The world, to all appearance, went on in its usual way.  The Assembly, on December 1, 1851, was busy discussing the project of a railroad to Lyons.  That evening M. de Morny was at the Opera Comique in company with General Changarnier, and the prince president was doing the honors as usual in his reception-room at the Elysee.  His visage was as calm, his manners were as conciliatory and affable, as usual.  No symptoms of anything extraordinary were to be seen, and an approaching municipal election in Paris accounted for the arrival of several estafettes and couriers, which from time to time called the prince president from the room.  When the company had taken leave, Saint-Arnaud, Maupas, Morny, and a colonel on the staff went with the prince president into his smoking-room, where the duties of each were assigned to him.  Everything was to be done by clock-work.  Exactly at the hour appointed, all the African generals and several of their friends were to be arrested.  Exactly at the moment indicated, troops were to move into position.  At so many minutes past six A. M. all the printing-offices were to be surrounded.  Every man who had in any way been prominent in politics since the days of Louis Philippe was to be put under arrest.

By seven o’clock in the morning all this had been accomplished.  The Parisians awoke to find their walls placarded by proclamations signed by Prince Louis Napoleon as President, De Morny as Minister of the Interior, De Maupas as Prefect of Police, and Saint-Arnaud as Minister of War.

These proclamations announced,—­

    I. The dissolution of the Assembly. 
   II.  The restoration of universal suffrage. 
  III.  A general election on December 14. 
   IV.  The dissolution of the Council of State. 
    V. That Paris was in a state of siege.

This last meant that any man might be arrested, without warrant, at the pleasure of the police.

Another placard forbade any printer, on pain of death, to print any placard not authorized by Government; and death likewise was announced for anyone who tore down a Government placard.

Louis Napoleon followed this up by an appeal to the people.  He said he wished the people to judge between the Assembly and himself.  If France would not support him, she must choose another president.  In place of the constitution of 1848 he proposed one that should make the presidential term of office ten years; he also proposed that the president’s cabinet should be of his own selection.

Louis Napoleon had entire confidence that all elections by universal suffrage would be in his favor.  He had just made extensive tours in the provinces, and had been received everywhere with enthusiasm.

Thus far I have given the historical outline of the story; but if we look into Victor Hugo’s “Histoire d’un Crime,” and disentangle its facts from its hysterics, we may receive from his personal narrative a vivid idea of what passed in Paris from the night of Dec. 1, 1851, to the evening of December 4, when all was over.