap carried away by a projectile in a charge which enabled him to regain a position momentarily seized by the Germans. Unfortunately, on the evening of January 11, a Prussian battalion succeeded in "rushing" a position called La Tuilerie, held by some raw, THE BATTLE OF LE MANS 21 badly-armed, hungry, and exhausted Breton Mobilises, who ought never to have been posted at such an important point. They fled and, every eiFort to retake La Tuilerie failing, it became necessary to fall back behind Le Mans lest the French forces should be cut in halves. Panic spread, moreover, and the night was marked by disgraceful scenes. We can still picture the wretched soldiers fleeing through the town, throw- ing away their weapons, and struck by their indignant officers. In the battle of Le Mans and the terrible retreat which again followed, the Germans took over 20,000 prisoners, with a vast amount of materiel de guerre and other supplies. It was a wonderful and an awful business. A Siberian temperature with incessant snowstorms ; occasional sharp rear- guard actions with a German flying column ; then men desert- ing on all sides ; the railway lines blocked for miles by trains crammed with supplies for Paris; the roads, going towards Laval and Mayenne, similarly blocked by all the impedi- menta of the army ; the horses dying |by the wayside, the famished soldiers cutting steaks from the flanks of the dead beasts and devouring them raw ; many in boots, whose com- position soles had disappeared as we have mentioned, others in sabots, others with mere rags around their feet, and yet others absolutely barefooted, who trudged along woefully till they fell despairing and exhausted on the snow to perish there. Now and again some poor fellow was hoisted on to some baggage waggon, but ambulances, remedies, cordials, there were none. In presence of those scenes we were able to form some idea of what the Retreat from Moscow must have been. Chanzy had first wished to fall back on Alenc^on, but Gambetta, rightly we think, chose the line of the Mayenne, and headquarters were therefore next established at Laval, garrisoned at that moment by a few battalions of Breton Mobilises, in one of which, belonging to the C6tes-du-Nord (we forget its number), a young Englishman was then serving as a private. His name was Horatio Herbert Kitchener. Soon afterwards, when the staff arrangements had been fully settled at Laval, he was employed in connection with the captive- balloon service under Gaston Tissandier, and made a few ascents to assist in topographical observations. He thereby contracted a severe chill and had to be removed to the local hospital, whither his stepmother, then resident at Dinan, came 22 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to nurse him. We fancy that he cannot have forgotten his experiences in those days of rout and disaster. At Laval Chanzy began to reorganise his army, but the end of the war was now at hand. Bourbaki's Army of the East, after a slight success at Villersexel, was badly worsted on the Lisaine (January 15 to 17) and condemned to a retreat which (through some misunderstanding in the ensuing armistice negotiations) eventually threw it into Switzerland. Faidherbe, whose forces were small, had previously fought two indecisive battles at Bapaume and St. Quentin in the North, some advantages resting with him and some with the Germans. However, the fighting, generally, in that region, was hardly of a nature to exercise much influence on the fate of France. That was virtually settled by the fall of Paris, which capitulated on January 28. Thousands of weary people in the provinces had been waiting for that capitulation, feeling that it would be the harbinger of peace. Trochu's first plan as regards the capital had been, as previously stated, a purely defensive one. But early in the siege General Ducrot, his subordinate, conceived the idea of breaking out of the city by way of the valley of the Seine. Trochu was won over to that idea, and great preparations were made for carrying it into effect. But the Delegates at Tours did not attempt relief by way of Normandy ; and after the battle of Coulmiers the Paris authorities found it necessary to abandon the Seine-valley plan, and try a sortie to the east of the city. All sorts of preparations had to be made afresh, but Ducrot finally led the Army of Paris across the Marne, and the battle of Champigny ensued (November 30 and December 2), with the result that the French had to withdraw after some very strenuous fighting on both sides. About that time it was expected that Bourbaki would advance to the relief of the capital with the First Army of the Loire, proceeding by way of the forest of Fontainebleau, but that course proved impracticable, and Paris was reduced to her own resources. On December 21 an attempt was made on the German positions at Le Bourget, north of the city, but was repulsed. Then, on January 19, a kind of forlorn-hope effort was made at Buzenval on the west, but resulted in serious losses among the Parisian National Guards who, having long clamoured to be led against the enemy, figured largely in this sortie— the last one of the THE SIEGE OF PARIS 23 siege. Two days later General Trochu resigned the office of Commander-in-Chief, though not that of President of the Government. The former post was taken by General Vinoy, to whom fell the duty of carrying out the capitulation as negotiated by Fayre and Bismarck on January 28. The suiFerings of the Parisians had been severe during the long blockade. At first 500 oxen and 4000 sheep had been slaughtered daily for their consumption.^ At the end of September meat was rationed, the daily allowance for each individual being about three ounces. Horseflesh was then largely patronised, and somewhat later, when the ration of beef or mutton fell to 1^ oz. per diem, it became more in request than ever, in such wise that on November 13 only some 70,000 horses were left, 30,000 of them being required for military purposes, so that only 40,000 might be utilised as food. Animals from the Jardin des Plantes and the Jardin d'Acclimatation were then slaughtered, and dogs, cats, guinea pigs, and rats were added to the Parisian's fare. Horseflesh was in due course strictly rationed, but the Government abstained as long as possible from the rationing of bread. On December 8, however, it was found that the Government stores both of grain and flour represented only about 24,000 tons, and on January 18 bread (now made of just a little wheaten flour with an admixture of bran, rice, barley, oats, vermicelli, and starch) was rationed at the rate of ten ounces a day, children under five years of age receiving only half that quantity. The meat allowance was then actually under one ounce per diem, so that, on an average, the Parisian obtained only about one quarter of the quantity of food which he usually consumed. Great was the distress, nobly did an Englishman, Mr. — after- wards Sir — Richard Wallace, seek to relieve it. The bombardment — chiefly on the southern side of the Seine — had some moral effect, but the material damage it caused was comparatively small. It killed about 100 and ^ Prior to the siege the average daUy consumption had been 93S oxen, 4680 sheep, S70 pigs, and 600 calves, to which should be added 46,000 head of poultry, game, etc., 60 tons of flsh, and 670,000 eggs. At the moment of the investment on September 19, the Uve stock, collected together (largely in the Bois de Boulogne), amounted to 175,000 sheep, 30,000 oxen, 8800 pigs, and 6000 milch cows. In addition to considerable quantities of grain (wheat and rye) the stock of flour in the hands of the Government or the trade was estimated at about 44,000 tons. U REPUBLICAN FRANCE wounded about 200 people. Far more serious was the health bill of the city. Among the non-combatant population there were in November 7444 deaths against 3863 in November the previous year. In December there were 10,665 deaths against 4214 in December 1869. The proportion rose in the last week of the year to 85 per thousand, whereas 21 per thousand was then the rate in London. In January, between sixty and seventy people died from small-pox every day, and the ravages of bronchitis and pneumonia were always increasing. At last, between January 14 and January 20, the mortality from natural causes rose to no less than 4465, whilst only enough bread for a few more days was left. Thus capitulation became a necessity. It ensued, accompanied by an armistice. Paris paid a war levy of ^8,000,000 ; the forts round the city were occupied by the Germans; the garrison — Line, Mobiles, and Naval con- tingent — altogether about 180,000 men, became prisoners of war ; an armament of 1500 fortress guns and 400 field-pieces went to the enemy as well as large stores of ammunition. A division of 12,000 men was left to the French Government for service inside the city, and the National Guards were allowed to retain their arms. That was done at the request of Jules Favre, who dreaded the result of any attempt to disarm the citizen-soldiery. The consequences were terrible — they were the insurrection of March 18, 1871, the Commune, and the Bloody Week of May. At the time of the capitulation not only was Paris ex- hausted but France, generally, was weary of the struggle. It is true that the South — Gascony, the Pyrenean country, the Lyonnais and the stretch of Rhone departments towards Mar- seilles, had been only indirectly affected by it. The number of southern battalions of Mobilises that went into action during the war was small; yet such fruits as the war left behind it were mainly gathered by Southerners who had not partici- pated in it or known anything of its hardships and horrors. However, the South had given one great man to France, Leon Gambetta, a circumstance which, when the first reaction had passed away, lent it prestige. Only a few years elapsed, and the cry, " Le Midi monte ! " resounded through France. In this rapid survey of the time we have perhaps done scant justice to Gambetta and his helpers. He had a very able THE FALL OF PARIS 25 coadjutor in Charles de Freycinet and another in Count de Chaudordy, but little real good was done by Clement Laurier, the negotiator of the onerous Morgan Loan, and many costly, almost disreputable army contracts. At times Gambetta made mistakes in the direction of military operations, and was unlucky in his selections from a limited number of generals. Further, he sometimes chose sites, as at Conlie, on the confines of Brittany, which were scarcely fit to be camps of instruction for the levies which rose at his bidding. But the man was a patriot, he did his best, his utmost best. With the example of the First Republic's achievements before him, he never despaired of his country. From the material point of view it might un- doubtedly have been more advantageous had peace been signed after Sedan ; but France would then have remained under a stigma of disgrace, never to be wiped away. And Gambetta and those who helped him at least saved their country's honour. They also began their task with several chances in their favour. That France was not exhausted by Sedan was shown by her subsequent efforts, the materiel de giierre she pro- vided and the number of men she raised. A really great general, had such arisen, might have done much with the means produced. We know, by all the revelations of late years, how perturbed the Germans were, at first, by the con- tinuance of the war ; we know the mistakes they made, the opportunities they gave. Again, by prolonging the war after Sedan there was a chance of securing foreign intervention in favour of France — an intervention which, unhappily for Europe during all these subsequent years, never came in any decisive form. Still, for a time it seemed possible ; ^ and as long as there remains any good ground for hoping that one may save one's country, duty requires that one should continue fighting. But after the reverses of Bourbaki on the Lisaine, after the lack of any decisive success on Faidherbe's part in his cramped position in the North, and on Garibaldi's with his heterogeneous little force on the confines of Burgundy, particularly also after the final retreat — almost rout — of the Second Loire Army under Chanzy, coupled, too, with the capitulation of Paris, there was, we feel, even though the South of France remained almost untried, but a very faint chance indeed of retrieving the position. ' We refer to Thiers's eflforts in that respect on p. 38 post. m REPUBLICAN FRANCE It is true that on February 8, 1871, when Chanzy with his customary energy had largely reorganised his army he had under his orders 4952 officers and 227,361 men with 26,797 horses, and 74 batteries of artillery, representing 430 guns. Moreover, there were the armies of the North under Faidherbe and of Le Havre under Loysel, the troops holding the lines of Carentan and stationed at the camp of Cherbourg, two detached corps d'armie (the 24th and 26th) under Pourcet and Billot (who had escaped internment with Bourbaki in Svdtzerland), the Garibaldian army of the Vosges, the corps of Lyons, Nevers, and Bourg, and some remnants of Bourbaki's Army of the East. Including Chanzy's command, those various forces represented 534,000 men. Further, at the regimental depots in diiFerent regions there were 53,000 men ready for service but unarmed, and 62,000 undrilled men. The Gendarmerie could supply another 10,000, and the staff and administrative services an equal number. There were also 18,000 Mobile guards who had never been in action, in various territorial divisions ; and 52,000 Mobilises were stationed at different camps of instruction, and 54,000 more were due there. Additional levies were officially estimated to yield more than another hundred thousand men. Thus with the forces in the field and those ready for service, France could dispose of over 600,000 men, and provide about 260,000 more. On the other hand, according to Major Blurae, the Germans disposed of over 700,000 men in the field (including 570,000 infantry, 63,500 cavalry, and about 40,000 artillery), and there were 250,000 more men in Germany quite ready for service. Some of the German columns were, materially, in a very bad condition, as we had opportunities to observe during the armistice; but on one side there was what may be called a virtually ever-victorious host and, on the other, forces which had retreated almost incessantly after repeated defeats. Among the latter, demoralisation existed on all sides. It was often difficult to keep the men with the colours. At Chateauroux several battalions "demonstrated" in favour of peace; at Issoudun the men requisitioned a railway train to take them home ; in the Nievre a complete column of 400 deserted, men and officers alike ; in the Indre a force of 2300 lost 400 men by desertion in three days. Those instances might easily be multiplied. Further, the men were often wretchedly shod, THE POSITION AT THE ARMISTICE 27 deplorably clad, and at times imperfectly or badly equipped and armed. Moreover, the nation was tired of the struggle. It had lost for the time all grit and strength of character. Feverish hopes, raised again and again, had ever been followed by despair, consternation, and increasing distrust. The country generally had lost confidence in its rulers and generals, and was, largely for that reason, incapable of making the supreme effort which would have been required had the war continued. Thus peace was imperative. Gambetta and a few generals, such as Chanzy, wished to prolong the struggle, but they had to bow to the decisions of the Paris Government. Then it was that Gambetta, who hitherto had placed the interests of France before everything else, with comparatively little regard for party considerations, bethought him of the danger to which the Republican cause was exposed by the disastrous termination of the war. He knew, by the reports of his subordinates, the prefects, that reaction was rampant on many sides, and he resolved to do at least his utmost to prevent any restoration of the Empire. His fears in that respect were groundless, as events showed, the tendency of the reaction being towards the re-establishment of one or other of the former monarchies, under the House of Boxirbon or that of Orleans. Already, at the close of December, Gambetta and his colleagues had dissolved the General Councils of France,^ for which step there was some justification, as they held their mandate from the Empire, and could survive no more than had the latter's defunct Senate and Legislative Body. But, in view of the approaching elections for a National Assembly which was to consider the question of peace — as arranged between the Paris Government and the Germans — the young Dictator took a course contrary to equity and freedom. He decreed that whosoever had served the Empire as a minister, senator, or councillor of state, or had ever been an official Government candidate at elections in the Empire's time, should be in- eligible at the approaching polls. It was a decree worthy of Robespierre. Bismarck protested against it on the ground that the armistice convention stipulated that the elections should take place in all freedom ; there was even a threat of curtailing the armistice, leaving Paris, which was hungering for • Equivalent to our County Councils. 28 REPUBLICAN FRANCE more provisions, to starve, and resuming hostilities; and, as Gambetta refused to give way, the Paris Government despatched Jules Simon to Bordeaux with full powers to remove and arrest him if he did not yield. He thereupon threw up his posts. The elections ensued, resulting in the return of a large reactionary Royalist majority. Nearly all of the forty-three deputies chosen by Paris, however, were Republicans, Louis Blanc coming at the head of the poll, followed immediately by Victor Hugo. Garibaldi was third, Edgar Quinet fourth, and Gambetta fifth on the list of elected candidates. Among the others were several Red Republicans and Socialists, such as Rochefort, Delescluze, Felix Pyat, Gambon, Malon, Coumet, Razoua, and Milliere, who were destined to play more or less conspicuous parts in the approaching convulsion of the Com- mune. Only five acknowledged Bonapartists were returned in all the departments, inclusive of Corsica; though many Orleanists who had sat in the Legislative Body in Imperial times, including two ex -Ministers of the Emperor, Count Daru and M. Buffet,^ were elected. Gambetta was returned in nine departments including that of the Bas Rhin (Strasburg) for which he resolved to sit. Jules Favre was chosen in five, so was Dufaure, an old " parliamentary hand " of whom we shall speak again. Garibaldi secured election in four localities, as did Changarnier, sometime Minister of War under the Second Republic. But the man who polled by far the most votes in all France, who was elected indeed in no fewer than twenty-six depart- ments (inclusive of the Seine, that is Paris), was an ex-Prime Minister of Louis Philippe, a writer who had devoted several years of his life to extolling the genius and glory of Napoleon I., yet who had been one of the victims of the Bonapartist Coup d']^tat of 1851 and had sat in the Legislative Body of the Second Empire as an adversary of Napoleon III. and his policy. A little man he was, almost a dwarf, with a shrewd round face, clean-shaven save for some short white whiskers growing no lower than the ears. He had somewhat pendent cheeks and a broad and lofty forehead, surmounted by a plentiful crop of white hair, worn in a way which suggested Perrault's hero, ' They had served for just a short time in Emile OUivier's administration, taking office not to serve the Empire but to undermine it. See our Court of the Tuileries, p. 389. ADOLPHE THIERS 29 " Riquet with the Tuft." An expression of irony flitted across the lines about the little man's mouth, and, under his drawn brows, his dark eyes sparkled from behind their gold-rimmed glasses with humorous maliciousness. His compact and well- proportioned little body — " il eemblait que sa mere L'avait fait tout petit pour le faire avec soin " — was usually wrapped in a closely-buttoned snuff-coloured frock- coat, one immortalised by a clever portrait, the work of Nellie Jacquemart. Just a scnipgon of white waistcoat could be discerned above the lapels of the coat ; the trousers were usually dark grey, while the silk hat bespoke a respectable antiquity. As for the little man's hands and feet they were as small as those of a young girl. Such was the outward appearance of Adolphe Thiers, who being appointed on February 18, 1871, Chief of the Executive Power by the National Assembly sitting at Bordeaux, concluded, with the co-operation of Jules Favre, the peace negotiations with Germany, hastened by a series of skilful financial measures the liberation of the territory of France occupied by the invading armies, and became the real founder of the Third French Republic. CHAPTER II THIERS — THE GERMANS IN PARIS — THE COMMUNE Parentage, Birth, and Studies of Thiers — Talleyrand's Opinion of him — His Premierships — His Attitude under the Second Republic and the Second Empire — His Diplomatic Missions in 1870 — Survey of his Career and Character — His First Ministry in 1871 — Agitation in Paris — TippUng Habits of the National Guard — Seizure of the City's Armament — Entry of the Germans — Renewed Unrest in Paris — Causes of the Commune — The Guns at Montmartre — Murder of Generals Thomas and Lecomte — Retreat of the Authorities to Versailles — Early Stages of the Insur- rection — Defence of Thiers's Policy — The Insurrection a Crime — The Men of the Commune — Chief Incidents of its Reign — The Bloody Week — The Advance of the Troops — The Conflagrations, Massacres, and Reprisals — The Courts-Martial — Statistics of Sentences. The Thiers family was long established at Marseilles, where the great grandfather of the first President of the Third Republic became a wealthy merchant, largely concerned in the colonial trade of France. He made some unfortunate speculations, however, and was of prodigal tastes, so that at his death the family fortune was not particularly large. Nevertheless, his son, Charles Louis, was a man of position, an advocate at the bar of the Parliament of Aix, and Keeper of the Archives of Marseilles. In 1752 he married Marguerite Bronde, the daughter of a Marseilles merchant, by whom he had two daughters, Virginie and Victoire, and a son, Pierre Louis Marie Thiers. Virginie married an advocate named Gratton, of Aix ; Victoire became the wife of an Englishman, Horace Pretty, who had established himself at Mentone, where he owned an estate ; while Pierre Louis espoused, in the first instance, a Mile. Marie Claudine Fougasse, by whom he had no issue. He acted under his father as sub -archivist of Marseilles, but he was a young man of prodigal, eccentric, and roving 30 ADOLPHE THIERS 31 inclinations, quite destitute also of principle in his relations with women. During the last year of his wife's life he seduced a young lady of good family, Mile. Marie Magdelaine Amic, who on "the 26th Germinal, Year Five of the Republic" (April 16, 1797), that is five weeks after the death of Mme. Thiers nke Fougasse, gave birth at No. 15 Rue des Petits Peres to a son — the future statesman. The diary of the medical man who attended her, M. Rostan, is still in existence, and contains some curious entries. The infant, though small, was very vigorous, the period of gestation having been nearly a month longer than usual ; but on the other hand the accouchement was difficult, the young mother being in the greatest distress as " her husband " had disappeared, and " she knew not what had become of him." Her widowed mother, however, was by her side. The child was registered as being Mile. Amic's offspring " by the Citizen Pierre Louis Marie Thiers, at present absent," and received the Christian names of Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe. The Catholic religion not being openly re-estab- lished at Marseilles at that date, the rites of baptism were performed surreptitiously in a cellar. Shortly afterwards, Pierre Louis Thiers reappeared on the scene, and pressure being put upon him, he married Mile. Amic,^ and in the Act of Marriage expressly legitimated his son, as the law allowed him to do. Then, however, he again disappeared, vanished into the Ewigkeit, for over thirty years. Adolphe Thiers was therefore reared by his mother and her relatives. Marie Amic was the daughter of a Marseilles merchant, who having been appointed by Louis XV. repre- sentative of the city's commerce at Constantinople, there married a young Greek, Mile. Santi Lomaika, whose sister became the wife of M. Louis de Chenier, French Consul- General in the Turkish capital. Marie Joseph and Andre de Chenier, the poets, and their sister Helene (who married Count de La Toiu- de St. Igest) were the offspring of that last union, and therefore first cousins to the Mile. Amic who became the mother of Thiers. It will have been noticed that among the latter's Christian names were those of Marie Joseph : that was because Marie Joseph de Chenier was his godfather. ' Registers of Marseilles : 24th Floreal, Year Five of the Republic One and Indivisible (May 1797). 32 REPUBLICAN FRANCE The Amic family had been ruined by the Revolution, but a brother of Thiers's mother who settled at Mauritius accumulated considerable means there. In his sister's difficult circumstances he for some years made her an annual allowance of 2000 francs. He also took no little interest in her son and his studies, the results of which were reported to him. In one of his letters still extant he refers to the lad as "a precocious genius." Later, when Thiers had achieved a position and had let some time elapse without communicating with him, M. Amic wrote excusing that forgetfulness, for the young fellow, said he, was now at the summit, and how could a man perched atop of the Peak of Teneriffe discern one standing at the bottom ? Thiers's mother, a little woman scarcely taller than he was, and speaking with a marked Proven9al accent, lived to witness his success in life ; but he appears to have kept her somewhat at a distance, possibly from a fear that the story of his birth might leak out and expose him to even more virulent attacks than those to which he was usually subjected by his political adversaries. She resided, then, by herself in a small apartment at no very great distance from his residence, where she was seldom seen. Her son's friend, Mignet, the historian, seems, however, to have watched over her ; and she received a small allowance, ^£"10 a month when her son was in office as a Minister, and £8 when he was out of office. This might seem niggardly, but ministerial salaries were small,i and Thiers, who had to keep up a position, possessed no private means prior to the success of his historical writings. When he became Under-Secretary for Finances under Louis Philippe, his father unexpectedly reappeared. Thiers senior had been leading a roving life. At one time he had been interested in the commissariat of the French army in Italy, at others he had been trying his fortunes in one and another Mediterranean port. He was a great boaster, claimed to have sailed round the world, and related stories of adventure such as Baron Munchausen might have devised. Reaching Paris in November 1830 he put up at the Plat d'l^tain in the Rue St. Martin, and went to seek his son. The latter was horrified 1 £800 a year for Ministers and £480 for Under-Secretaries of State. j£?00 a year was regarded as a fair bourgeois income in Louis Philippe's time. Vide Balzac and Paul de Kock, the latter a real authority on some features of bourgeois life despite his grossness. Leon Gambetta ADOLPHE THIERS 83 by this apparition. Nevertheless Thiers senior demanded employment and money, and his son at least had to help him financially, as it was only by such means that he could get rid of him. But the most extraordinary part of the affair was that Thiers senior had contracted either bigamous marriages or else passing liaisons (we incline to the former view) during his long absence, and had no fewer than seven children, in addition to his son the Under-Secretary of State. Six of those children, three sons and three daughters, who were his offspring by an Italian woman of Bologna, always claimed that Thiers senior had married their mother there. Thiers junior was compelled to assist some of them. It was through him that the eldest son, Germain, was appointed Justice of the Peace at Pondichery, where he died, and the second son, Charles, Secretary to the French Consulate at Ancona. The third one, Louiset, became a courier to English "milords" travelling on the Continent, and only troubled his eminent half-brother occasionally, that is, when being out of work he needed a little money. It is less clear whether Thiers assisted his half-sisters by the lady of Bologna. One of them, who married a man named Ripert, he seems to have neglected, for after the Revolution of 1848 she placed outside a table d'hote establishment, which she kept in the Rue Basse du Rempart near the Madeleine, a huge sign- board bearing the inscription : " Marie Ripert, sister of M- Thiers, the former Minister." However, the poUce compelled her to remove it — possibly at Thiers's instigation. In addition to that family, Thiers senior had a daughter by a Mile. ;6leonore Euphrasie Chevalier, a cousin of the statesman Dupont de TEure. This daughter, who stoutly claimed that she was legitimate (Thiers pere having married her mother with all due formality, she said), became the wife of a man named Brunet, and persecuted Thiers for assistance. He procured her a bureau de tabac at Carpentras — that often being a fair source of income owing to the Government monopoly of the tobacco trade — while her husband was appointed head jailer at the prison of Riom. It is possible that Thiers senior resided with his daughter, Mme. Brunet ; for after his interviews with his son in Paris he retired to Carpentras, where he died. Bearing the above facts in mind the reader will realise under what difficulties Adolphe Thiers made his way in the world. Of course he was in no wise responsible for his father's mis- D 34 REPUBLICAN FRANCE conduct, which was a heavy weight to bear, and there was little compensation in the fact that his relatives on the maternal side were most worthy people. We honour the man who in spite of such disadvantages, which would have severely checked if not entirely quelled many another spirit, rises by his personal talents, integrity, and strength of character, to the highest position which his country can bestow.^ Let us now go back a little. We have mentioned that Thiers's mother was in poor circumstances. Fortunately, when the boy was nine years old, he secured, by the help of Count Thibaudeau, then Prefect of Marseilles, one of the " purses " which Napoleon allotted to children of poor parents to enable them to receive a good education. Thus young Thiers became a pupil at the college of Marseilles, where he carried off numerous prizes. In later years he frankly admitted that feelings of gratitude towards the great Emperor for placing the means of education within the reach of lads circumstanced like himself, had largely prompted him to write the History of the Consulate amd the Em/pire. Napoleon had fallen when Thiers repaired to Aix in Provence to study law at its university.^ It was then that he first met Mignet, with whom he formed a close and life-long friendship. Those were the reactionary days of the Restoration, and Thiers, who had liberal ideas, was regarded in official quarters as a dangerous young Jacobin. For this reason when he competed for a prize which the Aix Academy offered for the best essay in praise of Vauvenargues, the Academicians, nearly all of whom were fervent Royalists, refused to award it to him, although his essay was by far the best of those submitted. The next in merit could not possibly be placed first, and in this dilemma the Academy adjourned the competition until the ensuing year. Thiers thereupon resorted to an ingenious stratagem. He had a fresh essay, paraphrasing the first one, drafted, and sent it to a friend in Paris, whence it was despatched to the Aix Academy. That august body, imagining that it » There seems to be little doubt of the authenticity of the above account of the families of Thiers •p^re, as the whole matter was carefully investigated several years ago by Dr. Bonnet de Malherbe, a connection of Thiers on the maternal side. 2 The picturesque house in the Impasse Sylvacanne at Aix where he then resided, became for a while in later years the abode of young fimile Zola and his parents. See our irmh Zola, Novelist and Reformer. ADOLPHE THIERS 35 was the work of some Parisian litterateur who had condescended to enter the competition, immediately awarded it the prize, and was greatly annoyed when, on opening the sealed envelope containing the competitor's name, it discovered that Thiers was again the winner. The quiet artfulness evinced on this occa- sion proved a distinguishing trait of Thiers's character. He was little more than twenty -four years old when he quitted Aix for Paris, where he speedily made his way by taking to journalism instead of to the Bar. He also formed many useful friendships among the more liberal-minded men of the time. Lomenie says that he immediately attracted notice by his southern vivacity, his ready conversational powers, his big spectacles, his little figure, his unconventional manners, the perpetual springiness of his gait, and the peculiar swaying of his shoulders ; those physical characteristics stamping him at once as an etre apart.^ Talleyrand, who was then in Opposition and frequented Liberal drawing-rooms, met young Thiers at the house of Jacques LafRtte, the famous banker who owed his success in life to his care in picking up a pin on quitting the house of Perregaux, the financier, who had just refused him a situation, but who, on noticing his action from a window, called him back, gave him a clerkship, and ultimately made him his partner and successor. Towards the close of the Restoration Laflitte was one of the chief leaders of public opinion in Paris, and Talleyrand, who, as we have said, first met Thiers in his drawing-room, prophesied that the young man would " go far." Subsequently, when Thiers was already a Minister, one of Talleyrand's acquaintances in speaking of him remarked : " Le voila parvenu.'' But the witty old diplomatist retorted : " II n'est pas parvenu, il est arrive." We have in other writings questioned the authenticity of several ions mots ascribed to Talleyrand, but there seems to be no reason why this one, which can be traced back to publications of Louis Philippe's time, should not be accepted. We take it to have been the origin of a French expression which has come much to the front in our days, and has even been imported into our own journalism. Thiers, however, though he succeeded early in life, was no mere arriviste in the common sense of that term. His life was one of genuine hard work, in the sphere of 1 In September 1833 Greville met Thiers at dinner at Talleyrand's and found him " mean and vulgar-looking with a squeaking voice." 36 REPUBLICAN FRANCE politics as in that of letters. Founder, in conjunction with Mignet and Armand Carrel, of that famous jotu-nal Le National, in which he launched the smart aphorism : " The King reigns but does not govern," he was one of the chief authors of the Revolution of 1830, which overthrew Charles X. and installed Louis Philippe in his place. He was appointed a Councillor of State, Under-Secretary of Finances, and, on the death of Casimir Perier, Minister of the Interior. In that capacity he had to thwart the attempts of the Duchess de Berri to restore the old Bourbon monarchy. Later, he became in turn Minister of Public Works, and Prime Minister with Foreign Affairs as his particular department. His career at this period was marked by a good deal of inconsistency. At one moment he brought liberal measures forward, at another he was against all innova- tions, at another he almost pooh-poohed the introduction of railways into France, at yet another he carried laws against the Republican party and the French press generally, which were even more drastic than those famous Ordonnances of Charles X., which, in 1830, he had personally resisted. For some years of Louis Philippe's reign the political history of France was that of the ambition of two men, Thiers and Guizot, the chief of the doctrinaire party, whose contest for supremacy preceded that which we witnessed in England between Disraeli and Gladstone. Thiers fell in August 1836, and forthwith betook himself to Italy; he was then already preparing his History of the Consulate and the Empire. A little later, in order to overthrow Count Mole, he allied him- self with Guizot ; Mole fell, but Marshal Soult succeeded him, and it was only in 1840 that Thiers again became Prime Minister. He soon embroiled himself with Great Britain over the question of Egypt and Mehemet Ali, and it was the threatening outlook in foreign affairs at that time which inspired him with the idea of surrounding Paris with a girdle of fortifications and a number of detached forts. The scheme was adopted, but the bellicose attitude of Thiers had produced a bad effect, and he again had to resign office, whereupon Guizot succeeded him. At last came 1847, the fatal year of scandal, agitation, and uproar in France. Thiers was all activity at that time, attacking the Guizot Administration with the greatest violence, but never imagining that by over- throwing it he would overthrow the monarchy also. When ADOLPHE THIERS 37 the Revolution came in February 1848, he wished to save the institutions of the country, but he was too late and the Republic followed. For a while he remained in semi-seclusion, continuing his History of the Empire and writing a book on Property, which is still an able answer to many Socialist theories. Thiers had been in power at the time of Louis Napoleon's attempt at Boulogne, and was largely responsible for the Prince's imprisonment at Ham. Nevertheless, on Louis Napoleon coming forward as a candidate for the Presidency of the Republic, he voted for him ; and when a parliamentary colleague, Bixio, reproached him for giving such a vote, saying that the Prince's election would be a disgrace for France, Thiers challenged him, and they fought a duel forthwith, that is actually in the Palais Bourbon. For some time Thiers continued to support the Prince-President, but after paying a visit to Louis Philippe, then in exile at Claremont, his political views became modified; he already saw a Bonapartist Coup d'Etat looming in the distance, and joined the more liberal sections of the Assembly in trying to prevent it. When it came, he was arrested like so many others and taken to the prison of Mazas. But he was afterwards allowed to quit France, whither he was able to return in August 1852. He virtually confined himself to literary work from that time until he was elected as one of the deputies for Paris in May 1863. Then, for seven years, he played, at intervals, an important part in the Legislative Body of the Second Empire ; he spoke on finance, on the measure of liberty necessary for the nation, on the question of Rome and the Papacy, on the disastrous Mexican business, and on the war of 1866 between Prussia and Austria, which, as he rightly foresaw, was pregnant with the greatest consequences for Europe. After Austria had been crushed at Koniggratz he again warned the Imperial Government respecting the dangers ahead, pointing out the isolation of France and advising it to draw as closely as possible to Great Britain — "for never, I declare," said he, "have I thought the English alliance more necessary to France than it is now."^ On one occasion in 1869 he attacked the financial policy of the city of Paris ; on another he demanded complete independence for the Legislature. In the following year, 1 Speech delivered in March 186T. 38 REPUBLICAN FRANCE though he was now seventy-three years old, he seemed to regain all the ardour of youth, plunging into every discussion of importance which arose, and advocating, notably, the reorganisa- tion and reinforcement of the army. The other Opposition deputies were amazed by this last suggestion, and Jules Favre twitted Thiers for having gone over to the Empire. In reply- ing, Thiers remarked : " Why did Sadowa offer the world such an unexpected spectacle ? Because they were ready at Berlin whereas they were not ready at Vienna. It is thus that states perish ! " Soon afterwards came the Prince of Hohenzollern's candi- dature to the crown of Spain. War was already virtually decided upon when Thiers entered a solemn protest against the Government's policy, brushing aside the observations of Schneider, the President of the Legislative Body, who urged that there should be unanimity in the Chamber on a question affecting the nation's honour. Said Thiers, in the speech he made amid incessant interruptions : " There is no call on any- body here to assume more responsibility than he chooses to assume. As for myself I think of the memory I shall leave behind me, and I decline all responsibility whatever." The war followed, bringing disaster and revolution with it. On the evening of September 4, Thiers presided over a meeting of deputies held with the object of promoting some agreement between them and the Government of National Defence. But Jules Favre and his colleagues rejected the idea and the deputies dispersed. Thiers repeatedly declined to enter the new Administration, but when it appealed to him to sound the European Powers and induce them, if possible, to intervene, he agreed to accept that particular mission in spite of his age and his ill-health at the time. He went in turn to London, Rome, Vienna, and St. Petersburg, pleading his country's cause ; he interviewed both King William and Bismarck at Versailles, and for a moment there was at least some prospect of an armistice for the election of a National Assembly to decide what course France should adopt. But the Parisian rising of October 31, when most of the members of the National Defence Government became for some hours prisoners at the H6tel-de- Ville, virtually prevented the cessation of hostilities, and the war continued, as we know. During its last stages Thiers never ceased advising peace; he freely prophesied that the ADOLPHE THIERS 39 longer hostilities lasted the greater would be the sacrifices demanded of France at the finish. His uppermost thought was his country's interest, even as Gambetta's was his country's honour. It was generally acknowledged that he had done his best in the negotiations he conducted in those critical times, and his numerous successes at the elections in February 1871 clearly indicated- that the was the man in whom France as a whole, placed most of her confidence. At the same time he certainly had his faults. Succeeding early in life, he had frequently subordinated principles and the general interests to his personal ambition. He served Louis Philippe first as Minister of the Interior for two years, then twice as Prime Minister, but his tenure of office in the latter capacity lasted, on the first occasion, for only six, and on the second for only seven months. He could not lead or control a majority, he could not curry favour with it, persuade it, grant it graceful concessions in retiu^n for its constancy. Although ingenious, even artful at times, he was too autocratic, too firm a believer in his own views, and others had to follow him blindly or not at all. That he in no small degree contributed to the overthrow of the Orleans Monarchy is certain, and that alone indicates to what lengths he went at times in furtherance of his personal ambition. Under the Second Republic his conduct in relation to the Prince who became Napoleon III. was at times equivocal, and it is possible, as some have said, that he hoped for a while to become the latter's chief Minister and Mentor, and turned against him when he found that hope unrealised. At the same time, he often displayed great shrewdness. His refusal to become a member of the National Defence G-overnment was a case in point. He judged the position far less hopefully than did, for instance, Gambetta, and he had no desire to link his name with efforts which he considered must prove unavail- ing. He prepared to hold himself in reserve, foreseeing that at the end of the war France would need the help of men compromised neither in the errors of the Empire nor in the failure of the military efforts of the National Defence. In this again he was wise, even if personal ambition influenced his views. When the end came everybody turned to him as to a man who had retained his authority, his prestige, unimpaired amid the downfall of others. 40 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Although personal considerations influenced Thiers more or less until his last hour, it is unquestionable that he rendered great services to France after his elevation to power in 1871. While Jules Favre remained Minister of Foreign Affairs and Pouyer-Quertier became Minister of Finances/ it was pre- eminently Thiers who conducted the peace negotiations with Germany. And he was not altogether unsuccessful in the struggle. He tried to dissuade the enemy from exacting a triumphal entry into Paris, but when he was told that this could only be dispensed with if the fortress of Belfort, in addition to the territories previously specified, were ceded to Germany, he did not hesitate — he preferred to put up with a passing humiliation and save Belfort for France. For a while the National Assembly remained at Bordeaux. Paris was now being reprovisioned, the English gifts — the fruit of a highly successful Lord Mayor's fund — forming an important contribution in that respect. But the city continued restless ; the working classes, almost entirely incorporated in the National Guard, were swayed by revolutionary leaders, and frequent demonstrations took place. There were even deplorable excesses, as when, in the presence of some thousands of applaud- ing people on and near the Place de la Bastille, an unfortunate detective named Vicensini was flung into the Seine from a barge, and pelted with stones to prevent him from regaining land. We saw him sink twice, then rise again to the surface dead, and drift towards the He St. Louis. A Central Com- mittee of the National Guard, composed mainly of the Com- manders of the more revolutionary battalions, directed most of the demonstrations of the time. The resumption of ordinary life was, it must be admitted, impossible. No work was procurable, employers declaring that they had little if any money, and no means of obtaining credit in the existing financial state of the country. Besides, although provisions continued to arrive, there was only the scantiest supply of fuel, and in most factories it would have been impossible to set the machinery in motion. Thus it was that the workmen still served as National Guards, with virtually no military duties to 1 The other members of the first Ministry he constituted were : Justice, Dufaure ; Public Instruction, Jules Simon ; Public Works, Larcy ; Agri- culture and Commerce, Lambrecht ; War, Le F16 ; Marine, Admiral Pothuau ; and Interior, Ernest Picard, who at last secured the post in which Gambetta had forestalled him at the Revolution of September 4. PARIS AFTER THE SIEGE 41 perform, but in receipt of the same pay (one franc and a half per diem i) as during the German Siege. The morale of the men had been badly aflFected by that siege. If food had then been scarce, wine and spirits had remained plentiful — indeed when Paris capitulated, there was still sufficient alcoholic liquor to suffice for another twelve months; and this although the consumption during the siege had been many times larger than in ordinary times. The cause was obvious : receiving a deficiency of food and exposed to the hardships of a terrible winter, the men had sought suste- nance in drink. The Parisian ouvrier, previously far more abstemious than the British workman, had become a tippler, and unfortunately the vice of over-indulgence, acquired in those dreadful siege days, has never since been eradicated, but has been transmitted from father to son and grandson also. Before long the National Assembly, in the hope of coping with the evil, passed the first law on drunkenness known to modern France. For centuries before that time no such law had been needed. We know, too, what efforts have vainly been made of late years by successive French Ministries, by the municipalities of the country, and by innumerable temperance societies, to bring back the old order of things. The particular misfortune has been that the consumption of wine has decreased (in proportion to the population) and that the consumption of ardent spirits and potent liqueurs has long been in the ascendant. While the French workman was content with his petit bleu no great harm was done, even if he did occasionally celebrate " St. Monday," but when he, and not only he but his wife and his daughter also, took to drinking that pernicious beverage absinthe, neat,^ the consequences were naturally disastrous. But the tippling habits contracted by the Parisian National Guards during the German Siege had an immediate result of political importance. The men's minds were more or less inflamed, and they listened the more readily to the exhorta- tions and suggestions of Revolutionary leaders, Jacobins and ' There were small extra allowances for men with wives and families. ^ We are not exaggerating. In 1902 we compared notes with some distinguished members of the French Anthropological Society, and found that their observations coincided with our own. Not only did we observe in Paris the practice mentioned above, but we noticed it in several other cities — notably at Reims among the girls employed in the cloth factories, and again at Lyons among the silk workers of both sexes. 42 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Socialists of various schools. Moreover, the capitulation of Paris had angered many men, and the disastrous terms of peace (the annexation of Alsace Lorraine, the payment of an indemnity of ^200,000,000, and the occupation of French territory till the terms were executed) angered them still more. Thousands of folk in Paris absolutely believed that the country had been betrayed. In these circumstances, although the capitulation specified that the city's armament was to be de- livered to the Germans, the Extremists, who declared that the convention did not and should not apply to any guns cast during the siege with the proceeds of public subscriptions, found numerous adherents. Thus a Red Republican battalion seized several such cannon on the Place Wagram, while other detachments laid hands on a number of guns removed from the fortifications at Montmartre and Belleville. Altogether about one hundred siege and field guns, a dozen mitrailleuses, and half a dozen howitzers were captured, and by the orders of the National Guard's Central Committee were zealously watched — both on the Place Royale and the Place St. Pierre at Mont- martre — by trusty battalions appointed to prevent the Government from regaining this ordnance and handing it over to the Germans. Day by day the city became more restless. An attempt on the H6tel-de-Ville was foiled, but when the news came that the Germans would march into Paris and occupy the Champs Elysees quarter, on March 1, the position became threatening. The Red Republican leaders knew, however, that there was no possibility of resisting the Germans, and, besides, they preferred to reserve their powder and shot for their " reactionary " fellow- countrymen, as their newspapers did not hesitate to declare in threatening language. The 1st of March dawned grey and cheerless, but early in the forenoon the sun shone out, much to the disgust of the Parisians, who would have welcomed with delight a fall of sleet, snow, or rain, indeed anything which might have spoilt the German entry as a spectacular display. At first, however, there was nothing theatrical in the proceedings, and little even to suggest a triumphal march. About 8 o'clock the German advanced guard entered the city from Neuilly, and a detach- ment of half a dozen Hussars rode up the Avenue de la Grande Armee to the Arc de Triomphe, where a few score of onlookers THE GERMANS IN PARIS 4S were assembled. Around the arch was a heavy iron chain supported at intervals by strong stone pillars, but as this chain was no real obstacle for mounted men, the Hussars jumped it, and then cantered down the Champs ifilysees to the Palais de rindustrie.^ Following them came other small detach- ments, and about nine o'clock a strong column of horse, foot, and artillery appeared, headed by a general officer and his staff. These men also wished to pass under the Arc de Triomphe, and the spectators — who on their approach raised shouts of " On ne passe pas ! " — were motioned aside by a staff- officer who galloped forward to clear the way. The onlookers thereupon fell back, but the officer on perceiving the iron chain decided to rein in his charger. The French people present regarded this as a great triumph, and immediately raised cries of " Vive la Republique ! " whilst the German officers, with an air of perfect indifference, marched their men first round the arch and then, without sound of even drum or bugle, down the Champs Elysees, to the Palais de I'lndustrie, in which it had been arranged that 10,000 troops should be quartered. There were very few people about at this time, and not a cry was uttered, nothing was heard but the regular cadence of men and horses marching past the deserted -looking houses and closed cafes. It had been generally anticipated that the Emperor William would accompany his troops into Paris, and such had really been his intention — indeed he had invited all the reigning Sovereigns of Germany to take part in the pageant, — but when his advisers became acquainted with the effervescence in the city, and realised that the occupation might possibly result in some affray with the foolhardy National Guards, they insisted on an alteration of plans, and the Kaiser contented himself with reviewing his soldiers on the race -course at Longchamp. Directly this review was over, shortly after noon, the 6th and 11th Prussian Army Corps and the 1st Bavarian Army Corps marched from the Bois de Boulogne along the various arteries, leading to the Arc de Triomphe. The long lines of spiked helmets, bayonets, and sabres glittered in the sunbeams, which shone brilliantly on those German legions, as with their bands playing and their colours waving they thus effected their ' Now destroyed. It had served for the International Exhibition of 1855, and for successive " Salons " and horse and cattle shows. 44 REPUBLICAN FRANCE triumphal entry. The last to arrive were'.the Bavarians, who made a brave show in their light blue tunics and crested helmets, though now and again a grotesque element entered into the display. For instance, at one moment there appeared a ramshackle-looking carriage containing a gouty old general, whose soldier- servants, seated on the box, were complacently smoking their long pipes with porcelain bowls. Again, a little basket -chaise, drawn by a pony, and occupied by a richly- bedizened German princeling, came between a squadron of heavy horse and some batteries of artillery. The incongruous apparition was greeted with quite a jeer by the French on- lookers, who solaced themselves with respect to the formidable appearance of the German soldiery by remarking, " Tout cela manque de chic." Unacquainted with the arrangements which had been officially arrived at, most of the Germans anticipated that they would enjoy a very pleasant time in that wonderful city of Paris of which they had heard so much ; but they soon dis- covered that their occupation was limited to a comparatively small district, where the Champs l^lysees and the Place de la Concorde were the only points of interest, and where every shop and every cafe — excepting one — remained strictly closed. Many officers had expected that they would enjoy the free run of the Boulevards, and even General von Blumenthal, the commander of the occupied district, seemed extremely surprised when on reaching the Place de la Concorde with his staff he found he had reached the Ultima Thule of his domain. Here the Rue Royale and the Rue de Rivoli, like the quay alongside the Seine and the Concorde bridge across it, were shut off by stout barricades, which left only small apertures to enable civilians to pass to and fro — the French sentries, either Lines- men or National Guards on whom the authorities could rely, guarding those narrow portals with all vigilance. A force of mounted Gendarmerie was also stationed close at hand. Few shops were open in Paris that day, even in the districts far removed from the so-called German zone. The Boulevard cafes and restaurants remained closed, the Bourse was shut, no theatrical performances were given, and the only newspaper that appeared was the Jawrnal Offkiel. The Parisians who ventured into the Champs Elysees belonged mostly to the lower orders, and included a considerable number of youthful THE GERMANS IN PARIS 45 hooligans, who soon devised a means of demonstrating their patriotism under the very eyes of the German soldiers. Numerous Boulevard women, whose calling at that time was anything but lucrative, boldly accosted the German officers who were lounging in front of the Palais de I'lndustrie, and found them quite ready to enter into conversation. While these females promenaded within the German lines they were all smiles and laughter, but the young roughs were watching them, and directly one or another left her new acquaintances she was chivied along the Champs Elysees, captured, and hustled into one or another of the shrubberies near the open-air concert halls. There she was flung on the ground, her clothes were half- torn from her back, and she received a sound spanking as punishment for the overtures she had shame- lessly made to the Germans. We saw quite half a dozen women captured in that manner, and their screams while they were being whipped could have been heard half a mile away. Yet on no occasion did the Germans interfere. They either looked on with indifference, or grinned as though they con- sidered those incidents to be extremely amusing.^ An elderly, ladylike person in deep mourning, who addressed a few words to a German officer, was chivied in the manner already de- scribed, and would undoubtedly have been whipped had not two or three gentlemen, favourably impressed by her appear- ance, intercepted her pursuers and parleyed with them, thus enabling her to escape. On being questioned by one of her protectors, she told him that she had merely inquired of the German officer how she might best communicate with her soldier son, a prisoner of war taken in. a recent battle. Some other French people, whose intercourse with the enemy was equally innocent, were less fortunate than this lady, and met with no little ill-usage. Archibald Forbes, the distinguished war correspondent, was grossly assaulted for acknowledging a salutation addressed to him by the Crown Prince of Saxony, to whose army he had been attached during the latter part of the Siege of Paris. During the afternoon the Champs Elysees were transformed ' During a part of the day we were in the company of Archibald Forbes, at another in that of Mr. (now Sir) William Ingram, and Mr. Landells of the Illustrated London News. Forbes and Landells are dead, but Sir William Ingram must remember the extraordinary scenes to which we have referred. 46 REPUBLICAN FRANCE into a great camp. Commissariat waggons, country carts of all kinds, detachments of horse and foot, encumbered the road- ways ; officers and men paraded the side walks, or looked down from the balconies and windows of the houses where they had been thickly billeted. When evening arrived camp-fires were lighted, and the night was largely spent in the singing of martial songs. On the following morning the sun again shone out brilliantly, as if to mock the distress of the Parisians, who in the more democratic quarters hung black flags from their windows. Meantime, fresh bodies of the German troops poured into the city, and one column on reaching the Arc de Triomphe promptly severed the chain which girdled it, in such wise that from that moment regiment after regiment marched in triumph through the arch. Numerous detachments, carry- ing only their sidearms, were allowed to visit the Tuileries and the Louvre, which they reached from the Place de la Concorde by way of the Tuileries garden. They were perceived, how- ever, by the crowd in the Rue de Rivoli, whose demeanour became so threatening that the French authorities soon decided to allow no more Germans beyond the Place de la Concorde. Nearly all of those who had been admitted to the Tuileries, returned with sprigs of laurel on their helmets, much to, the indignation of the French, who protested that if any more of the enemy were allowed to enter the gardens, the latter would be virtually destroyed. However, the excitement subsided as rapidly as it had arisen, and, curiously enough, during the afternoon, a large number of well-dressed Parisians appeared in the Champs Elysees, attracted possibly by the fine weather, the many bands of music, and the general display made by the army of occupa- tion. About half-past three, we remember, the Crown Prince of Prussia— later Emperor Frederick — looking very hale and fit, drove down the Champs lillysees in an open carriage drawn by black horses, but he preserved incognito, as it were, and by his express desire no military honours were paid to him. That morning Paris had learnt that the preliminaries of peace had been ratified by the Assembly at Bordeaux, after an impressive scene when the defunct Second Empire had been declared re- sponsible for the "invasion, ruin, and dismemberment of France." During the day, moreover, it was ascertained that THE GERMANS IN PARIS 47 the immediate evacuation of Paris by the Germans had been agreed upon ; and possibly the prospect of the enemy's speedy departure, as well as feelings of curiosity, prompted the change which was observable in the demeanour of many Parisians. At sunset the bivouac fires were again lighted, and the military bands continued playing inspiriting airs until long after the moon had risen. The Parisians gathered round them, seemingly careless, or perhaps unconscious of humiliation. A little later, columns of troops, with bands playing and the men singing in chorus, marched up the Champs Elysees on their way back to Versailles. As they passed along, the many soldiers still billeted in the houses appeared on the balconies with lighted candles, which were so numerous as to suggest a general illumination. Meantime, near the Place de la Concorde, Uhlans stood singing part-songs under the trees to which their horses were tethered, while on the square itself a German infantryman addressed an audience of at least five hundred French folk, in their own tongue, on the blessings of peace and the horrors of war ! The evacuation of the city was resumed in the morning, when, in order to prevent disturbances, no civilians were allowed to enter the Champs Elysees. In the afternoon, however, when the last German colunm had departed, a gang of roughs wrecked the Cafe Dupont at the corner of the Rond-Point and the Rue Montaigne — that being the only establishment of the kind that had opened its doors to the enemy. Every window of the cafe was broken, all the velvet-cushioned seats were ripped open, the chairs reduced to firewood, and the marble tables, like the stock of glass and crockery, smashed to atoms. When the Germans had evacuated Paris, still retaining possession, however, of the surrounding forts, the Government were confronted by the task of quelling the revolutionary agitation. So bold was the Central Committee of the National Guard, that even while the Germans were in the Champs ifilysees it despatched a strong band of adherents to attack the Gobelins tapestry manufactory, recently used as a military store place, and whence chassepots and ammunition were purloined. Other bands, moreover, appropriated a score and a half of howitzers, which they added to the formidable stock of artillery already held by the Red Republicans. The Government replied to those proceedings by appointing 48 REPUBLICAN FRANCE General d'Aurelle de Paladines to the command of the National Guard, imagining that he would be able to restore discipline. But the Revolutionary leaders gave out that this appointment was only a preliminary to disbandment, although the Govern- ment really had no intention of taking such a course, being well aware that most of the men would be destitute if they were deprived of their daily pay. Many Guards, however, relying on what they read in the Extremist press, undoubtedly imagined that they were in imminent peril of losing their thirty sous per diem. There were still no signs of the city's workshops opening again, and many men, moreover, after playing at soldiers for six months or so, demoralised, as they were, too, by hardship and tippling, had little inclination to return to their ordinary avocations. Another important matter was the rent question — arrears of rent having been allowed to accumulate ever since the German investment in the previous year ; and it was generally assumed that this would be eventually settled in favour of the Parisian landlords, as the Government and the Assembly belonged to the bourgeoisie. The demoralisation of most of the Guards, the thirty sous question, the rent question, and the drink question all led up to the Commune. Had there even been no such causes at work a rising would have occurred, for the Red Republican leaders had resolved on making a bid for power, though had that been the only disturbing factor we think that the rising would never have proved so serious as it did, for the insurrectionary forces would then have been limited to the professional agitators, the more rabid citizens of Belleville, Me'nilmontant, Montmartre and similar districts, and about a thousand foreign adventurers then scattered through the city ^ — in all perhaps some 20,000 or 30,000 men, whereas under the circumstances in which the Commune originated, it actually disposed of 150,000 men, more than half the entire National Guard, whose total strength was 280,000. General d'Aurelle's appointment had no good result. Many ' Taine speaks in his "Correspondence," which we have read since writing the above, of thousands of Englishmen being among the Com- munards. The assertion is grotesque. The foreigners were not more numerous than we have stated above. As for Englishmen there were not more than fifty all told among the insurgents. Nearly every reference to the Commune in Taine's letters shows that he was as " gullible " as were most people in those days. THE COMMUNE 49 battalions set his orders at defiance, and instead of the captured cannon being surrendered, the Reds stoutly held to them, and even added to their number, until there were 250 siege and field guns, with seventy mitrailleuses, and as many mortars or howitzers, in their hands. Rifles and muskets were also added to the store, and early in March the Central Committee disposed of more than 500,000 rounds of ammunition. It had secured as yet, however, only a few caissons of shells and round shot, so that the bulk of its artillery could not be immediately utilised. The Government felt that the provincial Mobile Guards at their disposal in Paris had been contaminated by their long service there, and that instead of rendering help in any struggle they might become a source of danger. Some 40,000 were therefore disbanded and sent home, while Regulars from the provinces were despatched to Paris as fast as possible. But those Regulars were young men incorporated either just before or during the war, and they soon began to fraternise with the National Guards. The Government was really in need of veteran troops, men of the old Line Regiments and the ex- Imperial Guard, but these were still prisoners of war in Germany, and it seemed unlikely that they would be sent home until peace should be finally signed at Frankfort. Day by day the position grew more critical. The demonstrations on the Place de la Bastille became extremely threatening. Serious afirays constantly arose between the Reds and those who did not share their views, notably the seamen of the Naval Brigade, who openly showed their contempt for the landlubbers. At last, when General Vinoy — Trochu's successor — who was still suffered to govern Paris, had collected some 60,000 of the aforesaid unreliable Regulars, and General Valentin, presumed to be a man of mettle, had been appointed Prefect of Police, an attempt was made to assert the Government's authority. Several rabid newspapers were suspended, and some thirty guns collected on the Place des Vosges were seized by the troops ; the Reds being also called upon to surrender all the ordnance parked on the heights of Montmartre. As they refused to do so, Vinoy, in the small hours of March 18, despatched to the Place St. Pierre at Montmartre a column commanded by Generals Lecomte and Paturel. For a moment it seemed as if the Government would succeed in its determination to seize 50 REPUBLICAN FRANCE the guns by force. On reaching Montmartre the troops occupied the entrenchments there after a slight resistance, in which a few Guards were wounded. Several were then made prisoners, together with some suspicious individuals whose papers indicated that they were members or delegates of revolutionary committees. Finally, all the guns on the Place St. Pierre, 171 in number, were taken by the troops. But it soon became apparent that somebody had blundered, for the horses which were to have removed the ordnance did not arrive. The insurrectionary leaders profited by the delay to have the rappel beaten, and this brought thousands of their adherents to the square. It was only with the utmost difficulty that the artillerymen in charge of some of the expected horses at length forced their way to the spot, and once there it became equally difficult for them to depart. When General Paturel ordered his infantry to drive back the Guards the command was dis- regarded; instead of fixing bayonets the men raised the butt-ends of their rifles in the air, and in a few minutes the fraternisation of the Linesmen and the citizen -soldiery was complete. The general, with the assistance of some mounted Chasseurs and artillerymen, then attempted to carry off the few guns to which it had been possible to harness horses. He retreated slowly by way of the precipitous Rue Lepic, followed by a large number of National Guards, who called upon the Chasseurs and artillerymen to fraternise, and bombarded the general, first with epithets and then with a street hawker's stock of potatoes, carrots, turnips and other vegetables, which filled a hand-cart standing near the footway. To escape those missiles the general put his horse to a trot, but it fell, throwing him amid the cheers of the National Guards. The latter now surrounded the troops, and prevailed on them to abandon the guns, while Paturel with his staffs managed to escape. Far less fortunate was General Lecomte who commanded some of the troops. He also had managed to secure a few of the guns, but on the Place Pigalle, where a great crowd was assembled, his party was surrounded by National Guards, and a brief melee ensued, during which a few men on either side were wounded. Almost immediately afterwards, however, shouts for fraternisation arose, the troops joined the populace, and Lecomte and some of his officers were dragged from their horses and made prisoners. They were hurried to the dancing- THE COMMUNE 61 hall of the Chateau Rouge, where Lecomte was required to sign an undertaking that he would not raise his sword against the Parisians. He complied, and also sent orders to those troops who still remained at their posts to return to their quarters. Having thus satisfied the demands of his captors he had every reason to believe that his life would be spared, but several men who had figured in the affray on the Place Pigalle angrily declared that he had then ordered his soldiers to shoot the women and children in the crowd. That lie virtually sealed his fate. With half a dozen other officers who had been arrested he was taken to a house in the Rue des Rosiers, where the so-called Central Committee of the National Guard usually met. Some of those who were then present there proposed that a court-martial should be assembled, and the suggestion was under discussion when a band of Reds arrived with another prisoner of importance, an old, white-bearded man. This was General Clement Thomas, who had commanded the National Guard during some part of the German Siege, and made himself very unpopular among the Reds by dis- banding some free corps, for cowardice in the field. Shortly after the Revolution of 1830, Thomas, then young and wealthy, joined the regular army as a volunteer, but his participation in the popular rising of April 1834 resulted in a sentence to several years' imprisonment. After the Revolution of 1848, however, he became both a deputy and for the first time commander-in-chief of the National Guard. Three years later, Louis Napoleon's Coup d'Etat made him an outlaw, and it was only on the downfall of the Second Empire that he returned to Paris to serve the new Republic. When he was arrested by the Reds on March 18 he was walking in civilian attire, along the Boulevard Ornano, watching the fraternisation of the soldiers and the guards. Some of the latter recognised him, and seizing him on the pretext that he had come to spy out the land and take plans of barricades and batteries, marched him off to the Rue des Rosiers. This was a little pebbly lane, running behind the mills of Montmartre and lined with low houses and their gardens. No. 6, tenanted by the Central Committee, stood back from the road, behind a high stone wall. After opening a large iron gate you found yourself in a paved courtyard, at the rear of which stood the house, a small, commonplace, two-storeyed building, belonging 52 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to the heirs of Scribe the playwright, who there lived and wrote several of his vaudevilles and comedies before acquiring fame and fortune. A side passage led from the yard to the garden, which had formerly been subdivided by some green trellis-work into three or four distinct patches, one apiece, no doubt, for each tenant of the house. But on March 18, 1871, the enclosures were broken down and lay about in fragments, while little remained of the flower-beds, repeatedly and roughly trampled under foot. Here and there were a few gooseberry and currant bushes, with a score of lime trees, on glancing between which you saw the plain lying north of Paris, with its deserted factories, from none of whose many tall chimneys did smoke ascend. At one end of the garden was a high dark wall, to which a dying peach tree was trained. It was against this wall that Clement Thomas and Lecomte were shot. On the former officer reaching the house he was thrust into a ground-floor room, where the other prisoners were assembled with the members of the Central Committee. While the latter discussed the question of a court-martial the military rabble outside clamoured more and more impatiently, and before long a large number of National Guards, Linesmen, and Francs- tireurs burst into the room both by the doorway and the window, and seized first Thomas and then Lecomte, despite all the efforts which the Committee-men, together with the other prisoners, made to defend them. Both generals were di-agged along a passage leading to the garden, Lecomte struggling the while and attempting to escape, and even at one moment beseeching his murderers to let him live for the sake of his six young children. Meantime, however, Thomas had been led outside and thrust against the garden-wall. He faced his murderers proudly, holding his hat in his hand, and died as it were by degrees, for so faulty was the marksmanship that he did not fall until the sixteenth or seventeenth shot. Then Lecomte was dragged out of the passage and shot in the back before he could even take his stand against the wall. In the confusion of the moment some of the other prisoners escaped, and the members of the Central Committee were after- wards able to assert their authority and release the remaining captives. The bodies of Thomas and Lecomte remained for some hours lying in the garden, and were afterwards deposited on the floor of an empty room with a barred window, which THE COMMUNE 5S faced the passage leading from the garden to the yard. A sheet was thrown over the bodies, but the faces of the murdered men remained uncovered, and during the three days they were left lying there hundreds of people — including scores of women and children — came to gaze through the open window at those victims of so-called "popular justice," — whose murderers, by the way, were so little averse to this exhibition that at night they placed a candle in the room in order that the corpses might still be seen.^ Eventually, Georges Clemenceau, then Mayor of Montmartre, and Edouard Lockroy — a connection of Victor Hugo's and a deputy of Paris — came to claim the remains, and bury them in a little disused cemetery on the Butte Mont- martre. By a vote of the National Assembly Lecomte's children were adopted by the nation. Victorious at Montmartre, the Revolutionaries descended into central Paris, throwing up barricades on various points, taking possession of several district town-halls, post-offices, and other public buildings, including both the Ministry of Justice and the National Guard headquarters in the Place Vendome. The Government had assembled at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and remained there for several hours receiving frequent reports respecting the progress of the insurgents. General Vinoy held that if any more of his troops came in contact with the National Guards they would follow the example of their comrades, and therefore decided to withdraw his men from all exposed positions and collect them at the Ecole Militaire. In the evening the Government resolved to retire to Versailles, where it had been arranged the National Assembly should meet a couple of days later ; and thither Vinoy followed with 40,000 troops. An hour or two afterwards when General Chanzy unsuspectingly arrived in the capital, he was arrested by the insurgents and carried off to the Chateau Rouge. The Revolutionary party was now in possession of the whole city with the exception of the Luxembourg Palace, where some troops had been " forgotten " by Vinoy, and of two or three district mairies which were held by so-called reactionary battalions of the National Guard. These obeyed the orders of the district mayors, who devoted much time and energy to ^ "We made a sketch of them at the time ; and a wood engraving, after the sketch, figmres in vol. ii. of Paris in Peril, edited by Henry Vizetelly. London, 1882. 64 REPUBLICAN FRANCE fruitless attempts at pacification. The Reds, besides seizing chassepots at the Prince Eugene barracks and distributing them among unarmed partisans, plundered the municipal treasury at the H6tel-de-Ville, seized the funds at most district town- halls, and placed guards at the Bank of France, whose governor at once destroyed his entire stock of bank-notes as a pre- cautionary measure. The insurgent leaders did not as yet dare to requisition money from the Bank, and as they found little at the Ministry of Finances they were soon in difficulties. In the first moment of enthusiasm they had promised to allow each National Guard six francs per day, with which decision the men were delighted. But, as it happened, they received only one franc in cash, the remainder of their allowance being paid in bans, which it was almost impossible to negotiate. People of moderate views anxiously wondered what the Germans would do in presence of this formidable rising. As it happened, they were retiring from the environs of Paris when the insurrection broke out. Directly they heard of it they stopped their movement of retreat and massed a large force at St. Denis. The part they played during the ensuing contest was very equivocal. Though they called upon the French Government to put down the insurrection, and even released prisoners of war in order that the Versailles authorities might have sufficient forces at their disposal, there was no little underhand intercourse between them and the Parisian rebels. Cluseret, who became the Commune's Delegate at War, carried on secret negotiations with them ; so, it is said, did Rossel his successor ; while Paschal Grousset, who took over the department of Foreign Affairs, was, down to the very Bloody Week, in constant communication with Von Fabrice, who commanded at St. Denis. Many Frenchmen, and particularly Parisians of the middle class, were indignant with Thiers for abandoning Paris to the insurgents at the first outbreak ; but we have always held that although that course led to great trouble and a second siege, it was the best, if not the only one, which could have been adopted in the circumstances. After the first regiments had fraternised with the National Guards, little, if any, reliance could be placed in the other military forces at the Government's disposal. In such moments desertion becomes contagious. Thiers had witnessed three Revolutions, those of 1830, 1848, THE COMMUNE 66 and 1870, and knew how vain had been the efforts of the Bourbon and Orleans Monarchies to save themselves by a struggle in Paris. On each occasion the city had prevailed and the authorities had been swept away. In his opinion, therefore, the best plan was to withdraw and organise, outside the city, a proper resistance to the insurrectionary movement. Paris in its Revolutions had generally carried the whole country with it, because the authorities, panic-stricken at losing the capital, had fled without attempting any appeal to the rest of France. Such an appeal might well have proved useless in July 1830, February 1848, and September 1870, but in March 1871 circumstances were different. France had only just elected a sovereign Legislature whose composition clearly indicated her desire for the restoration of peace and law and order generally. We know that outbreaks occurred in some inflammable southern cities, Lyons, Marseilles, Toulouse, St. ifitienne and Narbonne ; but an overwhelming majority of Frenchmen were opposed to the Commune of Paris. If the Government had remained in the capital they would have risked immediate overthrow and assassination. Representatives of their country, entrusted with its interests, they had no more right to expose themselves to such a risk than the commander-in-chief of an army has a right to expose himself unduly in battle. It was their duty to organise the coimtry against the rebellious city and subdue it, as they did, though we do not say that grievous faults were not committed during the period which followed March 18. Various writers have tried to excuse the insurrection of the Commune, some have even claimed that it virtually established the present Republic. We hold, however, that while there were many excuses for the rank and file (as we previously indi- cated), the insurrection was, on the part of those who fomented it, one of the greatest crimes that history has been called upon to record. But, it is said at times, had it not been for the Commune there would have been a Royalist Restoration; the Commune frightened the reactionaries, and they dared not carry out their intentions. That is not correct. When the Communist outbreak occurred the National Assembly had been scarcely six weeks in existence. Thiers had assumed power by virtue of a compact concluded at Bordeaux, which provided that he should do nothing against the various parties of the Assembly or their aspirations, and that they should do nothing 56 REPUBLICAN FRANCE against him. Of the various Pretenders to the throne only Napoleon III. had spoken out at all frankly ; the letters and manifestoes of the Count de Chambord, the last of the Bourbon line, were as yet more expressive of sorrow for the country's misfortunes than of personal ambition. Besides, there was still at that moment a deep chasm between him and his cousins of Orleans ; Legitimists and Orleanists were by no means ready to unite in order to overthrow the Republic; and if, subse- quently, they did unite, it was precisely the rising of the Com- mune which inspired them to do so. That rising was, then, first a crime against France, inasmuch as it took place in presence of the Germans who, had they not preferred to let the French " stew in their own juice," might have intervened with terrible results ; and, secondly, it was a crime against the Republic, for it filled all sober-minded citizens in France with horror and alarm, disposing them more and more to seek the help of some providential saviour. It gave the Pretenders and their adherents courage, it led to the fusion of Legitimists and Orleanists, to the overthrow of Thiers, to manifold attempts at a Monarchical Restoration, and to all the unrest which for a few years retarded the recovery of France from her severe trials. The days of June 1848 virtually killed the Second Republic, the Commune nearly killed the Third. •'• We have only space here for a general survey of that terrible insurrection which prevailed in Paris from March 18 till May 28, 1871, though we may mention, that, apart from occasional day-trips to St. Denis and Versailles, facilitated by passports and laissez-passers from both sides, we were in the city during the entire period. Efforts were made at conciliation, but they implied the surrender of France to her capital. Such surrenders had occurred in the past, but Thiers would be no party to any such termination of the affair. Besides, the only chance of any lasting, quietude and prosperity in France lay in reducing the Revolutionaries. Their leaders formed a strange band, their policy was foolish, violent, incoherent; directly they found that the rest of France would not give way to them, they resorted to measures which were the negation of all liberty and order. They speedily broke up into opposing groups, Jacobins and Socialists ; and each group sought to devour the other. It was a repetition of what had been witnessed during the great Revolution, when the Girondists were devoured by the Danton- THE COMMUNE 67 ists and the Dantonists by the Robespierrists — if we may be allowed the last term. Each group treated its opponents as suspects and traitors, delegates at war and generals were changed again and again, you were here to-day and gone to-morrow — thrust into prison, for alleged treachery to the cause. It was, of course, the Central Committee of the National Guard which at first seized and held Paris. The actual Council of the Commune was not elected until March 27. It then became patent that a great majority of the Parisians did not approve of any such unconstitutional election, for whereas 375,000 electors had voted at a' plebiscitum taken by the National Defence Government during the siege, only 180,000 participated in the election for the Commune. The latter represented, indeed, only a minority of the population, a minority, however, which by its military strength, its threats, and its violence, so terrorised the majority that thousands fled from the city. In three arrondissements of Paris Conservative candidates were successful, in two others candidates favouring compromise were returned ; but the other fifteen constituencies elected the candi- dates of the Central Committee. In presence of the majority's speedy usurpation of an authority far exceeding the powers which any municipality could possibly claim, and its outrageous, often insensate, measures, the moderate men speedily withdrew from the Commune, leaving the Extremists to themselves. They were a motley crew. Among them were several men of some talent but little principle ; old men embittered against society in general, young ones eager for power and position, and unscrupulous as to the means by which they might succeed. Luckily the betrayer of Barbes, the aged agitator Blanqui, who, under successive governments, had spent years of his life in prison, had been arrested ; and the Commune's doyen was a certain Beslay — an honest man in a crowd of scamps, who had been a deputy in Louis Philippe's time. Beside him there was the lunatic AUix, the inventor of "sympathetic snails" as a means of telegraphic communication; and there was a whole tribe of authors and journalists, good, indifferent, and bad. Among these figured the portly Felix Pyat, a life- long conspirator, who was also the author of Le Chiffonnier, Les Deux Serruriers, and Diogene, three dramatised social pamphlets. There was also the little, withered, one-eyed Jules Andrieu, who had compiled V Amour en Chansons ; there was 58 REPUBLICAN FRANCE V&inier, sometime secretary to Eugene Sue, and author of Le Manage d'une Espagnok, a grotesque libel on the Empress Eugenie; there was J. B. Clement, a versifier who penned a few pretty romances both before and after the period of the Commune, notably one called Le Temps des Cerises which was long very popular. Then also there was Jules Valles, the author of Les Refractavres, Les Irreguliers, Les SaUimbanques^ a writer with a style, gloomy, bitter, but thoroughly distinctive, a man, too, with the rasping laugh and the bilious eyes of one whose childhood has been unhappy, and who bears a grudge against all mankind, because he has been obliged to wear ridiculous garments made out of his father's old clothes. Again, there was Vermorel, tall, thin, and spectacled, with the face of a pious seminarist, yet who had made his literary debut with a book on the harlots of the Jardin Mabille, illustrated with naughty portraits of them photographed by Pierre Petit. Further, among the journalist members of the Commune, there was Paschal Grousset, a young curled dandy with a facile pen, who had done second-rate chroniques and third-rate serials for Le Figaro, and a mass of semi-scientific piffle for U Etendard. He was careful of his moustache, irreproachable in his linen and his gloves, fond, like Valles, of good living, and extremely partial to beauty. He became the Commune's Delegate for Foreign Affairs, addressed impudent and ridiculous circulars to the Powers, and corresponded more or less openly with the Germans. When the fall of the Commune came, he hied him to the abode of his mistress, sacrificed his moustache, attired himself in one of the woman's frocks, and was in the very act of adapting one of her false chignons to his own head when the police burst in and arrested him. In later times he reverted to literature, producing notably (under a pseudonym) several books on §chool and college life in different countries. In spite of a certain threatening address to the great cities of France, in which he prophesied, correctly enough, that, if the Commune should not succeed, Paris' would become "a vast cemetery," Grousset was one of the least ferocious of the band, as was also his friend Arthur Arnould, the author of some fairly droll Contes humoristiques, and later (under the name ' And, subsequently, of Jacques Vingtras, virtually an autobiography, and several other works, often of considerable merit. MEN OF THE COMMUNE 59 of Matthey) of numerous melodramatic feuilletons, such as Le Due de Kcundos. But there was also the hideous and foul-minded Vermesch, who wrote Le Pere Duchesne, and the good-looking, courteous, and suave Cournet, who had contributed to literary journals, and, finding but a scanty livelihood in that work, had become for a while master of the ceremonies at the Casino of Arcachon, where he welcomed the ladies of Bordeaux with his most agreeable smile, introduced them to partners on ball-nights, and generally acted the part which the renowned Angelo Cyrus Bantam played at Bath. Yet this same Cournet became successor to the odious Raoul Rigault at the Prefecture of Police, and carried out some of the Commune's most arbitrary decrees. Rigault, whom we have just mentioned, was also connected with journalism; he had written for Rochefort's paper La Marseillaise. Short and spectacled, with a lofty forehead, long tangled hair and beard, he was a chilly mortal, and we remember that when, prior to the war, he frequented the cafes of the Quartier Latin, where he indulged in much extravagance of language, he usually wore — even as it is said the fifth Duke of Portland did — three coats, one over the other. Rigault's coats, however, were frayed, greasy, and of nondescript hues. He quitted the post of Police Delegate to the Commune to become its Public Prosecutor, and to him and to the horrible Ferre — another long-haired, full-bearded, and short-sighted Communard, who preferred, however, a pince-nez to spectacles — the unhappy hostages seized by the insiu-gents primarily owed their fate. Ferre, moreover, became one of the incendiaries of the Commune : his famous order, Faites Jlamber finances ("Fire the Ministry of Finances"), has become historical.