American literature -- Periodicals; Civilization -- Periodicals; Culture -- Periodicals
This change was effected by violence on the morning of Tuesday, December
2d. Our Record of last month noticed the dissensions between the President
and the Assembly, and the refusal of the latter to abolish the law
restricting suffrage, and the failure of its attempt to obtain command
over the army. A law was also pending authorizing the impeachment of the
President in case he should seek a re-election in violation of the
provisions of the Constitution. During the night of Monday the 1st,
preparations were made by the President for destroying all authority but
his own. He wrote letters to his Ministers announcing to them that he had
made up his mind to resist the attempt of his enemies to sacrifice him,
and that, as he did not wish them to be compromised by his acts, they had
better resign. The hint of course was taken, and they sent in letters of
resignation at once. The principal streets of Paris were occupied by
strong bodies of troops at about 5 o’clock on Tuesday morning; and before
that hour all the leading representatives and military men whom Louis
Napoleon knew to be opposed to his designs, were arrested and committed to
prison. Detachments of the police, accompanied by portions of the guard,
visited their houses, and arrested Generals Cavaignac, Changarnier, De
Lamoricière, Bedeau, and Leflo, Colonel Charras, MM. Thiers, Lagrange,
Valentine, Panat, Michel (de Bourges), Beaune, Greppo, Miot, Nadaud, Roger
(du Nord), and Baze. They were immediately transferred to the Chateau of
Vincennes, and subsequently removed to Ham; with the exception of M.
Thiers, who was taken to the prison of Mazas. General Changarnier was
arrested at his own house at 4 o’clock in the morning. Several other
representatives were with him at the time, and were also taken into
custody. Gen. C. attempted to harangue the troops who were sent to arrest
him, but they refused to listen to him. At the same time that the above
arrests were made, commissaries of police were dispatched to the offices
of the public journals to suspend some, and regulate the course of others.
In the morning the walls of Paris were found to be placarded with a
decree, in the following terms: “In the name of the French people, the
President of the Republic decrees: 1. The National Assembly is dissolved.
2. Universal suffrage is re-established; the law of the 31st May is
repealed. 3. The French people are convoked in their communes from the
14th to the 21st December. 4. The state of siege is decreed in the whole
of the first military division. 5. The Council of State is dissolved. 6.
The Minister of the Interior is charged with the execution of this
decree.—Louis Napoleon Bonaparte.” At a later hour an appeal to the people
was issued by the President, and posted upon the walls. It declared that
he had dissolved the Assembly, which was attacking his power, and
compromising the peace of France. He had faithfully observed the
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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