Paris in May 1852 has had its Exhibition of the
implements of war, as London in May 1851 had its Exhibition of the implements -and products of .peaceful industry. The' latter has not proved; what some sanguine Arcadians anticipated, the inauguration of a millennium of peace ; and the former may not prove the first de- - monstration of an European war. Still the military display of the Champs de Mars is an incident that renders watchfulness, on 1-the- part of all who would not see the peace of Europe disturb- ed, a duty.- . The policy, of i the French President s essen- tially: melddramatie; he knoys the passion of his countrymen for' spectacles, and caters for it. But experience has shown that all his appeals to this peculiar foible have been made sub- servient to his own selfish objects. The • military spectacle in the Champs de Mars was doubtless intended, at the same time that it gratified the populace, to consolidate and extend his power. So many brave, vigorous, and disciplined soldiers, with all the materiel of war' were not assembled around him, and bound more closely to his cause by the solemn revival 'ofemblems. associated, with proud recollections, without an ulterior View. He meant,- no doubt, to show - to the Aragos and Changarniers_ at, home, and Jo the Sovereigns of Vienna and Berlin, the, physical force he-can bring to' promote his claims. True, the show has pealed ind Louis Napoleon is still,-in name, only the President of a Republic he has not dared foreign hostility or internal obstruction by assuming the Imperial title. -But every one feels that the ovation of the 10th of May is left imperfect by that finale being. omitted ; every one feels that the repulse by the Northern Courts, in answer to his desire to be recognized as restorer of a dynasty, accounts for the omission ; and every one knows the dogged pertinacity with which this extraordinary's& venturer adheres to every project of self-aggrandizement he forms.