^ Another implacable fanatic of the time was the gaudy Billioray, who had achieved notoriety by ranting at the clubs. But, reverting to those members of the Commune who were authors or journalists, particular mention must be made of Delescluze, the last of the Robespierres. The son of a sergeant 1 The order has been occasionally imputed to Jules Vallfes, but that is an error. The facts are set out in the indictment of Ferr^ before the Third Court Martial of Versailles, August 1871 ; and he was convicted of having issued it, as well as of having brought about the assassination of many of the hostages. There was no doubt whatever of his guilt. He displayed the utmost cynicism at his trial, and was deservedly shot at Satory. 60 REPUBLICAN FRANCE in the armies of the first Republic, chiefly self-educated and distinctly clever, he had been a Government Commissary in 1848, when he wished to carry revolution into Belgium and annex that country to France. As a member of secret societies and an editor of revolutionary journals, he had repeatedly come into conflict with the Second Empire, which deported him first to Algeria and later to Devil's Island (so long the prison of Captain Dreyfus), whence he was at last transferred to the mainland of Cayenne. Returning to France after the amnesty of 1859, Delescluze again waged war on the Empire, initiating in his newspaper, Le Reveil, a subscription for a monument to deputy Baudin, who was killed at the Coup d'Etat of 1851. Being prosecuted on that account, he ;was defended by Gambetta, but was again sentenced to imprisonment. Like Pyat and Blanqui, Delescluze was one of the malcontent revolutionary leaders who fomented hostility to the National Defence Government during the Siege of Paris, and he was again one of the foremost to bring about the rising of the Commune. In 1871 he was already in his sixty -second year. Of the medium height, thin, angular, with a cold metallic stare, like a man haunted by a fixed idea, he had a resolute walk, always going straight to his destination without glancing either to right or left. His hair and beard, once red, were then of a dingy white ; a number of little sanguineous spots speckled his yellowish, hard, unflinching, and deeply wrinkled face, which never smiled. Perhaps he would have been an inquisitor had he lived in the Middle Ages. Born, however, not long after the great Revolution, he had chosen Robespierre and St. Just as his masters, and used with a kind of mystical fervour the language employed by the Incorruptible Dictator of 1793. But though he confined himself within the narrow limits of the Jacobin faith, he was a true journalist, and probably the most remarkable of all the men who ruled Paris in the spring of 1871. His manners were fastidious like those of his patron Robespierre. Like the latter, too, he was careful in his attire. He invariably wore a silk hat, a frock coat, and patent-leather boots— being the only member of the Commune who assumed those habiliments common to the hated bourgeoisie. Im- placable, never forgiving, never forgetting, he was also cour- ageous. When the end came, and the Commune was expiring MEN OF THE COMMUNE 61 in the bullet-swept streets of Paris, and no hope of saving it remained, he quitted the town-hall of the Xlth Arrondissement, where he had installed himself as War Delegate, and went straight to a barricade thrown up on the Boulevard Voltaire near the present Place de la Republique. He wore his usual garments, but a red sash was wound about his waist, and he carried his favourite gold-headed cane. On his way he met some of his confederates, Lissagaray, Jourde,^ Jaclard, Lisbonne, who was badly wounded, and Vermorel, who was shot dead before his eyes. On reaching the barricade we have mentioned, Delescluze climbed it amid the hail of bullets raining from the troops in the distance, and prepared for death. It came swiftly : in another moment he fell to the ground lifeless, shot in the head and the chest. Among other prominent leaders of the Commune were Assi, Amoureux, and Varlin, members of the famous International Association. The first named had risen to notoriety by foment- ing strikes at the well-known Creusot iron-works, where he was employed as an engineer. He was well-nigh illiterate. He admitted that he had read little beyond one book, Edgar Quinet's Revolutions CPItalie, which had impressed him by its picture of the old Italian Communes which sprang up and grew strong while the Roman Empire was dying. And Assi's fevered mind was capable of but one idea, that of reviving, as it were, the Middle Ages, and establishing independent Communal govern- ments on all sides, in order to free France for ever from Caesarism and monarchy. In the motley assembly at the H6tel-de-Ville, it was strange to find a great painter like Courbet, but he also was a member of the Commune, one who was chiefly responsible for the overthrow of the Vendome column. Henri Rochefort, then a very prominent figure, was, in some matters, on the side of the Commune, and, in others, against it. He at least suggested the confiscation of Thiers's property and the demolition of his house. He also favoured the steps taken against the clergy, but he subsequently embroiled himself with some of the Communard leaders, and took to flight— merely to fall, however, ' Jourde, who became the Commune's financial delegate and who helped to carry out its orders for requisitioning money of the Bank of France, the Rothschilds, several insurance companies and other institutions, was person- ally an honest man, who accounted for every sou that came into his possession. But one could not say the same of some of his colleagues, who stole whatever they could lay their hands upon and lived riotous lives. 62 REPUBLICAN FRANCE from the frying-pan into the fire, for he was arrested by the Gendarmerie at Meaux and conveyed to Versailles, there to be tried and sentenced to transportation. Let us now turn for a moment to the Commune's military men. It had several successive Delegates at War and numerous generals in its employ. There was Cluseret, who had seen service in the United States during the War of Secession, a vain and cantankerous individual, who regarded every fellow officer as either a fool or a traitor. He was deposed, however, on the suspicion that he was a traitor himself. There was also Duval, a young brassfounder, who imagined himself to be a heaven-born general, but who was captured in the environs of Paris, and shot by the Versailles troops. Again, there was Bergeret, who led the National Guards in a " torrential sortie," by which he hoped to seize Versailles, but which ended in disaster and disgrace. Further, there was La Cecilia, a man of much greater merit, who had served under Garibaldi in Sicily, and commanded some of the Francs-tireurs who fought so bravely at Chateaudun in October 1870.i He escaped at the close of the Commune, and, repairing to London, earned his living there as a professor of languages. He, of course, was an Italian, and several of his compatriots served the Commune. There were also numerous Polish generals. Dombrowski, Wrobleski, Laudowski, and Okolowitz. The last named was a dastardly coward. When he was in command at the village of Asnieres on the banks of the Seine, west of Paris, he became so terrified by the advance of the Government forces, that he fled across the river, and immediately afterwards cut the bridge of boats by which he had eflected his passage, leaving the bulk of his men behind him. To save themselves from Galliffet's light cavalry, who suddenly charged into the village, the unlucky National Guards tried to cross the Seine by way of the railway bridge, which had been dismantled, in such wise that only its iron skeleton remained. They often had to jump from one girder to another, and scores of them fell into the river and were drowned ; while many others were picked off by the Versaillese mounted gendarmes who were provided with carbines. Meantime, the batteries of the Paris fortifications fired vigorously in the hope of covering the retreat, but well-nigh every shell fell hissuig into the Seine, stirring the water into commotion, and 1 See ante, p. 17. La CecUia was a great Unguist and Orientalist. MEN OF THE COMMUNE 63 helping to seal the fates of the hapless men who had fallen from the bridge.^ Yaroslav Dombrowski, Okolowitz's colleague, was a more capable man. A native of Volhynia, he had studied at the military academy of St. Petersburg, and become a captain in the Russian army. But he took part in the Polish rising of 1862 and was sent to Siberia, whence he contrived to escape three years afterwards. He made his way to Paris, and in 1870 offered his services both to the Empire and the National Defence. The latter wished to employ him in the provinces, but the investment of Paris supervening, he was unable to quit the city. At the advent of the Commune he promptly joined it. He was then about eight-and-thirty, very short, thin, and fair-haired. He was killed fighting during the Bloody Week. Another Communist general, a Frenchman however, and one who survived the insurrection, was Eudes, who figured chiefly as commander at the Palace of the Legion of Honour, where he was wont to lie in bed and indulge in revolver practice, the three mirrors in the room which he occupied serving as his targets. His wife, meantime, amused herself by giving balls, that is, when she was not engaged in purloining the Palace linen and ornaments. A revolutionary celebrity of those times, who fell early in the struggle, was Gustave Flourens. He came from the south of France, the excitable Midi, but his father achieved fame as a professor of physiology, and was elected both a member of the French Academy and Secretary to the Academy of Sciences. Gustave also graduated in literature and science, and in 1863, when illness prevented his father from performing his duties, he took his place. A little later he travelled in England and Belgium, and, on a rebellion breaking out in Crete, joined the insurgents and shared their fortunes for a year. He was after- wards sent as their representative to Athens, but his presence not being acceptable to the Greek authorities, he was despatched to France. After a second visit to Athens, and a second expul- sion, he betook himself to Naples. But some violent newspaper articles made Naples also too hot for him, and the officials sent him out of the country. He next appeared in Paris in 1868, when Napoleon III. had just restored the right of public meeting. 1 We personally witnessed the whole of that affair from the convenient shelter of a ditch alongside the river tow-path. 64 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Flourens flung himself into the anti-governmental campaign which followed that concession, and before long found himself arrested and imprisoned. On his release, he challenged the notorious Bonapartist champion, Paul de Cassagnac, and in the course of a ferocious fight with swords Flourens was seriously wounded. After his recovery he participated in the agitation which marked the last days of the Empire ; but to avoid being arrested once more, he had to quit the country and repair to London. The overthrow of the Empire led to his immediate return to France ; he raised a Free Corps in Paris, and became the leading spirit in most of the disturbances which arose during the siege. Imprisoned for his attempt to overthrow the Govern- ment of National Defence on October 31, he was afterwards released by some rioters, and, whfen the Commune was estab- lished, he became one of its leading defenders. Early in April however, he was surprised by some gendarmes in a house near Le Vesinet — west of Paris — and was shot dead by them while attempting to escape. A man of great culture and high abilities, tall, bald, with a flowing beard, an aquiline nose and flashing eyes, impulsive by reason of his southern origin, Flourens thirsted for adventure, and gave way to a kind of unreasoning, fiery, fanatical patriotism, which was carried, at times, to the point of insanity. There was no small amount of such insanity, a contagious aberration, among the men of the Commune. Many of them would have been at a loss to explain clearly what they were fighting for. They acted under the influence of hallucination, something akin to religious mania, which swept them ofl" their feet. And on the other side, among the citizens who did not take part in the insurrection, you observed something like stupor, paralysis, and utter inability to resist the Terrorists, a benumbing, as it were, of both mental and physical vigour. We will conclude this survey of the Men of the Commune by saying something respecting Rossel, who succeeded Cluseret as Delegate at War. Born in 1844, he was the son of a Major in the Line, who had married (it is said) a Miss Campbell, the daughter of an officer of our Indian Army. Not unnaturally, the young fellow took to the military profession, and when the Franco-German War broke out, he was serving as a Captain of Engineers. He was taken prisoner at Metz by the Germans, but escaped, and was promoted to a colonelcy by the National MEN OF THE COMMUNE 65 Defence. His patriotism was of the same fiery kind as that of Flourens. Moreover, he deeply felt the humiliation of Sedan, the capitulations of Metz and Paris, and the terrible terms of peace imposed by Germany on France. Disgusted with every- thing in the military spheres of the time, he sent in his papers on the very morrow of the Insurrection of March 18, hastened to Paris, and joined the Commune, becoming President of its Permanent Court Martial and aide-de-camp to Cluseret, whom, as already mentioned, he succeeded — only to fall out, however, with the other Communist leaders, much as his predecessor had done. In disgust with them he threw up his office, whereupon they wrathfully ordered his arrest. Unluckily for him, although he escaped from confinement, he remained in Paris, where, at the fall of the regime, he was recognised by some former military subordinates in spite of a disguise he had assumed. His removal to Versailles followed as a matter of course. He was tried there and sentenced to death. In spite of the sympathy which was expressed for him on various sides, we feel that it was impossible for the authorities to spare him. He had thrown up his rank in the regular army expressly to join the insurrection, and he had played a most important part in the military operations against the Govern- ment of his country. He was responsible for the loss of many lives. And thus, though he had been an able officer during the Franco-German War, and was but eight-and-twenty years of age, his case was one which called for exemplary punishment. Rossel was not of prepossessing appearance. He had a low, frowning forehead, crowned with thick, bushy hair, brown, with gleams of auburn. When he arrived in Paris to join the Commune, his long, narrow face was clean-shaven, later he displayed a small, ill-growing moustache and a sparse beard — both of them red. His mouth was very hard ; his eyes, a light blue, were usually hidden by coloured glasses. He had written, at one moment, some crisp, forcible, well -arranged military articles for Le Temps; but his speech was not pleasing, he spoke too rapidly, the words gushing from his mouth in a most disorderly fashion. Cluseret asserts in his work The Military Side of the Commune that Rossel was very ambitious, and aspired to play the part of a Bonaparte. Further, Cluseret accuses him of underhand intrigues with the Germans, and adds : " It was invariably through him that I communicated 66 REPUBLICAN FRANCE with them." Again, according to the same authority, it was Rossel who negotiated with the Germans the supply of a large number of horses for the Commune at a cost of ^£'16,000, which arrangement was not carried into effect, however, as the animals were found to be in poor condition, and by no means worth the price. But, in any case, whether those tales be true or not — Cluseret's assertions must often be taken with some salt — we feel that Rossel's position as an ex-army officer, who had gone over to the rebels, precluded the Government from exercising any clemency. Of the many incidents which marked the Commune's reign in Paris, we can only enumerate some of the more important. At an early date, a pacific, unarmed demonstration in the Rue de la Paix was greeted with the fire of the National Guards assembled on the Place Vendome, and several people were killed or wounded. Later the column on that same square was thrown down in hatred of Caesarism and the Bonapartes. Barricades sprang up at an early stage in many streets. Churches were turned into public clubs, where demagogues perorated from the pulpits. All independent newspapers were suppressed. Thiers's house was demolished and his portable property confiscated. Many other private residences were broken into, searched and sometimes pillaged. Then the Arch- bishop of Paris, several priests, a number of Dominican monks, a judge (President Bonjean), a banker (M. Jecker), various functionaries and journalists, and some fifty gendarmes, were seized and imprisoned as hostages. The Communists, after being beaten back and almost cut to pieces in an attempted march on Versailles, ended by losing their advanced post at Asnieres across the Seine, and the Government army, strongly reinforced by troops released from captivity in Germany, pressed onward, assailing Neuilly just outside the city. Mont Valerien and Montretout were held by the Versailles authorities, and their batteries bombarded both the western quarter of Paris and the fort of Issy, which the Communists occupied. They ended by abandoning it, whereupon the Versaillese, after mount- ing fresh guns, availed themselves of the position to bombard the city ramparts on that side. Finally, they secured possession of the Bois de Boulogne, and advancing towards the St. Cloud gate of Paris, prepared to assault it. But on the evening of Sunday, May 21, they found that position abandoned, whereupon THE BLOODY WEEK 67 a few companies entered Paris, followed by a division which by seven o'clock had already pushed on as far as the Trocadero. By three o'clock on the following morning (Monday, May 22) the bulk of the Government forces had entered the city by one or another gate, that of Sevres, south of the Seine, being carried by General de Cissey. And now the Bloody Week began. On many points the Communists resisted staunchly, and the troops advanced with great caution by order of their oflScers, who feared lest some of them might fraternise with the National Guards, as had happened on March 18. More- over, they deemed it more prudent to suspend the advance every night. When darkness fell on the Monday, the Versaillese held the western part of Paris limited by the Asnieres gate on the north-east, and the Vanves gate on the south. The district included the St. Lazare railway terminus, the Elysee, and the Palais Bourbon. On Tuesday the troops seized Montmartre on the north and the Observatory district on the south, and advanced from both those points towards the central part of Paris. That same day the first conflagrations were kindled by the Communards, and at night the sky was lurid with the reflection from all the burning piles, the many private houses, the Tuileries, the Louvre Library, the Palais Royal, the Palace of the Legion of Honour, the Court of Accounts, the Orsay Barracks, and the Ministry of Finances. On the north the Versaillese had now extended their advance to the Goods Depot of the Northern Railway Line, and on the south to the Arcueil Gate; while on the following night (that of Wednesday) their lines ran right across the city from the Northern Terminus to the Park of Montsouris. More than half of Paris was now in their hands. On Thursday, both the H6tel-de-Ville and the Palace of Justice ^ were burning, as well as the Lyric Theatre, the Porte St. Martin Theatre, various district town-halls, and many more private houses. Meantime, barricade after barricade was being carried by outflanking movements, and the remaining members of the Commune were compelled to retreat to the municipal offices on the Boulevard Voltaire. Then from Montmartre the troops bombarded the Communists gathered at Belleville and in the Pere Lachaise Cemetery, while the insurgents, on their side, employed their remaining guns to fire upon Paris indiscriminately. Shells fell ' We pumped and carried water there. Only a portion of it was destroyed. 68 REPUBLICAN FRANCE on the Place Vendome, in the Rue de Richelieu, and even as far west as the Rue de Miromesnil — carrying away, as we have good occasion to remember, a part of the fifth floor balcony of the house where we were residing. On Friday, the Grenier d'Abondance, a vast storeplace for oil and cereals, was fired, as were also the magazines of La Villette, in spite of the continued progress of the army in every direction. On Saturday, the troops seized Belleville and the Buttes Chaumont, and only the Pere Lachaise Cemetery, which had been turned into an entrenched camp, then remained to the Communists. Meantime, dreadful deeds had been perpetrated, as was now first ascertained. On Wednesday, Archbishop Darboy of Paris, Abbe Deguerry of the Madeleine, President Bonjean, M. Jecker, and several others had been shot by the insurrectionists in the courtyard of the prison of La Roquette ; on Thursday, a number of Dominican monks had been assassinated ; while on Friday, several priests and forty-seven gendarmes, also held as hostages, were put to death in the Rue Haxo. The reprisals were terrible. When the troops reached La Roquette (where they arrived in time to save 168 hostages), 227 insurgents, captured at various points, were shot down in a heap ; and when Pere Lachaise was carried, 148 others were placed against a wall and likewise despatched ; while both on Saturday and Sunday (May 28) at the Lobau Barracks in central Paris, and in the Luxembourg Gardens on the south, there were numerous other summary executions. Most of the insurgents who perished were killed in the fighting, but those captured at the barricades were also often shot on the spot, and a certain number of women, charged with incendiarism, met with similar fates. We believe, however, that the tales of women going about with cans of petroleum to set fire to the city were vastly exaggerated. There may have been a few crazy creatures who did so, but in the great majority of instances the charges were false. On the other hand, the Communist historians have, as a rule, grossly overestimated the deaths on their side. From first to last, that is from March 18 to May 28, about 12,000 insurgents perished. From the time of the insurrection until July 15, 1872, the number of people arrested on more or less serious charges connected with it was no less than 32,905. Of these, however, 21,610 were, after investigation, released without being brought FATE OF THE COMMUNISTS 69 to trial. Further, 2103 were acquitted by the courts-martial before which they were arraigned; while the number of those found guilty and sentenced was 9192.i Those figures are not complete, as, subsequent even to the date given above, there were further arrests resulting from denunciations or from evidence supplied in the course of the earlier cases. It would appear that from first to last about 12,000 prisoners were convicted. On the other hand, the Commission des Graces instituted by the National Assembly granted reductions of sentences — and, in some instances, pardons — in about one out of every three cases brought before it. With respect to capital sentences, its clemency went farther. Of sixty-two persons condemned to death by court-martial between May 1871 and July 15, 1872, forty-two had their lives spared, their sentences being commuted to transportation. They were sent, as a rule, to New Caledonia. The sufierings of many of them, both in the prisons of Versailles and on the voyage, were very great, very little provision, indeed often little humanity, being displayed by their custodians. Among those carried to New Caledonia was an unfortunate, hysterical, crazy school-teacher named Louise Michel, who had upheld the cause of the Commune at the Paris clubs and other meeting-places, and was usually called the Red Virgin. A ditraqu6e, as the French say, more to be pitied than blamed, even in her violent moments, she became at other times a dreamer in some far-away Utopia, a believer in universal love, fraternity, and peace. And, woman- like, when the time of punishment and suffering arrived, she tried by little services to assuage the captivity of those around her. Another notable prisoner sent to Noumea was Henri Rochefort, who in 1874) contrived, with Olivier Pain, Paschal Grousset, Jourde, and two others, to escape from captivity — reaching Australia, and thence America and Europe. This was facilitated by Edmond Adam,^ who was able to send Rochefort ■f 1000, £iiOO of the amount being paid to the captain of an English merchantman, who landed the fugitives at Sydney. In 1879 came an Amnesty which enabled many of the former insurrectionists to return to France. ^ Official Report to the National Assembly, published in August 1872. ' See page 14 cmte. CHAPTER III THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY — THEIRS, FIRST PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC — THE PRETENDERS The Assembly and the Government at Versailles— Bismarck's Residence there— The Chancellor, Thiers, and Satan— The Deputies and their President, Gr^vy— Thiers as a Parliamentary Orator— He declares for a Republic— Financial Burdens of France— The Rivet Constitution— Thiers, his Paris House and his Collections— Financial Changes— France and Protection— Thiers and the Assembly— The Great Loans— Expulsion of Prince Napoleon— The Pretenders— The Count de Chambord— The Count de Paris and his Relatives— The Duke de Chartres— The Duke d'Aumale— The Prince de Joinville— The Duke de Nemours— The Bona- partists — The Last Days and Death of Napoleon III. When, during the early days of the National Assembly's sojourn at Bordeaux, the restless condition of Paris gave cause for serious anxiety, it was resolved that the Legislature, which could not long continue in the south of France, should trans- port itself, not to the capital, as that might be dangerous, but to some town in its vicinity, so that the Government officials might go easily to and fro as occasion required. Some deputies, who deemed that course unduly audacious, would have ventured no nearer to Paris than Tours, Orleans, or Blois ; but Versailles and Fontainebleau numbered most partisans, Thiers favouring the latter locality, perhaps because he remembered the march of the Parisians on Versailles at the time of Louis XVI. How- ever, Versailles was chosen by a majority of three to one, and the play-house of its palace became the scene of the Assembly's deliberations. Thiers lodged himself at the Prefecture, and offices were found for the various departments of State at the Palace or in other buildings of the town. Those offices were originally intended to be merely branch ones, but, in conse- quence of the Commune, they became, for a considerable time, 70 BISMARCK AT VERSAILLES 71 the only offices which the departments possessed. Versailles — left for so many long years in semi-somnolence, only waking up on occasional Sundays in the summer, when the play of its fountains attracted Parisians and tourists to the gardens laid out for Louis XIV. — had witnessed a wonderful revival of life ever since September 1870, when it became the headquarters of the German Army. King William then arrived there, and it was in the famous Hall of Mirrors at the Palace that he was subsequently proclaimed German Emperor. Moltke was there as well, and so was Bismarck. From October 5, 1870, until March 6, 1871, the great Chancellor resided at a house in the Rue de Provence, which was the property of a French general officer, M. de Jesse. A large first-floor room was used by him both as his study and as his bed-chamber. It was in this apartment that he received Thiers, when the latter, fresh from his foreign mission, came to negotiate an armistice during the Siege of Paris ; it was there that he drew up the proclamation announcing to the world the incorporation of the German Empire, there that the capitula- tion of Paris was signed, and there that the peace preliminaries were negotiated with Thiers and Jules Favre. A little later, shortly before the Chancellor's departure from Versailles, Mme. de Jesse came to inquire on what day she would be able to resume possession of the house. Said Bismarck, in his most courteous manner : " I shall leave on the 6th, madame, and as you are here, I should greatly like to accompany you over the house, in order that you may see that I have respected your property." Excepting that the floors were somewhat grimy — a detail, as the French would say — Mme. de Jesse did not notice much amiss until she entered the principal drawing-room. Once there, she looked in vain for a valuable old clock, sur- mounted by a curious figiu-e of Satan, which had formerly stood on the mantel-shelf. "Mon Dieu ! " she exclaimed, " and my clock ! " But Bismarck reassured her. " It has not been lost or stolen, madame ; it is in my room. Come and see. I removed it there because I admired it so much. Thiers did not like it. No, he didn't ; though he is supposed to appreciate good bronzes. When he was here, he kept on glancing at the time-piece and muttering : ' Le diable, le maudit diable ! ' It seemed positively to horrify him — nevertheless we signed the preliminaries of peace in front of it." 72 REPUBLICAN FRANCE " I could hardly refrain," Mme. de Jess^ used to say, when she told the story, " I could hardly refrain from retorting : ' Yes, I understand : it was the Devil's Peace.' " Bismarck admired the clock so much that he greatly wished to purchase it, but Mme. de Jesse declined every offer. At the moment of the Chancellor's departure the pendulum was removed, and to this day the clock marks the hour when he left the house where the triumph of Germany was consum- mated.^ As soon as Versailles was rid of the Germans, it became crowded with Frenchmen. Ministers and other functionaries, generals and their troops, journalists galore, flocked into the town, as well as all the members of the National Assembly, who were in many instances accompanied by their wives and families. Thus Versailles still remained all bustle and con- fusion, and the famous Hotel des Reservoirs was as crowded as it had ever been while it accommodated the German prince- lings and grandees who attended the spiritualistic seances which our old acquaintance Sludge, otherwise David Dunglas Home, gave in the rooms of his friend and patron Lord Adare, now the Earl of Dunraven. The new Assembly, however, although it ended by often working itself into a more or less excited state, was not remarkable for liveliness. An over- whelming majority of its members were men of mature years — many indeed were fast descending the vale of life. Robust young Radical Republicans viewed them with contempt: "Sont- ils vieux, sont-ils chauves, sont-ils laids, sont-ils betes.''" ("Aren't they old, aren't they bald, aren't they ugly, aren't they stupid?") was a familiar saying at the time. And, certainly, the number of bald craniums and pallid, wrinkled faces which one observed at the sittings, particularly on the President's right,^ was remarkable. ' He gave the gardener a gratuity of fifty francs, to which he added another forty, to compensate Mme. de Jess^, said he, for the loss of some guinea-fowls belonging to her, which he had eaten. " I feared she would not like it," he added, " but then I am so fond of guinea-fowl, and, besides, this money will please her." 2 We may take this opportunity to explain the terms Right, Left, etc., so often employed in connection with continental parliamentary debates. It is the constant usage for Conservative members to occupy the benches on the President's right, and for Liberals to occupy those on his left. Accord- ing to the state of parties there may be numerous subdivisions of the Right and Left. For instance, the most Conservative members will sit on the THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY 78 The President, elected at Bordeaux by 619 votes against 17, was Jules Grevy ^ — subsequently Chief of the State. Born in 1807, and a native of a village in the Jura mountains, he became a barrister, defended many Republican prisoners in Louis Philippe's time, sat in the Constituent Assembly of the Second Republic, was chosen as bdtmmier of the order of advocates in Paris during the Second Empire, and was elected to the latter's Legislative Body in 1868. Although known to be a Republican, Grevy was highly esteemed for his integrity, even by the Monarchists of 1871, whence came his almost unanimous election to the presidency of the Assembly. Dis- carding the practice of wearing evening dress which was followed by Morny and Schneider in the Legislature of the Empire, Grevy exercised his presidential functions in a frock coat and virtually sans ceremonie, though he invariably pre- served a suflBciently grave expression of countenance. He displayed great impartiality as president, which was a task of some difficulty, as most of the members held views alien to his own. At the same time, whenever there was any disturbance or unseemly behaviour, he showed himself remarkably firm. He did not have occasion to deliver many speeches to the Assembly, but he excelled in the orations which he pronounced whenever a member died, being never so happy as when — if he could not expatiate on the political record of the departed — he could at least extol his personal character. We shall have occasion to speak of the oratorical abilities of some of the speakers. Here we will only say a few words respecting those of Thiers. In 1871 his voice was no longer what it had been. At the outset of a speech it often seemed quite distressingly thin and weak — like the voice indeed of a man heavily weighted with years. But presently it became so clear and vigorous as to be heard distinctly in extreme right, the ordinary Conservatives on the right proper, while (the seats generally being arranged in semi-circular fashion) the Liberal-Conserva- tives will occupy the more central places, whence the expression "right- centre." On the other hand. Socialists and such like will sit on the extreme left, Radicals and Liberals on the left proper, while moderate or conservative Liberals occupy the left centre positions. As we may have to use the terms "Right," " Left," etc., rather frequently, we have thought it as weU to give this explanation. ^ His real Christian names, it has been said, were Francois Judith Paul ; but he detested the name of Judith, and, assuming that of Jules in its place, became generally known by it. 74 REPUBLICAN FRANCE the remotest " tribune "^ of the house. The tone was con- versational, the matter was skilfully divided into sections, at the end of each of which came a brief r^sum^, or, perhaps, just one skilful transitional phrase, covering all that had gone before, and linking it to the next section of the discourse. There was great sobriety of gesture, there was no pomposity whatever; Thiers did not "speechify," he talked to you; lucidity was the chief feature of his style, but now and again some arrow barbed with irony would dart from his bow, and his eyes sparkled behind his glasses if he were pleased with a hit he made. From the outset, in spite of his almost unanimous election, he had considerable difficulties with the majority of the Assembly ; he wished it to do his bidding, and the Assembly, to employ a vulgarism, often kicked. Already in May 1871, a week or so after the final treaty of peace had been signed at Frankfort, and before the Commune had fallen, some of the Monarchists began to think of displacing him ; and Marshal MacMahon, General Changarnier, and even Grevy were sounded, with respect to their acceptance of the chief executive post. MacMahon and Grevy immediately repudiated the proposals, while Changarnier, a vain, slim, corseted, and antiquated heau — who feared to leap lest he should fall — prudently adjourned his reply. Aware of the plotting against him, Thiers was compelled to lean more on the Republican Centre and the Republican Left, than he had hitherto done. A reception he held at the time was numerously attended by moderate Republicans, whom he thanked for the support they gave him. He added, in the course of conversation, in that frank way which he could assume so well : " As you are aware, I have declared myself in favour of the maintenance of the Republic ; and if \, an old Monarchist, have done so, you may be sure that it has not been without deep reflection. You may be at ease. I have no idea of betraying the Republic. As long as I am at the head of affairs it will be in no danger. Some of the gentlemen of the Right have shown personal hostility towards me ; I regret it, but why has it happened ? It is because I will not lend myself to certain combinations. Duke Decazes, as is well known, wished me to send him as 1 The former " boxes," etc., of the "Versailles play-house, utilised for the accommodation of diplomatists, journalists, and the general public. THIERS AND THE ASSEMBLY 75 Ambassador to Russia, but I did not consider it a suitable appointment for him. Then another gentleman asked me to restore the system of official candidatures at the elections for the present vacancies in the Assembly. He wished this to be done in the interest of one of his relatives, but I declined to take any such course. That is why he and others attack me. I don't do what they ask, not because they ask impossibilities, but because they ask things which might lead to trouble, and which I disapprove. All my thoughts are bent on the restoration of order, for that is essential to us all — order, moreover, with the Republic, which, in the state of parties, is equally essential. I am convinced that justice will be done me later on. I am an honest man, and at my age, the only desire I can have, is to be favourably remembered when I am gone." Those words made a deep impression on the persons present, but they indisposed the Monarchists extremely. For a time the fall of the Commtine and the steps taken by Thiers and his colleagues to provide for the burdens cast on France by the war and the insurrection, strengthened his position with the Assembly. Early in 1871 the financial situation was very bad. Quite £450,000,000 sterling had to be found. There were £200,000,000 (with interest in addition) to be paid as war indemnity to Germany, further large sums were required for the expenses of the German army of occupation, grants of considerable magnitude had to be made to relieve the distress in departments which had been invaded, it was necessary also to repair the disasters of the Commune, and large amounts were owing on account of the military expenses of France during the war. Under these circumstances Thiers and his Finance Minister, Pouyer-Quertier, launched a first loan of £100,000,000 sterling to provide for more pressing requirements. It met with wonderful success, and the Germans received a first payment of £40,000,000. About the same time financial bills were presented to the Assembly with the object of restoring budgetary equilibrium, and an annual sinking fund of £8,000,000 was established, so as to ensure the total extinction of the indebtedness incurred by the war in a maximum period of forty years. As a matter of fact, that indebtedness was discharged many years sooner. While all those financial measures were in progress, the 76 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Monarchists of the Assembly could not get rid of Thiers without placing themselves in serious difficulties. They were conscious of the position, and when in August (1871) it was proposed to transform Thiers's title of Chief of the Executive Power into that of President of the Republic — an alteration, which, although the Republic was not officially proclaimed, implied that it existed — the Assembly adopted the measure after carefully inserting therein that it was a sovereign Assembly with power to decide the form of government. As this signified that it might turn the Republic into a Monarchy if it chose, the Royalists were satisfied with the arrangement, while the Republicans on their side were not displeased to find the Republic implicitly recognised as the de facto Government. As for any attempts to overthrow it thereafter, they would know how to resist them. The ingenious compromise which was arrived at, took the name of the deputy who had first proposed it, becoming known as the "Rivet Constitution"; while the regime it established was generally styled the " Loyal Trial " of the Republic. One matter connected with Thiers's relations with the Assembly about this period has not yet been mentioned. He was voted a very considerable sum of money to indemnify him for the destruction of his Paris residence by the Commune, and the loss of the many art treasures, valuable books, papers, and articles of furniture which the house had contained. Most of the property having been conveyed by the Communists to the Tuileries shortly before that palace was set on fire, perished there in the flames. There were good grounds for awarding a State indemnity to Thiers, though, as other private persons, who met with heavy losses during the Commune, received little or nothing, considerable complaint was heard about it. Thiers's Paris house, which was rebuilt at the expense of the nation, stood, we may mention, on the little Place St. Georges, a small circular square halfway up the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette. He had resided there for many years, and in his spacious cabinet de travail he had collected a large number of bronzes, mostly of the period of the Italian Renascence, of which the Louvre then possessed only few examples. At the time when they were seized by the Commune, Courbet the painter estimated those bronzes to be worth £60,000; but artists often overestimate the value of THIERS AND HIS COLLECTIONS 77 artistic works which they appreciate, and Thiers, at any rate, had not expended on his collection more than a quarter of the amount suggested by Courbet. Foremost, perhaps, in the collection, came a beautiful " Marine Venus," a Florentine bronze of the sixteenth century, in the form of a bas relief representing the goddess, delicate and slender, resting on a goat-headed monster, and attended by winged loves, one of them brandishing a torch and the other adjusting an arrow to his bow. Again, there was a bronze model of that " Virgin and Child" which Michael Angelo began in marble and left unfinished. Very fine also was a " Horseman on a Galloping Steed" — attributed to Leonardo da Vinci — and remarkably expressive was the statuette of " An Antique Jester," dancing with the heavy step of a country clown, his arms wrapped the while in his mantle. There were also some remarkable bronze mule heads of Roman origin ; besides a number of reduced modern copies (executed at Thiers's expense) of several celebrated statues of the Italian Renascence, such, for instance, as Andrea del Verrocchio's " Colleone." From the walls of the study hung numerous copies in water- colours of famous frescoes and oil paintings by great Italian artists; while in one and another room of the house were assembled cabinets, bronzes, ivories, engraved rock crystals and jades, from Japan and China, together with a variety of specimens of old Persian art. At the time of the Commune, Thiers no longer possessed the great collection of engravings which he had formed to assist him in his historical studies, portraits, costumes, views, and representations of- events during the great Revolution and the First Empire. Nevertheless, the loss inflicted on him by the Commune's rascality was severe, and he felt the blow keenly, for it was one which no pecuniary indemnity covld repair. In finance and commerce Thiers favoured Protectionism, though he was not such a thorough Protectionist as his colleague the Rouen cotton - spinner, Pouyer - Quertier. The state of the French Exchequer in 1871, and the necessity of procuring money to augment the resources of the State, compelled some readjustment of the country's financial system. Besides, a very important question had to be considered. In the final treaty of peace signed with Germany at Frankfort, Bismarck had inserted a provision that France should accord to the new 78 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Empire "most favoured nation treatment." France was con- sequently threatened with an inundation of merchandise from across the Rhine. Now, although peace was signed, the French hatred of Germany remained intense. As you walked along the Paris boulevards when quietude was restored after the Commune's overthrow, you might frequently perceive notices to the effect that no German goods were sold at one or another establishment, that no German's portrait would be taken at some particular photographer's, or that no German waiter, or shopman, or clerk, or porter, or boot-blacker, need apply to such and such a firm for employment. Under such circumstances it might be inferred that little danger could result even if the German manufacturers should inundate France with their goods, as French people — all brimful of patriotism — would certainly refuse to buy them. That difficulty, however, might be overcome by offering such goods as products from other countries — even as the first Germans, who settled in France after the war, carefully described them- selves as Austrians, Switzers, or even Alsatians, in order to escape the odium which, among the French, attached to the sons of the Fatherland. Besides, the national hatred for the Germans would necessarily abate in time, and goods from across the Rhine would find ready markets by reason, notably, of the cheap rates at which it would be possible to offer them, now that Germany was to obtain " most favoured nation treatment." That meant, of course, that she would pay the lowest tariff on any particular class of merchandise which was specified in the many treaties of commerce which the Government of the Second Empire had contracted with other powers. But that would prove quite disastrous. It was hard enough to have to surrender Alsace and Lorraine to Germany, to pay her a huge war indemnity, and to provide for the keep of her army of occupation, which was to remain on French territory until the conditions of the peace had been executed. But to suffer, in addition to all we have mentioned, that she should inundate France with merchandise and cripple the national industries, would be excessive, absolutely intolerable. Nevertheless, that was the prospect, unless Germany could be circumvented, unless the French tariffs could be so increased as to prevent her from exploiting France commercially. They could not be increased, however, as long as existing treaties of commerce remained in FRANCE AND PROTECTIONISM 79 force. Therefore the denunciation of those treaties became a necessity. We often hear of the power of the dead hand. No more remarkable example of it can be found than in the Protectionist system prevailing to-day in the continental countries of Europe. That system, and all the tariff wars which have broken out in our time, may be traced back to the commercial clause of the treaty of Frankfort which Bismarck imposed upon France. The mighty Chancellor died in 1898, but his dead hand still rules the commerce of the European continent. Previous to the Franco-German War, the tendency of Europe towards Free Trade had become most marked ; and commercial treaties on equitable lines linked one and another nation together, favoviring their commerce. But all that was changed by the Frankfort treaty, by its commercial clause, and by the huge war indemnity demanded of France. With the determination to prevent German enterprise from crippling French industry and trade, was coupled the necessity in which France found herself to raise money for the expenses of the war. Many existing home taxes were increased, several new ones were devised — on railway tickets, on lucifer matches, on clubs, on billiard tables, on tobacco, on carriages, carriage- horses, and what not besides. But the most important of the Government's proposals was the taxation of raw materials. There were heated debates in the Assembly on the proposal, which was regarded as most reactionary. It was, indeed, the negation of the commercial policy pursued by France for eleven years past. At last, on January 19, 1872, a vote of the Assembly shelved, if it did not absolutely reject, the proposal. Thiers became highly indignant. He declared that unless his proposals were adopted there could be no budgetary equilibrium, and that he could not and would not retain power unless the necessary financial resources were placed at his disposal. On the morrow, therefore, he addressed the following letter to Grevy : — Monsieur le President — I beg you to transmit to the National Assembly my resignation of the office of President of the Republic. I need not add that, until I am replaced, I will watch over all the affairs of the State with my customary zeal. The Assembly, how- ever, will understand, I hope, that the vacancy should be as brief as possible. The Ministers have also sent me their resignations, which I have been obliged to accept. Like myself, they will 80 REPUBLICAN FRANCE continue to attend to the despatch of business with the greatest appHcation, until their successors are appointed. Receive, Monsieur le President, the assurance of my high consideration, A. Thiers. This was a direct challenge to the Assembly, which became quite alarmed. It had no candidate ready to take Thiers's place, and, besides, in the existing financial situation a change of Government was most unadvisable. Accordingly, by an almost unanimous vote, the Assembly passed a resolution, setting forth that it had merely " reserved " an economic question, and that its vote implied neither hostility nor distrust, nor refusal to co-operate with the Government. Appealing, then, to the patriotism of the President of the Republic, it declared that it did not accept his resignation. This resolution was carried to Thiers by a solemn deputation of the Assembly, headed by Vice-President Benoist d'Azy, and although the little man at first complained that his health was dreadfully bad, that he was terribly exhausted by hard work, and feared that he could not possibly perform anything like as much as the Assembly had a right to expect of him, he ended by saying that, well, after all, he would not refuse the Assembly's request and would therefore withdraw his resignation. He was inwardly delighted with the success of his manoeuvre. He had brought the Assembly virtually to its knees. Un- fortunately, however, from that moment Thiers inclined too much to the view that he was an absolutely necessary man — an opinion in which he was confirmed when, less than six months afterwards, he virtually repeated his " resignation " experiment, with much the same success as before. It was a device which anecdotiers assert originated with the first Leopold of Belgium. Whenever his subjects gave that monarch trouble, by creating an uproar or refusing to do as he thought fit, he packed his portmanteau, sent for a cab, and said to the crowd assembled outside the Palace : " Now, unless you behave yourselves properly, I am off" ! " Thereupon, as Leopold was, all considered, a popular as well as an able ruler, and the " brave Belgians " were well aware that " the more things change, the more they remain exactly the same," an understanding was arrived at between them and their King. He unpacked his portmanteau, and they paid the cabman for the time he had lost. We in no- wise vouch for the truth of that little tale, but it illustrates FRANCE AND PROTECTIONISM 81 the tactics which Thiers pursued with the National Assembly. Unluckily, he repeated them too often, and a day came when the Assembly took him at his word. He was then chagrined and surprised, the more so as his successor, MacMahon, had on several occasions refused to accept his post. However, we must not anticipate. The question of de- nouncing the commercial treaties led to controversy, but as the position of France rendered denunciation imperative, the Government obtained the necessary authorisation from the Assembly. The most important negotiations were those con- ducted with Great Britain respecting a modus vivendi pending the expiration of the treaties, in all of which there was a clause providing that, if France should decide to tax her own raw materials, she would be entitled to levy compensatory duties on all similar materials coming from abroad, and on those articles into whose manufacture they largely entered. Nevertheless, an agreement had to be reached on several points. For instance, the very term " raw materials " (matieres premieres) had to be interpreted to the satisfaction of both sides, the exact materials which would be liable to duty had to be specified in like manner, and the amount of the duty in some respects had also to be agreed upon. Thiers afterwards admitted that, if the British Government had not given way on several points, he would have been unable to bring negotiations with the other Powers to a successful issue. In England there was no slight outcry, manufacturers, shippers, and others roundly complaining of weakness on the part of Gladstone's Administration. That charge was not quite justified, for there was an acute crisis at one stage of the negotiations, which seemed likely to collapse, but the spirit of compromise prevailed at last. It is certain that the British Government, by eventually making concessions, rendered France a great service, one which helped her powerfully to repair the state of her finances. If, on the other hand, some British interests suffered, it must be remembered that, had the Government insisted on every right it might claim under the Cobden Treaty, the final outcome would have been an acute commercial war with France, damaging to British trade in many respects. On November 13, 1872, Thiers was able to announce the conclusion of a treaty, by which compensatory duties, as previously mentioned, would be levied on goods from Great Britain after the first day of the G 82 REPUBLICAN FRANCE ensuing month of December. It had also been agreed that the treaty of 1860 should expire on March 1, 1873, after which date Great Britain would simply receive " most favoured nation treatment." As it happened, however, that France was bound to Austria by a commercial treaty expiring only at the end of 1876, the full application of the Protectionist regime^ in- augurated by Thiers, was postponed until that period. Let us now go back a little. We have mentioned the first loan contracted by France for the purpose of defraying part of her war expenses. Its success, although remarkable, was eclipsed by that of a second loan contracted in July 1872, when the French Government applied for no less than ,£140,000,000. The whole world was amazed by the response to that applica- tion, for as much as £1,800,000,000 was offered — the loan being covered thirteen times over ! As Thiers remarked, this was tantamount to an offer of all the disposable capital which the world possessed. It was striking testimony of the universal faith in the recuperative powers which France was already displaying, and it imparted renewed courage to those who had undertaken the task of setting her house in order. There remained one great obstacle to the national quietude : the strife of parties. The Monarchists of the Assembly were still hostile to Thiers. In spite of his many services they grudged him the preponderant role which he played in State affairs, they talked of his "dictatorship," they dreaded his interference in debate, wished to exile him from the Assembly, and limit his intervention to "messages" which were to be read at the tribune by a Minister or the Assembly's President. In principle they were doubtless right, but the chief motive of their campaign against Thiers was his steady evolution towards Republicanism. There was certainly personal ambition in Thiers's policy, but there was also common sense. He realised that the Republican party was the most numerous of any, and that attempts at a Restoration might well lead to civil war. Besides, the elevation of any one Pretender to the throne would have excited the hostility of others, whose adherents would have joined the Republicans in opposing the new rule. As Thiers remarked, the Republican form of government was that which divided France the least.' In several speeches and messages he urged the Assembly to establish the Republic as a definite ' " La R^publique, c'est le gouvernement qui nous divise le moins." THE PRETENDERS 83 rigime ; but although the Royalists gave way to him in some degree, they encompassed every concession with reserves, perpetually haunted as they were by their craving to place France once more in a monarch's hands. Thiers's position was rendered the more difficult at times by the claims of the advanced Republicans. Gambetta was again taking an active part in politics, and in the autumn of 1872 he delivered at Grenoble a slashing speech in which he openly attacked the Assembly, denying notably the constituent powers which it claimed. About the same time. Prince Napoleon Jerome, cousin of Napoleon III., returned to France for the purpose, it was asserted, of rallying the partisans of the Empire. Thiers immediately had him arrested and expelled from the country, to the great satisfaction of the Orleanists, whose own Princes, by the way, continued to reside in Paris or at Versailles, where they conspired in all freedom for the restoration of their House. With respect to Gambetta, Thiers was content to refer to the Grenoble speech as a " regrettable incident,'" and to preach the doctrine of a conservative Republic, " which must be that of the whole nation, and not of any one party." The time had come, said he, in a message to the Assembly, to transform what was still a provisional into a definitive Government. On being taken to task by one of the Assembly's Committees, he added frankly : " I am convinced that a monarchy is impossible, as there are three dynasties for one throne. If anybody thinks a monarchy possible, let him say so. If there is a majority in that sense in the Assembly, let it try the experiment, and I will withdraw." On a second occasion he said : " I have little desire to retain power if I am to exercise it under the conditions you wish to impose on me. If you are minded to be ungrateful, well, be ungrateful. I have the country on my side, and it will speedily choose between the Assembly and myself. Oh ! I threaten nobody. I respect the law. Yes, it is I who respect it. If you wish to make a new revolution I won't be responsible." Such was the little man's plucky outspokenness. A crisis ensued, but the Monarchists were not yet ready for a Coup d']6tat, and on November 29, 1872, a compromise was effected by the appointment of a committee of thirty deputies, to determine and regulate the respective provinces of the public authorities and the conditions of ministerial responsibility. 84 REPUBLICAN FRANCE The labours of the Committee of Thirty were of great duration. They led not exactly to a truce, for the Assembly never wearied of heckling Thiers and his colleagues, but to an adjournment of the vital issue. As Thiers had said, there were then three dynasties hungering for one and the same throne. The representatives of only one of them — the Orleanist dynasty — had returned to France. The sole representative of the senior Bourbon branch, the Count de Chambord, King Henry V. of France by divine right, had preferred to remain in exile.^ The Bonapartists, on their side, were compelled to exile, as Prince Napoleon had dis- covered on being summarily turned out of France. His cousin, the whilom Emperor Napoleon IH., was spending his last days at Camden Place, Chislehurst; his wife, the ex-Empress Eugenie being with him, while their son, the young Imperial Prince, was a student at the Woolwich Military Academy. However, both the Bonapartists and the Orleanists were very active, large sums being spent in propaganda on either side. The Legitimist supporters of the Count de Chambord were less profuse, probably because they had, on the whole, less means ; but on their side was found the bulk of the CathoHc clergy, who, besides dedicating France to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, had vowed to restore her to her ancient line of kings. They disposed of considerable influence at that period. Free thought had not then effected in France the strides which it has made in more recent years. The education of the young was largely in clerical hands, and the feminine mind, particularly, was swayed by the teachings of the priesthood. But the candidate of the old nobility and the Church, in addition to other disadvantages, was a man difficult to deal with, proud, stubborn, a fervent believer in his hereditary right and its essential holiness, and consequently averse from con- cessions which his more discerning partisans deemed necessary to win the support of the nation. He was the grandson of that Charles X. who began life as the roue Count d'Artois, fled from France at the Revolution, succeeded his brother Louis XVIII. in 1824, lost his throne by his foolish despotism in 1830, and died six years later in exile at Goritz in Carniola. Charles ^ Early in July 1871 he certainly visited the chateau of Chambord in Touraine, but speedily quitted France, stating in a manifesto that he did not wish his presence to supply a pretext for perturbation. THE COUNT DE CHAMBORD 85 had two sons, first, Louis Antoine, the Dauphin or Duke d'Angouleme, as he was more generally called, who had no issue by his marriage with the Princess Marie Therese, daughter of Louis XVI. ; and, secondly, Charles Ferdinand, Duke de Berri, a dissolute young prince, who, subsequent to contracting a private marriage with an English girl, publicly espoused Maria Caroline, daughter of Francis I. of Naples. In 1819 a daughter, Louise Marie, subsequently Duchess of Parma, was born to them ; but early in the following year the Duke was assassinated outside the Opera Comique by a fanatical old soldier of the first Napoleon's, named Louvel, who declared at his trial that he had committed the crime expressly to annihilate the race of the Bourbons, to whom he attributed all the sufl"erings of the nation. It seemed, for a moment, as if LouvePs design had succeeded, for Charles X. was then sixty-two years old and a widower, and the Duke d'Angouleme, after long years of matrimony, still remained without oflspring. But it was soon announced that the widowed Duchess de Berri was enceinte, at which tidings the hopes of the French Legitimists revived. On September 20, 1820, at the Palace of the Tuileries, she gave birth to a son, Henri Charles Ferdinand Marie Dieudonne d'Artois, who was created Duke de Bordeaux and Count de Chambord. Great were the rejoicings among the Royalists. The poets burst into song: Satan had inspired Louvel's crime, but Providence had been watching over France. The Lord had provided, and the birth of "the child of the miracle" ensin-ed the succession to the throne. Ten years later, however, young Henri, " the gift of God," shared the exile of his family ; for it was in vain that, on the abdication of Charles X., the Duke d'Angouleme renounced his rights, and that Chateaubriand appealed to the Chamber of Peers in the boy's favoiu:. Louis Philippe, Duke d'Orleans, was speedily called to the throne, and the senior branch of the Bourbons reigned no more. Although the Duchess de Berri, mother of the Duke de Bordeaux (or, as it is preferable to call him. Count de Chambord, that being the name by which he was known during the greater part of his life), could not claim to be a beauty, her features being irregular, she was a woman of considerable charm of person, with a romantic temperament and an energetic disposi- tion. In 1832 she attempted to stir up La Vendee and Brittany 86 REPUBLICAN FRANCE in favour of her son, but was compelled to go into hiding, whereupon it so happened that Thiers, then Minister of the Interior, received an anonymous letter, whose writer (a scoundrel named Deutz) offered to reveal the Duchess's place of conceal- ment in return for a sum of money. He fixed an appointment in the Allee des Veuves, in the Champs j^lysees, for the purpose of arranging the affair, and Thiers, having availed himself of the offer, the Duchess was seized at Nantes, and lodged in the fortress of Blaye near Bordeaux, in the custody of the future Marshal St. Arnaud. This coup de main frustrated the insurrection, but Louis Philippe's Government desired to obtain a still more decisive result, one which would destroy the Duchess's prestige as a royal mother fighting for her son, degrade her almost in the eyes of many of her partisans, and discourage the Legitimists generally for at least a considerable period. It was suspected, if not actually known, that she had contracted a secret marriage since the Duke de Berri's death, and a time came when, in her captivity at Blaye, she could no longer conceal the fact that she was enceinte. Later she gave birth to a female child, and to save her reputation was obliged to confess that she had secretly espoused an Italian, Count Hector Lucchesi Palli, of the house of the Princes of Campo Franco. Forthwith she was released and allowed to proceed to Sicily; the Govern- ment feared her no longer, her prestige was indeed gone. She had little to do with the rearing and education of her son, the Count de Chambord ; and in regard to his chance of ascending the French throne that was perhaps unfortunate, for the Duchess, whatever her failings, was more open-minded, more liberal, less bigoted than most Bourbons of the time. It was, however, the sanctimonious Charles X. who directed the upbringing of his grandson. The Duchess de Gontaut-Biron, General the Marquis d'Hautpoul, and others took charge of the lad, who during his early years in France and his youth in exile was trained in a narrow piety and a devout belief in the divine right of kings. When his grandfather died at Goritz in 1836, his uncle, the Duke d'Angouleme, immediately proclaimed him as " Henry the Fifth, King of France and Navarre," and from that hour he deemed himself the elect of God. There was little of the Bourbon in the Count de Chambord's appearance. His eyes were blue, with the glint of steel, his THE COUNT DE CHAMBORD 87 hair was fair, his mouth very small, and his nose delicately aquiline. The brow was lofty, the expression of the face both strong and kindly. His best known portrait shows him with a full beard, but, during the greater part of his life, he wore only a fair moustache and a " royal," that is, a little tuft of beard falling over the chin from the under-lip, and shorter than the pointed " imperial." His feet were small, his hands shorthand plump. Of average height and very broad-chested, he inclined in his prime to stoutness, but he was neither grotesquely obese like the eighteenth, nor corpulent like the sixteenth, Louis. He had all the natural taste of the Bourbons for hunting and shooting — a taste which was fostered by the necessity of finding occupation for his life of exile. An accident which he met with in 1841 — a fall from his horse on the Kirch- berg estate — did not interfere with his taste for sport though it lamed him for life, in such wise that he seemed to drag one leg when he walked. Five years after that mishap, the Count married at Bruck in Styria the Archduchess Maria Theresa Beatrice d'Este, eldest daughter of Duke Francis IV. of Modena, whose bigotry and despotic views were notorious, and who was only kept on his throne by the power of Austrian bayonets. Trained in her father's narrow principles, the Countess de Chambord was not the woman to impart any liberalism, or even any healthy energetic ambition, to her husband. In the latter part of her life she became a valetudinarian, and this compelled the Count to quit his favourite seat of Froschdorf (usually called Frohsdorf by the French), near the Leytha mountains, which separate Austrian from Hungarian territory, and reside at the Villa Bachmann, a small, inelegant, and inconvenient abode about half a mile from Goritz.^ The mild and humid climate of that region, not far distant from Trieste and the Adriatic, suited the Countess's health, but it was not adapted to the Count's. That, however, like a devoted husband, he concealed from his wife, though he often remarked to his more intimate friends, " There is not suffi- cient air for me here ; I often feel as if I should stifle." A few devoted partisans of his cause shared his exile, some continuously, like the Count de Blacas, a son or nephew of the Duke of that name who had served the Restoration as Minister of State; ^ The locality is also called Gorz and Gorizia, Goritz being a kind of com- promise between those appellations. 88 REPUBLICAN FRANCE others, at certain periods, like General de Charette, sometime commander of the Papal Zouaves. On various occasions after reaching manhood, the Count de Chambord addressed manifestoes to the French nation. He denounced his usurping cousins of Orleans, whom he somewhat smartly described as the " legitimate Kings of the Revolution " ; he also denounced the Bonapartes, whom he styled " Corsican adventurers without honour or principles " ; he also spoke out at times respecting " the odious treatment " of Pope Pius IX. by the Italian revolutionaries ; and he condoled with fugitive sovereigns like Francis II. of Naples, and Robert, the boy Duke of Parma. As a rule, his language was extremely dignified, and his manifestoes and letters — which there are good grounds for believing were invariably composed by himself — indicated the possession of no little literary ability. Naturally enough, he could not remain indifferent to the sufferings experienced by France in the war of 1870-71. At the time when exaggerated reports of the effects of the German bombardment of Paris were current, he issued a stirring factum, lamenting that he could not offer up his life to save France from further disaster, and calling on all the kings and nations of the earth to witness his solemn protest against the most bloody and deplorable war that had ever been. " Who but I," he continued, " can speak to the world for the city of Clovis, Clotilda, and St. Genevieve, for the city of Charlemagne, St. Louis, Philip-Augustus, and Henry IV., for the city of science, art, and civilisation ? . . . Since I can do nothing more, my voice at least shall rise from the depths of exile to protest against the ruin of my country. It shall cry aloud both to earth and to heaven, assiired of receiving the sympathy of man, and awaiting all from the justice of God." Later, the newspapers published a touching letter which the Count addressed to Mme. de Bouille, whose three sons had fallen while fighting for France at the disastrous engagement of Loigny (December 2, 1870). Subsequently, the outbreak of the Commune elicited further declarations from the Count, the most important of which, couched in the form of a letter to a friend, contained the following passages : — You live, you say, among men of all parties, who are anxious to know what is my desire and my hope. . . . Say that I entreat them, in the name of the dearest and most sacred interests, in the THE COUNT DE CHAMBORD 89 name of all mankind which beholds our misfortuneSj to forget dis- sensions, prejudices, and enmities. Caution them against the calumnies which are spread abroad for the purpose of creating a belief that, discouraged by the immensity of our woes, and despair- ing of the future of my country, I have renounced the happiness of working to save it. It will be saved whenever it ceases to confound license with hberty, when it ceases to seek security under haphazard governments, which, after a few years of fancied safety, leave it in deplorable difficulties. . . . Let us confess that the desertion of principle has been the real cause of our disasters. A Christian nation cannot with impunity tear all the venerable pages from its history, sever the chain of its traditions, inscribe negation of the rights of God at the head of its Constitution, and banish every religious idea from its laws. . . . Under such conditions disorder must prevail, there will be oscillations between anarchy and Csesarism, two equally disgraceful forms of government, equally characteristic of the decay of heathen nations, and destined to become the lot of all communities that are forgetful of their duty. . . . Hence it is, my dear friend, that, notwithstanding some remaining prejudices, the good sense of France longs for the re-establishment of the Monarchy. ... It perceives that order is requisite to ensure justice and honesty, and that apart from the hereditary Monarchy it has nothing to hope for. . . . Oppose most earnestly the errors and prejudices which creep too readily into the noblest hearts. It is said that I desire absolute power. Would to God that such power had never been so readily accorded to those (the Bonapartes) who in troublous times came forward as saviours ! Had it been otherwise, we should not now be lamenting the coun- try's misfortunes. You are aware that what I desire is to labour for the regeneration of the country, to give scope to all its legitimate aspirations, to preside at the head of the whole House of France over its destinies, and to submit in all confidence the acts of the Government to the careful control of freely-elected representatives. It is asserted that hereditary Monarchy is incompatible with the equality of all before the law. But I do not ignore the lessons of experience and the conditions of a nation's life. How could I advocate privileges/for others — I, who only ask to be allowed to devote every moment of my life to the security and happiness of France, and to share her distress before sharing her honour .'' It is asserted that the independence of the Papacy is dear to me, and that I am determined to obtain efficacious guarantees for it. That is true. The liberty of the Church is the first condition of spiritual peace and order in the State. To protect the Holy See was ever our country's honourable duty, and the most certain cause of her greatness among the nations. Only in the periods of her greatest misfortunes has France abandoned that glorious protectorate. Rest assured that if I am called by the nation, it will be not only because I represent right, but because I am order and reform — because I am the essential basis of the authority requisite to restore what has perished, and to govern justly and lawfully so as to remedy the 90 REPUBLICAN FRANCE evils of the past and pave the way for the future. ... I hold in my hand the ancient sword of France, and in my breast is the heart of a king and a father recognising no party. I am of none/nor do I desire to return and reign by means of party. 1 have no injury to avenge, no enemy to exile, no fortune to retrieve, except that of France. It is in my power to select, in whatever quarter they be, men anxious to associate themselves with that great undertaking. I shall only bring back religion, concord, and peace. I desire to exercise no dictatorship save that of clemency, for in my hands, and in my hands alone, clemency will still be justice. Thus it is, my dear friend, that I despair not of my country, nor shrink from the magnitude of the task. It is for France to speak and for God to choose the hour.i Henri. May 8, 1871. That was eloquent language — precise, however, on only two points, and vague, far too vague for our practical modern times, on others. The two points in question were, first, " the indepen- dence of the Papacy . . . the protectorate of France over the Holy See," and, secondly, the invitation which, in the phrase expressive of a desire to preside " at the head of the whole House of France " over the country's destinies, was extended to the Orleans Princes to renounce their pretensions and submit to their cousin's divine right. The candid statement respect- ing the duty of France to the Holy See was perhaps necessi- tated by the support which the French clergy were already giving to the Legitimist cause, but, in regard to the nation generally, it was a blunder. The Republicans made no little capital out of it. What, was France, on scarcely emerging from her disasters, to restore the monarchy just for the pleasure of going to war with Italy, in order to revive the temporal power of Pius IX. ? Would that not also imply another war with Germany, for would not Germany certainly be on Italy's side ? The idea of such a policy was insensate. Many folk, even, who were religiously minded, shrank from it, realising that the restoration of the hereditary monarchy, under such circumstances, would be a national calamity. Many Imperial- ists even regretted that Napoleon III. had propped up the Papacy, and thereby alienated Italian public opinion. The perilous nature of the question became manifest a year or two later, when, on the Kulturkampf arising between Germany and Rome, even the reactionary Administration of the Duke de 1 " La parole estk la France et I'heure k Dieu." THE ORLEANS PRINCES 91 Broglie was reluctantly compelled to admonish the French episcopacy and suspend clerical newspapers, in obedience to the injunctions which Prince Bismarck privately addressed to Duke Decazes. On the question of Rome the bulk of the country was quite unwilling to follow the Pretender, who, by revealing his aspirations in that respect, dealt his cause its first serious blow. Further, for a time the Orleans Princes evinced little desire to make their peace with the Count de Chambord, on which account they and their partisans were attacked with great violence by the Legitimist and Clerical journals, La Gazette de France, U Union, VUnivers, Le Monde, and others, one of them describing the Orleanist party as " a mere residue of old prefects, old employees, old peers, a threadbare aristocracy, whose names were no longer of any use even on the pro- spectuses of fraudulent public companies." The Orleanist chief was the Count de Paris, a Prince whose destiny resembled that of the Count de Chambord in various respects. Each was the son of a man who had met a violent death — the Count de Chambord's father being assassinated, while the Count de Paris' perished in a carriage accident at Neuilly. As for the Princes themselves, both were born at the Tuileries, both were driven into exile in their childhood, both died without having reigned. Before dealing in some detail with the Count de Paris and his immediate relatives, the position will be made clearer by mentioning that Louis Philippe d'Orleans, King of the French, had, by his marriage with Marie Amelie, daughter of Ferdinard IV. of Naples, five sons and three daughters, whose names here follow in the order of their birth: Ferdinand, Duke d'Orleans;^ Louise, who by her marriage with Leopold I. became Queen of the Belgians,^ and mother of the present King Leopold II. ; Marie, who became by marriage Duchess of Wurtemberg ; ^ Louis, Duke de Nemours;* Marie-Clementine, Duchess de Beaujolais, and ' Born In 1810, died in 1842 at Neuilly. We refer to his marriage and children in our narrative. ^ Born in 1812, died in 1850. Was extremely popular in Belgium. s Born in 1813, died in 1839. Distinguished herself in art, notably by her statue of Joan of Arc, now at the Louvre. * Born in 1814, died in 1896. He married Victoria, Princess of Saxe- Coburg-Gotha, by whom he had two sons : (1) Gaston, Count d'Eu, who married Princess Isabella of BrazU, and has three sons now in the Austrian 92 REPUBLICAN FRANCE by marriage Princess of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha ; i Frangois, Prince de Joinville;2 Henri, Duke d'Aumale;^ and Antoine, Duke de Montpensier.* Ferdinand, Duke d'Orleans, the eldest of those children, and heir to the throne, became a young man of ability, but of expensive tastes and amorous disposition. His " intrigues " with women were numerous. He was the lover of the beautiful Countess Le Hon, until displaced in her good graces by M. de Morny (half-brother of Napoleon III.), with whom, on that account, he fought a duel. In 1837, being then twenty-seven years of age, Ferdinand married Princess Helen of Mecklenburg- Schwerin, by whom he had two sons, Louis Philippe Albert, Count de Paris, born August M, 1838,and Robert Philippe Louis, Duke de Chartres, bom November 9, 1840. Two years later Ferdinand was killed by jumping out of his carriage, the horses of which had run away ; and when the Revolution, which overthrew the Orleans dynasty, broke out, the Count de Paris, in whose favour King Louis Philippe abdicated, was only in his tenth year. Nevertheless, an effort was made to induce the deputies to recognise the boy as sovereign — General, later Marshal, Magnan attempting to carry him and his mother to the Chamber — but the plan failed, and the monarchy fell. It might possibly have survived had the advice of Thiers been adopted, array ; and (2) Ferdinand, Duke d'Alen^on, who married Sophia of Bavaria, sister of the Empress Elizabeth of Austria. The Duchess Sophia perished in the terrible F6te de Charity fire in Paris in 1897, leaving her husband with three children : (a) Emmanuel, Duke de Vend6me, now serving in the Austrian army, and married to Henrietta of Belgium, daughter of the late Count of Flanders and sister of Albert, King of the Belgians ; (6) Louise, married to Prince Alphonse of Bavaria ; and (c) Blanche, still immarried. The Duke d'Alen^on died in 1910. ' Born in 1817, died in 1906. By her marriage with Prince Augustus of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha she had a son, Ferdinand, King of Bulgaria. '' Born in 1818, died in 1900. He married Princess Francisca of Brazil (sister of the Emperor Dom Pedro II.), by whom he had (1) a daughter, Fran^oise, still living, and married to Robert, Duke de Chartres, younger son of Ferdinand, Duke d'Orleans, and brother of the Count de Paris ; (2) a son, Pierre Philippe, Duke de Penthifevre, born in 1845, stiU living, and unmarried. ' Born in 1822, died in 1897. We deal with his career and refer to his marriage and children (who predeceased him) in our narrative. * Born in 1824, died in 1890. Married in 1846 Luisa, Infanta of Spain (sister of Queen Isabella II.), by whom he had, first, a daughter, Isabel, who married the Count de Paris (see our narrative), and afterwards a son, Antonio, who married the Infanta Eulalia of Spain, by whom he had two sons. THE ORLEANS PRINCES 98 for he, in lieu of abdication, wished the King to quit Paris under escort at the first moment of danger, and return thither at the head of 50,000 men, whom Marshal Bugeaud would have commanded. However, as Thiers subsequently related, his advice was scorned, and he was only able to apply his plan for quelling a Parisian revolution twenty-three years afterwards, that is at the time of the Commune. The royal family went into exile. The King, then already seventy-five years old, had not long to live. Still he settled down for a time at Orleans House, Twickenham, which he quitted for the estate of Claremont, near Esher, placed at his disposal by Queen Victoria. It was there that he died in 1850. Orleans House had then passed to his son, the Duke d'Aumale, whose brother, the Prince de Joinville, occupied the neighbour- ing property of Mount Lebanon, while York House, also at Twickenham, became the residence of the young Count de Paris. The last named, before coming to England, had spent some time in Germany with his mother, and he subsequently travelled in the East. At the outbreak of the American Civil War he sailed for the United States, and was attached for a while to General McClellan's staff. The ultimate outcome of his experiences at that time was a six-volume history of the American War, published between 1874) and 1883. On May 30, 1864, the Count married (at Kingston-on-Thames) his cousin, Isabel, daughter of the Duke de Montpensier, by whom he had two sons and four daughters, the elder of the sons being the present Duke d'Orleans — now " Head of the House of France " — who was born at Twickenham on February 6, 1869, and married, in 1896, Maria Dorothea Amelia, Archduchess of Austria, who is two years his junior. There has been no offspring of the marriage, and in the event of the demise of the present Duke d'Orleans without posterity, his brother Ferdinand, Duke de Montpensier, bom at the Chateau d'Eu on September 9, 1884, would become head of the House and " King of France.".^ ' The daughters of the Count de Paris are : First, Marie Amaie, born at Twickenham in 1865, and formerly Queen-Consort of Portugal. She married King Carlos in May 1886 when he was Crown Prince. Secondly Hatee Louise, born at Twickenham in 1871, and married, in 189S, to Emmanuel of Savoy, Duke of Aosta. Thirdly, Marie IsabeUe, born at Eu in 1878, and married in 1899 to the Duke de Guise, son of her father's brother, the Duke de Chartres. Fourthly, Louise, born at Cannes in 1883, and married in November 1907 to Prince Charles de Bourbon, who, though 94 REPUBLICAN FRANCE The Count de Paris was a man of considerable ability and culture. Besides the historical work we have mentioned, he wrote, in 1869, a volume on the English Trades Unions, which showed that he had a good knowledge of social economy. He possessed, however, little or none of the energy requisite on the part of a pretender. The ccmps de tite in which he indulged now and again in the course of his career, were such as are not infrequently observed in men of weak character. They usually had disastrous effects for the Count or his relatives. For the rest, his general appearance was pleasing. He was unaffected in his manners, and affable, despite some hesitancy of speech. Deeply attached to his beautiful consort, who survives him, he knew, in default of the splendour of a regal career, all the joys of a happy family life. In public affairs, although he was the head of his House, he was long overshadowed by his uncles, the Duke d'Aumale, the Prince de Joinville, and even the Duke de Nemours. He did not usually initiate or guide the policy of his party. Save for the occasional coups de tete to which we have referred, he allowed himself to be led. Had he ascended the throne he might have been a true constitutional sovereign, one willing to follow the famous dictum laid down by Thiers in Restoration days: "Le Roi regne, mais ne gouverne pas." • ' • The Count de Paris' younger brother, Robert Philippe Louis, Duke de Chartres, evinced in his earlier years a great deal more vigour and decision of character, though, by reason of his junior position, there was but little opportunity for him to display it in public affairs. He married his cousin, Fran9oise, daughter of the Prince de Joinville, by whom he had four children : Marie Amelie, later Princess Waldemar of Denmark;^ Henri, who became a young man of somewhat violent and erratic character, yet displayed real ability as a writer and an explorer ;2 grandson of " King Bomba " (Ferdinand II.) of the Two Sicilies, has become a naturalised Spaniard and an olEcer in the Spanish army. This wedding which took place at Wood Norton in Worcestershire, was the occasion of no little display, which in various respects verged on the ridiculous. 