The New York Herald Newspaper, March 17, 1874, Page 3

NAPOLEONISM Special Herald Interview with Emile Olivier, Ex-Minis- ter of Napoleon Ii. COMPLIMENT TO THE AMERIGAN PRESS, Past aud Prospective Future, Bonaparte’s Rule and Bismarek’s Enmity-- “Symptoms That He Has Reached the Summit of His Power.” Napoleonism as It Is—The Republic or a Royal Restoration? Parts, Feb, 22, 1874, It 1s onJy a few days ago that M. Emile Cliivier, | the once famous Minister of Napoleon IL, the man who was in power when France was hurried into the most disastrous, ill-conducted and dis- grace’ul war she had ever waged, returned to Paris irom the little village in Piedmont, where, With dignity and good sense not often seen among French statesmen, he has lived tor the last four years—ever since his fall from power—n the most complete seclusion, Even now M, Ollivier has re- turned to Paris, not, as will be seen below, with any immed@iate intention of re-entering the stormy World of politics, but in order to be “received,” | formally, a member of the French Academy, of which illustrious body he was elected a member in 1870, shortly beore the war broke out and puta stop toagreat many things besides M. Ollivier’s solemn reception, For obvious reasons it has been thought advisable to delay the reception by the Academy of a man who was so terribly unpopular as M. Ollivier, and even now there 1s, it woula seem, some chance of a hostile manifestation being made against him when he takes his seat next month, SPECIAL NERALD INTERVIEW WITH THE STATESMAN. Having heard tnat M. Ollivier had announced his Intention of coming forward as a candidate for tie Department of the Var, which he represented under the Empire, at the next elections, I wrote to M. Ollivier asking for an interview, and, having received a most courteous answer, called yester- day by appointment at his modest little villa at Passy, the pretty and fashtonable quarter in the west of Paris which was 80 severely and so use- lessiy bombarded by M. Thiers in his struggle against the Commune in 1871. I was shown into M. Ollivier’s drawing room, and while waiting there a few moments had time to admire a large and beau‘iful photograph of the late Emperor, which was the only picture in the room—a pretiy plain sign that M. Oliivier was still faithful to the memory of his late master in spite of ali that had Occurred since he was the Emperor’s Prime Min- ister, AMERICAN JOURNALISM. When we entered his study M. Oliivier’s first re- mark was that he believed the HERALD was by far the most important journal in the United States, Where, he understood, it occupied a position of superiority to all rivals as marked as that of tue London Times, in Great Britain. continued the Minister, “I am quite ready to an- ‘ewer apy questions you may wish to put me,” NAPOLEON'S RULE, Being asked to give some explanation of the origin of the Iate war, M. Ollivier satd:—“There is @ Widely spread opinion that the great success obtained by the Emperor in the picbiscite of May, 1870, was the main cause of the declaration of war in July following, the Emperor tninking that he } | | | of hs own judgment, The Condition of France—Her Immediate | | least, by an overwhelming majority. “That being so,” | Supported I mean actively supported, as with you could gain a new lease of power by a war which | he would not have ventured on had it not been for the favorable result of the May pl¢discite. This, however, is quite an Incorrect view. Of course the enemies of the Empire have expressed the opinion Lhave stated—namely, that the war was the re- sult of the plcbiscite—put nothing could possibly be | further from the truth, and, indeed, I do not be- Meve that any one in France honestly holds such an opinion, Whatever he may choose to write or to say for party purposes, peror nor I, nor any one of his Ministers, ever dreamed of going to war before the 3a of July, 1870 (when the Hohenzollern candida- ture was announced). The war was mone of our seeking; it was put upon us by M. de Bismarck, who saw his oppor- tunity and was anxious to crush France while still at his mercy. He = provoked us to declare war, and yet contrived to give Germany the air of being wantonly attacked by France, whereas by his bringing forward Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern as a candidate for the throne of Syain he knew very well he was forcing us to goto war. Iam quite aware that the Ger- mans urge that they had not mobilized their army previous to the Duke de Grammont’s speech on the Gth of July; that they had made no prepara- tions for war at that time, and were even engaged 4m supplying their men with a new musket when war broke out, “To this I would reply that Gorman bad faith is proverbial, aud they picked with us what we call in French ‘une queretie a’ Allemand’ —a Germa made up Ris mind to accept parliamentary govern- Ment in France, he being generally believed to have a great dislike to that form of government. “The Emperor,” replied M. Ollivier, certainly wi somewhat prejudiced against parliamentary gov- ernment, as in the condition in which he found France he did not believe that it would do any good to the country. But when, as in 1867, he thought the time to practise it had come, he was quite ready to play the part of a constitutional sovereign. He had many qualifications for such a role. Snapite of his position and the place he haa for years held as the arbiter of Europe, Napoleon IL. was a wonderiully modest man, very distrustful anxious to regard all sides of a quesuop, and, strange as it may seem, quite as good a friend (0 liberty as those who ac- cnse bim so loudly of having been a tyrant. An! I see that this astonisies you, and you are very likely thinking that the author of the coup actat could hardly be a friend of freedom, But yet it was so, Let me explain myself. You can hardly judge better of the condition France had got into alter 148 than by what you see now. If you take any interest in French politics you must be aware that no one is very much in love with liberty in France just at the present moment. What every one wants 1s a sabre and a firm and strong hand to wield it, ready to strike fearlessly, nay, piti- lessly, if need be, Stop the first man you meet in the street and ask him what he wants in politics, and you may be sure the answer will be governinent, which should be certain of long dura- tion, which would give us time to work and grow corn and wine, and sell our goods and earn back all the savings we lost in the war,’ ‘A strong | | Ment gaining possession of power in Paris. ‘That 