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thousand now ready to undertake a 〃civic St。 Bartholomew;〃 with the
old Conventionists who could not get themselves elected; at their
head; … Drouet; Amar; Vadier; Ricord; Laignelot; Chaudieu; Huguet;
Cusset; Javogues。 Alongside of them; the friends of Chalier;
Robespierre's and Marat's followers; and the disciples of Saint…Just;
Bertrand de Lyon; Buonarotti; Antonelle; Rossignol and Babeuf。 Behind
them; the bandits of the street; those 〃who gutted houses during the
Revolution;〃 peculators or Septembriseurs out of employment; in short;
the relics of the terrorist gang or of the revolutionary army。 Their
plan; true to their precedents; character and principles; consists not
only in despatching 〃the rascals who keep coaches; the moneyed men and
monopolisers;〃 all the deputies and functionaries who do not resign at
the first summons; but also; and especially; in killing 〃the General
of the Interior; his staff; the seven ministers and the five 'cocked…
hats' (panachés) of the Luxembourg;〃 that is to say; the five
Directors themselves。 Such allies are troublesome。 Undoubtedly; the
government; which considers them as its forlorn hope; and that it may
have need of them in a crisis; spares them as much as possible。'45'
It allows Drouet to escape; and lets the trial of the Babouvists drag
along; only two of them being guillotined; Babeuf and Darthé; most of
the others are acquitted or escape。 Nevertheless; for its own
salvation; it is led to separate from the fiercest Jacobins and draw
near to peaceable citizens。Through this internal discord of the
ruling faction; honest people hold on the offices they occupy on the
elections of the year IV。。 No decree comes to deprive them of their
legal arms; while; in the Legislative Corps; as in the administrations
and the tribunals; they count on carrying new positions in the
elections of the year V。
V。 Actual aim of Jacobin Activities: Power and Wealth。
Elections of year V。 … Character and sentiments of the elected。 …
The new majority in the Corps Legislatif。 … Its principles and
program。 … Danger and anxiety of the Jacobin minority。 … Indecision;
division; scruples and weakness of the moderate party。 … Decision;
want of scruples; force and modes of procedure of the Jacobin faction。
… The 18th of Fructidor。 …
〃It was a long time;〃 writes a small trader of Evreux; 〃since so many
people were seen at the elections。'46'。 。 。 。 The eight electors
for the town obtained at the first ballot the absolute majority of
suffrages。 。 。 。 Everybody went to the polls so as to prevent the
nomination of any elector among the terrorists; who had declared that
their reign was going to return。〃 … In the environs of Blois; a rural
proprietor; the most circumspect and most peaceable of men; notes in
his journal'47'that 〃 now is the time to take a personal interest。 。
。 。 Every sound…thinking man has promised not to refuse any office
tendered to him so as to keep out the Jacobins。 。 。 。 。 It is
reasonably hoped that the largest number of the electors will not be
terrorists and that the majority of the Legislative Corps being all
right; the minority of the furious; who have only one more year of
office; will give way (in 1798) to men of probity not steeped in
crime。 。 。 。 In the country; the Jacobins have tried in vain:
people of means who employed a portion of the voters; obtained their
suffrages; every proprietor wishing to have order。 。 。 。 The
Moderates have agreed to vote for no matter what candidate; provided
he is not a Jacobin。 。 。 。 Out of two hundred and thirty electors
for the department; one hundred and fifty are honest and upright
people。 。 。 。 。 They adhered to the last Constitution as to their
sole palladium; only a very few of them dreaming of re…establishing
the ancient régime。〃 Their object is plain enough; they are for the
Constitution against the Revolution; for limited power against
discretionary power; for property against robbery; for upright men
against thieves。 … 〃Would you prevent; say the administrative
authorities of Aube;'48' a return to the disastrous laws of the
maximum; of monopolies; to the resurrection of paper…money? 。 。 。
Would you; as the price of a blameless life; be once more humiliated;
robbed; imprisoned; tortured by the vilest; most repulsive and most
shameless of tyrants? You have only one recourse: do not fail to go to
your primary assemblies and remain there。〃 The electors; warned by
their late personal and bloody souvenirs; rush to the polls in crowds
and vote according to their consciences; although the government
through the oaths it imposes; its official candidatures; its special
commissioners; its intimidation and its money; bears down with all its
weight on the resolutions they have taken。 Although the Jacobins at
Nevers; Macon and elsewhere; have forcibly expelled officers legally
elected from their bureaux; and stained the hall with their blood;'49'
〃out of 84 departments 66 elected a plurality of electors from among
the anti…republicans; eight being neither good nor bad; while only ten
remained loyal to the Jacobins。〃'50' … Appointed by such electors; we
can divine what the new Third will be。 〃Of the 250 Conventionalists
excluded by the draw scarcely five or six have been re…elected; there
are but eight departments in which the Jacobins have had any success。
〃…Immediately after the arrival of the new representatives; the roll
of the Legislative Corps having been checked off; it is found that
〃the Government has 70 out of 250 votes among the Ancients; and 200
out of 500 among the Council of the Young;〃 and soon less than 200 in
this Council;'51' 130 at the most; who will certainly be excluded at
the coming renewal of the chambers in elections which are becoming
more and more anti…Jacobin。 One year more; as the rulers themselves
admit; and not one Conventionalist; not one pure Jacobin; will sit in
the Legislative Corps。 Consequently; according to the
revolutionaries; the counter…revolution will have taken place in the
year VI。
This means that the Revolution is to end in the year VI。; and that the
pacific reign of law will be substituted for the brutal reign of
force。 In fact; the great majority of the representatives and almost
the entire French nation have no other end in view: they wish to rid
themselves of the social and civil régime to which they have been
subject since the 10th of August; 1792; and which; relaxed after
Thermidor 9; but renewed by the 13th of Vendémiaire; has lasted up to
the present time; through the enforcement of its most odious laws and
the maintenance of its most disreputable agents。 This is all。 … Not
twenty avowed or decided royalists could be found in the two
Councils。'52' There are scarcely more than five or six … Imbert…
Colomès; Pichegru; Willot; Delarne … who may be in correspondence with
Louis XVIII。 and disposed to raise the royal flag。 For the o