1 Born at Ham, Surrey, in 1865, she was married to Prince Waldemar of Denmark, brother of our Queen Alexandra, in 1885. They have a son, Prince Erik. 2 Prince Henri d'Orl^ans was born at Ham in 1867 and died at Saigon in 1901. Though an Englishman by birth he was a thorough Anglophobist. In 1897 he fought a notorious duel with the Count of Turin. During the Dreyfus affair he sided prominently with the Anti-Semites. THE ORLEANS PRINCES 95 Marguerite, now Duchess de Magenta ; ^ and Jean, now Duke de Guise.2 In his youth the Duke de Chartres studied at the Military School of Turin, but he first saw active service with the Federals during the American Civil War. When hostilities broke out between France and Germany he was thirty years of age. At the fall of the Empire he repaired to France, and, under the name of Robert le Fort, obtained employment, with the provisional rank of captain, on the staff of the 19th Corps d'Armee, a part of Chanzy's forces. After the repeal of the Laws of Exile in 1871, he secured a definite position in the French army, and was promoted seven years later to a colonelcy. But in 1883, both he and the Duke d'Aumale were removed from active service by the Government of the Republic. It was a severe blow for them, for they were extremely attached to their profession, and the Duke de Chartres, for his part, was still barely in the prime of life. The Duke d'Aumale was undoubtedly the ablest of the Orleans Princes of those days. Entering the army in 1837, when he had only just completed his fifteenth year, he served like his brothers, Orleans and Nemours, under Bugeaud in Algeria, where, from the outset, he displayed diligence, activity, and enterprise. But he had not yet sown his wild oats, and when, after promotion to a colonelcy, he returned to Paris, he entangled himself, although not yet one-and-twenty, first with a notoriety of the Opera house, Heloise Florentin, and im- mediately afterwards with an actress of the Varietes, Alice Ozy, in whose good graces he succeeded Bazancourt, the novelist, much as his own father succeeded Pharamond on the throne. This demoiselle a la mode often drove over to the suburb of Courbevoie, where the Duke commanded the 17th Light Infantry, and whenever she was present to witness any parade of the regiment, the amorous young Colonel would order the band to play the Algerian air : " O Radoudja, ma maitresse." Matters becoming serious, it was decided to send him back to Algeria, where he speedily forgot the fair Alice ^ and repeatedly ' Born at Ham in 1869, she became, in 1896, the wife of Patrice de MacMahon, Duke de Magenta, eldest son of the famous Marshal President of that name. ^ Born in Paris in 1874, he married, in 1899, his cousin Isabelle, daughter of the Count de Paris. They have two daughters, Isabelle, born in 1900, and Fran9oise, bom in 1902. ' She played in Le Chevalier da Ouet, Lee Emragis, and other popular 96 REPUBLICAN FRANCE distinguished himself in the field. His capture of Abd-el- Kader's smala in 1843 — which, as will be remembered, was commemorated by Horace Vernet in a famous painting — has occasionally been derided by radical critics, but it was a notable exploit, for, apart from the large number of women, girls, and lads in the Arab camp, there were (as the Emir himself subsequently admitted to General Daumas) 5000 armed men, whereas the Duke d'Aumale made the attack with only 500. The Duke was made a brigadier (marechal-de-camp) for that feat, and appointed to the command of the province of Constantine. After leading an expedition to Biskra, he returned to France for a while, a marriage having been arranged for him with the Princess Maria Caroline, daughter of the Prince of Salerno, one of the Neapolitan Bourbons. The Duke, it so happened, was a very wealthy young man, having inherited a fortune of ^£"800,000 and vast estates (including Chantilly) from his grand uncle and godfather, Louis Henri, last Duke de Bourbon and Prince de Conde, who, one night in August 1830, was found dead, hanging by the neck from the fastenings of a window of his Chateau of St. Leu. Several pocket handkerchiefs tied together, had served, in lieu of a rope, for the perpetration of that deed. Was it a case of suicide or one of crime ? The law-courts affirmed that it was suicide, but crime was suspected by the public generally. The genuineness of the Duke's will was also disputed, and although the docimient was upheld by the tribunals, there were certainly some suspicious circumstances connected with it. Writers of repute have often contended that it was a forgery, devised by the Duke's mistress, Sophie Dawes, Countess de Feucheres, who, it is asserted, contrived it in order to secure a goodly share of the vast wealth belonging to her aged lover.i To her also the Duke's death has been attributed. With respect to the will, she was too artful, it is said, to concoct one leaving her the bulk of the ducal property, for she plays of the time. Among her many lovers were Alex. Dumas the elder, and Fran90is Victor Hugo, then no older than the Duke d'Aumale. When her liauon with the latter ceased, Ahce Ozy consoled herself with the second Perr^gaux, the son of the financier, who had been at one time the employer, and later the partner, of Jacques Laffitte. Protected in turn by Perr^gaux and other men of wealth, Alice amassed a fortune, bought herself a chateau, and survived until an advanced age as a Lady Bountiful and a pattern of repentance and piety. ' He was seventy-four years old. THE ORLEANS PRINCES 97 foresaw that such a will would be immediately upset, whereas, if she contented herself with an adequate slice of the estates, and attributed the remainder to a Prince of the blood royal, a member of that new Orleans dynasty which had just ascended the throne, there was every prospect that the document would be upheld. The Duke de Bourbon had no direct heir, his only son was that Duke d'Enghien who was so foully put to death under the First Empire. What could be more natural, then, than that he should bequeath the bulk of his wealth to his young godson, the then boyish Duke d'Aumale ? Against that proposi- tion, however, must be set the fact that, although the Duke de Bourbon had served as sponsor to the Duke d'Aumale at his birth in January 1822 (Louis XVIII. being King), he was an uncompromising Legitimist, and viewed with the utmost horror and detestation the Revolution, which, a month before his death, had dispossessed King Charles X., and given the throne of France to Louis Philippe d'Orleans and the next highest rank in the land to the latter's sons. Such being the position, would he not have revoked any bequests to the Duke d'Aumale, even if he had previously intended to favour him ? Given the Duke de Bourbon's stern, rigid nature, it seemed inconceivable that he should devise the bulk of his wealth to the son of a monarch whom he shunned and called an usurper. Such are some of the points urged against the authenticity of the will. But, as we have said, the document was upheld, and the Duke d'Aumale, then eight years old, became the wealthiest member of his family. At the same time, Mme. de Feucheres benefited by it to no small extent — if she were guilty she had taken very good care of herself — for the will bequeathed to her first a sum of deSOjOOO, next the chateaux and parks of St. Leu and Boissy, the estate of Mortefontaine, the forest of Montmorency, and a variety of other property. She hastened to sell St. Leu, the scene of her protector's tragic end, and the chateau was demolished and the estate broken up. Meantime, however, the Legitimists (not the Orleanists) had raised a sub- scription for a monument in memory of the Duke de Bourbon, and it was erected on the very site of the chateau where he met his death. At the end of an avenue of cypresses you see a column guarded by two angels and surmounted by a cross, which occupies, in mid-air, the exact spot where the old Prince was found hang- ing. His remains are interred beneath the pile. H 98 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Such was the origin of the Duke d'Au male's great wealth, which was augmented by his marriage with the Princess Maria Caroline, for, through her, he came into possession of large estates in Calabria and Sicily, notably at Cosenza and Zucco — at which last-named locality, situate near Trapani, he had exten- sive vineyards, yielding some dry but full-flavoured wines, both red and white (the latter a kind of superior Marsala), for which, in the course of years, he found some market in Paris, the bottle labels bearing both the Duke's name and his arms.^ In 1845, after the birth of a son — Louis Philippe, created Prince de Conde ^ — the Duke d'Aumale returned to Algeria, and in September 1847, he succeeded Bugeaud as Governor of the colony. Three months later his rule was marked by a notable event. That redoubtable Arab leader, Abd-el-Kader, having surrendered to Lamoriciere, was brought to him to make his submission. But two months afterwards the Revolution in Paris swept the Orleans Monarchy away. The Duke d'Aumale, whose brother, the Prince de Joinville, was with him at the time, had supreme command of 80,000 French troops, among whom, it is certain, he was personally very popular. For that reason it has often been contended that, had he chosen, he might have carried those men to France, and have restored his father's rule. Whether that were possible or not, he abstained from attempt- ing it. He bade the army farewell in a brief proclamation, in which he said : " Submissive to the national will, I am leaving you ; but from the depths of exile my every wish will be for the prosperity and glory of France, which I should have liked to have served longer." Then he relinquished his authority to General Cavaignac (who soon became chief of the Executive Power in France) and embarked with the Prince and Princess de Joinville for Gibraltar, whence he proceeded to England. For a few years he travelled, then settled down at Twicken- ham, where, in 1854, his second son, Francois Louis, Duke de Guise, was born. His years of exile during the Second Empire were spent chiefly in literary work, often of high merit.^ He ' The white variety was by far the better wine, and secured, we remember, one of the highest awards for vintages of its class at the Vienna Exhibition of 1873. 2 He died of typhoid fever at Sydney, New South Wales, in 1866. * His chief writings were his excellent Histoire des Princes de Condi, 1869- 1895 ; his Institutions Militaires de la France, 1868 ; his Zouaves et Chasssurs- Or^ied, 1855 ; and his Septi^rm Qampagne de Cisar en GavXe. THE ORLEANS PRINCES 99 was a brilliant polemist, and the Lettre stir Vhistoire de France, which he wrote in 1861, in reply to provocation offered by Prince Napoleon Jerome, was a masterly exposure of the Imperial rSgime. Its publisher was sentenced by the judges of the Empire to a year's imprisonment and the payment of ^£"200 fine. A little later, on the Duke being attacked by Prince Napoleon in the Senate, he sent him a challenge, but the mock soldier, whom the Parisians had christened " Plon-Plon,'" was afraid of a real soldier's steel. At the fall of the Empire, the Duke offered his sword to the National Defence, first to Trochu, and later to the Delegates at Tours. Both declined his services, which was perhaps re- grettable, for France disposed of few generals of value. How- ever, the raison d'etat prevailed. At the first elections of 1871, the Duke was elected to the National Assembly by the depart- ment of the Oise (Chantilly — 52,222 votes), but he. only took his seat after the repeal of the Exile Laws in June that year. In December a great honour was conferred on him : he became a member of the French Academy ,i and in the ensuing month of March, he was reinstated in the army with the rank of General of Division. Great was his delight, but at that same moment a heavy blow fell upon him. He had lost his elder son in 1866, his wife in 1869, and now the young Duke de Guise — a bright youth of eighteen years — was snatched away by death. " God has extinguished the last light of my home," the Duke wrote to a friend shortly afterwards. He was then only fifty years of age, and might have remarried, but he never did so. In later years his name was associated with that of a very charming and well-remembered actress of the Comedie Fran9aise. We shall refer to that liaison when speaking of the Duke and General Boulanger. Let us now pass to the Duke's brother, the Prince de Joinville, who also returned to France in 1871, and was elected a member of the National Assembly. A sailor prince, with a good know- ledge of his profession under the old conditions, and evincing at various times considerable gallantry in action, he had been popular in France during his father's reign, less, however, on account of the above reasons, than on account of his voyage to St. Helena to bring the remains of the first Napoleon to France 1 At his formal reception in 1873, it was his old tutor Cuvillier-Fleury who addressed him on behalf of the Academy. 100 REPUBLICAN FRANCE and of his bold opposition to the obnoxious policy of the Guizot Administration, which wrecked the Monarchy.i In 1870 he offered his services to the National Defence, repaired to France under the name of " Colonel Lutteroth," applied personally to Cremieux, Glais-Bizoin, and Fourichon at Tours, and afterwards appealed to Generals d'Aurelle and Martin des Pallieres ; but the only result was his subsequent arrest by Ranc (acting under Gambetta's orders), and an injunction to quit France. Before that happened, however, the Prince was for a few days with the rear-guard of the Loire Army in its retreat on Orleans,^ when he not only saved some wounded men, but (although attired as a civilian) joined, on December 4, a naval contingent which was in charge of a battery established on Mount Bedhet, in advance of the city. The commander of this battery wished to order him away, but when he had mentioned that he was an old naval officer, he was allowed to stay and assist in directing the men and working the guns. The men, at first, were rather amused by the presence of this " civilian,'" and when the German fire directed on the battery became more severe, and shells began to explode all around it, they asked him if he did not feel afraid. " What do you say ? " the Prince inquired, raising his hand to his ear, whereupon a gunner shouted the question afresh. " Afraid ? " was the Prince's retort, " well, no. You see, I am nearly stone deaf (which was true), and as I don't hear it, it doesn't frighten me." The fire of the battery was kept up until nine at night, in order to allow various small detachments of the French to cross the Loire, and one of the last shells which took its flight through the darkness towards the German positions came from a gun which the Prince himself pointed. He retired with the men into Orleans, where he somewhat imprudently lingered until the Germans had entered. Had they taken him, they might, perchance, have sent him to Wilhelmshohe to keep Napoleon III. company, but he eventually sought the Bishop — the famous Dupanloup — and with his assistance was able to escape from the city. ' He had literary talent like most of his family, and published a two-volume work, Questions de marine et ricits de guerre, as well as some recollections, Views Souvenirs, 1894. ^ Abb^ Cochard's Les Prussiens a Orliams, 18T1 ; letter from the Prince to the author. Also P. Lehautcourt's Campagne de la Loire, Vol. I. : Couimiers et Orlians, Paris, 1893, and Le Prince de Joinmlle pendant la campagne de France, Orleans, 1873. THE ORLEANS PRINCES 101 Very bald, and wearing a full grey beard, the Prince de Joinville looked, in 1871, a good deal older than he really was. The expression of his face suggested bonhomie, there was no affectation about him. Like his brothers, D'Aumale and Nemours, he was of the average height, but with more laisser- aller in his bearing. On the other hand, the best physical characteristics of a general officer appeared in D'Aumale's still fairly slim but muscular figure, his well-set shoulders, erect carriage, quick, agile step, and energetic, if somewhat thoughtful, face. He was, too, an accomplished horseman and a good shot, an extremely active man, a genuine hard worker ; and if, as a general, he preserved a demeanour which commanded respect, he evinced in private life frank and urbane manners. His brother, the Duke de Nemours, was of a different type. He also had been trained to the profession of arms, but the great event in his career had been the futile attempt to make him King of the Belgians, in preference to Leopold of Saxe- Coburg (1831). He was pretentious both in his manners and his physique. If D'Aumale looked fit and trim like an officer groomed well but rapidly by a deft brosseur, Nemours had the elaborate appearance of a coxcomb, who has spent hours before his looking-glass, in the hands of his valet de chambre. His great object in life was to cultivate a resemblance to Henri of Navarre, none of whose qualities he in any way possessed. But his hair was cut, his moustache turned up, his beard trimmed with the most sedulous care, in order that the beholder might imagine he was confronted by some reincarnation of " Le Roi galant " — though, indeed, the latter never took anything like the same care of his personal appearance. Thus Nemours was like a caricature of the great king, or, better still, he suggested one of those " official " portraits which embellish nature. Neverthe- less, he was extremely vain of the resemblance which he thus cultivated — far vainer, indeed, than Prince Napoleon ever was of his natural likeness to the great Emperor. For the rest, the opinions of Nemours were reactionary. To say that he was the least popular of Louis Philippe's sons would be but half the truth. He was really most unpopular.'^ As, however, his ^ When in 1871, photographs of the Orleans Princes made their appearance in the shop windows (from which Napoleon III. and his family were for some time excluded), you usually perceived the Count de Paris flanked by his uncles D'Aimiale and Joinville. But no portrait of Nemours was exhibited, because, as a shopkeeper once remarked to us, " nobody would ever think of buying it. " 102 REPUBLICAN FRANCE talents tended to intrigue, he exerted himself in parliamentary and social circles, after his return to France, to further the cause of a monarchical restoration. He was the least fortunately- circumstanced of the Princes, and on that account, he appears to have taken a prominent part in the negotiations for the restoration of the Orleans property confiscated by Napoleon III., and the payment of a national indemnity for such of the property as could not be recovered. As a matter of principle it was right and fit that restitution should be made. But the question was raised in an impolitic manner, at a moment when the resources of France were being strained to the utmost to provide for the German indemnity and other war expenses. Patriotism required that the Princes should wait until a more convenient season, they were by no means penniless, and a little consideration for the country's terrible circumstances would have tended to their popularity. They were in a hurry, however. On one hand, they were some- what surprised at finding themselves in France again — it seemed "too good to last," and they were minded, therefore, to seize their opportunity with all despatch. On the other hand, funds were required for political propaganda. Those considerations prevailed, and the result was a stupendous blunder, of which the Republicans eagerly availed themselves. Thiers lent himself to the affair, indeed, took it under his wing — whether out of friendship for the Princes, or to curry favour with the Orleanist majority of the Assembly, is uncertain ; but in any case no greater disservice was ever rendered to the Orleanist cause. The Assembly ratified the demand, and, in December 1872, the Princes secured nearly a couple of millions sterling. They showed no gratitude to Thiers for his assumption of responsi- bility. Both the Duke d'Aumale and the Duke de Nemours contributed to the little man's overthrow, working, for once, in concert, though, later, when the Fusion of Orleanists and Legitimists was negotiated, D'Aumale hung back, unwilling to make his submission to the Count de Chambord, whereas Nemours was prepared to accept even the White Flag. Such then were the Princes of the dynasty whose chances of reascending the French throne seemed, after the Franco-German War, to be more considerable than those of either the Legitimists or the Bonapartists. Yet the last named were very active. Already, in August 1871, at the time of the whilom Fete THE EX-EMPEROR 103 Napoleon, the agents of the exiled Emperor distributed money among the Paris hospitals and charities. Ajaccio in Corsica — the birthplace of the Bonapartes — actually celebrated the fete in accordance with previous usage, the Municipal Council voting money for the poor, and the clergy celebrating a special mass at the cathedral. Yet less than a twelvemonth had elapsed since Sedan ! The chief imperialist agent in France was now Rouher, the once powerful "Vice-Emperor," who certainly displayed great energy and devotion. In 1872, the Imperial family again had numerous newspapers in its pay — some completely, others to more or less extent. In Paris were found VOrdre, Le Pays, L'Esperance du Pewple and Le Gaidois, as well as Le Con- stUntiownel. In the provinces there were Le Courrier du Havre,, Le Journal de Bordeaux, Le Nivernais, U Iiid&pendant de VAiiie, LJ'Admir, Le Courrier de Bayonne, UAmi de VOrdre of Caen, Le Patriate of Perpignan, and many others. Again, there were all sorts of pamphlets and almanacks, which hawkers circulated among the peasantry to remind them of the " good times " they had enjoyed under the sway of the sovereign who, from what he did to promote their welfare, had often been called the " Emperor of the Peasants." All that propaganda which became even more extensive a few years later, when the young Imperial Prince attained his majority, cost money ; but the question where the money came from has never been properly elucidated. The accounts of the Imperial Civil List, in the liquidation of which Rouher exerted himself on behalf of the exiled family, were extremely involved, and little or nothing was obtained from that source during the ex-Emperor's lifetime, though the Empress Eugenie's personal claims to considerable property were established, in part then, and in part subsequently. It would really seem, therefore, that, in spite of frequent denials from the time of Sedan onward, Napoleon III. (as asserted in documents issued by the National Defence Government) had really provided himself 'with a nest egg before his downfall. The story ran that he had lodged large sums in Great Britain and Holland. Certain it is that, from the quelling of the Commune in 1871, until the Emperor's death in January 1873, some millions of francs were spent on propaganda for his cause. Subsequently, in the Imperial Prince's time, there were well organised Bonapartist Committees and subscription funds, representing considerable amounts of 104 REPUBLICAN FRANCE money ; but the earlier agitation was financed almost entirely by Napoleon III. himself. At the moment when France and the world were gasping with horror at the excesses of the Commune, the ex-Emperor seems to have been convinced that he would be restored to the throne, and all his efforts were directed towards hastening that event. But the complaint from which he suffered,^ and the organic lesions it had produced, were making steady progress. He had taken little physical exercise whilst he was a prisoner of war at Wilhelmshohe, and thus his sojourn there had proved restful and beneficial ; but after his arrival in England, on directing his thoughts to the prospect of his restoration, he began to exert himself in various ways. The story runs that his plan was not to make any descent on France from England. When the time was near for his partisans to proclaim him, he meant to cross over to the Continent, and visit, among other spots, the estate of Arenenberg, above Lake Constance, his home in early days. Then, all being ready, he intended to cross Switzerland and enter France. But there was one important matter : it was necessary that he should be able to ride. He deemed it requisite, imperative, that he should present himself to the nation on horseback. When he arrived in England, he had not been in the saddle since the fatal day of Sedan. It was largely because he had abstained from horse-riding that his symptoms had become less acute, less painful. Perhaps, however, he did not attribute the apparent improvement of his health to that cause. In any case, as his hopes of restoration revived, he again put his powers of horsemanship to the test. He began by riding now and then in secluded lanes around Chislehm-st. At first, no ill-effect was observed, but when he proceeded to indulge more freely in the exercise, all the old trouble returned, with, indeed, more intensity than ever. Baron Corvisart, who had attended him during the war, and his old friend. Dr. Conneau, were with him, and in July, 1872, they induced him to consult Sir Henry Thompson and Sir William Gull, who, agreeing with their French colleagues that the case must be one of vesical calculus, wished the Emperor to submit to complete examination. He refused to do so, even as he had refused to act on the advice of Baron ^ For a full account of the earlier stages of the Emperor's illness see our Co^lrt of the Tuileries, 1852-1870. THE EX-EMPEROR 105 Larrey in 1865, or of the medical men consulted in 1870 prior to the war. But the severity of his symptoms increased. He had naturally relinquished horse-riding, and he now also found it necessary to give up carriage exercise — in fact, the moment came when he could no longer walk. On October 81 he was seen at Chislehurst by Sir James Paget and Sir William Gull. The former — like Thompson — advised an early examination, in order that the question of the presence of a calculus might be finally determined. Yet, once again, the Emperor refused compliance. For several weeks afterwards, however, he was confined to his room, suffering severely, and at last, towards the end of December, Sir Henry Thompson was again consulted, whereupon, he. Sir W. Gull, and the French doctors declared unanimously that immediate examination was imperative. It was decided also that as the local sensibility had become extreme, the patient must be placed under chloroform, and steps were therefore taken to secure the services of Mr. Clover, then the most experienced administrator of anaesthetics in England. The examination took place on January 2 (1873), and speedily revealed the presence of a large calculus — subsequently found to be about 3 inches in length and 2f inches in breadth, with a weight of fully 1|- ounces. On the same day, in the afternoon, the Emperor having at last placed himself unreservedly in the hands of the doctors, to whom his only request was that they would proceed with all despatch, the operation of lithotrity was performed by Sir Henry Thompson in the presence of Sir W. Gull, Baron Corvisart, M. Conneau, Mr. Foster, and Mr. Clover. The stone was freely crushed and considerable debris were removed. But the pain and irritation increased during the next few days, and a second operation became necessary. The Emperor supported it fairly well, and though, on the night of January 7, his condition was scarcely favourable, he was found on the ensuing night to be materially better. He slept soundly, and at 9.45 on the morning of January 9, his condition seemed so satis- factory — the pulse then being 84, strong and regular, and the local symptoms showing decided improvement — that it was resolved to perform what would have been the third and final operation that same day. Mr. Clover felt that there would be no risk in placing the Emperor under chloroform at once. However, a postponement until noon was agreed upon. But 106 REPUBLICAN FRANCE when, towards half- past ten o'clock, Sir Henry Thompson returned to the patient's room, to ascertain how he might be progressing, he was startled to find that a great change had supervened. Sir Henry at once summoned his colleagues, who all recognised that the Emperor was sinking fast. Restoratives were administered in vain. The Emperor's last effort was to exchange a kiss with the Empress, who had been kneeling by the bedside, and almost immediately afterwards, at a quarter to eleven o'clock, he expired.^ We have written so much about him in an earlier work, to which this present volume is, in a way, a sequel, that neither appreciation of the qualities which he undoubtedly possessed, nor criticism of his private lapses or his mistakes as a ruler, seems to be necessary here. The news of the death caused a profound sensation in France, but, while the Orleanists were frankly jubilant, most of the Republicans pretended to regard the event as of no importance. Edmond About — now a Republican — wrote in Le XlXieme Siecle: "The Empire was dead, the Emperor has just died." Another journal remarked : "The Empire is now, indeed, peace — the peace of the grave." The Bonapartist organs became quite infuriated by some of the hostile comments, and heaped vituperation on their adversaries, calling them "miserable cowards," " ungrateful rabble," " carrion crows," " red-necked ^ The Imperial Prince was at Woolwich at the time, and, although promptly summoned, it was impossible for him to reach Chislehurst before his father's death. A post mortem examination of the remains, conducted by Dr. Burdon Sanderson, showed that the kidneys were involved in the inflammatory effects resulting from the vesical calculus, to a degree which had not been previously suspected, and which, if suspected, could not have been ascertained. There was excessive dilatation of the ureter and the pelvis, tending on the left to atrophy of the glandular substance of the organ besides sub-acute inflammation of the uriniferous tubes. It was found that about half the calculus had been removed. There was no disease of the heart, nor of any other organ, except- ing the kidneys. The brain and its membranes were in a natural state. There were very few clots in the blood. No trace of obstruction by coagula was found in the heart, the pulmonary artery or the venous system. Death took place by failure of the circulation, attributable to the general constitutional state of the patient. The disease of the kidneys, of which that state was the expression, was of such a nature, and so advanced, that it would in any case have shortly determined a fatal result. The calculus, it was held, had been in the vesica several years. The report to the above effect was signed by Burdon Sanderson, Conneau, Corvisart, Thompson, Clover, and Foster ; but Sir W. Gull dissented from it on a few points, notably as regards the age of the calculus. Now, however, that the history of the Emperor's case is much better known than it was at the time of his death, it is certain that Gull was THE EX-EMPEROR 107 vultures," and " wretches, who for eighteen years had servilely bared their necks beneath the Emperor's heel." Some Imperialists, while personally regretting the Emperor, felt that his death might really prove helpful to their cause. There had already been dissensions in the party, one section holding that there was a greater chance of restoring the Empire with the Imperial Prince, than with Napoleon III., on the throne. At present only the Prince remained, and his record being a clean one — for no responsibility for the past, either for the Coup d'Etat or for Sedan, attached to him — it seemed to some that the outlook was really brighter than it had been before. Against that view, had to be set the fact that the Prince was not yet seventeen years of age, and that the Empress Eugenie who, in the event of an early restoration, would become Regent, lacked popularity on account of her extreme clerical views. Thus some held that the Bonapartist party might well split into two sections, one under the Empress and the Imperial Prince, the other under the free-thinking Prince Napoleon Jerome. That view — which subsequent events did not quite justify, for Prince Napoleon's following never became large, and besides, he transformed himself for a while into a professed Republican — appealed to Thiers, who regarded the Emperor's death as a most favourable event for the Republic. "It finally released the nation," said he, "from the imaginary loyalty to which Napoleon III. had fancied himself entitled by the last Plebiscitum in his favour. It severed, moreover, the army's connection with the Empire, relieving those officers who had risen to high rank in imperial times of any sense of duty to their whilom sovereign." In that connection it may be mentioned that all officers on active service were prohibited from attending the obsequies at Chislehiu-st. On the whole, the opinion that the Imperial cause might have a better chance now that it would be championed by a young Prince with a perfectly clean slate, seems to have been the most sensible. After the Imperial Prince had attained his majority, considerable effijrts were made on his behalf, and at one moment the party of the " Appeal to the People," as the Bonapartists called themselves, seemed to be gaining real strength. But collapse came after 1879, when the young Prince was killed in South Africa. CHAPTER IV THE ELYSEE PALACE — PAKISIAN LIFE — FALL OF THIERS — MACMAHON, PRESIDENT Thiers's Daily Life— The Story of the Elys^e— First Receptions there—" The Judgment of Paris" — A Thrifty Housewife — The Dosne Family— "Madame la Baronne" — Barth^lemy St. Hilaire — Parisian Gaieties — " La Fille de Mme. Angot " and other Pieces— Scandals of the Time— The Tragedy of the Rue des ficoles— The Unwritten Law and Alex. Dumas /Zs- Divorce in France — The Assembly and Thiers — Resignation of Gr^vy— Prince Napoleon's Petition— The Barodet Election— The Duke" de Broghe and Thiers — Thiers resigns — MacMahon elected — His Hesita- tion and Acceptance — His Origin, Character, and Career — The Battle of Worth— The Marshal at Sedan— Madame de MacMahon— The Republic Threatened. Already, in January 1872, as the government was carried on under all sorts of difficulties at Versailles, Thiers desired the National Assembly to remove to Paris. When, however, some Republican deputies submitted the question to the house, it was decided, from fear of the Parisians, that Versailles should still remain the official capital. At the same time, a good many deputies — whose numbers increased as time elapsed — ^resided in Paris, travelling every day to Versailles and back by " parlia- mentary trains." Moreover, as Paris remained on her best behaviour — she was, indeed, more intent on amusing herself than on conspiring against the Assembly, however obnoxious that body might be — the President of the Republic was indirectly authorised to hold receptions in the metropolis, on condition that he should not sleep there, the result being that, on the occasions in question," the little man had to travel back to Versailles at what was a very late hour for a man of his years. As a rule, he rose at five o'clock in the summer, and at six in the winter. At eight o'clock came an interlude, he shaved, and sat down to a light meal, some eggs or a little cold meat, 108 THE ^LYSlfeE PALACE 109 followed by stewed fruit. Then work was resumed until noon, when there came dejeuner en Jhmille. Thiers was very fond of Provencal dishes, particularly of fish in the Marseillese style, but far above bouillabaisse and quiches (Tanchois he set brandade de marue (cod dressed ifi a particular way and grilled), of which he could never partake sufficiently. There is a story that, for some reason or other, it was forbidden him by the doctors during his last days, and that his friend, Mignet, taking compassion on him, used to bring him, in secret, parcels of delectable cold cod-steaks. After dejeuner, Thiers would lie down on his little hard camp- bedstead, and indulge in a siesta, which was naturally brief when- ever he had to attend the Assembly. Very often, however, after quitting the deputies, he would indulge in a nap before dinner, or allow himself some forty winks after the repast. His wife and his sister-in-law. Mile. Dosne, watched over him with the greatest care ; and even on official occasions when, after exerting himself during the day, he forgot the time, or felt disposed to prolong his evening, one or the other of those ladies would remind him that it was fit he should wish the company good- night. He usually did so with a very good grace, and was triumphantly led off to bed. He was not, however, the most matutinal man in France, for his alternate enemy and friend, Dufaure, who served under him as Minister of Justice, went to bed early in the evening and rose shortly after midnight. Some folk were not aware of that habit, and we remember that during MacMahon's presidency, when some entertainments lasted far into the night, the sight of Dufaure, then nearly eighty years old, walking gaily through the salons about three o'clock in the morning, created no little astonishment among the uninitiated. " Do you not feel tired at your age .? " somebody inquired of him on one such occasion. " Tired .? " replied Dufaure with a chuckle, " oh, no, I have only just got up." Thiers's Parisian receptions were held at the Elysee Palace, which, in MacMahon's time became (as had been the case between 1848 and 1851) the residence of the President of the Republic, and has remained so ever since. The history of the palace is somewhat interesting. Pretty, but rather meretricious, retaining in parts the architectural stamp of the Regency, it was built in 1718 for Henri Louis de la Tour d'Auvergne, Count d':6vreux, colonel-general of the French cavalry, and was there- 110 REPUBLICAN FRANCE fore originally known as the Hotel d'^^vreux. The Count, for the sake of a dowry of some millions of livres, had " misallied " himself by marrying the daughter of an upstart financier named Crozat, when she was only twelve years old. This juvenile bride was currently known in society by the nickname of " the little bar of gold " (" le petit lingot d'or ■"). She became very pretty, but the marriage was never consummated. Indeed, it resulted in a separation, followed, after the Countess's death, by a judicial decree declaring the union null and void, and then by endless lawsuits respecting the Crozat property. The child-Countess's dowry had largely provided for the building of the Hotel d'Evreux, which, on the death of her nominal husband, was bought by the royal favourite, Mme. de Pompadour, for about eight hundred thousand livres. The house already had some fine grounds, but they were not found sufficiently extensive by la Marquise, who, regardless of remonstrances, seized and annexed a large slice of the Champs Ely sees. She objected, moreover, to the groves of that popular promenade, which, said she, interfered with her view of the Seine and the Invalides, and a large number of fine trees were therefore felled. She gave several costly fetes at the Hotel d'Evreux, as is mentioned by the anecdotiers of the time. That was the period of Watteau, when shepherds and shepherdesses were all the fashion, and on one occasion the Marchioness introduced into an entertainment a flock of real sheep, all carefully washed and combed, with pink and apple-green ribbons about their necks, and satin-clad shepherds with gilded crooks in attendance on them. When the doors of the gallery where the flock had been gathered were flung open, the royal favourite's guests went into transports of delight. But all at once the ram of the flock, on perceiving his reflection in a large mirror, imagined that he was confronted by an impertinent rival, amorous of his ewes, and without a moment's hesitation he charged the offending image, smashed the mirror with his gilded horns, and then ran amuck among the furniture and the guests. The ladies tried to flee, but many of them slipped on the polished parquetry floor and sprawled there with their little red-heeled shoes in the air, while the gentlemen roared till their sides split, at the unforeseen and indecorous spectacle. Madame de Pompadour bequeathed the Hotel d'lfivreux to Louis XV., and, until the completion of the monumental THE ^LYS:6e palace 111 depository on the present Place de la Concorde, it became a storeplace for all the superfluous royal furniture. In 1774, it was sold to the famous court banker Beaujon — ^he who gave his name to a whole district of Paris — and eight years later it was acquired by Louis XVI., who, in 1790, passed it on to the Duchess de Bourbon.^ That lady rearranged the grounds in the Chantilly style, and by reason of the proximity of the Champs Elysees christened the property " Elysee-Bourbon," otherwise " the Bourbon Paradise." But the terrible days of the Revolution were impending, and the Duchess did not care to remain in Paris. So she let the property to a speculator named Hovyn, who turned the grounds into a combination of Vauxhall and Ranelagh. As such they remained for several years, for, on being put up to auction as " national property," they were purchased by Hovyn's daughter for a bagatelle. The mansion served for a short time to house the National Printing Works, and was afterwards partitioned into cheap lodgings for true patriots, who became entitled to free admission to the grounds. They could lunch, dine, and sup under the elms and beeches there, disport themselves on an artificial lake, attend concerts, balls, and theatrical performances, and even risk their luck at a gaming-table installed in a pavilion, while out of doors coloured lights glowed along the paths lead- ing to the bowers of love, and lively music called one to the dance. In 1805 Mile. Hovyn sold the Elysee to Murat, on whose accession to the Neapolitan throne it became the property of Napoleon. It was there that the great Captain planned the campaign which ended at Waterloo, and there, too, he after- wards signed his abdication. Alexander of Russia, Francis I. of Austria, and the Duke of Wellington sojourned there in turn, but, in 1816, Louis XVIII. bestowed the palace on his nephew, the Duke de Berri. It was there that the Duke and Duchess formed their fine gallery of paintings (particularly rich in examples of the Dutch and Flemish schools) which were after- wards sold to Prince Anatole Demidoif, and became the nucleus of his renowned collection. At the Revolution of 1830, the ilysee was declared Crown property, and eighteen years later 1 The wife of the Duke mentioned on p. 96. She reclaimed it at the Restoration in 181S, but a compromise was arrived at, and the Hdtel de Monaco was allotted to her instead. 112 REPUBLICAN FRANCE it was assigned to Louis Napoleon, President of the Republic, who there planned his Coup d'Etat. After he had transferred his quarters to the Tuileries, the Elysee served to accommodate several of the Sovereigns who visited Paris during the Second Empire. At the time of the German Siege, the ill-fated Clement Thomas,^ Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard, made the Elysee his headquarters. Although, as already mentioned, it was originally built in the days of the Regent d'Orleans, it was repeatedly enlarged and modified. Both Beaujon and the Duchess de Bourbon did much in that respect towards the close of the eighteenth century, and so did Napoleon III. at the outset of his reign. On the left, the palace at one time adjoined the Sebastiani mansion, which, in 1847, became notorious as the scene of the murder of the Duchess de Praslin by her unfaithful husband. Under Napoleon III. that " house of crime " was demolished, and the Rue de I'Elysee, running from the Champs Elysees to the Faubourg St. Honore, was laid out, so as to detach the palace from all other buildings. On its right-hand side, too, that of the Avenue Marigny, its dependencies were rebuilt in a more regular style, while in front were erected the low, terrace-roofed buildings and the columned entree (Thonneur facing the Faubourg St. Honore. That alone greatly altered the outer appearance of the palace, and its internal arrangements have undergone many modifications during the present regime. Thiers's earliest receptions at the Elysee were distinguished by one democratic feature. No invitations were issued, anybody who was anybody was welcome ; indeed, we believe that some trades-people of the neighbourhood slipped in, with the view of feasting their eyes on the celebrities of the time. It was some- thing like the White House custom — with a difference : there was no attempt to dislocate the little man's wrist by repeatedly shaking hands with him, though he offered his hand readily enough to anybody he knew. Under the conditions we have mentioned, we attended several of Thiers's receptions, simply walking over to the palace, as we lived well within a stone's throw of it. A few policemen were stationed near the gateway leading into the courtyard, a couple of infantrymen stood atop of the steps of the main building, and in the lofty vestibule you found seven or eight servants in ^ See ante, p. 51. THE ^LYS^E PALACE 113 plain black liveries, including a couple of ushers who wore silk stockings and had steel or silver chains about their necks. One of the men relieved you of your hat and overcoat, while another entered your name in a register placed on a green baize table. Then, passing through portals hung with Flanders tapestry, you crossed an empty white-walled and red-carpeted room assigned to the presidential aides-de-camp, who were never there, and entered the so-called Landscape Saloon, where, as in both of the Tapestry Drawing-rooms — Beauvais and Gobelins — the company was assembled. Thiers, in evening dress, but with his coat closely buttoned, and a diamond star of the Legion of Honour on his breast, seemed to be here, there, and everywhere at the same time, for he flitted from one room to another and back again with a juvenile agility which confused you and made you wonder at times whether, indeed, he had not several " doubles " — such as the old time Kings occasionally provided when they went into battle. The President by no means neglected his lady guests. At one moment you saw him speaking deferentially to Countess Arnim, wife of the German Ambassador ; at another he would be smiling with Princess Lise Troubetsko'i ; at another positively flirting with the charming wife of the Danish Minister; and between whiles he lent ear to some rapid confidential com- munication from Leon Renault, the singularly handsome but very unreliable Prefect of Police of those days, or exchanged impressions with Goulard, his Minister of the Interior. The ladies, or at least the most highly placed of them, preferred to congregate in the Gobelins drawing-room, where there were several splendid Louis Quinze sofas, on which they seated themselves, spreading out their fascinating toilettes — " cooked salmon " was a favourite hue of those days — and forming a circle, as it were, around the Orleans Princes, Paris, Nemours, and Joinville. The Countess de Paris, then in all the pride of her beauty, was to be seen seated beside Mile. Dosne, sister to Mme. Thiers, on whose other hand you might perceive that shrewd, quick-witted, fine-featured lady, the Princess Clementine, mother of the present ruler of Bulgaria. Mme. Thiers, wearing a little black lace cap, and usually gowned in black also, though she made concessions to the fashions of the time with respect to the cut and trimming of her dresses, followed her husband's example in going hither and thither, speaking to her guests the while with a kind of anxious solicitude. One, however, who seldom, I 114 REPUBLICAN FRANCE if ever, stirred from the ladies' circle, was the violet -robed Papal Nuncio — Mgr. Chigi, we think. The room was large and very lofty, lighted by a great chandelier, and several candelabra, the latter standing on the white marble mantelpiece, the wall in front of which was panelled, so to say, by a huge mirror. But at the farther end there was a semicircular pilastered "bay," in which was hung a magnificent Gobelins tapestry, representing the Judgment of Paris. One evening, when the sofas below this tapestry were un- occupied, we drew near to examine it more closely, and an old gentleman with short white whiskers remarked to us that it was very fine work indeed. " Certainly," we answered, " and the subject seems very appropriate to the present time." "Indeed ! Why so ? " was the inquiry. " Well," we ventured to reply, " Monsieur le President de la Republique has stated that there are three candidates for one throne, and here are three ladies who are candidates for one apple." Our interlocuteur, as the French say, smiled. "Well, we all know who obtained the apple," he resumed, " but who will be given the throne ? " " I don't know — only Monsieur Thiers can tell us." " No, no, the President has nothing to do with it. It is not for him to bestow the apple — or the crown. That is the Assembly's aiFair. When you devise an allegory it should coincide exactly with the facts you wish it to illustrate. Paris is the Assembly. Juno is the Legitimist party ; of that there can be no doubt. Venus — ah, diable ! who is Venus ? " That was a difficult question, but we attempted a jocular reply : " Remembering the Empress Eugenie, Venus might be the Empire, but, then, the Countess de Paris is seated yonder, and " " And," was our acquaintance's retort, " les absentes ont toujours tort. You are right. But, in any case, I doubt if the apple will go to Venus this time, it may well be secured by Minerva, for la phis sage has now a much better chance than even la 'plus belle.'''' " But who then is Minerva ? " we inquired. " You ask me too much. That is a question which troubles many people, but which only time can answer. When the identity of Minerva is disclosed the future of France will be settled." At this point the conversation was interrupted, for another gentleman approached, saying : "Ah, my dear Monsieur Mignet, how are you .'' " We then realised that we had been conversing THE JUDGMENT OF PARIS 115 with the eminent historian, Thiers's life-long friend. Pleased with his little jest, he repeated it to the newcomer, and before long the remark went round: "Monsieur Mignet has just expressed his views of the situation. He says that the Judgment of Paris will be given this time in favour of Minerva. In your opinion whom does Minerva represent.?" He did not forget the incident, for when we had the good fortune to be properly introduced to him on another occasion, he exclaimed, with that shrewd half-smile of his, " We have met before, is it not so .? Tell me, have you succeeded in identifying Minerva ? No ? Well, it is too soon for you to complain. I have been seeking her myself for nearly seventy years, but I have not found her yet." One afternoon, during the winter of 1872, we had occasion to call at the Elysee in the company of a French artist. We had attended a reception there the previous evening, and on entering by the porte cThonneur a suspicion which had occurred to us more than once previously was suddenly confirmed, for three or four of the servants whom we had seen in the vestibule the night before, were lounging near the gate, clad in the seedy frock-coats and carrying the stout walking-sticks which were invariably associated at that time with the police-spy calling. It was obvious enough that they were indeed " plain- clothes officers," and were requisitioned on free reception nights to check the entries in the registers, and turn undesirable visitors away. Our business that afternoon lay with the Commissary of the Palace,^ who received us, we remember, in a room where several tables were littered with silver plate, centre and side pieces, epergnes, spoons, and forks, which had been used at a dinner preceding the reception on the previous night. During our conversation, a servant came to inform the Commissary that Mme. Thiers desired to speak to him, where- upon he hurried away, leaving us in the company of the State valuables and sundry boxes of cigars, to the latter of which — not the former — he courteously invited us to help ourselves in ^ It may be explained that the writer long assisted his father, at that period Paris representative of the Illustrated London News, and that on the occasion in question it was proposed to make a sketch of the Gobelins drawing-room to serve as the background of an illustration depicting Thiers and the Orleans Princes on a reception night. Such a drawing could not be made while a reception was in progress. It was then only possible to jot down surreptitiously a few thumbnail sketches of the ladies' toilettes, coiffures, and so forth. We find that the illustration we have referred to appeared in the Illustrated London News for December 7, 1972. 116 REPUBLICAN FRANCE his absence. When he returned, he lighted a cigar himself, and informed us that Mme. Thiers and her sister Mile. Dosne invariably returned to Paris on the morrow of a reception, in order to lunch off the remains of the dinner or supper of the previous night. "The journey costs them nothing," the Commissary continued, " for they travel at the expense of the State, and when they have lunched they carry all the food which still remains uneaten to Versailles. Oh, that is quite correct — judge for yourselves." On looking into the courtyard from the window, we saw several of the palace servants loading Mme. Thiers's brougham with baskets and parcels. " Ah ! " said the Commissary with a sigh, " there go all the pates, the cold fowls, the pastry, the fruit, and everything else that was not consumed last night." " Mme. Thiers is evidently a thrifty woman," we remarked. " Well, yes " (with a shrug of the shoulders). " But, ah, what a change ! I was employed for nearly twenty years in the State palaces under the Empire, but I never saw the Empress carrying broken victuals about with her. How the Republicans would have jeered at her if she had ! " Again did the Commissary sigh, as if, indeed, he were being personally robbed of all the good things which were about to leave for Versailles. His feelings could be understood, but his remarks were not justified. Mme. Thiers simply discharged the obvious duty of a good housewife. Her husband received but a tithe of the Civil List lavished upon the Empire. It is now quite time for us to say something more about the President's wife. Mile. Elise Dosne married Thiers a few years after the establishment of the Orleans Monarchy. She was then about seventeen years of age. Her father, protected by the Duchess d'Angouleme, had become a stockbroker after marrying Mile. Sophie Matheron, the daughter of a wholesale silk and trimmings merchant of the Faubourg Montmartre in Paris. Another Mile. Matheron had married a young banker named Lognon, a name to which she so strongly objected that, by official permission, it was changed to the high-sounding ap- pellation of Charlemagne.i Mme. Dosne, the stockbroker's wife, ' The General Charlemagne, who was largely associated with Thiers in his last years, was the offspring of the above union, and Mme. Thiers's nephew. MADAME THIERS 117 was a masterful woman, domineering, shrewd, and ambitious. Scandal-mongers used to say that Thiers's marriage with her daughter was in some respects an anticipation of the Goncourts' story, Renh Mauperin, alleging that he had become the favoured lover of Mme. Dosne in order to win the hand of the youthful Elise. However, not a shred of real evidence in support of that assertion has ever been adduced. Thiers doubtless in- gratiated himself with Mme. Dosne in the hope of winning her daughter, but that kind of thing is done every day. Nor is it at all uncommon for a son-in-law to assist his wife's parents, though it is not given to everybody to raise them to great wealth as Thiers raised the Dosnes. As Under-Secretary of State for Finances he was able to appoint his father-in-law Receiver-General for the Treasury, first in Finistere, and later in the department of Le Nord, the last being an extremely lucrative position, by the help of which Dosne became a share- holder in the famous Anzin mines, and a governor of the Bank of France. Some of the malicious tittle-tattle of the time was due to the fact that Mme. Dosne presided for a while over Thiers's drawing-room. But that was the outcome of her self-assertive - ness which Thiers did not check, because he knew her ability and found her useful in many ways. His young wife had not the experience necessary to rule a political salon. Moreover a certain timidity was combined with her slight physique. At the same time, in her earlier years, as well as in her last days, she was always extremely ladylike, and it could not be said that she was out of place in any salon} But she lacked her mother's pushfulness, and if she took any position in the society of Louis Philippe's reign that was due almost entirely to Mme. Dosne's endeavours. There is a story that when, after certain bickerings, a reconciliation was patched up between Thiers and some of his colleagues, Mme. Dosne insisted that the arrange- ment should embody a clause giving Mme. Thiers the entree to the famous Broglie salon. Marshal Soult, it is said, was fond of calling Mme. Thiers " the Baroness," but that was because he considered that every- body of any note ought to have a title. While he was Prime ^ She possessed considerable culture and artistic taste. It was she who personally collected the valuable china and faience adorning some of the rooms of the house on the Place St. Georges. 118 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Minister he never met Thiers at the council without inquiring after "Madame la Baronne" — a proceeding which greatly irritated his colleague, who one day retorted : " Why do you always say Madame la Baronne, why don't you say Madame Thiers ? We are not barons, though you may be a duke ! " " Tant pis, taut pis,'''' replied Soult. " Why tant pis ? " ex- claimed Thiers. " We might have been dukes, Guizot and I, had we chosen ; only we didn't choose." That upset his Grace of Dalmatia to such a degree that he beat a hasty retreat. Thiers's disregard for titles was genuine enough. " A bourgeois I was born," he said one day, " a bourgeois I shall live, and a bourgeois I shall die." Thiers's position with respect to his own relatives has been previously explained. Of those on his mother's side, the only one who occasionally visited him after his great success in life was M. Gabriel de Chenier. Count de la Tour d'Igest, who married Helene de Chdnier, broke off all relations after the Duchess de Berri affair. On the other hand, the little man had many devoted friends, Mignet, Remusat, Goulard, and particularly Barthelemy St. Hilaire. Most accounts of the last named tell you that he lost his parents at an early age and was brought up by an aunt. But he was of illegitimate birth, and there is reason to believe that his so-called aunt. Mile, de St. Hilaire, was really his mother. A most capable and scholarly man, famous for his translations of Aristotle (five- and-thirty volumes) and his writings on Buddhism, Mahomet, and the School of Alexandria, he owed much to the early help of Victor Cousin, which he requited with over thirty years of unflagging devotion. Cousin, however, being determined to get even with him, bequeathed him a fortune, besides making him his literary executor. St. Hilaire afterwards devoted him- self to Thiers, and, on the latter's elevation to power in 1871, became Secretary-General of the Presidency, in which office he disposed of great authority and influence. We shall meet him again in another section of this book. Great as was the strife of parties throughout Thiers's Presidency, it had little effect on the life of Paris. After the quelling of the Commune there came, indeed, a kind of carnival, a hankering for amusement and jollity, such as under the Directory followed the excesses of the Terror. The ruins left by the conflagrations of the Bloody Week were either unheeded PARISIAN GAIETIES 119 by the passing throng, or else regarded as unfortunate re- minders of things which were best forgotten. By the time 1872 arrived Paris was firmly determined to enjoy herself, and bounteous entertainment was provided by those who undertook to minister to her pleasures. Music and dancing halls were crowded, and there came a wonderful revival in things theatrical. Already in 1871 Dumas fils had produced his Visite de Noces and Princesse Georges, and Meilhac and Halevy their farcical masterpiece Tricoche et Cacolet ; but 1872 brought La Fille de Mme. Angot and Le Roi Carotte, both of which carried Paris by storm. The first named was essentially a piece for the times, as it dealt with a situation akin to that in which one was living, though, indeed, the admirable music by Charles Lecocq would certainly have assured its success under any conditions. There was trouble with the Censorship before this sprightly opera comique was produced. Only after profound consideration did " Anastasie," as the Censorship is nicknamed, authorise the Conspirators' song, and the chorus running : — Ce n'etait pas la peine, assurement, De changer de gouvernement. One duet, though it will be found in the published partition, was absolutely prohibited on the stage. It ran in part as follows : — Pitou. La Republique a maint defaut — Mlk. Lange. EUe voas deplaitj mais, peut-etre, Comme vous me jugiez tantot. La jugez-vous sans la connaitre. Supposez qu'elle ait mon air doux, Mon bon coeur, ma voix sympathique — Pitmt. Ah ! vous avez une maniere a vous De faire aimer la Republique ! ^ Those lines were deemed distinctly "dangerous," and although Thiers was President and favoured the Republic, the Censorship, having the fear of the National Assembly before its eyes, would not allow them to be sung in public. There was also some " political intention " in Le Roi Carotte, in the production of which Victorien Sardou allied himself with • Pitou. "The Republic has many defects." Mile. Lange. "She does not please you, but, perhaps, even as you judged me just now, you judge her also without knowing her. Supposing she had my gentle mien, my good heart, and sympathetic voice—" Pitou. " Ah ! you have a way of your own to make one love the Republic." 120 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Offenbach. Devout Royalists were seriously disturbed at the thought of anybody presuming to bestow the name of " King Carrot " on a representative of the real authority. But most people merely laughed at this gay extravaganza which achieved scarcely less success than Lecocq's more polished work. During the next few years Offenbach gave us La Jolie Parfumeme and Les Cent Vierges (1873-4), and Lecocq produced Gwofle-Girofla (1874) and La Petite Mariie (1875). Those were the days too when Mme. Judic fascinated everybody in La Timbale (T Argent (1874), when Mme. The'o, who could not sing but who always looked most pretty and enticing, rose by sheer charm to celebrity, and when that far more able vocalist, the statuesque Mme. Peschard, commanded a salary of .£3500 a year, even at as small a house as the Bouffes, which could only seat some six hundred spectators. We had a surfeit of gay and tuneful music at that period. Able comedies followed, while Labiche, Meilhac, Halevy, Blum, and others were always ready with new vaudevilles, which set one laughing to one's heart's content. Moreover, Paris was again regaled with all sorts of scandals and curious lawsuits. General Trochu prosecuted Le Figaro for libel ; ex-Queen Isabella of Spain, who pretended that she was above the jiuris- diction of the French laws, was condemned to pay some ^^6000 to M. Mellerio, the jeweller — the price of a wedding gift she had made to her daughter, the Princess de Girgenti ; while the Princess de Beauffremont, nee de Chimay, demanded a judicial separation from her husband — a long and very involved affair, full of scandalous revelations about the Prince, and resulting ultimately in the Princess's flight from France with her children, and her marriage with another Prince, George Bibesco. There were also many cases in which adventurers figured — a crop of either spurious or impecunious nobles, who, descending on Paris, had swindled people on all sides. However, the chief scandal of the period was the so-called " Tragedy of the Rue des Iilcoles." On Sunday April 21, 1872, a young man of good family, named Arthur Le Roy Dubourg, dark, thick-set, and fairly handsome, with heavy moustaches, entered No. 14 in the Rue des Ecoles, and on gaining admittance to an apartment in which he knew his wife to be secreted with a lover, rushed upon her and stabbed her with a sword-stick, inflicting on her, in THE UNWRITTEN LAW 121 fact, no fewer than fifteen ghastly wounds. His fury had been increased by the circumstance that the lover had escaped in his shirt through the window and thence over an adjoining roof. Rushing downstairs, Dubourg apprised the house-porter of his deed, and then, jumping into a cab, drove away to surrender himself to the police. Before he was transferred to the Pre- fecture, however, he complained of feeling extremely hungry, and on repairing to a restaurant with the officer to whose charge he had been committed, he indulged in a meal of five courses, washed down with burgundy, and followed by a hearty smoke. His victim was removed to the Hopital de la Pitie, where she died soon afterwards. Nevertheless, Dubourg was released on bail, while the lover, a young man of slender means called the Count de Precorbin, and employed at the Prefecture of the Seine, was arrested and kept for some time in strict confine- ment. In June, Dubourg stood his trial at the Paris Assizes, and the story, of his marriage was then fully unfolded to the public. It had been one of those " family arrangements " so often devised among the French, and stupidly commended by many English writers, despite the fact that since divorce has been re-established in France, there has been a far greater annual ; number of divorces there than in any other European country. The bride's family was of Scotch origin, and named M'Leod. The Dubourgs had been introduced to it by a matchmaking friend, the Countess de Toussaint. Only a fortnight elapsed between the presentation of Arthur Dubourg to Denise M'Leod, who was then nineteen years old, and the marriage which had been " arranged " by their relatives. She at the time was already in love with young M. de Precorbin, and, as was to be expected, the union turned out disastrously. The young wife immediately conceived the greatest antipathy for her husband, and before long they ceased to see each other excepting at meals. Indeed, only six months had elapsed when Mme. Dubourg begged her husband to assent to a judicial separation, confessing, in support of her request, that she had wronged him. But he refused, took her to Switzerland, and, with the assent of her parents, consigned her to a lunatic asylum. It was there, apparently, that she gave birth to a child, of which there is reason to believe the husband was really the father. 122 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Dubourg served as a Captain of Mobiles during the Franco- German War, and, at the close of that period, after an ex- change of affectionate letters (the wife may have simulated affection in order to procure her release), they again resided together in Paris. But Dubourg soon became suspicious, and taking his wife to lodge at the house of one of his former mistresses, he employed that woman to worm out of her the secret of her attachment for young Precorbin. That done he sent his wife to stay by herself at a third-class maison meublee, and employed some private detectives to track her to a rendez- vous with her lover. The sequel has been told. Dubourg's trial was a highly sensational affair. The court was crowded with fashionably -dressed women, aristocratic ladies as well as harlots, and the proceedings became the more dramatic by reason of the prisoner's frequent outbursts of grief. Indeed, towards the close, while the judge was summing up, Dubourg suddenly drank off some ether, which had been handed to him to inhale, and fell fainting on the floor. It became necessary to remove him from the court, and the verdict was given in his absence. He was found guilty, but extenuating circumstances were admitted in his favour, and he therefore escaped with a sentence of five years' solitary confinement. The press had already discussed the affair at great length, but Alexandre Dumas Jils now rushed into the fray with a pamphlet entitled U Homme -Femme, in which he expounded his views on the social position of woman, and held that a man whose wife became unfaithful had clearly a right to kill her. Ten large editions of that pamphlet were exhausted in a fort- night. Then Emile de Girardin answered Dumas in a brochure, which he sarcastically called VHomme suzerain, la femme vassale. Others took up the question. "Kill her," and "Don't kill her," became the stock phrases of the time, and va-udevillistes turned the controversy to account in song and jest. At last, Girardin produced an involved play called Les Trois Amants, which was doubtless levelled against wife- murder, though it seemed more like a denunciation of duelling ; and Dumas followed suit with his well-known Femme de Clavde. Nor did the matter rest there, for Girardin gave yet another play on the subject, line Hewre cOouhli, apparently a new version of Beaumarchais' La Mere coupable, like which it terminated in mutual forgiveness. As for Dumas, THE UNWRITTEN LAW 12S he, as we all know, long harped on the subject and its various issues in his plays, his prefaces, and his pamphlets. It may be said that the question of the so-called " unwritten law," of which we hear so much every now and then, originated, so far as present day generations are concerned, in the long controversy following the Dubourg affair. Before that time it had been held in France that if a husband suddenly, un- expectedly, surprised his wife in flagrante delicto his action was excusable if, in his fury, he wreaked summary vengeance on her or her paramour. But it had never been contended that a man was justified in premeditating such a deed, in deliberately facilitating the offence of which he complained, for the express purpose of taking the vengeance he desired. Yet that is exactly what Dubourg did. It is true that the jury held him to be guilty, even though it admitted extenuating circum- stances in his favoiu* ; but unfortunately the ensuing controversy led, for several years, and in all parts of France, to the repeated acquittal of both men and women who took the law into their own hands whenever they had reason to complain of a wife or a mistress, a husband or a lover. Revolvers, swords, daggers, crowbars, vitriol, were repeatedly employed with impunity, a tender-hearted jury promptly acquitting the offender amid the applause of a "sympathetic audience." It must be admitted that until 1884 there was no divorce law, and that judicial separation was inadequate relief in cases of marital infidelity, cruelty, and so forth. Yet never was a divorce law more required than in France, by reason of the very circumstances under which so many French marriages are contracted. The existence of such a law nowadays ^ has not altogether stamped out the practice of personal vengeance in cases of adultery, or prevented the acquittal of the perpetrators of such so-called 1 The results of the French Divorce Law may be judged by the following figures. In 1884 the following divorces were granted:— For adultery, husbands' petitions, 245; wives' petition, 97. For cruelty, neglect, in- compatibihty of temper, etc., 1477. By reason of sentences for felony, 60. Total for 1884, 1879. In 1904 (twenty years afterwards) the figures were as follows :— For adultery, husbands' petitions, 2304 ; wives' petitions, 1507. For cruelty, neglect, incompatibility of temper, etc., 10,597. By reason of sentences for felony, 284. Total for 1904, 14,692. There are also some thousands of judicial separations annuaUy, largely among religious people who do not apply for divorce, as it is condemned by the Church. During the last few years certain dramatists and novehsts have promoted some reaction against divorce, on purely moral grounds, in certain sections of society. 124 REPUBLICAN FRANCE crimes passkmnels, but it is noteworthy that in most of these cases which now come into court the question is one of lover and mistress, there being far fewer instances of personal vengeance for infidelity among married people. During the winter of 1872, the relations of Thiers and the National Assembly gradually became more critical. The negotiations between the President and the Committee of Thirty, respecting the drafting of a Constitution, were often most difficult. When Thiers wished some particular question, such as the formation of an Upper or Second Chamber, to be finally solved, the Committee held that it was more urgent to regulate the conditions of ministerial responsibility, its object, of course, being to diminish the power of Thiers, prevent him from participating in the Assembly's debates, and shut him up in the Palais de la Presidence, or, as he remarked one day in the tribune, the Palais de la Penitence — an intentional lapsus ling-ucE which was greeted with no little laughter. Again, the majority of the Assembly was always finding fault with the radicalism of Thiers's Ministry, though he made repeated changes in it with the hope of pacifying the malcontents. Jules Simon was the only man of the Fourth of September now left in the Administration, which was joined, late in 1872, by Leon Say, to whom Thiers's old friend, Goulard, surrendered the Ministry of Finances, passing himself to the Home Department. Say was distinctly a " moderate " man, Goulard was almost a Royalist, and there was certainly no " Radicalism " about their colleagues, Lambrecht, Remusat, Victor Lefranc, Berenger, and Fortou. The last named, indeed, proved, before very long, as reactionary a Minister as could be found in France. At last, early in 1873, an entente was arrived at between Thiers and the Committee of Thirty, and on March 4 the former expounded to the Assembly his views; on the proposed Constitution. It was a very conservative address, marked, too, by a distinct attack on the Radicals (on Gambetta particularly), and the majority seemed well satisfied with it. Indeed, on March 17, when the Government announced that, thanks to its various financial measures, it had been able to conclude a convention with Germany by which the last German detach- ments would finally evacuate French territory on the 5th day of September, the Assembly declared by a formal vote that Thiers had " deserved well of his country." THIERS AND THE ASSEMBLY 125 But trouble was brewing. The Bonapartists were active. Prince Napoleon Jerome had petitioned the Assembly for the right to return to France. " We are proscribed," said he, in a manifesto, " because we are feared." There was truth in that assertion ; but, from the standpoint of principle, Thiers's treatment of the Prince could not be defended. The Orleans family was allowed all liberty to reside in France and conspire there, so why should not the Bonapartists enjoy the same privilege.? However, another important incident supervened. On March 24, there was a debate respecting the appointment of the municipalities for the chief cities of France, which, on account of their Radical proclivities, were to be deprived of their elected representatives. The immediate question was one of Lyons and the excesses which had certainly occurred there during the Communist rising in 1871. A Republican deputy, M. Le Royer (subsequently President of the Senate), declared the report of a committee, which had examined the above matters, to be mere "baggage," whereupon the Marquis de Gramont retorted that Le Royer was "impertinent." A "row" immediately began. Grevy, the President of the Assembly, intervened, but neither side would give way, and the majority openly upheld the cause of M. de Gramont. Grevy, usually so calm and judicial in the chair, considered himself slighted, lost his temper, put on his hat and walked out of the house, exclaiming, " If I do not satisfy you as President, say so ! " Soon afterwards he sent in his resignation. The Assembly re-elected him by a majority of 118 votes, but, remembering the virtual unanimity with which he had been chosen at Bordeaux, he was not satisfied with that figure, and persisted in resigning. Two candidates for the office then came forward — Buffet, one of the Orleanist leaders, who had served the Empire with l^mile Ollivier, and Martel, a very Conservative Republican. Thiers patronised the latter, but the Radicals refused to vote for him, as they considered that he had not shown sufficient clemency to the Paris Communists while he was President of the Committee of Pardons. Buffet was therefore chosen by a majority of 19 votes, and being far less exacting than Grevy, gleefully took his seat. This was a real defeat for Thiers; in fact, it was the beginning of the end. Eight by-elections were due dtiring the ensuing Easter recess. There was, notably, a vacancy at Paris and another 126 REPUBLICAN FRANCE at Lyons. At the suggestion of Thiers M. de Remusat, the Foreign Minister, who held no seat in the Assembly, became a candidate in the capital. He was a distinguished man, perhaps rather too much of a dilettante, too disdainful and sarcastic, also, to succeed in active political life ; but he had co-operated with Thiers in the Liberation of the Territory, and it was imagined that Paris would elect him. He was opposed, however, by a Radical named Barodet, originally a schoolmaster, and recently Mayor of Lyons, a post he had lost by the new law on the municipalities of the great cities. Further, the Monarchists patronised a third candidate, Colonel Stoffel, who had been military attache at Berlin in imperial times. Never- theless, Barodet triumphed with 180,000 votes, to the great consternation both of Thiers and the majority of the Assembly. This was the answer of Paris to the reactionary measure which had deprived the great centres of French life and thought of the municipal franchise. Moreover, the Radicals were generally victorious in the provinces, notably at Marseilles and Lyons, in which last city M. Ranc was returned. TTie Monarchists attacked the Government furiously. Jules Simon had to go, Goulard also. Even Fortou and Berenger were not spared.' Now, it was Thiers's intention that im- mediately after the recess the Assembly should proceed with the constitutional measures which had been agreed upon between himself and the Committee of Thirty, and a slight portion of which were in fact already voted. But the Royalists, who felt that their hour had arrived, resolved to anticipate him, compel him to do their bidding or resign. When, therefore, on May 19, M. Auguste Casimir-Perier, who had succeeded Goulard at the Home Office, brought forward a bill providing for the election of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies, the Orleanist leader, the Duke de Broglie, retorted by asking leave to interpellate the Government respecting its policy. The debate on the interpellation was fixed for May 23, when Broglie roundly accused the Administration of weakness, and demanded a firm rule, such as would reassure the country. Dufaure replied, and Thiers, in accordance with the new regulations of the partly -voted Constitution, sent a message requesting the Assembly's permission to address it. It met again at half-past ' Jules Simon was replaced at the Ministry of Education by M. Waddington. FALL OF THIERS 127 nine the next morning, when Thiers spoke for two hours, adhering to his formula of a Conservative Republic, and declaring that a dictatorship was the only alternative. Further, he vigorously attacked the Duke de Broglie, who had called him a protege of the Radicals, saying that Broglie was the protegi of a party whose patronage would have been scorned by his (the Duke's) father — that is, the party of the Empire. It happened, indeed, that Broglie undoubtedly owed his seat in the Assembly to Bonapartist votes. Finally, Thiers openly declared that he should regard the vote which would ensue as the formal condemnation or approval of his political career. In the afternoon various resolutions were submitted to the house. The order of the day, pure and simple, was rejected by 362 to 348 votes ; and the resolution which triumphed was one submitted by a rabid Legitimist and Clerical advocate, named Edmond Ernoul. It set forth that the Assembly demanded a resolutely Conservative policy in order to reassure the country, and regretted that the recent changes in the Ministry had not given satisfaction to Conservative interests. This was carried by 360 to 344 votes. Next, despite the angry protests of the Republican members, it was decided to hold an evening sitting, in order that the Government might acquaint the Assembly with its intentions, respecting which there was little, if any, doubt. The leaders of the movement against Thiers were anxious, however, to hurry things forward, fearing that, if time for reflection were granted, they might lose some adherents and fail in their designs. At eight o'clock came Thiers's formal resignation, followed by the announcement that the Ministry also withdrew. In vain did the Republicans endeavour to prevent the inevitable, by submitting a motion that the President's resignation should not be accepted. The attempt was defeated by 363 to 348 votes. Then came the crowning incident. General Changarnier proposed that Marshal MacMahon should be elected to the Presidency of the Republic. At that moment 721 of the 750 members of the Assembly were present, but the Republicans unanimously decided that they would not take part in the vote, and some others followed their example, with the result that only 392 members participated in the election — the figures being : For Marshal MacMahon, 390; against him, 2. From the very outset the Monarchists had been determined 128 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to bring about the resignation of Thiers, and it was so con- fidently felt that such would be the result of the battle that already on May 22, the very day before the Duke de Broglie's interpellation, the Presidency of the Republic was offered to the Duke d'Aumale. The latter expressed his willingness to accept it, but when the Orleanists approached the Legitimists and the Bonapartists, whose co-operation was required to ensure success, they encountered peremptory refusals, and the battle went forward without any agreement as to who should be set in Thiers's place. MacMahon was certainly thought of, but he had refused the Presidency when he had been sounded on previous occasions, and it was possible that he would adhere to that refusal. The accounts of what actually happened under those circumstances are conflicting ; but it would seem that the Marshal certainly knew something of what was brewing, though he was not formally approached prior to his election. It was felt, indeed, on the side of the majority, that he might again refuse any offers, but that if he were confronted by a fait accompli in the shape of his election, he might well accept it. That, at any rate, was the view of General Changamier who submitted the Marshal's name to the house. Changarnier, as a soldier, was well aware that though a military man may occasionally hesitate when he is sounded about an appointment, he takes it without demur, as a matter of duty, when it is purely and simply signified to him. The majority relied, then, largely on MacMahon's sense of discipline. Nothing could be so simple : — The Assembly was sovereign, it appointed him President, it was his duty, as a soldier, to take the post. We do not say, however, that influences were not at work to incline him to the desired course. When a deputation of the Assembly went to the Marshal's residence to inform him of his election he was absent, being, in fact, with Thiers. He already knew of the vote and his first impulse was to decline the proposed honour, as he had pledged himself, he said, never to take Thiers's place. Thiers retorted, however, that he had never accepted any such pledge, and finally MacMahon, following the messenger who had been sent for him, returned to his residence and received the deputation. Again he showed some hesitation, but after listening to Buffet and others he ended by accepting the proffered office. Marshal MacMaiion MARSHAL MACMAHON 129 He was a distinctly honest and sincere man, but he was not, he could not be, a Republican. His origin, career, marriage, connections, and friendships all militated against it. Neverthe- less, though he believed in and upheld the principle of authority, he did so only within certain limits, and was not afraid to express dissent when authority threatened to become tyranny. For instance, when, after the famous Orsini conspiracy in 1858, the Government of the Second Empire submitted a so-called Law of Public Safety to the Legislature, General MacMahon, as he was then, voted against it, regarding its provisions as unconstitutional, and deeming it vnrong that France should be odiously punished for the crime of a few Italians. He was the only member of the Imperial Senate who had the courage to express that view. Born on June 13, 1808, at Sully Saint Leger, in Saone-et- Loire, Burgundy, Marie Edme Patrice Maurice de MacMahon, belonged to a family which claimed descent from Mahon, a brother of Brian Boru, King of Ireland, slain at Clontarf in 1014. According to some accounts the family property was confiscated by Cromwell, according to others by William III. In any case, in the eighteenth century we find a certain John Baptist MacMahon, born at Limerick in 1715, settling in Burgundy after studying medicine at Reims and taking his degree as a doctor there in 1739. He practised at Autun, where one of his principal patients was a wealthy old nobleman, Jean Baptiste de Morey, Governor of Vezelay, married to a young and charming wife, Charlotte de (or le) Belin, daughter and heiress of the last Marquis d'Eguilly. M. de Morey died in 1748, and two years later his widow married John Baptist MacMahon, who thereupon obtained letters of naturalisation and nobility from the French Crown.^ In 1761, Mme. de MacMahon having inherited a fortune, deemed to be the largest in Burgundy, from an uncle, Claude Lazare de Morey, transferred it in its entirety to her husband, the deed being drawn by Maitre Changamier, notary at Autun, and grand- father of the general of that name. John Baptist MacMahon long sat in the States of Burgundy, and died at Paris in 1775, his widow surviving until 1787. The fortune was divided among the surviving children of the union, two daughters and 1 The family arms are three leoparded lions, gules, armed and langued azure, on a field or ; with the motto Sic nos sic sacra iuemur. K 130 REPUBLICAN FRANCE two sons. One of the former became Marchioness d'Urr, the other Marchioness de Rengrave. The eldest son, Charles Laura, Marquis de MacMahon, distinguished himself under Lafayette in the American War of Independence, became a Chevalier of the order of St. Louis, and a Peer of France in 1827. Three years later he died unmarried. His younger brother, Maurice Fran9ois, Count de MacMahon and Baron de Sully, rose to be Lieutenant-Colonel of Lauzun's famous Hussars of the Guard. In 1791, he was somewhat seriously wounded in the Nancy riots, and, being taken a prisoner by the populace, narrowly escaped lynching. He afterwards emigrated, served for a while under Conde and later with the Anglo- Dutch forces, returning to France in 1803, when, sharing his brother's residence at Sully, he occupied himself with the management of their estates. He obtained, at the Restoration, the rank of Lieutenant-General and of Grand Cross or Cordon Rouge of the order of St. Louis, but during the Hundred Days he was arrested and cast into prison as a Bourbonist. He married Mile. Pelagie de Riquet de Caraman, a great grand- daughter of Riquet, the famous engineer of the Canal du Midi, and this lady presented him with no fewer than seventeen children. Nine of them, four sons and five daughters, survived their childhood. The sons were Charles, Marquis de MacMahon, bom in 1791 ; ^ Joseph, Count de MacMahon, born in 1805 ; ^ the future Duke de Magenta, Marshal of France and President of the Republic, born (as we stated on the previous page) in 1808 ; and Eugene, Count de MacMahon, bom in 1810.^ The daughters were as follows : Adele, who married the Marquis de Nieul ; Fanny, who married the Count de Sille ; Cecile, who married the Marquis de Roquefeuille ; Natalie, who married ^ He died in 1845, leaving by his marriage with Marie, daughter of the Marquis de Rosambo, a son and two daughters. One of the latter married Count d'OiUiamson, the other Count Eugfene de Lur-Saluces. The son, Charles Henri Paul, Marquis de MacMahon, born in 1828, was killed while riding in a steeplechase in September, 1863. By his marriage with Henriette Radegonde de Perusse des Cars, daughter of the Duke des Cars, he left a son, Charles Marie, Marquis de MacMahon, who married Marthe Marie, daughter of the Marquis de Vogiie of the Institute and sister of the Count de Vogii^, aide-de-camp to Marshal MacMahon, killed at Worth. Charles Marie, Marquis de MacMahon, died in 1894. ^ He married Eudoxie, daughter of Count de Montaigu, and died in 186S, leaving no posterity. ' He married Mile. Natalie de Champeaux and died without posterity in 1866. MARSHAL MACMAHON 131 the Baron de Consegues ; and Elisa, who became a nun of the Sacre Cceur at Autun.i Mme. de MacMahon, the mother of the nine children we have just enumerated, died in 1819. Her son, the future Marshal and President, was then only eleven years old. He had hitherto been taught by a tutor at Sully, but he was now sent to the Petit Seminaire at Autun, next to a school at Versailles, and ultimately to the Lycee Louis-le-Grand in Paris. He made such rapid progress with his studies that at seventeen years of age he obtained admission to the Military School of St. Cyr, which he quitted two years later, ranking as the thirteenth among 250 students. Appointed a Sub-Lieutenant, he entered the Staff College, which he left at the expiration of three years with the rank of Lieutenant. He was the fourth of the twenty students so promoted. He obtained his first cavalry instruction with the 4th Hussars, in which his elder brother, Joseph, was a Captain. As aide-de-camp to General Achard he was at the siege of Antwerp in 1832, and after- wards served for several years in Algeria, becoming in turn a Major of light infantry, Lieutenant-Colonel of the Foreign Legion, and Colonel of a Line regiment, until he was promoted in 1848 to the rank of General of Brigade. He figured in most of the fighting in Algeria during his long sojourn there, and often distinguished himself in action, notably at the assault of Constantine. On March 14, 1854, he married Mile, ifelisabeth Charlotte Sophie de la Croix de Castries, daughter of the Count, later Duke, de Castries,^ and was still in France when in 1855 Canrobert returned from the Crimea, leaving his command there to Pelissier. Another divisional general being needed by the French forces, MacMahon was chosen, but his departure was delayed for a little while, it appears, owing to his wife's condition at the time. Napoleon HI. remarking to him : " Don't hurry. Wait till we have a little MacMahon." The little MacMahon duly appeared* and the proud father, repairing 1 Only one of the above-named sisters of Marshal MacMahon left issue, that is Mme. de Roquefeuille, who had a large family. 2 Like her husband she had Irish blood in her veins, her grandmother, on her father's side, having been a Miss Elizabeth Coghlan. ' Maurice Armand Patrice de MacMahon, now Duke de Magenta, born in 1855, formerly an officer in the Chasseurs-^-pied. He has two brothers, Eugfene, born in 1857, Marie Emmanuel, bom in 1859, and a sister, Marie, born in 1803, and married since 1867 to Count Henri d'Alwin de PiMines. 