324 



FRANCE. 



selves from the April session, and a quorum 

 could not, consequently, be obtained. At the 

 fall election they nominated, and successfully 

 elected against him, Prince Charles of Canino, 

 whose father, as a member of the Roman Con- 

 stituent Assembly in 1849, voted for the depo- 

 sition of the Pope. 



On October 18th the OrSnoque was recalled 

 from Civita Vecchia, where, ever since the 

 month of August, 1870, she had remained at 

 the disposal of the Pope, in " case he wished, 

 contrary to the desire of France, to quit 

 Italy." " The departure of the Or6noque," 

 the Journal Officiel said, " implies no change 

 in the sentiments of devotion and solicitude 

 of France toward his Holiness." A fresh ves- 

 sel will be placed at his service, but it will re- 

 main in one of the French ports of the Medi- 

 terranean. Immediately beneath this notice 

 was an announcement that the Kleber had 

 been ordered to leave Toulon and proceed on 

 a special mission to Corsica. 



The municipal elections, which took place 

 in November, were even more favorable to 

 the Republican party than the supplementary 

 elections for the National Assembly and the 

 elections for the Councils-General. In the 

 large towns the Radicals met with a marked 

 success over the candidates of the moderate Re- 

 publican party, which was a remarkable feature 

 of the electoral contest. In Marseilles the Radi- 

 cals returned their candidates by a large ma- 

 jority, beating those recommended by M. La- 

 badie, a well-known and violent Republican. 

 In Lyons, thirty -four Radicals and one moder- 

 ate Republican were returned almost unani- 

 mously, the Conservatives not giving them- 

 selves the trouble to vote. The last Municipal 

 Council elected by universal suffrage in the sec- 

 ond city of France was dissolved by M. Thiers, 

 and replaced by a special commission, and 

 the Conservatives of Lyons probably thought 

 they would not have to endure the new Coun- 

 cil for any length of time. Several Right- 

 Centre deputies, and M. Grivart, the Minister 

 of Commerce, were defeated, to the great de- 

 light of the opposition. No troubles worth 

 mentioning occurred, military precautions hav- 

 ing been adopted in dangerous localities. The 

 Municipal Council in Paris consists of twelve 

 Conservatives and sixty-eight Republicans; 

 but while sixty-six of the latter were sup- 

 ported by the Radicals, all of them are not 

 themselves Radical in round numbers 180,- 

 000 for Republican, and 78,000 for Conserva- 

 tive candidates. At the election of a deputy 

 in April, 1873, M. Barodet, the Radical can- 

 didate, obtained 180,000 votes, while M. R6- 

 musat, the moderate Republican, and Colonel 

 Stoffel, the Bonapartist, mustered together 

 162,000, so that 342,000 electors in all voted. 



The new session of 'the National Assembly 

 met on November 30th. M. Buffet was re- 

 elected President .by 348 votes, 205 blank votes 

 being cast. At the first balloting Martel, Be- 

 noist d'Azy, and Kerdrel, were elected Viee- 



Presidents by 422,327 and 287 votes. At a 

 second ballot, which was necessary for the 

 election of the fourth Vice-President, the Duke 

 Audiffret-Pasquier, of the Right Centre, was 

 elected by 283 votes over Rampon, of the Left 

 Centre, who received 251 votes. The members 

 of the bureau were then drawn for by lot, amid 

 much conversation and noise. 



The message of the President was delivered 

 on December 3d, and read by the Vice-Presi- 

 dent of the Council, General Cissey. The mes- 

 sage states that the President during the re- 

 cess had endeavored to strengthen peace and 

 maintain order. The relations of the Gov- 

 ernment with foreign powers had become more 

 and more friendly, and the economic condition 

 of the country had at the same time sensibly 

 improved. There had been an exceptionally 

 good harvest, the prosperity of the country 

 was increasing, and a larger revenue might be 

 expected from existing taxation. In passing 

 through some of the departments he had every- 

 where been struck with the love of order dis- 

 played, and the desire prevailing that the power 

 he exercised should be strengthened in order 

 that it might fulfill its mission. The House 

 would shortly be called upon to examine this 

 question, and he hoped that an understanding 

 would be arrived at. He would not shrink 

 from responsibility, nor would the intervention 

 of his Government be wanting. He accepted 

 power not to serve a party, but to carry out 

 the work of social defense and national restora- 

 tion, and in the accomplishment of his duty 

 nothing would discourage him. He would re- 

 main at his post to the last day of his seven 

 years' term, with unshaken firmness and a scru- 

 pulous respect for the laws. 



An excited debate was called forth in the Na- 

 tional Assembly by M. Jaubert's bill for freeing 

 superior education from state control. M. Chal- 

 lemel-Lacour having, on December 4th, spoken 

 against the bill and complained of the en- 

 croachments of the Catholic hierarchy, Bishop 

 Dupanloup, of Orleans, on December 5th, in re- 

 ply, reproached him with having placed Catho- 

 lics outside the pale of law. The bishop asserted 

 that the danger arose from those persons who 

 said that the Archbishop of Paris ought to have 

 been shot. At these words violent protesta- 

 tions came from the Left, and it was with diffi- 

 culty the president- obtained silence. M. Chal- 

 lemel-Lacour replied with great bitterness, and 

 concluded by referring the personal attacks of 

 Monsignor Dupanloup to the judgment of the 

 honest men who sat in the Assembly, and gen- 

 erally to those who had any regard for the dig- 

 nity of the French episcopate. M. Buffet pro- 

 tested against the language used byM. Challe- 

 mel-Lacour when addressing a man who was 

 one of the glories of the French episcopate. 

 Quiet having been restored, other speakers ad- 

 dressed the House, and the Assembly decided, 

 by 553 against 133 votes, that the bill should 

 be read a second time. 



The Spanish Government has ever, since the 



