Page:The rise and fall of the Emperor Maximilian.djvu/52

36 had supported with a similar display of force. In the month of February 1864, General Bazaine, accompanied by his escort only, returned at night to the capital, which was surprised by his sudden arrival. His presence there was quite necessary to counterbalance the intrigues of the archbishop and the clerical party, who, during his absence, had thought proper to excommunicate the French army. The prelate got out of the scrape by publicly giving them his benediction.

Never since 1821, the date of its independence, had Mexico, from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean, enjoyed a calm equal to that which it experienced during the four months which followed this campaign in the interior. There had been a moment of reaction which was favourable to the ideas of order and comfort which the French army brought with them. Maximilian could not have chosen a more propitious moment to inaugurate his reign, when he finally determined to turn a deaf ear to the advice of his own family. General Bazaine did much for Maximilian's crown.

On May 28, 1864, the new sovereigns landed at Vera Cruz, to the great relief of the cabinet of the Tuileries, which had feared for the moment that, in consequence of the opposition of the archduke, it would see the structure crumble away which it had so laboriously raised. It is well known that the sovereigns were but badly received there. It was natural that this commercial town, accustomed as it was to the large profits derived from the plunder of the custom-house, should see with grief the inauguration of a new era of morality and honesty. Isolated as was their landing, the sovereigns made their entry into Mexico followed by a whole race, which formed a brilliant cortege. These were the real body of the people, who would