132 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to the Crimea, was entrusted with the task of carrying the MalakofF works at the final assault of Sebastopol (September 8, 1855). We all know that he accomplished it right brilliantly. France rewarded him with the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour; England's Sovereign created him a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath. He was chosen for high command at the time of the Italian War of 1859, when his share in the victory of Magenta procured him the title of Duke and the baton of Marshal of France. Two years later he represented Napoleon III. at the coronation of William of Prussia, afterwards first German Emperor, whose prisoner he was destined to become ; and in 1864 he returned to Algeria, this time as the successor of Pelissier in the governor- ship of the colony. No little unrest had been stirred up there by his predecessor's misrule; but under MacMahon quietude generally prevailed, and if insurrectionary tendencies occasionally appeared they were swiftly and efficiently checked. At the outbreak of the Franco-German War, the Marshal was one of the few men to whom Napoleon III. confided his plan of campaign. Becoming Commander of the 1st Army Corps he endeavoured to prevent the dissemination of the French forces, as is shown by several of his telegrams to the Imperial headquarters at Metz. Other despatches sent to General Ducrot prove that he was opposed to the occupation of Wissemburg, where the first French defeat occurred (August 4, 1870). The plans which MacMahon formed for the engagement known in France as ReichshofFen and elsewhere as Worth, were in some respects well conceived, though they cannot be entirely placed to his credit, for the views of General Frossard who, acting for the French War Office, had some years previously planned an engagement on this same point, were partially adopted. For the rest, MacMahon's scheme recalled that which had served him at Magenta in 1859. The positions occupied by the French were of a nature to give them a distinct advantage over an enemy of equal strength, and to place them on terms of equality with somewhat more numerous antagonists. But there were fatal miscalculations. A request of MacMahon's that General de Failly's Army Corps should be placed under his orders had been granted, but delay and misunderstanding in his communica- tions with Failly ensued. Moreover, the Marshal anticipated that the battle would be fought on August 7, whereas the MARSHAL MACMAHON 133 German advance proved more rapid, in such wise that, less by actual design on the part of the Crown Prince of Prussia and Blumenthal, his chief of Staff, than by a series of fortuitous circumstances, the two armies came face to face on August 6. The French, altogether outnumbered by their foes, were severely defeated, and their retreat at last became a rout. For long hours, however, they resisted with desperate gallantry, and if their losses amounted to 6000 killed and wounded, and 9000 men made prisoners, the enemy purchased his victory dearly, his roll of killed and wounded giving a total of 489 officers and 10,153 men. The great misfortune of the French was that, although the battle began at daybreak on August 6 and was not over until five o'clock in the afternoon, and although during all that time it was possible to communicate with General de Failly by telegraph, no attempt was made to do so. Failly had orders to join MacMahon, but his chief arrangements had been made for the 7th, and it was only by a chance telegram sent by a railway station-master that he eventually heard of the battle and the defeat. If, on the morning of the 6th he had been urged to accelerate his movements, his Army Corps might have reached the scene of action during the afternoon, too late, no doubt, to avert defeat, but in time, at all events, to protect MacMahon's retreat, and possibly even to prevent it. Thus, although French critics have generally striven to cast most of the responsibility for the disaster of Worth on General de Failly (an unpopular man) we have always felt that if he deserved blame for the slowness of his movements, MacMahon on his side deserved blame for not attempting to accelerate them when he found himself confronted by such overwhelming odds. The Marshal rallied his forces at Chalons. At a Conference held there with the Emperor, Prince Napoleon, General Trochu, and M. Rouher, he distinctly favoured the proposed retreat on Paris ; but the raison d'etat prevailed, and he was compelled to make that attempt to relieve Bazaine, then shut up under Metz, which led the army to Sedan, where it was overwhelmed. It is difficult to say what plans, if any, had been formed by the Marshal for that battle. He seems to have thought — as he had done at Worth — that the bulk of the German forces was still some distance away, and that the French would obtain a day's rest. But the rapidity of the German movements prevented all respite. MacMahon was at least spared the humiliation of 134 REPUBLICAN FRANCE signing the surrender by which everything ended. About six o'clock on the morning of September 1, while on his way to inspect the arrangements made by General Ducrot in the neighbourhood of Balan and La Moncelle, he halted his horse on a hillock at a distance of little more than three hundred yards from the enemy's position, which he was examining through his field-glasses, when a German shell exploded near him. Accord- ing to a very circumstantial account, the crupper of his horse was carried away by a splinter of the projectile while he himself was badly wounded in the hip and fell fainting to the ground. Nevertheless, he had no sooner recovered consciousness than he wished to mount the horse of an orderly and tried to do so. But the pain of his wound was too great, and after he had been carried to a place of some safety, a stretcher was proctu-ed and he was removed to Sedan. The command of the army was assumed first by Ducrot and then by WimpfTen, the last of whom had to sign the capitulation. The Marshal's convalescence was spent at the chateau of Pourru-aux-Bois near Sedan, and he afterwards went to Wiesbaden as a prisoner of war, returning to France in March 1871 to take the command of the army of Versailles against the Commune. He cannot be accounted a great general. Despite his victory at Magenta he was more fitted for subordinate than supreme command. It is doubtful whether he possessed sufficient capacity to handle a really large force. On the other hand he was extremely brave, careless of danger, unmoved in the most trying situations. When Colson, his chief of Staff, and Vogiie, his aide-de-camp and relative, were struck down before his eyes at Worth, he remained impassive, merely remarking : " There are two fine deaths." Very good-natured and frank, he talked freely with his friends, expressing himself in fluent, pictiuresque, if occasionally ungrammatical language. But in the presence of strangers he often became almost tongue-tied, or spoke in the most awkward manner possible. Fairly tall and slim, he had a thoroughly military bearing and a prepossessing appearance generally. In his younger days he had been considered quite handsome. At the time when he became President of the Republic he was sixty-five years old, with dark, quick eyes, a very ruddy face, and scanty snow-white hair, a few wavy locks of which strayed over his cranium. His moustache and the tuft on his chin were as white as his hair, and the contrast between MARSHAL MACMAHON 135 that whiteness and the ruddiness of his cheeks rendered his appearance very striking. His wife, the Duchess de Magenta, was at that time an energetic and clever woman of middle age, with dark hair, bright eyes, and a very full figure. Of the Castries family to which she belonged, and particularly of her accomplished and beautiful sister, the Countess de Beaumont, we shall have occasion to speak hereafter. The particulars we have already given will have sufficed to show that the MacMahons were aristocrats, and that Republicanism was foreign to them. Thus the Marshal's election was viewed with anxiety by all the Republican elements in France. He was not young enough, he had not sufficient ambitious audacity, to play the part of a Bonaparte; but might he not become a Monk, might he not attempt to impose a King on France or restore the Empire ? It seemed certain that perilous days were in store for the country. ' "I fall with my flag in my hand," said Thiers after MacMahon's election. " I have surrendered my place to men who intend to embark on all sorts of adventures. The situation is serious. I shall, however, resume my seat as a member of the Assembly. I shall not forget the mandate I hold from the country." Gambetta, for his part, impressed upon his followers the advisability of remaining strictly within the law whatever it might be ; for he well realised that the semi-Orleanist, semi- Legitimist Administration which now took office, would be only too glad of the slightest opportunity to prosecute, imprison, and thus rid themselves of all Republicans who might be likely to resist the attempts to restore monarchical rule. CHAPTER V UNDER MACMAHON — THE ROYALIST FUSION — THE WHITE FLAG — THE THRONE LOST — BAZAINfi AND HIS TRIAL The Duke de Broglie and his Colleagues— Beul^—Ernoul—NobbUng the Press— Freethinkers and their Funerals— Banc's Flight from France— The Shah in Paris— Thiers in Retirement— The Fusion of Orleanists and Legitimists— The White Flag and the Tricolour— The Count de Paris visits the Count de Chambord— The Committee of Nine— General Changarnier— Chesnelong's Mission— The White Flag again— Mac- Mahon's Position— The Septennate— The Count de Chambord at Ver- sailles— MacMahon's Refusal to see him— The Liberation of the Terri- tory—The Case of Marshal Bazaine— Baraguey d'Hilliers and the Court of Inquiry — The Trial at Trianon — Bazaine's Appearance — His Conduct at Metz — Boyer, his " Ame Damn^e " — Incidents of the Trial — Gambetta as a Witness — Lachaud, Bazaine's Counsel — The Sentence and its Commutation— The Marshal's Imprisonment and Escape — His last Years. The Duke de Broglie had led the debate which had resulted in Thiers's overthrow, and it was to him that MacMahon, after vainly appealing to M. Auguste Casimir-Perier, entrusted the formation of his first Ministry. The Duke had then nearly completed his fifty-second year. In 1871 Thiers had appointed him French Ambassador in London, but he had thrown up the post to return and direct the Orleanist campaign at Versailles. The Duke's family was of Italian origin, Broglio being the original spelling of the name, which was altered to Broglie in France where, however, it is pronounced as bro-i-e, that is by people in society. The more famous of the earlier Broglies were military men, three of them being Marshals of France ; but Leonce Victor, born in 1785, became an official of the first Napoleon's Council of State, and after figuring as a Peer of France during the Restoration ^ rose to a high position as a ^ In that capacity he was one of those who tried Marshal Ney, for whose conduct he found excuses, much to the horror and amazement of his 136 THE BROGLIE MINISTRY 137 statesman under Louis Philippe. In 1814 he married Albertine, daughter of the famous Mme. de Stael, whose father, it will be remembered, was Necker, the plebeian minister of Louis XVI. Partly on that account, and partly because the young lady was a Protestant, the Broglie family, quite disregarding the fact that her father, Baron de Stael- Holstein, was of good nobility, deemed the marriage to be a terrible mesalliance, with the result that a bitter feud raged in its midst for several years. That it does not willingly allow its members to marry as they please, has been shown of recent times by certain scandals. Young Duke Leonce Victor de Broglie defied his family, however, and married Mile, de Stael ; and among the offspring of the marriage was MacMahon's first Prime Minister. Charles Victor Albert, Duke de Broglie and Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, was born in June, 1821. At the age of four-and- twenty, he married Mile. Pauline de Galard de Brassac de Beam, who died in 1862, leaving several children, the present Duke de Broglie, his brothers and sisters. Under his father's auspices, Duke Albert entered the diplomatic service of Louis Philippe, acting as secretary to the embassies at Madrid and Rome. The fall of the Monarchy threw him into private life, but under the Second Empire he became one of the recognised Orleanist leaders, supporting Catholic interests and so-called Constitutional Liberalism in various journals and reviews, and attracting to his father's mansion in the Rue de Grenelle St. Germain, most of the men of position who sighed for the fall of Napoleon III. and the accession of the Count de Paris. He became a member of the French Academy at the age of one- and-forty, when he had only written some essays on religious and historical questions, and two volumes of a more important work on the Church and the Roman Empire in the fourth century. Those productions scarcely justified the honour accorded to him, but his election was engineered by his father, who also was an Academician, in conjunction with other Orleanist Immortals.^ It should be added that in later years M. de Broglie proved himself a writer of considerable ability. Some of his works, based largely on family papers, are valuable contributions to French and German history. In the National colleagues. But although he voted for the Marshal's acquittal, Broglie be- came in time a strong and virulent anti-Bonapartist. 1 Duke Leonce Victor survived until 1870. 138 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Assembly he displayed a ready gift of language, but his delivery was defective owing to a constant zizaiement, which transformed such words as jyjube, pigeon, and cheval, into zuzube, pizon, and zeval, and which some folk attributed to his far away Italian ancestry. In forming MacMahon's first Administration the Duke took, besides the Vice-Presidency of the Council, the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs, for which he was only fitted by the secretaryships of his youth, and his brief and not particularly successful stay at Albert Gate.i There is a story that when he submitted the list of his colleagues to the Marshal, the latter, who found everything novel in the post now conferred on him, remarked that the names were exclusively those of deputies belonging to the Right (the Monarchial parties), and that it might be as well to include one or two gentlemen of the Left Centre, that is the moderate Republican group. "Oh, no," the Duke de Broglie replied, " that is not the custom under parliamentary government. All the Ministers have to be selected from the majority." "Indeed," said MacMahon thoughtfully, "then if the majority becomes Republican I shall have to take all the Ministers from the Left." The Duke's only rejoinder was a pout. The idea of such an eventuality ensuing was singularly displeasing to him in that hour of his triumph. Among the colleagues he selected were General du Barail (Minister of War), Magne (Finances), Beule (Interior), and Emoul (Justice).^ Fran9ois du Barail was an officer of Algerian training, who had served under Bazaine in Mexico and at Metz (a point to be remembered) and had more recently commanded the cavalry of the Army of Versailles, securing the rank of Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour for his services against the Commune. Pierre Magne was a Bonapartist, and the most empirical of the financiers of the Second Empire, which he had long served in the office to which he was now called. Charles Ernest Beule, perpetual secretary to the Academy of Fine Arts, had been connected with the French ^ He subsequently took over the Home Office, and relinquished the de- partment of Foreign Affairs to the Duke Decazes, of whom we shall speak hereafter. ^ Other posts were held as follows : Deseilliguy, Public Works ; Batbie, Education ; La Bouillerie, Commerce and Industry ; and Dompierre d'Horuoy, Marine. THE BROGLIE MINISTRY 139 School at Athens, where, as on the site of Carthage, he had made some interesting archaeological discoveries. He had written upon those subjects, and also, more extensively, on Roman history, sketching notably some portraits of Augustus, Germanicus, Titus, and Tiberius, the last of whom he had com- pared with Napoleon III. It was therefore rather surprising to find him in the same Ministry as Magne, the ex-worshipper of the Empress Eugenie. Yet that was as nothing compared with his assumption of the most difficult post in the new Ad- ministration — that of Minister of the Interior, for which he was utterly unfitted. He rued it bitterly. A year later, after a brief spell of office, during which he trampled on whatever Liberalism he had professed in his writings, and became hateful and contemptible upon all sides, he put an end to his spoilt and embittered life by suicide. He was then only forty-eight years old. Broglie's Minister of Justice, Edmond Ernoul, was, it will be remembered, the actual author of the resolution by which Thiers had been overthrown. A typical mushroom celebrity of those times, he had sprung up at Loudon and taken to the profession of the law at Poitiers, under the protection of Bishop Pie of that city. A bigoted Ultramontane Catholic, a fervent upholder of Pius IX. 's "Syllabus," he became also one of the leading promoters of the so-called fusion between the Legitimists and Orleanists, in which connection he repeatedly visited the Count de Chambord and stimulated clerical in- fluence. For a few years Ernoul was always in evidence at Versailles. There were few men more prominent than he. But, at the dissolution of the Assembly, he dropped out of public life. We believe that he returned to Poitiers, and eked out a living there by pleading for priests and nuns when they were involved in unpleasant law-suits respecting legacies. By the public at large, however, he was remembered merely as a man who had come nobody knew whence, and had gone nobody knew whither. In the Message to the Assembly which Broglie drafted for MacMahon directly the latter assumed office, it was stated that the Government would be resolutely Conservative, making social conservation the particular basis of its home policy. Its officials would strictly enforce the laws, into which the spirit of Conservatism would be duly introduced. The Marshal regarded 140 REPUBLICAN FRANCE the post in which the Assembly had placed him as that of a sentinel appointed to watch over its sovereign power. It was not long before the country learnt what Broglie meant by resolute Conservatism. First thirty or forty Republican Prefects were dismissed and replaced by Royalists. Then, early in June 1873, Gambetta had occasion to interpellate Beule respecting his suppression of a Radical newspaper, and his issue of a certain circular to the Prefects and Sub-Prefects who were to bribe, cajole, or threaten the press in order to create a favourable current of opinion — favourable, that is, to the restoration of a Monarchy. The circular being a highly confidential document, Beule was amazed that it should have come into Gambetta's possession. He floundered sadly in trying to give it a meaning different from the correct one, and passed a tres mauvais quart (Theure in spite of all the support accorded him by the majority of the Assembly. The attempts to nobble the press were not only confined to French journalists. Numerous foreign correspondents were approached, it being thought advisable to influence public opinion abroad in favour of the new French Government. In that connection, a high official of the Ministry of the Interior, whose manners and language were extremely courteous and plausible, was so kind as to offer us the cross of the Legion of Honour, which we very respectfully declined. But another example of resolute Conservatism was soon forthcoming. The Prefect of Lyons decreed that funerals in which no religious rites were to be observed would not be allowed, in future, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 7 p.m. The Prefect's superior, Beule — long a professed pagan — was taken severely to task about this impudent decree, by a Republican deputy, M. Le Royer, who prefaced his remarks on the subject by a declaration which startled and somewhat shamed the intolerant majority of the Assembly. He was, said he, a Protestant, a direct descendant of one of those Huguenot families which had been driven from France by the dragoons of his most Christian Majesty, Louis XIV., and it was as such that he protested, with all the energy of his soul, against any interference with liberty of conscience. Beule wriggled, and tried to excuse the Prefect's order by asserting that a formidable Lyonnese society of freethinkers was bent on utilising non- religious funerals as pretexts for revolutionary disturbances. THE BROGLIE MINISTRY 141 The plea was nonsensical, and before long the obnoxious decree had to be withdrawn. Another serious affair of the time was the prosecution of M. Ranc, a somewhat over-zealous Radical journalist, who, after being mixed up in various conspiracies in Imperial times and transported to Lambessa, whence he managed to escape, had become GamhettR's chef de surete in 1870, and later a member of the National Assembly, in which capacity he voted against the peace with Germany, and then resigned. Shortly afterwards he was elected a member of the Commune and vainly preached a policy of conciliation with the Versailles Government. Directly the Commune resorted to violent courses, such as decreeing the arrest of the Archbishop and other hostages, Ranc quitted it, and retired for a while into private life. But he was elected deputy for Lyons at the same time as Barodet defeated Remusat in Paris, and this election, although it was duly validated, drew upon him the hatred of the majority of the Assembly. The Orleanists were particularly irate, for had not Ranc, as Gambetta's chief of police, dared to lay sacrilegious hands on the Prince de Joinville during the war, and ordered him to leave France ! Besides, he had been a member of the Commune, and that, even in 1873, was still a suitable pretext for prosecution. The Republicans of the Assembly opposed the proceeding in vain, and Ranc, being warned in time, quitted the country. It has been said that he did so disguised as a priest, but his own account was different. He resolved to make his way to Belgium by a circuitous route. On referring to a railway time- table he found on the line from Mezieres to Longuyon a station named Volosne-Torg which he knew fringed the Belgian frontier. Moreover, against the station's name in the time-table was the mention hdlte, signifying that the train he proposed to take would stop there, but that tickets were not issued for that particular locality. It followed that there would be no gendarmes waiting about the station to pounce upon suspicious characters. Ranc therefore took a ticket for Longuyon, but directly the train stopped at Volosne he sprang out — " on the wrong side " as the saying goes — crossed the metals, and made his way to a little bridge spanning the rivulet which serves as the frontier. The station-master, perceiving him and fancying that he was some belated traveller blundering in his hurry, 142 REPUBLICAN FRANCE cried, " Not that way ! " but Ranc hastened on, opened a little wicket gate at the head of the bridge, crossed over and set foot on Belgian soil. In time, like many other exiles, he returned to France, and for many years played a notable part in French politics and journalism. He passed away early in the autumn of 1908. In July, 1873, the arrival in Paris of Nassr-Eddin, Shah of Persia, momentarily diverted attention from politics. The Parisians were delighted with the visit. There were reviews, fetes, fireworks, displays of various kinds. It seemed almost like a return to old times. Everybody went to see the Shah, and he was taken to see everything — the Arc de Triomphe, the Obelisk, the tomb of Napoleon, the Central Markets, the sewers, and the corps de ballet. And all the folk who were in power or in the ascendant, were presented to him. Yet he was never satisfied. There was one thing wanting to complete his happiness. When he was taken to the Louvre to view the Venus of Milo by torchlight, he just glanced at it, and then, exclaimed : " Yes, very fine big woman, very, but — show me Monsieur Thiers." When Buifet, President of the Assembly, was presented, it was the same thing : " Yes, a fine man, very, but, but — show me Monsieur Thiers." That persistency worried the officials of the new rigime, who invented all sorts of excuses — "Monsieur Thiers was not in Paris," '-'Monsieur Thiers was indisposed," and so forth — a device which recoiled, however, on themselves, for his Asiatic majesty never afterwards wearied of inquiring: "And Monsieur Thiers, will he soon be back.?" " What day, tell me ! " or " Monsieur Thiers, is he well again ? when will he be well ? " And so on ad libitum. Not being disposed to invite Thiers to meet the Shah, the officials as a last resort took the potentate to see the polar bear at the Jardin des Plantes. We cannot say, however, whether that appeased him. Thiers, it may be mentioned, was then living almost in seclusion in a flat at the comer of the Boulevard Malesherbes, near the church of St. Augustin.^ But, as the summer sun streamed into his room, he soon found the heat there unbear- able, and, moreover, the clatter of the thoroughfares which met at this point, was not to his liking. His new house on 1 If we remember rightly this flat belonged to General Charlemagne, Mme. Thiers's nephew. THE ROYALIST FUSION 143 the Place St. Georges — replacing the former one demolished by the Commune — was not yet ready for occupation, and for some time the veteran statesman vainly sought a suitable abode. At last he secured the so-called Hotel Bagration, No. 45 in the Faubourg St. Honore ; and in that stately mansion — built by the mad, prodigal Marquis de Brunoy,^ and inhabited under the First Empire by Marshal Marmont, and under Louis Philippe by the Russian Princess whose name it took — he gathered around him all the moderate Republican leaders in view of the great political battle which everybody knew to be impending. The Monarchists were now particularly active. Shahs might come and Shahs might go, there was no cessation of Royalist plotting. If Thiers had been overthrown and MacMahon set in his place, it was solely in the hope that the latter would serve the Restoration projects of the majority. Did he not belong to an old Royalist family ? Had not the MacMahons sprung from a race of ancient kings and allied themselves with the Caramans, the Des Cars, the Eguillys, the Rengraves, the Piennes, the Vogues, the Rosambos, the Lur-Saluces, the Montaigus, and the Castries ? Did not Mme. de MacMahon belong to the last-named ancient house, and count among her ancestresses ladies of such famous families as the De Thous, the Harlays, Seguiers, Aguesseaus, Lamoignons, Sullys, Villeroys, Estrees, Broglies, Crussols, La Fayettes and Pontarmes, besides being allied to the royal lines of Belgium, Italy, Saxony, and Sweden ? She, a masterful woman, with great influence over her husband, would assiu-edly remember her origin and prevail on the Marshal to remember his own. When all was ready he would not hesitate, he would acknowledge, welcome, and install the Bang of France and Navarre on the throne of his great ' He was the only son of the famous eighteenth century financier, Paris de Montmartel, who left him a fortune of more than a million sterling. At an early age Brunoy gave signs of insanity ; he stabbed his tutor at table in the presence of twenty guests ; married a daughter of the ducal house of Des Cars, and quitted her for ever immediately after the ceremony; brought his father and mother in sorrow to the grave, then buried them with extra- ordinary pomp. He also decorated the church of Brunoy like a boudoir, and being affected by a kind of religious mania organised wonderful religious processions, in which appeared hundreds of priests and monks in gold chasubles. Some incidents of his career suggest that of GiUes de Rais. When he had spent the greater part of his fortune, he was placed under interdict. 144. REPUBLICAN FRANCE ancestors. Such was the dream in which fervent partisans of " Le Roy " indulged. Already, in July 1871, at the time of the brief visit paid by the Count de Chambord to the famous chateau in Touraine whence he derived his title,^ there had been an attempt to bring about a meeting between him and the Count de Paris, and thereby reconcile the houses of Bourbon and Orleans. The negotiations were conducted on the one side by the Prince de Joinville, under the name of Count de Lutteroth,^ and on the other by a nobleman rejoicing in the name of Viscount de Maquille, who was at the head of certain Royalist Associations in central France. It was proposed that the Count de Paris should repair to Touraine, but the Count de Chambord desiring, said he, that there should be no misunderstanding respecting the meaning of the visit, requested that it might be adjourned until he had formally signified his views on the Restoration of the Monarchy. This he did in a manifesto dated July 5, in which, while announcing his immediate departure from France, as he did not wish his presence there to cause any perturbation, he declared that if he ascended the throne it would be with the White Flag of his ancestors. That question had been previously discussed by the repre- sentatives of the Royalist parties, among whom it provoked no little friction, for the Orleanists adhered to the Tricolour, feeling, as was, indeed, the case, that the country would never accept the ancient standard associated with centuries of bon plaisir and despotism. The renunciation of the Tricolour would have appeared to the masses not only as a renunciation of all the glories of a flag which had waved victorious through Europe, but also as a renunciation of every political and social conquest of the great Revolution, a humbling of the National Rights before the Divine Right of the King. Even if the Orleanists were Royalists, they themselves could not easily renounce the Tricolour, a flag associated with their Princes and Constitutional rule. They recalled the famous song in its honour, and particularly the line : " D'Orle'ans, toi qui Tas porte " : while to the nation at large it had yet a deeper signifi- cance, for it was Freedom's emblem : — 1 It was purchased by public subscription and presented to him during his childhood. By his desire it was utilised for ambulance purposes during the Franco-German War, when the Count also sent a donation of ^00 to the Society for the Relief of the Wounded. ^ See ante, p. 100. THE ROYALIST FUSION 145 A rainbow of the loveliest hue, Of three bright colours, each divine. And fit for that celestial sign ; For Freedom's hand had blended them, Like tints in an immortal gem. One tint was of the sunbeam's dyes ; One, the blue depth of Seraph's eyes ; One, the pure Spirit's veil of white Had robed in radiance of its light ; The three, so mingled, did beseem The texture of a heavenly dream.' Of course, the extreme section of the small Legitimist party — which counted its most zealous adherents in Brittany and Vendee, where the Church had contrived to foster belief in Divine Right even among the peasants — held that Monseigneur le Comte de Chambord was quite right in refusing to accept the flag of the Revolution, and the tourist who strayed that summer through the Vendean Socage, might still occasionally hear some descendant of Larochejaquelain's followers, singing the old song of the lost cause : — M'sieur d'Charette a dit a ceux d'Anc'nis : Mas amis, Le Roi va nous ramener les fleurs de lys, Le Roi va nous ramener les fleurs de lys ! Prends ton fusil, Gregoire, Prends ta gourde pour boire. Ton chapelet d'ivoire. Ces messieurs sont partis Pour aller au pays. M'sieur d'Charette a dit a ceux d'Anc'nis : Frappez fort, frappez fort ! Le drapeau blanc garde contre la mort, Le drapeau blanc garde contre la mort ! All that, however, was merely a lingering memory, a mere nothing in comparison with the sentiments which prevailed in nearly every other part of France. The Legitimists, pure and simple, mustered, it should be remembered, but ninety-six representatives in an assembly of nearly seven hundred and fifty members. Without the support of the Orleanists they were therefore powerless. Quitting France, the Count de Chambord repaired to Switzerland, leaving most Royalists in a state of consternation on the subject of the flag. The Count de Paris did not follow ' Byron. L 146 REPUBLICAN FRANCE up the proposals that he should visit his cousin, and it seemed for a while as if a fusion between Legitimists and Orleanists was impossible. At last some of the leading men of the two parties came together again, and a tentative programme for the Restoration of the Monarchy eventually received the adhesion of some 280 members of the Assembly. In February 1872 the Count de Chambord went to Antwerp, whither a number of deputations also repaired. No understanding was arrived at, however, and the demonstrations for and against the Count — that is with French Legitimists on one side, and Belgian Liberals on the other — led to so much trouble that at the end of the month he had to quit the country. Exactly a year later, when he was once more in Switzerland, Bishop Dupanloup of Orleans approached him, and tried to effect an understanding between the rival sections of the Monarchist party. Nothing particular resulted ; still similar attempts were made down to the time of Thiers's overthrow. That was the signal for more decisive action ; and after the Duke de Nemours, the most Legitimist of the Orleans Princes, had privately paid his respects to the Count de Chambord, the Count de Paris was prevailed upon to visit his cousin with the object of effecting a reconciliation. This was regarded as the first necessary step, after which other matters, such as the flag and the constitution, might be adjusted. The Count de Paris repaired, then, to Vienna, and by previous arrangement with his aunt. Princess Clementine, put up on August 3 at the Coburg Palace in the Seilerstatte, whence he addressed a com- munication to the Count de Chambord's gentilhomme de service — then Count Henry de Vanssay — at Froschdorf. The Count de Chambord replied that he would be happy to receive his cousin, provided that the latter came not only to pay his respects to the head of the House of Bourbon, but "also to recognise the principle of which he, the Count de Chambord, was the representative, and to resume his place in the family." That answer was conveyed to the Count de Paris by the Marquis Scipion de Dreux-Breze, son of Louis XVL's famous master of ceremonies (Henri Evrard de Dreux-Breze) to whom Mirabeau addressed his historical rebuke.^ 1 Apropos of that famous episode it is generally forgotten that Dreux- Br&^ was a mere "youngster" at the time— just in his 27th year. He survived till the close of the Restoration. THE ROYALIST FUSION 147 Marquis Scipion was one of the " King's " chief representa- tives in France, but had repaired to Froschdorf to be with him at this juncture. The Count de Paris demurred to the ex- pression "resume his place in the family" and therefore adjourned his answer until the following day, when he informed Dreux-Breze of his willingness to make a declaration to the effect that "he had come to recognise the principle of which Monsieur le Comte de Chambord was the representative, and to assure him that he would find no competitor among the members of his family." The hair-splitting was delightful, but, as La Fontaine might have remarked, "Ce sont la jeux de princes." The alteration being approved, it was arranged that on being ushered into the presence of the Count de Chambord at Froschdorf on the morrow, August 5, his cousin should repeat the formula we have given above. He did so in a clear voice, and in the presence of Dreux-Breze, Count de Monti de Reze, and Count Adheaume de Chevigue. The " King " then offered his hand, and led the Count de Paris into another room, where they remained alone for half an hour. Next the Count de Paris was presented to the Countess de Chambord and the Count de Bardi, one of the Italian Bourbons and a nephew of the Pretender. A little later came lunch, to which the whole company sat down in the highest spirits ; and on the following afternoon the Count de Chambord paid his cousin a return visit at the Coburg Palace. The reconciliation of Bourbon and Orleans appeared to be complete. The French Royalists and Clericals, the latter particularly, were wild with delight directly the good news reached France. Processions and pilgrimages were organised to stimulate popular fervour for the Royal cause. It was amid cries of "Vive Henri V. ! " that the faithful betook themselves to Paray-le- Monial to offer up their prayers to the Sacred Heart of Jesus at the shrine of the blessed Marie Alacoque, the nun of the Order of the Visitation in whose hysteria that extraordinary and repulsive devotion, that culte d'abattoir, originated.^ The position still remained very difficult, however. Many ' It was the National Assembly of 1871 that authorised the erection of the Church of the Sacred Heart at Montmartre, and declared it a work of public utility. It was intended to mark the repentance of France for her sins, and her resolve to dedicate herself to the Divinity henceforward. Times have changed. 148 REPUBLICAN FRANCE matters of detail — such as the nature of the Constitution by which the King would govern the country, and that annoying and ever-recurring question of the flag — remained to be settled. Moreover, although there was an undoubted Con- servative majority in the Assembly, a purely Royalist one scarcely existed. For instance, the declared Legitimists and Orleanists were little more than 360 in number. The Bona- partists would certainly not help them to bring back the King ; and it was only by winning over a certain number of the Left Centre section, whose Republicanism was at times little more than nominal, that a Restoration could be legally effected.^ A Coup d'llltat might be possible, but that would not accord with the Royalist plans, for the Monarchist deputies did not desire to see the Assembly swept away. Too many of them might then subside into nothingness, and they wished to retain their seats and power, and organise the new Monarchy in con- junction with the King. To effect that purpose it was wise, then, to make arrangements which might win over a certain number of waverers — arrangements which would impart some appearance of Liberalism to the desired regime. There was a permanent Committee of the Assembly, estab- lished, in a spirit of distrust, in Thiers's time, for the purpose of watching the action of the Executive, and protecting the Assembly's rights and interests during its vacations. This Permanent Committee was composed chiefly of Royalists who made it their business to favour the cause of the Restoration, for which purpose they selected from their number a Committee of Nine, composed as follows : Extreme Right {i.e. strict Legitimists) MM. de Tarteron and Combier ; Moderate Right (Royalists generally) the Baron de Larcy and M. Baragnon ; Right Centre (Liberal Royalists, chiefly Orleanists) the Duke d'Audiffret-Pasquier and M. Callet ; and the so-called Chan- garnier Group (composed of Royalists of various shades with distinctive views on various questions) General Changarnier, Count Daru, and M. Chesnelong. Such were the men who undertook to bring back the King. The member whom they chose to preside over their delibera- tions was Changarnier, at whose residence they usually met. It was he, it will be remembered, who had proposed MacMahon ' The Left Centre included 109 members. There were also 143 Re- publicans (Left), 77 Radicals (Extreme Left), and about 40 Bonapartists. THE ROYALIST FUSION 149 for the Presidency of the Republic,^ but that, of course, had been done to further the cause of the Restoration, to which the General now applied himself. Born towards the close of the eighteenth century, Nicolas Changarnier was at this time nearly eighty years of age, but nobody would have imagined it. Short and slight of build, he wore on his head a beautiful curly jflaxen wig, and about his body a pair of stays which gave him a wasp-like waist. He startled people by his juvenile neckties, his fashionable light brown coats, and his pearl grey trousers, which were strapped to his boots. As a military man he had made a reputation in Algeria, notably by his retreat with a small force from Constantine after a vain attempt to take that town in 1836. As a politician he had come to the front during the Second Republic, when, however, he was thoroughly fooled by Louis Napoleon, who had him arrested at the Coup d'Etat. In 1870, however, Changarnier made his submission to the Emperor, went with him to the Saarbruck affair, when the Imperial Prince received the " baptism of fire," and though not exercising any actual command, remained with Bazaine during the siege of Metz — in which connection we shall have to speak of him again. His personal appearance bespoke his character, he was insufferably vain and pretentious, profoundly convinced that he was the greatest military and political authority in the world, a conviction which imparted haughtiness and pomposity to all his utterances.^ Contradiction irritated him to a supreme degree, and to see him raging and fuming was a sight for the gods. Curiously enough, although the Parliamentarians of the Second Republic had bitterly rued their trust in him, he acquired no little authority among the majority of the Assembly of 1871. This was due, no doubt, to the exceeding pushfulness which he exhibited until his very last days, and to the circumstance that generals were rare among the Royalist deputies ; the only others, indeed, whom we recall, being the Duke d'Aumale and a certain General du Temple, who was, however, far more interested in the welfare of the Pope than in that of France. A certain member of the Committee of Nine, a M. Chesne- ' Curiously enough, MacMahon, while a captain, was for a short time aide-de-camp to Changarnier in Algeria. 2 There is a story to the effect that, on calling on Thiers one day, he sent in a visiting-card on which, after his name "Le G^n^ral Changarnier," he had pencilled the words : " who is not yet a Marshal of France." 150 REPUBLICAN FRANCE long, a man of unctuous manners, who had made a large fortune as a dealer in pigs, and hoped to die a Duke, persuaded his colleagues that he was the best person whom they could choose to negotiate with the Count de Chambord, and obtain Liberal concessions from him. The moment was favourable, for the Count had just issued another manifesto, protesting this time against the rumours that he wished to revive the ancien regime. That being so, he would doubtless be willing to enter into suitable political arrangements. As for the question of the flag, Chesnelong had conceived the brilliant idea of a com- promise between the Royal Standard of former times and the Tricolour, that is to say the white section of the latter might, in his opinion, be delicately sprinkled with fleurs-de-lys. In the autumn of 1873, then, Chesnelong repaired to Salzburg, where the Count de Chambord was staying. Three Royalist members of the Assembly, MM. de Carayon La Tour, de Cazenove, and Lucien Brun, in addition to M. de Dreux-Breze, were with the Pretender at the time. Negotiations followed, and when Chesnelong returned to France and reported progress to the Committee of the Nine, the Restoration was regarded by the plotters as almost accomplished. However, a certain Savary, who had accompanied Chesnelong as secretary, drew up a proces-verbal of the whole affair, and, without submitting it to his patron, sent it to the press, by which means France was ^informed that the King would impose no charter on the country, but that one would be freely discussed and decided between his Majesty and the Assembly, when the latter had recognised the Royal Hereditary Right. Further, it was stated that the Tricoloxu- flag would be maintained, and only be modified by agreement between the King and the Legislative Power. Suddenly, however, another proces-verbal of the negotia- tions appeared, and seemed to indicate that the Count de Chambord had by no means gone so far as the Savary report had led one to imagine. Perplexity ensued, but on October 27, the Count himself addressed a very bitter open letter to Chesnelong, in which he declared that he would not renounce the banner of Arques and Ivry, and protested against the conditions which it was attempted to impose on him in advance. Indeed, he regarded the preliminary guarantees he was asked for as an insult to his honour, as a humiliation THE ROYALIST FUSION 161 which would lessen both his authority and his prestige. This letter had much the effect of a bomb, it spread dismay among the moderate Royalists at the moment when they imagined that victory was within their grasp. It appears that at the interviews with Chesnelong, the Count had really declared that he would never accept the Tricolour, though he was content that it should be retained until he took formal possession of power. For the rest, he " reserved to himself the right of bringing forward a solution compatible with his honour, and of a nature to satisfy the Assembly and the nation." That solution, according to those who were most intimate with the Count at that period, would appear to have been none at all. He relied, says M. de Dreux- Breze, on his prestige, on the enthusiasm of the nation at being saved from great peril by his accession to the throne, which prestige and which enthusiasm would before long induce the country to accept, purely and simply, the banner of its King. He clung to that White Flag, nothing could induce him to relinquish it. In his letter to Chesnelong he asked what his great ancestor Henri IV. would have said had he been asked to give up the flag of Ivry. He forgot that the Bearnais made a far greater sacrifice, that of changing his religion, in order to secure the throne. When even Pope Pius IX., who naturally desired to see Royalty restored in France, wrote to the Count suggesting that he might make some concession on the question of the flag, he received a non possumus for his answer, followed, however, by a visit from M. Henry de Vanssay who was sent expressly to Rome to explain why the Count adhered to his original views. The fact seems to be that apart from all sentimental considerations, the Pretender felt that, if he gave way on that point, he would be forced to give way on many others. He wished the nation to take him purely and simply on trust ; he thought it horrible that any conditions whatever should be imposed on him, when it was the duty of his subjects to rely on his magnanimity. He said, somewhat later, to M. de Dreux-Breze, "If I had made all the concessions, accepted all the conditions which were asked of me, I might have recovered the crown, but I should not have remained on the throne six months." While it is not true that the Countess de Chambord pre- vailed on her husband to take up an " impossible " position 152 REPUBLICAN FRANCE because she did not wish to reign, it is certain that she impressed on him the necessity of maintaining a firm attitude and making no surrender to " the Revolution." In that respect she gave rein to her anti-Liberal views, and her marked dislike for the Orleanist party and its Princes, in whom, she said, she would never be able to place any trust. In their embarrassing position, and in order to gain time, the Royalists sought various expedients of a nature to prevent the definitive constitution of the Republic, and to leave the door open for a Restoration. For instance, Changamier suggested a kind of interregnum, and offered the Prince de Joinville the position of Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom, which, however, the Prince immediately refused, with the approval of the Count de Paris. Then, also to gain time, rally the now disunited Monarchists, and reassure the comitry, which was becoming more and more anxious, it was proposed to re-adjust MacMahon's position. He had been appointed President of the Republic, but for how long nobody could exactly say, and this alone was a cause of much unrest in French commerce, industry, and business generally. The first suggestion was that the Marshal's powers should be confirmed for ten years, in which event there would have been a Decennate, but that being regarded in some quarters as too long a period, it was agreed that one of seven years should be allotted. The Marshal himself precipitated this solution, demanding that the duration of his powers should be speedily fixed, for he was beginning to feel the uncertainty of his position, and his Ministers, disturbed by the restless state of the country and the complaints of financiers, manufacturers, and merchants, supported his demand. Among the Royalists generally, however, the voting of a Septennate was intended as an expedient. Few imagined that the Marshal would take the Septennate seriously, as he did ; most inclined to the view that arrangements would be arrived at by which the King would before long secure his own. But his Majesty in partibus was also becoming anxious. He did not wish the Restoration to be delayed, although he retained his former views on the flag and other matters. Perhaps, by repairing to France, he might be able to settle everything. Passing, therefore, through Switzerland, he reached Paris on the evening of November 8. Count de Sainte Suzanne was waiting for him at the terminus, and after driving THE THRONE LOST 153 to the Tuileries, in order that the Prince might view the ruins of the palace where his ancestors had reigned, and where he himself had first seen the light, they betook themselves to No. 5 in the Rue St. Louis at Versailles — a house taken by Count Henry de Vanssay, whose wife officiated as hostess. Count de Blacas and M. de Monti de Reze were also in attendance. There is evidence that the Count de Chambord had come to France in the hope of ensuring by his presence his immediate accession to the throne. It has often been asserted that a gala carriage was expressly built for his triumphal entry into Paris ; and, perhaps, as such a carriage is said to have been used at the wedding of Prince George of Greece and Princess Marie Bonaparte in 1907, there may be truth in the story. We think, however, that as there were many gala carriages at Trianon, including that of the coronation of Charles X. (restored by the Empire and in excellent condition), the Count de Chambord can personally have given no orders for the building of a new one. That must have been due to some over-zealous Royalists acting on their own account. On the other hand, the Count came provided with a general's uniform, and M. de Dreux-Breze, who had previously purchased both a general's belt, and a star of the Legion of Honour, in which (as in Restoration days) the central eagle was replaced by a fleur-de-lys, took those articles to Versailles, in order that they might be in readiness, as well as several lists of function- aries, new prefects, new judges, and so forth, which had been prepared a considerable time previously, in order that the Monarchy might be installed almost as soon as it was proclaimed.^ The Count de Chambord wished, in the first place, to have a secret interview with Marshal MacMahon, to whom therefore he despatched his counsellor and chamberlain M. de Blacas. Dreux-Breze, however, foresaw that, the interview would not be granted. Indeed MacMahon immediately, peremptorily, absolutely refused the request. He states in one of the few published fragments of his memoirs that he would have been prepared to accept the Count de Chambord as his sovereign if the Count's rights had been recognised by France, but, having been elected President of the Republic by the nation's ' All this is admitted by Dreux-Br^z^ himself in his writings. 154 REPUBLICAN FRANCE representatives, he could not himself impose another form of Government on the country. With respect to the flag the Marshal's views are well known. "If," said he, "the White Flag were set up against the Tricolour, the chassepots would go off of their own accord." The Count de Chambord, on his side, when speaking to his followers, declared that it had never been his desire to impose his will on MacMahon. He had simply wished, said he, to confer with the Marshal generally, and if the latter had regarded the position as hopeful for the restoration of royalty, he would have concerted with him the measxu-es which might be adopted. We feel, however, that, without tempting the Marshal, the Count intended to appeal to his loyalty and his Royalist family traditions. In any case the failure of M. de Blacas' mission reduced the Count to despondency; all his plans had hinged on an interview with MacMahon, and that interview being refused, he could do nothing. It may be added that there is no truth in the story that, feverishly impatient respecting the result of the mission, he waited out of doors, near the Presidency, while M. de Blacas was with the Marshal. Nor is it true, as asserted by M. de Falloux in his memoirs, that on the evening when the Septennate was voted by the Assembly, the Count, wrapped in his mantle, awaited the issue pacing up and down in front of the statue of his ancestor, Louis XIV., in the courtyard of the palace of Versailles. On each occasion he remained quietly in the Rue St. Louis. After refusing to see the Count, MacMahon, it appears, informed M. de Blacas that he was willing to take all necessary steps to ensure his security during his sojourn at Versailles. At the same time he made no inquiry as to where he might be staying. In that connection the archives of the Prefecture of Police disclose the fact that the authorities were quite aware of the Count's presence in the Rue St. Louis. The Septennate was voted on the evening of November 19, seven fervent Legitimists declaring against it. By the Republicans it was generally accepted, as they felt that it at least maintained existing institutions, and might even serve as a check to Royalist enterprise. Such, indeed, proved to be the case, in spite of all the unrest of ensuing years. On the morrow of the vote the Count de Chambord took his departure. He had arrived at Versailles hoping for the triumph of a Bosworth THE THRONE LOST 155 field, but he had encountered the bitterness of a Culloden. He never again set foot in France. Let us now go back a little. While all these intrigues were in progress a great event had happened. Thanks to the skilful measures devised by Thiers and his coadjutors, the ready response of the national purse, and the help tendered in all confidence by friendly foreign nations, France had paid, to the uttermost farthing, the great war indemnity levied upon her by the Germans, the interest which had to be added to the capital sum, and the cost of keeping the German troops quartered on various parts of her territory. One district after another had been freed of that burden, the necessary instal- ments of the indemnity being frequently paid at earlier dates than had been thought possible. At last, on August 1, the Germans evacuated Nancy and Belfort ; then, the final instal- ment being discharged on September 5, they marched home- ward from Verdun, and France was free. MacMahon's message to the Assembly in that connection was somewhat meagre. His Ministers did not wish to trumpet the praises of Thiers ; but Gambetta was right when on an historic occasion — the early departure of the Germans being ascribed to the good work of the majority of the Assembly — he pointed to where the little man sat, and exclaimed in stentorian accents : " There is the Liberator of the Territory ! " In the latter part of 1873, amid the debacle of the Royalists, a severe blow fell also on the partisans of Imperialism who had already lost their Emperor at the beginning of the year. Among the many stirring proclamations issued by Gambetta during the war with Germany, none had been more striking than the one which began as follows : — Frenchmen ! raise your souls and your resolution to the height of the terrible perils bursting upon the country ! It still depends on us to outweary evil fortune, and to show the world what a great nation is when it is determined not to perish, and when its courage rises even in the midst of catastrophes. Metz has capitulated. A commander on whom France relied, even after Mexico, has just deprived the country in danger of nearly two hundred thousand of its defenders. Marshal Bazaine has betrayed. He has become the accomplice of the invader. Contemptuous of the honour of the army of which he had charge, he has delivered up, without even making a supreme effort, one hundred and fifty thousand combatants, twenty thousand wounded, his rifles, his guns, his flags, and the strongest citadel of France — Metz, a virgin until his time. 156 REPUBLICAN FRANCE unsullied by the foreigner.^ Such a crime is even beyond the punishment of justice. When the war was over, those who wished to bring the Marshal to account for the capitulation met with strenuous opposition in high places. Bazaine was freely called a traitor in Radical newspapers, in cafes and wineshops, and in the streets, but for most members of the National Assembly he remained "a great, if unfortunate, warrior." One day, soon after the Commune, Changarnier warmly defended him in the Assembly, ascribing the attacks upon his reputation to the jealousy of subalterns anxious to increase their importance, and Thiers, who was present on the occasion, expressed his pleasure that Changarnier should have spoken so fittingly of " one of our great men of war." Thiers's attitude was due in part to the circumstance that he had never believed in the advisability of prolonging hostilities after Sedan. He had even blamed Gambetta's proclamation about Bazaine at the time when it was issued, and with charac- teristic obstinacy he repeatedly refused to be enlightened respecting the Marshal, probably because he did not wish to have to change his views. He knew, moreover, that the army was still full of Bonapartist officers, and shrank from any course which might, to his thinking, indispose the military element towards the young Republic. As for Changarnier, his defence of Bazaine sprang from the fact that he had been personally concerned in the capitulation of Metz, having been the first General sent to the German headquarters to treat for the surrender, and having exercised no little authority in preventing Clinchant and other officers from a " forlorn hope " sortie, in defiance of Bazaine and the other Marshals. If, then, Bazaine were placed upon his trial, the role which he, Chan- garnier, had played in a number of incidents would be made public, and this the General was anxious to prevent. The Parisians, even those who called Bazaine a traitor, had at first very little knowledge of the real facts of the capitulation of Metz. They had formed but a vague idea of the mysterious Regnier's intervention on behalf of the Empire, and the missions of General Boyer to Versailles and England. But sudden enlightenment came with the publication of a book by an officer who had served under Bazaine in the beleaguered strong- ' Nunquam polluta was the city's motto. BAZAINE'S TRIAL 157 hold.1 Quoted by the press throughout France, this work influenced public opinion generally, though Thiers still refused to countenance any prosecution. He was, indeed, more than ever afraid of sowing disaffection in the army. He held that Bazaine's fellow Marshals and a number of Generals would certainly rally round him, some out of friendship, others because they might have fears respecting their own responsi- bility in the Metz affair. As military pronunciamientos might well imperil the Republic, it was best to let the Bazaine matter rest. But if that were Thiers's view, an important circumstance prevented it from prevailing. The French Military Code specifies that there must be an inquiry into every capitulation which takes place. There had been several capitulations in 1870-71— those of Paris, Toul, Strasburg, Schlestadt, Neuf Brisach, Verdun, Peronne, Thionville, Montmedy, Phalsburg, and Mezieres, besides Metz — and the appointment of a Court of Inquiry into all of them became necessary. The law, indeed, was imperative on the subject, and there was no possibility of making any exception in favour of Metz. Bonapartists, how- ever, were at first pleased to see that the presidency of this court was allotted to a man on whose sympathies they imagined they could rely. This was the venerable Marshal Baraguey d'Hilliers, a fine old one-armed and one-eyed relic, who had served France since the days of the first Napoleon. Age, how- ever, had not weakened him morally. He still retained much of the inflexible spirit which the great Captain had infused into his officers, and no political consideration could influence him in matters of military duty. Thus it came to pass that, to the amazement of Thiers and the consternation of the partisans of Bazaine, the Court of Inquiry, under old Baraguey's direction, censured the capitulation of Metz severely. Its judgment, delivered in August 1872, set forth its opinion that Marshal Bazaine had " caused the loss of an army of 150,000 men and the stronghold of Metz, that the entire responsibility was his, and that, as commander-in-chief, he had not done what military duty prescribed." Further, the court blamed the Marshal " for having held with the enemy an intercourse which only ended in a capitulation unexampled in history," and for having "delivered to the enemy the colours which he ' Metz, cam/pagne et niffodatione, by Colonel d'Andlau. 158 REPUBLICAN FRANCE might have, and ought to have destroyed, thereby inflicting a crowning humiliation on brave soldiers vrhose honour it vi^as his duty to protect." Such a judgment could have but one result. It is true, as General du Barail recalls in his Souvenirs, that Bazaine promptly applied to be placed upon his trial, but whether he had applied or not a prosecution had now become inevitable. From the foregoing it will be seen that Bazaine's trial was in no sense a political move, that it was brought about, indeed, simply by the military laws, applied by a distinguished old Marshal of France, a soldier who had served both Empires and the inter- vening Monarchies with high credit and integrity. The long investigation, which preceded the actual trial, was also con- ducted by an officer of lofty character. General Serre de Riviere, while Pourcet, who prosecuted, was an equally high-minded, as well as a most able man. It was on October 6, 1873, that the trial began at Trianon, lasting until December 10. The Court was composed of seven general officers, reinforced by three supplementary ones in case any of the seven should fall ill or die during the proceedings, in which case one or other of the supplementary judges was to step into the vacant place. The precaution was not unadvisable as several members of the tribunal were of advanced years — the youngest being the Duke d'Aumale who presided, and who was then in his fifty-second year. His colleague, Lallemand, was little older, but the majority were well past sixty, in fact General de la Motte-Rouge had entered his seventy-first year, a fact which his still abundant and carefully dyed hair abso- lutely failed to conceal. All the judges, however, were officers of ability, men of reputation in their time, and as with the exception of the Duke d'Aumale they had all served the Second Empire, the prisoner, whose imperialist tendencies were well known, could not claim that he was judged by a politically hostile court.i Bazaine was a man of striking appearance. He was not, perhaps, very tall ; but the floor of the " dock " in which he sat being higher than that of the court generally, he seemed to tower over everybody else directly he stood up. His corpulence 1 One of them. General de Chabaud-Latour, certainly belonged to an old Eoyalist faniily, but he had accepted the Empire, and held command under it. He was an authority on fortifications. BAZAINE'S TttlAL 159 was amazing. General Guiod, one of the judges, had the reputation of being the fattest officer in the army, but his adi- posity was as nothing beside the Marshal's. The latter had always been inclined to stoutness, but since the war his girth had greatly increased, and his tunic was strained to the utmost. One wondered if this man, who seemed to weigh some twenty stone, would have been able to get into the saddle had occasion required, or whether, if he ever reassumed command, he would have to drive about in a carriage, as Marshal Pelissier— shorter but equally stout — was compelled to do even during the siege of Sebastopol. A large bullet head was set on Bazaine's bulky frame. On either side of the small but well-formed chin, from which depended a little tuft of beard, the fleshy cheeks drooped over a big bull neck. A few grey locks still strayed across the cranium, whose baldness lent height to the forehead. The hair on either side was cut very short. The dark and bushy eyebrows remained arched, although they were contracted, three deep vertical lines appearing above the short, aquiline nose. The lids of the dark, quick eyes seemed to be swollen, as if the glands were distended; the "crow's feet" were most pro- nounced. Probably the best feature was the mouth — small, but with fairly full lips, the upper one, which an unpretentious drooping moustache did not conceal, having the curves of Cupid's bow, while the under one was somewhat salient and sensual. The jaws were powerful, and, on the whole, the lower part of the face suggested a certain pride and doggedness, which contrasted with the somewhat anxious, puzzled ex- pression imparted to the upper part by the contraction of the brows. The hands were remarkably fat and flabby; and on the whole the Marshal's appearance, his bulk and general un- wieldiness, suggested little possibility of his ever making, his escape from a place of confinement by lowering himself with a rope from a height of a hundred feet or so, though this is what he is said to have done afterwards at the He Ste. Marguerite. The trial was of the most searching character, and although a few points were not fully elucidated, owing to the reticence of certain witnesses, concerned for their own share of responsi- bility, no impartial person can rise from a perusal of the records without feeling convinced that the Marshal was guilty, that he had indeed failed to do all he might have done to 160 REPUBLICAN FRANCE escape from Metz, that he had repeatedly and grossly deceived the commanders under his orders, and that he had invariably subordinated the interests of his country to those of the Im- perialist party to which he belonged. We cannot attempt here to analyse the records, extensive and minute as they are, extending to thousands of pages. We can mention only a few points. One of Bazaine's arguments was that, shut up in Metz, closely invested by the army of Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia, he was ignorant of the true state of France after Sedan, in which respect his only information was derived from the Germans, who deliberately deceived him. That Frederick Charles .and Bismarck bam- boozled him, played a game of cat and mouse with him, is true enough. It was peremptorily established at the trial, however, that in spite of the investment, certain means of communica- tion with outside existed, and that he took no steps to avail himself of them. Deliberately concealing his earlier underhand intercourse with the Germans from his Generals, he neverthe- less communicated to them, as real and authentic, the " news " which he derived from German sources — news which pictured France in a state of anarchy, without any recognised Govern- ment or any organised forces, news which, on one occasion, described Paris as being actually occupied by the invaders ! The Military Code contains a strict warning to officers to dis- credit intelligence from hostile quarters ; if they act upon it, they do so at their peril. But Bazaine did not hesitate. He deliberately applied to Prince Frederick Charles for "news," and utilised every lie which that Prince impudently retailed to him, to incline his Generals to his personal views. He was in part incited to the course he took by a scoundrel named Regnier, who, passing through the German lines, pre- tended to come to him on behalf of the Empress Eugenie, which was not the case, though there are grounds for believing that Regnier acted originally at the instigation of certain prominent Bonapartists, and had relations also with Count Bernstorff, the German ambassador in England. But a time came when Bazaine sent his aide-de-camp, General Boyer, to the German headquarters at Versailles — Boyer, his ame damnde, who, as shown by General Douay's correspondence, had already in Mexico dabbled in the most scandalous transactions on his patron's behalf. And Boyer, who ought to have been- BAZAINE'S TRIAL 161 placed at Bazaine's side in the dock, repeated on his return to Metz all the mendacious stories which the Germans had told him at Versailles. France, according to him, was in a state of anarchy. Yet he well knew the truth. Though he had travelled under German escort to Versailles, he had obtained independent information (notably from the Mayor of Bar-le- Duc), and he was aware that the National Defence Government was recognised throughout the country, and that both in Paris and in the provinces it was making every effort to hold the invader at bay. But it was not Boyer's desire to enlighten Marshals Canrobert and Leboeuf and all the Generals of the army respecting the true state of affairs. His purpose was to aid and abet his patron Bazaine in his system of deceit and his plan for restoring the Empire.^ The negotiations conducted by Regnier and Boyer tended to that issue. One document alone suffices to establish Bazaine's guilt in that respect — the memorandum which Boyer carried on his behalf to Bismarck. We need, indeed, only quote a part of it : At the moment when society is threatened by the attitude assumed by a violent party, whose tendencies cannot lead to a solution such as well-minded people seek, the Marshal commanding the Army of the Rhine, inspired by a desire to save his country, and save it from its own excesses, questions his conscience, and asks himself if the army placed under his orders is not destined to become the palladium of society. The military question is decided, the German armies are victorious, and his Majesty the King of Prussia cannot attach any great value to the sterile triumph he would obtain by dissolving the only force which to-day can master Anarchy in our unfortunate country. ... It would re-establish order and protect society, whose interests are identical with those of Europe. As an eflFect of that action it would supply Prussia with a guarantee for the pledges she might at present require, and ' Boyer, a mean and meagre-looking little man, with an ugly crafty face, was censured by the court for the contradictions in his evidence, and for having knowingly and wilfuUy deceived the assistant commanders. He related among other things that the west of France, influenced by religious passions, was ready for civil war, and that the south was in a state of com- plete anarchy. He carefully refrained from mentioning that this informa- tion had been given him by Bismarck ; he made no allusion to the fact that the latter had unwittingly handed him six French newspapers which showed the information to be false ; and as Marshal Canrobert, General Frossard, and others declared at Bazaine's trial, they never, for a moment, doubted the veracity of Boyer's statepients. M 162 REPUBLICAN FRANCE finally, it would contribute to the accession of a regular and legal authority (j)ouvoir) with which relations of all kinds might be resumed without shock, and legally.^ That the regular, legal authority with which intercourse might be " resumed " was that of the Empress Eugenie acting as Regent, is established peremptorily by the conditions which Bismarck stipulated with Boyer at Versailles, and which were subsequently rejected by a council of war held at Metz, when Bazaine was at last compelled to show his hand. The fact that Bismarck gave encouragement to the idea of treating with the Empress, and even suggested a course by which this might be brought about and the army of Metz utilised for restoring the Regency, in no degree lessens Bazaine's responsibility in the matter. Besides, he was only too willing to be tempted. The Empress as Regent — not however for her husband but for her young son, the Imperial Prince — and he, Bazaine, as High Constable and Protector of the Empire — such was the Marshal's secret desire. From a military point of view his conduct was at times outrageous. He referred to surrender in some of his very first communications with Prince Frederick Charles, when no such word should ever have escaped his pen ; moreover he confided to the scoundrel Regnier, a stranger of whom, according to his own admissions, he knew nothing, the all-important fact that the army's provisions would only last until October 18, and Regnier informed the Germans of it. Further, Bazaine's own accounts of the last sorties he made — the "foraging sorties" — indicated either an extremely cynical mind or a supreme un- consciousness of his responsibilities as a commander. An emissary reached Metz from Thionville with information that large stores of provisions had been collected there, and that a ccmp de main in that direction — Thionville, still held by the French, was between sixteen and seventeen miles distant — had considerable chances of success. But Bazaine never attempted it. When he was reproached on the subject at his trial he denied that he had ever received the information. Proof of the contrary, however, was immediately forthcoming. On another occasion there was a possibility of a coivp de main on some large German supplies, but that also was neglected. ' The French phraseology is in parts so amphibolous and inept that a translation into fair English is difficult. BAZAINE'S TRIAL 163 The Marshal did not wish to obtain the means of prolonging the resistance of his army. The question whether he would or would not have been successful in any determined elFort to break out of Metz, had virtually nothing to do with his case. The plain simple issue was that he failed to do what military honour and duty required, and that he did certain things which military honour and duty forbade. In that respect there was not only his intercourse with the enemy and his subordination of military to political interests, but there was his disgraceful surrender of the colours of his army, when elementary duty prescribed their destruction.! Moreover, he actually refused the honours of war which the Germans were ready to grant ! That was the crowning affront offered by this Marshal of France to the brave, if imfortunate, men under his orders. By the fault of their commander-in-chief they had stood what was, on their side, an inglorious siege ; but they were the same soldiers who had fought so bravely at Borny, Mars-la-Tour, Gravel otte, Rezon- ville, St. Privat ; and if ever defeated, yet valiant, legions had deserved the honoiu:s of war they were surely these ! But no ! Dishonoured himself, Bazaine was unwilling that honour should be accorded to others. On the first day when he came into court the prisoner looked flushed, but his fat, heavy face subsequently assumed a dull, leaden, unhealthy hue. On the main issues his answers to the Duke d'Aumale's questions were never satisfactory, they degenerated at times into mere excuses. "There was nothing left," he said at one moment, referring to the position of the country after the fall of the Empire, whereupon D'Aumale gravely retorted, "There was France." That summed up everything. The Duke presided over the proceedings with great fairness and no little acumen. Nothing in any wise suggested his royal status, nobody addressed him as " Altesse " or " Monseigneur," he was simply General Henri d'Orleans, President of the Court. He and Gambetta, we remember, were very courteous towards each other when the latter gave evidence : it was " Monsieur le President " on one side, and " Monsieur le Depute" on the other. ^ A good many flags were destroyed by indignant ofScers, Generals Jeanningros, Lapasset, and Laveaucoupet, Colonels P^an, Melchior, Girels, etc., but fifty-three remained, and these were handed over to the Germans. 164 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Gambetta, however, struck many people by the awkwardness of his manners. There was a gaucherie about him, surprising in one accustomed to pubhc appearances both as an advocate and a politician ; and his shiny, ill-fitting black clothes, which looked as though they had come from some slop-shop at the Temple market, by no means enhanced his appearance. Folk who had never previously seen him gazed in surprise. What ! was that the man who had ruled France during long months of war and suffering, who had thrown legion after legion into the field, who, by his energy which inspired, and his language which inflamed, had imparted vigour and hope to a lost cause ? Was that the " Dictator," ^e fou furieux, who had refused to despair of his country ? It seemed incredible. Still slim of figure as he was, he looked quite little in comparison with the ponderous and glowering Bazaine. The prisoner was defended by an advocate of world-wide repute, but one whom it astonished many to find acting as his counsel. Let us suppose, if it is possible to do so, a British Field-Marshal arraigned on charges similar to those preferred against Bazaine. Would there not be profound surprise if he were defended by some Old Bailey barrister, some man whose life had been spent in vain efforts to snatch murderers from the hangman ? Lachaud, Bazaine's advocate, was one of that type, one whose clients had been chiefly candidates for the guillotine or the galleys ; and it was, indeed, somewhat of a shock to find him figuring in a case so different from those in which he usually appeared, and for such a client as a Marshal of France. At the same time Charles Lachaud was an exceedingly worthy and able man. At the age of two-and-twenty he had made a name at the bar for all time by his defence of Mme. Lafarge, the French Mrs. Maybrick, accused of poisoning her husband. Lachaud's efforts at least saved Mme. Lafarge's life ; she was reprieved, and we are incliped to think, as Lachaud himself always stoutly declared, that she may really have been innocent. From that time, 1840, until early in 1882, when he was stricken with paralysis, Lachaud figured in innumerable " famous cases." Among the many murderers he defended were Dr. Lapommeraye, the French Palmer, and Tropmann, the assassin of the Kinck family. He also often pleaded in cases of theft and embezzlement, but it was particularly in murder BAZAINE'S TRIAL 166 cases that his powers became most manifest. A native of Southern France, but with light hair and a bright complexion, he had a voice of wonderful flexibility and power, combined with undoubted histrionic gifts. He once told us that on rising to speak for a client, he singled out that member of the jury in whose demeanour during the earlier proceedings he had observed most hostility towards the prisoner. It was especially for that juryman that he spoke, piling argument on argument, and making every possible effort to wring from him some involuntary sign of approval. Lachaud usually identified him- self with his client's cause. At times he waxed indignant, and protests then poured from his lips in tones of thunder; at others he was all pathos, all softness, affecting his hearers to tears. But apart from those melodramatic gifts, he was an expert dialectitian, a most resourceful advocate, never at a loss for a rejoinder, a fresh argument, quick too in detecting the slightest contradiction in evidence and turning it to account. Thus his memory still abides as that of one of the greatest criminal advocates the French bar has known. His appearance was somewhat peculiar. He was stout, with a large head, and fairly long curly hair. The full round face was clean-shaven, the brow broad and lofty, the nose slender and aquiline, the mouth admirably shaped, the lips, which fairly quivered when he spoke, being wreathed, in moments of repose, in a smile at once engaging and malicious. But a strangeness was imparted to his appearance by his eyes ; he squinted as much as any man can squint, and you never knew at whom or what he might really be looking. However great his gifts, he was scarcely the man for the Bazaine trial. It was no case of addressing an impressionable jury, but of dealing with military matters, of which he knew little, before a tribunal of experienced oificers, to whom such matters were familiar. As we have said, therefore, his selection by Bazaine surprised many people. Some folk remarked, indeed, that it seemed as if the Marshal were convinced that he would be found guilty and had consequently chosen the ablest advocate to address an appeal ad misericordiam tribunalis. But Lachaud, though his private character had won him friends in all parties, was a staunch Bonapartist, and it was this circumstance, more than any other, which led to his selection. Assisted by his son, Georges, then a young man with fair " Dundreary "' whiskers, 166 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Lachaud certainly did his best for his client, and more than that could not be asked of him. General du Barail asserts in his Souvenirs that, if Bazaine was tried at all, it was purely and simply because he asked to be tried ; but' although Thiers had fallen from power since the report of the Court of Inquiry, and although, with MacMahon at the Elysee, the military element was now preponderant in France, it would, we think — in the state of public opinion — have been impossible to override the law and prevent the trial, however powerfully Bazaine might be protected. That he was treated with great leniency before and during the trial is certain. The house in which he was lodged in the Avenue de Picardie at Versailles was a mere nominal prison, he was accorded every mark of deference, he received and gave the salute as if no charge whatever hung over him. On the other hand, as Du Barail mentions, while everybody was convinced that the proceedings would end in a sentence to death, it was also held that the sentence would never be carried out. The Court having convicted him and condemned him to military degradation, death, and payment of the costs of the trial, immediately addressed an appeal for mercy to Marshal MacMahon, and the supreme penalty was commuted to one of twenty years' detention. Further, not only were the costs of the proceedings defrayed by the secret service fund of the War Office, instead of being levied on Bazaine's estate, but he was also spared " the formalities " of military degradation. Twenty- one years later when a young Jewish officer was convicted — wrongfully convicted, as we know — of selling to Germany certain trumpery secrets de Polichinelle, specified in a notorious Bordereau, there was no question of sparing him "the formalities " of military degradation ; they were carried out in all their terrible severity in the courtyard of the l^cole Militaire. Yet they were not enforced in the case of the Marshal of France, who had surrendered the strongest fortress of his country with an army of 170,000 men, 53 eagles, 1665 guns, 278,280 rifles and muskets, 22,984,000 cartridges, 3,239,225 projectiles, and 412,734 tons of powder ! It may readily be granted that old associations, the general composition of the army at that period, the state of parties and of the country, rendered it difficult if not impossible for MacMahon to carry out the original sentence of death. More- BAZAINE'S TRIAL 167 over his responsibility for leniency in that respect was largely covered by the Court's unanimous appeal in the prisoner's favour. At the same time if Marshal Ney deserved death, and we will not say that he did not, Marshal Bazaine deserved it even more. The former, at any rate, did not betray his trust to the advantage of a foreign foe, whereas the latter did. Like Ney, Bazaine had risen from the ranks to the highest dignity in his country's army, but how different were their careers ! Although Bazaine won his baton in Mexico he returned from that country to France with a most unenviable reputation, that of an unscrupulous man, with sordid instincts, one, too, who set his own personal advantage before anything else. At the outset of the Franco-German War he was subordinated to the Emperor, who, knowing his man, had not previously confided his plan of campaign to him as he had done to MacMahon ; and it must not be forgotten that when the Republican deputies demanded and obtained the deposition of the Emperor from the chief command, it was Bazaine who, virtually at the dictation of those same Republicans, was set in the Emperor's place. They positively clamoured for the appointment, both in the Legislative Body and in the press — and this although, only a few years previously, they had denounced as much as they dared (given the press regime of the time) Bazaine's proceedings in Mexico. Thus the responsibility for what happened at Metz belongs in part to those Republicans by whom Bazaine's appointment in lieu of the detested Emperor was regarded as a glorious victory ! Prior even to the siege of Metz the Marshal's conduct of affairs was open to the gravest criticism. He was largely responsible for the failure of the battle of Rezonville, when he retreated before inferior forces at a moment when he might have crushed them — a decisive blunder which influenced the whole of the war. Again, at St. Privat, he abandoned Canrobert and the 6th Army Corps to the three hundred guns and the hundred thousand rifles of the Germans, when, at a word from him, the whole Imperial Guard with ten regiments of cavalry and a powerful artillery force might have hastened to Canrobert's support, and modified the issue of the battle. All that was something like a forewarning of what eventually happened. Spared the penalty of death and the ordeal of degradation, Bazaine found further leniency in the captivity to which he was condemned. He was sent to the He Ste. Marguerite, the chief 168 REPUBLICAN FRANCE of the Lerins islands, off the coast of Provence, and lodged in the fort, where, for seventeen years, the man with the Iron Mask was kept in rigorous confinement. But General du Barail, Minister of War, did not desire that Bazaine's confine- ment should be rigorous. He wrote to Marchi, the governor : " You are to treat the prisoner with the greatest consideration (" les plus grands egards ■"), in a word you must act as a homme du monde, not as the director of a prison." From the windows of his apartment the Marshal had a lovely outlook : the blue sea, the blue sky, the picturesque coast of Provence, as well as the island's garden with its maritime pines, its myrtles, and its wealth of semi-tropical plants. In his rooms he could receive his friends, even retain them to dinner. Ste. Marguerite was no He du Diable, Bazaine no "dirty Jew." He was favoured even with a congenial companion, his aide-de-camp, Colonel Villette, a tall, spare, lanky man, with a face and moustaches strikingly suggestive of Gustave Dore's presentment of Don Quixote. Villette, be it said, was devoted to Bazaine and championed him more than once in a style which was quite as quixotic as his appearance. A change of ministry in France brought no change in the light captivity imposed on Bazaine. General de Cissey, after again becoming Minister of War, wrote to the prisoner address- ing him as " Monsieur le Marechal " (though he no longer had the faintest right to any such title) and informing him that his detention would shortly be commuted to banishment, and that it might perhaps be possible to pay him a pension. Bazaine, however, did not wait for those further favours. In the early hours of August 9, 1874, he contrived to effect his escape under circumstances which were never adequately explained, although judicial proceedings ensued. We know that his removal from the island was effected by the instrumentality of his wife, a Mexican lady nie de Pena y Azcarate, and her nephew Senor Alvarez RuU. They at least provided the necessary vessel for the flight. But the story that Bazaine lowered himself from a window of the fort by means of a rope, thus descending a height of a hundred feet, is one that taxes belief, when we remember that he was then sixty-three years old and of surprising bulk. However, no absolute proofs to the contrary having been furnished, the story has been generally accepted, and it must be acknowledged that Bazaine's natural vigour was shown by the BAZAINE'S FATE 169 fact that he survived his escape for many years in spite of dire adversity. His aide-de-camp, Villette, and a few others, were subsequently tried for aiding and abetting his escape, and were sentenced to comparatively brief terms of imprisonment, Marchi, the governor of the fortress, was exonerated. Though there was a loud outcry among the French Republicans generally, the Government, and indeed the whole official world, were really well pleased to be rid of the prisoner- He repaired to Madrid, where we once caught sight of him, shabby and much less corpulent than of yore. On one or two occasions, we believe, he offered his services to certain foreign powers, but did not obtain employment. His leisure was employed at one time in writing a work on his share of the war of 1870, which appeared at Madrid in 1883, supplementing the book VArmie du Rhin which he had issued in France in 1872 — that is prior to his trial. Those apologies pro domo sua, though of considerable value in parts, throwing light on interest- ing points of detail, were unconvincing, however, with respect to the chief issues on which he was tried. As time elapsed, he became very poor, and applied for help in various directions. He had, we think, several children, of whom at least two — a son, Alphonse, and a daughter, Eugenie, to whom the Empress became godmother — are living. In October 1907, Mile. Bazaine was the victim of a murderous attack on board a German steamer going from Vera Cruz to Hamburg, her assailant being a cabin attendant who seems to have subsequently thrown him- self into the sea. Another near relation of the former Marshal, one who changed his name, rose of late years to the rank of General in the French army, in which he has always been much respected. As for Bazaine himself, he passed away in Spain in 1888. CHAPTER VI THE SEPTENNATE — PARIS SALONS AND CLUBS — THE REPUBLICAN CONSTITUTION AND ELECTIONS — THE GREAT CHURCH CRUSADE The Bonapartist Activity and fimile Ollivier — Ministerial Changes^A Last Effort of the Royalists — The Ultramontane Agitation — Danger of War with Germany — Count Arnim and Bismarck — The Prince of Wales and the French Royalists — Inauguration of the new Opera House — Death of Millet, the painter — Parisian Society — The Aristocracy — The Fashionable Salons — Some influential Ladies — Mmes. de B^hague, de la Ferronays, Adolphe de Rothschild, de Blocqueville, de Beaumont, and Edmond Adam — The Chief Clubs of Paris — The Republic's Constitution— Senators and Deputies — Buffet's Administration — The General Elections — Dufaure as Premier — Jules Simon, his early Life and his Difficulties as Prime Minister— The Crusade in favour of Pius IX. — Simon's Fall from Office. The year 1874 opened with numerous Bonapartist demon- strations, which showed that the partisans of the Empire were becoming more active now that the attempts to place the Count de Chambord on the throne had failed. Noisy scenes followed the religious services on the anniversary of the death of Napoleon III., and in March, when the young Imperial Prince attained his majority, a large number of his supporters went on a pilgrimage to Chislehurst. Prince Napoleon Jerome abstained from going, however. He seemed to be playing for his own hand, posing as a democrat and denouncing the " reactionary and clerical " rule of the Broglie Ministry. There were violent disputes between him and Rouher, who led the Imperialist party in the Assembly, with the result that at the elections for the General Councils in the spring, Prince Charles Bonaparte was put up as a rival candidate in Corsica and inflicted a severe defeat on the son of old Jerome. Somewhat later, at an election for the Assembly in the Nievre, Baron de Bourgoing, a former equerry to the Emperor,^ was returned by ^ See our Court of the Tuileries. 170 BONAPARTIST ACTIVITY 171 so large a majority — some 6000 votes — that the Republican party became alarmed. Its leaders denounced the Bonapartist"\ intrigues to the Assembly, Gambetta accusing Magne, the Finance Minister, of peopling the Bureaucracy with Imperialists. There was an angry debate in which Rouher intervened and drew on himself a virulent retort from Gambetta, who declared that he would not allow "the scoundrels who had ruined France" to sit in judgment on the Revolution by which the Empire had been overthrown. On the following day, at the Gare St. Lazare in Paris, when Gambetta was about to take the train to Versailles, a young man named Henri de Ste. Croix, the son of one of Magne's treasury receivers (who had married the widowed Duchess de Rovigo), attempted to assault the popular orator. But the latter sent for the police, and the brawl, though sensational enough, ended without actual violence. Later came an inquiry into the Nievre election, which showed how widespread and determined was the Bonapartist propaganda. Rouher denied that there was any actual Committee for an Appeal to- the People — such an organisation, being illegal, might have been prosecuted — but the investigations indicated that something akin to an organisa- tion of the kind existed, and the Royalists joined the Repub- licans in striving to curb the Bonapartist intrigues. It was, by the way, in the midst of all this agitation that M. Emile Ollivier, who had been Napoleon III.'s chief Minister at the time when war was declared in 1870, endeavoured to prevail on the French Academy to accord him the honoiurs of a solemn reception, he having been elected a member shortly before the war and circumstances having led to the postpone- ment of his formal admission and the speeches usual on such occasions. The Academy assented in principle to Ollivier's request, but, in accordance with usage, he was required to submit a draft of the address which he proposed to read at his installation. W^hen this draft came before the Academy it was found to contain a glowing panegyric of Napoleon III., and Guizot, the veteran statesman and historian, who was one of the Immortals, protested energetically against any such eulogium, even threatening to resign if it were allowed to pass.