Page images
PDF
EPUB

dent, declared the sitting at an end. M. Odillon Barrot complained that the President had failed in his duty, and been wanting in respect to the Chamber, in not announcing the nature of the documents handed to him. The President replied, that by the rules of the Chamber, he was not bound to make any declaration, until the documents had been submitted to the bureau, which would be done on Thursday, and the contents would then be made known. At the instance of M. Barrot, he acknowledged the receipt of the papers, which related to the impeachment of the Ministers. That presented by M. Barrot, was signed by 53 Opposition members, and was as follows:

"We propose to place the Minister in accusation as Guilty

"1. Of having betrayed abroad the honor and the interests of France.

"2. Of having falsified the principles of the constitution, violated the guarantees of liberty, and attacked the rights of the people.

"3. Of having, by a systematic corruption, attempted to substitute, for the free expression of public opinion, the calculations of private interest, and thus perverted the representative gov

ernment.

"4. Of having trafficked for ministerial purposes in public offices, as well as in all prerogatives and privileges of power.

5. Of having, in the same interest, wasted the finances of the State, and thus compromised the forces and the grandeur of the kingdom.

"6. Of having violently despoiled the citizens of a right inherent to every free constitution, and the exercise of which had been guaranteed to them by the Charter, by the laws, and by former precedents.

"7. Of having, in fine, by a policy overtly counter-revolutionary, placed in question all the conquests of our two revolutions, and thrown the country into a profound agitation."

[Here follow the signatures, M. Odillon Barrot at the head.]

M. de Genoude's proposition was in these

terms:

"Whereas the Minister, by his refusal to present a project of law for electoral reform, has occasioned troubles, I propose to put in accusation the President of the Council, and his colleagues."

During the latter part of the day, the people erected barricades in several streets leading into Rue St. Denis, and Rue St. Martin, by tearing up the paving-stones, seizing carts, omnibusses, &c. Most of these were carried by the troops of the line and the Municipal Guard, and at some places severe engagements took place. All Paris presented an aspect of civil war, and the troops remained under arms all night.

In the morning of Wednesday, fresh bodies of troops arrived in the city; and the populace destroyed the electric telegraph in several

[ocr errors]

places, to prevent the transmission of orders to the military, and tore up the rails of the railroads to hinder their approach. During the night the barricades had been removed, but they were re-constructed in the morning, and were defended with such vigor that up to 11 o'clock the troops had failed to take them. The rappel was beat, for calling together the National Guard, and but few answered the call till. the afternoon, when several legions mustered strongly, shouting, Vive la Reforme! à bas Guizot! à bas le Ministère! Sharp firing was kept up between the insurgents and the Municipal Guard.

In the Chamber of Deputies, M. Vavin (of Paris) put some question to the Minister of the Interior, respecting the passing events. M. Guizot rose and said that the king had sent for Count Molé, who was impowered to form a ministry, which was received with loud cheers.

The

He then added that until their successors were appointed, the ministry considered themselves responsible, and should act according to their best judgment for the interests of the country. M. Odillon Barrot proposed to adjourn his proposition for impeaching the Ministers, and the Chamber concluded its sitting amid the greatest excitement. The announcement of the change of ministry appeared to produce a calm, but it was of short continuance. night was one of intense excitement and alarm; the work of erecting barricades went on without ceasing. All the trees in the Boulevards were felled, and the lamp-posts thrown down. The appointment of Count Molé having failed to appease the people, MM. Thiers, and Odillon Barrot were appointed ministers, and at 12 o'clock, on Thursday, the latter, accompanied by General Lamoricière, repaired from the Chamber of Deputies to the Ministry of the Interior, where he was formally installed into office, and Gen. Lamoricière invested with the command of the National Guard. The following proclamation was posted on the walls of Paris:

"Citizens of Paris -The King has abdicated. The crown, bestowed by the revolution of July, is now placed on the head of a child, protected by his mother. They are both under the safeguard of the honor and courage of the Parisian population. All cause of division amongst us has ceased to exist. Orders have been given to the troops of the line to return to their respective quarters. Our brave army can be better employed than in shedding its blood in so deplorable a collision.

