The French assembly of 1848 and American constitutional doctrines

Front matter

(Qonicll JhuucrBtty Siihrarij

Jlttiaca, Ncm igark

Co.l.u..vwi>j'i U.wt v.evs.i.t y.

Preface

This study was begun at Paris in 191 3, before France and the United States were allied in war a second time. In the light of this alliance, it becomes peculiarly gratifying to find that a close friendship existed between the two countries in the early days of the Second Republic. The extent to which this friendship was based on a like attitude toward constitutional problems and issued in an endeavor to find similar solutions has seemed a question worthy of investigation.

I wish to express my gratitude to M. Emile Bourgeois, professor of diplomatic and political history at the Sorbonne, to> M. Georges Renard, professor at the College de France and editor of La revolution de 184.8 for helpful suggestions at an' early stage of my work and for invaluable assistance in gaining access to> the archives of the Chamber of Deputies and to the archivists of the Chamber for their unfailing courtesy. I am indebted to Professors James Harvey Robinson, James T. Shotwell and Charles A. Beard of Columbia University for kindly encouragement, to Professors Charles D. Hazen, William A. Dunning and William R. Shepherd for useful criticisms, to Professor Hazen for unstinted aid in correcting proof, and to my wife, Blanche O. Curtis, for faithful cooperation in overcoming the mechanical difficulties of the task and for continued inspiration.

185] 7

CHAPTER I Europe and America in 1848: A Contrast

Importance of 1848 13

Economic and political situation of France under Louis Philippe 17

Crisis of 1847 21

Revolution of 1848 24

Territorial expansion of the United States 26

Military spirit 2s

Economic prosperity 29

Social enthusiasm 31

French interest in the United States Constitution, 1789-1791 32

" " " " " " 1830 35

" " " " " " 1848 36

CHAPTER II Work of the French provisional government 37

Growing disaffection of the working class 38

The executive commission 41

Increased discontent of radicals 42

The June insurrection . . , 43

Contrast inspirit of February and June, 1848 47

American influence in campaign addresses, April, 1848 47

Elections for the Constituent Assembly 50

Opening of Assembly 55

Parties in Assembly 61

Organization of Assembly 66

Chronology of constitution 68

10 CONTENTS [l88

PAGE

CHAPTER HI

What France Thought About America

Official recognition of French Republic by United States minister 69

Action of United States consul 76

Action of American colony 77

President Polk's endorsement of minister's action 78

Action of Congress 81

French government's reply 87

American offers of concrete assistance 91

Meetings in American cities 93

The Democratic National Convention 96

Effect of American friendliness on French thought 96

Tocqueville's Democracy in America 97

Chevalier's letters 10 1

Poussin's works 101

Collections of constitutions . ... 102

French attitude toward the American ideal 103

" " " " America of daily life . . . ... .110

CHAPTER IV The Representatives

Biographical compilations 116

Test- votes 117

Party classification 122

Liberals 123

Radical Republicans 127

Socialists 120

Conservatives . 530

Legitimists 136

Unclassifiable representatives . . .... 1-58

Members of constitutional commission \y\

Attitude of representatives on test-questions 143

" " " " American example . . 146

CHAPTER V The Constitutional Commission

The proces-verbal . j^g

Subject-plan ... . ico

Debate on legislature ! ro

" " executive , n-y

" judiciary . ... ^2

Conclusion ... . . jg.

189] CONTENTS

CHAPTER VI The Assembly Debates Preliminary allusions to American example. 164

Debate on preamble ... 165 "■

" " executive 186

" " judiciary 215

" " government ownership of railroads . ... . . ... 215

" " " control of press 223

" " " encouragement of agriculture 229

Remarks on American spirit of individualism 230

" " paper-money 232

Miscellaneous allusions 233

CHAPTER VII Classification of newspapers 241

News-reports 244

Report of bureaux' discussions of the constitution ... 247

Editorials on general value of American example. . , 258

" " American executive .... 269

" " " legislature . . . 271

" " " judiciary 278

" " " preamble 278 *.