^ ^ Guizot then took comparatively little part in politics owing to his advanced age, but lived mostly in retirement at Val Richer, solacing himself till his last hours with the pursuit of literature. He died in September 1874, that is some eight months after the incidents recorded above. 172 REPUBLICAN FRANCE The other Academicians being for the most part Orleanists, naturally adopted Guizot's view, and as Ollivier refused to modify his draft, his "solemn reception" was adjourned sine die. He has, we believe, of later years taken a not inconsider- able part in the Academy's work, but has never been formally admitted as a member. The incident is, we think, the only one of its kind in the Academy's annals. Although there was no love lost between M. Ollivier and Rouher, whom he replaced in the Emperor's favour in 1870, and although Rouher was again in 1874 the chief champion of the Imperialist cause, it is a curious and significant circumstance that Ollivier should have endeavoiu-ed to make a Bonapartist demonstration at the Academy at that particular period, when, indeed, the propaganda in favour of the Restoration of the Empire reached high-water mark. Although in these later days it is only among those who are called "intellectuals" that any particular interest is taken in the speeches delivered at the Academical receptions, one can well understand how great would have been the sensation throughout France if Ollivier — almost forgotten now in spite of all his writings pro doma sua, but then regarded with particular abhorrence by Republicans, who wrongly deemed him to be the author of the war of 1870 — had publicly made a speech in praise of Napoleon III. only four years after Sedan. The mere idea of delivering such an oration must be regarded as part and parcel of the conspiracy to overthrow the Republic and place the Imperial Prince on the throne. Meantime, the Duke de Broglie and MacMahon's other Ministers were endeavouring to organise the Septennate according to their particular notions. They wished to modify the electoral laws and suppress universal suffrage. Nobody was to be allowed to vote unless he were twenty-five instead of twenty-one years of age, or unless he had resided for three years in the locality where he recorded his vote.^ The result would have been the disfranchisement of some 3,000,000 electors. There was also a plan for creating not a Senate but a Grand Council, with powers which would have reduced the Chamber of Deputies to the lowest possible level. The Bonapartists, ^ An exception was made in favour of those who were natives of the said locality, in which case six months' residence was to be regarded as sufficient. INCIDENTS OF THE SEPTENNATE 173 however, who called themselves the party of the Appeal to the People, and who were for ever demanding a Plebiscitum, could not be expected to support measures that interfered with the; supremacy of universal suffrage, which the Republicans also' upheld, and in the result the Duke de Broglie, after two or three adverse votes in the Assembly, fell from power on May 16, 1874. In this emergency, MacMahon formed a kind of scratch Administration in which Magna (Finances), Duke Decazes (Foreign Minister), and Fortou (now of the Interior) still figured. General de Cissey becoming the nominal Premier. The Marshal-President was Somewhat irate both with the Assembly generally and with the leaders of the contending factions, whose disputes invariably revolved around the one absorbing question — Shall France be a Republic or a Monarchy ? For his part, MacMahon with his imperative, soldierly dis- position answered that question curtly enough: "Je m'en fiche," said he, " and besides I know nothing about it. What I ask is that my powers shall be defined and organised. / have been appointed for seven years, and I intend to carry out the contract. If, however, I can find no cabinet to organise the Septennate I shall either resign or take some very energetic steps." Words to that effect were spoken by him at various audiences which he gave to the leaders of the majority, and every day made it more evident that the Marshal, whom the Royalists had elected as a stop-gap, took his position as Chief of the State in all seriousness. Soon after the formation of the Cissey Ministry, M. Auguste Casimir-Perier (father of the President of that name) submitted a proposal to proceed with the Constitutional laws' on the basis formerly arrived at by Thiers and the first Com- mittee of Thirty. To this the moderate Royalists retaliated by asking that the existing provisional state of affairs should be maintained, while the ultra Royalists burnt their ships by formally demanding the restoration of the Monarchy, with MacMahon as Lieutenant- General pending the enthronement of the King. Their spokesman on this occasion was the most prominent member of the famous La Rochefoucauld family, of which there were then five branches, represented by the Duke de la Rochefoucauld, the Duke de Doudeauville, the Duke de Bisaccia, the Duke de la Roche Guyonj and the Duke 174 REPUBLICAN FRANCE d'Estissac.^ The nobleman to whom we refer was Count Marie Charles Gabriel Sosthene de la Rochefoucauld, Duke de Bisaccia (a Neapolitan title), who sat in the Assembly for the department of the Sarthe, and had acted for a brief period as Ambassador in London. He was the younger brother of the Duke de Doudeauville and second son of the notorious Sosthene de la Rochefoucauld, who, after contributing largely to the Restoration of the Bourbons in 1814, distinguished himself as Superintendent of Fine Arts by lengthening the skirts of the corps de ballet at the Opera House, and veiling by means of vine leaves the nudity of the statues at the Louvre. M. de Bisaccia's mother was Elisabeth Helene de Montmorency-Laval, daughter of the Duke de Montmorency, Governor of the Count de Chambord in the latter's early childhood, and he married first Yolande de Polignac, who died in 1855, and secondly Marie, daughter of the Prince de Ligne, President of the Belgian Parliament. Connected with all those exalted houses the Duke de la Rochefoucauld-Bisaccia (as he was usually called) naturally held fervent Royalist views, but his attempt to force on a Restoration in spite of the many previous rebuffs encountered signal failure. His demand was rejected by a majority of sixty votes, while by a majority of one M. Casimir Perier's proposal to proceed with the Constitutional laws was declared to be " urgent." The Count de Chambord, embittered by this fresh defeat, issued (July 1874) yet another manifesto which rendered matters even worse than they had been previously, for, as it repudiated every elementary principle of Constitutional Govern- ment, it alienated the Orleanist members of the Assembly, and \ virtually put an end to the Royalist alliance. MacMahon's * authority thus gained additional support, and he himself strengthened his position by his public utterances, notably during the tours he made that summer in Brittany and Northern France, when, although the clergy and others addressed him in language which clearly revealed monarchical aspirations, he rightly counselled union and quietude, declaring his intention to uphold the existing regime and put down all disorder as long as he remained in office. ' The last Duke de la Rochefoucauld (Francis Ernest Gaston) died with- out issue, as did the Duke de Doudeauville (Augustin Stanislas). The line of the Bisaccias still continues, however, and is now, we think, the senior branch of the house, THE DANGER OF WAR 176 The clergy were complicating matters by their foolish, attempts to promote French intervention in favour of Pope Pius IX., whose temporal power they wished to see restored. Their partisans in the Assembly neglected no occasion to attack the Italian and German Governments, and the position of the Foreign Minister was most unenviable. French diplomacy had been for some time already under the control of Duke Decazes, the son of one of the more Liberal ministers of Louis XVIII. Born in 1819, Louis Charles Elie Amanien, Duke Decazes in France and Duke of Glucksberg in Denmark,^ did not show himself to be a statesman of the highest ability, but, surrounded as he was by difficulties throughout his period of office (1873- 1877), he at least contended with them and helped to save France from another war. A Royalist himself he nevertheless often found himself compelled to oppose the Royalists around him, for the superior interests of France did not coincide with their aspirations. At the same time, however, his private sympathies often prevented him from imparting sufficient energy to that opposition, and the others availed themselves of this circumstance to carry on campaigns which repeatedly involved France in trouble. At one moment, for instance, they wished the Government to intervene decisively in the affairs of Spain, which were in great confusion. King Amadeo, the Italian Prince,^ called to the Spanish throne in 1870, had abdicated in 1873, a Republic had been constituted under the leadership of Castelar, and while a Carlist insurrection raged in the north, a semi-socialist rebellion broke out in the south and south-east, Carthagena becoming the scene of great excesses and desperate fighting. Eventually, the fall of Castelar and the accession of Serrano prepared the way for the restoration of the Spanish monarchy without open interference on the part of France. Nevertheless, at one period the intervention of MacMahon's Government was urgently solicited by the French Royalists. More dangerous for France, however, was the political campaign in the Pope's favour, for it threatened to embroil her with both Italy and Germany. It certainly alienated the former power, and sowed the seeds of the present Triple Alliance — indeed Italy already adhered to ' He married Mile. S^v^rine de Lowenthal who bore him a son, the present Duke Decazes (Jean 6lie), born in April 1864. " Duke of Aosta, son of Victor Emanuel II. and brother of Humbert I. of Italy. 176 REPUBLICAN FRANCE that formed by the German, Russian, and Austrian Emperors in 1872. At the conclusion of the peace between France and Germany, the latter had sent to Paris, as her ambassador, the head of a famous Pomeranian house. Count Harry von Amim, a tall, good-looking, black-bearded, and broad-shouldered man, with a handsome aristocratic wife, distinguished for her taste in dress. They speedily made their way in French society, cultivating from preference that of the Royalist salons, and before long Amim more or less openly abetted the intrigues which led to the downfall of Thiers. He had previously served at Rome, and according to his own account had then foreseen the struggle between Germany and the Catholic Church, which followed the French war. It is the more surprising, therefore, that he should have assisted, with influence and encouragement, the plottings of the French Monarchists, with whose aspirations in favour of the Holy See he was naturally acquainted. His proceedings so displeased Bismarck that in 1874 he was recalled from France. A bitter duel ensued between him and the powerful Chancellor. Arnim, in order to justify himself, issued abusive pamphlets and published, either personally or through Dr. Landsberg (long a Paris corre- spondent of the Austrian press) a number of diplomatic documents, by which acts and the withholding of other State papers he drew upon himself a series of sentences to fine and imprisonment for high treason, lese-majesU and similar offences. He had found a refuge in Switzerland, however, and was able to carry on the war until his death, which occurred at Nice in 1880, just as he had applied for a revision of his case. His indiscretions, coupled with the infatuated policy of the French Royalists and Clericals, contributed in 1875 to a great war scare. Bismarck, who beheld with amazement the rapid recovery of France from her recent disasters, and felt that she was resolved to embark on la revanche as soon as she had regained sufficient strength, desired to anticipate events and crush her once again before she was prepared for the struggle. In that respect the conduct of the French Monarchists alone offered abundant pretexts for quarrelling, though the one selected was the reorganisation of the French army. Indeed, the word went forth throughout Germany that France was preparing to attack the Fatherland, and the THE DANGER OF WAR 177 rumour found credit on all sides. We then happened to be staying in the Palatinate as the guest of a member of the Reichstag, one of the chief German viticulturists ; and we well remember how our host convened several of his colleagues and other notabilities to discuss the great war question with us. Our statements that France had no such intentions as were imputed to her, our estimates of the still existing inefficiency of her military organisation, were received with incredulity. Officers of high rank, politicians of position, shook their heads gravely, and refused to be reassured. As we all know, however, the danger to peace lay on the German, not the French side. Fortunately, war was averted by the representations of Russia and Great Britain, as we shall show when sketching the history of the Franco-Russian Alliance. A visit which the Prince of Wales (subsequently our King Edward VII.) paid to France in the autumn of 1874 provoked some little bitterness of feeling among the French Republicans. It would appear that the Prince, at the time when the Duke de la Rochefoucauld-Bisaccia was Ambassador in London, had promised to visit him whenever he next went to France ; and, this now occurring, the Prince became the Duke's guest at his chateau of Esclimont in Eure-et-Loir, a fine towered and turreted Renaissance structure, carefully restored in 1864. The Prince shot over the coverts there, and then visited in turn the Duke de Luynes at Dampierre, the Duke de la Tremoille at Rambouillet, the Duke d'Aumale at Chantilly, and the Prince de Sagan and the Duke de Mouchy at their respective seats. Zealous Republicans were disturbed by this intercourse between the heir apparent to the British crown and leading French Monarchists, and some bitter remarks appeared in the more popular Parisian journals. They were levelled, however, much less at the Prince than at the Royalist leaders, one newspaper remarking : " A few months ago the Duke de la Rochefoucauld-Bisaccia tried to bring back the King with the help of the National Assembly. He failed, and so now he hopes to bring him back with the help of the Prince of Wales. He is not likely to succeed, but these are the usual tactics of the Royalist party. In 1815, the Bourbons came back in the baggage train of the Duke of Wellington, and with that pre- cedent before them, we can understand that they should now be anxious to secrete themselves in the Prince of Wales's valise." 178 REPUBLICAN FRANCE It was perhaps somewhat unfortunate that the Prince's visits to his French Royalist friends should have occurred at a time when party strife was so acute, but the incident was soon for- gotten, and early in the ensuing year the most popular man in Paris was an Englishman, that is the Lord Mayor of London, Alderman Stone. In this connection it must be mentioned that the Opera House in the Rue Le Peletier, erected as a " temporary " building in 1821 had been destroyed by fire in 1873. Ever since 1860 it had been intended to replace it by a large pile, more worthy of such a city as Paris, and in the following year, the designs of Charles Gamier having been adopted, the building of the new house was begun. With the close of 1874 came the absolute completion of this wonderfully ornate structure, the largest of its kind in Europe, profusely embellished with thirty-three distinct varieties of marble, an infinity of bronze work and gilding, and a wonderful assemblage of artistic work to which fifteen distinguished painters — Paul Baudry pre-eminent among them — and seventy-five sculptors, including Carpeaux, Barrias, Carrier - Belleuse, Cain, Aime Millet, and Falguiere — had contributed. The inauguration in January 1875 was the first really great social function which the Septennate witnessed. The Marshal President and the Duchess de Magenta drove in state from the Elysee ; and conspicuous among the audience were several throneless royalties — the Orleans Princes, Isabella of Spain, Francis of Naples and his consort, blind George of Hanover and his daughter. The Corps Diplomatique was also present, together with many of the celebrities of Parisian society ; but the guest of the evening was undoubtedly London's representa- tive, whose visit the Parisians appreciated enthusiastically — recalling, as they did, the Mansion House Fund and the gifts to their poor and hungry ones at the close of the German Siege. Quite triumphal was Milor Maire's procession up the Rue de la Paix to the Opera House. Lamps and torches illumined it, the City Trumpeters went in front, a military escort surrounded and followed. And at the foot of Garnier's grand staircase, the manager, Halanzier, received his Lordship with honours usually reserved for crowned heads. All the way up those resplendent stairs, he preceded him, going backward step by step, and carrying aloft a lighted candelabrum. In this courtly manner was Lord Mayor Stone conducted to his box on the INCIDENTS OF THE SEPTENNATE 179 right hand of that occupied by the Marshal President, and directly the assembled spectators perceived his tall striking figure — he was wearing, of course, his robes and his chain of office — they rose from their seats and acclaimed him. Paris was still admiring her new Opera House, particularly the grand staircase and Baudry's paintings, when two masters of art passed away, in rapid succession and almost obscurely, at Barbizon near Fontainebleau. One was Millet, the painter of "The Angelus" and "The Gleaners," the other Barye, the sculptor of the " Seated Lion," the " Lion and the Serpent," " Theseus and the Minotaur," and many other groups of extra- ordinary power. Much has been written about Millet, but we doubt if any one has related amid what curious circumstances he died. Viscount Aguado's staghounds had been hunting in the neighbourhood of Barbizon, and the stag, making for the village and jumping into the gardens which separated Martinus's studio from Millet's turned to bay near the window of the very room where Millet lay in the last agony. A scene of great uproar and confusion ensued, but, although Martinus hastened to warn the huntsmen of his neighbour's condition, it was im- possible to call off the hounds, who were beyond control, while on the other hand Baron Lambert,^ who was present, hesitated to shoot the stag for fear lest the report might give a yet greater shock to the dying painter. Such action was deemed to be, however, the only solution of the difficulty, and Lambert's aim being good the stag was promptly despatched. But at the same moment a weeping woman came forth from Millet's little house, and, more by her gestures than her words, apprised the saddened throng that all was over. The great artist had passed away amid the baying of the hallali. ' Paris was full of gaiety during the latter part of that winter, in fact until the advent of Lent. The political turmoil of the period did not interfere with social life, it rather added zest and spice to it. You found drawing-room conspiracies, boudoir cabals upon all sides. The Bonapartist aristocracy no longer possessed quite the means of former times, but many Royalist houses which, under the Empire, had entertained very little were now well to the front. Paris was -invaded also by an infinity of Counts and Barons who had formerly dwelt in the provinces, but had hastened to the capital in the hope of 1 See our Court of the Tuileries, 1852-1870. 180 REPUBLICAN FRANCE witnessing the King's restoration.^ While they included a good many adventurers, they also numbered folk of genuine old nobility, but in either case it often happened that their means, adequate enough for provincial requirements, were in- sufficient to meet the exigencies of la vie Parisienne. Still they endeavoured to make a brave show, drawing on their capital to supply the deficiencies of their incomes, selling a farm here and a wood there, and even mortgaging at times the ancestral manor. It was all bound to end badly, as it did, particularly as a few years later, in the hope of retrieving their damaged fortunes, many of these same titled folk invested what remained to them in Bontoux and Feder's "Union Generale" Bank, which the Pope blessed, and which was to have ruined the Jewish for the benefit of the Catholic aristocracy — a con- summation thwarted, as we shall hereafter relate, by the "machinations" of a rival financier, who raked in most of the shekels and left a hundred noble families in the direst of straits. But in 1875, and indeed, until the end of the Septennate, the cry was Apres nous le deluge ! The most aristocratic salons of the period were those of the Prince de Nemours, known later as the Duke d'Alencjon, the Princess de Sagan, the Baroness Alphonse and the Baroness Nathaniel de Rothschild, the Duchesses de Bisaccia, de Fitz-James, and de Maille, the Dowager Duchess de Doudeauville, the Marchionesses de Trevise and de Mortemart, the Countesses de la Ferronays, and de Behague. Among those where les elegances of Parisian life were more particularly cultivated were the drawing-rooms of the Duchesses de Castries and de la Tremoille, Countess d'Argy, the Marchioness de Boisgelin, and the Baroness de Cambourg (all Royalist salons), together with those of the Countess de ' Apropos of the French nobility it may be mentioned that, apart from the titles of pre-revolutionary days. Napoleon I. created 9 princes, 32 dukes, 388 counts, and 1090 barons. Under the Restoration titles were conferred as follows : 17 dukes, 70 marquises, 83 coimts, 62 viscounts, 215 barons, and 786 esquires. Further, 3 dukes, 19 counts, 17 viscounts, and 59 barons were created by Louis Philippe, while 5 dukes, 35 counts, and a considerable number of barons were added to the list by Napoleon III. A good many spurious titles came to the front after 1870, and one of MacMahon's Ministers of Justice, M. Tailhand, actually found it necessary to issue a circular In- forming all judges, mayors, deputy mayors, and other functionaries who caUed themselves marquises, counts, or barons, that they must prove their right to such titles or cease to use them in their official signatures. PARISIAN DRAWING-ROOMS 181 Pourtales, the Baroness de Poilly and the Viscountess de Tredern, nee Haussmann, which were patronised by the partisans of the young Imperial Prince. The most musical drawing-rooms of the time were those where the Princess de Brancovano, the Marchioness d'Aoust, the Countesses GrefFulhe and de Chambrun, and the Baronesses Hirsch and Erlanger presided. All the arts had the entree to the mansions of the Princess Mathilde, the Baronesses Adolphe and Nathaniel de Roths- child, Countess Pillet-Will, Countess de Beaumont -Castries, and Mesdames Andre and Ernest Mayer. Politics and litera- ture flourished in the salons of the Duchess d'Harcourt, the Duchess d'Ayen, the Countess de Rainneville, the Countess de Segur, the Princess de Broglie, the Viscountess de Janze, Mme. Tijrr, Mme. Arnaud de TAriege and Mme. Edmond Adam. Some salons seemed to be more particularly patronised by gay young people. Such were those of the Duchesses de Luynes, de Feltre, and d'Albufera, the Marchioness de Lillers, the Princesses de la Tour d'Auvergne and de Leon, the Countesses de la Rouchefoucauld and Potocka; while other drawing-rooms, like those of the Marchioness de Blocqueville, the Duchesses d'Avaray and de Marmier, the Baronesses Malet and Schickler, and Mme. Lacroix, appeared to be mostly favoured by staid and even elderly folk. At times you fancied yourself in some annexe to the French Academy, at another amidst an antiquated Chamber of Peers ; while anon you were confronted by the pomp and presence of royalty, and elsewhere you found youth, beauty, and all the taste and refinement suited to the home of a real leader of fashion. The ladies who ruled the more important sections of the Parisian world in those days were not invariably of noble birth. At times they had merely acquired a title by marriage, or afterwards. One who by dint of perseverance achieved a high position in the Faubourg St. Germain, the Countess de Behague, had sprung from a family of artisans and married a plebeian cattle raiser. He acquired great wealth, and wealth procured him a Papal title. His wife, an enterprising and energetic woman, thereupon undertook to force the doors of society, and by sheer pertinacity she did so, and even brought society to her feet. She first contrived to marry her daughter to an impecunious noble, the Count de GefFroy, and he dying, 182 REPUBLICAN FRANCE she found her a second husband in the person of the Marquis d'Aramon. That gave the Behagues the entrie into certain circles, and the magnificence of their entertainments contri- buted to bring about the wished-for result. When Mme. de Behague had accomplished what she desired, nobody could display greater haughtiness and disdain than she did. "My dear," one of her lady friends said to her on some occasion, " I should very much like to bring Count Blank and introduce him to you at your next reception." " Oh, not this year, my list is full," Mme. de Behague retorted, " next winter, if you like." You had to wait for your entree into the Behague salons as you might wait for your election to certain clubs. Another lady of plebeian stock who attained a commanding position in the society of the time was the Countess de la Ferronays. She was simply n&e Gibert, and her grandfather had been a tradesman. She contrived, however, to marry a nobleman of ancient lineage, who long attended the Count de Chambord in his exile. M. de la Ferronays died under curious circumstances. He and the Pretender were driving one winter afternoon in the neighbourhood of Froschdorf when silence suddenly fell between them. When after a moment the Count de Chambord asked his companion a question, he failed to obtain any answer, and, on glancing at him, he perceived that he was lying back in the carriage motionless. The Prince at once called to the coachman to stop, sprang out, took some snow and rubbed his attendant's face and hands with it. To no purpose, however; M. de la Ferronays had expired, the sudden rupture of a blood-vessel being the cause of this unexpected death. His widow became perhaps the most ultra-Royalist of the ladies of the time. The manners of the old rigime, the etiquette of Versailles, or at least a close imitation of it, reigned at her residence on the Cours-la-Reine. She believed fervently in the divine right and sanctity of monarchs, and in order to obtain the entree to her salons you had at least to feign a similar belief. She would not have admitted Queen Isabella of Spain to her entertainments, but she treated Don Carlos as a most honoured guest on the few occasions when he was staying in Paris. Again, she altogether disregarded the Count de Paris and his uncles until the Fusion of the Legiti- mists and the Orleanists was completed. Then she was pleased PARISIAN DRAWING-ROOMS 183 to smile on them. For her, however, the Count was never the " Count de Paris," she recognised no such Orleanist title, she regarded him as " Monseigneur le Dauphin." When he became, after the Count de Chambord's death. Head of the House of France, she at once proffered an allegiance which was willingly accepted; and anxious as she was to further the interests of the Royal family, she resolved to find a suitable husband for "the King's" eldest daughter, the Princess Marie Amelie. The young Crown Prince (late King) of Portugal came on a visit to Paris not long afterwards, and Mme. de la Ferronays having captured him, placed a large portrait of the Princess in one of her salons in the hope that it might attract his attention. It did, and the result was a marriage, which had serious conse- quences for the Orleans family. We shall have to speak of it hereafter. Early in 1908 the union was cruelly dissolved by the crime of a band of assassins, a crime by which Queen Amelie lost both her husband and her eldest son. Mme. de la Ferronays, in her eagerness to revive old-time customs, gave, we remember, at one time several soirees devoted to the dances of pre-revolutionary days. The original music was revised by Theodore de Lajarte, and a number of young men and girls of aristocratic families were taught the dances by Mile. Laure Fonta, an expert in the Terpsichorean art. It was thus that Queen Marie de Medici's " Courante," the Valois "Pavane," the Reims "Gavotte," and divers minuets were performed at the mansion in the Cours-la-Reine. When Mme. de la Ferronays wished to revive some of the dinner customs of the Louis XIV. period she was less successful. One of her ideas was to replace the usual modern formula signifying that dinner is ready — "Madame la Comtesse est servie" — by the old-time phrase, " Les viandes sont appretees " (the meats are ready), but, on the very first occasion of this attempted revival, the majordomo blundered sadly. Opening the dining-room doors he announced in a loud voice: "Madame la Comtesse, les viandes sont avancees." Now, in such a connection, the word avancees natiurally means " high," and the statement that " the meats were high " naturally provoked a titter among the guests. The unlucky majordomo had got "mixed," as the saying goes. It would seem that another familiar formula, "les voitures sont avancees' (the carriages are waiting) had crossed his mind, and as he confused it with the words he was 184 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to speak, a dreadful quid pro quo had ensued. Mme. de la Ferronays could not conceal her annoyance, but the Duke de Madrid (Don Carlos), who happened to be the guest of the evening, endeavoured to console her by remarking: "Ah, madam, one cannot revive the good old times without reviving the good old servants also, and that is unfortunately im- possible." In his sleeve the Duke doubtless laughed like the others. Never was there a man who cared less for etiquette and ceremony than that hard fighter Don Carlos, who, what- ever his piety (bigotry if you like) and belief in his sovereign rights, was in his prime the only Bourbon Prince of the period evincing some of the healthy virile characteristics of the great man of the race, Henri of Navarre. But let us pass to another salon of the Septennate, that of the Baroness Adolphe de Rothschild, who died of recent years at an advanced age, leaving munificent bequests to numerous French and Swiss charities. Born in 1830, she was a daughter of Anselm Solomon de Rothschild of Vienna, the well- remembered Baron Ferdinand being her brother, and Baronesses Willy and Louise, and Miss Alice de Rothschild of Waddesdon Manor, her sisters. In 1850 she married her cousin Adolphe, son of the founder of the Frankfort Bank ; and soon afterwards repaired with him to Naples, where he established another branch of the great cosmopolitan financial house. Baron and Baroness Adolphe became great friends of Francis II. and his consort Marie Sophie, the last King and Queen of Naples, and when the latter were driven from their throne they rendered them many services. A little later the Queen — enceinte already at the time of the famous siege of Gaeta — gave birth to a daughter amid the barren splendour of the Famese Palace at Rome, whereupon Baroness Adolphe hastened to her and provided both cradle and layette for the child, who died, however, prematurely. The Rothschild house at Naples was then closed, and Baron and Baroness Adolphe settled in Paris, in a remarkably fine mansion adjoining the Pare Monceau. They gave some wonderful entertainments there already in the time of the Empire, but they did not often figure at the Tuileries, as they preferred the House of Bourbon to that of Bonaparte. The Pare Monceau mansion was, we think, one of the very last in Paris where a halberdier stood on duty on the threshold PARISIAN DRAWING-ROOMS 185 of the vestibule, while on reception evenings either side of the white marble staircase was lined with footmen in royal blue and crimson. The exiled Neapolitan Bourbons were long honoured guests at the mansion. Francis II. was invariably treated there as a reigning sovereign, though the Baroness's more particular friendship was for the Queen. It is, we believe, quite certain that the ex-rulers of Naples repeatedly received important financial help from Baron and Baroness Adolphe. On that account we have always regarded the picture of them and their financial straits which Daudet limned in his Kings in Exile as being exaggerated. After royalty, music claimed the honours of Baroness Adolphe's salons : Patti, Nilsson, Marie Van Zandt, and many other famous vocalists frequented them. The Baroness's summer residence was the handsome chateau de Pregny, over- looking the lake of Geneva. Its charming grounds with their grottoes and aviaries — the latter replete with birds of many kinds — were her peculiar care. George V., when Duke of York, and his brother, the late Duke of Clarence, were on one occasion guests at Pregny. The Baroness resided there perma- nently after losing her husband in 1900. Tall and fair, he was perhaps more of a society man than any other Rothschild of his period. Very good-humoured and a brilliant conversationalist, he possessed considerable artistic taste, and was often to be found in one or another Parisian studio. He was also a " doggy " man, a great admirer of French poodles. His wife's good heart was exemplified by her long life of munificence, but she was also a woman of ready and often mordant wit, one whose mots flashed at times through Paris. It was she who, referring to the prolonged political inactivity of Prince Victor Napoleon, the present head of the Bonapartes, once described him as " an eaglet whose whole life is spent in moulting." At another time, when a number of short-lived French ministries were following each other in rapid succession, somebody re- marked in her hearing: "It is a perfect St. Bartholomew." " At all events," retorted the Baroness, " you cannot call it a Massacre of the Innocents.'' At an earlier period, soon after the Franco-German War, when Thiers, one evening at the l^lysee, was despondently denouncing the folly of warfare, adding : " After all, what have we ever gained by Napoleon's victories and conquests.?" the Baroness answered archly: 186 REPUBLICAN FRANCE "Why, Monsieur Thiers, we have gained your History of the Consulate and the Empire.'''' The little man hardly liked it, but the retort was overheard and circulated through Paris on the morrow. Very different from the Rothschild salons were those of the Marchioness de Blocqueville on the Quai Malaquais. The stately old-fashioned mansion of brick with stone dressings was furnished soberly, historical and family portraits chiefly adorning the walls of the reception rooms. The daughter of Napoleon's general, Davout, Duke d'Auerstadt, and the widow of Fran9ois de Couliboeuf, Marquis de Blocqueville, the mistress of the house presided over what became par excellence, after Mme. d'Haussonville's death, the academical salon of Paris. Every Monday (Mme. de Blocqueville's day) all the sections of the Institute of France were represented there. There was no aristocratic pretentiousness, nor any revolutionary sails fa^on ; the general tendency of the opinions held there was liberal ; the manners were simply those of good society. Though men of mature age predominated, young ones were welcomed, and if the tone of the house was somewhat serious an element of brightness was to be found there, the Marchioness contriving to attract to her receptions a bevy of charming women interested in literature and art. She had written a few books, notably a work on her father, but she was no pedant, no bluestocking. Her essential quality was tact, and it used to be said that there was not another drawing-room in Paris where a young man could acquire better lessons in genuine politeness and good behaviour. There was a slight suggestion of artistic bohemianism about the drawing-room of the Countess Jeanne de Beaumont- Castries, the sister of Mme. de MacMahon. Her house stood at the comer of the Rue Marbeuf and the Avenue de TAlma, and was supposed to be an imitation of an English cottage. It was of brick-work with a wooden porch and a carved oak staircase conducting to a landing, along one wall of which stretched a huge canvas by Count Lepic, representing a modern seaside scene full of animation. On one side of this landing you found the Countess's studio, for, besides being a brilliant musician she was a sculptor of talent, as was evidenced by her medallion of Mme. Krauss of the Opera and her busts of Coligny and Joan of Arc. On the other side of the landing PARISIAN DRAWING-ROOMS 187 we have mentioned there was a dining-room hung with old tapestry, and a huge monumental hall which served as the principal salon de reception. It was hung with modern paintings, among them being a fascinating portrait of the Countess by Carolus Duran. Mme. de Beaumont had been renowned for her beauty under the Empire, when her husband, jealous, it seemed, of every man who dared even to look at her, had challenged, in a semi-insane fashion, all whom he supposed to be her admirers, including, on one occasion. Prince Metternich, the Austrian Ambassador.^ Under the Septennate, Mme. de Beaumont was still beautiful, famous particularly for the contour of her shoulders, but her artistic temperament had wrought a considerable change in her nature, inclined her to a liberalism of views which one did not expect to find in a daughter of the Castries, a granddaughter of the French Harcourts. She did not renounce her birth, her name, her relatives, or her old associations, but she realised the great changes taking place in French society, and she was, at that time at all events, the only woman of the authentic old noblesse who went forward, as it were, to welcome the new ideas, and threw her doors open to the democratic breeze which was sweeping across the country. In that respect she was, of course, quite unlike her elder sister, Mme. de MacMahon — an able and large-hearted woman, but one in whom the principle of authority was paramount — or her brother, the last Duke de Castries, a very gallant but extremely aristocratic gentleman, long famous and honoured for his scrupulous rectitude on the French turf. Of course, no political flag ever waved over the Countess de Beaumont's abode. It was neutral ground to which politicians of virtually every shade could, if they were interested in art, literature, or music, obtain access without particular difficulty. Under what exact circumstances Gambetta first appeared there, we cannot say; but he had many relations in the art world, and artists were welcome at Mme. de Beaumont's. In any case Gambetta became a frequent visitor at the " cottage," and on several occasions he there formed relations with personages whom he could not well have met elsewhere, and exchanged views with them on important political matters. In that re- spect Mme. de Beaumont's hospitality proved very advantageous 1 See our Com-t of the TuiUries, 1852-1870. 188 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to the popular leader. It was, of course, rather piquant to find him frequenting her house when one remembered her near relationship to the Duchess de Magenta and the Marshal President. Scores of people were certainly aware of Gambetta's friendship with the Countess, but, although it lasted until his death, we doubt if it was known publicly, during his life at all events. On the other hand, everybody was acquainted with his frequent presence in the salons of the statuesque Mme. Arnaud de TAriege and the ever active Mme. Edmond Adam, who, as feminine leaders of Republican society, were the first to be styled Les Pricieuses Radicales by the Royalist press. The daughter of an officer of the first Napoleon, Mme. Adam, " Juliette Lamber " in literature, had first married a country doctor with whom her life was most unhappy, but after his death she became the wife of Edmond Adam, a wealthy, broad- minded, generous man, occupying a fairly high position at the French bar. During the German Siege of Paris, he served for a time as Prefect of Police. Later, he befriended Henri Rochefort, providing him with money at the time of his escape from New Caledonia. Already, in his lifetime, but more particularly after his death, Mme. Adam made her drawing- room one of the leading Republican rendezvous. She was already known in literary circles by several stories and sketches, and one or two books of some social import, such as her Idees Anti - Proudhoniennes sur V Amour, la Femme, et le Mariage. It was not until 1879, and consequently after MacMahon's time, that she established " La Nouvelle Revue,'" but she had then already been for some years in the front rank politically. Of an independent character and somewhat authoritarian disposition, she was over fond of laying down the law in her drawing-room, selecting and directing the conversation much as the famous Mme. Geoffrin did in the eighteenth century. She was scarcely witty, but she possessed a fund of anecdotical information which led you to take interest in what she said. Her temperament was enthusiastic, somewhat sentimental ; she was impulsive in her likes and dislikes, and brought all her powers of sarcasm to bear on those to whom she took an aversion. With her more intimate gentlemen friends she affected a kind of camaraderie, calling them at times by their PARISIAN DRAWING-ROOMS 189 Christian names and seldom employing the word " Monsieur." A Pagan in respect to religion, she claimed to belong philosophically to the neo-platonic school of Alexandria. In politics she was somewhat of a Girondist. At the same time she was a good patriot, warmly devoted to what seemed to her the best interests of France and the Republic. Among the men who admired her and to whom she was attached were General Chanzy, General de GallilFet, Ferdinand de Lesseps, M. de Freycinet, and such minor lights as Lepere, Andrieux, and Pittie who became the head of Grevy's military household. Her pet aversion was Jules Ferry. In literature she favoured the school of George Sand and patronised Deroulede, who threatened at one time to become the French Kipling. She abhorred Zola, and frequently exerted herself against him, he, on his side, professing profound disdain for her. It is certain, however, that for several years she exercised great literary as well as political influence in Paris. The revival of Parisian life under the Septennate was marked not only by the opening of many new drawing-rooms. Clubland flourished afresh, several new cercles were established, and the membership of the older ones rapidly increased. Sport reviving, the Jockey Club was again a good deal en evidence. It dated from 1833, when it was established through the initiative of a gentleman of English origin, M. de Bryon, who gathered the other thirteen original members around him on the top floor of a little house near the Tivoli gardens. But the Club soon migrated to the Rue Drouot, owing to the influential support which it obtained from such leaders of Parisian life as the Dukes of Orleans and Nemours, the Prince de la Moskowa, Prince Demidoffj Lord Henry Seymour, Count de Cambis, Charles Lafitte (Major Fridolin), MM. Delamarre, de Normandie, de Rieussec and others. Its race meetings were first held on the Champ de Mars, where, indeed, they continued until 1857, when the course was transferred to Longchamp in the Bois de Boulogne. Already in 1835, however, the Chantilly course was established by the Orleans Princes, and the Prix du Jockey Club or " French Derby " (original value ^200) was inaugurated there — the first winner being a horse named Frank, the property of the eccentric Lord Henry Seymour, whose folly and prodigality won for him in Paris the singular nickname of " Milord Arsouille." 190 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Gradually increasing in importance, the Jockey Club moved from the Rue Drouot to larger premises in the Rue de Grammont, and eventually in 1863 it took possession of a new building in the Rue Scribe. Count Cavour, who, during a sojourn in Paris in the fifties, became a temporary member of the " Jockey," was greatly impressed by its non-political character, as he mentions in one of his published letters. Any member attempting to raise a political discussion, received, said he, a warning from the Committee, and on repeating the offence was expelled. And he commented on the fact that he had found the Prince de la Moskowa, the son of Marshal Ney, hobnobbing with such a fervent Royalist as the Marquis de la Rifaudiere, who had fought any number of duels " for the honour of the Duchess de Berri.'" In a sense the Jockey Club has always retained a non-political character, that is, members of the rival French aristocracies — Legitimist, Orleanist, and Bonapartist — have freely met there, but few Republicans have ever belonged to it. Even they have only been Republicans nominally. At the time of Marshal MacMahon's Presidency the club counted about seven hundred members, inclusive of a few foreign royalties, among them the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. The great majority were sportsmen and men of pleasure. A certain number of aristocratic names figured in the list, but they were seldom those of the more famous French houses. The army, however, was represented by numerous general officers, while the diplomatic world supplied a fairly strong contingent, and there were a certain number of financiers, including the Rothschilds, though, even at that period, Jewish candidates were by no means favoured. Notoriety or eccentricity debarred many men of wealth and birth from admission. The members, who regarded themselves as so many a/rbitri elegantarium, had set up a certain standard, and all who fell short of it or went beyond it were pitilessly blackballed at the elections. More than one young scion of nobility found himself excluded simply because the cut of his whiskers, the style of his phaeton, the pattern of his trousers, or the manner in which he wore his eye-glass, displeased a few members. It should be added that, despite its prominent position in connec- tion with the turf, the " Jockey " has never been a gambling club. Baccarat has never been played there. In MacMahon's time virtually the only card games patronised were whist and bezique. SOME PARISIAN CLUBS 191 The most genuinely aristocratic of the Paris clubs was L'Union, to which several higher members of the Corps Diplomatique and other distinguished foreigners belonged. The general membership was, however, small, and no Frenchman had a chance of election unless, in addition to holding strongly Conservative opinions, he had a good fortune, a great name, and a connection with the Faubourg St. Germain. Most of its members were over fifty years of age, and quietude reigned in its rooms. It was a haven, where those privileged to cross its portals might rest and meditate on the past, careless of the frivolity and excitement that reigned elsewhere. The Cercle Agricole, whose members were generally called "the potatoes," was a shade more Liberal than the Union, though it was installed in that aristocratic district, the noble Faubourg. While most of the members belonged to the nobility, there were also a good many untitled landowners in the club, and these more particularly constituted the Liberal element. There was little card play, but the reading-room was generally full, and the dinners were well attended. On the other hand, the whilom Cercle Imperial, at the comer of the Avenue Gabriel and the Rue Boissy d'Anglas, had become the Temple of Baccarat. Whereas the very latest " potatoes " went to bed at one in the morning, the Cercle des Champs ^lysees (as the' Imperial was now called) kept open virtually until dawn. For eight months in the year play was incessant there, and the gains and losses were often extremely large. The club had altogether ceased to be a Bonapartist stronghold. A good many members of Imperial times still remained, but a crowd of financiers, speculators of all kinds, interspersed with down- right adventm-ers, had invaded both the salons and the famous terrace where you could sit, smoke, and watch le tout Paris on its way to and from the Bois de Boulogne. There, by the way, the number of well-appointed equipages and the display of feminine finery recalled the gayest days of the Empire. But it was no longer the fashion, as it had then been, to drive round the lakes. A few great ladies, anxious, it was said, to escape the presence of the women of the demi-monde, who flaunted their rouge and their pearl powder in the Bois, decided one day that they would henceforth drive in the Avenue des Acacias. Some friends joined them, and others imitating the example, le tour dm, Lac was speedily abandoned by everybody. Thus the purpose 192 REPUBLICAN FRANCE of the innovators was defeated, the demi-monde was with them as before. Indeed, ces dames, as might have been expected, had been among the first to follow the noble Faubourg to the new and more select drive. The world of the salons, the clubs and the Bois still clung to the hope that France would soon have a monarch. Although the Republic was now definitely constituted it was only the masses that took it au serieuoc. It was in February 1875 that an unwilling vote in favour of the Republican regime was wrung from the Versailles Assembly, which, as no further excuse for delay remained, was then at last compelled to deal with the Constitutional problem. Even at that stage, however, it con- trived to shirk any express proclamation of the Republic. A proposal to that effect, submitted by the eminent economist Laboulaye, was defeated by a majority of 24 votes, and it was only by a majority of one that a formula proposed by another member — M. Henri Wallon, a former professor at the Sorbonne and author of several esteemed historical volumes — was adopted. It did not even set forth that the Republic was the government of France, it merely left that fact implied ; for it ran as follows. " The President of the Republic is elected by a majority of the votes cast by the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies sitting together as a National Assembly. He is appointed for seven years and can be re-elected." In defining the powers of the future Senators and Deputies, the Assembly did its utmost to place a curb upon the latter. The Senators were to share all legislative powers, they were also to have the right of refusing authority to declare war or to ratify treaties of peace and commerce, and that of controlling the general policy of the Government. Further, the Senators were to join the Deputies — so as to form a National Assembly — not only whenever a new President of the Republic had to be elected, but also when any proposal to revise the Constitution might be submitted. On those occasions the direction of the debates of the Assembly was to be entirely in the hands of the President and the officials of the Senate. The Chamber of Deputies might impeach the President of the Republic or his Ministers, but the Senate alone was to judge them. Further, if the President of the Republic should wish to dissolve the Chamber he might not do so without the Senate's permission. He secured, however, important prerogatives by the new Con- THE CONSTITUTION 193 stitution. He could summon, prorogue, and adjourn the Legislature as he might see fit. He had authority to propose legislation and to intervene, through his Ministers, in the debates on proposed laws. All civil and military appointments were made by him. He disposed of the military, naval, and police forces. The right of pardoning and of commuting sentences was also vested in him. The Chamber of Deputies was to be composed of 532 members,^ and the Senate of 300. To ensure the existence of a Conservative element in the latter body it was to include 75 irremovable members. No Senator was to be under 40 and no Deputy under 25 years of age. Until 1884, the Constitution of Versailles remained unchanged, but it was then decided to gradually abolish the life senatorships, lots being drawn each time that an " irremovable " died, in order to determine which department should elect a Senator for the vacant seat — a list being kept of those departments entitled, by reason of their population, to an additional representative. Since 1884 the Senators have been elected for nine years, but every third year a third of the Assembly is renewed. The Senators are chosen by list voting in each department or colony,^ and the senatorial electors are the deputies, the departmental and district councillors, and delegates chosen by the municipal councils of the various constituencies. The Deputies, on the other hand, are elected by universal suffrage. Each arrondissement or district elects one Deputy, but when its population exceeds 100,000, it is entitled to elect an additional Deputy for every additional 100,000 inhabitants or fraction of that number.^ It should be mentioned, however, that from June 1885 until February 1889 there was a system of list voting, by which each elector voted for all the deputies of his department, and though this system was then extremely prejudicial to the Republic, there is nowadays a growing desire to revive it, and it may soon be tried again in a modified form. With respect to the relative political importance of the two Legislative bodies, it may be pointed out that ' There are nowadays 597. ' The Colonies electing Senators are : Algeria, 3 ; Guadeloupe, Pondi- chery, Martinique, and Reunion, 1 each. ' The Colonies send deputies to the Chamber as follows : Algeria, 6 ; Cochin China, 1 ; Guadeloupe, 2 ; French Guiana, 1 ; French India, 1 ; Martinique, 2 ; Reunion, 2 ; Senegal, 1. O 194 REPUBLICAN FRANCE in spite of all the National Assembly's stipulations in favour of the Senate, the latter's moral authority has declined. We think that no French Ministry would nowadays retire in con- sequence of any adverse vote in the Senate. When the Constitution of 1875 had been voted (it was, by the way, the thirteenth since 1789) the Cissey-Fortou Ministry resigned office. The Royalists were anxious that there should be a strong Administration during the last months of the Assembly's life, for it had agreed to lay down its powers prior to the elections for the new Legislature, which were to take place early the following year. Pressure was therefore brought to bear on MacMahon to recall the Duke de Broglie, but the attempt failed, as did another to induce the Duke d'Audiffret Pasquier^ to assume office. The negotiations were laborious, and on one occasion when a politician whom the Marshal President had^ summoned, asked for two days' delay to think over the proposals made to him, MacMahon retorted, "Two days ! why I was barely granted two minutes to decide if I would accept the Presidency ! " At last a Prime Minister was found in M. Buffet, who had presided not unsuccessfully over the Assembly since Jules Grevy's resignation. Grevy, as we said, had been content to preside in a frock coat, but Buffet reverted to evening dress a la Duke de Morny. Some considered him rather rough in his manners, and inclined to be partial, but there was little justification for that charge. If he was prompt and energetic in quelling disturbances, it was because he deemed it essential to assert the presidential authority, that being the only means of preventing the Assembly, compounded of so many hostile factions, from degenerating into a bear garden. With his assumption of the Premiership a Republican element entered into the Administration, for while Cissey still remained at the War Ministry and Decazes at the department for Foreign Affairs, Leon Say took the portfolio for Finances, Dufaure the Ministry of Justice, and Wallon — " the ' Edmond Armand Gaston, Duke d'Audiffret-Pasquier, born in 1823, and adopted by his grand-uncle, Chancellor Pasquier (pronounced Pa-ki-^), had distinguished himself by his reports and speeches on the onerous contracts entered into during the war of 1870. He was probably the most Liberal- minded of all the Dukes who figured so largely in the affairs of the time. He succeeded Buffet as President of the Assembly, and became afterwards the first President of the Senate. He was not, however, a success in either post. A lean httle man with mutton-chop whiskers, he had a somewhat impatient, choleric temper, which did not fit him for presidential functions. POLITICAL CHANGES 195 Father" of the new Constitution — that of Public Instruction. Buffet himself became Minister of the Interior. The new Administration's mission was to prepare the country for the general elections, and it was hoped that it would induce it to patronise Conservative candidates. MacMahon issued a proclamation calling upon all electors who were in favour of social order, to rally round his Government, and thereby ensure to it the strength and respect which were needful for the general security. On the other hand the Republican leaders, Thiers and Gambetta, counselled moderation. The result showed that the majority of the country was weary of all the intrigues and subterfuges which had marked the National Assembly's long career. Owing to its tactics with respect to the " irremovables," there was not a Republican majority in the new Senate, but the popular party mustered no fewer than 148 members of various shades against 152 Legitimists, Orleanists, Bonapartists, and Clericals. Thiers was elected to the new body; Buffet, the Prime Minister, who was a candidate in the Vosges, was defeated. A little later, when the elections for the Chamber of Deputies took place, the first decisive polls (421 in number) resulted in the return of 295 Republicans of different shades. Fiu-ther Republican successes attended the second polls necessitated in 111 constituencies by the failure of any candidate to secure a majority over all competitors at the first ballots. Buffet, a candidate in four constituencies, was defeated in every one of them, Gambetta was returned in four out of five and decided to sit for Belleville. The fall of Buffet's Administration became inevitable, and MacMahon, accepting the country's verdict, though it was not in accordance with his own convictions, chose Dufaure, the recent Minister of Justice, to form a new Govern- ment. Bom near Cognac in 1798 and an advocate by profession, Dufaure was an old parliamentary hand who had sat in the Legislatures of the Orleans Monarchy, the Second Republic, and the Second Empire. He had been Minister of Public Works as far back as the time when railways were first introduced into France, an innovation which he had done his best to encourage. He had even served Louis Napoleon for a short time as Minister of the Interior, but bad afterwards returned to the Opposition ranks. When Thiers became Chief of the Executive in 1871, Dufaure was his first Minister of Justice. His Republicanism 196 REPUBLICAN FRANCE was distinctly Conservative ; Ms associations with Orleanist times had made him, also, somewhat of a doctrinaire. He was fond of repeating the Italian proverb Chi va piano va sa/no, e chi va sane va lontano, remarking that it was because he had always kept it before his mind that he had attained his great age (he was seventy-eight when he became chief Minister) with his faculties unimpaired. He was certainly physically and intellectually "a grand old man." But at the same time he was too slow, too cautious, too much wedded to the past to suit the new Chamber of Deputies, whose disposition was indicated by the election of Gambetta as President of the Budget Committee. Dufaure failed also with the Senate, and at the end of the year (1876), being defeated in both houses, he resigned office. MacMahon was at a loss whom to take as his successor. In his dilemma he consulted the President of the Senate, and Duke d'Audiffret-Pasquier, to whose Liberalism we have referred,^ advised him to send for Jules Simon. He did so, and Simon formed the new Administration. We have spoken of him previously in our narrative.^ He was (1877) in his sixty-third year. His early life had been full of difficulties bravely sur- mounted.^ A Deputy of the Republican Opposition under the ^ See footnote p. 194, ante. ^ See pp. 9, 13, 28, 40, ante. ' In that respect we will quote a very interesting letter written by him. We may say that we ourselves had the advantage of knowing M. Simon and of being received in his grenier — as he called his flat at No. 10 Place de la Madeleine — thanks to our acquaintance with one of his sons : — " You ask me for k few particulars about some episodes of ray young days of which I one day spoke to you. When I was, I think, about thirteen, my family found itself quite ruined and unable to provide for the cost of my education. I was then in the third class at the College of Lorient. There was talk of teaching me a clockmaker's calling. But I set out on foot from Lorient with six francs in my pocket, and from that day until I was appointed professor of the class of philosophy at the Lyc^e of Caen, I received nothing (from my family?) but those six francs. I went from Lorient to Vannes where I taught spelling and Latin to pupils whom I charged 3 francs, and even 30 sous a month, starting at six o'clock . . . and beginning again at four in the afternoon, and thereby earning my bread, and the cost of my education at the college. I thus passed through the second and rhetoric class. When I was in the philosophy class the General Council (of the department) voted, I think, a sum of 200 francs which enabled me to go to Rennes and pay my examination fees. The Rennes Lyc^e also offered me a purse (scholarship) but I wished to finish at the college of Vannes where I was liked . . . and even respected— throughout the town. There, then, is my story, for when once I had entered the ^^cole Normale (in Paris) my career went on of itself— one year as professor at Caen, one year at Versailles, the next year professor at the Ecole Normale, then professor at the Sorbonne JULES SIMON'S MINISTRY 197 Empire, he became a member of the National Defence and took a prominent part in bringing about Gambetta's resignation at Bordeaux. Elected to the National Assembly by the depart- ment of the Mame, he was soon afterwards appointed Minister of Public Instruction by Thiers. Amiable, but energetic in exercising his authority, he promptly restored his department to a state of order, and planned a scheme for compulsory education. But, in 1873, he was compelled to retire, owing to a speech in which he — rightly — attributed the liberation of the territory to Thiers, a statement which the Assembly, in its petty jealousy, deeply resented. Though no longer in office, Simon continued to exercise great influence in debate, repeatedly demanding a Republican constitution and the Assembly's withdrawal. Nevertheless, by reason of his spiritualist philosophy, which sufficed to create a gap between him and such men as Gambetta, and the moderate character of his political ideals, he secured in 1876 election both as an irremovable Senator and as a member of the French Academy. His appointment as Premier by MacMahon marked a further slight advance in the regime's character, for, although in his ministerial programme Simon declared himself to be both " profoimdly conservative and profoundly republican," his views were rather more advanced than those of Dufaure. But he speedily found himself in serious difficulties. He represented, as it were, a policy of conciliation between the Right and the Left of the Chamber. The religious question — the position of the Pope and the relations of France with Italy — to which we referred in an earlier part of this chapter, had now become acute. There was a perfect crusade of prelates in favour of Pius IX. The Right, composed of Monarchists of various kinds, supported it ; the Left, which comprised the Republicans of different categories, wished to see it stopped. Simon, respectful of religion and the Church, yet fairly Liberal in his when I was four-and-twenty, a deputy of the Constituent Assembly, and a Councillor of State in '49. When I resigned in 1852 (after Louis Napoleon's Coup d'Etat) I was scarcely richer than I had been when I started from Lorient in 1827, and I again gave lessons in Latin until the success of my book, Le Devoir, extricated me from that position, without, however, enriching me, as you are aware . . . Do you know I was so exhausted when I entered the Ecole Normale that for some years it was thought I should not live. Yet I ask myself whether the affection with which I nowadays encompass my children is better for them than the poverty-stricken child- hood, reduced to its own resources, in which no trial was spared me.'' 198 REPUBLICAN FRANCE social and political aspirations, found himself between two stools. Moreover, he did not enjoy a free hand. The Marshal President, though a practising Catholic — he was, we may mention, the last President of the Republic who ever invoked the name and blessing of God in a proclamation — was by no means so fervent in his religious views as to desire to jeopardise the interests of France by any foolhardy attempt to restore the territorial sovereignty of the Pope. But pressure was repeatedly brought to bear on him by his nearest connections, his wife, his other relatives, and various old-time friends. That pressure was felt by Simon, whose position thus became the more involved. The license of the French prelates at last exceeded all bounds. Urged on by the Nuncio, Mgr. Czacky, the Arch- bishop of Paris, the Bishops of Nevers, Nimes, Poitiers and others issued mandements which were virtually so many calls to arms. The fashionable Lenten preachers in Paris — Father Monsabre at Notre Dame, Father OUivier at St. Germain I'Auxerrois, Abbe Combalot at St. Roch, Abbe Dunand at Ste. Clotilde, Father Lescoeur at the Madeleine, Abbe Feret at Notre Dame des Victoires, Abbe Vernhes at St. Augustin, and others — joined the campaign with more or less fervour. Had the Church had its way it would have ruined France in 1877, have laid her open to fresh invasion and fresh dismemberment, even as it would have repeatedly done the same in later years — regardless as it ever is of the welfare of nations provided that it can effect its purposes — selfish, grasping, and un- Christian purposes, in oiu- opinion, though its partisans claim them to be " for the greater glory of God." Never, in all the history of Christianity has any regime been attacked so unremittingly by the Church, as the Third French Republic has been. But even the worm will turn, and those who sow the storm may reap the whirlwind. Amid the agitation which prevailed in 1877, the Count de Chambord thought fit to intervene. "Every enemy of the Church is an enemy of France," he wrote in a letter to a friend, magnanimously overlooking the fact that Pius IX., so exacting with respect to his own pretensions, had not hesitated to sneer at his, the Count's, failure to secure the throne of France, remarking : " Tout 9a pour une serviette," a very irreverent manner of designating the white flag. However, the language of the Bishop of Nevers became so violent that Martel, Minister JULES SIMON'S MINISTRY 199 of Justice and Worship under Simon, wrote the prelate a letter of reprimand on MacMahon's behalf. But that did not satisfy the Republican Deputies. On May 4 there came an important debate in which Gambetta figured prominently. Simon knew that the popular leader was right in his denunciation of the agitation into which the clerical party had plunged the country, and he therefore bowed to a vote of the Chamber declaring that the Ultramontane demonstrations were a danger to peace. MacMahon must have known that such was the case. Never- theless, he was angered by his Administration's surrender to Gambetta, and it thus came to pass that on the morning of May 16 Jules Simon received a letter in which the Marshal virtually dismissed him from his office. CHAPTER VII THE SIXTEENTH OF MAY — GAMBETTA AND THIERS — THE GREAT EXHIBITION — MACMAHON's DEFEAT AND FALL The Marshal's Coup de THe and his New Ministry — Oscar de Fortou and his Functionaries — Dissolution of the Chamber — Gambetta's Position — His Life with his Aunt — His Sojourn at San Sebastian — A Glance at his Amours — His Return to France and his Home in Paris — The Parisian Press — Gambetta's Organ, La JUpublique Frangaise — His Fortune and his Political Leadership — He calls on MacMahon to submit or resign — Last Days and Death of Thiers — General Elections — Fall of Broglie and Fortou — The Rochebouet Cabinet — The Marshal submits — Leo XIII. succeeds Pius IX. — The great Paris Exhibition — Gaieties and Songs of the Period — MacMahon at the Elysee — Mme. de MacMahon and her Charities — The Duval and Cora Pearl Scandal — Crimes of the Time — The great Military Commands — The Marshal Resigns. Just as the regime established under Louis Philippe's sovereignty is so often called the " Monarchy of July," from the circum- stance that it originated in the Revolution of July 1830, so the period which followed MacMahon's dismissal of Jules Simon is known historically as the Sixteenth of May, that having been the date of the dismissal in question. This so- called Sixteenth of May period lasted until November 20 in the same year, when the successors of Simon's Administration resigned. Although the Sixteenth of May has often been called a " Coup d'Etat," it was less that than a coup de tete on MacMahon's part. According to Count, then Viscount, Emmanuel d'Harcourt, the Marshal's Chief Secretary, pressure had been brought to bear on him by persons who asserted that Simon was deliberately preparing the accession to power of the Radicals headed by Gambetta. MacMahon's first impulse after the Chamber's vote on the Ultramontane demonstrations was, it seems, to resign office, but he abstained from doing so 200 THE SIXTEENTH OF MAY 201 chiefly on account of the outlook abroad, and the possibility of France becoming involved in war, for apart from the bad effects of the clerical intrigues on the relations of the Republic with Germany and Italy, the Eastern question had become acute, agitation and revolt in the Balkans leading to war between Turkey and Russia, whose troops were now on the point of crossing the Danube. Moreover, the circumstance that a great Paris Exhibition — the first to be held under the Republic — was being prepared for the ensuing year also helped to dissuade the Marshal from resignation. In lieu thereof he dismissed Simon, with the intention of dissolving the Chamber and appealing to the constituencies, in the hope that fresh elections might result in the return of a Conservative majority. Simon subsequently stated that the pressure which resulted in his overthrow was exercised largely by two men, one the notorious Bishop Dupanloup of Orleans, who long contrived to keep Littre out of the Academy, and virtually quitted it when the great lexico- grapher was at last elected ; while the other was an energetic functionary of strong Imperialist views, M. Ernest JPascal, then Prefect at Lyons. Simon did not accept his dismissal without attempting to expostulate, but MacMahon retorted that he had made all possible concessions to the legislative majority, and could no longer retain a Ministry which followed in Gambetta's wake. The Duke d'Audiffret-Pasquier, President of the Senate, who had originally recommended Simon for the Premiership, was equally unsuccessful when he also tried to dissuade MacMahon from the course he was adopting. The two men to whom the Marshal entrusted the compo- sition of his new Administration do not appear to have known of his intention to summon them or to have taken any direct part in effecting Simon's overthrow. They were the Duke de Broglie and M. Oscar Bardy de Fortou. The former may well have had reason to believe that a crisis was impending, but, according to Viscount d'Harcourt, he had not once called at the ^lysee since Simon's assumption of office. Fortou, for his part, had been staying for some time at his native place, Riberac, in southern France, where his wife was lying ill, and she had just become convalescent and he was on the point of taking her to Arcachon when a telegram from MacMahon summoned him to Paris. In the Cabinet, which he and Broglie speedily formed, the Duke Decazes, the Viscount de Meaux, 202 REPUBLICAN FRANCE MM. Caillaux, Brunet, Paris, General Berthaud, and Admiral Gicquel des Touches found places. Fortou, bom in 1836, was at this time in the prime of life. An advocate by profession, he had long practised at the bar of Riberac, and in 1869 had offered to stand as a candidate for the Legislative Body of the Empire. The Government patron- ising, however, the son of M. de La Valette, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Fortou withdrew, and it followed that, on being elected to the National Assembly of 1871, he had no embarrassing political antecedents. A hard worker, he attracted the notice of Thiers, and became one of his Ministers of Public Works. But he soon set himself on the side of the broom- handle, in such wise that, when Thiers was swept away, Broglie made him Minister of Education. He next became Buffet's Minister of the Interior, to which post he now returned. Fortou was a man of the middle height, with a somewhat dapper figure, on which he prided himself, being always care- fully attired in a tightly buttoned frock-coat and light trousers. His hats shone brilliantly, and his neckties and gloves were of the most delicate hues. He had a small, bald, shiny head, fringed with short, curly, black hair. His full, brush -like beard ranged in colour from black to brown, but his moustache was streaked with grey. A straight and pointed nose projected from his long, brown face, and he gazed at you, through folding glasses, with tired eyes, whence crows' feet radiated conspicu- ously. The brow was somewhat bumpy, the lips denoted sensuality, and disclosed the whitest and sharpest of teeth whenever they parted, as was not unfrequently the case, in a carnivorous smile, suggesting that of the tiger of the familiar " Limerick " after he had accommodated the Nigerian lady with a ride. At the tribune Fortou spoke in a somewhat resonant voice, with a slight southern accent, while resting his left hand on his hip, and emphasising his words in a hammering or pounding fashion with his right hand. His language was clear, haughty, often defiant. Such was the Gascon upstart — a blending of vivev/r, sports- man, lawyer, and politician — who, like some reincarnation of the Duke de Momy, stepped upon the scene with the intention of subduing France and reducing the Republic to a mere terminological status. He claimed to be an expert physio- gnomist, able to judge men at a glance, and the quality was THE SIXTEENTH OF MAY 203 essential to one in his position, for the first duty which fell on him was to remove Republican officials and replace them by men on whom he could personally rely. Yet it may be doubted if Fortoui possessed the qualification he claimed, for he pro- vided the ship of State with a very extraordinary crew. He made over two hundred appointments during the first fortnight or so of his administration, allotting the numerous prefectures and sub-prefectures chiefly to members of the petty provincial noblesse, the appearance of whose names on official decrees and orders seemed like some sudden resurrection of the past. There were Marquises, Counts, Viscounts, and Barons galore. Their names were Le Tendre de Tourville, Delpon de Vissec, Rafielis de Brosses, Bohy de la Chapelle, Falcon de Cimier, Toustain du Manoir, Villeneuve d'Esclapon, Poulain de la Foresterie, de Bastard, de Riancey, de Nervo, de Behr, de Casteras, de Callac, de Foucault, de Viaris, de Fournes, de Puyferrat, de Watrigant, de Beauvallon, de Chevalard, de la Rigaudie, de la Morandiere, and so forth. These reputed descendants of the Crusaders provided themselves with the finest possible uniforms, all glittering with silver embroidery, and arrived at their posts with their horses, carriages, hounds, body-servants, cooks, and wives, the latter being naturally accompanied by multitudinous trunks replete with Parisian finery. The cooks were soon in great request, for the 16th of May period was emphatically one of feasting throughout France. While all subordinate officials who remained steadfast in their Republican opinions were speedily dismissed, all who were wiUing to do the bidding of M. le Prefet or M. le Sous Pre'fet, and aid and abet those noble personages in persecuting RepubKcans and influencing the electorate in a Conservative sense, were dined and wined and otherwise entertained with profuse liberality. It was a very gay Carnival indeed for some folk, but they made the mistake of imagining that it would last for ever. Unfortunately for them, in the ensuing month of December, all but four of the functionaries appointed by Fortou were in their turn dismissed, and the multitudinous officials whom he or his creatures had revoked came back to their own again. But we are anticipating. The Republican party lost no time in protesting against MacMahon's coup de tHe. It prepared for action at a meeting held on the very evening of 204 REPUBLICAN FRANCE May 16, and on the following day the Chamber of Deputies passed a resolution setting forth that it would give its con- fidence solely to a Ministry possessed of real freedom of action and willing to govern in accordance with Republican principles. MacMahon retorted on the 18th by proroguing the Chamber for a month. When it again met there was a great parlia- mentary battle, Gambetta leading the attack against Fortou, whose Administration was censured by a formal vote. But the Marshal President had now applied to the Senate for the necessary authorisation to dissolve the Chamber, and the Senate granting it by 149 to 130 votes, the dissolution was decreed on June 25. Thus the battle began. The Republicans were led by Thiers and Gambetta. Thanks to the latter's influence the former's leadership was now accepted by the advanced sections of the party, and in spite of his great age, the veteran statesman evinced no little eager- ness for the fray. Gambetta, on his side, was no longer the man of the war period, the fou fwrieux denounced by Thiers, the uncompromising autocrat of Bordeaux, whom his colleagues of the National Defence had deemed it necessary to depose, for experience had taught him that nothing really useful could be effected by haste or violence, and that patience and perseverance must be severely practised. Thus, without renouncing his ideals, he had largely modified his tactics, in such wise as to win the reputation of a Ripublicain de gouvemement. Now and again he still " let himself go," as the saying runs, but for the most part he sought to keep his feelings under control. Nature had implanted in him passion, impetuosity, and a certain fitfulness of mood. It is not generally known that soon after the declaration of war in 1870, being in very indifferent health, he betook himself to Switzerland, staying at the Chateau des Cretes, near Clarens, as the guest of its owner, M. Dubochet, Chairman of the Paris Gas Company and a director of the Eastern Railway Line, with whom he had become acquainted some years previously. One of his com- panions on this occasion was his friend Andre Lavertujon, by whom we know that he never for a moment anticipated the defeat of the Imperial armies. On the contrary, he was for ever repeating his conviction that France would give Germany "a soimd drubbing." He refused to believe the news of the first reverses, and it was only when the situation became really GAMBETTA 205 serious that he was willing to return to Paris. That his optimism continued during the remainder of the War is well known. As head of the Government at Tours and Bordeaux, he always believed in ultimate success, however severe and numerous might be the blows which fell on the armies he raised. But after he had voted against the preliminaries of peace and resigned his seat in the National Assembly, profound depression came upon him. He was also quite run down — not only suffering from laryngitis, but exhausted by his terrific expenditure of energy during the last stages of the War. He therefore repaired to San Sebastian accompanied by his private secretary, Sandrique, and his aunt, Mile. Massabie. She was his mother's sister, and had resided with him in Paris almost ever since his call to the bar. Their home was at first a modest flat on the fourth floor of a dingy house in the Rue Bonaparte, and their joint means were scanty, for Gambetta received very little money from his father, and was not at first particularly successful in obtaining briefs, while Mile. Massabie only disposed of a very slender private income. She was, however, most devoted to her nephew, and believed firmly in his futiu-e. France is a land where the humblest may attain to the highest positions. Gambetta himself was an example of it, as were Thiers, Jules Simon, and others of that period. Particularly numerous in art, too, have been the celebrities sprung from the ranks of the French people : B-ude and Gamier, both of them blacksmiths' sons ; Baudry, whose father made wooden shoes ; Carpeaux, whose father was a stone-mason ; Millet, who sprang from artisans ; Courbet, who was of peasant stock ; Gerome, the son of a journeyman goldsmith; Theodore Rousseau, whose parentage also was lowly. Of many famous scientists, literary men, and military men, might the same be said ; and Gambetta, who in his younger days was fond of recalling that circumstance, in some degree based, on the rise of talent in literature, art, science, war, and statesmanship, that theory of the accession to power and position of new social strata (nouvelles couches sociales) which he set forth in one of his most famous speeches. The first notable improvement in his own position resulted from his election as a member of the Legislative Body in 1869, whereupon he and Mile. Massabie quitted the Rue Bonaparte for No. 12 Avenue Montaigne, in the Champs Elysees quarter. 206 REPUBLICAN FRANCE In spite of its situation, however, the house was a very modest one, and the chief advantages of the young deputy's new flat were that it contained six rooms and was on the second instead of the fourth floor, an important consideration as regards Mile. Massabie, for she was lame, and her lameness increased with advancing years though, like the good housewife she was, she still and ever insisted on doing all marketing herself. The minage was, so to say, one of the halt and the blind, for if Aunt Massabie were lame, her nephew, as we previously related, had lost an eye. In that connection let us add that in 1867, as the condition of the damaged organ seemed likely to affect the sight of the other, it was removed by Dr. Fieuzal, a famous oculist of the time, and replaced by a glass eye, whereby Gambetta's appearance was considerably improved. Neverthe- less, that side of his face remained drawn, and became before long lifeless, almost paralysed. ^ *■ «. It being impossible for him to take his aunt out of Paris in the balloon by which he quitted the city in October 1870, she remained there throughout the German Siege. With her devoted nature, she suffered perhaps more from the separation than from any physical privation or hardship. At all events, when the siege was over, she vowed that nothing but death should ever part her from her Leon again. He took her, then, to San Sebastian, where he rented some rooms in a house over- looking the bay — La Concha, as it is called — and led a very quiet life, his only visitors being Ranc, Spuller, and one or two other intimates. Rising at six o'clock in the morning (as was his habit throughout his life), he usually spent some time on the shore, delighting in the view of the sea, and then strolled through the town, wearing a short jacket and a soft felt hat, with a silk scarf, in lieu of collar, about his neck. At eleven o'clock he sat down outside the Cafe de la Marina, drank a little vermouth, smoked a cigar, and afterwards returned home to dijeuner. There is a legend that he spent most of his time in fishing, but he indulged in that recreation on only a few occasions, such as when he took a boat to the island of Sta. Clara at the entrance of the bay, and tried to capture a few specimens of the curious rock -boring mollusc known on our coasts as the piddock. It may be taken at low tide, but, in order to effect a capture, it is generally necessary to break the rock in which it artfully conceals itself. GAMBETTA 207 Again, it is not correct that Gambetta had any Egeria — apart from "Tatan" Massabie— with him at San Sebastian. His connection with "Leonie Leon" began somewhat later,i and an interlude had supervened in his intercourse with a beautiful vocalist. Even as his letters to Ldonie Leon exist, so are there several addressed to that earlier inamorata, letters beginning at times Ma chere Mout, at others Ma chere Reine, and signed, for the most part, Lonlon. There is one which well exemplifies the usual irony of life, for it promises ever- lasting faithfulness in glowing language. Gambetta himself had written the following verses, which show that he did not believe in constancy, besides supplying ample proof that how- ever great he might be as an orator, he was a very indifferent poet : Ah, pourquoi done t'ai-je promis De t' aimer, Ninon, pour la vie ? Un pareil serment c'est folie Quand les coeurs sont tant insoumis. Au temps printanier des pervenches, A I'heure ou le soir, calme et doux, Allume les e'toiles blanches, Lampes d' amour des guilledous. On croit s' adorer des annees, On a le cceur pres du bonnet ; Sitot les persiennes fermees. Adieu I'amour que Ton jurait ! Mile. " Mout " would appear to have quitted Paris before the German Siege began, and to have been near the young Dictator at Tours and Bordeaux while he was directing the National Defence. Later, the intercourse was momentarily resumed in Paris, but, as already mentioned, the pair were not together at San Sebastian. At one moment, Gambetta quitted that retreat for Madrid, where he spent a few days with Castelar, whom he had known in France, and the Spanish statesman subsequently related that almost the first words which Gambetta addressed to him were words of complaint respecting "the shameful manner in which he had been ^ There are a good many inaccuracies in M. Francis Laur's little work Le Coemr de Oambetta. The very frontispiece of the book is wrongly dated " 1875," for it depicts Mile. L&n in attire such as no woman ever wore at that date, but which was the current fashion in Paris and elsewhere in 1868- 1869, that is, long before Leonie L^on ever met Gambetta. 208 REPUBLICAN FRANCE abandoned by several old friends on whom he believed he could rely." He appeared, indeed, quite disheartened, and even spoke of settling permanently in Spain. He was led to return to France by peculiar circumstances. Among the French residents at San Sebastian was an old Republican named Victor Herzman, who was very desirous that Gambetta should again take part in the affairs of his country. Accompanied, therefore, by a M. Edouard Dupuy, who kept a French hotel in the town, Herzman called on Gambetta at a moment when certain complementary elections for the National Assembly were impending. That very day Gambetta had re- ceived a telegram from Marseilles asking him to become a candidate there, and the Bordeaux Republicans had proffered a similar request, to which, however, he was unwilling to accede. " I can't go ! " he said to Herzman. " We protested, my friends and myself, against that Assembly, and we deny that it possesses any constituent powers at all. Remember that if it should select a king, it would be incumbent on us, after taking part in its deliberations, to bow to its decision. By refraining from doing so, and stubbornly adhering to our protests, we reserve all our rights for the future." To that view he seemed to cling in spite of all that Herzman could plead. Nevertheless, the latter's words produced some effect, and a curious incident, \?hich occurred the same day, led to a complete reversal of Gambetta's decision. A needy and suspicious-looking individual, who had just taken a room in the same house as himself, came to him begging for assistance on the ground that he had fled from France owing to his participa- tion in the Commune. Gambetta, after questioning the man, did not believe his story, but suspected that he was a police spy sent to watch him. On the following morning, then, he informed l^douard Dupuy that he was returning to France at once. He did so, and at a public meeting held at Bordeaux on his arrival there he delivered a very able and pacific speech, which had no little influence on public opinion, and began to rehabilitate him among folk who held that he had hitherto carried extremist and bellicose views too far. His text was briefly this : " Unto each day its task : — France had experienced terrible disasters. They, and the condition of the nation generally, were largely due to ignorance. The nation had to be built up afresh in all respects, and to accomplish this, the GAMBETTA 209 very first thing was to develop its education." Re-elected a member of the National Assembly both by Paris and by Marseilles, Gambetta now became the Radical leader in the Legislature, his efforts tending to transform the Republican groups into a real parti de gouvernement and to influence the country generally in favour of a Republican regime. Neverthe- less, for a little while longer, he went at times somewhat farther in his speeches than was necessary or advisable, and Thiers and his Administration paid the penalty of such indiscretions. Gambetta was now again residing in the Avenue Montaigne. The flat there comprised a room where his secretary worked, another where he worked himself, a dining-room, where he entertained old friends at lunch on Sundays, a drawing-room, a bed-room which he occupied, another for Aunt Massabie, and a kitchen. Each apartment was very small, the furniture was very simple, there were no signs of luxury, the only decorations in the drawing-room being Henner's painting of Alsace, a few canvases depicting battle scenes, a large photograph of Rude's famous bas-relief, " Le Chant du Depart," and the portraits of a few friends. For some time, the only work of art in Gambetta's workroom was a bronze bust of Mirabeau, which stood on the mantelshelf. In April 1872, however, a deputation of Alsatians and Lorrainers presented him with a remarkable group in bronze — the work of Bartholdi of Colmar — in which Alsace was depicted as a squatting woman, with the corpse of her brother resting on her knees, while with outstretched, threatening hands, she directed the attention of a clinging child to some one whom she saw afar — as if, indeed, she were calling on that child to avenge the wrong as soon as he might come to manhood. On returning to active life, Gambetta merely had his salary as a deputy to live upon. As delegate of the National Defence he had contracted debts, some of which were worrying him. To further his policy, however, he contrived, with the co- operation of some friends, to establish a daily newspaper, en- titled La R^publique Franfaise.