Memoirs of DrThomas WEvans: the second French empire . on and organize thedefense, then you ought to pronounce the dethronement;and if you do, I will not complain, for then I shall be ableto leave my place with honor. I should not, in that case,have deserted it. My honor, my duty, and, above all, theinterests of the country in the presence of a triumphantenemy, require that the integrity of the Government shouldbe maintained. I shall remain till the very last momentwhere I have been placed, faithful to my office. Were Ito do otherwise, like a soldier who deserts his post inthe hour of peril, I
Memoirs of DrThomas WEvans: the second French empire . on and organize thedefense, then you ought to pronounce the dethronement;and if you do, I will not complain, for then I shall be ableto leave my place with honor. I should not, in that case,have deserted it. My honor, my duty, and, above all, theinterests of the country in the presence of a triumphantenemy, require that the integrity of the Government shouldbe maintained. I shall remain till the very last momentwhere I have been placed, faithful to my office. Were Ito do otherwise, like a soldier who deserts his post inthe hour of peril, I should betray the trust the Emperorhas confided to me. I am persuaded that the only sensibleand patriotic course the Representatives of the countrycan take, will be to gather around me and around my Gov-ernment, to leave aside, for the moment, all questions ofparty, and to unite their efforts strictly with mine in orderto meet the invasion. After these words, the Empress recalled to the Deputiesthe noble behavior of the Cortes of Spain in Cadiz, who. THE EMPRESS a photograph taken by W. and I> Downey in 1871. FALL OF THE SECOND EMPIRE 247 remained true to their captive King, and who were re-warded for their unchangeable devotion and their ener-getic perseverance by the final triumph of their cause. As for myself, she continued, I am ready to meetall dangers, and to follow the Legislative Body to any placewhere it may decide to organize the defense; and evenshould a defense be found impossible, I believe I mightstill be useful in obtaining the most favorable terms ofpeace. Yesterday the Representative of a great Power pro-posed to me to secure the mediation of the neutral countriesupon these two grounds: Integrity of the French terri-tory, and the maintenance of the Imperial dynasty. Ianswered that I was disposed to accept a mediation uponthe first basis, but I energetically refused it upon thesecond. The preservation of the dynasty is a subject whichregards Fra
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