Miscellaneous comment 279

Newspaper reprints of the United States constitution 283

Special articles on the United States 286

Pamphlet literature 312

Books on the United States 317

CHAPTER VIII Influence of American example on the constitution of 1848 324

Summary of references to the American model 324

Character of the influence 326

Attitude of French parties toward the American system 326

Appendix

Constitution of 1848 33 1

CHAPTER I Europe and America in 1848 : A Contrast

To a generation like our own, whose emphasis has been increasingly transferred from the individual to society, whose deepest problems lie in the relations of employer and wage-earner, the year 1848 stands out from the background of its insignificant neighbors with a special meaning. Down to 1848, economics, so far as it affected politics, had been preeminently the science of the production of wealth ; from then on it began to address itself seriously to the problem of its distribution, The year 1848 marks the appearance of the wage-earner as a serious political force; it is the startingpoint of labor's effort to make for itself a place in the sun. It is distinctly a year of revolution), of bloody fighting, mostly in the streets of great capitals, a translation of the industrial conflict into terms of barricades and bayonets. But it would be a grave error if one were to think of 1848 solely or even primarily as a conscious struggle between clearly distinct, bitterly hating social classes. It became that to some extent, but never entirely; it was certainly not that at all in the beginning. On the contrary, 1848 began with and never quite lost a certain idyllic charm of universal brotherhood, a passionate sense of human equality. To some extent this was a hypocritical pose; the selfish capitalist of Louis Philippe's time could not and did not suddenly change his skin, as was amply proved before the year was out. But the mere fact that the pose was necessary, that rich candidates for office gave ouvrier as their profession in order to have a chance for victory at the polls, shows how general the enthusiasm 191] 13

I 4 THE FRENCH ASSEMBLY OF 1848 [ IQ2

for social justice had become. All Europe, catching fire from France, burned with radical fervor. No doubt it was an impractical time ; age-long abuses cannot be suddenly solved by a burst of sentiment. Uncalculating, generous emotion formed the essential atmosphere of the moment, but the vice of impracticality caused its failure. The year 1849 was an equally universal time o>f reaction, whose edicts of banishment gave America one of the most valuable of its immigrant strains.

But however transitory the constructive work of 1848 seems to* have been, its importance is undiminished as witnessing the beginning of the practical study of the social problem, in a modern way. The ideal reconstructions of the Utopians, of St. Simon and Fourier began now to yield to definite schemes for the improvement of society as it is. This marks the first aspect in which 1848 has permanent social meaning. As one of the leading French authorities on the period, M. Renard, said to the writer, " For me, 1848, even more than 1789, is the mother o-f revolutions. The latter was a political struggle for individual rights, the former a struggle for social rights. Many of the concrete schemes for social betterment which are now on the statute-books of Europe, were suggested then." 1 The French Revolution of 1789 was concerned with the Rights of Man in the singular, the Revolution of 1848, in the intent of its more thorough exponents at least, sought to realize social justice. In this respect it was more, not less, practical than its great predecessor, for modern man has moved out of Rousseau's Garden of Eden into the cities. And there was hard thinking on concrete problems, though it was too confused with visionary schemes to get much of a hearing. In brief, 1848 did not accomplish as much as its reformers expected

1 For a detailed statement of modern labor laws traceable to the inspiration of 1848, see G. Renard, La Republique de 1848, pp. 383 et seq.

of it; their enthusiasm was rudely dealt with by the triumphant forces of reaction. It was, however, a seed-time of ideas, whose fruit has been the great modern body of legislation for social betterment. Herein lies its success.

The second aspect in which 1848 has permanent historical meaning is in its failure. Disillusionment followed hard on rosy dreams of a millennium, and with that disappointment came bitterness. In France, the new order of things was hardly more than a month old, when such posters as the following were affixed to the walls of Paris :

The Committee of the Democratic Radical Clubs

TO THE

Popular Societies

The Republic, quite as well as the Monarchy, may harbor servitude under its banner.

Sparta, Rome, Venice were oppressive and corrupted Aristocracies. In North America, slavery is an institution of the State.

LIBERTY! EQUALITY! FRATERNITY!

This device which gleams on the front of our buildings must not be a mere theatrical adornment [une decoration d'Opera.] Let us not permit it to become a lie as celebrated as that of the Charter: "All Frenchmen are equal before the law."

There is no liberty for those who lack bread !

There is no equality, when opulence flourishes at the side of misery !

There is no fraternity, when the woman of the people drags herself, famished, with her children to the doors of palaces.

No sterile formulas! It is not enough to change words, it is necessary radically to change conditions.

The Republic for us is the complete emancipation of the workers ! It is the coming of a new order, which will sweep away the last form of slavery, the proletariat.