^ This venture certainly seemed advisable, all the parties and leaders of the time having one or several organs, more or less directly under their control. For ' The first idea was to call the journal La Revanche, but that seemed somewhat premature ; and a second idea to entitle it Le Patriate was re- jected because it seemed too particularist in character. 210 REPUBLICAN FRANCE instance, there was VUnimi, which, as the mouthpiece of the extreme Legitimists, was often more Royalist than the King himself. Its editor, the venerable M. de Laurentie, was the father of French journalists at that time, having been born on the very day of Louis XVI.'s execution in 1793. Then there was La Gazette de France, the oldest newspaper extant, and the inspired organ of the Count de Chambord, its editor being M. Gustave Janicot, who received his cues direct from the Count's authorised representative. UUnvvers, in the hands of the famous Louis Veuillot, gave the Pretender a respectful but independent support, based on the hope that he would consent to be guided by the Jesuits. Le Monde, another clerical organ, with a large staff of priests, followed in part the lead of Bishop Dupanloup, and in part that of its largest shareholder, the Duke de La Rochefoucauld-Bisaccia. Le Journal de Paris, edited by Edmond Herve, represented the Count de Paris. Le Soleil, a halfpenny paper, was started by the Duke d'Aumale for circulation among the peasantry and working classes, some 30,000 copies of each issije being distributed gratis. Le Franqais was the organ of the Duke de Broglie, and UAssemhUe Nationale that of the Duke d'Audiffret Pasquier, while Le Constitutionnel had become the journal of M. Magne.^ Le Figaro, for the time being, supported the Legitimists; La Patrie, once Napoleon III.'s favourite journal, had become temporarily an Orleanist print ; and the same had happened with Le Mmiiteur universel. Paris-Journal was a copy of the Figaro, quieter in tone and choicer in its language, but quite as anti- Republican. Last on the list of the Monarchist organs came Le Journal des Dibats, from which those extremely moderate Republicans, Leon Say and St. Marc- Girardin, had been compelled to retire by the conversion of the editor, M. John Lemoinne, to Royalist views. The Bonapartists, on their part, disposed of La Presse, under Viscount de la Gueronniere ; UOrdre, under Clement Duvernois, who was succeeded by Dugue de la Fauconnerie ; Le Pays under the Cassagnacs, father and son ; and Le Gaulois edited by Edmond Tarbe, that being before the time when it fell into the hands of an Orleanist syndicate, who placed the intriguing, tuft-hunting Arthur Meyer at the head of it. On the Republican side, the chief papers were Le Bien > See atite, pp. 138, 139, 171. THE PARIS PRESS 211 Public, owned by Thiers and edited by Henri Vrignault; Le Temps conducted by Nefftzer and supporting Republicanism rather on grounds of expediency than of affection ; La Liberty, belonging to Emile de Girardin and flighty and erratic in its views ; U^vinement, a kind of Republican Figaro ; Le Dix- neuvieme Siecle, directed by Edmond About, who had forsaken the cult of literature for that of the demon politics ; Le Siecle, then the powerful anti-clerical organ of the French licensed victuallers ; Le National and UOpinion Nationale, which were equally anti-clerical ; Le Rappel, which, under Fran9ois Victor Hugo, Paul Meurice and Auguste Vacquerie, verged on Red Republicanism ; and UAvenir National which, under Edmond Portalis, expounded even more extreme views. Finally there was the daily satirical journal Le Charivari, which, as directed by Pierre Veron, also worked for the Republican cause. It might be thought that among such a crowd of daily newspapers a new one would have small chance of support, but Gambetta's powerful personality commanded success, and, from the very outset, prosperity attended La Republique Francaise. The original capital, scraped together with difficulty, was, we believe, only ^£"5000, but it was afterwards increased consider- ably, a large number of the shares being allotted to Gambetta in return for his patronage and services. He became the salaried political director of the new paper, the actual editor- ship being allotted at first to his friend Eugene Spuller,^ and later to Challemel-Lacour, an able and scholarly writer, who, however, while Prefect at Lyons, had blundered somewhat in dealing with the Communist rising there, he being hardly the man to contend with such a situation. He subsequently became French Ambassador in London. Among the leader- writers on La Republique Franqaise, were Rane and Allain- Targe. Antonin Proust dealt with foreign affairs. Floquet was an occasional contributor on topics of the day. Isembert was the chief sub-editor, Thomson (since a Minister and Governor of Algeria) assisting him. One feature of the paper in its earlier days was a "portrait gallery," that is, a series of biting articles on prominent anti- Republicans, written chiefly by Challemel-Lacour, Ranc, and Dyonis Ordinaire. They were stopped, however, at the fall of Thiers, in order to avoid a prosecution. 1 See ante, pp. 2, 15, 206. 212 REPUBLICAN FRANCE When the paper was first started — in November 1871 — its offices were in the Rue du Croissant, whither Gambetta re- paired regularly every evening; but, before long, the venture proved so successful that a house was purchased in the Chaussee d'Antin at a cost of J'22,000 ; and the printing works, the editorial and publishing offices, and the political directorate were concentrated there. A suite of rooms was fitted up for Gambetta's accommodation, and he was allowed the use of a brougham, hired from the Paris General Cab Company at a cost of £QQ a month. A legend then sprang up about the ex-dictator's " mansion " and " stylish equipages," but the facts were simply as we have mentioned. Although Gambetta's share in the proprietary of La Ripublique Francaise became valuable, and yielded a considerable income, his means did not increase so largely as they might have done, as, for purposes of propaganda, a popular one sou journal reflecting his policy — La Petite Ripublique — was soon established, and consumed, we believe, a large amount of money, in spite of its extensive circulation. 1 In the Chaussee d'Antin, Gambetta continued to lead a very simple life. He had a valet, a young man called Fran9ois, who had been in his service at Tours during the war ; but there was nothing pretentious about his little establishment. Mile. Massabie did not follow her nephew to his new abode — perhaps on account of his intercourse with Leonie Leon, who was often in the Chaussee d'Antin — and he may, perhaps, have missed the old lady's southern cuisine, those savoury ragouts, and those cassoulets of beans and smoked goose of which he was extremely fond.^ That he was partial to the pleasures of the table can- 1 It was long thought that Gambetta's millionaire friend, M. Dubochet of the Paris Gas Company, wovild leave him a large legacy, for Dubochet had often expressed the view that the head of a political party ought to be a man of means. There was, too, a story to the effect that one day when Gambetta was admiring Dubochet's estate, the charmingly situated Chateau des Cretes, his friend told him with a smile that it would one day belong to him. However, when Dubochet died, it was found that he had be- queathed his property to his natural heirs, his nephew, M. Guichard, and his niece, Mme. Arnaud de I'Ari^ge. The value of the deceased's estate was very great, and M. Guichard and his sister, opining that their uncle had merely neglected to alter a will made many years previously, offered Gambetta a large sum of money — according to some accounts, iSO.OOO. He declined the gift, however, in a very friendly way. 2 Mile. Massabie eventually became paralj^sed. and was removed to the residence of Gambetta's parents at Nice, where she died. That residence. GAMBETTA'S SPEECHES 21 S not be denied, and, as we shall see hereafter, that very par- tiality was the immediate cause of his death. We remember that in the days when all Paris was humming a popular ditty, "L'Amant d' Amanda," originally sung by Libert at one of the Cafes -Concerts in the Champs Elysees, there appeared a rather amusing parody of the song, with this refrain : — Voyez ce beau mangeur-la, C'est Gambetta, c'est Gambetta ! Voyez ce beau mangeur-la, C'est Grambetta, C'n'est qu'^a ! If, as we previously said, there was still some violence and extravagance in the speeches which Gambetta made in various parts of France during Thiers's presidency (his journalistic enterprise, his peregrinations and utterances prompt- ing Sardou to write his famous political comedy Rahagas — 1872) the accession of MacMahon and the dangers to which the Republic then became exposed inclined him more and more / to moderate courses. He contributed powerfully to the voting i of the Constitution in 1875, urging his party to accept com- i promises, agreeing to the creation of a Senate, much as he disliked such an institution, even preaching resignation and j patience, and founding, already then, what eventually became ; known as the Opportunist school of politics. Nevertheless, he i could remain firm if he felt that the position required it, and when the clerical agitation became dangerous he spoke out freely. The famous speech which he delivered at Romans in 1876 was prophetic. He foresaw on that occasion all the reactionary efforts which the Church put forth again and again in later years, efforts which, as we know, have compelled the Republic to dissolve the religious orders, close the clerical schools, and separate Church and State. And however power- ful the clerical party might be under the aegis of MacMahon, \ Gambetta attacked it boldly, declaring that Clericalism was the \ enemy, that in Clericalism, and in that alone, the real social ' peril which threatened the country was to be found. In the following year, when MacMahon had dissolved the Chamber, Gambetta again evinced energy and daring. Repair- built in 1872, was declared by Gambetta's enemies to have been erected with all the money he had stolen during the war, but it was a modest place cost- ing no more than some £1300 out of his father's careful savings. 214 REPUBLICAN FRANCE ing to the north of France, he deUvered speeches at Amiens, Abbeville, and Lille, which brought repeated prosecutions upon him. He braved them scornfully, still exhorting the country to re-elect all the deputies — 363 in number — who had declared against the Broglie-Fortou Government, and prophesying, with superb confidence, that those 363 would become at least 400. So great was his influence at this time that. Prince Napoleon Jerome having been one of the 363, he prevailed on the Republican party to overlook the Prince's name and antecedents, and support his candidature. At last, confident as he was of victory, Gambetta did not hesitate to declare that when France had made her sovereign voice heard, it would be necessary to submit or resign (se soumettre ou se ddmettre),^ a reference to the position awaiting MacMahon, which drew on the Republican champion yet another prosecution. Nevertheless, he pursued his crusade as energetically as ever. Thiers also was exerting himself as much as his age allowed. His house in Paris, the Hotel Bagration, had long been one of the chief centres of opposition to MacMahon's reactionary ministries, although he had taken little active part in actual parliamentary matters. From the time of his fall, indeed, he intervened only once in debate, this being in March 1874, when important additions to the fortifications of Paris were proposed. In the following winter, Thiers proceeded to Italy, but retiu:ned to Versailles in time to vote for the Constitution of 1875. At the subsequent general elections, Belfort returned him as a senator, and Paris as a deputy, the latter post being the one he selected. At the advent of the Fortou-Broglie Ministry, he signed the manifesto of the 363, that being virtually his last public act, though, as the recognised leader of the Republican party, he took a large part privately in direct- ing the campaign. As it progressed, he became restless, excited, perhaps even a little anxious, although he was by nature an optimist, fond of quoting from Chenier's Jeune Captive, the lines : L'illusion feconde habite dans mon sein, J'ai les ailes de Tesperance. It was virtually certain that if MacMahon should be defeated at the elections and should then prefer to resign rather than 1 There is a story that the expression was suggested to him by Mme. Edmond Adam. LAST DAYS AND DEATH OF THIERS 215 submit, he, Thiers, would be reappointed President of the Republic, and he may well have looked forward to that eventuality. He was now, however, eighty years of age, and the state of unrest in which he lived was trying to his health. There were no outward signs of a collapse, he looked as well as ever on the occasions when he appeared in public at St. Germain-en-Laye, where he decided to spend the summer, and thus the newspaper reports of his health were most favourable. On Saturday, September 1, one of the Paris satirical journals appeared with a cartoon which depicted the great little man giving a helping arm to poor old Father Time, who was portrayed in the last stage of decrepitude, no longer able even to carry his scythe, of which, therefore, his companion had kindly relieved him. It was an effective cartoon, and Thiers may well have smiled at it. He possessed, be it said, a sense of humour, and laughed freely at caricatures of himself, even when they were malicious. But the end was near. On Monday, September 3, after devoting his morning to the chief points which it was proposed to set out in a manifesto to the country on behalf of the whole Republican party, he was suddenly taken ill at dejeuner, and an attack of apoplexy supervened. Drs. Lepiez and Barthe made every effort to save him, but without avail ; he expired that evening at ten minutes to six o'clock. The sensation throughout France was profound. There was only one course for MacMahon and his Ministers to follow. The great services which Thiers had rendered to the country on the morrow of the War could not be overlooked, and a State funeral, there- fore, was immediately decreed. But this implied that all the arrangements would be in the hands of the Government, that those who had deliberately and persistently warred against Thiers and overthrown him would be found hypocritically lamenting his loss and heaping praise on his memory at his graveside. Mme. Thiers therefore declined the State obsequies, and the funeral became a great Republican demonstration. The religious ceremony was celebrated at Thiers's parish church, Notre Dame de Lorette ; and at the interment in the cemetery it was Jules Grevy who spoke for Republican France. From that hour Grevy virtually became his party's candidate for the Presidency. The death of Thiers was a great blow for the cause, and 216 REPUBLICAN FRANCE undoubtedly influenced the elections for the new Chamber of Deputies, which took place a month later. Thiers had commanded a large following of men of strictly moderate views, men scarcely inclined, as yet, to follow Gambetta's lead ; and their votes were naturally influenced by the ex-President's sudden demise. Moreover, Fortou's functionaries, after persecut- ing Republicans right and left, prosecuting, suspending, and suppressing newspapers all over the country, were bringing all possible pressure to bear on the electorate, intrigue, bribery, and corruption being rife upon every side. It happened, then, that the 363 did not become 400 as Gambetta had predicted. Nevertheless, the Republican candidates polled 568,000 more votes than they had done in 1876, and 2,551,000 more than were secured by the Royalists. Thus the Republican majority in the Chamber was, all told, still one of about 120 members. Fortou and Broglie naturally fell from power, the new Chamber appointing a Committee of Inquiry into their electoral proceedings. The ensuing elections for the departmental General Councils emphasised the Republican victory. Nevertheless, MacMahon was still unwilling to bow to the country's decision. He replaced his defeated advisers by a " Cabinet of Affairs," none of whose members belonged to the Legislature. The new Premier was General Gaetan de Grimaudet de Rochebouet, an officer bom at Angers in 1813, who had participated in Napoleon III.'s Coup d'Etat, and had commanded the artillery of the Imperial Guard. He had seen a great deal of service in Algeria, at the siege of Rome, in the Crimea, in northern Italy, and with the army of Metz, and was reputed to be an energetic and even a dangerous man.^ Ominous rumours respecting his intentions circulated in the Republican ranks — indeed, an attempt at a Coup d'Etat was apprehended. Thus the Chamber decided on the very first day by 315 to 204 votes that it would enter into no relations with the new Ministry, and it emphasised its views by reappointing Gambetta as President of the Budget Committee. It is difficult to say whether a Coup d'Etat was really intended. Under Fortou's Administration, MacMahon had repeatedly declared, in speeches in Normandy and elsewhere, ^ Rochebouet took the post of Minister of War. His colledgues were Welche (Interior), Faye (Education), DutiDeul (Finances), De Banneville (Foreign Affairs), Ozenne (Agriculture), Rear-Admiral Roussin (Marine), and Graef(PubUc Works). ROCHEBOUET'S MINISTRY 217 that the Constitution was not threatened. Nevertheless, certain military preparations — either for offensive or defensive purposes — were now made, and the doctrine of passive obedience to orders, on which Rochebouet insisted in his relations with his officers, also helped to agitate the country. However, even if unconstitutional designs existed — Rochebouet in later years repeatedly denied them — they were abandoned, and the " Cabinet of Affairs " resigned. MacMahon then attempted to form a semi-Orleanist Ministry headed by Batbie, but failing in that endeavour, he decided to make peace with the Chamber, and commissioned Dufaure^ to form a new Administration. " Monsieur Dufaiu-e is at least a sensible man," remarked the Marshal on this occasion ; " he is religious and upright, and he won't lead me into any disaster. But on the day when he goes I shall go as well." The new year, 1878, opened with an event of great im- portance. Pope Pius IX. died, and the Holy College was assembled for the election of his successor. We went to Rome at that moment for an English newspaper, provided with powerful introductions ; and some time before the decision of the Conclave, we were able to indicate that Cardinal Pecci might well be chosen, although his position as Camerlengo of the deceased Pontiff was currently held to militate against his chances. In that respect, however, the question was chiefly whether certain precedents should be set aside in the superior interests of the Church. They were, and after merely three days' discussion. Cardinal Pecci became Leo XIII.^ The Church abandoned none of her rights or claims, but a new era began with respect to her mode of procedure — one of careful, at times artful, diplomacy in lieu of the blusterous but futile fulminations of Pius IX. The Clerical excesses in France were somewhat checked by the change, although the priestly party never fully obeyed the mot cTordre which came from the Vatican. For a while, a kind of general truce ensued with the opening of the Paris Exhibition of 1878. This was the most important world-show held since the great Imperial Carnival in 1867. There had been a notable and interesting international exhibition 1 See ante, p. 195. 2 It is less difficult at times than the ordinary journalist imagines to fore- tell who will be the next Pope. In the case of Leo XIII., Ruggiero Bonghi, RafFaeUo de Cesare, and Mgr. Pappolettere had confidently predicted his pontificate. 218 REPUBLICAN FRANCE at Vienna in 1873, but it had proved only partially successful, owing to a cholera scare for which there was little or no justi- fication. The Paris show attracted the greater attention, as it was the first held since the war with Germany, and testified abundantly to the country's wonderful recovery from its disasters. The idea of holding this exhibition emanated from Mme. de MacMahon, and it was largely at her instigation that M. Kranz, a senator and a moderate Republican, was appointed General Commissioner. At the fall of Jules Simon, the Duke de Broglie wished to dismiss Kranz, but the latter was upheld in his position by the influence of Mme. la Marechale, who, regardless of his political views, pronounced him to be the right man in the right place. Among those present at the inauguration of the Exhibition were the Prince of Wales (Edward VII.), the Crown Prince (later King) of Denmark, and the Duke of Aosta (sometime King of Spain). Germany did not exhibit ; nevertheless, the pavilions and adjuncts of the Exhibition now overflowed the Champ de Mars, which had been deemed an amply sufficient site in 1867. The palace and gardens of the Trocadero sprang up as if by enchantment. There were solemnities and gaieties innumerable. Paris sang, danced, and crowded to witness every display as enthusiastically as she had done in the year of the Empire's apogee. WTierever you went you heard the popular refrains of the time. There was notably " L'Amant d' Amanda," to which we previously referred, and which became "all the rage," with its idiotic chorus, mere play on words, running : — Voyez ce beau garden la, C'est Tamant d'A^ C'est Famaut d'A — Voyez ce beau gar90n la, C'est I'amant d'A- manda ! And, apropos of the opera Paul et Virginie, there was an equally silly and therefore popular ditty, which began : — Je me nomme Po-Pol, Je demeur' a I'entresol, De Virginie je suis fol, Aussi je m'pousse du col — while often enough you heard some song recalling the war " period. A famous one of the kind celebrated the unavailing ,J*:) THE EXHIBITION OF 1878 219 charge of the French cuirassiers at Worth, or, as it is said in France, ReichshofFen : — lis reculaieut, ces heros invincibles, A Reichshoffen la mort fauchait leurs rangs^ Les ennemis, dans les bois invisibles, Comme des loups, poursuivaient ces geants. Depuis le jour, au front de la bataille, France ! ils portaient ton drapeau glorieux ; lis sent tombe's, vaincus par la mitraille, Et non par ceux qui tremblaient devant eux ! Voyez la-bas, comme un eclair d'acier, Ces escadrons passer dans la fumee, lis vont mourir, et pour sauver I'armee, Donner le sang du dernier cuirassier ! (bis.) Again there was a song called, if we remember rightly, " Les Ecoliers alsaciens," which showed an old schoolmaster of the conquered province secretly teaching the French language to the little children under his care. But the tramp of soldiers is heard outside the school, and the refrain follows : — La patrouille allemande passe — Baissez la voix, mes chers petits ; Parler franfais n'est plus perrais Aux petits enfants de 1' Alsace. These references will show that although Paris had become gay again in 1878, the thought of "La Revanche" was still an abiding one. Among the chief fetes of the time was that given at the palace of Versailles. It was not, however, in any way as splendid as that offered to Queen Victoria in 1855, nor did anything like the orderliness of that occasion prevail. The crush on the grand staircase — there were 16,000 guests — became, indeed, terrific, and many women only emerged from the miMe with their hair down and their costly gowns in tatters. The verdict of the more aristocratic invites was that the "new social strata," largely represented on this occasion, possessed little or no manners. Paris was, of course, crowded with foreigners and provincials, and the theatres reaped golden gains. The famous Cloches de Corneville, first produced in the previous year, was still running at the Folies Dramatiques ; Round the World in Eighty Days, was drawing crowds to the Porte St- Martin; Le Petit Due, thanks to Jeanne Granier, kept the Renaissance full every night ; OrpMe aux Emfers triumphed yet no REPUBLICAN FRANCE once again at the Theatre Lyrique ; Niniche was all the rage at the Vari^tes, and Babiole at the Bouffes. The ComMie-Fran9aise was naturally to the fore with Augier's play Les FourchambauU ; the Gymnase held a success with Le B&M ; but the Opera relied principally on its staircase and its foyer to attract the exhibition crowds — performing V Afrkaine, indeed, with a frequency which became quite odious. We can recall the Bal des Artistes dramatiques that year. The chief vocalists and actresses, Krauss, Carvalho, Rosine Bloch, Sarah Bernhardt, Croizette and Reichemberg were — as usual — absent, but others attended, such as Heilbronn, Samary, Judic, Granier, and La Beaugrand (the premiere dansetise of " Coppelia "), as well as quite a crowd of women belonging partly to the stage and partly to the demi-monde. Leonide Leblanc, Gabrielle Elluini, Caroline Letessier, Amelie Latour, Prelly, Valtesse, Angele, and the famous Margot — " the unique Margot" as she was called — were all there, shimmering with diamonds, and mostly in eighteenth century costumes, which were all the rage at that particular moment. The men, who laughed with those women, were mostly scions of nobility, or rich young fellows of the financial world ; and the brilliance and the gaiety of the scene were quite as great as in Imperial days. So far as amusement was concerned, Paris had indeed become herself again. The masses seemed quite as merry as the richer folk. Life at the Elysee Palace was naturally full of animation at this time. The Marshal's position compelled him to enter- tain on a large scale, though personally he much preferred a quiet and unostentatious life. In fact, he always seemed to be somewhat ill at ease in society. He never appeared in uniform unless obliged to do so. His usual attire was a dark blue frock-coat with a velvet collar, and dark grey trousers. His favourite recreation was riding ; but both before and after his Presidency he might often be seen sauntering about the Boulevards with his hands in his pockets, and a cigar — he was a great smoker — between his lips. One of his most marked characteristics was his fondness for children. In 1859, when he made his triumphal entry into Milan, he caught up a little girl who offered him a bouquet, set her on his holsters, and thus rode with her through the town. That pleasing trait of his character became yet more evident in advancing years. • THE MACMAHONS AT THE i^LYS^E 221 The establishment kept up at the ]6lysee was fairly large. The palace furniture was mostly provided by the State, but many accessories were supplied by the Marshal himself. There was a civil cabinet and a military one. At the head of the former was Viscount Louis Emmanuel d'Harcourt, to whom we previously referred, a good-looking, amiable man with a smiling face, long moustaches and a full beard. Born in 1844 he was the younger son of George Trevor Douglas Bernard, Marquis d'Harcourt (sometime ambassador in England) by his marriage with Mile, de Beaupoil de Ste. Aulaire. This was the senior branch of the French Harcourts, the Duke d'Harcourt belonging to a junior line. Viscount Emmanuel, as he was usually called, was assisted at the lillysee by M. de Tanlay. At the head of the Marshal's military cabinet was the General Marquis d'Abzac de Mayac, who belonged to an old fighting family of south-western France. His coad- jutor was Colonel Robert. There was also a chaplain to the Presidency, Abbe Bonnefoy, a curate of the Madeleine, who afterwards became Bishop of La Rochelle. Unlike her sister, the Countess de Beaumont, Mme. de MacMahon upheld the traditions of her family, and kept its motto, " Fidele au Roi et a I'Honneur," well in view. Under the Empire she had only appeared at the Tuileries when she was absolutely compelled to accompany her husband to some State ceremony there. She never attended the Empress's Mondays. Whatever her principles might be, she was distinctly an able woman. Her manners were very simple, and so was her attire, her gowns being generally of some dark hue. We recollect, however, that at one great reception of the time she presented a striking appearance in a long robe a trahie of black velvet with a broad red sash falling from her waist, and a large spray of red geraniums in her black hair. She never made any display of jewellery, even the little she wore was of small value. In spite of her embonpomt, her appearance was distinguished, and she well knew how to hold her position. She was an excellent mother, most solicitous respecting her sons and her daughter, and attentive to their studies. The boys, before the family moved to the jfilysee, attended the college of Versailles. At the time of the Franco-German War, Mme. de MacMahon had been a leading member of the Committee of the French Red Cross Society for the Relief of the Wounded, and had REPUBLICAN FRANCE done no little good work in that connection.^ In 1874 she established a society for providing poor children with clothes, and in the following year organised a very successful subscrip- tion for the benefit of the suiFerers from the inundations in southern France. At religious and other ceremonies she frequently collected money for charitable purposes. She was, for instance, until her death, a prominent figure at the annual mass celebrated at the Madeleine for all soldiers and seamen killed in the service of France, on which occasions, wearing the Red Cross badge on her arm, she would go round the church collecting for the society's benefit. The MacMahons usually spent a part of the summer and the autumn at the chateau of La Forest in the Loiret, not very far from Montargis. There was some fairly good shooting there. The chateau, built originally in the time of St. Louis, was given by Philippe-le-Hardi to his tutor and chamberlain, Pierre de Machault. In 1840, it came into the possession of the Castries family and passed by inheritance to Mme. de MacMahon. We believe also that the Marshal's private residence in Paris — 70 Rue de Bellechasse — had formed part of his wife's dowry. There were a good many notable scandals and crimes in Paris during MacMahon's presidency. It was at this period, if we remember rightly, that young Duval, the son of the wealthy founder of the popular "Bouillon" restaurants, attempted to commit suicide on the door-mat of the notorious cotu-tesan Cora Pearl. ^ She had beggared him and then tossed him aside, whereupon he shot himself and was removed to a hospital in an alarming condition. News of the occurrence reached us an hour or so afterwards, and in the company of a ^ When the war broke out the society's only means was an income of £5:6:3. By August 25, 1870, its receipts had risen to nearly £112,000. By October, it had expended over £100,000 in organising thirty-two field ambulances. Its total outlay throughout the war was over half a million sterhng, and 110,000 men were s\iccoured and nursed in its many field, town and village ambulances. At the end of hostiUties, it still had £120,000 in hand, for money and gifts in kind never ceased to reach its numerous branches. It has done a vast amount of good in subsequent French campaigns : Tunis, Tonquin, Madagascar, China, etc. ; and it nowa- days counts 55,000 members, with 302 committees of men and 252 committees of ladies. ^ We may be in error as to the year when this occurred ; if so we ask pardon. In a Ufe crowded with experiences, it is sometimes difficult to recall the exact date of an occurrence of secondary importance. SCANDALS AND CRIMES 223 fellow-journalist we hastened to Cora Pearl's residence, which we expected to find in a state of more or less commotion. But the only signs that anything tragical had occurred were a few splashes of blood on a wall ; and Cora Pearl, far from evincing any emotion, sat in her salon chatting with two or three women of her class. All was laughter and indifference. The courtesan blurted out, crudely and shamelessly, that her victim was a young fool, and that she had sent him about his business, because he had no money left, and could be of no further use to her. Not a word of regret respecting the attempted suicide passed her lips. It was regarded by herself and her friends as a slight annoyance, which might really become a splendid advertisement. In fact, one of the women present remarked to Cora : " Well, I should like to see a man shoot himself for me. Quelle reclame, ma chere ! " We looked at Cora Pearl, that notorious Englishwoman, who had preyed for so many years on the spendthrifts of Parisian society, and we realised that she might well need an advertisement. Rouged, powdered, and bewigged, she was aged and emaciated, a mere shadow of the woman who, a good many years previously, had shared Prince Napoleon Jerome's Pompeian villa in the Champs Elysees. She had certainly spoken correctly in calling Duval "a young fool." It was hard to understand how he could ever have cared for her, and have taken his dismissal so tragically. Yet, as we know, such things often happen. Cora figured in the demi-monde for a good many years longer, made several more victims, wrote some more or less bogus memoirs, and died — well, we are hardly certain if she is dead now. As for young Duval he happily recovered, renounced the life which he had previously led and became a worthy and useful member of society. But for one who escapes from such shipwreck as befell him, how many are there who sink, irretrievably, to the depths ? Apart from mere scandals, there were some horrible crimes in those days. The "angel maker" — one of the artisans of the depopulation of France — flourished exceedingly, living on the babes she took to nurse, but allowing them to fade away, and thus making little angels of them — whence, of course, her name. Even as in the last years of the Empire, so now again several remarkable cases, abounding in horrible revelations respecting the baby trade, came before both the Paris and the 224 REPUBLICAN FRANCE provincial courts like fresh warnings of what would happen in comparatively few years if the law should not step in to render such crime impossible . . . and yet, more than twenty years later, there was still abundant justification for what Zola wrote on the subject in his novel FicondiU. Back to the earlier years of the Republic one may also trace the rise of the Parisian Apache gangs ; for with the youthful Gelinier and the " Band of the Velvet Caps," joint-stock crime already flourished under the Septennate. There were some particularly odious murders at that time. There was the case of a certain Billoir who killed his mistress, cut her up and flung the pieces into the Seine, where, as an ultra-realistic witness horribly put it, " they floated about like chunks of diseased pork." We well remember Billoir's trial, and can recall how Hortense Schneider — once "La Belle Helene " and " La Grande Duchesse " — attended every sitting of the court, carrying her dropsical pug dog, whom she gorged with biscuits and bonbons, while the most abominable evidence was being given. All that, of course, was bien Parisien. But there was also the tragedy of the Rue Poliveau, in a lodging house of which street the mutilated body of an old milkwoman was discovered. The murderers were two young men named Lebiez and Barre. They had been school -fellows in the provinces and had come to Paris, each with his respective mistress, a servant girl and a dressmaker. Barre, after serving as a lawyer's clerk, had become a speculator and an agent (Tqffaires, really living, however, on his old father, whose remittances he squandered, in such wise that he eventually found himself on the verge of ruin. Lebiez, for his part, was a medical student and a Revolutionary. He gave so-called lectures on the Darwinian theories, which were interspersed with political matter, and eventually he tried to resuscitate the notorious journal Le Pere Dnchesrie, in conjunction with an eccentric young advocate named Hippolyte Bufi'enoir. But the venture failed, and Lebiez was in as impecunious a position as Barre when the latter suggested that they should murder the old woman, who possessed, so he had discovered, some J'400 of savings. She was enticed to Barry's abode, and there cowardly despatched. Like Billoir, Barre and Lebiez were guillotined. The last one's final words at the place of execution are worth recalling. " Adieu, messieurs," said he to the officials FALL OF MACMAHON 225 with the utmost politeness, as the headsman's assistants seized him. There was, perhaps, more in those words — a Dieu — than he quite realised at the moment when he uttered them. With the close of the Exhibition year came a great political crisis. There were many battles in the Chamber between the Republicans and the defeated Royalists; and an altercation between Gambetta and Fortou led to a duel with pistols, in which, however, neither was injured. But the chief question of the time was really a military one. General Borel, Dufaure's first Minister of War, had been succeeded by General Gresley, a highly competent officer, who had organised Lebrun's Army Corps in 1870, and fought with it, very gallantly, at Bazeilles. Now the Republican party which supported the Dufaure Ministry— ^aw^e de mieuw — desired to see some change effected in the great military commands. It distrusted the military element, and particularly certain generals at the head of various Army Corps. It held, too, that in some instances the terms for which those generals had been appointed had expired, or nearly so, and ought not to be renewed. General Gresley was won more or less to that view. On the other hand the officers against whom the campaign was directed were mostly old friends of MacMahon's, men whom the Marshal desired neither to replace nor to displace— that is, shift them from one to another Army Corps. He maintained, moreover, that their periods of command would not actually expire for several months, and he jealously resisted any political interference in the afiair. He pointed out that it was precisely on account of his determination to allow no politics in the military and naval services that, in spite of all personal friendship, he had removed General Ducrot and Admiral La Ronciere le Noury from active command, they having infringed that important rule. But he flatly refused to remove officers who had not infringed it, and of whose efficiency he had the highest opinion. From that refusal the crisis arose. The Dufaure Ministry, being closely pressed by the Chamber, asked that Generals Bataille, Bourbaki, du Barail, de Lartigue, and de Montaudon should be placed on half-pay, and that five other generals should be transferred from the corps they had hitherto commanded to others. MacMahon, however, persisted in his refusal, and bitterly reproached Gresley for making such a, demand, declaring that it had been understood, on the a 226 REPUBLICAN FRANCE General's assumption of office, that he — the President — should not be called upon to make any such sacrifice. The struggle was keen but brief. The Ministers spoke of withdrawing, and the Marshal retaliated by forwarding his resignation to the Senate. He felt that the question of the great commands had been raised solely to provoke that resignation, and discourage- ment and disgust came upon him when he reflected that this was his reward for endeavouring to observe the strictest con- stitutionalism since the advent of the Dufaure Ministry. Thus, on January 28, 1879, on the eve of a great ball for which many preparations were being made at the Elysee, he addressed, as we have said, a letter of resignation to the Senate — a letter not devoid of dignity, in which he recalled his fifty- three years of services, and declared emphatically that the proposed changes in the great commands would be detrimental to the army, and therefore detrimental to France. Gambetta's influence was undoubtedly an important factor in the incidents which led to MacMahon's resignation ; but, curiously enough, only a few years afterwards, in connection with the appointments of officers like Galliffet and Miiibel, Gambetta devoted all his energy to the defence of principles virtually identical with those which the Marshal had en- deavoured to uphold. In his case, the question of the great commands was, as he divined, a mere pretext to compel his retirement. From the Republican point of view that retire- ment was, of course, necessary, as with the Marshal at the head of the State there could be no expansion of the regime. It may be noted that he adopted in turn both of the alternatives which Gambetta had set forth in his speech at Lille in 1877. After the collapse of the Fortou and Rochebouet Ministries he " gave in " ; and over the question of the great commands he " went out." Jui.Ks Grew CHAPTER VIII grevy's presidency and gambetta's predomi- nance — STATE, CHURCH, AND EDUCATION — EGYPT AND TUNIS Jules Gr^vy, his Character, Qualities, Hobbies, and Daily Life — His Brothers, Albert and Paul — His Daughter and his Son-in-law, Daniel Wilson — The Official Household and Intimates of the filys^e — Gravy's Political and Constitutional Attitude — His First Ministry : M. William Waddington — Early Phases of the Trouble in Egypt — Gravy's Second Ministry : M. Charles de Freycinet — Jules Ferry and the Educational War with the Church — "Clause Seven" — Expulsion of the Jesuits and Others — Negotiations with the Pope — Gambetta, his Mistress and Holy Church — Grevy's Third Ministry : Jules Ferry — The Religious Orders prevaU^Educational and Other Reforms — Foreign Affairs — The French Descent on Tunis — A Protectorate estabUshed — Resentment of Italy — Her Relations with France — Gambetta's Intrigues in Italy — The Triple Alliance first established — Attitude of Great Britain — Ferry's Rashness denounced — Gambetta's List Voting Project and Dictatorial Designs — General Elections of 1881 — Withdrawal of Ferry — Gambetta's Views on Tunis. Jules Geevy was now elected President of the Republic by a large majority of votes. He was at this time seventy- two years of age. The grandson of a justice of the peace who had held office during the great Revolution, and the son of a soldier of that period — one who had cast his sword aside and turned to the plough rather than serve the Empire - making General Bonaparte — Grevy had never swerved from the Republican principles which he had derived from those two forerunners, and his reputation for rectitude was universal. Some account of his earlier career has been given previously, and we have related how he resigned the Presidency of the National Assembly in 1873.^ In March 1876, under the new Consti- tution, he became President of the Chamber of Deputies, and 1 See ante, pp. 73, WS. 227 228 REPUBLICAN FRANCE was re-elected to that post at each ensuing session. Now he was finally elevated to the supreme magistracy, that Presidency of the Republic which he had deemed a superfluous office in 1848, when he had proposed, as an amendment to the Consti- tution, that there should be no President at all, but merely a Chief Executive Minister. That view he apparently held no longer, for he evinced no hesitation in accepting the post to which he was called. His fortune, at this time, was not particularly large, though he had benefited by his profession as an advocate, and had been able to extend the family property which he held near his native place, Mont-sous- Vaudrey in the Jura. It was an estate of some forty acres, well wooded and traversed by a little river, the Cuisance. The house was a simple, rectangular building, wth two storeys above its ground floor, and stabling in which six horses could be accommodated. During his Presidency, M. Grevy embellished the place in various respects, but even after his death its value was estimated at less than dfl2,000. In Paris, before he became Chief of the State, he resided in a third-floor flat in the Rue Volney (previously St. Arnaud), where the furniture was extremely plain, though the decora- tions included, besides a bust of himself by Carpeaux, some very good bronzes and marble statuettes, and a few choice paintings — purchased mostly at the Hotel des Ventes in the Rue Drouot, where Grevy had often attended the great art sales of the Second Empire's last years. It will be seen from this that, although he was often denounced as a bourgeois and a Philistine, Grevy was not destitute of some artistic perception. It may be said also that he was a man of scholarly attainments, thoroughly well versed in Greek and Latin, and familiar with the history of antiquity, as his conversation often showed, though there was never much indication of the classicist in his public speeches. As a matter of fact, his study of ancient eloquence had disgusted him with it. Its verbiage, he once remarked, was excessive, and its exaggeration deplorably untrue to life. Briefly, it was a style for the modernist to shun. Personally, he could not extemporise with the polish of Jules Favre or the impetuosity of Gambetta. His more important speeches were always carefully prepared in advance. His "hobbies" were billiards, chess, and shooting, and he was a proficient player at both GR^VY AND HIS FAMILY 229 games, as well as a first-rate marksman. The billiard-room at the Elysee became at one time the most important apart- ment of the palace, and " Monsieur le President " was often to be seen there, playing for " a hundred up " in his shirt-sleeves, now against Lord Lyons, the British Ambassador, now against Le Royer, President of the Senate, or against M. Andrieux, Prefect of Police. At other times his adversary might be General Pittie, chief of the lillysee Military Cabinet, or Ludovic Halevy, or Anatole de la Forge (the defender of St. Quentin during the Franco-German War) or else, as a pis aller, Albert Grevy, who became for a time Governor of Algeria, chiefly because he happened to be "his brother's brother," though he was certainly a man of ability, one from whose rule the French trans-Mediterranean colony has reaped of late years substantial advantages, for he notably encouraged the Algerian colonists to plant vines. ^ President Grevy had played chess and billiards from his youth onward. Late under the Empire, he still frequented the famous Cafe de la Regence for the former game ; and when the Grand Cafe was established on the Boulevard des Capucines, its billiard-tables secured his patronage. He often played there with Maubant, the actor of the Comedie Francjaise, while other favourite antagonists were M. de Nanteuil and M. de Feuloya, the latter of whom thought nothing of staking ^£"200 or so on his prospects of winning a short game. But billiards and chess were not the only recreations at the Elysee in Grevy's days. Apart from the amusement which the President him- self derived from a certain pet duck, often to be seen waddling behind him along the garden paths, there were frequent fencing parties in the palace conservatory. Grevy himself did not fence, but his son-in-law, Daniel Wilson, was particu- larly fond of that exercise, and many well-known amateurs, such as Tavernier, Dollfus, and Aurelien Scholl, together with several first-rate professional swordsmen, attended the Elysee gatherings. -' M. Wilson, whom we have just mentioned, married the 1 President Gr^vy had a second brother, Paul, a very capable artillery general, who also became a senator for the Jura. He fought at Sedan and was taken prisoner there, but, having escaped, reached Paris, where he served during the German Siege, notably at the battle of Champigny. During his brother's presidency he commanded the artillery of the army of Paris. 230 REPUBLICAN FRANCE President's only daughter, Mile. Alice Grevy — a bright and intelligent young person, little known to the Parisians, but very popular at Mont-sous- Vaudrey — in October 1881. On his father's side, Wilson was of English origin, while on his mother's he was the grandson of Cazenave the Revolutionary, who sat both in the National Convention and in the Council of the Five Hundred. Born in Paris in 1840, Wilson figured for a time among the J eunesse doree of the capital, his name being connected with more than one lively social episode of the middle years of the Second Empire, when, according to some accounts, he scattered his money broadcast. Suddenly settling down, however, he became, in 1869, an Opposition member of the Corps Legislatif, to which Grevy also belonged, and thus their acquaintance originated. It was cemented during the Franco-German War (when Wilson commanded a battalion of Mobilises) by the intercourse which then sprang up between the Grevys and Wilson's sister, Mme. Pelouze, a charming and distinguished woman, good-looking, extremely fair, and also very English in manners and appearance, yet a true French- woman, patriotic, and with a taste for politics. Her husband was the son of Theophile Pelouze, the great chemist, to whom the world is largely indebted for beetroot sugar. Pelouze, who became wealthy, purchased from the heirs of the Dupin family the famous chateau of Chenonceaux in Touraine, associated with the memories of Diana of Poitiers, Catherine de' Medici and Louise de Vaudemont, wife of the last Valois; and on his son's death, this historic estate passed entirely to his daughter-in-law and became her favourite residence. During the war of 1870, however, she sought for a while a refuge at the Hotel de Bordeaux at Tours, where the Grevys also were staying, and an intimacy sprang up between them. Wilson, moreover, soon after Grevy's accession to the Presidency, became for a time Under-Secretary for Finances, a post which gave him many opportunities for calling at the Elysee, and enabled him to come forward as a suitor for Mile. Alice Grevy's hand. When he had married her he installed himself in the palace, and though he no longer held any ministerial office, being simply a deputy, he contrived to play an important part in both political and administrative affairs, his influence steadily increasing year by year. The President naturally had an official household. At the GRj^VY AND HIS FAMILY 231 head of the military department was General Francis Pittie, an officer of culture who produced a novel, a volume of verse, and numerous review articles, and also acquitted himself creditably of diplomatic missions in Spain and Russia. At the head of the Civil Cabinet was the amiable M. Duhamel, who was assisted by M. Fourneret. But to none of these did solicitors pay court with anything like the eagerness with which they approached M. Wilson, whose private room was incessantly besieged. He not only dabbled more and more in affairs of State, but conducted from the palace a variety of private business, industrial and commercial enterprises, as well as a newspaper called La Petite France du Centre, besides largely inspiring a coterie of Parisian journalists — Edmond About of Le XIXe Steele, Jourde of the older SkcIb, Jenty of La Fraime, and Carle of La Paix — writers who, under the pretext of upholding the President of the Republic, repeatedly made it their business to attack Gambetta. The weakness which Grevy displayed in regard to his son- in-law ultimately led to his downfall, as we shall see. It may be urged that the President was no longer young, that the circle of his private friends was very small, that his daughter was his only child and that he desired to keep her near him. Nevertheless, it was unfortunate that, on granting her hand to M. Wilson, he did not arrange that they should reside else- where than at the Elysee. It is, of course, quite true that, as a man of high personal integrity, the President was not in the habit of suspecting others of objectionable intentions or actions. He placed all confidence in those about him, imagin- ing that he was justified in doing so, but unhappily the consequences were disastrous. Matters might perhaps have been different had Grevy been a more worldly and a younger man. We have said that the circle of his intimates was very limited. Of course, the usual Elysee receptions took place under his Presidency, and now and again an official ball or dinner was given ; but if every recurring New Year's Day brought an average of 7000 civil functionaries, military men and others to the palace, for the purpose of paying their respects to " Monsieur le President," the life led there as a rule was very homely and quiet, at least so far as Grevy was concerned. If he were fond of playing billiards or chess, if it pleased him to spend a little 232 REPUBLICAN FRANCE time in watching a fencing bout, or a few days in shooting over the coverts of St. Germain, Marly, or Rambouillet, he seldom kept late hours. With him ten o'clock usually meant bed-time and "lights out." He had a square, strong forehead, and very expressive eyes. For many years he kept his upper lip and chin shaven, growing but a fringe of beard, which, so to say, encircled his face, and gave him a somewhat old-fashioned, austere appearance; but in 1881 he grew a moustache, and allowed his beard to overrun his cheeks 'and chin, thereby altering his appearance to such a degree that he could no longer be recognised by many who had known him virtually all his life. He was inclined to stoutness, but held himself very erect, and could display a good deal of dignity, such as Gambetta was never able to show.^ In public he invariably spoke with measured deliberation, rarely raising his voice even amid the most tempestuous scenes when he was President of the Assembly or the Chamber, and his sentences were usually short and crisp. He could be epigrammatic at times, and was not destitute of humour, though that was more frequently reserved for his private conversation. Grevy exercised great influence over some of the ministers who held office under him ; but he was often unlucky in advising or accepting the selection of some particular politician for office. He initiated or favoured a variety of Republican coalitions, which proved absolutely unworkable, and when once some such coalition-ministry had been got together, he con- sidered his duty finished, and retired within himself, as it were, leaving everything henceforth to the hybrid team he had formed, making no effort, as he might have done, by a little timely intervention, to direct its course or to prevent it from parting company. He exaggerated the formula of Thiers's younger days, " The King reigns but does not govern " ; and, on various occasions, the strict and narrow constitutionalism within which he confined himself placed the bark of the Republic in jeopardy. It was then still a ship with a crew, certainly, but with no real pilot at the helm. It was, seemingly, the example of MacMahon's Presidency which induced Grevy to abstain so much from interference in great questions of State. Moreover, he was confronted by various 1 Detaille caught their contrasting attitudes very happily in his official painting of the presentation of new colours to the French army in 1880. GRl^VY'S PRESIDENCY difficulties. Although the Republican party now predominated, , it was divided in the Legislature into three distinct groups : [ the Left Centre, the Republican Left, and the Republican i Union. Dufaure may be taken as a personification of the first, Waddington as one of the second, while G;ambetta represented the third. It was in Gambetta's power to rally many members of the Republican Left to his own party, but he was at first quite unwilling to assume ministerial office, wishing apparently to see which way the wind might blow, and pre- ferring the position of President of the Chamber of Deputies, in which he exercised, without direct responsibility, the very greatest influence, becoming, indeed, like Morny under the Empire, the " power behind the throne," for this was before the days of M. Wilson's complete ascendancy at the Elysee. That Grevy was in some degree jealous of Gambetta's commanding position is quite certain, though most of the more or less trenchant anecdotes on the subject may be regarded as apocrjrphal. Grevy's views, also, were more moderate than Gambetta's at this stage, and he therefore entrusted the forma- tion of his First Ministry to M. Waddington, a somewhat Conservative Republican of English origin, and one who on that account, and in connection with his management of French foreign aflairs and his position at one time as Am- bassador in London, became suspect to many patriotic Parisians. There is not the slightest reason to believe, however, that he ever acted in any way contrary to the interests of France. Indeed, men of foreign origin like himself and Gambetta generally display a more fervent patriotism than others, in order that none may doubt their allegiance to the country which they have adopted, or where, by chance, they may have been bom and reared. That M. Waddington desired to see good relations prevailing between France and Great Britain was certainly the case ; but things which in these present entente cordiale days are regarded as only natural, were then looked upon as crimes. The position was difficult certainly. Serious trouble in Egypt had been impending ever since 1876, when Goschen and Joubert, acting for Great Britain and France, had inquired into the deplorable state of the Egyptian finances, consequent upon the reckless extravagance of Khedive Ismail, and also, in some degree, on the trouble with which Sir Samuel Baker 234 REPUBLICAN FRANCE and General Gordon had successively contended in the Soudan. At the Berlin Congress of 1878, following the Russo-Turkish War, Bismarck had hinted to Lord Beaconsfield that Great Britain should occupy Egypt. Waddington, then French Foreign Minister under Dufaure, stipulated, however, that the Congress should in no way discuss the Egyptian question, in which he held that France had a predominant interest, far exceeding that of any other power. That interest was, in some degree, of a sentimental character, but in the main it was financial, some dfi'l 20,000,000 of French capital being invested in Egypt. But Great Britain, apart from the large invest- ments of her own subjects and her purchase of Khedive Ismail's Suez Canal shares, had also certain strategical interests which were of the highest importance. The Suez Canal might be the work of France, but it was also " the short cut " to India, and it was therefore impossible for Great Britain to allow France to exercise unchecked control over Egypt on account of that country's financial liabilities. The question was, then, one for settlement between the two most inter- ested powers. The friendly advice which they first proffered to the Khedive was disregarded by him, and in 1879 after Waddington had become Grevy's first Prime Minister, Ismail had to abdicate and was succeeded by his son, Tewfik. An Anglo- French control of the Egyptian finances ensued — Sir C. Rivers Wilson and Mr. Eveljoi Baring (now Lord Cromer) acting on behalf of Great Britain, and M. de Blignieres on behalf of France. This course was fully approved by Gambetta, who regarded it as sound policy. It certainly seemed to promise well, for a time at all events. Those were, perhaps, the most important events that ensued in the sphere of foreign politics during Waddington's Adminis- tration. In home affairs, his Ministry was less successful. It secured an amnesty for some of the participators in the in- surrection of the Commune, and also the return of the Legisla- ture from Versailles to Paris, the Senate again meeting at the Luxembourg, and the Chamber at the Palais Bourbon, as in the days of the Second Empire ; but its policy, generally, was too moderate, too cautious, to please the parliamentary majority. It certainly tried to deal with the Education problem, an admittedly urgent one, but its attitude towards the amnesty question was regarded as being far from liberal. FERRY, THE CHURCH, AND EDUCATION 235 while it was attacked for its opposition both to elected muni- cipalities in the great French cities and to anything approach- ing genuine freedom of the press. Thus the Chamber of ; Deputies made little pretence of hiding the displeasure with ' which it regarded the Ministry's proceedings, and finally, in December 1879, it resigned. Grevy's Second Ministry was formed by M. de Freycinet, Gambetta's coadjutor during the Franco-German War.^ No member of the " Left Centre," that is, no Conservative Re- publican, figured in the new Administration, which was selected , exclusively from the "Republican Left." At the same time J some members of the Waddington Cabinet continued in office, notably Jules Ferry, the Minister of Public Instruction. We have spoken of him previously in reference to his connection with the Government of National Defence.^ An energetic and ambitious man, a lawyer by profession, he had first acquired popularity by denouncing Baron Haussmann's financial methods during the rebuilding of Paris, and secondly he had fallen into odium on account of the sufferings of the Parisians during the German Siege — he then being responsible for the rationing of the population. But his energy had been demonstrated at that time by the manner in which he had saved his colleagues from overthrow by a Red Republican insurrection (October 31, 1870) ; while later, had he been adequately seconded, he might, perhaps, have checked in some degree the rising of the Com- mune. Born in 1832, in Eastern France, Ferry was related by marriage to Colonel Charras, Senator Scheurer-Kestner and Charles Floquet, his wife being a granddaughter of Kestner, one of the largest and wealthiest manufacturers of chemical products in Europe. Freycinet's Cabinet secxu-ed the voting of an enlarged amnesty for the Communists (which enabled some thousands of them to rettnrn to France), and gave official sanction to the French National Fete of July 14, in commemoration of the taking of the Bastille in 1789 ; but in the sphere of home affairs it was Ferry's department which played the leading part. Gambetta's famous exclamation, "Clericalism, that is the enemy ! " ^ was not forgotten in those days. The intrigues and encroachments of the Church, its attempts to re-establish the * See ante, p. 25. ^ See ante, pp. 13, 14. ' See ante, p. 213. 236 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Temporal Power with the help of France, and at the risk of plunging that country into war with Germany and Italy, its efforts to restore a monarchy in France with exactly the same object in view, were ever present in men's minds ; and it had become evident that a permanent danger existed in the large share of control which the Church exercised over the educational system of the country. As long as it should continue to train thousands of children in the belief that a monarchy was prefer- able to a republic, that the latter regime was odious in the sight of God, who had commanded obedience to Kings and Princes, and that the first and paramount duty of every Christian was to restore the temporal power of the Papacy, there could be no real social peace in France. The Republican Government was not the aggressor, the attacks came from the Church and its royalist allies — the French Church, let us say, for Leo XIII. the new Pope was, in his shrewd way, already advising caution — and thus the steps which Ferry initiated were simply measures of defence. He began by securing the exclusion of members of the clergy from the Upper Council of Public Instruction, while a second measure reserved the right of granting university degrees to the State Faculties alone. But in attempting to reorganise the educational system gener- ally, he set forth in a clause of his proposals — one which became famous as V Article Sept — that " nobody should hence- forth be able to direct any public or private educational establishment of any kind, or even to exercise the teaching profession, if he belonged to any unauthorised religious associa- tions." This clause was directed chiefly against the Jesuits, who had been largely responsible for the clerical intrigues of recent years. The Chamber voted the stipulation, but the Senate rejected it (148 to 129; March 9, 1880), whereupon the Chamber, while accepting the position, adopted a resolution (324 to 155) calling upon the Government to enforce the laws which already existed against unauthorised religious communities. The Government complied with that resolution by issuing decrees which summoned the Jesuits to close their scholastic establishments, and granted the other unauthorised religious associations a delay of three months to solicit an authorisation to pursue their callings. When the time expired the Jesuits refused to obey, and were expelled from their establishments— FERRY, THE CHURCH AND EDUCATION 237 there being in Paris several exciting scenes, while fierce warfare was waged between the reactionary and the democratic news- papers, the whole tending to general perturbation. During the parliamentary recess, indeed, some of the Ministers became alarmed at their own energy, and attempted to negotiate with the Pope in order to secure the submission of the unauthorised orders to the laws of the country. Even Gambetta seems to have lent himself — in some degree — to this view, in spite of his vaunted anti-clericalism. He had one or two interviews with the Papal Nuncio, in part at the suggestion of his mistress, Leonie Leon, who, in spite of the irregularity of her life, professed great piety, and whom the Church did not hesitate to employ at this moment in accordance with its old-time practice of turning sexual weakness to account for its own benefit. In connection with the relations of France and the Papacy, Leonie Leon even made a journey to Rome, like some chosen Delilah of the Church, which wished to see its enemy Samson delivered into its power. That wish, however, what- ever hopes Mile. Leon may have entertained of her lover's eventual " conversion," was never realised. The negotiations with Leo XIII. fell through, chiefly because the more zealous Republicans disapproved of them, holding that certain proposed "declarations of obedience'" which the religious orders were to furnish, would never be truly acted upon ; and the Ministry, being divided on the question, decided to resign, and was replaced by one under Ferry himself (September 1880). A renewal of energy was then expected by the democrats, but the existing laws did not give the new Administration sufficient weapons against the religious orders, whose resistance, moreover, was largely upheld by judges of clerical proclivities, appointed under the Second Empire or in MacMahon's time, in such wise that although numerous communities were dissolved by force, they contrived to reorganise their establishments in one or another way. An agitation for suspending judicial irremovability and replacing notoriously anti-Republican judges by men prepared to accept the existing regime and its institutions, then sprang up, and was ultimately successful. But, none the less, thanks to the blunders or supineness of successive governments and legislatures, the religious orders contrived to escape their threatened fate, and the number of pupils in their schools steadily increased during REPUBLICAN FRANCE the ensuing ten years, whereupon it at last became urgent to revert, more energetically and more completely, however, to the policy which FeiTy had initiated, but which many of his contemporaries, although good Republicans, had shrunk from following. Throughout their campaign the Clericals had been largely aided by men like Jules Simon, who, in spite of the teachings of experience, still believed in the possibility of a cordial understanding between the Church and the Republic. Had Ferry's policy prevailed in his time, France might have been spared much unrest and danger, and the Church itself might have benefited by avoiding the eventual application of far more drastic measures. At the same time. Ferry achieved as Prime Minister some notable successes in the educational sphere. In 1881, ele- mentary education became gratuitous in France. About the same time also secular secondary education was established for girls. In other respects the Ministry was a most progressive one. It refused to authorise political clubs, but it gave France the right of public meeting without any of the governmental restrictions inherited from the Empire. In the same year, 1881, it established freedom of the press. Nobody henceforth had to secure an official permission to start a newspaper or to deposit a sum of money as a guarantee of the good behaviour of the intended print. The free circulation of newspapers and books without any hampering restrictions was also conceded ; and except in the case of libels on private individuals, it was decided that all press offences should be tried by jury, and that the plea of " being true in substance and in fact " should be admitted, together with evidence in support of it. Nevertheless, Jules Ferry remained unpopular. Slanders of one and another kind dogged his footsteps. A masterful man, conscious of his own ability, he was perhaps more inclined to domineer than to adopt conciliatory courses. His manners, moreover, lacked urbanity, and his personal appearance, with his long misshapen nose, which nature had intended to be aquiline, his flabby cheeks, and his bushy, mutton-chop whiskers, suggesting those of some waiter at a Boulevardian cafe, was scarcely prepossessing. But a far greater sin than any of those lay at his door. He was presumptuous enough to enlarge the territory of France by a bold coup de mam. His Foreign Minister was Barthelemy St. Hilaire, formerly TUNIS AND THE POWERS 239 secretary to Thiers.^ The storms at home seemed likely to have their counterpart in storms abroad. There was trouble between Turkey on the one hand and Greece and Montenegro on the other, in such wise that the everlasting Eastern question might become acute again at any moment. The position in Egypt was also becoming worse than ever, Arabi and other malcontents rising against the Khedive's authority, and ac- quiring a power which rapidly increased. French opinion remaining suspicious of England in those Egyptian matters, and English opinion being likewise suspicious of France, the resources of diplomacy were at times sorely taxed. But, so far as France was concerned, the more particular trouble was Tunis. It had been maturing for some years. The Bey, Mohamed es Sadok, having become financially involved like Khedive Ismail, though to a smaller extent, an international commission had been established and had found itself confronted by several rival claims emanating from French, British, and Italian subjects. In the midst of the disputes which ensued, and which were unduly embittered, perhaps, by the attitude of M. Roustan, the French agent in Tunis (who, however, it may be freely admitted, was wrongfully accused by wild writers like Henri Rochefort, of corrupt mercenary motives), some raids were made on Algerian territory by Tunisian tribesmen, where- upon, in spite of the Bey's appeals to Turkey, the French Government decided on immediate punishment, and despatched both military and naval expeditions with that design. The tribes were chastised, the town of Sfax was bombarded, and Tunis city occupied, the result being a treaty which placed the Bey's dominions under the protectorate of France. It is quite possible that Ferry would have absolutely annexed the Tunisian territory, had he remained much longer in office with the support of the Legislature. —^ He certainly felt that he had license and justification for what he did, notably by reason of the fact that Lord Salisbury had assured France, at the time of the Berlin Congress, that Great Britain was willing that she should take, in regard to! Tunis, whatever course might be necessitated by the interests of Algeria. Such, at least, was always the contention of Barthelemy St. Hilaire. But whatever compensations Great Britain might have offered to France, when intent herself on 1 See amU, p. 118. 240 REPUBLICAN FRANCE annexing Cyprus, there was another power to be considered — Italy, which had many colonists and considerable financial and commercial interests in Tunis. If the French coup de mam somewhat startled English public opinion, which was not in the secret of the gods, it quite infuriated the Italians, besides impelling Turkey to throw a force of nearly 20,000 men into the adjacent regency of Tripoli. The relations of Italy and France had been strained ever since the Franco-German War, when the former power, intent on securing Rome, had refrained from hastening to the help of the state to which she owed both Lombardy and Venetia. The Republic's foreign policy in the matter of protective commercial tariffs had further embittered the intercourse, and Italy's only friend appeared to be the German Empire, which had profited by her neutrality in 1870. For a time Italy followed, at a respectful distance, in the wake of the alliance of the three Emperors, established at Berlin in 1872, but she next dropped into a state of almost complete isolation, which, in or about 1879, became positively dangerous on account of the Italia irredenta agitation, which was fostered, regardless of the country's position, by extremists of the Garibaldian school. Count Andrassy, the Austrian Minister, was at last compelled, indeed, to warn the Italian Government that Austria would have to take measures for her self-protection if that agitation were not checked. The Italian Government replied (1879) that it was not responsible for the agitation, and in the exchange of views which ensued, the way was paved for the entry of Italy into an alliance with the two Empires of Central Europe — their formal compact with Russia having virtually come to an end by reason of the Russo-Turkish War, though on a few points the three Empires were still in agreement. Italy, then, was already drawing nearer to the central powers when the establish- ment of the French protectorate over Tunis impelled her to throw herself into their arms, in such wise that the famous Triple Alliance of Germany, Austria, and Italy, which still continues, was first signed in 1882.1 This, then was an early effect of " the Tunisian adventure." ^ It was renewed in 1887, and again in 1892. Originally the duration of the contract was limited to iive years, but in 1892 it was extended to a period often years, the next renewal having taken place in 1903. Another term of ten years was then agreed upon in such wise that the existing agreements should remain in force until 1912. The rdle of Italy in the alliance may TUNIS AND THE POWERS Ml On the other hand, it must be remembered that Italy was already and, to all appearance, irremediably estranged from France, and that although French abstention in regard to Tunis might have prevented Franco-Italian relations from becoming more bitter than they were — in which respect some risk had to be taken — it would certainly not have improved them in any degree whatever. This was fully recognised by Gambetta, who despaired of effecting any good understanding between the two states unless it were by some revolutionary or coercive means, and who, for some time, although not yet in office, exerted his secret power or influence to aid and abet the growth of a new Italian revolutionary party, which, he held, would place the young Kingdom in such a divided and distracted state that any intervention on its part in a new Franco-German War would become impossible.^ Gambetta's action in this respect well exemplifies what we previously wrote concerning the ultra-patriotism of Frenchmen of foreign origin. Gambetta, currently denounced by inimical French journalists as " the Genoese,'" even as Waddington was sneered at as "the Englishman," hesitated at nothing, however unscrupulous, in order to prevent the land of his forerunners from becoming a danger to the land of his birth. A man of old French ancestry, might have hesitated to adopt such devices as were practised^ by this scion of Liguria.^ The Triple Alliance was, as we have shown, the outcome of the Tunisian protectorate. But French opinion did not wait for that banding together of more or less hostile powers. France had virtually achieved her first conquest since her reverses in 1870, and Ferry was roundly denounced for it. He had waged war without declaring it, he had expended money without asking for it, he had annexed territory without authority to do so, all the talk of a protectorate being a mere blind. Briefly, the Minister was guilty of every crime, and it was necessary to depose him as soon as possible. It must be nowadays be more passive than active, but whatever right of withdrawal the three contracting parties may have reserved to themselves, it is unlikely that Italy would take the initiative of formally bringing the alliance to an end. (Statements of the Marquis Cappelli, ex-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Italy.) ' See La France et Vltalie, 1881-1889, by M. Billot, ex-French ambassador to the Italian Court, Paris, 1905. ^ Gambetta's father was a native of Celle-Ligure, near Savona, province of Genoa. £ 242 REPUBLICAN FRANCE remembered that little more than ten years had elapsed since the conclusion of peace with Germany. The idea of la Revanche still predominated in France, the danger of a new German invasion was still and ever present. There had been more than one war scare, the worst and most justified, in 1875, as we previously said ; and it was requisite that French statesmen should invariably observe great circumspection. The strength >^of France must not be frittered away in any rash colonial enterprises, it must remain entire, ever available, so as to contend with the great peril which might come, at any moment, from beyond the Vosges ! This was really the national sentiment, which provoked so much dissatisfaction with the Tunisian affair, and which proved so powerful a factor in preventing France, despite the views of some of her ablest statesmen, from co- operating with Great Britain in the occupation of Egypt. England became hated for her action in that respect, a terrible jealousy sprang up in the French heart, the jealousy of one who sees another doing a thing in which he would have liked to participate, but which is for him impossible, as he is forced to keep incessant watch and ward over a great peril, which the other, for his part, has no reason to fear. Looking back, while we can understand the feelings which swayed the French in regard to Tunis, we hold that there was some justification for Ferry's policy. It was bold, but it was scarcely rash. There was reason to believe both that the British Government would assent to it, and that Germany would regard it with equanimity. Those were still the days of Bismarck, who was unwilling to risk the loss of a single button from the tunic of a Pomeranian infantryman by meddling in any business in which Germany, according to his views, had no interest. The Mediterranean ambition of Germany is a growth of these latter days. From the French action in Tunis, more- over, Germany certainly derived some advantage, for it finally brought Italy into line with her and Austria, and, however defective the Italian army may then have been, Italy might none the less prove a factor of importance in the event either of a new war or of diplomatic complications in which Germany might be concerned. On the other hand, in return for Italy's accession to the alliance of the central powers, Germany gave nothing save expressions of sympathy in regard to Tunis. If any Italians imagined that the great Empire would arise to TUNIS AND THE POWERS drive France out of her new Protectorate, they were speedily undeceived. With respect to Great Britain, while she did not wish to see the Mediterranean become a French lake, she had no desire to make it an English one. Her chief concern was to keep the great waterway open. Her influence was at that time absolutely paramount in Morocco, thanks to the energy and acumen of Sir John Drummond Hay. Further, she held Gibraltar, Malta, and Cyprus, and she was drawing towards the occupation of Egypt. Thus she could well suffer Tunis to pass under the protectorate of France, provided that the private rights of her subjects were not infringed. There was naturally considerable diplomatic correspondence over the affair, and many years elapsed before all questions of general or private commercial rights were finally adjusted. Indeed, it was only in 1896 and 1897 that M. Hanotaux at last signed treaties with Italy and England, revising the Protectorate's commercial rigime. It may be added that the state of the country has vastly improved under French control. The Bey, Mohamed es Sadok, died in 1882, when his brother, Sidi Ali, succeeded him. All's son, Mohamed, is now the titular sovereign. Since 1884, there has always been a surplus of receipts over expenditure, and yet the ports of Tunis, Bizerta, Susa, and Sfax have been greatly improved, while various railways have been constructed and many roads laid out. Again, extensive plantations of vines and olive-trees have been made, schools have been built, and an extensive trade in phosphates has been developed. France, which rebuked Ferry for his rashness over the Tunisian affair, now regards her protectorate with pride. Ferry was well aware of his unpopularity. General elections were due that year, 1881, and it was the Minister's declared intention to resign directly the new Legislature assembled. The position in regard to home politics was somewhat critical, as Gambetta particularly desired to modify the electoral system then in force. By this system each constituency or division of a department elected its particular deputy ; and in lieu of this Gambetta wished to establish so-called " list-voting," that is' to say, if a department were entitled to elect ten deputies, each elector of that department would be entitled to vote for ten candidates, as had been the case at the election of the National Assembly in 1871, when, indeed, list-voting was put in force. 24.4 REPUBLICAN FRANCE It was thought that in certain directions the votes of the towns would swamp those of the rural districts, and this, it was held, would be a distinct advantage for the Republican cause, as Republicanism predominated far more among townspeople than among the peasant classes. It was claimed also that the electoral machinery would be much simplified, and that expenses would be considerably lessened by the change. The truth appears to be that Gambetta desired it because, in the existing state of public opinion, it might favour the chances of candidates belonging to his own particular division of the Republican party, and that all the prattle about the enlighten- ment of the towns and the ignorance of the villages, and the dangers to which the latter might conduce, was a mere device for the occasion.^ Although Grevy held that the suggested change would be most unfair, Ferry was induced to bring forward a bill proposing it, and, thanks to Gambetta's support, the Chamber passed this bill in May, 1881. When, however, it came before the Senate, it was rejected, much to Gambetta's disgust. The elections took place in the autumn under the old system. Gambetta, accused on many sides of dictatorial designs, met with some very decided rebuffs in the more democratic divisions of Paris, and for a moment quite lost his temper. Nevertheless, he pinned his faith to the list-voting scheme, and toured Normandy in its favour. In many directions, however, the attempts made by himself or his partisans to exercise pressure on the electorate resulted disastrously. They tended, indeed, to encourage a belief in the great man's dictatorial ambition, and, broadly speaking, it was in those constituencies where the Gambettists were the less en Evidence that they achieved the most success. It must be frankly admitted that Gambetta overreached himself at this period. He had often stirred France to its depths by truly national appeals, but France hesitated to follow him when he appealed to it solely pro domo ma. He had become very corpulent at this time, aged already in a variety of ways, too fond of lingering at table after ^ Candidates were also to have had the privilege of offering themselves in as many departments as they pleased, and in the event of such a man as Gambetta doing so a veritable plebiscitum would have ensued. That was Bonapartist practice and did not commend itself to many Republicans, who were opposed to the excessive ascendancy of any one man. GAMBETTA AND LIST- VOTING 245 dijeurter, and far too partial to cigars. Miserably poor in his youth, he had not been able to resist the pleasures of the affluence he enjoyed as President of the Chamber. He was taunted with his cook, a celebrated chef, who had quitted the Duke de Noailles to enter his service ; and Henri Rochefort christened him " the Pasha," attacking his life, habits, appear- ance, manners, and policy with a bitter, biting verve which day by day became more and more merciless. It was, in a way, the eternal war between les gras et les maigres, Rochefort's leanness effectively contrasting with Gambetta's increasing rotundity. The famous journalist might well have remembered, however, that if, after his escape from New Caledonia, he had been able to emerge from exile in London and Switzerland, and return to France, it was largely by reason of the influence which Gambetta had exercised in promoting the amnesties in favour of the partisans of the Commune. Unfortunately, Henri Rochefort, with all his brilliant gifts, has proved himself to be the most "irresponsible" writer of his times. It may well be doubted if there has been a single public man in France whom he has not attacked or denounced in one or another fashion since he first began to write on political questions during the latter years of the Second Empire. He still survives, a shadow of his former self, and regarded by all sensible folk as undeserving of attention. However, he exercised real influence in Gambetta's time, and his attacks often proved detrimental to the Gambettist cause. The elections of 1881 showed that there was no danger of the ignorant and reactionary villages submerging the en- lightened and Republican towns, for only 90 Conservative — otherwise Royalist or Bonapartist — candidates were returned ; whereas the successful Republicans were 467 in number. But Gambetta's particular party, the Republican Union, only mustered 206 members, while there were 169 deputies of the Republican Left (from which Ferry's Ministry had been chiefly derived), 40 Conservative Republicans (Left Centre), and 46 Extreme Republicans — the last forming a new Radical party, which had adopted Gambetta's original but now discarded programme in favour of the separation of Church and States the abolition of the Senate, and the imposition of a progressive income tax. Under these circumstances it was anticipated that Gambetta, on taking office as he was expected to do, on 246 REPUBLICAN FRANCE account of Ferry's projected retirement, would form a ministry from his own party and the Republican Left, but on Leon Say and Freycinet declining to join him, he selected a cabinet solely from the Republican Union, to the exclusion of every other group. He did not ask Ferry to join him, for though they wei^e in agreement on many questions, the ex-Prime Minister might have proved somewhat of an incubus by reason of the Tunisian business. There was, indeed, no little trouble over Ferry's withdrawal. The new Chamber wished to censure him, but did not dare to do so, on account of Gambetta's influence. When the Tunisian adventure was discussed, some thirty conflicting resolutions were put and lost successively. The mere "order of the day," which Gambetta desired, was also rejected. At last, without either censuring or approving Ferry's policy, the Chamber decided to accept the situation which that policy had created, voting that it was resolved to execute in its entirety the (Tunisian) treaty which the French nation had subscribed on May 12, 1881. This compromise was effected by Gambetta's personal intervention. In adopting it, the Chamber ignored Ferry's so-called " crime " but accepted its fruits. The voting was as follows : there were 355 members for the resolution, and 68 against it, while 124 abstained from recording their opinions. It may be added that the resolution fully reflected Gambetta's views. He said in conversation at that time : " France cannot retreat, it would be pusillanimity to do so, and might even re-act on our position in Algeria. But France cannot go further than she has done. Italy still disputes the validity of the treaty. Turkey, as the Bey's nominal suzerain, protests against it, and there are 15,000 Turkish regulars in Tripoli. There must be, then, neither withdrawal nor annexation, but a protectorate only." CHAPTER IX "THE GREAT MINISTRY" — GAMBETTa's LAST YEARS AND DEATH The Members of Gambetta's Administration— The Newfoundland Dog and the Wrecker of Ministries— Gambetta and Art—" Senators " Coquelin and Meissonier — The French Navy — The Army : Campenon, Miribel, Boulanger, and Galliffet— A Host of Incompetent Generals— Foreign Affairs — Gambetta, the Prince of Orange, and the Prince of Wales — Gambetta's Travels — The new Position in Russia — France, England, and Egypt — The Bonapartists — Constitutional Revision and Gambetta's Fall — Mistakes of his Policy — ^The Second Freycinet Ministry — The Great Union G^n^rale Smash — The Schools and the Clerical Right of Entry — Freycinet and Egypt— The Franco-British Alliance — Gambetta's Last Speech — His Mother's Death— Triumph of the Anti-English PoUcy and Fail of Freycinet — The Duclerc Cabinet — Gambetta's Retreat at ViUe d'Avray — His Mistress, Leonie L^on, and her sad Story — Their projected Marriage— Gambetta's Accident— The Fatal Lunch— The Medical Treat- ment and the suggested Operation — Gambetta Dies — His Obsequies — Death of Chanzy — La Revanche Dead also. Aftee the rejection of the list-voting bill by the Senate in the summer of 1881, Gambetta had remarked : " I won't undertake to govern the country when the means of doing so are refused me. I am offered power but it is only to entrap me. Well, I won't be entrapped, I won't take power at all." Nevertheless, his assumption of office after the general elections had been generally foreseen. When the new Chamber met, he was at first re-elected to its Presidency, 317 votes being given in his favour, and, this support appearing adequate, he accepted the duty of forming an administration directly the Ferry Cabinet/ fell.^ In anticipation of the change, some foolish newspapers supporting him had repeated, ad nauseam, that the government he meant to constitute would be a really " Great Ministry," not only, indeed, one of "all the talents," but one including the ^ M. Henri Brisson then became President of the Chamber, securing 347 votes, or 30 more than Gambetta had obtained. 