The shadow of a coming event has fallen upon the opposite page and
stayed there. It represents the triumphal entry into Paris of M.
Jullien, chosen as President of the Republic, Leader of its Armies,
Composer of its strifes, Conductor of its Bands, and in general,
National First Fiddle.
The French having tried all manner of governments and all classes of
rulers, and not liking any of them, will naturally, in their pursuit of
harmony, turn to one of its most celebrated professors. M. Jullien, on
the 1st of April, will issue two public manifestoes, expressive of his
political creed:—"The Universal Suffrage Polka, with ballot-box and
kettledrum accompaniment;" and "The _Liberté, Egalité, et Fraternité_
Quadrilles," in which all the second and third fiddles will play the
first parts, the piccolos will produce the sound of ophicleides, and any
instrument will be at liberty to play anything it pleases; all this in
token of the equalization of society, and the freedom of action to be
accorded under the new _régime_. The time in which this Quadrille will
be arranged is the Good Time Coming, which may be reckoned a very slow
movement, seeing how long it takes to arrive.
These magnificent political _morceaux_ having been duly considered by
the people of France, whistled by all the boys, and danced to at all the
casinos—the cry of "Jullien for President" will become all but
universal. The Elysée will be frantic, the Orleanists furious, and the
Legitimists in despair. Louis Napoleon's friends will meditate a _coup
d'état_, for the purpose of securing all the silver plate in France; but
which will be defeated by the counter operations of a conspiracy for the
abolition of taxes, and for giving every Frenchman, above the age of
twenty-one and untainted by crime, a salary of 5000 francs per annum, to
be paid quarterly by the government. In the midst of these conflicting
movements of party, the grand day of election will take place, and the
following will be the state of the poll:—
Jullien 9,999,999
Louis Napoleon 1
Prince de Joinville 1
Duke de Chambord 1
Each of the three latter gentlemen having voted for himself. France will
be immediately thrown into a state of rapturous delight, and the new
President will land at Boulogne from four steamboats, the band playing
the Row Polka, which will be adopted, till they get another, as the
national anthem of France. What the triumphal entry into the capital
will be, is made manifest on the opposite page. Welcomed by the
universal voice of Paris, in one grand _concert monstre_—the democrats
the basses, the quondam Buonapartists the tenors, the quondam
Legitimists the counter tenors, and all their wives and daughters the
sopranos and contraltos—then there will commence in France the
harmonious reign of M. Jullien—the President without a precedent.
[Illustration:
_The Triumphal procession of the new President of the French
(Monšr-Jullien) with entire new Politics & Polkas!!!_
]
[Illustration:
"THE RIGHTS of WOMEN" or the EFFECTS of FEMALE ENFRANCHISEMENT.
]
THE
COMIC ALMANACK
FOR 1853.
[Illustration]
"WELL, SIR! IT IS MY DUTY TO INQUIRE INTO YOUR INTENTIONS TOWARDS
MISS 1853."
Taking into consideration the hourly increasing inquisitiveness of the
Age, and, above all, the restless desire to pry into the secrets of
Futurity, as evinced by the feverish agitation, on all sides, of vitally
important questions, such as the following:—
What is to be done for the people?
Who's who in 1853?
What next?—
we have resolved on considerable improvements in the Prophetic
department of our publication.
This feature indeed may be said to have been (in proof of which we are
going to say it) hitherto the only unsatisfactory one of our otherwise
complete work—having been confined to the prediction (in six neatly
printed pages at the commencement of the yearly volume) of the
particular week-days on which each day of the month would fall; the
number of days to be contained in each month; the periodical changes of
the moon, &c., &c.—predictions which have invariably been verified; but,
from the comparatively uninteresting nature of the events foretold—
considered as a supply to the enormous demand for Prophetic Intelligence
alluded to above—may be open to a charge of inadequacy.
For the Future we intend to be more explicit as to it; and will foretell
events of a more general nature, calculated to set at rest all the
throbbing questions of the day, to which an answer will oblige—only
stipulating that, in the case of any prediction not appearing to be
satisfactorily fulfilled, the reader will withhold his judgment till
such time as he shall have purchased our next number.
Our extra amount of foresight has enabled us to present the reader with
sixteen pages of matter more than he has been in the habit of receiving.
The usual blank pages for the purposes of journal and cash entries will
be no longer necessary, the accounts of the year being already made up
for him by ourselves.
[Illustration]