LEDRU-ROLLIN 287 added to it a remarkable introduction. In 1844-'6 appeared his Jurisprudence adminis- trative en matiere contentieuse de 1789 d 1831 (9 vols. 8vo). About the same time he was the chief editor of the daily law newspaper, Le Droit. In 1838 he bought the place of at- torney at the court of cassation, but disposed of it in 1846 in order to devote more time to politics. In 1841 he had been elected deputy by the department of Sarthe, by a nearly unanimous vote, to succeed Etienne Gamier- Pages, who had just died. He made a bold confession of his republican creed, which caused him to be prosecuted by the govern- ment; he was sentenced to four months' im- prisonment and a fine of 3,000 francs, but on a new trial was acquitted. He spoke often in the chamber of deputies, but exerted little in- fluence ; and not receiving hearty support from the opposition press, he established, under the editorship of Flocon, a journal of his own, La Reforme, which advocated not only political but social reforms. In 1845 he issued a social- ist manifesto, which secured him a considera- ble party in the lower ranks of society, while it estranged from him the middle classes. His uncompromising support of the doctrine of universal suffrage displeased also the monar- chical opposition party. He took a leading part in all the republican demonstrations in the provinces during the year 1847; and when the revolution of February, 1848, broke out, it was he who chiefly prevented the regency of the duchess of Orleans from being accepted by the chamber of deputies, and secured the power- ful help of Lamartine. On the organization of the provisional government, he was elected one of its members. His position was embar- rassing ; he was associated with men whose principles were entirely discordant, some, like Lamartine and Eugene Gamier-Pages, enter- taining moderate opinions, others, like Louis Blanc and Albert, anxious to bring about a radical change in the social system. Unwilling to go as far as these socialistic revolutionists, he gradually lost his popularity among the lower classes, while he became more than ever distrusted by the bourgeoisie. Their distrust was deepened into hatred when, as minister of the interior, he issued revolutionary circulars and sent special commissioners to various parts of France to further the democratic organi- zation of the departments. Nevertheless he evinced great courage in maintaining tran- quillity in Paris; his timely precautions de- feated the insurrectionary attempt of April 16 ; he protected the Presse and Emile de Girardin against a mob, and reconciled the democrats of Paris to the return of the army to the capital. But his efforts to prevent an open rupture between the opposing parties nearly lost him his seat at the ensuing elections. On the formation of the executive commission by the assembly, he was the last on the list, and received but 458 votes out of about 800. The insurrection of May 15 increased the dis- 486 VOL. x. 19 trust of all parties toward him. He aided in defeating the object of the insurgents; but when Louis Blanc and Caussidiere were ac- cused before the assembly, he courageously defended them. When, in consequence of the insurrection of June 24, the executive power devolved on Gen. Cavaignac, Ledru-Rollin re- sumed his seat in the assembly. His speeches against the state of siege, his explanations of the insurrection of June, and his protest against the sending of a French army to Italy were particularly admired as efforts of oratory. In the presidential election of December, 1848, he presented himself as the democratic candi- date, but received only 370,119 votes, while Louis Napoleon Bonaparte obtained more than "5,000,000, and Cavaignac nearly 1,500,000. The standing he held in the assembly, his denun- ciations of the reactionary tendencies of the majority and the government, and his eloquent appeals in behalf of a truly republican system, somewhat revived his popularity during the first part of 1849. To strengthen this return- ing favor he assisted at banquets in Le Mans, Chateauroux, and Moulins, where his demo- cratic addresses were hailed with unbounded enthusiasm. A brutal attack upon his person also had the effect of gaining him much sympa- thy ; and in the elections for the legislative as- sembly he was chosen by five departments at once, Seine, Allier, Var, Saone-et-Loire, and H6rault, while seven others gave him a very heavy vote. This encouraged him to oppose the government still more strongly, and espe- cially to present himself as the defender of the Roman republic, which was on the point of be- ing crushed by the arms of France. On June 11 he moved the impeachment of the president and his cabinet. On the 13th he attempted an insurrectionary demonstration ; at the head of a few deputies, some artillerymen of the national guard under Guinard, and a few hundred citi- zens, he went to the conservatoire des arts et metiers; but here, before they had time to take any decisive measures, the insurgents were surrounded by troops. Some of them escaped through an upper window. Ledru-Rollin, after remaining concealed for about three weeks in the neighborhood of Paris, escaped to Belgium, and then went to England, whence he direct- ed a solemn protest against the decree sum- moning him before the high court of justice. He was sentenced by default to transporta- tion for life. From 1849 to 1870 he resided in London, where he supported himself partly by the remnants of his property and partly by his pen. Besides a pamphlet, Le 13 juin, 1849, an apology for his conduct on that day, he pub- lished De la decadence de VAngleterre (2 vols. 8vo, Paris, 1850), and La loi anglaise (2 vols. 8vo). He was also one of the principal con- tributors to La voix d'un proscrit. He asso- ciated himself for a while with Kossuth, Maz- zini, Ruge, and other leading revolutionists, in the hope of concentrating the efforts of the European democracy. In 1857 he was accused,
