28 SEPTEMBER 1861, Page 1
The Imperial Government has recently made another blunder, which produced
no slight irritation. Several journalists in the South were called upon by order from Paris to give in an account of their names, works, places of residence, incomes, and general posi- tion. They refused, and so great was the indignation felt at this demand, that the Minister of the Interior was compelled to explain. He had desired to recommend one or two editors for decorations, and had consequently endeavoured to ascertain their status, never imagining that his orders would be carried out in such a style. The explanation is almost as impertinent as the original order ; but in France, as in America just now, a journalist is regarded pretty much in the light of a wild beast, who cannot even be fed till he has been punched with a pole.