1s what | everybody, except a few fanatics, wants in France | at the present moment.”” THE FRENCH REPUBLIC AND ITS PROSPHCTS. Your correspondent sugxested that it seemed to him that a republican form of government would, if definitely organized, adopted ana recognized in France, give all the requized security and iu- sure the preservation of order and liberty. The most firmiy seated and strongest as wel! as freest government on earth was the Republic of the United States, “I do not dispute tt,” replied M. Ollivier, “but then in America the conditions are entirely differ- | ent from ours. You come of a stock trained to the exercise of freedom, and with you all parties join in respecting the government in the long run, however bitterly the men actually in power may be opposed. Many men are, no doubt, intensely hostite to General Grant and wish he were not President; but now, that he is a second time chief of the State, they would never dream of disobeying his orders or endeavoring to turn him ont of the | White House by a riot in tne streets of Washing- | ton. The very idea ofsucha thing, Isee, makes you | involuntarily smile. But here there is one continua; effort to overthrow, not only the men in power, | but the whole fabric of government. Nothing fundamental is accepted by all men in French pol- itics. Look at the recent elections in England. A month ago Mr. Gindstone and the lberal party were in power; now Mr. Disraeli and the conserv- atives are in office and every one submits to the verdict of the elections, No one calls the consti- tution or the crown in question any more than any one does your own constitution and Republic | when a Presidential election takes place in the United States, There is one reason why we cannot | foticw your lead. Then vhere is the question of a standing army, which you in America can do with- ont, but which we regard in France as absolutely necessary to our existence as a nation. Then with us whenever a Republic has been proclaimed it hag | always led tostreet fighting and all kinds of pop- ular excesses. Jn fact, a Republic can only exist for any time when supported by all citizens; or, at When I say in the United Staies, where the vast majority of citizens would take up arms in defence of tne Re- | public against internal just as readily as against external enemies, In a word, never been able to obtain what we call a tion’ from the people in Franze, I consider that the Empire had obtainea such a sanction by means of the two pildbiscites, especially the last one, in whichno pressure was exercised on Voters, Noth- ing can be established in modern France WITHOUT A PLEBISCITE. When the Emperdr, after the coup d@’itat, was in- demnified Jor what he had dyne by #2 enormous majority, it was said that people voted througn fear or because they saw no choice between the Empire and utter anarchy. But there was no official pressure in 1870, when my plébiscite took place. Agatnst that it was urged that people will always vote for the established government, and that the 7,000,000 votes were given in great mea- Neither the &m- | "3 | quarrel-- by which we mean a quarrel about noth. | Ming at all, They knew our weakness tar better whan we did ourselves, and were determined to prot by = it. They are practically always ready in a military point of View, and then, too, everything favored them ina most extraordinary manner, Bismarck was, I aamit, very clever in the way he pubiished the | Belgian crait treaty and so alienated England from us, We ovght not to have given him the power to publish such a treaty, you say ? But who conld suppose that M. Benedetti wonld be so fool- ish as to give M. de Bismarck a drait treaty which he could use at any time against us? HIS OPINION OF BISMANC “Tthink, however, that it may bé Skid that M. de Biswarck’s reputation as a statesman has been ex- aggerated tinduly, 1% 1s not dinicult to earn the ‘reputation of Agreat dipiomatist when you have @ Moltke and 1,000,000 of armed and weil disci- plined men behind you. If he had sailed there would have been a general outcry against Bismarck on account of his utter unscrupulousness, have no scruples you can accomplish a great many things honest men canuot hope todo. You come to see me here asa friend and might easily take some object off my table when my back was turned if you were as unscrupulous 2s M, de Bismarck is. Jook on that careiesspess of all moral restraint and the having immense material force at his back As the two great causes of Bismarck’s success as a Statesman. Of course he is clever (habile) as well; but I have, I believe, stated the chief reasons of his success, and I think there are symptoms that M. de Bismarck has reached the sammit of his power. 1 look on these revelations of General La Marmora’s as very damaging, and the proof | that they are so is the immense annoyance shown by the German Chancellor at the publication of General La Marmora’s book. Many little signs seem tome to indicate that M. de Bismarck mey ealeniate too much on his own skill and the mill, tary strength of Germany, That he did provoke If you | us in 1576 I look on as being beyond alldoubt. Why | should the Emperor have gone to war? Te had inst been confirmed in power by an enormous ma- jority, France was prosperous and happy. The Emperor had loyally accepted con- stitutional government in France, and the prospects of his dynasty were never better, If we had wanted a war with Prus- sla we could easily have found a pretext for it. We had, for instance, only to cali on the Germans to fulfli the Mith articin of the treaty of Prague. That would have been considered acasus deli py Bismarck, we know very well.’ M18 OPINION OF NAPOLEON 111, Your correspondent having said that he was SDxious to know if the Emperor had thoroughly | | sure for the reforms I had introduced, Very well. | Then, if the republicans or Orleauists believe that, let them now appeal to the people under the Re- | public, as we did under the Empire, and if they the Republic has | ‘sanc- | | wards the country, necessary—peace and retrenchment, ‘Let | us have peace’ is the cry of all Frenchmen from Calais to Marseilles. if the | Germans provoke us us we must refuse to be pro- | voked. Whatever they ask not actually incompati- ble with our national honor we’ must accord at once. Above all, we must give them po just ground jor complaint. Of course if they are deter- | mined to force a quarrel upon us they could do so, | and it is possible that M. de Bismarck, finding that | he has not utterly crushed France by the imposi- | tion of such a crashing indemnity, may have | determined to go to war with us again before we | have had time to reorganize our army, and go to | Wipe France out of the map of Europe. But, after all, | and however much France nas been weakened by | the war and the Commune, we are still a nation of | 26,000,000 souls, and you must be careful how you drive such a nation toa state of despair. If the Prussians were again to invade France tney could | no doubt advance right up to Paris without | serious opposition. But then their dificul- | ties would begin again. Paris would this | time he defended by a small but well-disclplined | garrison sufMicient to guard the forts, joined to a small lorce ready to aid a relieving army by a sor- tie. There would be a large and well-disciphned French army tn the fleld, aud you know a French- man is a soldier in tnree months (le Francais est soldat en trois mots). Then, even if they were at first defeated, there would be another and a great | danger of a most frightiul revolutionary govern- Such @ government would stop at nothing, would exe- cute and plunder wholesale no doupt, but still unite the people in fighting the enemy. Look, he continued, at what took place during the last war, All parties forgot their difierences for a time and fought under Gambetta against the Prussians, No party was more bitterly opposed to Gambetta than the Legitimists, yet who fonght | better under his generals than they did? Lam sure Chere is one fecling throughout France in this matter, and we should be even more united than during the last war, I myself would serve under ary one im such a cause. if Rochesort himself were here I would willingly obey him, be his secre- | tary—anything, so long as it was tor the good of France, We suffered greatly from the wants of organization during the last war, and after Sedan all our best officers were prisoners in Germany. This time we should have a much better organiza- tion to start with, and, above all, we should not Jook down on our enemy, as we so imprudentiy did last time. But, though I say all this, you must quite understand that 1 do not advocate war with Germany. Iam merely endeavoring to show you that the Germans might find that they had made @ Most terrible mistake in driving a nation like France to despair. For, admitting that they might ultimately beat us in the field and occupy ali our great towns, what then? Napoleon did the same in Spain, and you know what came of it. Of course France is a different country now from Spain. But after months or years of exhausting war she inight come much more nearly to resemiJe Spain than spe does at pres- ent, Then the Prussians would tind no one to treat with, no one to signa peace, to make himself obeyed, or to enforce the observance of a treaty, far less the payment of a heavy indemnity. lecnsider that history will declare that M, de Bis- marck committed 2 grievous error in connecting Alsace and Lorraine to Germany. Had he only compelied us to pay an indemnity amply suMvient to cover all the expenses of the war, there would | have been no thought of revenge—at least, not | seriously. There would very possibly have been some loud boasting of our intentions to revenge our defeats, but that would not have come to any- thing more than all the threats of vengeance uttered against England tor years alter Waterloo, but which never came to anything in practice, and eventually did not prevent us fighting side by side with the English in the Crimea. You say the Ger- mans think they would have been perpetually ex- posed to attack if they had leit Alsace and Lorraine in oar hands. Well, if they | really thought so, why did they not make a neutral State of the two provinces stretching | irom Luxembourg to Switzerland, and propose to the other great powers to join in guaranteeing the neutrality of Alsace-Lorraine? I am afraid the Germans do not want to have an impassable boundary between them and us, and they are aux- jous Lo be able to attack us when taey may think | it expedient.” } THE SITUATION IN FRANC Your correspondent then asked M. Ollivier what he thought of the atutude of the Assembly to- “Well, Ido notsee how the ent | ‘It i Assembly can go on beyond the ena o! the pr said M. Olliv! year without dissolving itseil, has become qaite powerless, it appears to me. It | May be capable of domg much harm yet, but it | seems to me to be incapable of doing much good in have a republican or Urleanist majority I should be | the first to swear ovedience to the government established in virtue of such a majority, and scru- pnious to serve under it as the only legal one. If we were to have a plcbiscite now [ am very conident the Empire would have an immense majority of votes, The number would be, in my opinion, roughly speaking, aS nearly as possible as fol- lows:— Repubilcav votes Orleanist.... Imperiaiist.. To this your correspondent ventured to opject that republican candidates had for the last two years past had overwhelming majorities at nearly all the elections which had taken place in France. M. Ollivier replied to this that it was quite correct that the republicans—or rather, he said, the radicals—had had the majority; “But that will always be so,” he addea, “at clections under such @ government as the present. ‘The election of radical candidates is simply a protest against the monarchical tendences and the cleri- calism of the present government, It sounds like @ paradox, but yet I can assure you that it is true that just where the repubiicans have now large majorities at the elections to the Assembly we the country. No one respects it, and if it were not jahon and the army I belteve it would go | before the smatiest popular demonstra- | lis attempt of M. de Broglie and his inends to meddle with universal sadrage is sure to end im failure sooner or later. ceeds in passing a If he suc- | law depriving a large | } number of electors of their votes, what will be | | the result?