174. ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



*' armies were defeated ; the fi- 

 *' nances -were in disorder ; public 

 *' credit was annihilated i factions 

 *' were disputing for the remains of 

 *' our ancient splendour ; every 

 *' idea of morality, or even of reli- 

 *' gion, was obscured ; the habit 

 *' of giving and resuming power, 

 *' left the magistrates without con- 

 *' sideration, and even rendered 

 *' odious every kind of authority. 

 *' Your majesty appeared ; you re- 

 *' called victory to our standards ; 

 *' you established order and economy 

 *' in the public expences ; the na- 

 " tion, encouraged by the use you 

 *' made of your authority, resumed 

 *' confidence in its own resources; 

 " your wisdom allayed the rage of 

 " party ; religion saw her altars 

 *' raised up ; ideas of justica and 

 *' injustice were awakened in the 

 *' minds of the citizens, when they 

 *' saw crimes followed by puni^h- 

 *' ment, and virtue signalized and 

 '^ rewarded with honourable dis- 

 *' tinftions. In the last place, and 

 *' it is, no doubt, the greatest of 

 *' the miracles operated by your 

 *' genius, that people, whose civil 

 *' effervescence had rendered them 

 *' impatient of every restraint, and 

 *' hostile to every au<hority, were, 

 *' by your means, made to cherish 

 " and respect a power which was 

 *' exercised only for tlicir glory and 

 *' repose. The French people do 

 *' not pretend to establish them- 

 *' selves judges of the constitutions 

 " of other states ; they have no 

 *' critical remarks to make ; no ex- 

 " amples to follow ; experience, in 

 " future, will become their guide. 

 *' They have tasted, for ages, the 

 '' advantages attached to hereditary 

 " power; they have made a short, 

 *' but painful, trial of the contrary 

 *' system; theyreturuj by the effett 



" of free and mature dcliberatioiif 

 " to a path suited to their geniusi 

 " They make a free use of their 

 " rights, to delegate to your impe* 

 " rial majesty a power which your 

 " interests forbids you to exercise 

 " by yourself. They stipulate for 

 " future generations ; and, by a so- 

 " lemn compa6t, entrust to the olT- 

 " spring of your race, the happiness 

 " of their posterity. The latter 

 " will imitate your virtues, the for- 

 " mer will inherit our love and our 

 " fidelity. Happy the nation 

 " M hich, after so much trouble and 

 " uncertainty, finds in its bosom a 

 " man worthy of appeasing the 

 " tempest of the passions, of con* 

 " ciliating all interests, and uniting 

 " all voices! Happy the prince who 

 " holds his power by the will, the 

 " confidence, and the alFedions of 

 " the citizens ! If it be in the prin- 

 " ciples of our constitution, and al- 

 " ready several examples of this 

 " kind have been given, to submit 

 " to the sanction of the people that 

 " part of the decree which concerns 

 " the establishment of an hereditary 

 " government, the senate have 

 " thought that it ought to entreat 

 " your imperial majesty to consent 

 " that the organic dispositions 

 " should be immediately carried 

 " into execution; and that, for the 

 " glory as well as for the happiness 

 " of the republic. Napoleon may be 

 " immediately proclaimed emperor 

 " of the French." 



The emperor replied in the fol- 

 lowing terms : 



" Every thing that can contribute " 

 " to the good of the country is 

 " essentially conne6ted with my 

 " happiness. I accept the title 

 " which you think necessary to the 

 " glory of the nation. I submit to 

 *' the sanftioQ of the people the 



