Part 36 (1/2)

November 1848.

On November 19 I dined at Odilon Barrot's at Bougival.

There were present MM. de Remusat, de Tocqueville, Girardin, Leon Faucher, a member of the English Parliament and his wife, who is ugly but witty and has beautiful teeth, Mme. Odilon Barrot and her mother.

Towards the middle of the dinner Louis Bonaparte arrived with his cousin, the son of Jerome, and M. Abbatucci, Representative.

Louis Bonaparte is distinguished, cold, gentle, intelligent, with a certain measure of deference and dignity, a German air and black moustache; he bears no resemblance whatever to the Emperor.

He ate little, spoke little, and laughed little, although the party was a merry one.

Mme. Odilon Barrot seated him on her left. The Englishman was on her right.

M. de Remusat, who was seated between the prince and myself, remarked to me loud enough for Louis Bonaparte to hear:

”I give my best wishes to Louis Bonaparte and my vote to Cavaignac.”

Louis Bonaparte at the time was feeding Mme. Odilon Barrot's greyhound with fried gudgeons.

II. HIS ELEVATION TO THE PRESIDENCY. December 1848.

The proclamation of Louis Bonaparte as President of the Republic was made on December 20.

The weather, which up to then had been admirable, and reminded one more of the approach of spring than of the beginning of winter, suddenly changed. December 20 was the first cold day of the year. Popular superst.i.tion had it that the sun of Austerlitz was becoming clouded.

This proclamation was made in a somewhat unexpected manner. It had been announced for Friday. It was made suddenly on Wednesday.

Towards 3 o'clock the approaches to the a.s.sembly were occupied by troops. A regiment of infantry was ma.s.sed in rear of the Palais d'Orsay; a regiment of dragoons was echeloned along the quay. The troopers s.h.i.+vered and looked moody. The population a.s.sembled in great uneasiness, not knowing what it all meant. For some days a Bonapartist movement had been vaguely spoken of. The faubourgs, it was said, were to turn out and march to the a.s.sembly shouting: ”Long live the Emperor!” The day before the Funds had dropped 3 francs. Napoleon Bonaparte, greatly alarmed, came to see me.

The a.s.sembly resembled a public square. It was a number of groups rather than a parliament. In the tribune a very useful bill for regulating the publicity of the sessions and subst.i.tuting the State Printing Office, the former Royal Printing Office, for the printing office of the ”Moniteur,” was being discussed, but no one listened. M. Bureau de Puzy, the questor, was speaking.

Suddenly there was a stir in the a.s.sembly, which was being invaded by a crowd of Deputies who entered by the door on the left. It was the committee appointed to count the votes and was returning to announce the result of the election to the Presidency. It was 4 o'clock, the chandeliers were lighted, there was an immense crowd in the public galleries, all the ministers were present. Cavaignac, calm, attired in a black frock-coat, and not wearing any decoration, was in his place. He kept his right hand thrust in the breast of his b.u.t.toned frock-coat, and made no reply to M. Bastide, who now and then whispered in his ear.

M. Fayet, Bishop of Orleans, occupied a chair in front of the General.

Which prompted the Bishop of Langres, the Abbe Parisis, to remark: ”That is the place of a dog, not a bishop.”

Lamartine was absent.

The _rapporteur_ of the committee, M. Waldeck-Rousseau, read a cold discourse that was coldly listened to. When he reached the enumeration of the votes cast, and came to Lamartine's total, 17,910 votes, the Right burst into a laugh. A mean vengeance, sarcasm of the unpopular men of yesterday for the unpopular man of to-day.

Cavaignac took leave in a few brief and dignified words, which were applauded by the whole a.s.sembly. He announced that the Ministry had resigned in a body, and that he, Cavaignac, laid down the power. He thanked the a.s.sembly with emotion. A few Representatives wept.

Then President Marrast proclaimed ”the citizen Louis Bonaparte”

President of the Republic.

A few Representatives about the bench where Louis Bonaparte sat applauded. The remainder of the a.s.sembly preserved a glacial silence.

They were leaving the lover for the husband.