The tyranny of capital is more pitiless than that of the sabre and the censor. It must be broken.

l6 THE FRENCH ASSEMBLY OF 184S [ IQ4

The February Revolution has had no other aim. This aim is ours, and each of the members of the democratic Committee engages himself to pursue it without relaxation, until it be attained.

Paris, April, 1848. 1

This dawning despair was destined to increase, not to diminish. When the fearful insurrection of June had been quelled with equally savage ferocity, Lamennais exclaimed " The Republic is dead," while George Sand wrote, " I am horrified. I believe no longer in the existence of a republic which commences by killing its proletarians." 2

This loss of faith in the republic as the outward expression of universal harmony ushered in a narrower, but intenser loyalty, that to one's social class as such. Proudhon and Blanqui had steadily stood for that idea as against Louis Blanc and Pierre Leroux. But the classic exponent of the doctrine of essential antagonism is Karl Marx, whose star begins to rise at this time. From now on Marxian socialism becomes the orthodox form of radicalism, whose leadership passes from France to Germany. 3 This definite rise of class-consciousness is one of the permanent legacies of the failure of 1848.

No doubt can exist that while the train of revolution throughout Europe was already laid by the romantic, libertyloving tendencies which had dominated thought and had found expression in art, literature, music and political aspiration through the whole first half of the nineteenth century, yet the spark was ignited by the February revolution in France. The specific form taken by the movement varied everywhere according to local conditions. In some countries, it was a

1 Proclamation of Blanqui's club, just before April 16. Printed in Les A filches Rouges.

3 Cf. G. Renard, op. cit., p. 380 et scq.

struggle for constitutionalism, in others for nationalism, whether centripetal as in Germany or centrifugal as in Hungary. The definite impress o<f the French rising is to be found in Baden and elsewhere. But the line was not yet sharply drawn between political and economic radicalism; it could not be until the failure of 1848 brought a sharper class-consciousness into being. Thus it happened that in most of these revolutions, the more advanced economic program of the Paris movement was entirely lacking, while their general spirit of radicalism was manifestly akin. At that time all men looked to political reform as the panacea for social ills.

Turning from ■ the general causes that lay back of the European revolutions of 1848 to a closer analysis of the movement in France, let us consider briefly the economic and political situation in the reign of Louis Philippe. Speaking generally, the social and economic structure of the country resembled more closely the France of the eighteenth century than the France of to-day. Life was still relatively simple. As late as 1850, more than threefourths of the population lived in communities of less than two thousand inhabitants. Except Paris, which had 1 ,053,000 at that time, only Lyons, Marseilles and Bordeaux exceeded 100,000; Rouen just touched that number. There were no great industries in the modern sense; manufacturing was carried on in small establishments, often in a family atelier. The country was essentially agricultural. Agriculture itself was backward. The rotation system {assolements) was practised, 25,000,000 hectares being worked, while 5,000,000 were kept idle to rest the soil. There were few means of locomotion. Macadam roads were just beginning to be built, the majority of roads were still paved. Railroads were rare; the diligence transported passengers, wagons carried articles of commerce to* the market. Food t8 THE FRENCH ASSEMBLY OF 1848 [ I9 6

crises still occurred, especially in the provinces, as in the eighteenth century. There was little popular education. Newspapers (subject to a cautionnement, or bond for political good behavior) were expensive luxuries. Public life was restricted to the pays legal, which meant that only those voted who paid 200 francs in direct taxes (not more than 200,000 were so qualified), while only those who paid 500 francs in taxes were eligible to sit in parliament. There were few shares listed on the Bourse ; mostly Government rentes, titres of the Banque de France and canal-shares, little else. Limited companies were almost unknown. France was strongly centralized, but very slightly unified. Social distinctions, for example, were strongly marked. The blouse marked the workman, the habit the bourgeois; the former wore a bonnet, the latter a chapeau; the latter was a monsieur, the former an homme. 1 Such was the case despite the monarch's supposed democratic tendencies. The old hereditary aristocracy, based on birth and land, had, it is true, lost control with the downfall of Charles X, but it had merely been replaced by the new aristocracy of wealth. Bourbon legitimism had yielded to bourgeois capitalism, insignificant as yet if measured by modern standards, but growing ever more powerful through the favor of the Orleanist regime. 2

1 Vide 'C. 'Seignobos' lectures, "Histoire politique de la France contemporaine depuis 1848," in the Revue des cours et conferences for 1907-08, vol. i, esp. pp. 175 and 176. Cf. E. Levasseur, Histoire des classes ouvrieres et de I'industrie en France de 1/89 a 1870, vol. ii, bk. iv.

