estimated the devotion of the Monarchists of Lille
to their political flag. His gloomy prognostications as to the issue at
the polls were probably enough inspired by his thorough knowledge of the
extraordinary preparations made by the authorities for manipulating the
returns. On this point he gave me some particulars which appear to be
borne out by subsequent events. It is curious for example to learn from
the analytical table to which I have already referred in connection with
the elections at Lille, that of the 164 Government candidates returned
as elected at the first balloting of September 23, 87 were returned as
elected by majorities of less than 1,000 votes, while of the 147
Monarchists returned as elected on the same day, only 48 were returned
as elected by majorities of less than 1,000 votes. Of the 164
Republicans, 20, or about one in eight, were returned as elected by
majorities of less than 200 votes; while of the 147 Monarchists, only
11, or about one in thirteen, were returned as elected by similar
majorities. When we remember that the machinery of these elections was
absolutely controlled by the prefects under instructions from M.
Constans, the Minister of the Interior, which were not made public,
this circumstance is certainly very significant. Some of the details
sent me by my analytical correspondent make it still more significant.
In the 2nd District of St.-Nazaire, for example, the Monarchist
candidate was elected without a competitor, receiving 16,084 votes. In
the 1st District of St.-Nazaire the Government candidate was returned by
a majority of no more than 6 votes, the returns giving him 8,458 votes
to 8,452 for his Monarchist opponent. This margin is almost as
suggestive as the majority of 9 votes by which M. Razimbaud, a
Government candidate for the district of St.-Pars, in the Department of
the Herault, was declared three days after the balloting of October 6 to
have been returned over his Monarchist opponent, the Baron Andre Reille.
In this same Department of the Herault, the Prefect and the
Councillors-General returned M. Menard-Dorian, the Government candidate,
as elected, at Lodeve, over M. Leroy-Beaulieu, the distinguished
political economist, by a majority of 67 votes. In this case it seems a
certain number of votes thrown in one commune for both candidates were
set aside, to be annulled for informality. When the returns went up to
the Council for revision, the informal votes cast for M. Le