—that we imperialists will be looked | every man to vote in France. | almost be sufficient to explain the hold the Empire | but the people only upon as the only real guardians of the right of ‘hat alone would has onthe people, You suggest that the repub- licans ate just as determined to preserve univer- sal sufirage as we are. Ido not say they are not, remember that universal suilrage Was taken from them under the Republic, | in 1848, and that the first act of the Emperor was should have equally large majorities for the Em- | pire if a plcbiscile were now taken. Cer- tain aistricts of Parts always returned members of the opposition under = the Empire, but when my picpisgite took place, in | May, 1870, those very diatricts gave the Emperor large majogitics. ‘The people have the greatest possivte difticulty—nay, it is quite impossible for them to fairly grasp {he difference between one candidate and another—but they see very clearly the diMercnce between one government and an- other,” “NAPOLEON IIL. would be on the throne of France now if he had lived,” added M. Ollivier, “I do not entertain a doubt about it. You ask me whatl think are the prospects of his son. 1 think the Prince imperial is, if he lives, almost certain to sit on his father’s throne. Yes, it is quite true, as you say, that he is very young, certuinly too young to be a dic tator, even if he has the stuff of a dictator in him, which we do not Know as yet. But PRANCE WANTS A DICTATOR. As there is no dictator to be had she will take the Empire, which isa dictatorship. It is very sad for me, who have long been the constant advocate of liberty, to have to say all this with a conviction of its truth; but lam convinced that in the pres- ent condition of affairs liberty in France coulda only Jead to anarciy, to another Commune and all its attendany horrors. I hear that some one said to tne Duc de Broglie, the other day, ‘But, Monsieur le Duc, you are restoring all the institu- tions of the Empire; take care that you do not | restore the Empire itsei(."" “Weil, replied M, de Brogiie, ‘I would rather do that than have my throat cut.’ That saying expresses the feclings of agreat many people in France who do not love | the Empire any more than M. de Brogtie does,” FRANCE AND GERMANY, Boing asked what was his opinion as to the pres- | ent relations betwee France and Germany, M. Uliivier said, “1 cannot believe it to be possibie that the Germans have determined to attack us now that they sce we are getting streng, or rather, indeed, that we are on the road to recovery trom our late misfortunes. The Germans must be aware that no sane manin France can dream of attack- ing them for many years to come—not for fifteen years at the very least. in France, and whatever form of government we eventually adopt, the same policy is absolutely Whatever happens to ue | canigm 18 impossible in France, to restore it, They see much the same thing now— @ reactionary Assembly destroying universal suflrage and boasting itself above the behests of the people, while the imperialists are the most effective defenders of universal suffrage. The re- | publicans, I admit, are loud in their protests against any atiempt to meddle with the suffrage, but I do not regard it as possible that they should form a stable gov- | ernment, You gee the more violent radicals finish by forcing the more moderate members of their party to obey them, and the most fanatical | members of the party always get the best of it in the long run. Besides, as I think I have already said, the Republic, or indeed any free government, | is at present impossible in France. Why, EVEN IN IRELAND | 1 believe the habeas cerpus act is suspended in | some districts at this very moment, and we are in a very different condition from the most riotous of Irish, Was not the rule of President Lincoln really a dictatorship during your war, and did not every seusible man feel it was right it should be so? Youare aware that [was a republican by birth, and remained so for many years by convic- tion, but fam now firmly convinced that republi- We do not under- stand free government; no, not the A B O of it. Look what happened to me. I worked for | years to obtain the right of holding public meetings previous to elections. At last I obtained a law from the Emperor, and what hap- pened? I myself hired the Chatelet Theatre in or- der to address my constituents, and on the day fixeda mob of 560,000 rowdies, idle work- men, and so on, came down from Believille and the Faubourg St. Antoine and prevented me from speaking, You say that in America or in England such things are not uncommon, but that as there are roughs on both sides, and blows freely ¢x- | changed now and then, parties as a rule find it wisest to leave cach other alone, and that in any case the friends and supporters of the speakers take care to come to the meeting in such numbers as to uverawe their opponents. Very possible; but such proceedings would not do with us. We are too hot-headed for that, and a party fight would | end in Paris by both sides joining agatust the police and erecting barricades,” | THE RELIGIOUS QUESTION IN EUROPE. | Your correspondent next asked M. Ollivier what | he thought about the religious struggle in Europe and the conflitt between Bismarck and the Pope. “You will excuse me," said M, Ollivier, “from | expressing my Views so far as France only is con- | cerned, as 1 do not take much interest in the | struggle going on in Germany, I do not feel much | sympathy for either of the combatants. In France | 1do not look upon the religious question as one | which is really a aiMcult one, As to Rome, the’) Emperor always admitted that the expedition to | | suspicton of having something to do with or know- Rome was one of his great mistakes, and he was always anxions to evacuate Rome. Of course we should give offence to the clergy, but the French clergy hever were and never will be sincere friends of the Empire. The Frenen clergy are intensely hostile to all but legitimacy and only tolerate | aby other sovereign than Henry VY. as @ necessity and a protection against the Coramauists, who have a deplorable habit of | shooting priests. There is nothing so intensely | unpopular in france with nine Frenchmen out of | ten a8 Clericalism, and the present government | owes nota little of its unpopularity to the wide- | spread belief that it secretly favors the priests and | would give them more power if it dared, The | Emperor woutd, in my opinion, have been wise if | | he had broken completely with the clerical party, | Whom it would have been better to have had ag | open enemies than insincere friends. As to any | idea that in case of the restoration of the Second | Empire we should make another expedition to Rowe, this thing is quite absurd. We should as | soon think of undertaking another Mexican expe- ition, The policy of the Empire would be peace | and reorgauization. We need some time to re- organize our army, our finances and our adiminis- | tration before we can think of endeavoring to win back our lost provinces, Win them some day we must and shall, Every Frenchman ts convinced of that in his heart, you may be very sure.”” PRINCE NAPOLEON—HIS POSITION IN THE IMPERIAL PARI Your correspondent