membrance of all their paft triumphs.

The turdy Switzer faced his trial with a degree of compofure, firmnefs, and resolution which aftonished the beholders; and repelled the accufations brought against him with fuch judgment and fpirit, that the court could not, either with regard to justice, or to their own character; poffibly avoid acquitting him; at the fame time, that the fuperior contempt which he fhewed for any danger that might accrue from a due difcharge of his military duties, feemed to overawe even his enemies. It is however to be observed, that the Swifs cantons took fo fpirited a part in behalf of their fuffering commander, that it is thought the national affembly did not wish matters to be carried to extremity against him; fo that the violence of the mob was poffibly the greateft danger, which he apprehended he had to encounter.

Although the court had not yet declared the fentence, yet every body being now convinced of his acquittal, nothing could exceed the rage and indignation of the populace; who confidered the boafted benefits of the revolution as nothing but deceptions, if the majefty of the people was to be thus flagrantly infulted, and their authority grofsly invaded, by attempting to strip them of the inherent right of funimary and executive juftice. They accordingly determined to force the prifon in which Bezenval was confined by the chatelet, and to exhibit in his perfon a memorable and bloody inftance to mankind of that inexorable juftice by which they were guided; the execution of which fhould not be prevented or diverted, by any laws or by any authority.

The 12th of January was fixed upon for the execution of this defign; and the expectation and cruel hopes of the rabble were risen to the highest point at which they were capable of arriving. But things were much changed in this refpect, and they were not able in their prefent ftate to conduct schemes of this nature with that fecrecy and concealment, which are so neceffary to their fuccefs, and which afforded them fuch infinite advantages in their past conflicts with the court. Bailly, La Fayette, the chatelet, the national affembly, and in a word, every part of government, became mafters of the whole defign, before it could be carried into execution, and all adopted fuch measures as feemed beft calculated for its prevention or defeat. La Fayette acted with great vigour, diligence, and effect; but one circumftance in his conduct occafioned much furprife, and afforded no fniall room for fpeculation. This was his placing the fecurity of Paris, and the prefervation of her tranquillity, in the hands of the bourgeoise militia, instead of entrusting them to the regular ftanding forces, who received conftant pay, and of whom the late French guards formed fo confpicuous a part. Nothing could be more flattering to the militia than this diftinction, and mark of unlimited confidence, in a cafe of fo much fuppofed danger;, they accordingly acted their part inimitably well; but nothing could be a more galling affront to the regular troops than this preference given to men whom they despised.

Though the immediate defigns of the plotters were thus overthrown, yet the capital continued in a ftaté of great diforder for two or three days. Cabals and meetings were continually

continually taking place, and all the paft indications of mischief were renewed, and feemed to appear in ftronger colours than ufual. The Verfaillians were again fuppofed formidable, and thousands of them were faid to be mixed with the Parifians. Mischiefs of every kind, and accompanied with every degree of horror and ruin, were generally expected; and even thofe the best informed, fuppofed fome great, and probably dreadful event. The ariftocrates were charged with being the authors of all this evil, in their endeavours to carry off the king, and to bring about a counter-revolution. It would only have expofed a ftranger to mockery or fufpicion, if he attempted to show the glaring improbability of fo unnatural and monftrous a coalition or alliance, as that fuppofed between the royalifts and the rabble of Paris or Verfailles, who feemed by fome inherent inftinct destined to be their mortal and implacable enemies. At the fame time, it was openly faid on all fides, that the king's life would be the im. mediate facrifice to any attempt to rescue his perfon; and that the whole royal family would probably perifh at the fame inftant. All foreigners, who had any knowledge of the former, and even very late character of the people, were aftonifhed at the coolness and indifference with which the immolation of the fovereign, in fuch a circumftance, was publicly talked of, in ail, companies, from the higheft to the loweft, as an act which of courfe mult take place.

