The Prince was pleased to accept the offering, and
said:—"You are yourself, Mademoiselle, the fairest
product of the country. I thank you for your gracious
attention." He then spoke for some time to the young
visitors, and asked a number of questions concerning the
articles which they brought, saying something kind to
each. The fair deputation had already withdrawn,
when the Prince had the Mayor and Mademoiselle
Monpermey called back, and then went himself into his
bedroom for a magnificent brooch, which he presented
to the latter as a remembrance. "Monseigneur," said
the young girl, visibly moved, "I had no need of this
jewel to cause me to remember you, for your image will
always remain engraven on my heart." The Mayor of
Sèvres has published an address to the inhabitants,
calling upon them to sign a proclamation of the Empire,
which, he informs them, is lying at the Mairie for that
purpose. The civic magistrate's address is a gross
mockery of religion:—

"Inhabitants," he says, "Paris, the heart of France, acclaimed
on the 10th of May for its Emperor him whose divine mission is
every day revealed in such a striking and dazzling manner.
At this moment it is the whole of France electrified which
salutes her saviour, the elect of God, by this new title, which
clothes him with sovereign power. 'God wills it,' is repeated
with one voice—vox populi vox Dei. It is the marriage of France
with the envoy of God which is contracted in the face of the
universe, under the auspices of all the constituted bodies, and of
all the people. That union is sanctified by all the ministers of
religion, and by all the Princes of the Church. These addresses,
these petitions, and these speeches, which are at this moment
being exchanged between the Chief of the State and France are
the documents connected with that holy union; every one
wishes to sign them, as at the church he would sign the
marriage-deed at which he is present. Inhabitants of Sèvres,
as the interpreter of your sentiments, I have prepared the deed
which makes you take part in this great national movement.
Two books are opened at the Mairie to receive your signatures:
one of them will be offered in your presence to him whom I from
this day designate under the title of Emperor. Let us hope
that he will deign to accede to the supplications which I shall
address to him in your name, to return to the Palace of
St. Cloud through our territory, by the gate of honour which we
possess. The other book, which I shall present for the signature
of the Prince, will remain in your archives as a happy souvenir
of this memorable epoch. Let all the population, without
distinction, come therefore and sign this document; it sets forth
that which is in your heart and in your will."

The document is as follows:—

"Proclamation of the Empire.— The town of Sèvres, obeying
of its sentiments of affection and of gratitude for Prince Louis
Napoleon Bonaparte, the Envoy of God and the elect of France,
her saviour and her glory, proclaims him Emperor of the French
under the name of Napoleon III., and confers on him and on his
descendants hereditary rights.
"Done at Sèvres on the 7th of October, in the year of grace
and resurrection, 1852.
                                           (Signed) "MENAGER, Mayor."

The President dined on the 9th with the Chamber of
Commerce of Bordeaux, when he made a speech which
will be commemorated iu the history of the period
He said:—