247 248 REPUBLICAN FRANCE most influential men of the chief Republican groups. This intention was defeated by the defection of Leon Say, Freycinet, and others, and although the much heralded name of " Great Ministry'" was immediately bestowed on the cabinet which Gambetta recruited among his immediate adherents, this was done simply in a spirit of derision, for the majority of the men who now suddenly stepped to the front were scarcely known to fame. The important Ministry of the Interior was assigned to a young Breton advocate and deputy, named Waldeck-Rousseau, whose father had been somewhat prominent during the Republic of 1848, but who personally had done little to distinguish him- self, except by pleading in matrimonial separation cases in the law-courts. Very energetic, but also extremely frigid and peremptory in his manners, Waldeck-Rousseau had few friends. Gambetta, however, had remarked his ability, notably in the parliamentary discussions on the irremovability of the judicial bench — the suspension of which was advocated by Waldeck- Rousseau, in order that the many Bonapartist and Royalist judges might be replaced by men loyal to the Constitution. As it happened, Waldeck-Rousseau had a great future before him, and though in later years he long deserted politics for the bar, he at last became Prime Minister of France, with the difficult task of pacifying the country after all the unrest it had suffered through the Dreyfus case and the intrigues of the Roman Church. The Ministry of Commerce and the Colonies in Gambetta's Ministry was assigned to M. Maurice Rouvier,^ who since then has repeatedly figured in the history of the Republic, and the Under-Secretary chosen for Rouvier's department was the son of a furniture-maker named Faure. Felix Faure, as this son was called, ultimately became President of the Republic. The new Minister of Justice was an advocate named Jules Cazot, subsequently President of the Court of Cassation ; his Under- Secretary of State being another advocate, Martin-Feuillee, who also rose to a high position. The post of Public Instruction and Worship was allotted to Paul Bert, who as a physiologist has left a distinguished name in science.^ Paul Bert's views on educational reform were sound, but, as he was a convinced freethinker, his appointment to the department of Worship as 1 Born at Aix, in Provence, in 1842. ^ He ultimately became French Resident in Indo-China and died at Hanoi In 1886. THE GREAT MINISTRY well as Education was tantamount to a formal declaration of war against the Roman Church. Cochery, who became Minister of Posts and Telegraphs and retained that office in various administrations, Raynal, who took the portfolio of Public Works, and Allain Targe, who secured that of Finances, were all men who figured prominently in politics and worked hard to consolidate the Republic — not men of the first flight certainly, nevertheless able and zealous functionaries. For the Ministry of Agriculture, Gambetta chose a certain M. Deves, who acquired no little celebrity of a somewhat amus- ing description at the time when the enfant terrible of the French Parliament, the man who held (and still holds) the record as an overthrower of ministers, was M. Clemenceau, now Premier of the Republic. If Clemenceau had always had his own way, the ministerial changes under the present rigime would have proved even more frequent than has been the case. But while he set himself the task of throwing one minister after another overboard, there was a deputy who made it his duty to plunge into the waves after the sinking man and to do his utmost to rescue him. This deputy was Deves, who thereby became known as the parliamentary " Newfoundland Dog." On several occasions he contrived to save one or another Administration threatened by the insatiable Clemenceau. A bom conciliator, ever expert in finding a via media, in devising a compromise when an absolutely hostile vote was impending, M. Deves, whatever his failings, had his merits also. He himself often held ministerial positions. Before Gambetta's time, the Department of Fine Arts had been invariably attached to some other Ministry and managed by an Under-Secretary of State, but the great man formally instituted a Ministry of Fine Arts and assigned it to his friend, M. Antonin Proust, the distinguished art critic. It may be said that Gambetta had a genuine love and a catholic apprecia- tion of art, with numerous close friends in the art world : Mercie, Jules Breton, Jean Paul Laurens, Falguiere, Philippe Bturty, Gustave Dore, and others. He fervently admired the work of Millet, and we can recall a very able article written by him for La R6publique Fram,<^aise in which he lauded "L'Angelus" to the skies. We remember, too, an interesting little speech of his extolling the work of Corot.'^ To Courbet's 1 It was delivered at Ville d'Avray on the occasion of the inauguration of a monument to Corot's memory. 250 REPUBLICAN FRANCE art he was less partial, saying of it, on one occasion, "The handiwork could not be better, but there is no sign of soul." However, Gambetta's interest in artistic matters was not confined to painting and sculpture.^ Theatrical art likewise appealed to him ; he formed a friendship with Mounet- Sully, and the elder Coquelin became one of his particular intimates. We do not think that Coquelin ever gave him any leqons de maintien such as the anecdotiers assert were given by Talma to Napoleon. In any case, if they were, Gambetta profited little by them. While it was the stage which attracted the statesman to the comedian, it was politics which attracted the comedian to the statesman. "Would Coquelin become a senator, and, if he did, would he some day succeed Grevy as President of the Republic ? " That was a question which amused Paris for many months, varied, however, at times, by another one : " Of Meissonier the painter and Coquelin the actor, which had the better chance of a senatorship ? " Meis- sonier's political ambition was perhaps more genuine than Coquelin's, but in neither case did success ensue. Meissonier had passed away, we think, before Leighton became a Peer of the United Kingdom with a right to vote in the House of Lords, a consummation which would have filled the painter of " 1805 " with the keenest envy. As for Coquelin, he, to the great advantage of the French stage, survived for many years, his death taking place in January, 1909. This digression has carried us from our subject — Gambetta's Ministry of Arts. It lasted some six weeks, when the legality of its creation merely by Presidential decree instead of by a Legislative decision was impugned in the Chamber by M. Ribot, whereupon suppression ensued. Let us now pass to the Ministry of Marine, which Gambetta allotted, not to an admiral, but to a ship's captain, Gougeard, an officer of merit and bravery, whose chief claim to distinc- tion, however, resided less in any services afloat than in those which he had rendered on land in 1870-71, with Chanzy's 1 There was an amusing affair at the Salon of 1879. A certain Mile. Salvini employed a sculptor named Granet to model a bust of Gambetta, which was cast in bronze and exhibited as her work under her artistic pseudonym of " Salvadio." It was huge, theatrical, and hideous, and when Gambetta saw it at the Salon, he at once requested the authorities to remove it, on the ground that it was a libellous presentment of his physiognomy. The request was at once acceded to, the law being entirely on his side. THEfGREAT MINISTRY 251 Army of the Loire. Gougeard, indeed, had figured con- spicuously and heroically at the great defeat of Le Mans.^ He had also this merit : he was a Republican, and there was really no Admiral of that time of whom the same might be said, most of those in office dating from the Second Empire. Indeed, although Republicanism now, at last, largely permeates the cadres of the French army, it has never penetrated to a similar degree among the naval officers. Various circumstances account for this. An extremely large proportion of the naval officers are of the Breton race, which clings to old-time ideals and the Catholic faith. The seaman, moreover, is usually more inclined to religion than is the landsman, and until recent years no real attempt was ever made in the French service to combat the superstitions engendered largely by the dangers of the seaman's calling. Chiefly educated, moreover, in establish- ments belonging to the religious orders, the young Frenchmen, sprigs of the Breton nobility and bourgeoisie, who took to the naval profession, carried their clerical training into the service, and thus, even under the most free-thinking of Marine Ministers, such, for instance, as M. Camille Pelletan, the navy was crowded with the most clerical of officers, men who solemnly dedicated their ships to the Sacred Heart of Jesus or the Blessed and Victorious St. Michael. But quite apart from ultra-religious tendencies, there was reason in Gambetta's time to doubt even the Republican allegiance of most of the naval officers ; and thus, in addition to Gougeard's practical ideas on navy reform, the soundness of his Republicanism commended him to the attention of Gambetta, though the latter was prepared to waive many points of political doctrine, and even to overlook the most reactionary antecedents among the men he appointed, with the object of securing the greatest practical efficiency in the army and the navy. His Minister of War was General Campenon, a tall and vigorous man, sixty-three years old, with brush-like hair and moustache, and a stentorian voice.^ A Staff Corps officer throughout his career, he was well versed in military organisa- tion. He had been for some time intimate with the Prime Minister, having been introduced to him by the latter's close 1 See ante, p. 20. ^ Jean Baptiste Campenon, born in 1819, had served in the Crimea, Algeria, Italy, China, and with the Army of Metz, 1870. 252 REPUBLICAN FRANCE friend, General Thoumas, the author of that authoritative work Les Ttansformations de VArmee franqaise. Under Campenon, the very important post of Chief of the Staff was given to General de Miribel, who had previously served in the same capacity under Rochebouet, at the time when MacMahon was said to have meditated a Coup d'Etat.^ For that reason, Miribel's reappointment raised a storm of protests among zealous Republicans. Some regarded it as a positive indication of Gambetta's dictatorial desires, others urged that it was at least a most unwise appointment, Miribel being a known reactionary. Even now, however, it is a matter of some doubt whether the selection of Miribel was really Gambetta's own personal act, for General Campenon publicly claimed all responsibility for it, and one of his biographers has asserted that he made it a positive condition of his own acceptance of office. On the other hand, several anecdotiers allege that Gambetta personally telegraphed for Miribel (who was then commanding some infantry at Lyons), and that, on certain friends pointing out to him the inadvisability of employing the general, he retorted : " I am going to take him, and perhaps I shall even make him my Minister of War." It has also been asserted more than once, that Miribel, on reaching Paris, consulted the Orleanist leader, the Duke de Broglie, before he would accept the proffered post. That he was an officer of high attainments is certain, but the brief duration of the Great Ministry prevented him from then effecting much in the way of army reorganisation. The passionate interest which Gambetta took in the army dated, of course, from his dictatorship in 1870, since when he had neglected no opportunity of cultivating an intercourse with prominent officers. He controlled, and often inspired, a widely read military journal, VArmee franqaise, edited by Edouard Taizon, an ex-officer and a native of Lorraine. His official functions also brought him into relations with military men. ' Marie Francois Joseph, Baron de Miribel, born September 14, 1831, at Montbonnot in the Isfere, was originally an artillery officer. A brigadier in 1875, he became a general of division in July 1880. He served at Sebastopol, Magenta, Solferino, and in Mexico, before becoming, in 1868, French military attach^ in Russia. He held an infantry command during the German Siege of Paris, and in 1877 was chief of the French mission at the German army manoeuvres. Rochebouet afterwards made him Chief of the Staff, as stated above. GAMBETTA AND THE ARMY 253 In 1880, at an entertainment which he gave as President of the Chamber of Deputies on the occasion of the presentation of new colours to the army, he delivered a patriotic little speech to some of the principal officers, who gathered round him in one of the smaller salons of his official residence. Among those present were Marshal Canrobert and Generals Chanzy, Campenon, Billot, Farre, Ferron, Forgemol, Lewal, and Galliffet. The text he took was "Malheureux, oui, traitres jamais ! " the reference being, of course, to the disasters of 1870 ; but, naturally, Gambetta's remarks did not apply to the specific case of Bazaine, whose trial and sentence he always regarded as the vindication of his own policy during the war- period. One young general, who first emerged from the crowd, as it were, during his Prime Ministership, was much disliked by him. This was Boulanger, whom Campenon selected for a mission to the United States at the time of the Centenary of American Independence. Boulanger had an excellent record, and had come to the front very rapidly, being made a general de brigade when only forty-three years old. Nevertheless, Gambetta did not like him, but remarked : " He has two eyes, and yet he never looks anybody in the face, whereas I always try to do so, though I have only one eye at my service." On the other hand, Gambetta conceived a genuine regard for Galliffet, whom he appointed to be a member of the Upper Council of the War Department, a nomination which, even more than Miribel's, excited the wrath of the extreme Radicals.^ " What ! the butcher of the Commune, the brute who had set old men, feeble women, and mere children against the wall of Pere Lachaise cemetery and shot them down, was being called to high office ! It was abominable ! " Loud were the protests of the Communists who, thanks to the amnesty, had retume^^ from exile. Sarcasm, irony, derision had been, hitherto, the chief weapons employed against Gambetta. Jovial "Reds" had lustily sung in chorus : — Le voila, Gambetta ! Ah, ah, ah ! ^ The other appointments to this Council were those of Marshal Can- robert, and Generals Chanzy, Gresley, Carteret-Tr&ourt, and Saussier. 254 REPUBLICAN FRANCE or else hummed a pastiche of the old-time ditty, "Dis-moi, soldat," beginning : — Permets, Leon^ permets qu'un camarade Qui te connut au vieux quartier Latin, Qui te connut maigre, et dans la pommade, Rappelle un temps oublie, c'est certain. Nous vivions deux dans la meme chambrette : Frisette, alors, en jouant la vertu. Nous adorait tous les deux en cachette — Dis-moi, Leon, dis-moi, t'en souviens-tu ? Mild banter of that kind no longer sufficed, however. The only muse that now celebrated the whilom "great tribune" was, frankly, la muse obscene, and sarcasm was followed by damnatory invective. The circumstance that Canrobert, " the bombarder of the Boulevards'" at Louis Napoleon's Coup d'Etat, was chosen as one of Galliffefs colleagues, increased the exasperation of the Faubourgs. But Gambetta remained unmoved. He defended Galliffet, even vouching in private conversation for the general's Republicanism, and declaring that his only ambition was " to retake Strasburg and to see a statue of himself erected there." It is well known that M. de GalliiFet^ rendered great services to the French army both during Gambetta's ministry and afterwards, becoming, as it were, a kind of grand-master of the cavalry as well as an inspector-general of high capacity. He prevented the undue promotion, or secured the retirement of many undeserving officers. His letters to Gambetta, before the latter even became Prime Minister, were remarkable for the severe strictures they contained. According to M. de Galliffet, in or about 1880, there were but twenty-five really capable generals in the whole French army, and all the others ought to have been cashiered. General the Marquis d'Espeuilles was " an antiquated old fool and an idler," Arnaudeau was " so incapable as to be ridiculous," Grandin was " an imbecile, a bundle of indifference and scepticism in league with the enemies of the government," Carrelet, Sereville, and d'Elchingen ^ were of "great mediocrity," Latheulade, Montarby, Oudinot, de 1 For an account of his early career, etc., see our Court of the TuUeries, 18BS-1870. '' A grandson of Marshal Ney. He committed suicide in an empty house to avoid a prosecution similar to proceedings taken against various officers in Germany in 1907-8. GAMBETTA AND THE ARMY 255 Dampierre, Feline, and de la Rochere were " very bad," while de Quelen was " archi-bad." As for General L'Hotte, he was of " the old style, opposed to all progress," and Colonel (later General) Kaulbars, the Russian representative at the French manoeuvres, had been struck by "the limited range of his intelligence." Many other generals of division were "as weak as could be " ; and, it was added, the foreign officers present at the manoeuvres openly vented "their astonishment at the physical, moral, and intellectual incapacity of the heads of the French army ! " Some ten years later, in 1890, M. de Galliffet expressed, through the medium of M. Joseph Reinach, very similar opinions on several generals then in command. We do not say that he has always been infallible in such matters, but events have frequently confirmed his dicta.^ Still, it must not be forgotten that the Miribel and Galliffet appointments weakened Gambetta's Cabinet politically, deprived it of a good deal of Republican support, for the loss of which there was no such compensation as the adhesion of the more liberally inclined Conservatives, for, when the day of reckoning came in the Legislature, the Bonapartists and Royalists voted to a man for Gambetta's overthrow. He, himself, in addition to the Premiership, took the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. He was, of course, without diplomatic training, but during the war of 1870, when M. de Chaudordy directed the Foreign Department of the National Defence Delegation, he had had some personal intercourse, at Tours, with the representatives of the Powers, notably with Lord Lyons. Afterwards, at Grevy's accession, when he acquired, as President of the Chamber,^ the influence of a ^ Admiral Courbet, one of the best French naval officers of the Third Republic, also wrote very severely of some of his colleagues, notably Clou^, Bergasse, and Peyron. 2 It must be said that he was not a good parliamentary President. He lacked Gravy's strict impartiality and composure. A somewhat noisy deputy in his day, addicted to interrupting other speakers, and careless whether his language were parliamentary or not, he visited, as President, the slightest offences with punishment which was often foolishly severe. It is true, of course, that the Bonapartists were extremely turbulent at times. On one occasion Gambetta had to send for the guard to remove Paul de Cassagnac from the Chamber. Another day, we remember, when he hastily took up a hat to put it on as a sign that the sitting was suspended until the uproar ceased, the hat proved to belong to one of the secretaries, and was of such huge dimensions that it descended over the President's nose, both to his confusion and to the intense amusement of the Chamber, which there- 256 REPUBLICAN FRANCE power behind the throne, exercising, as he himself put it, " la dictature de la persuasion," many ambassadors placed themselves in contact with him, meeting him not only more or less officially but also in semi-privacy, notably at the house of the Coimtess de Beaumont, Mme. de MacMahon's sister. With royalty, his personal acquaintance was very limited. Save, perhaps, on some official occasions, he only met, we think, a few Russian Grand Dukes, and a couple of heirs apparent. One of these, one, too, whom he speedily dropped on account of incompatibility of temperament, was Henry William, Prince of Orange — elder son of William III. of Holland — who, shut off from any healthy life in his native country, disgusted also with the parsimonious treatment meted out to himself and his younger brother by the old profligate — and, in that respect, prodigal — King their father, inheriting, moreover, a soup^on of insanity from his grandmother, the daughter of the Emperor Paul of Russia, infinitely preferred the life of a Parisian Boulevardier to that of Prince Royal of the Netherlands, and vowed that, even if his august parent should presently quit the scene, he should continue to reside in Paris, instead of retiu^ing home to reign over the land of dams, dykes, and Dutchmen. With a fairly good physique and a frank, open manner, this Prince with the sempiternal white hat and grey frock-coat, appealed to one, in spite of his waywardness, a good deal more than did some of the other royalties who then made Paris the home of their exile, such, for instance, as certain junior Neapolitan Bourbons, who frequented shady clubs and cheap restaurants, and often rode about atop of some omnibus at the cost of three half-pence per journey, because they could not borrow a cab fare. Yet some of them have survived to batten on unfortunate Spain, and to figure with all pomp and cere- mony at a ^£"30,000 wedding at Wood Norton, whereas the Prince of Orange, after taking his mistress to a fete at the Opera one night, when he was already ailing, contracted pneumonia and speedily died.^ upon ceased squabbling, its good humour having been restored by this comical incident. ' He had largely inherited his father's amorous nature. On one occasion an enraged Parisian husband accused his wife of lunching en tSte-cL-Ute with the Prince in a private room at the Caf6 d'Orsay. A scandalous "judicial separation " case ensued {Affaire Santerre, 1879-80). A quaint feature of the affair was that the husband, while waiting "to surprise the guilty GAMBETTA, DIPLOMACY, AND ROYALTY 257 Gambetta, as we have reason to know, was concerned at that demise, not that he had a favourable opinion of the Prince, but he knew that the latter's younger brother, Alexander, had but precarious health — indeed, he died in 1884 — and the question of the Dutch succession often made the French states- man thoughtful. Germany's ambition — her destiny, in her own opinion — lay westward. After Alsace would come Holland ; then Flanders, otherwise Belgium, that also being regarded as Germanic land, and with Flanders there would be Antwerp, of course. However, at the death of his elder son, William in. of Holland took a second wife, the Princess Emma of Waldeck-Pyrmont, by whom, in Gambetta's time, he already had a daughter, Wilhelmina, now Queen of Holland. It then seemed quite possible that this child might be followed by others.^ Gambetta's other acquaintance in royal spheres was the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII. They lunched together (perhaps more than once), and although, so far as we know. His Majesty's opinion of the French statesman has never been recorded, there is every reason to believe, without accepting any of the anecdotes textually, that Gambetta was, on his side, most favourably impressed by the sound views as well as the affability and friendly feeling for France of the Prince, who was then, in a sense, serving the requisite apprenticeship for a career of fruitful diplomacy. It was, by the way, the Prince of Wales who bestowed on the Prince of Orange, to whom we have just referred, that nickname of " Citron " which achieved so much popularity. The occasion, we have been told, was a lunch or dinner given by ex-Queen Isabella of Spain, at which Henry William, out of sorts that day, distinguished himself by the tartness of his remarks. " Mais ce n'est pas une orange, c'est un citron ! " the Prince of Wales exclaimed to the general amusement, and thus the nickname originated. Gambetta was not an untravelled man. In fact, he had couple," partook of a poulet chasseur. As one of the newspapers put it : " Othello thirsted for vengeance, Monsieur S. hungered for chicken." While he was partaking of it his wife made her escape, it was alleged, disguised in the white vest and trousers of a cook's assistant. It was often said in Paris that the Prince of Orange was not really the lady's lover, but, being a bachelor, took responsibihty on himself in order to screen another Prince who was a married man. Henry William died while the legal proceedings were in progress. 1 William III. of Holland survived till 1890, but left no other issue. 258 REPUBLICAN FRANCE travelled a good deal more than many French political leaders. We doubt if he ever made a stay of any length in Germany, and it is certain that he never met Bismarck, even if an interview between them was ever contemplated, which is, at least, a doubtful point. Again, they were never in direct correspondence. Some indirect communications appear to have passed through the medium of a French officer ; and it is true that an officious French wine merchant named Cheberry, a man of some position and wealth, who supplied Bismarck with burgundy, used to claim that he had conveyed messages from the French to the German statesman and vice versa. That is virtually all that can be said on the subject without launching into the dangerous sea of hypothesis. Gambetta's acquaintance with Germany dated from 1866, when he was acting as a junior secretary to Cremieux, the advocate. Clement Laurier^ was the latter''s principal secretary, and having to proceed to Constantinople in connection with the winding-up of Baron Stern's bank there, he took Gambetta with him. They passed through Germany and Austria, descended the Danube from Belgrade to the Black Sea, whence Constantinople was reached ; and their business finished, they returned home via the Archipelago, Athens, Naples, and Marseilles. All that was little more than globe-trotting, but it gave the future Minister of Foreign Affairs some idea of other countries. Again, he was in Italy on several occasions, his first visit to Rome being also made in Laurier's company. He made, too, a tour in Belgium, and visited Switzerland frequently. His travels in France were extensive. During the war and his political campaigns he gradually became acquainted with every part of the country, his journeys and speeches being even more numerous than those of Louis Napoleon when the restora- tion of the Empire was contemplated. Most of Gambetta's speeches in the provinces dealt with questions of home policy, for he laid it down as an axiom that while Frenchmen should always keep la Revanche in mind, they ought never to speak of it. On one occasion, however, at Cherbourg in August 1880, he gave rather more rein to his patriotic feelings than was prudent, thereby provoking both the strictures of the German press and the publication of a French brochure : Gambetta, c''est la Gtierre, which circulated far and wide. 1 See ante, p. 25. GAMBETTA'S ADMINISTRATION 269 On becoming, however, Minister for Foreign Aifairs in November 1881,^ he was intent on a pacific policy. The most important of recent European events had been the assassination, on March 18, of the Emperor Alexander II. of Russia by the Nihilists. Although that ruler had helped to prevent a fresh German invasion of France in 1875, he had remained more or less bound to Germany by various ties and sympathies. His son Alexander III. did not exhibit the same pro-German tendency, being more of a Slav in disposition and aspirations if not in blood, and having also as his consort a Danish Princess, who remembered Schleswig-Holstein. Such circum- stances were not unimportant factors in the general situation, and might have been turned to account by French Diplomacy. However, General Chanzy, then ambassador at St. Petersburg, threw up his post on account of Gambetta's religious and educational programme, and M. de Chaudordy was appointed in his stead. In like way, and for much the same reason, M. de St. Vallier resigned the Berlin embassy, and was replaced by Baron de Courcel. Such changes at Gambetta's accession to office were perhaps unfortunate ; still official Germany retained a purely observant attitude, and even the German newspapers put some restraint on their hostility. A matter of concern already at that time was the presence of many Russian Nihilist refugees in Switzerland, but this gave rise to no acute anxiety during Gambetta's administration. Trouble was already brewing, however, in or near the French possessions in the Far East, and the Tonquin question was soon to become acute. Nevertheless, Gambetta decided to make no move in that direction until a colonial army was formed. The most important affairs with which he had to deal concerned England and Egypt. There was, first the matter of a new Anglo-French Commercial Treaty which had been dragging on for some time past, the negotiations having been suspended at one moment owing to the insufficient concessions offered by France. They again failed, from the same cause, during Gambetta's Ministry. He showed himself, however, most anxious to co-operate with Great Britain in Egypt, and to prevent Turkish intervention there. In these matters, his ^ His friend Spuller (see ante, p. 2) becam? his Chef-de-cabinet, J. J. Weiss was appointed Director of Political Affairs, and young M. Arnaud de I'Ariege acted aS private secretary. 260 REPUBLICAN FRANCE conferences in Paris with Lord Lyons, and Challemel^Lacour's interviews in London with Earl Granville, resulted in the agreement of the two Powers. In home affairs, Gambetta was confronted by many difficulties. The Chamber gave his Cabinet a very frigid reception. Republican groups, jealous of one another, felt that they might now allow more rein to mutual dislike than they had done in the past, for Bonapartism seemed to be dead, and the Royalist prospects grew fainter daily. " The Republic has every luck," exclaimed the Duke de Broglie in the summer of 1879, when he heard that the young heir of the fallen Empire had been killed in Zululand, " the Imperial Prince is dead, and the Count de Chambord still lives on ! " By his cousin's death. Prince Napoleon Jerome became Head of the House of Bonaparte, but many Imperialists shrank from his leadership. He offended them grievously by writing an open letter in approval of Jules Ferry's decrees against the Jesuits and other religious orders in 1880. In the following year, Rouher, the whilom "Vice-Emperor," and since the war the chief Parliamentary leader of the Bonapartists, withdrew in disgust from public life, and it was in vain that Prince Napoleon issued manifestoes, his adherents gradually fell away from him, transferring their allegiance to his son, Prince Victor. If Gambetta's Ministry had lasted, it might, perhaps, have effected some remarkable changes, for, according to M. Joseph Reinach, among the reforms it intended to propose were several which were carried out by subsequent Cabinets and Chambers, but which could not be discussed in Gambetta's time owing to his speedy overthrow. The first thing which angered the Chamber was a circular issued by Waldeck-Rousseau to the Prefects, stating that all applications and recommendations for appointments and other favours must henceforth be transmitted by them to the Ministry. This interference with the influence which the deputies often brought to bear in such matters was deeply resented by them. The cry went up : " We told you so, this is the beginning of dictatorship ! " But it was Gambetta's campaign for the revision of the Constitution on certain specific lines which did most harm. He once more insisted on his list- voting scheme, and he wished to get rid of the irremovable senators,! and reduce the authority of the Senate in matters 1 See arnte, p. 193. GAMBETTA'S ADMINISTRATION 261 of finance to the same level as that of the House of Lords. Thereupon, his Administration became known as a "Ministere de Coup d'Etat," and was violently attacked, not only by the Royalist, Bonapartist, and Extreme Republican journals, but also by the organ of the ifilysee. La Paix, inspired by Wilson, and Lm France, behind which stood M. de Freycinet — that whilom coadjutor, whom Gambetta now contemptuously styled a nolonU in regard to strength of character, and a mere filter in regard to intelligence ! The struggle which took place amidst a severe financial crisis, of which we shall speak presently, was involved, but short and decisive. Briefly, there was some willingness to revise the Constitution, though not in the manner which Gambetta desired. Deputy Barodet of the Extreme Left proposed complete revision, and a Committee of the Chamber submitted a counter- proposal to Gambetta's. Barodet's suggestion having been rejected, and Andrieux, ex-Prefect of Police and Envoy in Spain, having spoken for the Committee's proposals, Gambetta defended his own scheme, protesting his patriotism and denying all dictatorial designs. But he was constantly interrupted, even laughed at by the deputies, and it became evident that his former hold over the majority was, at least temporarily, gone. Indeed, all the more advanced Republicans combined with the Bonapartists and Royalists to overthrow him, in such wise that he was defeated by 268 votes against 218 given in his favour. It follows that, counting from November 14, 1881, to January 26, 1882, the date of the hostile vote, Gambetta's long awaited Administration, of which such great things had been predicted and expected, lasted only seventy-three days. He destroyed himself, be committed political suicide, by his stubborn adherence to his list-voting policy — an adherence which became so wilful that he would listen to no arguments, though this policy was, in reality, the very negation of that doctrine of Opportunism which he had long preached. It is evident, indeed, that the opportune moment for an important Constitutional change has not arrived when parties are so divided respecting it ; and, as we shall show hereafter, when at the time of Boulanger's ascendancy a trial of list-voting was made, the consequences were such, that from that date onward, the bulk of the nation has remained opposed to any such system. Having destroyed his political power and much of his in- 262 REPUBLICAN FRANCE fluence also by his own wilfulness, Gambetta sent his resignation to Grevy, who could but accept it. In spite of the newspaper attacks inspired by his son-in-law, the President was not, we think, so hostile to Gambetta as some writers have contended. At any rate, he expressed in later years his regret that the Ministry had not lasted longer, for it had hoped to achieve great things, and many of its projects had his full approval. In any case, after Gambetta's overthrow, Grevy found himself in a sea of troubles. Although the Ministry fell so soon and accomplished so little, we have dwelt upon it because it marks an epoch in the Republic's history and is also one of the chief events in Gambetta's life. If failure resulted, this was largely because few, if any, men can be everything. A man may prove himself a great orator, as great as Mirabeau, he may also possess in even a greater degree than Danton the energy, the patriotism, the sacred flame, requisite in a nation's leader at time of deadly peril ; yet by reason precisely of his masterful nature, his predilection for command, he may be the most unsuitable chief for a liberty-loving democracy in time of peace. In matters of home-policy, Gambetta went too far in seeking to impose him- self on his contemporaries, in insisting on his own ideas to the exclusion of all others. And there were flaws also in his doctrine of Opportunism. We are reminded of the famous caricature of the period of the First Revolution, which showed a cook surrounded by the feathered denizens of the farmyard, of whom he inquired : " Now, my dears, with what sauce would you like to be eaten ? " " But we don't want to be eaten at all ! " was the reply. In Gambetta's case, he virtually exclaimed: " My dears, I promise you we won't eat you until there is a favourable opportunity to do so." Thus, although he cut off his ultra-democratic tail, tried to attract Society, and even won a few aristocratic military men and others to his side, his endeavours in that respect were mostly wasted. Those whom he sought to conciliate remained full of suspicion, while the old and tried Republicans protested against what seemed to them to be sheer apostasy. Again, although his exaltation of the army was inspired by genuine patriotism, and in accordance with the national aspirations — for la Revanche was still a leading feature of the country's creed — it yielded pernicious fruit. It was in his time that Paul De'roulede and others established the L^UNION G^N^RALE 263 notorious " League of Patriots," and from the excessive army- worship which was thus fostered, sprang, first, Boulanger, and in later years the vain-glorious men whose sabres clattered through the halls of justice, drowning for a while the voices of innocence and truth. On falling from power, Gambetta hastened to the Riviera, thence to Genoa. M. de Freycinet now again became Prime Minister, and assumed the direction of Foreign Affairs.^ At this moment Paris was in the throes of a severe financial crash. A banking house, called L'Union Ge'nerale, had been established there in 1876, with the object of furthering "the interests of all good Catholics," its original prospectus setting forth that the promotors had received for themselves and their enterprise "the special autograph blessing of our most Holy Father, Pope Leo XIII." Some members of the French aristocracy, including the Marquis de Biencourt and the Marquis de Ploeuc, a former Sub-Governor of the Bank of France, were at the head of the venture. Its capital was at first only £1 60,000, but on the transformation of the concern into a limited liability company in 1878, the capital was raised to a million sterling. M. de Ploeuc and others withdrew about this time, and the management was assumed by a man named Bontoux, originally an engineer, who had become manager of the Austrian Sudbahn, but had been ruined by the Viennese " Krach " in 1873. He afterwards came to France with introductions from the Count de Chambord, and wormed his way into Royalist society, securing also the support of some wealthy religious orders, which either purchased shares or deposited large sums of money with the Union Generale Bank. Devout folk of all ranks, from the highest to the lowest, did the same, even Pope Leo confiding ^£'120,000 to Bontoux for investment. The hope was that the Union Generale would become a great international Catholic machi/ne de guerre, which would destroy the Jewish financial autocracy through- out Europe, and provide both the Holy See and the Legitimist cause in several countries with the requisite sinews of war. The bank's capital was increased to two millions sterling in ' This was the Fifth Ministry of Gravy's Presidency. Freycinet's colleagues were L^on Say (Finances), Ferry (Education), Goblet (Interior and Worship), General BiUot (War), Admiral Jaur^guiberry (Marine), Varroy (Public Works), Tirard (Commerce), de Mahy (Agriculture), Cochery (Post OfBce), and Humbert (Justice). The last named was the father of the Humbert who married " La Grande Th^r^se," famous for her frauds. 264 REPUBLICAN FRANCE 1879, to four millions in April 1880, and to six millions in November 1881, there being successive issues of shares, which were offered at a premium of £1 in 1880 and of ^14 in 1881 — £9,0 being the face value. In the last-named year, the money on deposit at the bank amounted to about half a million, and the institution's gains were supposed to be enormous. At the Bourse the share price was ultimately forced up to £\9,0, or six times the face value. But Bontoux had been speculating recklessly. He had a branch house at Rome, he was financing the Brazilian railways, running the Bucharest Gas-Works, the Land Bank of Vienna and Pesth, and the Bohemian Railway Bank ; and on being attacked by financial rivals at the Paris Bourse, he only forced up and maintained the quotations for Union shares by buying them himself, in large quantities, through the medium of men of straw. His extraordinary operations were taken by Emile Zola as the text of the well-known novel UArgent. The crash which ultimately resulted — ^just as the Union was trying to float a loan for the Servian Government — proved terrific. Several members of the French nobility were quite ruined, others had to shut up their mansions and live in retirement for many years. Innumerable poor folk saw the savings of a life- time swept away ; while, as for his Holiness Leo XIII., he from that day forward would never invest a lira in any financial enterprise, but jealously hoarded the great bulk of the Peter's Pence at the Vatican. Bontoux and his acolyte Feder were arrested, and each was sentenced to five years' imprisonment. It is from that time that the rise of anti-Semitism in France may be dated ; for it was held that the great Catholic financial house had been crushed by the jealous Jews. It is true that various Jew financiers participated in the Bourse campaign by which Bontoux and his bank were overthrown, but the Union's most determined adversary, the man who so raked in the spoils as to add a second huge fortune to the one he already possessed, was a Protestant, a sugar-refiner named Lebaudy, whose lunatic son now wanders about the world, styling himself " Emperor of the Sahara." The second Freycinet Ministry soon found itself in difficulties. It included some able men, but they were ill- assorted. On assuming office, the Premier expressed his great deference for the Chamber, and it was agreed that all revision FREYCINET, GAMBETTA, AND EGYPT 265 of the Constitution should be adjourned. "Man does not live by politics alone," M. de Freycinet sententiously remarked ; " there are other matters requiring attention." Ferry, indeed, again dealt with educational questions, and compulsory elementary education in government and municipal schools became secular as well. Still the clergy were not entirely driven from those schools. The Conservative parties demanded on their behalf a right of entry daily, out of ordinary school- hours, for the purpose of imparting religious instruction, one deputy protesting that " schools without God would be schools against Him." Ferry, however, would only grant the clergy the right of entry on Sundays and Thursdays. In other State departments serious difficulties soon arose. For instance, Leon Say protested against the national extravagance, and particularly against the Prime Minister's huge schemes for Public Works ; the question of reforming the judicial bench also led to unpleasantness in the Cabinet ; while that of giving Paris a Chief Mayor resulted in general resignation, which Grevy, how- ever, would not accept. Thus the Administration lingered on, though matters went daily from bad to worse. There was some trouble in Algeria and with Spain over the depredations committed in Spanish African possessions by Bou Amema, a native leader who defied the French ; but far more serious events occurred in connection with Egypt. The Porte's despatch of Dervish Pasha to that country was followed by a massacre at Alexandria. The rebellious Arabi Pasha became momentarily supreme. A Conference of the Powers was agreed on, but when immediate action against Arabi became impera- tive, France refused to participate, and the British bombarded Alexandria (July 11, 1881) and landed troops on their own responsibility. The relations of the two countries suffered by the frequent irresolution and the sudden changes of attitude which Freycinet displayed during the affair. It was " first he would, and then he wouldn't," and so on alternately. The truth appears to be that he was afraid of acting in conjunction with England alone, and preferred to cling to " the European concert," which (in the form of the Conference of the Repre- sentatives of the six Great Powers, assembled at Constanti- nople^) had invited Turkey to restore order in Egypt. ' Great Britain was represented by Lord Dufferin and France by the Marquis de Noailles. 266 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Freycinet at last signed, however, an agreement with Great Britain for the protection of the Suez Canal, and on July 18 he applied to the Chamber for a vote of credit for the defence of certain French interests. It should be added that France then had two agents in Egypt, one of whom, the financial representative, M. de Blignieres, favoured co-operation with England, whereas the other, Baron de Ring, Consul-General, hated the English, and even encouraged Arabi's revolt. There was also a strong party in Paris hostile to any Franco-British alliance, and convinced that England might be kept out of Egypt, to the advantage of French interests, by playing off " the European concert " against perfidious Albion's ambition. One of the leaders of that party was M. Clemenceau. It had seven newspapers, some of large circulation, at its disposal.^ Further, in the Cabinet itself, M. de Freycinet was confronted by some more or less Anglophobist colleagues. On the vote of credit coming before the Chamber, the Ministry was attacked and co-operation with England was urged first by ^douard Lockroy (who had married Victor Hugo's daughter-in-law, the widow of his son Charles) and secondly by M. Francis Charmes, at that period a rising young politician.^ Freycinet replied that the Government preferred to acquaint all the Powers with its views and intentions, rather than take any action that might afterwards meet with international disapproval. In speaking, however, of the agree- ment between France and England for the protection of the Suez Canal, he suddenly grew energetic, and declared that France would do her duty, with or without the approbation of the other Powers. Thereupon Paul de Cassagnac, the Bona- partist firebrand, somewhat astonished by this sortie, exclaimed : " Don't play the braggart after acting the coward ! " — which interjection provoked a terrific uproar. However, Freycinet's declaration was a surprise to most members of the Chamber, though they warmly applauded it as soon as they had mastered their astonishment. " I know where I am going," the Prime Minister exclaimed, as he reached his peroration. " I am going forward with the English alliance, but at the same time treat- ^ Le Petit Journal (then 600,000 copies a day), Ulntransigeant (100,000), La Prance (35,000), Le Siicle (50,000), La Bataille (20,000), Le Radical (15,000), and La Justice (also about 15,000 copies per diem.) ^ He is now a Senator, an Academician, and Editor of the famous Revue des Deux Mondes. FREYCINET, GAMBETTA, AND EGYPT 267 ing the other Powers with all the consideration that is due to them. There is no occasion to boast of such a policy, but I trust that the country and the Legislature will recognise that it is inspired by wisdom and prudence.'" A little later, after the Royalist Duke de la Rochefoucauld- Bisaccia and M. Delafosse, a Bonapartist, had protested that they would not grant a sou for any Egyptian expedition, Gaixibetta suddenly appeared at the tribune. He began by declaring that he would vote the funds the Government applied for, though he deemed them insufficient. He disclaimed all desire to recriminate, and added : " You tell us that you have always borne the Anglo-French alliance in mind. I congratu- late you, for at one moment I trembled for the future. I give you all my applause, trusting you will firmly persevere in your new line of policy." Then, after deprecating Turkish inter- vention, and declaring that France and England, by a policy of mutual goodwill, might successfully cope with every possible difficulty, he referred to Germany's attitude, denouncing those who introduced Prince Bismarck's name into every controversy, as being over-suspicious. At last, having scouted the pre- tensions of Arabi and his adherents to be regarded as the National party of Egypt, he turned decisively to the question of the English Alliance. "Unfortunately," said he, "there are members of this Chamber who have deliberately entertained the idea of war with Great Britain. Without any true feelings of patriotism they have openly spoken of the possibility of such a conflict; and not merely have they spoken of it, but they have enlarged on it in print, in the columns of a scurrilous press, and if our neighboLU-s across the Channel had not sufficient common sense to treat such statements as they deserve, France might indeed be precipitated into a terrible adventure." "Gentlemen," Gambetta added, "when I con- sider the situation of Europe, I notice that during the last ten years there has always been a Western policy represented by France and England ; and allow me to say I know of no other alliance that is capable of proving of some assistance to us in the most terrible emergencies we have to fear. I say this with profound conviction, looking clearly into the future." That allusion stirred the Chamber deeply, for it seemed to imply that if France stood true to England, the latter would support her should Germany invade her territory. But after expressing 268 REPUBLICAN FRANCE how fervently he treasured the honour and glory of his country, Gambetta continued : " Ah, remember my words ! make any sacrifice rather than forego the friendship and alliance of England." And, lest his audience should imagine that he thought more of Great Britain than of his native country, he explained why both should co-operate in Egypt. " That,'" said he, "which most impels me to the English alliance, to joint co-operation in the Mediterranean and in Egypt, is — under- stand me plainly — my extreme fear that otherwise, in addition to causing a baleful rupture, you will hand over to England, and for ever, too, territories, rivers, and passages where we now have as much right as she has to live and trade. It is there- fore with no idea of humbling, lowering, or lessening French interests that I favour the English alliance, it is because I feel that those interests can only be efficaciously protected by that union and co-operation. If a rupture occurs all will be lost ! So, gentlemen, I will vote the funds that are asked of us. I will vote them because the Government tells us it has returned to the English alliance, and because it signed yesterday, on behalf of France, a new convention with Great Britain. I vote this money — I think it will prove insufficient — but I vote it, being convinced that in doing so the Chamber will not merely ratify a financial demand, but a line of future policy, signifying the maintenance of Anglo-French influence in the Mediter- ranean, the salvation of Egypt from Mohammedan fanaticism, from chimerical ideas of revolution, and the mad enterprises of an undisciplined soldiery. That is why I shall vote the funds, and why all my friends will vote with me." Such was the last speech Gambetta ever made, his legacy to France. That same afternoon, his mother died at St. Mande in the outskirts of Paris, and an hour after addressing the Chamber the afflicted statesman was wringing his hands beside her corpse.! The remains were removed to Nice and interred there. As for the result of the debate, in spite of a most virulent speech by the then Anglophobist Clemenceau, who denounced the English as wolves and birds of prey, as folk who " bled Egypt like vampires," ^ the funds which the Government solicited were granted by 340 to 66 votes. 1 She had come from the south on a visit, and was suddenly stricken with paralysis. ^ Long afterwards Clemenceau met Edward VII. at Marienbad. FREYCINET, GAMBETTA, AND EGYPT 269 But, once again, Freycinet hesitated, changed his mind, tacked now in this, now in that direction. So far, moreover, Turkey, which had been requested by the Constantinople Conference to intervene in Egypt, had not even recognised that Conference, and when it finally did so, and accepted the principle of intervention, it was too late for any such course to be taken, for Great Britain had now made up her mind to restore order herself and refused to make room for Turkish troops. Freycinet, on his side, was visited with due punish- ment for his pusillanimity. He at least wished to protect the Suez Canal, with or without British co-operation, but when, on July 29, he applied for a special credit in that respect, Clemenceau urged that it should not be granted, and the Ministry was overthrown by 416 out of 491 votes. Thus the policy of distrust and hatred of England prevailed through the weakness of the Prime Minister, whom the Chamber would have followed had he showed any energy — as witness the favourable vote of July 19 — and thus England became the sole protector of Egypt, to the intense chagrin of many Frenchmen, who repented of their folly when it was too late. President Grevy's Sixth Ministry now assumed office. The Premier was Duclerc,^ a former Vice-President of the National Assembly, who, after starting in life as a printer and journalist, had become an authority on financial questions, having often been consulted in that respect by Thiers and MacMahon. A financier was needed at the head of French affairs at that moment, for the national expenditure perpetually increased, although there was a deficit of twenty-eight millions sterling. Duclerc, however, finally decided to place a colleague, M. Tirard, at the Finance Ministry, simply exercising some control over him.^ The foreign policy of the new Cabinet was chiefly directed towards the liquidation of affairs in Egypt, where Arabi and his partisans were finally overthrown by the British forces (Tel-el-Kebir, September 1882). About this time there was some improvement in the relations of France with the ' Charles Theodore Eugfene Duclerc, born at Bagnferes de Bigorre in 1812, died in Paris in 1888. ^ Freycinet's colleagues, Billot, Jaur^guiberry, de Mahy, and Cochery retained ofSce (see ante, footnote p. 263). Devfes became Minister of Justice. Other appointments were P. Legrand (Commerce), H^risson (Public Works), Duvaux (Education), and Armand Falliferes (Interior). We observe that the newspapers of the time described M. Falli^res as a B4publicain sana 4piMie. 270 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Vatican, to which Lefebvre de Behaine was appointed am- bassador. The Cabinet's home policy was largely of Gambettist tendencies — Gambetta himself being appointed President of the Commission on Army Recruiting. Trouble sprang up during the autumn. The Bonapartists became active, finally casting off their allegiance to Prince Napoleon, and rallying round his son Victor. Then came a series of riots at Lyons and Montceau-les- Mines, the former attended by explosions of dynamite, and prompted by a new school of revolutionaries, the Anarchists, among whose leaders in France was a Russian Nihilist, Prince Kropotkin, previously resident at Geneva. He was arrested towards the end of the year, tried with fifty others, and sentenced to five years' imprisonment. Early in December France lost two distinguished men, Louis Blanc, the historian of the First Revolution, and Lachaud, the advocate ; and public opinion was also concerned by the news of a curious accident which had befallen Gambetta on November 27. He had spent September at the Chateau des Crates in Switzerland, and after returning to France had betaken himself to a little place he owned on the slopes of Ville d'Avray. It was called Les Jardies, but it was not really Balzac's unfinished house of that name,^ being, indeed, simply one which the great novelist's gardener had occupied, and it was very small. Gam- betta had been attracted to Ville d'Avray by Lemerre the " Parnassian " publisher (who had purchased Corot's villa there), and the spot so charmed him, that already in 1878 he rented for a time a little house in the Rue de la Cote d'Argent. Later he purchased the gardener's house at Les Jardies, with some land, for about £1400. He added to the house a drawing-room roofed with zinc, and made a few other embellish- ments, but it remained an unhealthy place, being very badly drained. The great man stayed there for rest and relaxation, and also walking exercise, which Dr. Siredey, his medical man, had recommended. We met him more than once following some avenue that led through the adjacent woods. He was generally accompanied by young M. Arnaud de I'Ariege, his secretary, or else some friend. We never saw him in the company of his mistress Leonie Leon, though she often visited him at Les Jardies. 1 See Leon Gozlan's Balzac en Pmttoufles, and Balzac chsz hd. GAMBETTA AND MLLE. LfiON 271 Her father was a colonel in the French army, who became involved in some dishonourable affair during the Second Empire, and shot himself rather than face a court-martial. Two daughters were left, unprovided for and unprotected. The elder one was seduced and gave birth to a boy — in after years wrongly suspected to be Gambetta's son. The younger girl, L^onie, was likewise seduced, that is by a married function- ary of the Empire, whose employment she had entered as governess to his children. Her liaison with Gambetta origin- ated late in 1871 or early in 1872. He took a small flat for her in the Rue Bonaparte, Paris, and often visited her there. She was also frequently at his rooms in the Chaussee d'Antin. Judg- ing by his letters, he loved her fervently as well as passionately, and the time came when, feeling that he could not possibly live without her, he desired to make her his wife. She, how- ever, professing great piety, which was doubtless genuine, replied that if she was to be united to him, it must be by a religious marriage as well as the civil ceremony prescribed by law. On that matter, Gambetta found it impossible to meet her wishes. He might be, as he once put it, a devotee of Joan of Arc, but he was also a disciple of Voltaire, and his participation in a religious marriage would mean a denial of all that he had ever preached or practised. On her side. Mile. Leon held that a marriage without religious rites would leave all the stain of her past upon her, and that this stain could only be wiped away by a marriage sanctified by God. At the outset, however, she deprecated the idea of any marriage at all. She felt, very sensibly, that the whole story of her past might become public, and that Gambetta's position and prospects might thereby be irremediably damaged. She even suggested in one of her letters that his interests would be best served if he married Mile. Dosne, the sister of Mme. Thiers. We do not know if that suggestion was intended seriously. There are certainly many instances of ambitious or money-seeking young men marrying old women, and of old women choosing fresh -faced boys for their husbands. But Gambetta was no hobbledehoy, he was a man of forty, with a full-blooded Southern temperament, and had no idea of marry- ing any old woman whatever, even though she possessed the wealth, influence, and worth of character of Mile. Dosne. If Gambetta had desired to take a wife of mature years, he might 272 REPUBLICAN FRANCE have turned his attention to the widowed and statuesque Mme. Arnaud de TAriege, who, with wealth and a high position, still combined a far more prepossessing appearance than had ever fallen to the lot of Mile. Dosne. Besides, did not the news- papers again and again prophesy the Arnaud - Gambetta marriage ? And when the cultured and still charming Mme. • Edmond Adam had in her turn become a widow, was not her marriage with Gambetta frequently forecast by the quidnuncs? That seemed to them a very suitable match, for Mme. Adam was Gambetta's junior by two years. But no. Mile. Leon cannot have wished her lover to marry any lady who was still young or prepossessing. If she suggested Mile. Dosne, it may well have been because the latter was a woman of whom she could not possibly have become jealous. But, when all is said, there was no need for Gambetta to make either a wealthy or an influential match. Thanks to his own energy, his means became ample, and his influence enormous. Moreover, he had set his heart on marrying his mistress, who was certainly a captivating woman, and one, too, of some culture, if we may judge her by her letters. The battle over the question of a religious marriage continued, then, between them. She, who was devout and constantly frequented the clergy, necessarily had her father confessor, and it follows that she must have told him of the position. In her long resistance to her lover's proposal of a civil marriage only, she must have been guided, upheld by a powerful influence, for her letters show that she fully shared Gambetta's love, and she would not have found, we think, in herself alone, the strength to with- stand his suggestions. Behind the feverish little drama enacted by this man and woman there lurk many possibilities, probabili- ties even. Ah, what a victory for Rome and the Holy Cause, if only the proud Dictator, he who had denounced the Church as the enemy, the real social peril, had been forced to humble himself before the altar, and receive the nuptial benediction from one of those God-fearing priests, whom he had so blasphemously attacked ! There are indications that the contest between Gambetta and Leonie had ended in the autumn of 1882, and that they had reached an agreement as to the form their marriage should assume. It seems evident that victory rested with the lover GAMBETTA'S LAST DAYS 273 and not with the Church. Matters might possibly have taken a different course if Mile. Leon had not already been Gambetta's mistress. Men consent to many things for the sake of attaining their heart's desire. At all events, the ;marrjage was resolved upon, and both Gambetta's father and his sister, Mme. Leris, acquiesced in it. On Monday, November 27, 1882, Leonie Leon was with Gambetta at Ville d'Avray. General Thoumas ^ called during the morning, but would not stay to dijeuner, as he had an invitation at Versailles. He went off, indeed, without seeing Mile. Leon, who was upstairs completing her toilet. Gambetta, left to himself, thought of indulging in a little revolver practice, as, indeed, had been his wont occasionally since his duel with Fortou in 1877. At this time his valet-de-chambre was no longer Francois Robelin, the Mobile guard of 1870, who, as an ex-soldier, had been accustomed to clean his master's weapons, and see that they were in proper condition. Francois had married, and a young fellow called Paul had lately entered Gambetta's service. It does not appear, however, that he ever attended to his employer's firearms, or even knew of their existence. That morning, then, on Gambetta taking a revolver with the intention of loading it, he found that one chamber had remained charged, and that the revolving breach was stiff. He wished to unload the chamber in question, and was using more pressure than was advisable to make the weapon act, when it suddenly went off, the bullet that had remained in it traversing that part of Gambetta's right hand which palmists call " the mount of Venus," and coming out a little above the wrist. The injured man was attended in the first instance by two local doctors, MM. Gille and Guerdat, and next by M. Lanne- longue, a very distinguished surgeon. His spirits remained good, he felt confident of recovery, read the newspapers, and repeatedly evinced an interest in political affairs. Indeed, the wound healed in a satisfactory manner, and although Gambetta experienced at times a " funny feeling " in the injured hand, he was soon able to use it. On the morning of December 8, he was apparently in a very favourable state, his temperature being 36"7 degrees (Centigrade), with a pulse of 72 beats. Owing, however, to his habit of body, and generally sluggish ' See ante, p. 252. 274 REPUBLICAN FRANCE condition at the time of the accident, the doctors ^ had hitherto kept him on a strict fluid diet, and as he now felt a craving for a nice lunch, he partook, it appears, of a boiled egg, half-a- dozen oysters, and a little woodcock. This repast, a mere nothing for a man in good health, proved fatal in Gambetta's case, owing to his general condition. Bad symptoms speedily developed. Professor Charcot saw him on December 10, and there was then already some talk of perityphlitis. On the 11th, the patient was much worse, but on the 13th he felt better, and insisted on leaving his bed. On the 16th, in the absence of the principal medical man, he even ordered a carriage, and wilfully drove out, catching cold, with the result that his temperature rose to 39 "6 degrees (Centigrade), and !that his pulse marked 88 beats. He was much worse that night, and Lannelongue and Siredey, who were sent for, found him vomiting and extremely feverish. Symptoms nowadays associated with appendicitis displayed themselves, but although there was much talk among the medical men, little or nothing was done by them. Lannelongue, who first divined the truth, wished to perform an operation, but his suggestion was rejected both on December 23 and December 28, when Charcot, Trelat, Verneuil, Siredey, Gille, and Fieuzal met him in consultation. They held that an operation would yield no favourable result, and yet if one had been performed at an early stage Gambetta's life might possibly have been saved, even as King Edward's was under somewhat similar circumstances. As it happened, the fatal course of the illness remained unchecked. There was now perforation of the intestines, albuminuria and erysipelas appeared, the temperature sank, the pulse quickened to 120, and milk with the admixture of a little kirsch was the only nourishment the patient could take. But at last, on December 31, he could retain nothing, neither brandy, rum, coffee, nor champagne, and he became so cold that hot-water bottles were freely applied to warm him. It was all in vain. He passed away only a few minutes before the year also expired. It was but the forty -fourth of his strenuous life.^ 1 There were several in attendance on him more or less at this time : Gille, Guerdat, Lannelongue, Siredey, Fieuzal, and two hospital house- surgeons, Berne and Martinet. '' The autopsy revealed traces of previous inflammation, which had con- GAMBETTA'S DEATH 275 The whole world was stirred by the news of that unexpected death. It was felt that a great man, a masterful man, had departed. Not a faultless man, certainly, but one who, in a short life, had accomplished great things, and of whom still greater things had been expected in the fulness of time. The French Royalists, Bonapartists, and Radical Extremists triumphed noisily and brutally, heedless of the spectacle which they thereby offered to astonished Europe. And the funds now rose at the Bourse, large orders pouring in from Germany and Austria, for the knell of Gambetta's death was also, in Germanic estimation, the knell of la Revanche. That view was, perhaps, a true one. The grief-stricken Leonie Leon, whom the great man was so soon to have married, fled from Ville d'Avray, bewailing her perished happiness, and hid herself in a garret in Paris, while the little house where her lover lay in the embrace of death was invaded by his mourning admirers and partisans. It was some time before Mme. Leris, Gambetta's sister, could discover Leonie's whereabouts, and press upon her the acceptance of some pecuniary help. Before long her young nephew, to whom Gambetta had been so much attached, died, while she herself for several years led a restless, roving life, in which she was incessantly pursued by the memory of the past. All honour was paid to the remains of the man who had not despaired of France in her blackest hour. For two days they lay in state at the Palais Bourbon ; then, on January 6, 1883, a procession two and a half miles long followed them to Pere Lachaise cemetery, where — prior to their removal to Nice, in accordance with the express instructions of Gambetta's father — they were provisionally deposited in a vault belonging to the city of Paris. And there a sack of earth was cast upon them : some of the soil of the lost Lorraine, sent stealthily from Metz, the covering bearing the inscription : Loiharingia memor, violata non domita. Those words were vain, however. France, at that moment, had lost not only Gambetta but also her chief captain, the best general that had led her forces in 1870, tracted the bowels, of purulent infiltrations and of a slight degree of peritonitis, which had supervened in the final stage of the illness. The report declared that an operation would only have hastened death, and Lannelongue, it must be admitted, signed it. If he subsequently expressed very different views it was, we presume, on account of the progress effected by surgical science. 276 REPUBLICAN FRANCE the appointed warden of her Eastern frontier, her destined commander in the struggle by which she hoped to recover her ravished provinces. For, two days before Gambetta's obsequies in Paris, Chanzy died at Chalons-sur-Mame. He was not yet sixty years of age. It seemed, then, as if the Berlinese speculators were right : Doubtless the idea of la Revanche was not yet dead, but the possibility of its realisation appeared to have departed. CHAPTER X jules fekry and the french colonial empire — the expulsion of the princes — boulanger and germany — the wilson scandal and gravy's fall A Napoleonic Manifesto — Gravy's Seventh Ministry : Falli^res — Thibaudin, the Princes, and the Army — Gravy's Eighth Ministry : Jules Ferry — His Programme — French Finances — Death of the Count de Chambord — The King of Spain and the Parisians — Ferry and Colonial Expansion — France in Africa — Madagascar and the French Protectorate — The Con- quest of Tonquin — The Retreat from Langson — Ferry's Fall — Gravy's Ninth Ministry : H. Brisson — Death of Victor Hugo — ]^mile Zola and Alphonse Daudet— The Elections of 1885— Gravy's Tenth Ministry: Freycinet — General Boulanger and his Career — The Count de Paris' Indiscretion and his Daughter's Marriage — The Expulsion of the Princes — Boulanger and the Duke d'Aumale — Grevy's Eleventh Ministry : Ren^ Goblet — Boulanger and Germany — The Dangerous Schnoebele Affair — Gravy's last Ministry : Maurice Rouvier — Boulanger at Clermont- Ferrand — " A Music Hall General " — ^The Great Decorations Scandal — Generals Caffarel and D'Andlau — Boulanger in Hot Water — M. Daniel Wilson implicated — Demand for Gravy's Resignation — The Two His- torical Nights— The President's Pitiful Fall. Gambetta's death was almost immediately followed by a Ministerial crisis, provoked by the action of the Bonapartist Pretender, Prince Napoleon, who, against the advice of his foremost supporters, issued a long manifesto to the nation. It was couched in short phrases in obvious imitation of the imperatoria brevitas of Napoleon I., and some of its contents were surprising, for although the Prince was a notorious Free- thinker he now posed as a champion of the Church, accusing the Government of atheistical persecution, besides charging it with cowardice and ineptitude in Egypt, and with serving the interests of private speculators in Tunis. This manifesto was placarded on the walls of Paris and other cities, as the Press 277 278 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Laws, indeed, allowed, but the Government arrested the Prince on the charge of infringing them, and obtained a vote of approval from the Chamber, to which it presently submitted a Bill to enable it to expel the various Pretenders from France should certain contingencies arise. M. Floquet, however, introduced another measure for their immediate expulsion, while deputies Ballue and Lockroy proposed the exclusion of all Princes from the army. Not to be beaten, Clemenceau's organ, La Justice, suggested that expulsion from the country should be extended to every great capitalist and Jewish financier. At this time opinion was greatly divided as to the propriety of expelling the Princes. Some deputies regarded that course as contrary to Republican principles, while others did not wish to give the Government carte blanche in such a matter. Confusion ensued, the more so as Prime Minister Duclerc fell ill and could no longer guide his colleagues. The result was the resignation of the Ministry, to which there succeeded one under M. Fallieres, who took charge of the department of Foreign Affairs.^ Two days later, however, while he was addressing the Chamber, he also was suddenly taken ill and fainted in the tribune. All sorts of rumours spread. Apoplexy and very serious mental trouble were talked of, but although M. Fallieres was removed from the scene for a short time, his vigorous constitution triumphed, and he then returned to public life, which led him at last to the Presidency of the Republic. However, all the weight of the debates on the expulsion of the Princes fell on M. Deves, now Minister of the Interior, and General Thibaudin, the Minister of War. Thibaudin ^ was an officer of some merit who had fought in Algeria and Italy, and under Bazaine in 1870 when he had also escaped from captivity in Germany, and commanded, under the assumed name of Comagny, a brigade of Bourbaki's Army of ithe East. The Chamber and the Senate being unable to come to any agreement on the expulsion question, the Fallieres Administration resigned, but Thibaudin retained office as Minister of War, for he had discovered that a law passed in the ' This was Gravy's Seventh Ministry. It included most of the members of the previous administration ; but General Billot and Admiral Jaur^guiberry withdrew like Duclerc, not, however, on account of illness, but because they were unwilling to act against the Orleans Princes. '' Jean Thibaudin, born in 1822 in the Ni^vre. FERRY'S SECOND CABINET 279 time of Louis Philippe (1834), would at least enable him to remove that King's son, the Duke d'Aumale, his grandson, the Duke de Chartres, and his great-grandson, the Duke d'Alenijon, from active service in the army. This, in spite of the protests of the Royalists, was effected by a decree at the advent of Jules Ferry's second Ministry (the eighth under Grevy), on February 21, 1883. As for Prince Napoleon, the Chamber of Indictments quashed the charge against him, holding that he had kept within the letter of the law in placarding his manifesto. Ferry's second Cabinet lasted till April 1885, and therefore proved the longest of this period of French history. Ferry himself at first took the portfolio for Education, but when failing health compelled Challemel-Lacour to abandon the department of Foreign Affairs, Ferry assumed charge of it. Waldeck - Rousseau now returned to the Interior, Raynal became Minister of Public Works, and Meline of Agriculture ^ — the last named, who rose to the Premiership in later years, being at that time a close personal friend of Ferry's, whose fortunes he followed with the object of advancing his own. They both sat in the Chamber for the department of the Vosges. It was under this Administration that the rivalry of the various sections of Republicans became most marked, much to the detriment of the regime's good name, and even of its prospects of survival. Those whom Ferry led were styled the Opportunists, their opponents being known as Radicals. The former, following Gambetta's later views, formed an authori- tarian but progressive party, with a programme limited to the completion of educational reform, certain alterations in the military recruiting system, the authorisation of trades' unions and syndicates, the conversion of the Rentes to alleviate financial pressure, the reorganisation of the judicial bench, and partial revision of the Constitution. The Radical Opposition, however, demanded an Income Tax, the separation of Church and State, and a thorough revision of the Constitutional Law. The rivalry of the two parties was embittered by all sorts of personal questions ; Ferry, in particular, being as much hated by his opponents as in the days of the Tunisian adventure. ' Other posts were allotted as follows : Martin Feuill^e, Justice ; Tirard, Finances ; Charles Brun and later Admiral Peyron, Marine ; Herisson, Commerce ; and Cochery, Post Office. F^lix Faure became Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies. 280 REPUBLICAN FRANCE The fact is that he was too proud, and too candid also in his expressions of opinion, besides leading a private life of close dignity and refusing to purchase support in any way whatever. All that displeased a good many people, but he was really a most able man, one of the few great statesmen the Third Republic has produced, and, in spite of all opposition, he and his colleagues secured the adoption of some important measures. Raynal, the Minister of Public Works, negotiated with the Railway Companies a convention applying to lines which covered 13,000 kilometres, and compelling the Companies to construct many which could yield very little revenue for several years, but which would open up neglected parts of France, and prove also of strategical importance. In return the Companies were guaranteed against compulsory State purchase of their under- takings. That purchase, however, was what the Radicals aimed at, and they roundly denounced the Convention. As regards the judicial bench, its irremovability was now suspended, and 500 anti-Republican judges or magistrates were removed from their posts. Again the Radicals protested, this time chiefly because extremists of their own party were not promoted to the vacancies. Further, Waldeck-Rousseau piloted through the Legislature a law authorising professional syndicates and trades' unions, and another inflicting the punishment of trans- portation on criminal recidivists, notably those of that degraded class, so numerous in Paris, which lived on unfortunate women. Further, a law was passed rendering all sittings of Municipal Councils public, and thus preventing both secret jobbery and intimidation. Another important measure adopted at this period (1884) was the Divorce Law, the demand for which had been increasing for several years. There had been no legislation of the kind since the restoration of the Bourbons in 1815, and only judicial separation could be obtained in the event of matrimonial un- happiness. The new Divorce Law was not initiated by the Ferry Cabinet, though the latter gave it support. The agita- tion in its favour had long been led by M. Alfred Naquet, a hunchback, but none the less a distinguished scientist and a very able politician.^ He at last proved successful in his endeavours, piloting the measure to port in spite of the greatest opposition. ^ Alfred Naquet, born at Carpentras in 1834, died 1907. FERRY'S SECOND CABINET 281 Less successful were the attempts of the Ferry Cabinet to bring about equality of military service among all classes of Frenchmen, for they were defeated in the Senate ; but a limited Revision of the Constitution was effected in August, 1884. It applied chiefly to the mode in which the Senate was recruited, providing, notably, that as each of the seventy-five irremovable Senators, hitherto elected by the Assembly, died off, he should be replaced by a Senator elected for the usual term by one or another department entitled to additional representation. The greatest conflicts between the Government and its opponents were those relating to the national finances and the colonial expeditions of that period. The finances were in a deplorable state, and loans frequently had to be floated. Tirard, the Finance Minister, seemed to have very little capacity for his post. However, the French Five per cent Rentes were converted into Four and a half per cents in April, 1883. It then appeared that there were over 1,800,000 titres de Rente of that class in existence, the amounts each titre represented varying from 2 to 4500 francs, and the great number for 2, 3, 5, 10, and 20 francs of Rente, indicating to what a huge extent the poorer classes of the community invested their savings in the National Funds.^ The colonial policy of Ferry's Administration was without doubt its principal feature, but as that policy led to the Cabinet's downfall it is more appropriate to glance first of all at some intervening events. In the early part of 1883 Paris was concerned by the news of the deaths of a number of notable people, both Frenchmen and foreigners. Gustave Dore, Wagner, Prince Gortschakoff, Louis Veuillot, the great clerical journalist, Karl Marx, and Abd-el-Kader passed away in turn. Then, about the end of June, the chief French Pretender, the Count de Chambord was suddenly taken ill, and by the middle of July was despaired of. During recent years he had been much interested in the struggle between the Roman Church and the Republic. In 1879 he had been approached by Mgr. Ferrata, a colleague and ultimately the successor of Czacky, the Papal Nuncio in Paris, on the subject of concentrating all the opposi- 1 We find that in 1886 the "Ledger of France" registered 1,195,280 titres de Rente bearing the holders' names, 209,583 " mixed " titres, that is, bearing the holders' names, but with blank coupons, and 2,118,329 titres to bearer. All the Rentes, 4i, 4, and 3 per cents, are included in the above figures. 282 REPUBLICAN FRANCE tion to the Republic on the pending religious questions — that is to say the French Royalists were to profess adherence to the Republic, and swell the ranks of its more Conservative adherents, in order both to prevent the Radicals from carrying out their designs upon the Church, and to obtain an entry into the Republican party with the view of undermining and overthrow- ing it. But the Count de Chambord would consent to no such tactics. He refused to authorise the adherence of his partisans to the Republic in any way or for any purpose, writing, indeed, in a most indignant strain to M. de Blacas respecting the Papal suggestions. One result of this affair was that in the ensuing year, 1880, Czacky, the Nuncio, approached Gambetta (through a clerical journalist who first saw Ranc on the subject), with the view of negotiating some understanding on clerical questions, in return for which Gambetta was to have received the support of Holy Church. However, these negotiations — in which, as previously mentioned. Mile. Leon afterwards figured — remained abortive. The illness of the Count de Chambord naturally revived the hopes of the Orleanists. The Count de Paris very properly proposed to pay his ailing relative a visit. But on hearing of this intention the Countess de Chambord, who detested the Orleanist Prince, telegraphed to ex-King Francis of Naples (for some years an exile in Paris) urging him to dissuade the Count de Paris from his journey. King Francis saw the Duke de Nemours — and, we think, M. Bocher, the Orleanist homme cC affaires — on the subject, and afterwards informed M. de Breze of what he had done. Nevertheless the Count de Paris started for Austria on July 2, 1883, and it became necessary to admit him to the patient's bedroom. He then renewed his declarations of allegiance, but this did not prevent him from being disinherited (at the instigation of the Countess de Chambord), so far as her husband's worldly possessions were concerned. These, when the uncrowned King of France died on August 23, went principally to the Count de Bardi, one of his Italian nephews. Moreover, Mme. de Chambord's vindictiveness was carried so far that when the Count de Paris wished to attend her husband's obsequies he was informed that the place of honour, that of chief mourner, would be taken by the aforesaid Italian Bourbon. Thus none of the Orleans Princes attended the funeral at Goritz, the Count de Bardi being simply escorted by ex-Duke Robert ALFONSO XII. OF SPAIN of Parma and three Spanish Bourbons : the Pretender Don Carlos, his father Don Juan, and his brother Don Alfonso.^ In this fashion did the representatives of Divine Right and Legitimacy visit the sins of Philippe l^galite and Louis Philippe, the usurping King of the French, on their descendants. Never- theless the Count de Paris promptly informed the world that he was now Head of the House of Bourbon. In September that same year King Alfonso XII. of Spain — father of the present sovereign — met with a very hostile reception in Paris. His government had lately signed a commercial treaty with Germany, and he had afterwards visited the old Kaiser at Berlin, accepting from him on that occasion the honorary colonelcy of a regiment of Uhlans stationed at Strasburg. The idea of his daring to visit France after that acceptance (for both " Uhlans " and " Strasburg " awoke the most painful memories of 1870) greatly angered the Parisians. That anger was fanned, moreover, not only by extremist journals, but even by those which M. Wilson, President Grevy's son-in- law, inspired. They declared, indeed, that the Government was divided on the subject of King Alfonso's reception, and that President Grevy was by no means anxious to meet him. There was truth in both of those statements, but it was a great political blunder that they should be made by the organs of the Elysee, for by oiFending King Alfonso the risk of oifending Kaiser William — and Bismarck also — was incurred. Apart from the Uhlan colonelcy affair, Alfonso XII. was a most unestimable man. His profligate tendencies, inherited from his dissolute mother, Isabella II., were the scandal of his reign. He has virtually passed into history as " Alfonso the Pacifier," and it is true that both the Carlists and the Republicans were subdued during his sovereignty, but that was the work of his ministers and generals, and he had no share in it personally, ^ We went to Goritz on that occasion (September 3, 1883). There was an imposing procession in which monks and friars figured conspicuously. The hearse was surmounted by a royal crown ; on its panels appeared the lilies of old France. There were many representatives of the French Royalists, including M. de Charette and some of his former Pontifical Zouaves with their banner of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. M. de Blacas bore on a cushion the collar of the Order of the Holy Ghost, of which, we think, the Count de Chambord was one of the last two members : the other being the Duke de Nemours, who had received it in childhood from Charles X. The Countess de Chambord did not long survive her husband. She passed away in the spring of 1886. 284 REPUBLICAN FRANCE preferring by far the gay life in which he was abetted by * grandee of his Court, and which so undermined his constitiition that when illness fell on him he promptly succumbed to it. At the same time it was impolitic to hoot him as the Parisians did when he arrived in Paris on Michaelmas Day 1883. Silence and indifference would have been a sufficient protest. As it happened, Grevy had to call at the Spanish embassy and tender the most humble apologies for the affront; and General Thibaudin, Minister of War, who, rather than participate in the King's reception, had feigned a sudden illness, was removed from his post and replaced by Campenon, Gambetta's former Minister. Even Wilson had to renounce officially the directorship of one of his newspapers, though he continued to inspire it suh rosa. Of course the President's apology and the removal of Thibaudin greatly angered the advanced Republicans, prompting them to yet fiercer attacks on the Government, regardless of the fact that its position in regard to foreign affairs was dangerous enough already. This was due chiefly to its policy of colonial expansion. It is difficult to find a parallel for Jules Ferry among English statesmen. Perhaps, however, Mr. Joseph Chamberlain most resembles him. Ferry was the friend of no country save his own. He strove for her advantage, her aggrandisement. His methods were not always impeccable ; he blundered at times, he was hasty at others. Although as a native of eastern France he could not possibly forget Alsace and Lorraine, he may have realised that a struggle on, the Rhine and the re-conquest of the lost provinces was more than his country could undertake in those days, how- ever great her desires might be in that respect. At all events he perceived that there were other fields for her to conquer, that opportunities presented themselves both in Africa and in Asia — opportunities which if missed might never occur again. His ambition to give France a colonial empire was quite legitimate and praiseworthy. If we were Frenchmen we should all think so ; and if the methods which Ferry employed were not always legitimate, but verged, indeed, at times on the unscrupulous, it is difficult for us to cast stones at him, that is, if we remember, as we should, the equivocal pages in ova own history. Ferry never held, we think, the post of Colonial Minister, nevertheless he really directed the policy of the department, and though he did not actually initiate the conquests and annexa- FRENCH COLONIAL EXPANSION 285 tions of France in tropical climates, he gave them all possible impetus and development. His policy clashed with that of Great Britain in more than one direction, and now and again there was no little friction between the two countries. But however much we may have been irritated (at times with just reason), it should be borne in mind that the policy of France's colonial expansion saved the civilised world from a stupendous calamity, that of a great European war, in which, under the circumstances of the time, several powers must necessarily have participated. As the years went by France found herself more and more involved in colonial expeditions and enterprises ; and these exercised a restraining influence on her politicians whenever the hatred of Germany flared up, threatening to precipitate a new struggle for Alsace-Lorraine. In Africa the activity of France was manifested on several points. At first, under the aegis of Faidherbe, and later, thanks to the campaigns of such ofiicers as Borgnis-Desbordes, Combes and Gallieni, the limits of Senegal were thrust back, the upper Niger was reached, and the territories now known as Senegambia and the French Soudan were subdued. All that was the labour of many years ; indeed the native ruler Samory, who so skilfully resisted the French, was not finally captured until 1898, but no little of the work of conquest belonged to Ferry's time. Again the hinterland of the French Ivory Coast possessions was secured — that ultimately resulting in the Dahomey war of 1892, which was foreseen long years previously. Then, from 1883 onward, there were the expeditions of Savorgnan de Brazza, Marche, and Ballay through the Gaboon and Congo countries, resulting in annexation on numerous points, much to the chagrin of the International African Association, which the King of the Belgians directed with the vigorous personal assistance of H. M. Stanley. The Congo rivalry led to some trouble already in the time of Ferry's Administration. In April 1884, however, he signed an agreement with Strauch, King Leopold's representa- tive, this being followed the ensuing year by an international congress at Berlin, by which, while the Independent Congo State under the Belgian sovereign's sway was called into being, the rights of France to her new possessions were formally recognised. Eastward of Africa, France had long contemplated, by virtue of some old and half-forgotten treaties, the establishment of 286 REPUBLICAN FRANCE a protectorate over Madagascar. She proceeded to enforce her claims in 1883, taking the first pretext which came to hand. Bad blood was engendered between B'rance and England on this occasion. The latter had important commercial interests in the island, but gross indignities were offered to British subjects, and a great deal of British property was wilfully destroyed by Admiral Pierre, who commanded the French expedition. The captain of a British war-vessel was insulted and derided, and the British consul, Mr. Pakenham, was im- peratively and inhumanly ordered to depart from Taraatave, though he was lying there extremely ill. He died as the result of the enforcement of that command. In Palmerston's days this would have led to immediate war, and the annihilation of France as a naval power. In 1883, however, England was under the sway of Gladstone's second Administration and seemed to be quite exhausted by her one effort in Egypt. A missionary named Shaw obtained an indemnity from the French, but in other respects they did virtually as they pleased. The Queen of Madagascar was compelled to submit, and in 1885 M. Le Myre de Vilers was installed in the island as Resident. Five years elapsed before the British would acknowledge the French protectorate, but at last the era of " graceful concessions " arrived, and in 1890 this protectorate was recognised by the Marquess of Salisbury. Then, at the expiration of five more years, the island was finally conquered and annexed by the French, whose navy at the time was in so deplorable a condition that for lack of transport ships of their own they had to hire suitable vessels from English firms.