2 " Posterity, which sees only striking crimes and whose notice, ordinarily, vices escape, will perhaps never know to what degree the government of that time had, toward the end, taken on the features of an industrial company, where all the operations are made with a view to the profit which the stockholders may draw from them. These vices sprang from the natural instincts of the ruling class, from its absolute power, from the very character of the age. King Louis-Philippe had perhaps contributed to their increase." A. de Tocqueville, Souvenirs, p. 7.

jp7] EUROPE AND AMERICA IN 1848 Z g

It is this great and sudden growth of wealth that forms the chief significance of the Orleanist period to the student of 1848, for without it the revolution in the form which it assumed would have been impossible. It is interesting to see how undeveloped the age still was, in contrast to the twentieth century; it is even more important, however, to note the new tendency which had gripped and mastered it and was rushing it away from the quiet past into new and complex problems. For France was in the throes of a vaster movement than that of 1848; she was in the full tide of the Industrial Revolution.

The political philosophy of Louis Philippe was essentially that of his favorite minister, Guizot, whose power lasted uninterruptedly from 1840 to 1848. It was a policy of external peace and internal economic development. Having managed to go through the Oriental crisis without warfare, though without much glory, the government's caution in foreign affairs became more and more pronounced. It reached its extreme point in the Pritchard affair (1844), when France humbled herself before England. This was so much the easier to do, because England's constitutional and social structure was the model which Orleanist France admired and strove to emulate. The entente cordiale with the England of Adam Smith was as fixed an article of political faith with Guizot as was the entente cordiale with the Austria of Metternich. These two ideals furnish the key to the last years of Orleanist France. " Enrichissez-vous " x cried Guizot to his capitalist friends, while turning a stony impassivity to the opposition in its efforts to extend the pays

1 Guizot denied ever making use of this expression, attributed to him by a hostile newspaper in its report of a speech made by him to his electors in 1846. It became famous, however, and even if unhistorical, adequately expresses his economic philosophy. Cf. Hamel, Histoire de France dcpuis la revolution, vol. 8, p. 573 and note.

20 THE FRENCH ASSEMBLY OF 1848 [ I9 g

legal ever so little. The glorification of property, both land and fluid capital, in the fifth chapter of his Democratic en France was written from Guizot's heart. To this official policy, the new capitalist aristocracy responded with zest. Mechanical inventions, new industrial processes, but especially railroads, gave opportunities for speculation and enrichment at a rate previously unknown. Guizot points with justifiable pride to the fact that the increase in the ordinary revenues of 1847 over those of 1829 amounted to 349,413,- 354 francs. Of this increase, a part was indeed due to new direct taxes, but the growth in revenue from indirect taxation, amounting to 243,317,400 francs or nearly threefourths of the whole, was "almost solely the result of the continuous progress of general well-being and national wealth." 1 As early as 1842, a proposed trade agreement between France and Belgium was abandoned by the government at the behest of the great manufacturers and mine-owners of the north. On February 7th, 1842, Guizot launched his vast railway scheme. Up to that time, little had been done, though much had been said. According to the new scheme, France, then far behind other countries in railroad construction, was to be covered with a network connecting Paris with Lille, the Channel, Bordeaux, Marseilles, Lyons, Strasburg, in fact all the important cities of the kingdom. 2500 kilometers were thus to be built by joint public and private effort; the roads (which were owned by private capital) were to furnish the equipment, complete the construction and operate on a long franchise. There were scandals and speculations, but the roads were built, in part at least. At the end of 1841, France had only 877 kilo-

1 Guizot, Memoires pour servir a I'histoire de mon temps, 1867 ed., vol. 8, p. 609 et seq.

meters of railroads, of which 566 were in operation. In 1847, there were 1832 kilometers. 1

The era of speculation and prosperity was followed by the panic of 1847, which started in England. The period of expansion began there about 1843. I* 1 1844, the deposits of the Bank of England passed fifteen millions, while the discount rate fell to two per cent, even to one and one-half per cent. Then the railroad-building fever came there too. The Economist calculates that the new lines, receiving concessions at that time, called for £200,000,000. There was great speculation in other new enterprises. Such was the position of affairs when, in 1846, a potato disease and a bad wheat crop required heavy food importations which necessitated considerable exports of specie in the spring of 1847. Credit was violently shaken in January, but, during the summer, gold began to return, and the danger was considered past. Towards autumn, the drainage of gold began again and the Bank of England was compelled to raise its rate of discount abruptly. Panic ensued. Bankruptcies commenced with those of the wheat merchants. The quarter fell from 102 shillings in January to 49 shillings in September. In October, the crisis was at its height. Discount was then at eight per cent. Factories were closed, railroad workmen discharged, construction ceased for lack of capital. Misery was universal. 2 This situation was not without a parallel in other countries. France and Germany saw their

