In September we went down to Bourneville and settled ourselves there for the autumn.  W. was standing for the Senate with the Count de St. Vallier and Henri Martin.  They all preferred being named in their department, where everybody knew them and their personal influence could make itself more easily felt.  W.’s campaign was not very arduous.  All the people knew him and liked him—­knew that he would do whatever he promised.  Their programme was absolutely Republican, but moderate, and he only made a few speeches and went about the country a little.  I often went with him when he rode, and some of our visits to the farmers and local authorities were amusing if not encouraging.  We were always very well received, but it wasn’t easy to find out what they really thought (if they did think about it at all) of the state of affairs.  The small landowners particularly, the men who had one field and a garden, were very reserved.  They listened attentively enough to all W. had to say.  He was never long, never personal, and never abused his adversaries, but they rarely expressed an opinion.  They almost always turned the conversation upon some local matter or petty grievance.  It didn’t seem to me that they took the slightest interest in the extraordinary changes that were going on in France.  A great many people came to see W. and there would be a curious collection sometimes in his library at the end of the day.  The doctor (who always had precise information—­country doctors always have—­they see a great many people and I fancy the women talk to them and tell them what their men are doing), one or two farmers, some schoolmasters, the mayors of the nearest villages, the captains of the firemen and of the archers (they still shoot with bow and arrow in our part of the country; every Sunday the men practise shooting at a target)—­the gendarmes, very useful these too to bring news—­the notary, and occasionally a sous-prefet, but then he was a personage, representing the Government, and was treated with more ceremony than the other visitors.  It was evident from all these sources that the Republicans were coming to the front en masse.

The Republicans (for once) were marvellously disciplined and kept together.  It was really wonderful when one thought of all the different elements that were represented in the party.  There was quite as much difference between the quiet moderate men of the Left Centre and the extreme Left as there was between the Legitimists and any faction of the Republican party.  There was a strong feeling among the Liberals that they were being coerced, that arbitrary measures, perhaps a coup d’etat, would be sprung upon them, and they were quite determined to resist.  I don’t think there was ever any danger of a coup d’etat, at least as long as Marshal MacMahon was the chief of state.  He was a fine honourable, patriotic soldier, utterly incapable of an illegality of any kind.  He didn’t like the Republic, honestly thought it would never succeed with the Republicans