[ocr errors]

My beloved fellow-citizens!-From this moment the maintenance of order is intrusted to the courage and prudence of the people of Paris, and its heroic National Guard. They have ever been desert it in this grave emergency. faithful to our noble country. They will not

[ocr errors]

ODILLON BARROT."

The abdication took place about one o'clock, and the king immediately proceeded to Neuilly,

under an escort of cuirassiers. At the same hour, in the Chamber of Deputies, M. Sauzet took the chair, in presence of about three hundred members. Shortly afterwards the Duchess of Orleans, in deep mourning, arrived at the Palace, with her two sons. The Princess appeared at the left door, accompanied by the two Princes, and the Duke de Nemours and Montpensier. The young Count de Paris entered first, led by one of the members of the House. He penetrated with difficulty as far as the semicircle, which was crowded with officers and soldiers of the National Guard. His presence produced a lively impression on the assembly. Almost immediately afterwards the Duchess entered, and seated herself in an arm-chair between her two sons.

The hall was then forcibly entered by a multitude of armed men of the lower orders and National Guards. The Princess and her children then retired to one of the upper benches of the centre, opposite the Presidential chair.

The greatest agitation and uproar prevailed, and when silence was restored, M. Dupin rose and announced to the assembly that the King had abdicated in favor of his grandson, and conferred the regency on the Duchess of Orleans.

A voice from the public gallery-"It is too late."

An indescribable scene of tumult ensued. A number of deputies collected round the Duchess and her children, and the Dukes of Nemours and Montpensier. National Guards also rallied round the royal family.

M. Marie then ascended the tribune without being able to speak, his voice being drowned by deafening cries. When silence was restored, M. Marie said, that in the critical situation in which the capital was placed, it was urgently necessary to adopt some measures calculated to calm the population. Since morning the evil had made immense progress. Shall we proclaim the Duke de Nemours or the Duchess of Orleans regent? M. Cremieux, who followed, was of opinion to uphold the new Government. M. Genoude thought that an appeal ought to be addressed to the people. M. Odillon Barrot next ascended the tribune, and advocated the rights of the Duchesse d'Orleans. M. Larochejaquelin supported the appeal to the people. M. Lamartine and M. Ledru-Rollin, insisted on the necessity of appointing a Provisional Government. M. Sauzet here put on his hat, and concluded the sitting. The Princes retired, followed by all the members of the Centre, those of the Left alone remaining in the hall. The insurgents then called, or rather carried M. Dupont de l'Eure to the Presidential chair. The tribune and all the seats were occupied by the people and National Guards, and a Provisional Government was proclaimed amidst a scene which has not been witnessed since the Convention.

"The Provisional Government" issued a proclamation, stating its desire for a republic; adding, that neither the people of Paris, nor the Provisional Government, desire to substitute their opinions for those of the citizens at large, upon the definite form of government which the national sovereignty shall proclaim. It is signed Dupont, (de l'Eure,) Lamartine, Ledru-Rollin, Bedeau, Michel Goudehaux, Arago, Bethmont Marie, Carnot, Cavagnac, Garnier Pagès. The death of several persons, who were fired on by the troops in defending themselves against an attack at the Hotel of the Foreign Ministry, seems to have infuriated the people. The palace of the Tuilleries was sacked by a mob, and the furniture thrown out of the windows and burned. A successful attack was also made on the Palais Royal, in attempting to repel which, Gen. Lamoricière is said to have been severely wounded if not killed. The excitement in Paris was intense. A rising in the towns of the north is confidently expected. Such are the latest accounts. Whether the Provisional Government will be sustained in the power which it has thus assumed, is yet unknown.

