Page:Ernest Belfort Bax - A Short History of the Paris Commune (1895).djvu/28

 22 classes throughout France. The Committee, and afterwards the Commune, instead of seizing the whole concern allowed the management to remain, with its entire staff, barring the Chief Governor who had fled, and went cap in hand from time to time to solicit the requisite funds. The sub-governor by a little diplomacy succeeded before long in nobbling an old gentleman named Beslay, who though no more than a Radical bourgeois had had the pluck to stick gallantly to Paris, yet who, in spite of his personal honesty, had all the prejudices of his class when financial matters were concerned. He was nevertheless selected as go-between with the Bank and the Revolution. But to return to the days of March. The mayors now concentrated all their efforts towards trying to further postpone the elections. These had, after two postponements, been definitely fixed by the Committee for Sunday the 26th of March. At last the insults toward Paris, and the general attitude of the Assembly having disgusted many even of the moderate Republicans there was a disposition to compromise on the part of the mayors, and the 30th was proposed. The Committee however stuck to the 26th, and eventually five mayors, including Clémenceau and Floquet, finding resistance hopeless reluctantly signed a manifesto sanctioning the elections. The rest did not protest though they kept steadily aloof. The adhesion of the mayors, such as it was, gave the elections the cachet of technical legality.

On the Sunday, 287,000 men accordingly went to the poll, and the Paris Commune was elected and proclaimed amid general rejoicing. On the Monday there was a muster of National Guards (arms piled up in front of them) and civilian electors, in the "place" of the Hotel de Ville to greet the newly installed representatives of Paris. Salutes of cannon, bands playing the Marseillaise, and