ay the Archbishop of Paris was struck by a bullet
while trying to stop the bloodshed. On both sides the fight was waged with
inexcusable savagery. The National Guard, with a few exceptions, fought
side by side with the regular troops. The workmen, threatened with the loss
of their subsistence, fought with the courage of despair. At the point of
the bayonet they were at last driven into the northeastern quarter of the
city. There, plied with grape and canister from every direction, they were
brought to the point of surrender.

[Sidenote: Cavaignac]

[Sidenote: Louis Napoleon]

After this hard-won victory, the government did not hesitate to transport
without trial the whole mass of prisoners taken alive. A policy of reaction
set in. The government workshops and other concessions to socialism were
abandoned. General Cavaignac, at the direction of the Assembly, retained
his dictatorial powers until a new Constitution could be drafted. It seemed
as if Cavaignac was marked to become the permanent ruler of France, but his
own rigid republicanism stood in his way. It was at this time that Prince
Louis Napoleon once more came into prominence. When he first made his
reappearance in Paris he was requested to leave by the Provisional
Government. Retiring to England, he awaited developments, while his friends
and supporters agitated in his behalf. During the supplementary elections
he was nominated for the Chambers by four districts at once, and, despite
the government's efforts, he obtained a fourfold election. A vote of the
Assembly declared the election valid. With unwonted self-command the Prince
declined to take his seat, on the ground that it might embarrass the
government in its difficult situation. His letter to the president of the
Assembly ended with the significant declaration that if duties should be
imposed upon him by the will of the people he would know how to fulfil
them.

[Sidenote: France spellbound]

Three months later, in the midst of the debates on the constitution, while
Cavaignac was still in power, Louis Napoleon was re-elected to the
Assembly--this time by five departments. His hour had come. From this
moment he was a recognized aspirant for power. The great name of his uncle
shed its glory upon him. The new constitution of the Republic provided that
a President with executive powers should be elected by a direct vote of all
citizens. Louis Napoleon at once became a candidate. In an address to the
peopl