In Naples a revolution was effected in a single day. It commenced on the morning of the 28th January, with a mighty crowd in the street of Toledo, and ended in the evening by chorusses sung in the opera house, in praise of the constitution! The sincerity of the king, who had resolutely refused to grant any concession, or to join the customs league, appears rather dubious, but the grant appears to have made him extensively popular. The Roman Catholic religion is to be the only one permit ted. It was proposed that one constitution should include Naples and the Island of Sicily, but the inhabitants of the latter, having completely routed the Neapolitan troops sent to subdue them, refused the offer, and the king was compelled to grant to them their constitution of 1812, which has been accepted on condition, that the Prince Royal shall be Viceroy, and a separate parliament established at Palermo. The French Constitution is the model of that of Naples, with the addition that no religion but the Roman Catholic is to be permitted. The King of Sardinia has also granted the French Constitution to his subjects. In Rome the people, excited by the announcement of constitutions having been accorded to the other Italian States, had demanded a constitution from the Pope. His Holiness had invited the Dominican friar Boerio to examine, in a theological point of view, how far the constitutional form of government was consistent with the temporal power of the Sovereign Pontiff. Father Ventura had already replied to that demand, that if the Pope wished to transmit to his successors the patrimony of St. Peter, he should grant the concessions necessary to preserve it.

CRITICAL

The Pictorial History of England: being a History of the People, as well as a History of the Kingdom. Illustrated with several hundred wood cuts. Vol. IV., Nos. 42, 43 and 44. New York: Harper & Brothers.

The present numbers of this work conclude the fourth volume, which comprises the period from the Revolution to the accession of George III., A. D. 1688-1760. They are devoted to sketches of the National Industry, Literature, Science, the Fine Arts, Manners and Customs, and Condition of the People; the Civil and Military Transactions, Religion, Constitution, Government and Laws, occupying the previous numbers of the volume. With the general merits of this compilation our readers, it is presumed, are sufficiently familiar.

These last numbers are particularly interesting, on account of the many illustrations they afford of the progress in knowledge which has been made in the last century and a half, | and of the singularities of by-gone fashions and manners. The state of physical science in the middle of the seventeenth century is said to be not unfairly represented by some extracts from the "Archæologia Nova, or New Principles of Philosophy," published in 1663, by Dr. Gideon Harvey, physician to the forces in Flanders. He attacks Descartes for "assuming the erroneous opinions of Copernicus." In another place he says, " In grinding any substance, if you continue the operation beyond a certain point, you shall soon grind it into clods and bigger pieces than lesser." In like wise he deduces the formation of the universe out of chaos. The true reason, he tells us, why a man living is heavier than when dead had never been given. That such is the fact, he assumes from the sinking of a living man at first when he falls into the water, and rising again to the top after having been dead some time. "The reason is, because, through the great heat which was inherent in that man, the heavy and terrestrial parts were the more detained from the centre; they, again, being thus detained, moved stronger toward the centre, and, therefore, make the body heavier during the violent detention, through the great heat which was in the said man when alive; so that, through this great weight, the alive body sinks down to the bottom. Now, when the man is suffocated, and the heat squeezed out of him by the thick compressing parts of the water, then he is rendered less heavy, and immediately leaves the inferior parts of water, as being less weighty than the said profound parts." Women, he thinks, being less compact, are lighter: "Weak and

VOL. I. NO. IV. NEW SERIES.

*28

NOTICES.

tender women have fallen into the river and have swam upon the water until watermen have rowed to them, and have taken them up; and many weakly women, that were suspected to be witches, being cast into the water for a trial, have been wickedly and wrongfully adjudged to be witches because they were long in sinking; and, alas! it is natural." No doubt," he naively adds, "but their clothes conduced also somewhat to it." In the same profound manner he reasons upon the universe, the earth, tides, &c.

66

In 1701, it was the fashion for both sexes to carry muffs. They were made very small and ornamented with bows and ribbons. The fashion of patching the face began about 1680. Afterwards, when politics ran high, the party to which a lady belonged, was known by the arrangement of her patches. The Spectator gives a humorous description of the annoyances of a Whig lady who had a natural mole on the Tory side of her brow.

The origin of many odd signs is curiously shown: thus the Boulogne mouth became the Bull and Mouth; the Satyr and Bacchanals was metamorphosed into the Devil and Bag of Nails; and the pious Puritan motto, “God encompasseth us," underwent a singular transformation into the Goat and Compasses! In the reign of George the Second, there was a rage for splendid signs, many of which were made to cost several hundred pounds. Thimble-rigging was then openly practiced in London streets, which were for the most part unpaved. Drinking houses and drinking stands were quite as common as now. In wet weather, the strongest took the wall, the numerous penthouse lids affording the only shelter. Sedan chairs were then used to a great extent. In theatrical representations in Garrick's day, great attention was paid to scenery, but the actors wore the dress of the time. Thus Cleopatra or Semiramis appeared in a powdered commode, a hooped petticoat, a stomacher, and a fan. Even Cato in 1712 was introduced on the stage in a "long wig, flowered gown, and lackered chair;" and Macbeth figured in a court dress of sky-blue and scarlet! Prize fighters with broad-sword, sword and dagger, and single stick, were common, and used to "cut collops out of one another to divert the mob."