as! Ollivier what he thought of the recent “schism” in the imperialist | ig party caused by Prince Napoleon, “Ihave always,” said he, “been very intimate (tres lid) with Prince Napoleon, but I confess that I | do not understand his last letter. Ido not imagine | he has any hold on the popular imagination. Per- | haps he knows better.” M, Ollivier did not seem to care to say any more onthe subject. His remark about Prince Napo- leon’s “hold on the popular imagination’ was made quite gravely, though the fact is (hat the popular opinion about Prince Napoleon is that he ig not as brave as he might be in battle, and the jokes about his showing the white feather are as numberless as they are (probably) unfounded. WHO 18 10 BE THE DICTATOR? The conversation then turned on the different | men who, outside the imperialist party, might possibly aspire to the position of dictator of France, “The Duc d’Aumale is not,’? said M, Ollivier, “in my opinion, the mantomake any such attempt. He is sald to be ambitious to serve against the | Germans under any government and to have no | political ambition. I do not know him persovatly. ‘Then he is one of the richest men in Europe, ana rich men do not make coups aétat, I am told, | but I do not know from personai knowledge, that the Due de Jvinville is the only really distinguished | man in the Orleans family.7 (Oddly enough M. | Ollivier made a mistake in the title, Louis | Philippe’s third son being the “Prince”? and not the “Duc de Joinvilie). “There is no future, to | my mind, for the Orleanist party, now they have joined the Bourhons, The French nation at heart detests everything belong- ing to the Bourbon fam Napoleon said, when First Consul, ‘France would endure five nore Com- mittees o! Public safety, but she would kick out the Bourbons in three months.’ ‘The idea that the Bourbons are at heart opposed to the Revolu- tion, its principles and its consequences is as deeply rooted in France as the idea that the fam- , ily of Bonaparte represents all that was good in the Revolution, and the Republic a great deal that ‘was bad.” WHAT GOVERNMENT THE BEST FOR FRANCE. Your correspondent pointed out that, admitting | @ dictatorship was necessary in the preseat un- | happy and distracted condition of France, yet such a form of government could not be con- sidered a definite one, however good us a tempo- rary remedy. “I quite admit that,” said M. Ollivier, “and that is why, after his letter of the 19th of January, L went to the Emperor and satd, ‘i will make a com. | pact with you; give France lberty and I will imsure your dynasty on the throne.’ The Empe- ror agreed, and boih parties were doing their best to Keep their compact when Bismarck forced the Jpr upon us, and the work of twenty years was uudoue in little more than as many days. France | wil!, Lfear, be a long while before she has again a.chanée of obtaining such stzbie free mstitations as she had under the constitutional Empire. | Pariiamentary government has never really had a fair trial in France. We have either had a mon- | archy with republican institutions, or a republic with monarchical institutions, You ask if we | might not succeed better with a strong Executive, asin America, where, once the President has nom- imated his Ministers and they have been accented by the Senate, the y cannot be expelled during the President’s term ofofice, That might work under | arepublic, but not witha hereditary empire or monareny, Iam afraid our circumstances are so wideiy diferent that we can learn little either from America or England.” M. OLLIVIER’S FORTHCOMING ACADEMY, Your correspondent tien asked M. Ollivier if he | felt any apprehension of a hostile manifestation | at the Academy, when he makes his speech and is “received”? a member of that body next month, | “Lam told,” was the answer, “that the Orlean- | ists, who are very numerous in the Academy, are trying to plan a sors of demonstration against me when 1 make my opening speech. But I do} not concern myself much about tt. My ( speech wili be answered by M. Emile Augier, the | dramatist, and as he is not only an imperialist but a friend of mine, [have nothing to fear trom that quarter. I succeed, as you are aware, to M, de Lamartine, and my speech must necessarily be of a somewhat political character, as I have to give a | sketch of Lamartine’s career, and you know how conspicuous a part he played in 1848 in the politi- cat world.” RECEPTION AT THE PARTING WORDS. Here the conversation ended and your corre- spondent rosezto leave. M. Olivier accompanied his guest to the door, and as he politely opened it said:—“Be sure you say that no gov ment can — be founded in France without a plvdiscite, and if we have one the Empire will receive far more votes than all the other parties put together.” BURGLARY IN NEW HAVEN. Conflicting Rumors as¢to the Amount of Valuc Taken—Random Arrests. New Haven, Conn., March 16, 1874. The robbery of an Adams & Co.'s Express mes- senger’s safe on Saturday, an account ol which ap- peared in Sunday’s HERALD, produced the great- est excitement here, and the police have since been very active in their endeavors to secure the | guilty parties. On Saturday evening a man named | Charles Anderson, an ex-detective, was arrested on ing something about the robvery, Nothing to sus- tain the charges against hin being tound he was discharged, but not until he had revealed informa | tion, which, as the police detectives view it, may | lead to the arrest of the real criminais, Anderson deciares that he recognized among the passengers: from New York who alighted at the depot here on | Friday night the noted outlaw of Chicago, named | Lawson. He described his person minutely, and | Conductor McGee, of the Shore Line “owl train, which left this city Saturday morning at ten min- utes alter three o'clock, directiy alter the robbery, says that aman answering Lawson's description, in company with three other rough looking men, rode on his train to New York. 118 believed these jour persons committed the burglary. During Saturday Samuel Bassett, & bartender in the United States Hotel, was also arrested on sus- picion, and a third party has been taken into du- rance to-day. It seems certain that the company | are in possession of information relative to the | affair Which they deem trustworviy, and it is given out that very soon the guilty scoundrels will be produced. Contradictory statements as to the amount taken from the safe are afloat. ‘The om- | cers of the express company are reticent, simply | poms tet that the loss will not exceed $10,000, | while