Britain's Punch, France's Le Charivari, and Le Figaro all rushed to report on the accident.
Axes, Saws, and Fools, The Tricolour's Revenge! French Fishermen Successfully Sink a British Technological Marvel, Shocking! One Axe Worth 250,000 Pounds Sterling, Amazing! French Fishermen Sever Kraken's Tentacle and Return in Triumph!, From Waterloo to the Deep Sea, France Successfully Takes Revenge on England!
Louis Napoleon was nearly enraged to death by those headlines. They were practically rubbing salt into his wounds.
Thus, Emperor Napoleon III personally wrote a letter to Le Figaro's editor-in-chief, expressing his vehement displeasure and condemning Le Figaro, as a French newspaper, for kicking him when he was down at such a critical time.
Le Figaro's editor-in-chief printed his reply directly in the paper:
"Dear His Majesty Napoleon III, without the freedom to criticize, praise is meaningless."
Newspapers across Germany naturally did not miss this opportunity either. However, many of them carried obvious political leanings, leaving Franz feeling that they lacked a certain sharp, biting flavor.
Compared to Louis Napoleon's loss of composure, Britain's response was far more restrained.
Although the laying of the undersea cable had been led by The British, with the costs mainly borne by Britain, to Britain itself it had merely been an idle move—its commercial value even outweighed its political value.
Moreover, for Britain as a whole, this blow was hardly worth mentioning. It was only 250,000 Pounds Sterling, while Britain's current predicament was worth at least a hundred million Pounds Sterling.
Beyond that, the British government and royal family had focused all their attention on the World Industrial Exposition, hoping to turn the tide with it.
In the final analysis, France, its ally, simply ranked very low in Britain's diplomatic strategy. France had now lost Alsace-Lorraine, North Africa, and numerous colonies, and its strength had