1 Articles "Chemin de fer'' and "France (Industrie)" in La Grande Encyclopedic. Guizot states, however, that on Dec. 31, 1847, there were 2059 kilometers in full operation and 2144 under construction. {Memoir es, vol. 8, p. 626.) That this is an overestimate seems probable from a comparison' of the figures given in the text with those of A. de Foville (in La Transformation des moyens de transport, p. 18 et seq.). Foville gives for 1841, 571 km. ; for 1847, 1829 km.

2 Art. " Crise," by Emile de Laveleye in La Grande Encyclopedic, vol. 13, P. 383-

22 THE FRENCH ASSEMBLY OF 1848 [ 2 oo

unsubstantial cloud-castles come crashing to the ground in turn. In France, government expenses had been mounting steadily. From 1840 to 1846, in spite of an average annual increase in receipts of 40 millions, the total excess of disbursements over receipts had reached 433 millions. The failure of the wheat crop in 1846 affected France as well as England; here, too, grain had to be purchased abroad, at the cost of heavy specie exportations. Floods in 1846 caused much damage. The railroad project drained the resources of the state heavily and, as the defeated partisans of government ownership grumbled, all for the benefit of private corporations. In less than two years the companies had contracted loans to the amount of 1300 millions, and the treasury a loan of 200 millions, or 1 500 million francs for railroad construction. The public was swept away by the mad fever of speculation in these securities, which rose to fabulous quotations. Meanwhile the Bank of France, unable to cope with these heavy demands, saw its balance diminish by 172 millions from July 1st, 1846 to January 1st, 1847. It was compelled to borrow 25 millions in bullion from London. Discount commenced to rise. Credit was tightened and the market began to totter. The budget for 1848 foresaw a further deficit of 243 millions in the national treasury. To' cover it, a new loan of 350 millions was contracted in July, which added its weight to depress the already overburdened market. Wheat continued to rise; in January, it was already up to 29.92 francs a hectolitre, by June in certain places it touched 49.70. Riots broke out, bands of armed peasants opposed the movement of crops, and blood was shed, before the military could restore order. Railroad construction was suspended, workmen saw themselves discharged or their wages reduced, industry came to a halt, it was a time of panic and privation. 1

1 Gamier- Pages, La Revolution de 1848, vol. i, ch. i and ii.

20lJ EUROPE AND AMERICA IN 1848 2 ,

Perhaps if the economic crisis of 1847 na d. stood by itself, there would have been no revolution in France, any more than in England. But it did not stand by itself. It was aggravated by a political crisis.

To begin with, the two causes of popular discontent, the economic and the political, were unhappily linked by the revelation of a number of grave scandals affecting men in high position. Corruption was uncovered in the supply departments of the army and navy, particularly in connection with Algeria, whereby inferior food for the men and horses, and poor coal for the ships had been accepted by the authorities.

A still greater sensation was caused by the publication of letters which had passed between M. de Cubieres, lieutenantgeneral, and a mine-owner at Gouhenans, whereby the former demanded and obtained 45 shares, worth 100,000 francs, to' gain for the latter the necessary support in the council of ministers for certain coal and salt-mine concessions. The man higher up in this scandal turned out to be M. Teste, a former minister, then sitting in the Chamber of Peers and acting as president de chambre at the Court of Cassation. In July the trial was. held before the Chamber of Peers, the defendants found guilty, and sentenced to a heavy fine and imprisonment.