others, who are in a position to know, claim the total amount abstracted reaches $300,000. | Whether this be true or not, one thing appears certain, much larger sums tuan at first supposed | wereuken by the thieves. | A TRAGEDY IN KENTUORY, LOUISVILLE, March 16, 1874. Henry Mass and Barney Molincamp, neighbors and brothers-in-law, living in Lewis county, Ky., had & quarrel, during which Mass procured a pistol and shot molneatng wile, inflicting fatal wounds, Mass then blew out his brains. The men belonged to a German colony from Vincinuptl. | | | generation as AMUSEMENTS. Italian Opera—“Les Huguenots.” Of all the performances given by the admirable company of Mr. Strakoscn that of “Les Hugue- nots” will provably be remembered as the most complete and symmetrical, We cannot point toa previous season in which the grandest of all operas (for Meyerbeer’s chef-Waruvre will last when the very recollection of the present school of German opera will have faded trom the public mind) has received such an admirable ensemble, ‘The Valen- tine of Mme. Nilsson is One of those operatic im- personations that produce a magnetic effect- From the duet with Marcel in the third act, when she warns him of the danger with which his master ts threatened, to the incompara- ble scene with Raoul in the succeeding act, in which the duty of the wife of Nevers struggles witn the ardent loye for the Huguenot, the actiag and singing of Mme, Nijsson last evening recalicd the brightest days of the lyric stage. In the terri- ble moment when the fatal signal is given for the massacre of St. Bartholomew and the horvor- stricken Raoul rushes from the presence of Valen- tine to certain death there was something Rachel- like in the intensity and passion of the prima s impersona*ion, Campanini, notwithstand- ug occasional traces of his recent Miness, was @ Worthy assistant of Mme sson, and in the fongia act he shared with her the honor of a hait +l Was the same admirable per- Tibed av the frst represeutation d the gloomy fanatic could ented with more tidelily. and Signor Nannetti as Marcei ersonations, and ble De Nevers, va, under the d tion of enerally beiow the standard rded to them at the first performance, the brass instruments being at times unruly, ‘Il Trovatore” will be given on Wednes- day evening, with its former unapproachable cast, “La Traviata? on Friday and “Lohengriu” on Monday next, of this opera; scarcely be repre Cary as the 7 repeated their ve Signor Del Puente The chorus and ore Signor Muzio, w of excellence we German Opera—Lueca. Mme. Pauline Lucca reappeared last evening at the Stadt house, She was welcomed back after her recent Mlness with the same eager demonstrations of affection and appreciation on the part of her com- patriots as when she first sung in this theatre. ‘The opera was “Der Troubadour,” and was given with the following cast:—Leonora, Mme. Licut- | may; Azucena, Mme, Li 3; Manrico, Herr Piueger; Di Luna, Herr Lehmann, Although there were many points of positive merit and a few of excellence in the treatment of their respective roles by Mme. Licvtmay and Messrs. Phueger and Lehmann, yet the entire attention and interest of the immense andience were natu- rally concentrated upon the Gypsy of “Die Kleine Pauline.” {[t is truly a very striking and effective impersonation, such a one as is rarely witnessed nowadays. In the second act, where Azucena telis the Troubadour the tragic history of her mother, the tnriling tones Of the iui, sonorous voice of Mme, Lucea seemed to Till the vast house | with @ pertect ocean of sound. ihe power and sympathetic quality of this voice cannot be overestimated, Her histrionle api is also Of a corresponding stundard of g and both featur mbme to render her Azucena @ most remark: performance, Doves, flowers, rounds of applause and encores were lavishly be- stowed upon her, There was not the slightest trace of the indisposition that contined her to her room during the pst week. source of pleasure. Ou Wednesday she appears in the coquettisn role of Mrs, Ford in Nicolai’s “Merry Wives o: Windsor.” “The Rivals” at Wallack’s. Mr. Wallack had whet is now called in New York phrase “a Wallack audience” to witness the repro- ductton of “The Rivals,” and long before the cur- tuin was raised there was not a seat to be ob- | tained. The scenery and arrangemeuts ot the age Were appropriate, the last scene being par- ticularly fine a8 a combination of color and perspective, ‘There was one drawing room scene tastetully arranged; but the street scenes | might have been from Madria or Turin, There was | alittle rawness, and here and there a rough bit of acting; bat this, we presume, is inseparabletrom a first night. Lhe arrangement ot the comedy mirht be improved, There are many parts o! “The Rivals” which are as much out of place in our the novele of Richardson or the poems of Swift. Here and there is a touch of coarseness, more by suggestion than ex- pression, which has been toned down by the stage | Manager, and might be omitted altogether, More than this, we have secnes of overdrawn artificial sentimentality, wnich clog the action of the play: | We have no doubt such scenes have their uses as pictures of the manners and the timés, But we really have no sympathy with them, and, with ail due reverence tor our great grandmothers, it has n Tecalls, bouquets and aouneant applause. | Theatre before an overwhelming | She can only smg | when her voice 13 in complete order, and theretore | | Ker appearance in opera cannot fail to be always a ) and from reminiscences of older actars. | Toodles conv and light } ‘and Behrens for @ concert at the i . Academy thig The “Colleen Bawn’ at Booth’s Theatre, ‘The reappearance of Dion Boucicauit is a drama. tic ineident full of interest to the play-going public; | but when he comes accompanied with his “Colleen | Bawn," the sweetest of all the creations of hig | fancy, he is sure of a hearty and sincere welcome, | It 1s a pleasure to turn from the questionabie pic- tures of high-toned society, whitch are popularly held to be modern comedy, to this Insh yi, with ts strangely mingled pathos and humor, so interwoven that it requires a distinct effort to separate them, The sweetness and poetry of the “Colleen Bawn” have aiready Won for the piece 50 much popular favor that it is almost needless to say that one cannot witness its performance without being touched by the direct appeais it makes to the best sympathies of our nature, The Myles-na-Coppaleen, of Mr. Boncie cault is one of the cleverest pieces cf characteri+ zation the stage hae witnessed. 