FRANCE. 



327 



hopes. The supplementary elections, which 

 were held on July 2d, in many departments 

 were also highly favorable to the Moderate 

 Republican party. Of one hundred and seven- 

 teen deputies elected, one hundred were ad- 

 herents of a republican form of government. 

 The radicals gained five departments ; but in 

 Paris only five radicals were elected, against 

 sixteen members of the party of order, a 

 league of the anti-radical parties. Two of 

 the delegates elected for Paris were Bona- 

 partists. Gambetta was elected in three dis- 

 tricts. A speech which he had made on June 

 26th, at Bordeaux, in which he ascribed the 

 misfortune of France in the late war to the 

 ignorance of the masses, and recommended a 

 thorough reorganization of public instruction, 

 had everywhere made the most favorable im- 

 pression. 



A manifesto to the French nation published 

 by the Count de Chambord, on July 5th, made 

 a painful sensation. He announced that he 

 would soon leave the castle of Chambord, and 

 France, as he did not wish to furnish a new 

 pretext for the political excitement of the 

 country. But he expected that the people 

 would soon call him back to the throne, in 

 which case he promised to maintain universal 

 suffrage, administrative decentralization, and 

 local autonomy. But, at the same time, he 

 would not abandon the white banner of Henry 

 IV., Francis I., and the Maid of Orleans, which 

 had established the national union, and which 

 would restore to France order and freedom. 

 The manifesto greatly increased the breach 

 between the Legitimists and the Orleanists, 

 and even many of the former loudly declared 

 their disapprobation of the sentiments ex- 

 pressed in it. At the close of the month, the 

 National Assembly had an excited debate on 

 the petitions for the restoration of the tem- 

 poral power of the Pope. Thiers declared that 

 he had always been opposed to the national 

 unity of Italy, which had been the " mother of 

 German unity ; " but, if the Government were 

 to act in accordance with the petitions for the 

 restoration of the temporal power, it would 

 bring on a war with Italy a result which the 

 majority would hardly wish for. The majority 

 was then willing to give to Thiers a vote of 

 confidence by adopting the order of the day ; 

 but, when Gambetta ostentatiously supported 

 this motion, the Right preferred to refer the 

 petitions to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. 

 This motion was adopted by 431 against 82 

 votes. Thiers voted with the majority, while 

 Barthelemy St.-Hilaire, the chief of his cabinet, 

 and Jules Favre, voted with the minority. A 

 few days later, on August 2d, the resignation 

 of Favre as Minister of Foreign Affairs was 

 accepted, and Charles de RSmusat appointed 

 as his successor. 



The committee of the National Assembly on 

 the reorganization of the army showed itself 

 favorable to the adoption of the principle of 

 universal and compulsory military service. 



The first paragraph in its report, which was 

 made on August 19th, provided that every 

 Frenchman from his twentieth to his fortieth 

 year might be called into service ; it abolished 

 the privilege of furnishing substitutes, deprived 

 the standing army of the right of voting, and 

 demanded the abolition of the National Guard. 

 The last-mentioned measure had also been in- 

 dependently moved by 164 members of the 

 National Assembly. General Chanzy, who 

 on August 19th made also a report on this 

 motion, concluded with the words: "We 

 submit to you in the first place a law which 

 takes from the soldiers the ballot, and second- 

 ly a law which takes from the voters the bul- 

 let." On this point Thiers was, however, not 

 in agreement with the majority of the As- 

 sembly. In a speech made on August 24th, 

 he admitted the present organization of the 

 National Guard to be bad ; but this was not 

 the case with the fundamental principle of a 

 national guard, which they had inherited from 

 the first revolution. As there were also good 

 national guards, the principle of their dissolution 

 should not, in general, be sanctioned. He was 

 also opposed to the unconditional demand for 

 an immediate dissolution. Irritated by fre- 

 quent interruption, he left the hall of the As- 

 sembly, and threatened his resignation. This 

 disposed the majority to consent to a modifi- 

 cation of the law, and, when Thiers after a 

 quarter of an hour returned to the hall, the 

 following compromise was adopted by 488 

 against 149 votes: "The National Guards are 

 dissolved. Their disarmament shall take place 

 as soon as possible under the responsibility of 

 the Government. The National Guards are 

 dissolved in all communes of France in pro- 

 portion as the progress of the reorganization 

 of the army on the basis of the law of 1868 

 allows it." 



After long and animated discussions, the 

 National Assembly, on August 30th, adopted 

 a resolution which declared the present As- 

 sembly to be a Constituent Assembly. On the 

 following day, a motion was adopted by 480 

 against 93 votes, appointing Thiers " President 

 of the French Republic " for a term of three 

 years. The text of this motion was as follows: 



ARTICLE 1. The chief of the executive power as- 

 sumes the title of President of the French Eepublic, 

 and retains the powers which have been conferred 

 upon him by the decree of February 17, 1871, subject 

 to the authority of the Assembly as long as the latter 

 has not completed its labors. 



ART. 2. The President of the Eepublic promul- 

 gates the laws which are transmitted to him by the 

 President of the National Assembly. He secures 

 and superintends the execution of the laws. He re- 

 sides in the place where the National Assembly has 

 its seat. He appoints and dismisses the ministers ; 

 the ministry is, however, responsible to the National 

 Assembly. He may address the National Assembly 

 whenever he regards it as necessary, and after he has 

 notified the President of the Assembly of his wish. 

 Every act of the President of the Kepublic must be 

 countersigned by a minister. 



ART. 3. The President of the Eepublic is respon- 

 sible to the Assembly. 