I accept with eagerness the opportunity afforded me by the
Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce for thanking vour great city
for its cordial reception and its magnificent hospitality; and I
am happy at the end of my journey to communicate the impre
sions I have received. The object of my tour, as you are well
aware, was to make myself acquainted, by personal observation,
with the beautiful provinces of the South, and to ascertain their
real wants. It has, however, led to a far more important
result. I may say, indeed, with a candour as far removed from
pnde as from false modesty, that never did a people more
directly, more spontaneously, more unanimously testify a
determination to free itself from all uneasiness respecting the future
by placing m the same hands as heretofore a power which
sympathises with its feelings. The people has now at last
learned to value at their price the false hopes with which it has
been cajoled, and the dangers with which it was threatened. It
seems, then, that in 1852 society approached its dissolution,
because each party consoled itself with the belief that amid the
general wreck it might still plant its standard on the floating
fragments. Now that its eyes are opened to absurd theories, the
people has aoquired the conviction that those pretended reformers
were mere visionaries, inasmuch as there has always been a
disproportion and a want of consequence between their expedients
and the promised result. At present, the nation surrounds me
with its sympathies, because I do not belong to the family of
the ideologists. To promote the welfare of the country it Is not
necessary to apply new systems, but the chief point, above all,
is to produce confidence in the present and security for the
future. For these reasons, it seems France desires a return
to the Empire.' There is one objection to which i must reply.
Certain minds seem to entertain a dread of war; certain persons
say, the Empire is only war. But I say, the Empire is peace:
for France desires it, and when France is satisfied, the world is
tranquil. ["These words," according to the published report,
"uttered in a firm voice, and with strong emphasis,'" produced a
magical effect: enthusiastic bravos were heard from all sides.]
Glory descends by inheritance, but not war. Did the Princes
who justly felt pride that they were the grandchildren of Louis
XI V. recommence his wars? War is not made for pleasure,
but through necessity; and at this epoch of transition, when by
the side of so many elements of prosperity spring so many
causes of death, we may truly say, woe be to him who gives the
first signal to a collision, the consequences of which would be
incalculable. I confess, however, that, like the Emperor, I have
many conquests to make. I wish, like him, to conquer by
conciliation, all hostile parties, and to bring into the grand popular
current those hostile streams which now lose themselves without
profit to any one. I wish to restore to religion, morality, and
opulence, that still numerous part of the population, which,
though in the bosom of the most fertile country in the world,
can scarcely obtain the common necessaries of life. We have
immense waste territories to cultivate, roads to open, ports to dig,
rivers to render navigable, a system of railroads to complete;
we have opposite to Marseilles a vast kingdom, which we must
assimilate to France; we have to bring all our great Western
ports into connexion with the American continent, by a rapidity
of communication which we still want; lastly, we have ruins to
restore, false gods to overthrow, and truths to be made triumphant.
This is the sense which I attach to the Empire, if the
Empire is to be restored. Such are the conquests which I
contemplate; and all you, who surround me, and who, like me,
desire your country's welfare—you are my soldiers."

This speech has been printed and extensively
circulated by the government. 50,000 copies have been
ordered to be distributed among the miners of the basin
of the Loire.

The President returned to Paris on Saturday the
16th, when he made a grand triumphal entry into the
capital. Preparations were made for quite an imperial
reception. Huge triumphal arches, garnished with
imperial devices, were raised along the route to the
Tuileries. Some were shrouded in laurels—green being
the Emperor's colour; some were covered with crimson
cloth, studded with golden bees; others with green
velvet. Ornamental canopies were decked out with
shields, escutcheons, eagles, armour, and the initials
"L. N." The inscriptions were of this kind—" La Ville
de Paris à Louis Napoléon, Empereur;" "Vive
Napoléon III.;" "L'Empire c'est la Paix;" "A son Altesse
Imperiale Napoléon III., Empereur des Français." At
the entrance of the garden of the Tuileries, a magnificent
arch bore this inscription—

"A Napoléon III., Empereur.—Sauveur de la civilisation
moderne. Protecteur des sciences, des arts, de i"agriculture, de
I'industrie, et du commerce.—Les ouvriers reconnaissans.
Constitution de l'an 8. Constitution de 1853. Conversion des
Rentes. Crédit foncier. Travaux d'utilité publique. Chemins
de fer. Continuation du Louvre. Rue de Rivoli."

Balconies and galleries, covered with crimson cloth
and fringed with gold, had been set up before many
houses. Early in the morning crowds assembled on the
Boulevards and outside the Orleans terminus. By noon
the windows filled with spectators, and traffic was
suspended for the day. Soldiers, horse and foot, regiments
of the Line and National Guards, lined the streets.
Bands of market-women and trades' deputations, with
green sashes, bearing banners resplendent with golden
devices and golden bees, were marching to the Place de
la Concorde. At two o'clock, a gun from the Barriere du
Trône announced that the President had arrived at the
terminus. The bands of the National Guards began
playing the old imperial airs; the battery at the
Barriere du Trône fired a continuous salute of 121 guns;
the bells rang out; while the veterans of the Grand
Army passed on their way to the Place de la Concorde.
The President was received at the terminus by all the
grand dignitaries of state, the judges, the bar, the
Archbishop of Paris and his clergy, and a host of functionaries,
in brilliant uniforms. He was addressed by the President
of the Municipal Council of Paris, and by the
Prefect of the Seine, who implored him to yield to the
"wishes of an entire people," and to conclude the
mission intrusted to him by Providence "by resuming
the crown of the immortal founder of your dynasty;"
and declaring "it is only under the title of Emperor
that you can accomplish the promises of the magnificent
programme you addressed to attentive Europe at
Bordeaux." The President then mounted his horse and