11 18 a quiet, subs | dued piece of acting, full of the mosi delicate shading, and a thorough appreciation of the | Wdiosynerasies of a ceriain class of the actor fellow countrymen, So much success as depended on the Mterest of the play and the dramatic | REMUS Of dir, Koucicuult We felt to be secure; DUG | SO much also ended on the lady who should take ti rt of the Colleen” Bawn, | # part which Mrs, Goucicault had made her own, | that we felt doubts as to whether a satisfactory Successor could be found. The rol of “Tne €ol ) leen Bawn” requires nicely balanced powers in an | Actress Not often found among stack companiess | The character ot the peasaut girl as drawn by the author is marked by delicucy and refinement | of thought suming through — tae stn pli | tty and = ignorance oi society usages of the peasant. She is one of nature's | without polish, bul with a sweet and tender na- ture. In her impersonation last night Miss Noah caught the delicacy of the character, and siowed | herself possessed of real dramatic aburty in carrye | ing out the thought of the dramatist and giving 16 | worthy embodiment, bu’. this peculiar mixture of | Giatects marred the effect of her periormance. | My. Seallan played the part of Dauny Maun most acceptably, 8S. W. Glen Raye pred as Corrigan, and Joun Sefton as Fether fom, deserve mention, Miss Helea Tracy made her debut at this house ag the dashing Anne Chute, and looked as charming as the author has made his Colleen Ruadh, but her acting Was scarcely as good as her looks—it lacked refinement. ‘The performance went off smoothly and with much more evenness than is usual at this geutiewomen, | house, The audience was large, and, as ie play | proceed became enthustastic. Mr. Boucicault | Was several times calied betore the curtain to receive populy Wiil remain on homage. The “Colleen Hawn’? bill until turther notice. The Olympic Theatre. The entertainment at the Olympic Theatre iast evening was excellent and of the usual varied churacter. Its spectal features were the mimetic | Perlormances of Mr, Sol Smith Russell, and also ‘his performance of Toodies. The fitness of the time Mr. Russell has chosen in which to reproduce “Toodies” is very apparent, as the good. natured drunken creature actively Op. poses and demolishes the theories of tectotalers. Of Mr, Russell's ability as an imitator o/ the salient peculiarities of face, form, action and voice, there | can be no dissent from the opinion that it1s marvel- | lous. In tue character of Toodles his powers of | mimicry serve Mr. Russell well. Without those ex- | traordinary gifts he could not play the part at ali; | with them he playa it only indifferently well. | Throughout his periormance he is simply a mimic, doing the reguiat stage “business” of the part. He has not been compelied to make tne character himself, baving had too Many suygestions trom the “business”? utior those actors, The name of too many pleasant memories of | them for that necessity. Mr. Russell, as Toodles, | never looks thoroughly drunk. He simply looks like one whom We knuoW1s simulating intoxicauon, and who will suddenty readjust is hat and waistcvat | and, dismissing his leer, will assume his norm appearance, Li Mr. Russell were to forget for a time the imaginary Toodles that he kept before | himself as a model throughout his performance Jast evening, he would soon make a figure truer to real drunkenness, necessary to Grand Opera House. The Martinevti family made their appearance at this house last night ina number of their panto- mime performances. The long run of this class of entertainment seems to have had the effect of thinning Lac audiences, and we have ho douot thas | aradical change of bill would be found profitable management. The grand ballet or the Righ sisters is tue pivce de résistance for the week, Lowery Theatre. | “Revenge is sweet, especially to women,” saith the poet, but what the patrons of Manager Freligh have done that he should be revenged upon them as he was last night 18 more that can be easily conceived. But perhaps, it being St, Patrick’s Eve, he wanted to regale “the boys’? until “St. Patrick’s Day im the morning” broke upon them bright and clear jn his venerable histri- onic temple. To think of a five act piece, being commenced with all the impending drawbacks natural to a first performance, aiter tour distines entertainments of a variety character the same evening, was enough to induce almost every havitué of the establisiment to bring is bunk and Mattress with him, with suitable relays of peanuts for lunch in every pocket. This new play 18 called “Revenge; or, the Midnight Mask.’ It is sensa- tional, emouonul, tragical and whimsical to the always seemed rather a reflection upon their mem- ory that our great grandiathers were compelled to talk so much upon their knees and appeal to them as the cruel Chloe and the divine Gloriana. Some- how it seems impossible that the young ladies of any time should begin evening conversation by encomiums upon their virtue, and if would strengthen “ihe Rivals’ as a work of interest, without weakening it asa work of art, to strike out ail the parts allotted to Falkland and Julia, | enjoyec In tact, Mr. Carroll seemed to be of the same im- pression, ior he was evidently lost in his part, and did not Know what to do with it, and leit the audi- ence in doubt most of tue time as to whether he was an undertaker or a reformed pugilist about to take holy orde: We can scarcely call “The Rivals’? a comedy, although it justly ves the reputation of being one of Sheridan’s masterpieces, fhe action and characters are ali farcical, and the whole efiect 1s to produce the wildest tun, Everything is sacr! ticed to humor, and the result if that we have, characters and scenes that have become a part of our liverature. Sir Lucius O'Trigger is the ancestor ol our stage Irishman, and = there has not been an insh comedy within seventy years that does not borrow from hin. " Bob Acres has becn copied a hnndred — times, while Mrs, Malaprop is as celebrated as Fa stam. h is an ception oi eXtreme humor, intended to the wudience, giri—a sentiment, not @ character. Sir Anthony Absolute is the true comedy part—the fine old beer: drinking, fox-hunting, land-owning, irascible Eng- lish squire, as complete In its way as Squire West- ern; so that in criticising “fhe Rivals’? we must always remember that the laws of the comedy im- amuse pose upon the actors the necessity of making a3 | lutich 1un as possible. Tinged by this test the performance was most successiul. The piece was over acted—evidenily as a necessity of the