we must confine ourselves to the utterance of wishes that these dissensions may soon be terminated.

"Our establishment in CochinChina has been consolidated by the valour of our soldiers and sailors. The Spaniards associated in our enterprise will find, I hope, in those countries, the reward of their courageous support. The Annamites make a feeble resistance to our power, and we should not be at war with any one if, in Mexico, the proceedings of an unscrupulous Government had not obliged us to join Spain and England in protecting our fellow-countrymen, and in suppressing attempts against humanity and the rights of nations. Nothing can arise out of this conflict of a nature to shake confidence in the future.

66

Free from foreign cares, I have directed my attention more especially to the state of our finances. A candid statement (exposé sincère) has placed the real state of affairs before you. I shall only say a few words on the subject. The public expressed astonishment (s'est ému) at the sum of 963,000,000f. to which the floating debt has risen; but that debt, if it be henceforth checked, need give no cause for anxiety, for it had already attained that figure before 1848, a period when the revenues of France were far from approaching what they are at the present moment. Moreover, let first be deducted from this amount the 652,000,000f. which weighed upon the State at a period anterior to the Empire; then the 78 000,000ƒ. repaid to the fund - holders (rentiers) at

the time of the conversion; then the 233,000,000f. odd unsecured, caused in the last two budgets by distant expeditions, and which it might have been possible to secure by a loan.

"It will be seen that, since the establishment of the Empire thanks, it is true, to the consolidations successively operated -the deficits (découverts) have not increased in proportion to the wants for which it was necessary to provide, and to the advantages obtained during the last ten years. In fact, gentlemen, it would not be just to forget the increase of expenses caused by the annual interest of the loans contracted for two wars which have not been devoid of glory; the 622 000,000f. employed by the Treasury in great works of public utility, independently of the three milliards appropriated by companies in the completion of 6,553 kilomètres of railways; the establishment of the network of telegraphic communication; the improvement of the condition of nearly all the servants of the State; the improvement of the soldier's welfare; the cadres of the army placed on a footing in keeping with the exigencies of peace, the dignity of France; the transformation of the fleet and of all our matériel for the artillery; the restoration of our buildings for public worship and of our public monuments.

"All these outlays have given a beneficial impulse to public labour throughout the Empire. Have we not seen cities re-embellished, companies enriched by the progress of agriculture, and our foreign commerce increased from two milliards 600 millions

to five milliards 800 millions? In short, by the sole increase of public prosperity the resources of the State have increased by inany hundreds of millions.

This enumeration shows us the full extent of the financial resources of France; and yet, whatever may have been the origin of the deficits-however legitimate may have been the expenses-it was prudent not to increase them. With this object in view, I have proposed a radical means to the Senate, which confers upon the Legislative body a higher control and associates it closer with my policy. But this measure was not, as may easily be supposed, an expedient to lighten my responsibility. It was a spontaneous and serious reform, of a nature to force us to be economical. In renouncing the right to open supplementary and extraordinary credits in the interval between the sessions, it was nevertheless essential to reserve the power of providing for unforeseen necessities.

"The system of transfers provides the means, and it has the advantage of limiting that power (faculte) to really urgent and indispensable wan's. The strict application of this new system will assist us in placing our financial system on the soundest basis. I count upon your patriotism and intelligence to second my efforts by your willing support.

The Budget will be presented to you immediately on the opening of the Session. It is not without regret that I have decided to propose to you a re-adjustment of certain taxes, but by the progress of our revenue

I am convinced the increased burden of taxation will only be temporary.

"You will first have to turn your attention to the project of law relative to the conversion of the Four-and-a-Half per Cents, the object of which is, by equitably conciliating the interests of the Treasury and those of its creditors, to prepare the consolidation of the debt.

"Gentlemen, I have frankly stated to you the actual position of affairs. You are aware that whenever an opportunity of a useful reform has presented itself I have resolutely taken advantage of it. I shall not, nevertheless, maintain less intact the fundamental bases of the constitution which has already acquired for the country ten years of order and prosperity. I am aware that it is the fate of all men in power to see their best intentions misinterpreted, and their most praiseworty acts distorted by party spirit, but those who raise this outcry are powerless when the confidence of the nation is possessed, and when nothing has been neglected to deserve it. This sentiment, which displays itself on every occasion, is my most precious reward, and is my greatest strength. Should unforeseen events occur, such as the dearness of provisions and scarcity of labour, the people may suffer, but in their justice they will not hold me responsible for their sufferings, because they are aware that all my thoughts, all my efforts, all my acts incessantly tend to improve their condition and increase the prosperity of France.