One of the favorite cures for consumption in the country, was "a peck of garden shell snails, washed in small beer and fried in a frying pan, shells and all, with a quart of earth worms, and mingled with abundance of strong ale, spices, and drugs."

The English roads were such in 1703, that it took fourteen hours to go from Windsor to London, forty miles. The population of the entire kingdom, at the time of the Revolution, is estimated at seven millions. In the rural districts there were thousands of superstitious notions among young people, relating to courtship and marriage, some of which yet remain.

"Thus a young damsel who was anxious to know something of the husband whom fate had

destined for her, was directed to run until she was out of breath, as soon as she heard the first notes of the cuckoo; after which, on pulling off her shoe, she would find in it a hair of the same color with that of her future mate. If she wished to see his full appearance, she was to sow hemp seed on midsummer eve, and command her lover, in a rhyming couplet, to follow and mow; and behold, on looking over her shoulder, she would see him at her heel, scythe in hand! On Valentine's morning, the first bachelor whom a girl accidentally met, was supposed to be her destined husband. Another way was for her to pare a pippin, and throw the rind over her head; on falling it would show his initials. Or if she had two lovers, she could decide between them by burning two hazel nuts or sticking pippin seeds on her cheeks, to see which would remain longest."

All these things make pleasant reading, and serve to keep up the good old family feeling. Conceited and disagreeable as Englishmen, or rather English snobs, sometimes make themselves, it creates a warming of the heart towards that uncomfortable people, to consider how very simple the "old folks," our common great-great grandfathers and grandmothers, used to be, a few hundred years ago. We think it argues no want of nationality in us to look with particular kindness on the manifold infirmities of Queen Victoria's subjects, and still to cherish towards them a becoming brotherly regard. Compared with the M-but there is no need of making a comparison so odorous.

The Library of American Biography. Conducted by JARED SPARKS. Second Series. Vol. XV. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown. 1848.

This volume contains the lives of William Richardson Davie, by Fordyce M. Hubbard, and of Samuel Kirkland, by Samuel K. Lothrop. Governor Davie was, as none of our southern readers will need to be informed, one of the most distinguished men in the early history of South Carolina. He was born in England, his father emigrating to the Catawba country in 1763, when his son was seven years old. He studied at Nassau Hall, and in 1776, while a student, served as a volunteer in the vicinity of New York. He afterwards became

The reader will remember the Fair Maid of Perth.

a lieutenant of a company in Pulaski's legion; then a major, and colonel; distinguishing himself in the various battles of the Revolution which were fought in the South. Towards the close of the war he was appointed Commissary-general of his State; and when the Convention met at Philadelphia, for forming a constitution, he was present as a delegate. At length he was elected Governor, and was afterwards appointed Minister to the French Direc tory, with Ellsworth, in place of Patrick Henry. He was a man of commanding person, dignified manners, an eminent lawyer, and an unblemished gentleman. In 1803 he was a candidate for Congress, and lost his election by not being in favor of Jefferson. The remainder of his life was passed on his estate, where he died in 18?

41, me a limits

Samuel Kirkland was the father of J 1 Thornton Kirkland, for several years Pro of Harvard University. He was born and after graduating at Princeton, bar missionary among the Indians, with of New York, chiefly among the C this work, and its perils and vic spent the whole of the active part He died at Clinton, in this ptate, in 1.08.

las. In udes, he

his life.

The second series of Mr. Sparks's work, which this fifteenth volume concludes, shows that the materials for American biography are yet by no means exhausted. The list of the lives at the end, exhibits names respecting which there is no less curiosity than attached to those which were selected for the previous series; and there can be no doubt that another series might be made, without at all encroaching upon the boundary that separates the present from the past, which would be equally popular and instructive. It is intended, probably, that the work shall go on as heretofore.