In the mean time, La Fayette and his militia, by a vigorous act of exertion, put an end to the combustion in Paris. He fuddenly furrounded at night, a body of 1100 of the mu

tineers, who were aflembled in the Champs Elysées, of whom he made 200 prifoners; the reft being so terrified, that they feemed to confider themfelves happy in escaping with their lives. On fearching the prifoners, they were found well furnished with powder and ball, made up into cartridges, but not a fingle mufket was found or feen in the whole party. This put a flop for the prefent to nocturnal meetings, as well as to riots by day. Yet fuch was the genius of the time for the fabrication of plots, for the discovery of myfteries in the most common and obviOus occurrences, and for the belief of the most incredible fables, that this was ftill infitted upon, and that by men otherwife of good fenfe and well informed, to be the beginning of a grand aristocratical plot, deeply laid for the fubverfion of the contitution and present government. A troublesome question, however, still remained to be folved, who those immediate inftruments of the plot, thofe actual rioters were? With the evidence of 200 prisoners before them, this feemed a question easily refolved; but it would be too much to fuppofe the patriotic Parifians the authors of fuch a crime; and as to the Verfaillians, befides that they had borne their full fhare of re proach already, they were too near neighbours to be loaded with all the infamy. In this difficulty, the term of brigands, which had already anfwered fo excellent a purpofe, in deftroying the caftles of the nobility, luckily occurred; but, as if questions multiplied in proportion as they were refolved, it ftill remained to be anfwered, who thefe brigands were? if they were men like others, and not totally imaginary beings, their exiflence might furely be eafily

identified.

identified. The only folution that could be found to this queftion, was the fuppofition, that they were compofed of Germans and other foreigners, who had conie to Paris for the purpose of raifing tumults, in order to facilitate the carrying of this incomprehenfible plot into exe

cution.

Bezenval being acquitted, and fafely difcharged from Paris, the chatelet now ventured upon what before would have feemed a moft dangerous task, that of proceeding to the trial of the prince of Lambefc, of marshal Broglio, and of fome others of thofe principal fugitives, who had been long accufed of that real or fuppofed plot, for the deftruction of the city of Paris, of the national affembly, for governing the kingdom entirely by the fword, and placing the king in a fiate of more unbridled defpotifm, than even the worft of his predeceffors had poffeffed or attempted, and which had laid the foundation of the revolution in the preceding month of July, as well as of all its fubfequent confequences, to the prefent day. As the event of thefe trials feemed to include in no fmall degree the grand question on the neceffity, juftness, or fitness of the revolution, which derived its birth from this fuppofed plot, fo no caufe could be more interefting, or excite greater expectation; and the feveral parts of it had been fo long, fo often, and fo peremptorily repeated and afferted, that it was fuppofed fuch a body of evidence as nothing could refift or controvert, would now be brought forward in its fupport. But to the inexpreflible furprize of every body, excepting, perhaps, thofe, who were in the immediate fecret of things, no evidence beyond conjecture, inference,

vague reports, and hearsay converfations, appeared on the fide of the profecution; fo that the plot fiill lay in its original state of darkness, and Broglio,with the other fugitives, were of courfe acquitted of the crime of leze nation.

It will always be found difficult in many cafes, to reconcile or account for the various contradictions and inconfiftencies, which appear in the conduct and actions of men. Although this bufinefs undoubtedly ftood foremost in point of importance of all thofe which had been prescribed to the cognizance of the chatelet, yet there are good reafons for believing that its being brought forward was highly difagreeable to the principal rulers; who could not wish that the weakness which now appeared in fo effential a point, through the total failure of all evidence in its fupport, fhould have been thus nakedly expofed to all the world. It was probably imagined, that this was an affair which carried such appearances of danger on whatever fide it was examined, that the chatelet would not venture to meddle with it; and it was poffibly intended, that no great apology would be neceffary to juftify the omiffion. However that was, the chatelet foon became an object of conftant abuse with the democratical writers, and was treated with a coldnefs and indifference by the affembly, which ftrongly indicated that its new powers were not likely to be lafting.

It would feem as if this flate of things produced in one inftance a difpofition to temporize, and accommodate matters to the occafion, in that court, which ill accorded with that high character of honour and inflexible integrity, which through a long courfe of paft years it had,

in defiance of power, fo juftly merited, and fo often nobly fuftained. This was in the cafe of one Favras, who, if we mistake not, was a member of the national affembly. This man was charged with being concerned in a plot for overthrowing the new conftitution, and for bringing about a counter-evolution. The evidence against him was fo weak and defective, that it has been.compared with that which has heretofore been received, and brought fo much difgrace upon the courfe of legal Justice in our own country, in thofe unfortunate periods of its hiftory, when Titus Oates and fimilar villains were allowed to flourish,and fuch men as Jefferies were the difpenfers of our laws. Favras was condemned and executed; and this unfortunate man was generally confidered as a, victim defined to be a peace-offering to the Parifians; in the vain hope of reconciling them to the lofs of thofe others on whom their defire was much more ftrongly fixed. It was a curious circumftance, and worthy of notice, that the conduct of the chatelet, instead of procuring the end propofed, was equally reprobated and condemned by both parties; and that that court was overwhelmed with fuch torrents of reproach coming from all quarters, as it had never before in the courfe of its existence.experienced.

