第90章

At last came Sallenauve.I was struck with the ease and quiet dignity of his manner.That is a very reassuring pledge, madame, of his conduct under more trying circumstances; for when a man rises to speak it makes but little difference who and what his audience are.To an orator goaded by fear, great lords and porters are precisely the same thing.They are eyes that look at you, ears that hear you.Individuals are not there, only one huge being,--an assembly, felt as a mass, without analyzing the elements.

After enumerating briefly the ties which connected him with this region, slipping in as he did so an adroit and dignified allusion to his birth which "was not like that of others," Sallenauve stated clearly his political ideas.A Republic he thought the finest of all governments; but he did not believe it possible to establish one in France; consequently, he did not desire it.He thought that a truly parliamentary government, in which court influence should be so vigorously muzzled that nothing need be feared from its tendency to interference and caballing would best conduce to the dignity and the welfare of the nation.Liberty and equality, the two great principles that triumphed in '89, would obtain from such a government the strongest guarantees.As to the manoeuvring of the royal power against those principles, it was not for institutions to check it, but for men,--customs, public opinion, rather than laws; and for himself, Sallenauve, he should ever stand in the breach as a living obstacle.

He declared himself a warm partisan of free education; believed that greater economy might be exercised in the budget; that too many functionaries were attached to the government; and, above all, that the court was too largely represented in the Chamber.To maintain his independence he was firmly resolved to accept no post and no favors from the government.Neither ought those who might elect him to expect that he would ever take steps on their behalf which were not warranted by reason and by justice.It was said that the word impossible was not French.Yet there was an impossibility by which he took pride in being stopped--that of injustice, and that of disloyalty, even the faintest, to the Right.[Loud applause.]

Silence being once more restored,--

"Monsieur," said one of the electors, after obtaining the floor from the chairman, "you say that you will accept no post under government.

Does not that imply reproach to public functionaries? My name is Godivet; I am registrar of the archives, but I do not consider that a reason why I should incur the contempt of my fellow-citizens."Sallenauve replied,--

"I am happy, monsieur, to learn that the government has invested a man like you with functions which you fulfil, I am sure, with perfect uprightness and great ability; but I venture to ask if you rose to your present position at one jump?""Certainly not, monsieur; I began by being a supernumerary for three years; after that I passed through all the grades; and I can show that favor had nothing to do with my promotion.""Then, monsieur, what would you say if with my rank as deputy (supposing that I obtain the suffrages of this arrondissement) I, who have never been a supernumerary and never passed through any grades, and whose only claim upon the administration is that of having voted for it,--what would you say if I were suddenly appointed over your head as the director-general of your department?""I should say--I should say, monsieur, that the choice was a good one, because the king himself would have made it.""No, monsieur, you would not say it, or if you said it aloud, which Iscarcely think possible, you would think in your heart that the choice was ridiculous and unjust.'How the devil,' you would say to yourself, 'could this man, this sculptor, know anything about the intricate business of registering archives?' And you would be right in condemning such royal caprice; for what becomes of long and honorable services, justly acquired rights, and steady promotion under such a system of arbitrary choice? It is that I may not be the accomplice of this crying abuse, because I think it neither just nor honest nor useful to obtain in this way important public functions, that Idenounce the system and bind myself to accept no office.Is this, monsieur, pouring contempt on public functions? Is it not rather lifting them to higher honor?"Monsieur Godivet declared himself satisfied, and said no more.

"Ah ca! monsieur," cried another elector, after demanding the floor in the rather tipsy voice, "you say you will ask no favors for your constituents; then what good will you be to us?""My friend, I did not say I would ask nothing for my constituents.Isaid I would ask nothing but what was just; but that, I may add, Ishall ask with energy and perseverance, for that is how justice should be followed up.""But," persisted the voter, "there are various ways of doing justice;witness the suit I was made to lose against Jean Remy, with whom I had trouble about a boundary--"Colonel Giguet, interrupting,--

"Come, come, you are not going, I hope to talk about your private affairs, and speak disrespectfully of magistrates?"The voter resumed,--

"Magistrates, colonel, I respect, for I was one myself for six months in '93, and I know the law.But, returning to my point, I ask monsieur, who is here to answer questions, to me as well as to others, what he thinks about tobacco licenses.""My opinion on tobacco licenses! That is rather difficult to formulate; I can, however, say that, if my information is correct, they are usually very well distributed.""Hey! hey! you're a man, you!" cried the inebriate elector, "and I'll vote for you, for they can't fool you,--no! But they do give those licenses all wrong! Look at that daughter of Jean Remy.Bad neighbor.