the national will. This is not all, Sire;
the French are become a free people. The appellation of 'subject,'
which you are continually giving them, wounds and humbles them. Call
them citizens, or your children. Neither suffer your ministers, your
marshals, your great officers, to be called '_monseigneur_:' there is
no _seigneur_ in a country, where equality forms the basis of the
laws; there are none but citizens."

The Emperor, however, did not see the opening of the chambers
approach, without a certain degree of apprehension. His intention was,
frankly to submit to the principles and consequences of a
representative government; in the first place, because he wished to
reign, and was convinced, that he could not retain the throne, unless
he governed as the nation demanded.

In the second place, because he was persuaded, that the nation now
placed its ideas of happiness on a representative government; and
because, greedy of every kind of celebrity, he found, as he told me at
Lyons, that it was glorious, to render a great people happy. But,
whatever were the sentiments and good inclinations of Napoleon, he had
not had time, to divest himself completely of his old notions and
ancient prejudices. The remembrance of our preceding assemblies
besieged him still in spite of himself: and he appeared to fear, that
the French had too much warmth of imagination, instability of will,
and propensity to abuse their rights, to be capable of enjoying on a
sudden, without any preparation, the benefits of absolute liberty. He
feared, too, that the opposition inherent in representative
governments would not be rightly comprehended in France, and would
make a bad impression; that it would degenerate into resistance; and
that it would clog the action of the sovereign power, take from it its
illusion, its moral strength, and make of it nothing but an instrument
of oppression[24].

[Footnote 24: At the time of the discussion of the
additional act, M. de Bassano, conversing with the
Emperor on the chamber of deputies, said to him, that
the muteness of the legislative body, was one of the
things, that had contributed most to discredit the
imperial government. "My mute legislative body,"
answered Napoleon, with a smile, "was never well
understood. It was a grand legislative jury. If it be
thought right, that twelve ju