Convinced as they undoubtedly were of its juftnefs, the chatelet did not fink under the weight of the reproach; but feemed defirous of retrieving their character by the vigoar with which they profecuted the enquiry after the authors of the plot, murders, and intended maffacre of the 6th of October; being thofe worthy citizens, who had been reprefented by the democratical wri

ters as totally innocent of all crime, and as acting purely in their own defence. Not content, however, with this inftance of independence and fpirit, as if it were to afford a demonftration that the love of juftice was the only operative motive of their actions, they entered deeply and with the utmost earnestness into that, evidently, most critical and dangerous bufinefs, an enquiry into the conduct, designs and proceedings of the duke of Orleans, and of Mirabeau, who acting apparently as his inftrument, was in fact the framer of every thing that fhewed genius in his plans, and that went beyond cunning in his projects. It required no infpiration, nor even much fagacity, to have feen, that whether thefe enquiries come within the letter.of their inftructions or not, they could not at all accord with their fpirit and defign; and were widely different from the purposes to which that court owed its temporary inftitution. They were, however, ad'mitted to proceed to a certain decent and confiderable length in their enquiries; until at length becoming too troublesome, bringing matters to light which there was no occafion fhould be publicly known, and the prefervation of thofe appearances which operated to their inftitution being no longer neceffary, their powers were fuddenly withdrawn, their enquiries left unfinished, and the chatelet for ever laid by. This was foon followed by the total annihilation of that, and of all the other ancient courts of law and justice in the kingdom.

In the mean time the king's firmnefs in rejecting the propofed vifit and coalition, was, through means or motives of which we are not informed, at length overcome. It is

not

not to be fuppofed that he could be totally indifferent to the menaces against his life which were continually thrown out in cafe of any attempt to rescue his perfon, (an event hourly to be looked for, without his concurrence or knowledge, in the present state of temper and difcontent which prevailed through fo great a part of the nation) and con fidering his remarkable affection for the queen and children, whofe lives, he knew, hung by the fame hair with his own, it is not to be fuppofed but he was as deeply affected on their account as his own. Perhaps other motives might have operated.

Feb. 4th, Whatever they were, the king appeared fud 1790. denly at the national affembly, where he complained of the attempts which were made to fhake the bafis of the new conftitution, and declared it to be his defire, that it should be universally known, that the monarch and the representatives of the nation were entirely united; that their wishes were the fame; that he would defend the conftitutional liberty, the principles of which the general wish, in concert with his own, had confecrated; and that, conjointly with the queen, he would early form the heart and the fentiments of his fon, for that new order of things, which the circumstances of the empire had introduced and fanctified.

As foon as the king was withdrawn, the affembly voted an addrefs of thanks to him; and perceiving at once the deep difmay and confternation with which this unexpected measure feemed nearly to overwhelm the minority, they inftantly determined to take advanage of their confusion and astonishVOL, XXXII.

ment, and immediately iffued a decree, which, in that ftate, none had the courage to oppofe, and by which, every member was obliged to take the newly-devifed civic oath, under the penalty of being excluded from giving his vote on any occafion. This teft was of fuch a nature, that they had reafon for conceiving it would prove effectual in purging the affembly of most, if not all of thofe, whofe names or countenance they no longer wanted, and whofe company they no farther wished to be troubled with. The affembly then decreed a general addrefs to the provinces, reminding them of all it had done for the fake of public liberty, laying before them what it propofed farther to do, for the complete regeneration of the empire, and holding out proper reafons and arguments to prepoffefs them, against thofe unfavourable impreffions which evil minded perfons were endeavouring to infuse upon their minds.

Soon after the exhibition of this ftate farce, this ftrange and extraordinary coalition, by which the king without gaining one new friend loft many of the old, and much of the confidence and confideration which he held with all, the national afflembly refumed the affairs of the clergy, a bufinefs which they justly confidered of the laft importance, as their eftates and property were to fupply that pledge and fecurity, which was to be offered to the nation for the discharge of their immenfe debts, as well as to make good the current deficiencies which arofe, from the failure of payment of the remaining taxes, and the total lofs of the moft productive, which had been generally repealed. [7]

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