st national representation. The actors at that time
were Samson, Geffroy, Regnier, Anais, Augustine Brohan and Rachel. There
were not many of them, but they had some fine things to interpret.

In George Sand's piece, Moliere was at work with his servant, Laforet,
who could not read, but without whom, it appears, he could not have
written a line. He has not finished his play, the actors have not learnt
their parts, and the king is impatient at being kept waiting. Moliere is
perplexed, and, not knowing what to do, he decides to go to sleep. The
Muse appears to him, styles him "the light of the people," and brings to
him all the ghosts of the great poets before him. AEschylus, Sophocles,
Euripides and Shakespeare all declare to him that, in their time, they
had all worked towards preparing the Revolution of 1848. Moliere then
wakes up, and goes on to the stage to pay his respects to the king. The
king has been changed, though. "I see a king," says Moliere, "but his
name is not Louis XIV. It is the people, the sovereign people. That is a
word I did not know, a word as great as eternity."

We recognize the democrat in all this. _Le Roi_ _attend_ may be
considered as an authentic curiosity of revolutionary art. The newspaper
announced to its readers that subscriptions could be paid in the Rue
Richelieu. Subscribers were probably not forthcoming, as the paper died
a natural death after the third number.

George Sand did much more than this, though.(44) We must not forget that
she was an official publicist in 1848. She had volunteered her
services to Ledru-Rollin, and he had accepted them. "I am as busy as
a statesman," she wrote at this time. "I have already written two
Government circulars."(45)

(44) With regard to George Sand's _role_, see _La Revolution
de_ 1848, by Daniel Stern (Madame d'Agoult).

(45) _Correspondance:_ To Maurice Sand, March 24, 1848.

With George Sand's collaboration, the _Bulletin de la Republique_ became
unexpectedly interesting. This paper was published every other day,
by order of Ledru-Rollin, and was intended to establish a constant
interchange of ideas and sentiments between the Government and the
people. "It was specially addressed to the people of rural districts,
and was in the form of a poster that the mayor of the place could have
put up on the walls, and also distribute to the postmen to be given
away. The _Bulletins_ were anonymous, but several of them were certainly
w