We have need enough, as a people, in the rapid fluctuations of events, to keep an eye backward, in order to preserve our identity. For, as when stout vessels sail before the wind, over the stormy ocean, they seem to be riding faster than the waves, when, in reality, it is not so, and sometimes a heavy roll overtakes and bears them down-so it may be with nations, sailing with the wings of Time, over the restless commotion of human Passions, (and intent on Progress,) suddenly, if the helmsmen regard only the dim light in the binnacle of Reason, and do not consider the mountains of Ambition, ever outstripping their speed, the ship of State is driven under, or lies at the mercy of the raging billows. Hence it is necessary to the prosperity of a state, it might be argued, to treasure the lives of its distin guished men, as well as proper in individuals

to desire to read of them.

The present volume is embellished with a well engraved portrait of Mr. Kirkland, from an old picture, and is marked by the neatness and typographical accuracy by which the books of the Messrs. Little and Brown can be gener ally distinguished.

[blocks in formation]

National Loan Fund Life Assurance Society of London.

"A SAVINGS BANK FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE WIDOW AND THE ORPHAN."

EMPOWERED BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT.

CAPITAL £500,000 OR $2,500,000.

BESIDE A RESERVE FUND (FROM SURPLUS PREMIUMS) OF ABOUT 185,000 DOLLARS. (Part of the Capital is invested in the United States.)

T. LAMIE MURRAY, Esq., George street, Hanover-square, Chairman of the Court of Directors in London.

UNITED STATES BOARD OF LOCAL DIRECTORS.

CHIEF OFFICE FOR AMERICA, 74 WALL-ST., N. Y.

cob Harvey, Esq., Chairman, John J. Palmer, Esq., Jonathan Goodhue, Esq., Jas Boo an, Esq., Geo. Barclay, Esq., Samuel S. Howland, Esq., Gorham A. Worth, Esq., Samu M. Fox, Esq., Wm. Van Hook, Esq., and C. Edward Habicht, Esq.

EDWARD T. RICHARDSON, Esq., GENERAL ACCOUNTANT.

Pamphlets, Blank Forms, Tables of Rates, Lists of Agents, &c., &c., can be obtained at the Chief Office, ~4 Wall Street, or from either of the Agents throughout the United States, and British North American Colonies.

J. LEANDER STARR,

General Agent for the United States, and B. N. A. Colonies.

NAUTILUS (MUTUAL) LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY.

Office No. 58 Wall Street.

THIS Company recently organized, upon the improved and deservedly popular principle of mutual assurance, will confine its business exclusively to Insurance on Lives.

It commences with a capital of $50,000, which will be continually augmenting as its business increases. The rates of premium correspond with those of other American Companies.

One of the peculiar advantages attending insurance with this company is, that all the assured share annually in its profits, and are interested in its success; for its charter provides "that each and every member shall be annually credited with his proportional share of the amount of premiums earned, after deducting losses and expenses. But in no case shall his share of loss exceed the amount of such premium." These earned premiums or profits will be safely invested by the company, constituting a permanent fund, annually augmenting for the benefit and security of all parties interested.

The Rates of Insurance on One Hundred Dollars, on a Single Life, for One Year.

[blocks in formation]

77
91

[blocks in formation]

1.69

1 91

1 00

[blocks in formation]

1 83
196
2. 09

1 31

[blocks in formation]
[blocks in formation]
[blocks in formation]

Persons may effect insurance on their own lives or the lives of others.

A man may effect insurance on his own life in the name of his wife for her benefit, and paya. ble to her-and in case of her death previous to the death of her husband, payable to her children for their use, and to their guardian if under age.

LEWIS BENTON, Secretary.

PLINT FREEMAN, Actuary.

ALEXANDER HAMILTON, Jun., Attorney.

J. D. P. OGDEN, President.

A. M. MERCHANT, Vice President.

Medical Examiners.-George Wilkes, M.D., 28 Laight street, Cornelius R. Bogert, M. D.,5 St. Mark's Place.

Seven

« PreviousContinue »