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the origins of contemporary france-3-第20部分

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political faction; disliked by the Socialists; try to arrange a

meeting。 (SR)。



'18' Malout; II。 50。  … Mercure de France; Jan。 7; Feb。 5; and April

9; 1791 (letter of a member of the Monarchical Club



'19' Ferrières; II。 222。  〃The Jacobin Club sent five or six hundred

trusty men; armed with clubs;〃 besides 〃about a hundred national

guards; and some of the Palais…Royal prostitutes。〃



'20' Journal des Amis de la Constitution。〃 Letter of the Café

National! Club at Bordeaux; Jan。 20;  1791。  Letters of the 〃Friends

of the Constitution;〃 at Brives and Cambray; Jan。 19; 1791。



'21' 〃The French Revolution;〃 I。 pp。 243; 324。



'22' Mercure de France;  Dec。18; 1790; Jan。 17; June 8; and July 14;

1791。  Moniteur; VI。 697。  〃Archives Nationales;〃 F7; 3;193。

Letter from the Directory of the department of Aveyron; April 20;

1792。 Narrative of events after the end of 1790。  May 22; 1791; the

club of 〃The Friends of Order and Peace〃 is burned by the Jacobins;

the fire lasting all night and a part of the next day。  (Official

report of the Directory of Milhau; May 22; 1791)。



'23'  〃The French Revolution;〃 I。 256; 307。



'24' Mercure de France;  Dec。 14; 1790 (letter from Villeneuve…St。…

Georges; Nov。29)。



'25' 〃Archives Nationales;〃 II。 1;453。 Correspondence of M。 Bercheny。

Letter from Pau; Feb。 7; 1790。 〃No one has any idea of the actual

state of things; in this once delightful town。 People are cutting each

other's throats。 Four duels have taken place within 48 hours; and ten

or a dozen good citizens have been obliged to hide themselves for

three days past〃



'26' 〃Archives Nationales;〃 F7; 3;249。 Memorial on the actual

condition of the town and district of Mortagne; department of Orne

(November; 1791)。



'27' Revolutionary song with the refrain: 〃Les aristocrates; à la

lanterne; tous les aristocrates on les pendra〃 (all the aristocrats

will hang)。 (SR)



'28' On the 15th of August; 1791; the mother…superior of the H?tel…

Dieu hospital is forcibly carried off and placed in a tavern; half a

league from the town; while the rest of the nuns are driven out and

replaced by eight young girls from the town。 Among other motives that

require notice is the hostility of two pharmacists belonging to the

club; in the Hotel…Dieu the nuns; keeping a pharmacy from which they

sold drugs at cost and thereby  brought themselves into competition

with the two pharmacists。



'29' Cf。 〃Archives Nationales;〃 DXXIX。 13。 Letter of the municipal

officers and notables of Champceuil to the administrators of Seine…et…

Oise; concerning elections; June 17; 1791。   Similar letters; from

various other parishes; among them that of Charcon; June 16: 〃They

have the honor to inform you that; at the time of the preceding

primary meetings; they were exposed to the greatest danger; that the

curé of Charcon; their pastor; was repeatedly stabbed with a bayonet;

the marks of which he will carry to his grave。 The mayor; and several

other inhabitants of Charcon; escaped the same peril with difficulty。〃

… Ibid。; letters from the administrators of Hautes…Alpes to the

National Assembly (September; 1791); on the disturbances in the

electoral assembly of Gap; August 29; 1791。



'30' Police searches of private homes。 (SR)。



'31' 〃The French Revolution;〃 pp。 159; 160; 310; 323; 324。 …

Lauvergne; 〃Histoire du département du Var;〃 (August 23)。



'32' '〃Archives Nationales;〃  F7;  3;198; deposition of Vérand…Icard;

an elector at Arles; Sep。 8; 1791。 … Ibid。; F7; 3;195。  Letter of the

administrators of the Tarascon district; Dec。 8; 1791。 Two parties

confront each other at the municipal elections of Barbantane; one

headed by the Abbé Chabaud; brother of one of the Avignon brigands;

composed of three or four townsmen; and of 〃the most impoverished in

the country;〃 and the other; three times as numerous; comprising all

the land…owners; the substantial métayers and artisans; and all 〃who

are most interested in a good administration〃 The question is; whether

the Abbé Chabaud is to be mayor。 The elections took place Dec。5th;

1791。 Here is the official report of the acting mayor: mayor: 〃We;