These sporadic scandals, however, though more spectacular, were in reality of far less importance than the insidious and thorough-going corruption of the parliamentary majority by the government. As has been indicated above, the parliament was elected on an extremely restricted franchise and was thus already the choice of the property-holding and well-to-do classes. It was thus almost entirely conservative in its composition, as a result of such an election. But to make its control absolutely sure, the government appointed no fewer than 200 out of a chamber of 459 to posts in the civil service. 1 These office-holders, who owed their places to the cabinet, always voted for it solidly and constituted the main strength of the government party. There were •hence two lines of action on the part of the opposition, electoral reform and parliamentary reform. The first line was taken in the proposition presented by Duvergier de Hauranne in March 1847; it called for a lowering of the voter's qualification from 200 to 100 francs', the addition of the " capacities " to the list of voters (i. e. a limited number of intellectuals, whose education would be a sufficient safeguard of their conservatism), and an increase in the number of deputies from 459 to 538. The other line was taken in M. de Remusat's project of April, which would establish the ineligibility to the chamber of all officers of the army and members of the military and civil households of the king and the princes. Both of these projects were defeated, the latter by a smaller majority than the former.

There soon followed the famous campaign of the banquets, which began at Paris, July 9th, and continued throughout the remainder of the year in all parts of France. At these banquets, organized by the opposition, the principles of reform were patiently propagated among the people.

It was this campaign which led directly up to the Revolution of 1848. The prohibition of the final banquet, planned for February 22, the popular uprising on that and the succeeding day, the dismissal of the Guizot ministry, the public rejoicing interrupted by a fresh clash with the troops, the renewal of the struggle on February 24 with heightened bitterness, the abdication and flight of the king and the vain effort to establish a regency are too well-known to need repetition here.

Republican propaganda had been going on all through

1 E. Hamel, Histoire de France depuis la resolution, vol. 8, p. 499.

Louis Philippe's reign in the clubs and secret societies. Of late it had taken a distinctly socialist turn, due in large part to the economic distress traced above, and to the miserable condition of the working-classes in the early days of the Industrial Revolution. 1 It is to be noted that the Revolution of 1848 was carried through in the cities; the countrydistricts, still strongly agricultural, followed their lead, but with lukewarm interest, and later formed the strength of the reaction that carried Louis Napoleon into power. The 23rd of February was the day when the political interests of the lower middle class were uppermost in the public mind; the battle-cry was Vive la reforme; that night, with the choice of the Barrot ministry, they had gained their cause. The 24th of February was the day when the economic grievances of the wage-earning class held the stage; the workers won their victory that afternoon when in a stormy session, invaded by the populace, the chamber rejected the regency and chose a Provisional Government consisting of Dupont (de l'Eure), Arago, Lamartine, Ledru-Rollin, Garnier- Pages, Marie and Cremieux, the majority of whom were

1 A careful study shows that workmen took little part in the republican societies and propaganda until 1834. Both during the Restoration and the first four years of the July monarchy, the membership of the societies was bourgeois, students and journalists playing an important part. The secret societies from 1834 to 1848 were, however, largely composed of workmen, the Saisons being entirely so. Workmen were, however, rarely leaders of the societies. It is to be noted also that the workmen interested in politics formed only a small minority of the total working population, and consisted chiefly of those living in Paris, Lyons and a few large towns, the industrial north and east being largely indifferent. The majority preferred the strike as a weapon for industrial grievances, and many of these strikes were violent. Cf. G. Weill, Hist, du parti republican en France de 1814 a 1870, 1. Tchernoff, Le parti republicain sous la monarchic de juillet, but especially the contemporary sources referred to in the latter's excellent bibliography, particularly the Revue retrospective, no. 1 and the reports of the various political proces of the time, published in the pamphlet literature of the period.

moderate republicans. Their number was soon after increased at the Hotel de Ville, which became the new seat of government, by a socialist and radical group, Louis Blanc, Marrast, Flocon, and Albert, a workman, who were first accepted only as secretaries, but presently tacitly admitted as full members. These groups represented, roughly speaking, the more moderate National and the more radical Reforme, the two chief republican newspapers in whose offices the preliminary caucuses on names had been held. Here was a line of cleavage destined ultimately to destroy the republic. For the moment, however), all was harmony. Social distinctions were forgotten, political oppression had reached its close. The people were light-headed with the intoxication of their painless victory, so sudden, and so' incredibly complete. Tons les hommes sont freres was a phrase repeated again and again in official and unofficial proclamations. The atmosphere men breathed was surcharged with sentiment. " It was as though one swam in a sea of milk," says M. Renard. Lamartine, the poet, was the natural head of such a movement. " We are making today the most sublime of poems," he cried in a sort of Delphic ecstacy to the enraptured throngs who mistook his eloquence for statesmanship. Idealism, radicalism, brotherhood were on the tongues, if not in the hearts, of all.