comedy, Mr. Gilbert, woen he came on the stage as Sir Anthony, was received pn Old friend, and his performance carried off honors of the evening. It was fincly done— in one or two poinis racher broad. But this is among the tendencies of Mr. ilvert’s acting, and we sometimes wish that tt exaggerated—and his fine old English gentieman did not caper and skip so much. We suppose, how- ever, that Mr. Gilbert is, right and that we are wrong, nd = tat our dear old great grandiathers metimes made speecues Which would not bear repeating. Mr. Brouziam, as Sir Lucius O’frigger, played with prve and ease, and gave as correct & type of the irish gen- tlemanly adventurer as we have on the stage, Mr. Becketi was a subdued Bob Acres at firsi, but in the end he came up to the spirit of the part, rather overacted it towards the end, Mr, Be: should remember that Bob Acres Was not so much a clown as a squire, Captain Absoiute, by Mr. Arnott, Was &@ somewhat tempestuous perform. ance, and was so loud in some of his love scenes that it would not have surprised us to see the police coming through the stage windows as officers of the peace. Mr. Arnott can play this part a great deat better, Mme, Ponist was an amusing Mrs, Malaprop and shared with Mr. Gilbert the honors of tue evening, while Miss Jettreys-Lewis looked pert and pretty as Lydia Languid, Fay was well played oy Mr, Edwin, while . Holland destroyed the humor in the part of David by exaggerarion, As a general thing the play was altogether over- acted, There {s fun cnouga in the “Tae Rivals” to make it always a most agreeable comedy, and the effect is not improved when the characters insist upon screaming. It will be presented for six | nights, The Concert Season, On Thursday afternoon a grand pubiic rehearsal will be given at Steinway Hall of the programme | of the fifth symphony concert of Mr. Theodore | Thomas, The works to be rehearsed on that occa sion will be Weber’s ever fresh and ever welcome overture, “Euryanthe,” Liszt's ‘Faust’ symplony for grand orchestra, tenor, solo and male chorus, and Beethoven's fifth symphony, Mr, Thomas has vl 1s new feature in his season of public aoe ee etd i response. to. numerous communica tions from the music-loving public, e concert itself comes off on Saturday evening. Miss Isabetla Brush, a young American prima 1 & tigh reputation on the [talian and Ger- man stage, Will give a concert at Stemway Hall on | Wednesday evening, in which she will have the assistance of Maurel, Wieniawski, Mills, Verner and Miss Luckhardt. Mile, Lieotart and Mr, Jules Lumbard sung last night at the Twenty-second regiment armory with Gilmore's Band. The Young Ladies’ Christian Association have secured tne valuable servkes of Mme. Nilsson, Mis8 Pnillipps and Messrs, Cavoul, Maurel, Wicniawaki, Hofmann exaggeration—simply a con- | Lydia Languish is an_ impossible | jomna, Who has | last degree, with some nonsense here and there thrown in.” Briefly, it is essentially Bowerian in its appointments, properties and situations. There isan “exciting tableau,” a “terrific tableau,” @ | “grand tableau,’ a “startling tableau,” the whole | concluding withan electrilying “picture” that must be seen to be appreciated, if any one has his eves open at the tume the dénouement is reached, The author—Stanley McKenna—must have beer Jong familiar with incidents occurring at Police Head- quarters, especially with the detective department thereof, to have worked out five mortal acts of @ drama with only an humble detective as the hero, ‘The introduction of the “masked robbers” is @ feature that will be Ogee by some of our Westchester people, who would probably like to see “that sort of thing” worked up in a more prac- tical shape. ‘tr. Stetson creditably played the | principal part in the drama, which, we perceive, is to be produced ‘until further notice,” an an- nouncement that is supposed to carry with 1t the augury that “Revenge” is a success, which the plaudits of the audience—an immense one, the | auditorium being crowded from parquet to | lery—would seem to ratify. ut the ptece is alto- gether too long. Tne dialogue ts proiix, and it might be cat considerably without marring the sen- sational features of the piece in the least. | Musical and Dramatic Notes. “David Crockett” is gaining favor with the pub lic, who begin to appreciate the sweetness and beauty of the play. Mile. Ima di Murski is winning great honors in the West. On Easter Monday she appears at the Academy tn “Lueta."* On dit, that Mme. Lucca, at the conclusion of her engagement at the Stadt Theatre, will pass under the management of Mr. Strakosch. ‘The last nights of “La Ville de Madame Angot’? | atthe Lyceum are announced. Mile. Aimée haa repeated the success she gained tast fall in this opera, | The novelties and revivals of the forthcoming season at Her Majesty's Opera, London, will be “Fra Diavolo,” “Les Diamans de la Couronne,’ “Roberto Devereaux” and “Il Talismano.”’ Costa is retained as director. In consequence of a refusal on the part of Mme, Janauschek to appear as announced, there was na performance at Mrs. Conway's Theatre, Brooklyn, ‘ jast night. It is alleged on the part of the man- agement that Mme. Janauschek refused to play | because the prices of admission were not high enough. ‘The theatre will be closed for a week in consequence of this disagreement, ST, PATRICK'S DAY IN BROOKLYN, It is expected that the celebration of the natal day 0! Ireland's patron saint in Brooklyn will ba fully up to the standard of tormer years, The pro gramme laid down for the parade as published in the HERALD of yesterday will be observed, The line wiil be reviewed about half-past one o'clock from | the steps of the City Hall by Mayor Hunter, the mea. ' bers of the Common Council and heads of depart. | Ments. The streets on the route of procession | have been cleaned specially for tne occasion, The flags of the city and county will be displayed from | the City Hall ana Court House. ‘The ‘Twenty. | fifth annual dinner of the St. Patrick’s Society will | be held at Snedeker's hotel, Montague streot, in ) be evening, A lecture will be delivered Spon the | “Miraculous Faita of the Irish People,’ at St. Stephen's church, Summit street, by Byrnes, 0. D, At St. John’s ehuren, Rev. Father O'Farrell, | street, New Meg Vv. Father Ot St. Peter ‘Barclay will lecture upon the “tgie aad a of ent Oe anrts te Ce. eliver a lecture on Partick, at St. Mary's Star of the Court street. mission free. The proceeds of the collection be applied to the relief of the poor of the Vincent under the auspices of the St. Society.