OCR Text |
Show FBANCB MACMAHON. Nothing can occur in French politics poli-tics that will occasion surprise; therefore there-fore it is not astonishing that a correspondent cor-respondent at Paris predicts a violent revolution in France, and tb&t the outbreak ot civil war is only a question ques-tion of a few weeks. It needs no prophet to foretell that unless the marshal president lecedes from his autocratic position the chief of the Latin nations will soon be embroiled in a bloody internal war, and that bright land will onoo more be referred to as "unhappy France." Although it is ostensibly a republic, the president presi-dent disregards the democratic piin-ciple piin-ciple of the majority ruling, and madly sets his face against the popular decree. The coup of May 1G( when the dissolution of the chamber was resorted to on account of its republicanism, repub-licanism, caused qu exasperation which recently resulted in a popular rebuke of the marshal. Twice has SlacMahon been repudiated by the people at the ballot box; and yet he wiH not surrender. A stubborn soldier, sol-dier, rather than a statesman, his -double defeat first at the election of deputies, and next at that of the general councils has had no other effect than to make the mashal more imperious and dttermined in his course. MacMabon is no diplomat; otherwise he would see the folly of his attempt to overrule and put down the liberal majority. His position in this respect being untenable, the people having thrown defiance iu hiB lace, leaves him in desperate straits. His stubboruncds will not permit him to surrender to the popular will and resign; and the alternative of employing employ-ing the army to carry him through would be worse than folly. This latter course would result in terrible disaster to tho nation and speedily accomplish the overthrow of Mac-Mahon Mac-Mahon and his declining supporters, the conservatives. The marshal was bred in the wrong school for a president presi-dent of France. He is a rigid conservative, con-servative, and confounds republicanism republican-ism with communism, socialism and any other vicioua "ism" which ruins society and civil institutions. He apparently ap-parently has no appreciation of the clause of republican constitutions which provides for a government aa-cordine aa-cordine la the will of the majority. While the country has been progressing progress-ing in pure republicanism he has become be-come more conservative, with a strong leaning towards imperialism. This is demonstrated in one way by the numerous prosecutions of the press for petty offenses during the last few months proceedings not at all con-sistant con-sistant witb anything but a closely centralized government or imperial dynasty. His confidential advisers the power babiud the throne have generally been monarchists, men who would gladly welcome back to France an emperor. He and his principles will not do for republican France, for it must be admitted that the French people are to-day inspired and actuated actu-ated by republicanism. How long they will remain so not even a close gtudent of politics or ol human nature can tell; fur tho French character ii unlike that of the people of any other nationality, and cannot be fathomed Or understood. It would bo a sad event were civil war to break out in France; but the shape that afUira have assumed there recently seem to indicate such an unfortunate happening, ' |