Pierre Fontaine; mayor; addressed the rioters; to induce them to keep

the peace。 At this very moment; the said Claude Gontier; alias Baoque;

struck us with his fist on the left eye; which bruised us

considerably; and on account of which we are almost blind; and;

conjointly with others; jumped upon us; threw us down; and dragged us

by the hair; continuing to strike us; from in front of the church

door; till we came in front of the door a; the town hall。〃



'33' Ibid。; F7; 3;229。 Letters of M。 de  Laurède;  June 18; 1791; from

the directory of the department; June 8; July 31; and Sept。 22; 1791;

from the municipality; July 15; 1791。 The municipality 〃leaves the

release of the prisoners in suspense;〃 for six months; because; it

says; the people is disposed to 〃insurrectionise against their

discharge。〃 … Letter of many of the national guard; stating that the

factions form only a part of it。



'34' Mercure de France;  Dec。 10; 1791; letter from Montpellier; dated

Nov。 17; 1791。  〃 Archives Nationales;〃 F7; 3;223。 Extracts from

letters; on the incidents of Oct。 9 and 12; 1791。 Petition by Messrs。

Théri and Devon; Nov。 17; 1791。 Letter addressed them to the Minister;

Oct。 25。  Letters of M。 Dupin; syndical attorney of the department; to

the Minister; Nov。14 and 15; and Dec。 26; 1791 (with official

reports)。  Among those assassinated on the 14th and 15th of

November;  we find a jeweler; an attorney; a carpenter; and a dyer。

〃This painful Scene;〃 writes the syndic attorney; 〃has restored quiet

to the town。〃



'35' Buchez et Roux; X。 223 (1'Ami du Peuple; June 17; 19; 21; 1791)



'36' 〃'Archives Nationales;' F7; 3204。 letter by M。 Melon de Tradou;

royal commissary at Tulle; Sept。 8; 1791









CHAPTER II。



I。

Composition of the Legislative Assembly。  Social rank of the

Deputies。 Their inexperience; incompetence; and prejudices。



If it be true that a nation should be represented by its superior men;

France was strangely represented during the Revolution。 From one

Assembly to another we see the level steadily declining; especially is

the fall very great from the Constituent to the Legislative Assembly。

The actors entitled to perform withdraw just as they begin to

understand their parts; and yet more; they have excluded themselves

from the theatre; while the stage is surrendered to their substitutes。







 〃The preceding Assembly;〃 writes an ambassador;'1' 〃contained men of

great talent; large fortune; and honorable name; a combination which

had an imposing effect on the people; although violently opposed to

personal distinctions。 The actual Assembly is but little more than a

council of lawyers; got together from every town and village in

France。〃







In actual fact; out of 745 deputies; indeed; 〃400  lawyers belong; for

the most part; to the dregs of the profession〃; there are about twenty

constitutional priests; 〃as many poets and literary men of but little

reputation; almost all without any fortune;〃 the greater number being

less than thirty years old; sixty being less than twenty…six;'2'

nearly all of them trained in the clubs and the popular assemblies〃。

There is not one noble or prelate belonging to the ancient régime; no

great landed proprietor;'3' no head of a service; no eminent

specialist in diplomacy; in finance; in the administrative or military

arts。 But three general officers are found there; and these are of the

lower rank;'4' one of them having held his appointment but three

months; and the other two being wholly unknown。  At the head of the

diplomatic committee stands Brissot; itinerant journalist; lately

traveling about in England and the United States。 He is supposed to be

competent in the affairs of both worlds; in reality he is one of those

presuming; threadbare; talkative fellows; who; living in a garret;

lecture foreign cabinets and reconstruct all Europe。 Things; to them;

seem to be as easily worked out as words and sentences: one day;'5' to

entice the English into an alliance with France; Brissot proposes to

place two towns; Dunkirk and Calais; in their hands as security;

another day; he proposes 〃to make a descent on Spain; and; at the same

time; to send a fleet to conquer Mexico。〃  The leading member on the

committee on finances is Cambon; a merchant from Montpellier; a good

accountant; who; at a later period; is to simplify accounting and

regulate the Grand Livre of the public debt; which means public

bankruptcy。 Mean…while; he hastens this on with all his might by

encouraging the Assembly to undertake the ruinous and terrible war

that is to last for twenty…three years; according to him; 〃there is

more money than is needed for it。〃'6'  In actual fact; the guarantee

of assignats is used up and the taxes do not come in。 They live only

on the paper money they issue。 The assignats lose forty per centum;

and the ascertained deficit for 1792 is four hundred millions。'7' But

this revolutionary financier relies upon the confiscations which he

instigates in France; and which are to be set agoing in Belgium; here

lies all his invention; a systematic robbery on a grand scale within

and without the kingdom。



As to the legislators and manufacturers of constitutions; we have

Condorcet; a cold…blooded fanatic and systematic leveler; satisfied

that a mathematical method suits the social sciences fed on

abstractions; blinded by formul?; and the most chimerical of perverted

intellects。 Never was a man versed in books more ignorant of mankind;

never did a lover of scientific precision better succeed in changing

the character of facts。 It was he who; two days before the 20th of

June; amidst the most brutal public excitement; admired 〃the calmness〃

and rationality of the multitude; 〃consi
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