"Let us not delude ourselves

as to what we still have to accomplish, but, at the same time, let us congratulate ourselves at having traversed ten years amid the quiet of satisfied populations and the union of the great bodies of the State.

"Let us persevere in our task with energy, and let us put our trust in Providence, who has always given us visible proofs of His protection."

At the sitting of the Legisla tive body, the next day, the President, Count de Morny, delivered the following address:

"Gentlemen, On whatever side we look at this moment a spectacle full of interest presents itself to our regard. There is not, so to speak, a single Government, a single people, that is not a prey to a profound crisis. The old societies are being decomposed, and the new are modifying themselves. On almost every point of the globe there is not an absolute principle that has not contradicted itself-not a system that has not been opposed as erroneous. In one place excess of power makes concessions to liberty, and in another excess of liberty seeks a refuge in the hands of a strong Government. In the midst of that labour of transformation, and notwithstanding the most difficult commercial and agricultural circumstances, France has remained calm, confiding, and prosperous. Have we not, therefore, reason to conclude that, in theory as in fact, we possess the government which is most suited to the character of our nation? Our Constitution has assigned his part to each according to his faculties and his interests; it has preserved to authority its initiative and its force, and it

now accords to the political bodies a control and a share of influence which sincerely associate them in the direction of public affairs. It has therefore fulfilled its programme, since it has given to the country confidence, order, and occupation, without arresting its steps towards liberty. It must be admitted that in that respect the part of the Legislative Body is considerable; and, without wishing to unreasonably criticize the past, may we not be allowed to examine whether the old Constitution have produced the same fruits? The preceding assemblies, endowed with the right of initiative, only engendered conflicts between the public powers. Incapable of controlling their efforts of opposition to obtain an insignificant reform, they overthrew the Governments which they only wished to warn. You, gentlemen, without the right of initiative, have obtained all the reforms which you have merely pointed out. Your moderation has allowed without fear and without danger the extension of your prerogatives. Far from diminishing the prestige and the authority of the Government, you have, on the contrary, furnished to the Emperor the opportunity of giving to the world the example of an abnegation which more surely attains true grandeur than all the calculations of human pride. This year, again, a very important reform enables you to have a completely efficient control over the finances of the State. The ambition, so natural on the part of each Ministerial department, to behold its service improved and developed, found too easy a

satisfaction in the default of unity, and in the opening of supplementary credits when the Session was over. The Emperor has put an end to such acts, determining, first, that the Minister of Finance shall concentrate the whole control of the expenses; and by the Senatus Consultum, which you are acquainted with, he interdicts the opening of all credits in your absence. These acts of prudent foresight will have the effect of producing economy and of assuring public credit. Nevertheless, gentlemen, let us not allow public opinion to form a wrong opinion, for the country should be made acquainted with the precise state of things. The regularization of the future must not become unjustly the condemnation of the past. Our finances must not be accused of having been heretofore irregularly administered, for the strictest order has always prevailed, and your committees on the Budget have always affirmed it, even when energetically calling for the measures which have been now adopted. As to the floating debt, as the Emperor told you yesterday, it has not exceeded in proportion that of preceding reigns, and owes its origin to an employment, either glorious or productive, of the resources of the country. The Government relies on your readiness to vote the Bill for the Conversion of the Four-and-a-Half per Cents. even before the discussion on the address. Each of you knows that measures in which speculation meddles, and which involve great financial interests, require to be decided on without delay, and not to be dis

turbed by uncertainty. I wish, in conclusion, to speak to you on a question which was raised last Session, and on which I have maturely reflected, being animated, as I have always been, with a desire to introduce into the regulations and into the habits of the Chamber everything that can give more unity to the discussions - I allude to written speeches. A written speech, whatever may be its merit, is rarely in harmony with the point of the discussion. If it be long and diffuse, it chills the debate and is uttered before empty benches. In that case it is the time and dignity of the Assembly which are sacrificed to the pretensions of one member. If the speech is bitter or violent, it causes deep irritation, for nothing produces a more painful impression than calculated violence, which has not the excuse of being spoken under the impulse of the moment. A written preparation, which would appear to be the obliged companion of calmness and reflection, has never been a source of political conciliation, and astonishment is felt when it is called to mind that in the most sinister times of our Parliamentary history almost all the speeches were read. The English Parliament, whose experience and practical spirit are incontestable, interdicts in an absolute manner the reading of speeches, and scarcely tolerates the reading of a document. Thus the oratorical forms have by degrees given place to a simple and almost familiar discussion, and a few words from a sensible man are there always favourably listened to. I should be well pleased if the Legislative