^ Without insisting on this subject of Madagascar, regard for the truth compels us to say that the Republic evinced great unscrupulousness in its policy both towards the natives and towards ourselves. In that respect, however, the French claimed that they had done no more than we had done on many similar occasions. Perhaps they were right. In any case Madagascar was at last added to the Colonial Empire of France. The Tonquin question, which became the most acute of all in Ferry's time, dated in reality from 1861 to 1867, when Napoleon 1 Jules Ferry desired to effect the absolute annexation of Madagascar already in 1885, and was only deterred from the attempt by the difficulty of making it at a time when the Tonquin War largely absorbed the naval resources of France. THE CONQUEST OF TONQUIN 287 III. conquered and annexed the southern part of Cochin China. It was inevitable that France should desire to extend her sway in this region, and establish direct communication with the southern Chinese provinces. There were originally some treaties both with Cambodia and Annam, but these did not suifice. In 1873 Jean Dupuis and Lieutenant Gamier explored the banks of the Songkoi or Red River, and the latter finally seized the town of Hanoi and the whole of the Tonquinese delta. The Annamite authorities, however, obtained the help of some of the " Black Flags " (a residue, it is said, of the Taeping insur- gents who were crushed by Gordon's " Ever Victorious Army "), and in an engagement with this band Garnier was killed. His annexations in Tonquin were restored to Annam on the latter signing a treaty opening up the Songkoi to France, and giving her the control of Annamite Foreign Affairs.^ China, however, claiming suzerainty over Annam, ultimately refused to recognise this treaty, and covertly employed the Black and Yellow Flag bands to resist all French enterprise in Tonquin, whither Annam's disregard of the treaty, at China's instigation, led to the despatch of a small force under Commander Henri Riviere, a naval officer, whose great literary gifts, resulting in the production of some remarkable novels and stories, had made him widely known in France. Riviere was besieged in Hanoi and slain on making a sortie, May 19 and 20, 1883. Ferry thereupon sent out Admiral Courbet with a squadron and 4000 troops, commanded by General Bouet, with or under whom were Generals Millot, Briere de I'lsle, and Negrier. Hanoi and Haiphong were reoccupied and fortified by the French. Sontay, Bacninh, and Hunghoa also fell into their hands. Briefly, progress was made in various directions both against the Annamite soldiery and the Black Flags and other Chinese irregulars who opposed the invasion. By a convention signed at Tientsin China at last renounced her suzerainty over Annam ; but in June 1884! a small French force found itself opposed at Bac-Le by some Chinese regulars, and Ferry's Cabinet there- upon adopted summary measures against the Celestial Empire. Admiral Courbet first bombarded Foochow, sank a score of Chinese vessels and destroyed the arsenal ; then he occupied Kelung on the island of Formosa (September 1884) ; next by ' This was during the Duke de Broglie's administration of French Foreign Affairs in 1874. The treaty was negotiated by M. Philastre. 288 REPUBLICAN FRANCE means of his torpedoes he sank five war-ships at the mouth of the Kiang or Blue River, and he was finally authorised to blockade all the Pechili coast and occupy the Pescadores. / * Meantime the French military forces, although they had been more than once well reinforced, only advanced through Tonquin with considerable difficulty. France (like ourselves on more than one occasion) had in the first instance underrated her adversaries, and public opinion was now greatly concerned respecting the duration and dangers of the enterprise. Both the Republican Extremists and the Royalists had attacked it from the outset ; but a much more serious symptom was the withdrawal of General Campenon from the War Ministry at the end of 1884. He had not initiated the Tonquin expedition nor had he really directed it ; that task having been assumed by the Minister of Marine. However, he wished it to be carried no farther, and proposed that the French occupation should be confined to the Tonquinese delta. Ferry's desires were very different, and so Campenon withdrew and was replaced by General Lewal, an officer known throughout European military circles by his writings on tactics.^ The Government was at this moment interpellated in the Chamber, and Ferry, after announcing that the operations would henceforth be directed by the War Office, denied that he had any intention of sending a military expedition to China — as the newspapers had rumoured — his only design being, he said, to blockade the coast of Pechili so as to compel China to carry out her engagements and refrain from abetting the resistance in Tonquin, the entire and absolute possession of which was claimed by France. In accordance with that view the French operations were directed towards the Chinese frontier of Yunnan, and Briere de Tlsle, now in chief command, ordered General de Negrier to advance upon Langson. That was done, there being a series of engage- ments in which the Chinese and Tonquinese were defeated ; but Negrier ultimately found himself opposed by an overwhelming force, and was compelled to evacuate Langson, closely followed by the enemy. In an engagement on March 28, 1885, he was somewhat seriously wounded, and had to yield the command of his little corps to Lieutenant-Colonel Herbinger. The Chinese had been beaten back in the fight ; nevertheless Herbinger precipitated the French retreat, which continued in great dis- 1 Jules Louis Lewal, born In Paris, 1823. FALL OF JULES FERRY 289 order, guns and treasure being cast into a river so that the withdrawal of the troops might be accelerated. It was a serious repulse, that was all ; but just as some organs of the British press foolishly magnified every check to the British arms in South Africa into a "great disaster," so was the Langson affair magnified by the French Opposition journalists of 1885. There had been anxiety respecting Negrier's expedition for some little time past, and when its defeat became known the wildest rumours were circulated, a panic, with a fall of three francs in Rentes, ensuing at the Bourse, while the Ferry Cabinet was attacked on all sides. It had immediately given orders for large reinforcements to be sent to Tonquin — in addition to others which were already on their way — but when, on March 30, the Prime Minister, after officially notifying the Chamber of the position, applied for a supplementary credit of ,£8,000,000 he encountered the utmost hostility. Clemenceau led the attack in language of the greatest violence, followed by Ribot, who retained more self-possession, and in the result the Government was rapidly overthrown by 806 votes to 149 — the majority including the 86 Royalist and Bonapartist deputies. Great was the delight among Ferry's enemies. Le Figaro chronicled his fall in this choice language : " Beneath a storm of hootings, amid the contempt of his own majority, with his posterior kicked, M. Jules Ferry has passed away pitifully, wretchedly, like a bladder that bursts." The Government was accused of gross deception, of having long known the critical state of affairs in Tonquin, and of having concealed it. All it knew of the situation, however, was what it had learnt from its military and other representa- tives. It may have been somewhat unduly optimistic, but it had always sent out the reinforcements requested of it, and the chief responsibility undoubtedly rested not with the Cabinet at home but with those who were in authority on the scene of action. As for the pusillanimous fear of China which the Opposition encouraged in France, Ferry, at the moment of his downfall, actually held a first draft of a treaty which he was already negotiating with Pekin. He felt, however, that it was unwise to divulge it even for the purpose of saving his Ministry. Had he continued in office he had intended to exact from China both Formosa and the Pescadores, but the panic in Paris V 290 REPUBLICAN FRANCE prevented any such demand. A less onerous treaty was finally ratified in June that year ; and in September Annam submitted to the French. Nevertheless, some three months later there were French deputies who proposed the evacuation of Tonquin, and this ridiculous suggestion was only defeated by a majority of one vote. It may be added that throughout the Annamite- Tonquinese struggle Ferry was not unmindful of Siam and Burmah. He had designs on both, but the British intervened by conquering Upper Burmah in 1885-86. Siam then became a buffer State, but the French have since annexed some of her territory — so have the British — and in spite of all Conventions the Siamese situation remains unsatisfactory. The next Ministry, the ninth of Grevy's time, was formed by Henri Brisson — a genuine democratic Republican with a reputation for some austerity — who had lately acted as President of the Chamber. A native of Bourges he was at this time only fifty years of age. He took the Presidency of the Council and the Ministry of Justice, giving the portfolio of War to Campenon and that of Foreign Affairs to the inevitable Freycinet.i The first memorable event with which this Ministry was associated was the death of Victor Hugo on May 22, whereupon the Pantheon in Paris was withdrawn from Church control and restored to the destination it had received during the first Revolution as the resting-place of the great men of France. State obsequies also were decreed for the departed poet,^ and a procession three miles long marched through Paris behind the hearse. As at the funerals of Felicien David, Herold, and Gambetta, there were no religious rites, for Hugo, during his last illness, had refused "the ministrations of any priest of any religion whatever." He was, indeed, purely and simply a Deist. Born in 1802 he had been one of the great literary figures of the nineteenth century, one, too, who had exercised no little political influence, and whatever might have been the inferiority of his later work, his death was regarded as a national loss. He had long been a triton among the minnows, and no triton was left now that he was gone. France seemed to be without a 1 Other members of the Cabinet were : Allain Targ6, Interior ; Admiral Galiber, Marine ; Goblet, Education and Worship ; Clamageran, and later Sadi Carnot, Finances. The last-named became President of the Republic. ^ The Chamber at first shelved the question, greatly to the indignation of the public, but Gr^vy and Brisson took the law into their own hands. HUGO, DAUDET, ZOLA 291 great poet. There was, of course, the polished verse of Sully- Prudhomme, the severe and faultless phrasing of Here'dia, the rapt. Browning-like obscurity of Mallarme's young muse, the tearful poetry in prose of Fran9ois Coppee — but no sign of supreme greatness appeared in these or in any other poet. If the legitimate stage flourished it was no longer by the romantic drama in verse of Hugo's school, but by such productions as the younger Dumas, Victorien Sardou, and their disciples tendered. Fiction, moreover, was very different from what it had been in the old days of Notre Dame de Paris and Les Mis&rables. Gustave Flaubert and the Brothers Goncourt,^ proceeding from Balzac, had fostered the cult of the roman $ observation, and the robustness and outspokenness of Emile Zola^ strove for supremacy with that combination of irony and sentiment which distinguished the work of Alphonse Daudet. Above them, as a master of style, but known as a writer of short stories, not as a novelist, young Guy de Maupassant was rising fast. Born in the same year, 1840, both Daudet and Zola stood at the height of their reputation at the time of Hugo's death, and were then probably the most widely read of all French authors. Daudet had produced Jack in 1877, Le Nabob in 1878, Les Rois en Eocil in 1879, and Numa Roumestan in 1880. Zola, beginning his famous Rougon-Macquart series towards the close of the Second Empire, had already completed thirteen volumes of it, and was now writing the fourteenth, UCEuvre. UAssommovr, which made him famous, had been the great literary sensa- tion of MacMahon's Presidency. Its performance as a play had attended Grevy's accession. And since then there had come, inter alia. Nana (1880), Pot Bouilk (1882), and Germinal, which last, after serial publication in 1884, was issued as a volume shortly before Hugo's death. It stands in relation to Zola much as Les Misirables stands in relation to the great writer to whom Zola dedicated his youth, and who undoubtedly influenced his whole career, however vast may be the difference between their respective work. For something of the Romanticist ever lingered in Zola despite all his championship of Naturalism. From Hugo and his splendid obsequies the Parisians once 1 Edmond, the elder of them, was still alive and writing when Hugo died. ^ See our biography : Emile Zola, Novelist and Reformer, London, John Lane, 1904. 292 REPUBLICAN FRANCE more had to turn to politics. Gambetta, as we know, had failed with his list-voting scheme but he had bequeathed it to his followers, some of whom still hankered for it, and at last after many postponements and much hesitation it became law in June 1885. We shall see the result hereafter. General elections ensued in the autumn, and the Republic suddenly found itself almost in jeopardy. The general dissatisfaction with the Tonquin affair and the state of industry, commerce, and the national finances chiefly influenced these elections, which showed surprising results compared with those of 1881. In that year the Republican candidates had polled 5,128,442 votes, now they obtained only 4,327,162. Again, the Royalist and Bonapartist nominees, who had secured 1,789,767 votes in 1881, now rejoiced in no fewer than 3,541,384. It should be said that they coalesced on this occasion, whereas at the first ballots the Republicans fought each other, there being rival Oppor- tunist and Radical lists on all sides. Great was the emotion when the first ballots showed that 176 Reactionaries and only 127 Republicans had been returned. Fortunately at the second ballots the Republicans sank their differences and closed their ranks, and as the elections of some 20 Monarchists were quashed for bribery and corruption, the Chamber ulti- mately consisted of about 180 Royalists and Bonapartists, and 400 Republicans. As, however, 180 of the latter were Radicals there seemed to be no stable majority. The necessary credits for the Tonquin war were only obtained with great difficulty, in fact, on one occasion, when the Cabinet applied for three millions sterling, only three-quarters of a million were granted. There was talk of financial retrenchment on every side, and as the winter approached yet greater commercial depression than before became manifest. It was amid these circumstances that Grevy's period of office having expiredj he was re-elected President of the Republic by 457 votes against 68 given to M. Brisson. The latter's Cabinet now retired. Freycinet formed the Tenth Ministry of Grevy's time. Its programme was conciliation between all Republicans, and a genuine attempt to re-establish financial equilibrium. Among the men who now came to the front were ^douard Lockroy, Victor Hugo's relative by marriage, who obtained the portfolio for Commerce, and Rene Goblet, a subsequent Radical Prime Minister, who secured that of Education. But the most BOULANGER'S EARLY CAREER 298 momentous appointment of all was that of General Boulanger as Minister of War.^ This had fateful consequences. Georges Ernest Jean Marie Boulanger was born at Rennes on April 29, 1837. His mother was an Englishwoman.^ Quit- ting the military school of St. Ayr in 1856 he joined the First Algerian "Tirailleurs" as a sub-lieutenant, and served in Kabylia under Marshal Randon. In the Italian War of 1859 he received a severe bullet wound in the chest at the engagement of Turbigo, for his gallantry on which occasion he was decorated with the Legion of Honour. He was afterwards in Cochin China, where he received a lance wound in the thigh. At the advent of the war of 1870 he became a Major, and in November that year a Lieutenant-Colonel. Serving under Ducrot during the Siege of Paris, he was again badly wounded — by a bullet in the shoulder — at the battle of Champigny, in spite of which he insisted on remaining in command of his regiment. Promotion to the rank of Officer of the Legion of Honour ensued, and in January 1871, Boulanger obtained a full colonelcy. He fought against the Commune, headed some of the first of the Versailles troops to enter the capital, and being yet again wounded, this time by a bullet in the left elbow, was solaced for that injury by promotion to a Commandership of the Legion of Honour. After the insurrection the military promotions accorded in war-time were iniquitously revised by order of the reactionary National Assembly, and Boulanger was thereupon reduced to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel, but in 1874 he again secured a colonelcy, and six years later became a General of Brigade — the youngest in the French army. After representing France in the United States at the Centenary of American Independence, he was appointed (May 1882) Director of the Infantry Depart- ment at the War Office, and busied himself particularly with such matters as military-school organisation and rifle practice. In 1884 he was made a General of Division, and appointed to the command of the forces of occupation in Tunis. 1 Other posts were allotted as follows : Sarrien, Interior ; Sadi Carnot (the future President), Finance ; Admiral Aube, Marine and Colonies ; Baihaut, Public Works ; Dem61e, Education ; Develle, Agriculture ; Granet (a friend of Boulanger's), Post Office. ''■ Her name was Mary Anne Webb Griffiths, and she was the daughter of a brewer and town-councillor of Brighton. Married in 1829 to Henri Boulanger, a notary of Rennes, she died in 1894, aged, it was then stated, 92 years. — Annual Register. 294 REPUBLICAN FRANCE So far, then, his record had been excellent, and on becoming Minister of War he speedily acquired popularity by his frequent comminatory declarations respecting those reactionary officers who openly vented their dislike for the Republic. His own Republicanism was only questioned by those who knew that while he was serving, a few years previously, with the Vllth Army Corps, under the Duke d'Aumale, he had conducted himself towards that Prince with the utmost obsequiousness. Grevy's second Presidency was inaugurated by a political amnesty, and Sadi Camot, the Minister of Finances, afterwards strove to secure some budgetary equilibrium by the issue of a new loan. No less than seventy millions sterling were actually required, but the Government's demand was restricted to fifty- eight millions. The Chamber, however, retorted by voting a loan for twenty. This was immediately covered several times over ; but the situation was in no wise improved by the foolish policy of the Legislature. A few months later France, previously moved to no small degree by the mysterious murder of M. Barreme, Prefect of the Eure, in a railway carriage,^ and by a miner's riot at Decazeville in the Aveyron, when an engineer named Watrin was murdered under circumstances of the utmost savagery, which confirmed the view taken in Germinal of the possibilities of human ferocity when men are goaded to revenge by the exactions and ill-treatment of capitalists — France, we say, was startled by an unexpected sensation. The Count de Paris, now Head of the House of Bourbon, was marrying his daughter, the Princess Marie Amelie, to Dom Carlos, Duke of Braganza and Crown Prince of Portugal. The marriage had been originally promoted by Mme. de La Ferronays nie Gibert, whom we have previously mentioned.^ At this time the Princess was in her twenty-first year, her Jianci being two years older. The mere fact of this marriage did not parti- cularly interest French Republicans, apart from its indication that a charming and accomplished young lady, who was more or less their compatriot,^ might some day become Queen of Portugal. But the indiscretion of her father, the Count de Paris, the least politic member of his family, one who, as a rule, ' Emile Zola's novel. La Bgte Hvmaine, was partly based on that affair. " See ante, pp. 182, 183. " Her mother was a Spanish Bourbon, and she was born in England— at Twickenham. EXPULSION OF THE PRINCES 295 only emerged from long periods of supineness to prove his latent energy by doing precisely the wrong thing, imparted to the occasion a character which was resented by the great majority of Frenchmen. That Royalist Committees should be formed in many regions to organise subscriptions for numerous beautiful presents to the bride, was only natural, but that her father, living in the midst of Republican France, should avail himself of this wedding to assert, even indirectly, his Kingly claims upon the country, was not to be tolerated. It was true that in October 1885, the Duke de Chartres, brother of the Count de Paris, on marrying his daughter to Prince Waldemar of Denmark, had given a sovree to the Royalist aristocracy at his residence in the Rue Jean Goujon, and that the Count de Paris, on the celebration of the religious ceremony at Eu, had received the Danish and other royal personages at the chateau there. But in all that no defiance had been offered to the Republic. Now, however, on the occasion of the Princess Amelie's wedding, which was to be celebrated at Lisbon, the Count de Paris not only gave a soiree cTadieu at his Paris resi- dence, the Hotel Galliera, in the Rue de Varennes, Faubourg St. Germain, — previously the home of the Duke and the benevolent Duchess of that name — but he sent invitations to all the Ambassadors of the great Powers, and all the Ministers of other States, as well as to the Royalist aristocracy. The Corps Diplomatique was amazed. Every embassy knew that this soirie was to be made a great Royalist demonstration, and the Count de Paris' indiscretion in inviting the representatives of the Foreign Powers was manifest. Were these representatives, duly accredited to the French Republic, to attend a ceremony designed for the glorification of one who now claimed to be King of France and Navarre .'' The answer was obvious. Not an Ambassador nor a Minister Plenipotentiary, save the Portuguese representative, attended the reception at the Hotel Galliera. Indeed, one ambassador, and not the least important, had no sooner received his invitation than he conveyed news of it to President Grevy. Thus the folly of the Count de Paris forced the Government of the Republic to take action. The Premier, M. de Freycinet, was a man of mild disposi- tion, and had he alone been concerned, nothing very serious might have ensued. But strong and immediate measures were urged on him by Clemenceau, who had already overthrown 296 REPUBLICAN FRANCE several ministries, and of whom, therefore, Freycinet was extremely afraid. Gr^vy realised that something had to be done, but owing to his intercourse with foreign Princes allied to the Houses of Bourbon and Orleans, he did not wish to carry matters to extremes. A permissive measure of expulsion in certain contingencies was again suggested by him, as had been the case on a former occasion. Clemenceau, however, prevailed so far that a bill for the immediate expulsion of the principal Princes was laid before the Chamber. A report by M. Camille Pelletan urged the expulsion of all Bourbons and Bonapartes, but eventually there came a compromise, suggested by M. Brousse, and the following enactment ensued.^ Clause I. — The territory of the French Republic is and remains forbidden to the heads of the families that have reigned over France and to their direct heirs by order of primogeniture. II. — The Government is authorised to expel any other member of those families by a decree passed by the Council of Ministers. III. — Whosoever, infringing this interdiction, may be found in France, Algeria, or the colonies, shall be punished with imprison- ment for a period of from two to five years. IV. — The members of the princely families who may be authorised to reside temporarily on the territory of the Republic, shall be excluded from all public functions. Freycinet spoke with great cleverness in dealing with the question before the Legislature. He pointed out that the heads of the Bourbon and Bonaparte families were fatally condemned to be and to remain Pretenders. Everything com- pelled it, their birth, their training, their entourage. The Expulsion Law was finally voted on June 22 (1886), and promulgated the next day, whereupon the Count de Paris betook himself with his family to England, Prince Napoleon to Switzerland, and his son. Prince Victor Bonaparte, to Belgium. On arriving at Dover the Count de Paris issued a proclamation declaring that a Monarchy was the most suitable government for France. In accordance with the fourth clause of the new law the Duke d'Aumale, the Duke de Chartres and the Duke d'Alen9on, who had previously been removed from active service, were now ^ In the Chamber it was adopted by a majority of 83 out of 547 members who voted ; in the Senate Clause I. was adopted by the small majority of IS, but at the final vote on the whole measure 141 members were for and 107 against it. Many RepuWicans refused, on principle, to vote a loi d'excepUon. EXPULSION OF THE PRINCES 297 struck out of the army list. Both Chartres and Alen9on vainly appealed to the Council of State, whilst Aumale addressed a letter of indignant protest to President Gr^vy. We notice that an able French writer of the Gambettist school, in dealing comparatively recently with this subject, remarks that the Duke d'Aumale's letter may be nowadays regarded with great indulgence, but that at the time it was penned it appeared extremely insolent. Such is our own opinion. It was, however, more the Duke d'Aumale's misfortune than his fault if he was drawn into this affair, and suffered by the indis- cretion of his relative. With respect to the part he played in the earlier years of the present regime he certainly helped to effect the downfall of Thiers, but in spite of many solicitations and various opportunities he made no attempt to overthrow the Republic. While he was Commander of the Vllth Army Corps at Besan9on he favoxired the Clerical party in that region, insisted on being addressed as " Monseigneur " and referred to as " Royal Highness," which was incompatible, no doubt, with Republican institutions. It was, however, virtually the utmost that could be urged against him. Although he was by far the ablest member of his family, he had, we think, no personal political ambition. He stood several degrees removed from all claim to the French Throne. Moreover, neither wife nor child was left him. Thus it was unfortunate that the removal of his name from the Army List should have been insisted upon ; his compulsory retirement from active service should have proved sufficient for the most zealous Republicans. But certainly his letter of protest was couched in such terms that it could not be overlooked in that hour of crisis. It was a pity that personal pride did not allow the Duke to bend to the storm. In the result he was expelled from France by virtue of Clause II. of the new law. Boulanger, as Minister of War, was soon interpellated on the subject. He replied by making a violent attack on the Duke d' Aumale, " a man who at twenty-one years of age, when knowing little or nothing, had nevertheless been made a general in the French army, simply because he was the son of a King ! " There was some truth in that ; and Boulanger, the youngest general of the Third Republic, had certainly seen a great deal more service than Aumale, and waited more than twice as many years, before attaining to the rank he held. The argument 298 REPUBLICAN FRANCE appealed to the Deputies, who, by 351 votes to 172, approved of the War Minister's declarations. Later, the Senate followed suit by 152 votes to 79 ; and it was resolved that Boulanger's speech to the Chamber should be printed and placarded throughout the 36,000 communes of France. Hitherto his name had been little known beyond a few coteries of politicians and specialists ; from that hour it became famous, or notorious, if that expression be preferred. To some people Boulanger's violent attack on the Duke d'Aumale seemed inexplicable, by reason of their earlier relations. But we were given to understand at the time that, as so often happens in France, it was all a question of cherchez la femme. At that moment Aumale was sixty-four years of age, but he was still very vigorous and energetic. He had been a widower since 1869, and some years prior to his expulsion from France in 1886, his name (as we mentioned once before) had been discreetly, yet in certain circles frequently coupled with that of one of the most charming actresses of the Comedie Fran^aise. Now Boulanger, who was fifteen years younger than the Duke d'Aumale, had cast his eyes in the same direction, but without the success he had expected, hide irae. That, of course, was prior to the General's well-known intrigue with Mme. de Bonnemains.' His attack on the Duke d'Aumale was followed by the publication of some of his obsequious letters to that Prince. He at first denied their authenticity, but was afterwards com- pelled to admit it. Yet in spite of such equivocal behaviour he remained the favourite, the hero, of the masses. When he appeared, mounted on a black charger, at the review at Longchamp, on the National Fete of July 14, he was acclaimed by a delirious multitude. France had found a man at last — ah, what a man, indeed ! During the autumn a bill was passed by the Chamber, excluding both male and female members of religious associa- tions from teaching in State or Municipal schools ; but some members of the Cabinet were not on good terms with the ' Her husband (whom she quitted for Boulanger), was the son of the General de Bonnemains, who commanded one of the divisions of cuirassiers at the battle of Worth. We met young M. de Bonnemains, a tall and hand- some man, on more than one occasion. We remember that he offered us for translation, on behalf of Guy de Maupassant, the latter's story Pierre et Jean ; we were unable, however, to undertake the work. GERMANY, FRANCE, AND BOULANGER 299 Parliamentary majority, and finally, on December 3, an adverse vote led to resignation. M. Rene Goblet formed the next Ministry, the eleventh of Grevy's time. The chief changes were that Freycinet and Carnot retired, and that Goblet took the portfolio of the Interior instead of that of Education, which was accepted by the eminent scientist Berthelot, while M. Dauphin became Minister of Finances, and M. Leopold Flourens, brother of Gustave Flourens of the Commune, Minister for Foreign Affairs. He proved one of the best and ablest men that ever served the Republic in that capacity, displaying under the most trying and dangerous circumstances a prudence and shrewdness which saved the world from another great war. Never were two brothers more unlike than M. Leopold Flourens and the headstrong and unfortunate Gustave. Boulanger, who still remained at the head of the army, had for some time past aroused the distrust of Germany. He had not only made various imprudent speeches, but had lent himself to the bellicose manifestations of the League of Patriots founded by Paul Deroulede, the poet-politician who had won celebrity by his Chants du Soldat. The German press, "the reptile press " of those days, which took its instructions from Prince Bismarck's acolytes, already denounced Boulanger as a danger to European peace, and early in 1887 troops were moved hither and thither in Alsace-Lorraine with so much fuss and publicity that it seemed as if a direct warning to France were intended. In February the Paris Bourse took alarm ; there was quite a panic, with a drop of three francs in the quotations for Rentes. The French Government was still at that period in great financial difficulties, nevertheless the Chambers promptly voted a credit of several millions for the army and navy ; and addi- tional resources being required, it was resolved to levy higher duties on foreign corn, cattle, and meat. At the same time, with a view to clearing the atmosphere, it was suggested by some politicians that the Prime Minister should make a pacific declaration, but he refused to do so, saying that his opinions were thoroughly well known. However, he was quite willing to forbid Boulanger to despatch any additional troops to the frontier, as he wished to do by way of replying to the German military movements in Alsace. The situation seemed to be improved in some degree. Ferdinand de Lesseps went on a semi-official or officious mission 300 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to Berlin, and the bellicose Boulanger lost a good deal of influence with the more moderate Republicans, owing to an impudent letter on military education and training which he addressed to a Parliamentary Committee, and afterwards tried to withdraw. But all at once a serious frontier incident caused general alarm. There was a Commissary of Police named Schnoebele attached to the railway station of Pagny-sur-Moselle. The German authorities, suspecting him of intercourse with some Alsatian malcontents and conspirators, had resolved to arrest him if he crossed the frontier. He did so, not, however, with any intention of plotting, but in response to a request from a German police-commissary named Gautsch, who wished to confer with him respecting some of the frontier regulations. Nevertheless on April 20, Schnoebele was arrested by German police-ofRcers and removed to Metz. To most French people this seemed direct provocation on the part of Germany, and for a moment the question of war or peace trembled in the balance. Boulanger and the Radical members of the Cabinet urged that an apology should be immediately demanded in terms tantamount to an ultimatum. But M. Flourens pointed out, with his usual good sense, that under the circumstances in which Schnoebele's arrest had taken place it could not possibly be maintained by any known principle of law. Nevertheless, disregarding Goblet's earlier prohibition, Boulanger now sent as secretly as possible some additional detachments of troops towards the frontier, and, remembering the intervention of Russia during the war scare of 1875, he addressed a letter either to the Russian Emperor (Alexander III.) or to his War Minister (there have been conflicting statements on that point) in which he solicited Russian help. Luckily, Boulanger having boasted of his action to a colleague, the missive was intercepted in the post by the order of M. Flourens ; and as it seemed certain that the incident would be speedily divulged, the latter, to prevent serious consequences, decided to acquaint the German Am- bassador in France with all particulars. He did so quite frankly, but at the same time pointed out that General Boulanger was alone responsible, and virtually threw him over. Thus Flourens saved the situation yet a second time. Finally M. Schnoebele was released, Bismarck issuing a diplomatic note which betrayed considerable embarrassment. GERMANY, FRANCE, AND BOULANGER 301 He also stated to M. Herbette, then French Ambassador at Berlin, that Schnoebele's arrest was justified by the fact that they, the Germans, had proof of his connivance with an Alsatian traitor, but that as he had ventured on German soil at the invitation of a German official that invitation was tantamount to a safe conduct and would be respected. Thus, M. Schnoebele having been released and transferred by the French authorities to Lyons, the incident, at one moment pregnant with fateful consequences, came to an end in spite of all the noisy demonstra- tions of the League of Patriots and the riotous protests which some extremists initiated against certain Wagner concerts in Paris. By this time it had become evident to many sincere and thoughtful Republicans as well as Royalists, that Boulanger was, indeed, a national danger. It was necessary to remove him from office whatever might be the anger of the mob. In the month of May an occasion at last presented itself. The estimates for the ensuing year were presented, and it was found that on an amount of 120 millions sterling the Government only proposed a saving of about ^800,000. This was regarded as ridiculous, and 165 Conservatives combined with 110 Re- publicans to overthrow the Ministry. The Boulanger question largely influenced that vote. Now came the Twelfth and last Administration formed under Grevy's Presidency. The extremists made a desperate effort to maintain Boulanger in office. Day by day Clemenceau in La Justice, Rochefort in Ulntransigeant, Lalou or Laur in La France proclaimed that it would be treason to the country to remove le brave gin^ral from the Ministry of War.'^ How- ever, after Grevy had vainly sought a Prime Minister in Deves, Duclerc, his favourite Freycinet, and Floquet, now President of the Chamber, he had to fall back on M. Maurice Rouvier,^ who, disregarding all journalistic fulminations, formed a Cabinet from which Boulanger was excluded. May 30, 1887. Rouvier took with the Premiership the then extremely important post of Minister of Finances. He kept Flourens as Foreign Minister, and secured Fallieres for Home Afiairs, Mazeau for Justice, 'Amidst this Ministerial crisis occurred the destruction of the Paris Op^ra Comique by fire, about 130 persons perishing in that terrible catastrophe. 2 See ante, p. 248. 302 REPUBLICAN FRANCE Spuller for Education and Worship, Dautresme for Commerce and Public Works, Barbe for Agriculture, and General Perron for War. The last - named waS grossly insulted by the extremists for presuming to accept office. Yet he was a very able officer, one whom Galliffet, that good judge of military merit, had particularly distinguished, and whom Campenon had taken as chief of his staff when Minister of War. Perron had chiefly seen service in Algeria, the Crimea, and the colonies, serving in New Caledonia during the Pranco-German War. He was more particularly known as an expert engineer-officer. He dealt fairly but fearlessly with Boulanger. The latter had sometim,e previously authorised the establishment of an Officers' Club in a building on the Place de rOpera, and he not infrequently visited it, there being a good many of his adherents among the members. Demonstrations in his favour were often made outside the club, and they became more and more tumultuous on his fall from power. Now the new Government did not desire to treat him with indignity. They acknowledged that he had a distinguished military record, and imputed to him no treasonable designs. Their chief fear was with respect to the consequences which might result from the " turbulent and tumultuous patriotism " which he so often displayed. Moreover, in connection with the trial at Leipzig of some Alsatian enthusiasts opposed to German rule, Paris witnessed a sensational meeting of the League of Patriots ; on which occasion Boulanger was acclaimed as the personification both of , the French army and of the war of revenge. It was there- fore resolved that he must not be allowed to remain in the capital, and that a safe post, one in which he would have the least opportunity of doing harm, must be found for him. It could not be called a disgrace as it was a high command, such as he had never exercised, but it was far away both from Paris and from the Vosges, being that of the Xlllth Army Corps at Clermont-Ferrand, the old capital of Auvergne. In order to prevent any unseemly demonstration at the National Fete of July 14, he was ordered to repair to his post before that date. He did so, quitting Paris on July 8, but his departure became the occasion of yet another great demonstration. Again, when the National Fete arrived with the customary review of the Army of Paris, President THE RISE OF BOULANGISM Grevy and Ferron, the War Minister, were grossly insulted both by ignorant and foolish patriots and by hirelings of the Monarchist parties, which, since the expulsion of the Princes, had decided on open war against the Republic. The Radicals, alarmed by the shouts of " A bas la Republique ! k has Grevy ! vive Boulanger ! c'est Boulanger qu'il nous faut ! " which assailed their ears that afternoon, began to repent of their infatuation, even Clemenceau declaring that the General must be kept in his place, while a very able Radical journalist, Sigismond Lacroix, started quite a campaign against him. Shortly afterwards Jules Ferry, emerging from his retire- ment, delivered a speech at Epinal in which he called Boulanger a ginSral de cafi concert^ this being an allusion to the various songs such as " En revenant de la Revue," which were sung in his honour by Paulus and others at the Paris music-halls. Boulanger challenged Ferry on account of that epithet, but no duel was fought as the seconds could not agree respecting the conditions. However, in September the Count de Paris issued yet another manifesto, one offering a kind of Napoleonic monarchy to France : this being a species of invitation to Boulanger, with whom the Pretender was already intriguing in spite of the General's share in the Law of Expulsion. Once again, too, public opinion was roused against Germany owing to an aifair in the Vosges, when a German forest-keeper shot a French sportsman named Brignon dead, and wounded another. However, Germany paid some compensation to Brignon's widow, and that scare subsided.^ But the next trouble which arose in France proved very serious. It was discovered that General Caffarel, Under-Chief of the Staff at the War Office, which post he owed to Boulanger, had been, for some time past, in close relations with an adven- turess named Limouzin, who undertook to procure " decorations " ^the Legion of Honour and foreign orders also — for all such persons that were willing to pay for them. Another officer, General Count d'Andlau (who was also a Senator), was like- 1 To avoid interrupting the continuity of our narrative, let us mention here that in October 1887 Great Britain and France arrived at arrangements respecting the New Hebrides and the neutrahty of the Suez Canal. In November the old 4i per cent Rente was reduced to 3 per cent. It may also be mentioned that soon after taking oifice M. Rouvier's Administration induced the Chamber to vote a law on compulsory mihtary service, by which the exemptions previously granted to seminarists were abolished (June 1887). 304 REPUBLICAN FRANCE wise implicated in this affair, as was, too, the famous, versatile and much -married Mme. Rattazzi, n6e Bonaparte -Wyse.^ Caffarel was brought before a military court of inquiry, which proposed in its report that he should be compulsorily retired for "offences against honour." Meanwhile, however, several journalists had repaired to Clermont Ferrand to interview Boulanger on the matter, on account of his earlier connection with Caffarel. He assured them that the whole affair was simply a manoeuvre directed against himself by his jealous successor. General Ferron. That assertion was reproduced in the press, together with others emanating from M. Francis Laur (the author of Un Amour de Gambetta), to whom, it appeared, Boulanger had declared that he might have made himself Dictator on two occasions already, once when he had been solicited to do so by nmety-four general ofBcers, and once at the request of the Monarchical Deputies and Senators. If that were so, however, why had the general not acquainted his ministerial colleagues with such treasonable proposals ? Failure to do so proved disloyalty. There are very good reasons, how- ever, for disbelieving the story about the ninety-four generals. For his remarks concerning his superior the Minister of War, Boulanger was ordered thirty days' close arrest. Some thought this too severe, others far from severe enough. Jules Ferry once more raised his voice, asking for a Government that could really govern, one that would finally extirpate Csesarism, and destroy every germ of that disease which, twice in a hundred years, had handed France over to dictatorship. But public attention was now again directed to the decorations scandal. In the proceedings against La Limouzin, General d'Andlau and Mme. Rattazzi,^ yet another person became implicated, and this time none other than M. Daniel Wilson, the son-in-law of the President of the Republic ! In his case, certain letters, seized among his papers, suddenly disappeared, others being substituted ' See our Court of the TuiUries. ^ They were condemned by default to imprisonment and fine. General d'Andlau fled to South America. It was also discovered in these proceedings that La Limouzin had been a particular friend of General Thibaudin, as his letters to her testiiied. The above were not the only generals, who, during the earlier period of the Republic, found themselves in trouble owing to their intercourse with adventuresses. In 1880 General de Cissey, ex-War Minister and commander of an army corps, became involved in a serious scandal by reason of his relations with a so-called Baroness de Kaulla (the separated wife of Colonel Jung) who was accused of being a foreign spy. FALL OF GRlfiVY 305 for them with the connivance of the Prefect of Police, M. Gragnon, and, in some degree apparently, of the Chief of the Detective Force, M. Taylor. Gragnon was promptly cashiered and replaced by M. Leon Bourgeois, who since those days has become a distinguished statesman. Although Wilson was formally accused, he was not arrested ; indeed he continued to reside at the Elysee, the President protecting him and absolutely refusing to believe in his guilt. The Chamber met, however, and by a large majority ordered a parliamentary inquiry into the alleged " selling of public appointments and decorations." At the same time Clemenceau wished to interpellate the Cabinet, and when Rouvier asked for an adjournment it was refused by 317 votes to 238. Thereupon (November 19, 1887) the Ministry resigned. It was Grevy's resignation, however, which the majority really demanded. He hesitated for several days, during which he appealed to politicians of many schools in the hope of forming a Cabinet which would enable him to retain his position. In vain. Everybody who saw him declared that resignation could be his only course. On November 26, however, at the urgent request of certain Radicals or pseudo-Radicals, Boulanger came secretly to Paris. It was feared by the extremists that Jules Ferry might now secure power, and it was thought better to retain Grevy in office with the help of Boulanger's sword. On the night of November 28, Clemenceau, Camille Dreyfus, Camille Pelletan, Pichon, Perin, Laisant, Laguerre, Millerand, Leporche, and Granet met Henri Rochefort of V Intransigecmt, Mayer of La Lanteriie, and Victor Simond of Le Radical at the Masonic Headquarters in the Rue Cadet to discuss the situation. That first conference failed, as both Pelletan and Perin opposed the retention of Grevy. However, Granet, Laisant, Laguerre, Mayer, and Clemenceau afterwards repaired to the Cafe Durand near the Madeleine, where Rochefort had already joined Boulanger and Paul Deroulede. After conferring together they dispatched delegates to Floquet and Freycinet, but neither was willing to form a ministry under Grevy's presi- dency or with Boulanger at the War Office. On the following night Boulanger, Deroulede, Clemenceau, Rochefort, Mayer, Laisant, Granet, and Dreyfus met at the house of Laguerre, who was a Boulangist advocate and deputy. He and Granet had seen Grevy that day, and he had told them that if he were 306 REPUBLICAN FRANCE to remain in office it must be with a Prime Minister of great authority. The meeting appealed to Clemenceau, but he shrewdly declined the post of honour and peril. Delegates were then sent to Andrieux, ex-Prefect of Police, but he, though willing to take office under Grevy, would not accept Boulanger as a colleague. Thus the negotiations of the two so-called " Historical Nights " came to nothing. Meantime Grevy had personally appealed to M. Ribot, who consented to act provisionally if the President would resign. He wished, however, to see the letter of resignation before undertaking to read it to the Chamber. This condition Grevy would not accept. There was great agitation in Paris at the time, but General Saussier, the Military Governor and a man of no little firmness, declared that any rioter, were he a general officer or anybody else, would be shot without ceremony. On December 1, huge crowds gathered on the Place de la Concorde awaiting what might happen at the Chamber of Deputies, for Grevy had promised a message already on November 26, and its arrival was expected. None had yet come, however, and the Chamber thereupon adjourned until six o'clock, signifying that it hoped to receive the expected message at that hour. A little later the Senate adjoiu'ned till eight o'clock in the same way. Grevy could not resist the unanimity thus displayed by both branches of the Legislature. He therefore reluctantly sent an official announcement that he was preparing his letter of resignation. It was read in the Chambers on December 2. Thus fell one who was personally a very honest and had long been a most able man, but who was now eighty years of age, and no longer possessed of the perspicacity or the strength of character which he had shown in former times. He might have fallen in a far more dignified manner had he not been governed by his indulg- ence and solicitude for his son-in-law. As it was, he clung to his post as long as possible, and it at last became necessary to wring from him a resignation which he should have tendered directly M. Wilson was formally accused. CHAPTER XI carnot's peesidency — boulanger's apogee and afterwards The Contest for the Presidency — Carnot's Election — His Family and his Career — His First Ministry : Tirard — The end of the Decorations Scandal — Wilson's Acquittal and later years — The Legion of Honour — General Boulanger, Prince Napoleon and the Sword of Marengo — Boulanger and the Royalists — He is placed on Half-Pay and afterwards Retired — The Aisne Election — Arthur Meyer and the Duchess d'Uzfes — The Boulangist Programme — The General's Popularity and the Boulangist Muse — Floquet and the Emperor of Russia — Fall of Tirard's Ministry — Floquet's Administration — The Boulangist Exchequer — The Count de Paris' Con- tributions — The Millions of the Duchess d'Uzfes — Boulanger's Election in the Nord — His Demands for Revision and Dissolution — He resigns — His Duel with Floquet — His Wife and his Mistress — His Great Triple Election — His Return for Paris — List Voting Abolished — Fall of Floquet and Return of Tirard to Power — The League of Patriots suppressed — Boulanger's Impending Arrest — His Flight to Brussels — He goes to London — A Reception at Portland Place — Boulanger and the High Court— His Interview with the Count de Paris — The Paris Exhibition of 1889 — The Escapade of the Duke of Orleans — Change of Cabinet — Boulanger in Jersey and Belgium — His Mistress dies and he destroys himself. Jules Ferry ought to have been the next President of the Republic, but although the Radical and the ultra-Patriotic leaders had been foiled in their endeavours to prop up Grevy with the help of Boulanger's sword, they were still determined that the chief state office should not be accorded to the man whom they so freely called " Famine Ferry," " Tonquin Ferry," and "Ferry, Bismarck's Valet." The demonstration on the Place de la Concorde on December 1 was followed by a more serious affair on the morrow. Communists and Socialists allied themselves for the nonce with Deroulede and his League of Patriots. Louise Michel led a band of Reds singing " La Carmagnole" along the Boulevards. Eudes and Lisbonne of 307 308 REPUBLICAN FRANCE the Commune, Basly, Camelinat, Duc-Quercy and other new leaders of the proUtariat harangued the crowds, and tried to provoke a march on the H6tel-de-Ville ; and it is possible that if Paris had possessed a less energetic Military Governor than General Saussier some temporary revolutionary success might have ensued. As it was, the violent language used by the extremist leaders and newspapers against Ferry intimidated the National Assembly, or Congress of both Chambers, which now met to choose a new President of the Republic. There was a large majority in Ferry's favour among the Senators, but the Deputies were more divided, and apprehended a conflict with the populace. It was some little time before the Radicals could agree upon a candidate who might be opposed to Ferry with a prospect of success. Their first choice lay between Freycinet and Floquet, both of whom imagined they would be elected. But while Freycinet had refused to secure the appointment of Boulanger as Minister of War, Floquet — at this time — was not opposed to it, and could therefore rely on the support of the Boulangist as well as the Radical element. Neither, however, commanded a large number of votes, and as their rivalry threatened to increase Ferry's chances, Clemenceau suggested to his fellow Radicals the selection of an outsider, Brisson or Sadi Carnot. The latter was most favoured, and the choice was a politic one. Although he inclined somewhat to Radicalism, Carnot was in no sense an extremist, and directly his name was brought forward numerous deputies, in addition to those who patronised his candidature from hatred of Ferry, resolved to support him. At the first ballot he secured 303 votes against 212 given to Ferry, 76 bestowed on Freycinet, and 108 cast for General Saussier, who, although not a candidate, received, malgrS lui, the support of the Royalists and Bonapartists, the former acting in accordance with instructions telegraphed by the Count de Paris who was then in Spain. Ferry, on finding that he only took second place in the voting, at once hastened to Carnot, congratulated him, and withdrew his own candidature. Freycinet acted likewise, and thus, at the second ballot, Carnot secured 616 votes against 188 given to Saussier, and was thereupon declared elected. Born at Limoges in 1837 and now therefore fifty years of age, he was the grandson of the renowned Lazare Carnot of CARNOT'S FAMILY AND CAREER 309 the National Convention and Committee of Public Safety — the man who, in conjunction with Bouchotte, raised the four- teen armies with which the First Republic resisted the invaders of France, and who became known as "the Organiser of Victory." Carnot served also under Napoleon, acting both as his first War Minister — on his elevation to the Consulship — and as his last Minister of the Interior — during the Hundred Days. Nevertheless Carnot's Republicanism was genuine, and was inherited by his descendants. His son, Louis Hippolyte, reared in exile after the Restoration of the Bourbons, returned to France at the Revolution of 1830, and was affiliated for a time to the famous St. Simonian sect. In 1836 he married the daughter of a General Dupont who had been at one time aide- de-camp to his father ; and of this marriage two sons were bom : Marie Fran9ois Sadi and Adolphe. Hippolyte Carnot was afterwards elected a deputy for Paris and at the Revolution of 1848 he became a member of the Provisional Government and Minister for Education. He was among those who resisted Louis Napoleon's Coup d'Etat, and he then helped to save several of his political friends from arrest and imprisonment. Both his sons entered the Ecole Polytechnique, and, until the fall of the Empire, Sadi followed the profession of a State engineer, directing no little road and bridge work in Savoy. He married the daughter of Dupont-White, the famous political economist and precursor of Christian Socialism, one of whose principal axioms was that " Society has the right to compel individuals to act rightly, and it is its duty to protect the weak from the powerful." Dupont-White, be it added, was among those whom Hippolyte Carnot saved at the Coup d'Etat of 1851. By his marriage with Mile. Dupont-White, Sadi Carnot had two sons, one of whom entered the artillery service, and a daughter who married M. Cunisset. During the Franco-German War the future President of the Republic devised an improved mitrailleuse, and on taking a model of it to Tours, he there met Gambetta, who attached him to the War Ministry. In January 1871 he became special Commissary of the Republic in the departments of Seine Inferieure, Eure, and Calvados ; and in that capacity he placed Havre in a state of defence, and did all he could to ensure the revictualling of Paris by way of the Seine. Peace followed, and he was elected a deputy for the Cote d'Or, his family being of 310 REPUBLICAN FRANCE ancient Burgundian stock/ while his father, who had acted as mayor of one of the districts of Paris during the German Siege, became a deputy for Seine-et-Oise. They both followed the example of Gambetta and Chanzy in voting for the continua- tion of the War. In the National Assembly Sadi Carnot became secretary to the important parliamentary group called the Gauche Republicaine. When Grevy was elected President he entered the Waddington Ministry as Under-Secretary for Public Works, a post which he retained during Jules Ferry's first Administration. Under Brisson he was appointed Minister for that department ; and served subsequently as Minister of Finances, in which capacity he presented a very frank and able budget, rejecting many of the financial expedients hitherto employed, and proposing to liquidate the whole situation by means of a large loan. The Chamber, however, took alarm at its figure, and Carnot's proposals being rejected, the position went from bad to worse. It was at this time that, as M. Rouvier afterwards revealed, Carnot, careless of the intrigues at the Elysee, stoutly refused to further the interests of a trading company patronised by Grevy's son-in-law Wilson. Such then was the man who now became President of the Republic. His father, who was still alive, a fine old gentleman of eighty- seven, hastened to congratulate him on his elevation. " You are now head of the family," said he, " you are Carnot. You need no longer use your Christian name. Sign your decrees Carnot, tout court.'''' With dark and closely-cropped hair, surmounting a lofty brow, long moustaches and a full, squarely-trimmed beard, the new President had an energetic and intellectual face, with an expression of some dignity. His figure was slim and of the average height, but in spite of his training at the ificole Polytechnique his gait was rather awkward as he was inclined to be knock-kneed. A particular feature of his career as President was the frequency of his journeys to one or another part of France. He surpassed all his predecessors in that respect, travelling, indeed, hither and thither quite as often as Gambetta had ever done. And as he possessed a ready command of language, and showed considerable tact, unbending whenever occasion required it, he made himself personally popular in many directions. But his time was one of great ' Lazare Carnot was born at Nolay near Beaune. CARNOTS FIRST MINISTRY 311 unrest and turmoil, social as well as political, as we shall see. His first efforts were directed towards Republican con- centration, with which object he entrusted the formation of a Ministry to M. Tirard, one of his personal friends. Tirard, to whom we previously referred, was certainly a well-mean- ing man but one of moderate abilities, particularly in financial matters in spite of his personal success in trade. Born at Geneva in 1827 he had become a State official at the time of the Republic of 1848, but on the advent of the Second Empire he retired and established a business in that cheap " imitation " jewellery for which Paris was long unequalled. During the German Siege he was chosen as mayor of the Second Arrondisse- ment of Paris, and becoming popular among the people was afterwards elected a member of the Commune. But he was no firebrand, his eiForts were entirely directed towards conciliation between the Parisians and the Government, and when he found a compromise impossible he withdrew to Versailles. In forming Carnot's first Ministry, Tirard wished to include members of every Republican group, but the portfolios he offered to Radicals like Goblet and Lockroy were declined, and from the outset, indeed, the Government was subjected to Radical as well as Boulangist attacks. Flourens remained at the head of Foreign Affairs, Fallieres passed from the Interior to Justice, the former department being allotted to Sarrien, while Loubet became Minister of Public Works, and de Mahy (and later Admiral Krantz), Minister of Marine and the Colonies, with Felix Faure as Under-Secretary. For the War Office Tirard's choice fell on General Logerot, an officer who had seen a great deal of service in Algeria, the Crimea, and Italy, and who had particularly distinguished himself at the battle of Coulmiers in 1870, when, although severely wounded in the leg, he had remained four-and-twenty hours in the saddle, commanding his men. Logerot's character was summed up in that episode,^ and at a time when such a man as Boulanger ^ Francois Auguste Logerot, born at Noyers, Loir-et-Cher, in 1825. He was a first-rate and determined rear-guard officer. We remember that on one occasion during the retreat of Chanzy's forces his regiment, the Second Zouaves de Marche, held the Germans in check for six hours, falling back barely a league during all that time, when it lost a quarter of its effective, including sixteen officers. The Logerots were essentially a mihtary family, two of General Fran90is' brothers rose to the same rank in the artillery. The infantry was his branch of the service. 312 REPUBLICAN FRANCE had to be dealt with a resolute Minister of War was absolutely requisite.^ At first, however, most public attention was given to the decorations scandal. An attempt to prosecute M. Daniel Wilson and the ex-Prefect of Police on a charge of abstracting and forging documents fell through, but another to the effect that Wilson had been guilty of fraud in promising to procure the decoration of the Legion of Honour in return for a pecuniary payment was proceeded with. On March 1, 1888, he was convicted by the Paris Correctional Tribunal and sentenced to two years' imprisonment, five years' loss of civil rights, and the payment of a fine of ^£"120. Thereupon, however, he appealed, and the Appeal Court set the conviction aside. When that great encyclopedia of French jurisprudence, the Repertoire Dalloz, printed the court's judgment of acquittal it added thereto the following note, which explains what was the legal position at the time : — However shameful and immoral it may be to trade on one's influence and credit, it does not seem possible to find in such a proceeding the elements of fraud (escroquerie) if the influence and credit are real and the accused has seriously employed them in furthering the appUcation he has been charged to support. The Court's judgment declares that the influence purchased by Crespin de la Jeanni^re (a client of Wilson's) was powerful, that the promised recommendations and applications were not fanciful but were really made, that proof thereof was supplied to and accepted by Crespin, and that therefore he was not deceived. These facts certainly deprive the case of the features characteristic of fraud (escroquerie). But it has only been possible for the court to arrive at this conclusion by adding that it is not exact, as the first judges stated, that there had been a positive promise of a cross, which the accused boastfully asserted he could supply. Otherwise, indeed, the acquittal of the accused would have clashed with the principles laid down by the Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation in the Coelln case, that is, " that manoeuvres tending to persuade anybody that one can procure for a sum of money the cross of the Legion of Honour, and embracing an assertion of credit which does not exist, come within the category of the manoeuvres foreseen by Clause 405 of the Penal Code." It follows then that in the opinion of the judges Wilson had only given a promise to try to procure the decoration of 1 The other members of Tirard's Cabinet were Dautresme, Commerce ; Faye, Education and Fine Arts ; and Viette, Agriculture. It will have been observed from what we have mentioned above that three future Presidents of the Republic, Loubet, Faure, and Falli^res served in this Ministry. .Saiu Carnot THE LEGION OF HONOUR SIS the Legion of Honour, and that his influence being real there had been no fraudulent manoeuvre. Briefly, he had kept within the law as it then stood. An early result of his case was an alteration of the law so as that it might cover any similar aflairs in the future. It cannot be said that every appointment to the Legion of Honour since those days has been unimpeachable, but absolute corruption has undoubtedly been kept well in check.^ From another point of view it may be pointed out that the Legion's very name indicates that nobody guilty of any dishonourable action can rightly belong to it. Its regulations provide for non-admission, suspension, and expulsion in the event of bankruptcy, convictions either for felony or for certain misdemeanours at law, as well as for actions contrary to good morals which may not be amenable to the tribunals. It is unfortunately true, however, that a one-sided view has been occasionally taken with respect to the coU passiormel of human life, certain incidents in some men's careers having been airily overlooked at the time of their admission to the order, whereas in the case of nominees of the other sex (and women are now and then enrolled in the Legion) similar incidents have absolutely debarred them from admission. When, under the Second Empire, Rosa Bonheur, the great painter, was nominated no objection could arise, but when it was suggested that George Sand, the great novelist, should likewise receive the cross of honour, the Legion's Council was ready to offer the most strenuous opposition, on account of certain notorious amatory episodes in that gifted writer's life. In like fashion Rachel, the great tragedienne, would have been ineligible, despite all her genius, even if women had been admitted to the Legion in her time. With respect to the strong prejudice existing down to our own period against the inclusion of stage-players in the order, 1 On June 1, 1907, the order included : Military members — 30 Grand Crosses, 176 Grand Officers, 808 Commanders, 3,974 Officers, and 25,276 Chevaliers. Civilian members — 19 Grand Crosses, 48 Grand Officers, 278 Commanders, 2,297 Officers, and 12,279 Chevaliers. Grand total, 45,185 members. Since 1871 repeated efforts have been made to check the growth of the order, which has long been the most numerous in the world ; but they have always failed, one or another circumstance having prevented the en- forcement of stricter regulations. As a result of the Entente cordiale the order now counts nearly 500 British members of various ranks. This is the most numerous of all the foreign contingents. 314 REPUBLICAN FRANCE it must be acknowledged that, according to the strict letter of the statutes drawn up under Napoleon's supervision, they were certainly not eligible for admission. But the scope of the order having been modified and enlarged by successive Govern- ments, it was not fair that distinguished members of the theatrical profession, talented exponents of dramatic literature, should still remain excluded. The difficulty was overcome in one way or another, at first in a very indirect fashion — actors being decorated as professors of their art or State officials, by reason of their connection with the Conservatoire, etc., but finally there has been in some instances a disposition to honour them for their personal histrionic gifts. It may be added that whenever the nomination of an actor, or, indeed, of anybody else, is opposed by the Council of the Legion, it must not necessarily be assumed that the reasons officially assigned for the opposition are really the true ones. All sorts of questions may arise, but as the position of a nominee refused by the Council may well become delicate, the real motive of exclusion is often left unstated. It might be imagined that after M. Wilson's extraordinary adventure and an acquittal pronounced under such circumstances as we have stated he would have retired into private life for the remainder of his days. But he did not even resign his seat as a deputy. He still disposed of great influence in Touraine, where his sister Mme. Pelouze had her property, and in 1893 — two years after the unfortunate President Grevy passed away at Mont-sous-Vaudrey — he was once more elected for the arrondissement of Loches. Unseated by his colleagues on that occasion for exercising undue pressure on the electorate, he was again returned in 1894, and in 1898 also. It was only in 1902 that he finally quitted public life, in which his position had so long been very invidious. Let us now turn to the afiairs of General Boulanger. Some of his intrigues during the recent presidential crisis were well known to the Government, though at this date it was not aware that in addition to his close intercourse with extreme Radicals and ultra-Patriots he had established direct relations with the Bonapartist and Royalist factions also. The Bona- partists had been first in the field in their endeavour to capture the General for their cause, the idea emanating from one of their journalists, a certain M. George Thiebaud, who prevailed BOULANGER'S INTRIGUES 315 so far with Boulanger that already early in 1887 the latter accompanied him under the name of Major Solar on a secret visit to Prince Napoleon Jerome in Switzerland. It does not appear that there was then any absolute proposal that Boulanger should restore the Empire. The basis of the negotiations was that Parliamentary rule was collapsing in France, that the Constitution needed revision, and that there ought to be a Plebiscitum or appeal to the people. For the rest the conver- sation between the General and the Prince covered the position of France in regard to Germany and Alsace-Lorraine, the Prince naturally holding that the recovery of the lost provinces might greatly facilitate the restoration of the Empire. In the course of the visit the Prince showed Boulanger his interesting collection of Napoleonic relics, including the telescopic spy-glass which the great captain used at Waterloo, and the sword he carried at Marengo.^ The latter particularly interested Boulanger, and the Prince, observing it, said to him, "Well, on the day you have restored Alsace-Lorraine to France that sword, I promise you, shall be yours." The General's direct intercourse with the Royalists dated from the second of the " Historical Nights " mentioned in our last chapter. Either before or after his interviews with the Radical leaders he was approached by M. de Martimprey, who urged that the Republic had fallen so low owing to the decora- tions scandal, that it was absurd to prolong its agony, and that the right course would be to restore the monarchy — Boulanger playing the "glorious rdfe" of a General Monk. One of the ex-Minister of War's prominent supporters, a certain Count Dillon, who claimed descent from the Dillons of the court of Marie Antoinette, and who was a director of a French trans- atlantic cable company, was present on this occasion, and like- wise declared himself to be a Royalist at heart. Baron de Mackau, a prominent adherent of the Count de Paris, also saw the General, who, so far as words went, acquiesced in the suggestions made to him. Mackau then communicated with the Marquis de Beauvoir, the Count de Paris' official represen- tative in France, and the Marquis wrote the Pretender a ' We remember being shown those relics when we interviewed Prince Napoleon at his flat in the Avenue Montaigne after the death of the Imperial Prince. There was also a travelling valise of Napoleon I. 's, Kl^ber's sword, the pistols carried by the Duke of Brunswick at Waterloo, and a singular massive silver shield brought to France from the KremUn in 1812. 316 REPUBLICAN FRANCE vaguely-worded letter respecting a general officer who favoured the restoration of the monarchy — so vague a letter indeed, that the Count de Paris imagined at first that it must refer to M. de GallifFet. However, the present Duke Decazes (son of the former Foreign Minister) soon proceeded to London with full particulars. Those matters were not known, it would seem, to General Logerot, the new Minister of War, when he took office, but he was acquainted with Boulanger's various acts of indiscipline, being quite aware that he had lately made three journeys to Paris without leave. On two of those occasions he had been disguised. The Minister therefore addressed a report to Presi- dent Carnot, recommending that Boulanger should be removed from his command at Clermont-Ferrand, and placed on half pay. " Approved. The President of the Republic — Caenot " was appended to that report when it appeared in the Journal Officiel, to the consternation of Boulanger's supporters. He, carried away by anger, did not even wait to hand over his command to his successor, as he should have done, but hastened to Paris, where a Committee of Protest gathered around him. Among its members were several Republican Extremists, such as Laur, Laisant, Deroulede, Naquet, Rochefort, Mayer, and Le Herisse, and some disguised Royalists and Bonapartists, such as Dillon and Thiebaud. Some bye-elections were then pending in the Aisne (Mezieres), and the Bouches-du-Rhone (Marseilles), and it was resolved that the General's name should be submitted to those constituencies. Money was needed, however, and a member of the Committee exerted himself to find it. This was M. Arthur Meyer,i a pushing German Jew, at the head of the Royalist newspaper called Le Gaulois. On coming to Paris in Imperial times Meyer had first dabbled in theatrical journalism, and acted as " secretary" to a notorious opira bauffe actress known as Blanche d'Antigny. That secretaryship apparently qualified him for another, for he became secretary to the Imperial Plebiscitum Committee in the last year of the Empire, at which time he cultivated the patronage of such men as La Gueronniere, Janvier de la Motte, and Count Lagrange. After the war of 1870 he conspired, after a fashion, for the Bonapartist cause, contrived to win and afterwards lose a con- 1 He should not be confounded with another of Boulanger's supporters, M. Mayer of the Lanterne. BOULANGER'S FIRST CANDIDATURE 317 siderable sum of money at the Bourse, then, abandoning Imperialism for Royalism, became director oiLe Gaulois, quitted it to establish the Musee Grevin — the Mme. Tussaud's of Paris —and finally again acquired the control of Le Gaulois, which he now made far more Royalist than it had ever been in the days of its founder, Edmond Tarb^. Meyer had originally met Boulanger at a dinner given in Paris, it is said, by Sir Charles Rivers Wilson, long Finance Minister in Egypt, this occurring before the General openly opposed the constituted Government. Meyer, however, was a very shrewd man, and already foresaw certain possibilities. He spoke of them to Dillon, whom he also knew, and it was virtu- ally agreed between them that they should, as far as possible, " run " Boulanger in the interests of the Royalist cause. When it was decided, then, to make Boulanger a candidate for the Chamber, Meyer spoke to the Marquis de Beauvoir on the question of funds, but the Marquis had none by him, and the Count de Paris, moreover, had as yet given no instructions. The matter being urgent, it occurred to Meyer to approach the wealthy Duchess d'Uzes. This lady, nh de Mortemart, was the great-granddaughter of the renowned Veuve Clicquot, who amassed a colossal fortune by the sale of her champagne.^ The Duchess listened favourably to Meyer's proposals, and made an immediate advance of ,£1000 to cover the expenses of Boulanger's candidature at the election in the Aisne. At this moment, however, most of the Radical deputies had rallied round the Government, for the programme put forward by Boulanger's Committee displeased them in several respects. The Administration being thus strengthened, Logerot called upon the General to explain the use which was being made of his name and to disavow it, and as only an equivocal reply was 1 In old times the Dukes d'Uzes were premier Dukes of France. Mme. Clicquot's only daughter married the Count de Chevign^, and her daughter espoused Count Louis Samuel Victorien de Rochechouart de Mortemart, the issue of that marriage being Marie Adrienne Anne Victurnienne Clementine, who became the wife of Amable Antoine, Duke de Crussols and d'Uzes. He died leaving the Duchess with a son, now holder of the family titles, and two daughters, the Viscountesses d'Hunolstein and de Galard. We may add that the Rochechouarts de Mortemart were a very famous house of old France, but no family ever had a motto more hkely to bring the claims of long descent into ridicule : Ere God had made the seas to roll Kochechouart bore waves upon his scrolL 318 REPUBLICAN FRANCE received from him the Minister resolved on more drastic action. Boulanger had been guilty of a breach of discipline in quitting his command before his successor's arrival, and of another in allowing himself to be made a candidate for the Legislature, for though he held no command, he still belonged to the Army, and by the Army Law he was ineligible as a candidate. To determine the position, the Minister convoked a Court of Inquiry of which General Fevrier was appointed President. Boulanger's Committee thereupon took alarm, and tried to with- draw the illegal candidatures. But matters had gone too far, and although Boulanger could not be lawfully elected, he headed the poll in the Aisne with 45,000 votes. At Marseilles he was less successful, the old Revolutionary, Felix Pyat, being returned there by a large majority. But the Court of Inquiry now met, and decided unanimously that Boulanger, by his serious infrac- tions of discipline, had rendered himself liable to be struck, as unworthy, off the Army List. The Government thought it poHtic to take a more lenient course. As the General's length of service already exceeded thirty years, he was compulsorily retired, thus retaining apparently his right to a pension (March 27, 1888). One result of all this was to render him eligible as a deputy, of which circumstance his supporters eagerly availed themselves. He openly became the leader of a hybrid party, one formed of all sorts of antagonistic elements. Though we feel that he was really fighting for his own hand, he seemed to be playing a quadruple role. To the Royalists he promised the Restoration of the Monarchy, to the Imperialists a Plebiscitum, to the Patriots the recovery of Alsace-Lorraine, to the Republican Extremists a democratic Revision of the Constitution. All that sub rosa, of course. Publicly his programme was summed up in three points : Dissolution of the existing Legislature, revision of the Constitution, election of a Constituent Assembly. He would, indeed, have revived a rigime akin to that of 1848, with one Chamber only, a President elected by the whole coun- try and independent of that Chamber — that is to say, disposing of the military, naval, and police forces, and all the public functionaries. Of the General's popularity in many directions there can be no doubt. During his administration at the War Ofiice he had certainly done his utmost, and without arriere pensie, we THE BOULANGIST MUSE 819 think, to ensure all possible creature comforts to the troops. Thus the men were grateful to him. Among the officers many of the younger ones favoured his cause, eager as they were for a promotion which a war for the recovery of Alsace- Lorraine might bring them. But, fortunately perhaps for the Republic — and unlike Louis Napoleon prior to the Coup d'Etat — he had not a single general officer on his side. The thoughtless masses favoured him in many parts, for a virulent and unscrupulous press denounced what they called Republican corruption on all sides. Here and there, too, money was at work. Portraits, broadsheets, pamphlets, soon flooded the country. As for the songs in Boulanger's favour they were innumerable, and in France there is nothing like a good song to further a man's popularity or a political cause. Curiously enough, according to M. Terrail-Mermeix's little book of revelations, Les Coulisses du Boulangisme, the first song which helped the Boulangist party, "En rev'nant de la revue" (1886), was not expressly written with that object. Gamier and Delormel, the writers of the words, submitted three versions to Paulus, the vocalist who made the song so popular. In one of them appeared the lines : Another ran : Je venais accJamer Le brav' General Boulanger. Je venais acclamer Le brav' General Negrier. While a third contained this variation : Je venais admirer Le brav' Commandant Domine. Both Negrier and Domine were very popular at that time in connection with the Tonquin war, but Paulus remarked : " Oh, the first version will do. People are talking a good deal about General Boulanger. I will stick to him." He did, and the song not only proved a powerful factor in the diffusion of Boulangism, but its sales brought Paulus, Gamier and Delormel a net profit of ^2000. At the time when it was still all the rage in Paris, we were amazed on visiting London to find that the air was very popular there also, but we presently discovered that it had 320 REPUBLICAN FRANCE been utilised for a song in honour of Queen Victoria's Jubilee, a song containing two admirable lines — Then shout hooray For Jubilation Day, — which have ever since lingered in our memory. But apart from " En rev'nant de la revue " there were many other songs, good, bad, and indifferent, in honour of le brav' giniral. There was one by Gabillaud with the popular refrain : C'est boulange, boulange, boulange. Cost Boulanger qu'il nous faut ! There was "Le General Revanche," "Fran9ais, buvons a Boulanger," " Le voir et mourir," " Les Pioupious d'Auvergne," and the Boulangist "Marseillaise" — the last-named an extra- ordinary production, in which occurred such lines as : Entendez-vous les cimetieres Fremir au cri de Boulanger ? Ce sont nos peres et nos freres, Tous les martyrs qu'il faut venger ! Again there was " A bas Bismarck ! " with the refrain : Par tout le sang de la France entiere. Par le passe, par les morts a venger, Avec le Tsar, pour Dieu, France, pour la Patrie ! Mort aux Prussiens, et vive Boulanger ! But perhaps the best of all the Boulangist "lyrics" was Gabillaud's " II reviendra," the success of which at least equalled that of Paulus's original song : II reviendra Quand le tambour battra, Quand I'etranger menac'ra Notre frontiere ! II sera la, Et chacun le suivra. Pour cortege il aura La France entiere ! At the last stage, when Boulangism was declining and suspicion spreading, a satirical and sufficiently significant " note " was sounded, as witness this quotation from yet another song: Le boulanger de notre quartier. Est I'plus bel homm' du monde, THE BOULANGIST MUSE 321 II a z'un oeil bleu singulierj Avec un' barbe blonde. II doit gagner des milliei's de francs, Et meme davantage. Car des farceurs, depuis quequ' temps, Repet'nt sur son passage : Le boulanger a des ecus Qui ne lui coutent guere. D'ou viennent-ils ? D'ou viennent-ils ? Via le mystere ! Of course those allusions to the source whence the General derived, his means would have been regarded by patriots as rank trahison at the time when it seemed possible that he would beconle master of France. His chances were favoured by a curious circumstance. Although sincere Radical Republicans began to fear his ambition — even Clemenceau, his old school chum at Rennes, at last drawing away from him, as he ought , to have done much sooner — they adhered to one principle which he enunciated in his own programme, that of the revision of the Constitution. They did not appear to realise that safety for the Republic resided in the maintenance of the existing order of things, at least for the time being. They feared, apparently, that if the opportunity for revision were allowed to slip it might not occur again for many years. Floquet, who was then President of the Chamber, expressed that view, holding, moreover, that revision if properly effected would pacify the country and check the Cassarian tendencies which Boulangism was assuming. Tirard's Ministry was of a different opinion, and Floquet, desirous of supplanting it and of showing people how things "ought to be done," coquetted with the extreme Left of the Chamber in order to provoke Tirard's overthrow. He feared, however, that his appointment as Prime Minister might be regarded very adversely in Russia, with which power Frenchmen generally, in view of the possibility of another war with the Germans, wished to remain on the best of terms ; and accordingly, as his position brought him now and then in contact with the Corps diplomatique, Floquet sounded Baron Mohrenheim, the Russian ambassador, respecting the reception which his assumption of the Premiership might meet in Russian official circles. For this there was an important reason. In 1867 when Alexander II. of Russia visited Paris, Floquet, then only a briefless barrister, REPUBLICAN FRANCE had shouted " Long live Poland ! " in his face, while he was ascending the steps of the Palais de Justice. The incident had caused great unpleasantness at the time, notably by reason of the attempt which Berezowski, a Pole, made on the Czar's life in the Bois de Boulogne, and it had never been forgotten in the Russian official world. Now, however, Floquet offered the amende honorable to Alexander's son and successor, and in return Baron Mohrenheim was good enough to reassure him respecting the reception which Russia would give to a ministry formed under his auspices. The path having thus been cleared, the Radicals advanced to the assault of Tirard's Administration by supporting a revisionist proposal which emanated from a Boulangist deputy. Camille Pelletan and Andrieux spoke in its favour, and finally came the inevitable Clemenceau, who although no longer associating with Boulanger nevertheless played his game. In the result Tirard only obtained a minority of votes and had to resign office (March 30, 1888). Qnce again then, Clemenceau's crazy destructiveness prevailed. He had overthrown Gambetta, Jules Ferry, and others, now he also overthrew Tirard, and in doing so he almost placed France at the mercy of Boulanger, for the Floquet Ministry which came into office proved one of the very weakest the Republic had known. And Clemenceau reaped no personal advantage from his folly. He vidshed to become President of the Chamber, but this was denied him, Meline being elected in his stead. Floquet was now both Premier and Minister of the Interior, Goblet took charge of Foreign Affairs, Peytral of Finance, Lockroy of Education, Legrand of Commerce and Industry, and Fernouillat of Justice and Worship. Admiral Krantz retained office as Minister of Marine, and Logerot was replaced at the War Office by Freycinet — a very great mistake, for all the general officers were opposed to Boulanger, and resented the exclusion of one of their profession and rank from the chief military post, as it cast suspicion upon their loyalty to the Republic. In fact nothing was better calculated to throw one or another malcontent general into Boulanger's arms. It was now that Boulangism blossomed forth in all its beauty. On April 8 the General was returned at a bye-election in the Dordogne with Bonapartist support, polling also numerous votes in the Aisne and the Aude. However, he BOULANGER'S APOGEE declined the Dordogne's mandate on the plea that he had given an earlier promise to the electors of the Nord. The truth was that he and his partisans were working a virtual Plebiscitum in his favour, the plan being that his name should be submitted to the electors as often and in as many con- stituencies as possible. In that way not only would he and his lieutenants ascertain how far he was supported, but repeated successes at the polls would determine an even greater move- ment in his favour. Such a campaign could not be prosecuted without money. The earliest supplies, apart from the Duchess d'Uzes'' advance of ^1000 for the Aisne election, came from private partisans who spontaneously sent the General banknotes, drafts, and money-orders to such an extent that he in this way finally obtained over £10,000. Moreover, a Paris publisher named RoufF paid him ,£'4000 for the privilege of putting his name on a popular patriotic work called U Invasion Allemande, not a line of which he actually wrote. His private means were modest. He was worth less than £3000 when his political campaign was really started, and the earlier gifts he received from private supporters were small. The Count de Paris, however, was desirous of helping him, and according to the Marquis de Beauvoir, than whom there could be no better authority, the Pretender spontaneously offered an allowance of £2200 a month. Of that amount the General took £400 for his personal use, £600 being devoted to the current expenses of his campaign, and £1200 employed in "sub- sidising" journalists. There was still nothing, however, for " working ■" the constituencies, and Boulanger himself declared that three million francs (£120,000) were needed. How could so large a sum be obtained ? Arthur Meyer again appealed to the Duchess d'Uzes, whose first idea was to form a fund to which several persons would contribute. She thought that some of the Count de Paris' relatives ought to subscribe to it, and wrote to that effect to his brother, the Duke de Chartres. He, however, like the Duke d'Aumale, detested Boulanger (who had struck both their names off the army list), and declined to contribute a sou, even although there was the prospect of being able to return to France directly the General should acquire the ascendancy. The authorisation for the Duke d'Aumale's return given at a later period, was, of course, partly due to his 324 REPUBLICAN FRANCE promised bequest of Chantilly to the French Academy, but it was also suggested by important political considerations. As his detestation of Boulanger was notorious, and he exercised great influence among military men and Conservatives generally, Carnot and his ministers felt that an authorisation for his return would be a most politic move. But to return to the Duchess d'Uzes, she, being possessed of great wealth and desirous of contributing to the restoration of the Monarchy, answered the refusals of the Duke de Chartres by supplying the money which the Boulangists needed out of her own purse — that is to say, she tendered