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VIII。 153; (1752; 1753; 1754)。 … Rousseau's discourse on
Inequality belongs also to 1753。 On this steady march of opinion
consult the excellent work of d'Aubertin; 〃L'Esprit public au dix…
huitième siècle。〃
'36' This seems to be prophetic of the night of August 4; 1789。
'37' 〃Corresp。 de Laurette de Malboissière;〃 published by the
Marquise de la Grange。 (Sept。 4; 1762; November 8; 1762)。
'38' Madame du Deffant in a letter to Madame de Choiseul; (quoted
by Geffroy); 〃Gustave et la cour de France;〃 I。 279。
'39' Geffroy; ibid。 I。 232; 241; 245。
'40' Geffroy; ibid。 I。267; 281。 See letters by Madame de
Boufflers (October; 1772; July 1774)。
'41' Ibid。。 I。 285。 The letters of Mme。 de la March (1776;
1777; 1779)。
'42' A victim of religious rancor against the protestants; whose
cause; taken op by Voltaire; excited great indignation。… TR。
'43' Bachaumont; III。 14 (March 28; 1766。 Walpole; Oct。 6;
1775)。
'44' Geffloy; ibid。 (A letter by Mme Sta?l; 5776)。
'45' Collé; 〃Journal;〃 III。 437 (1770) : 〃Women have got the
upper hand with the French to such an extent; they have so subjugated
them; that they neither feel nor think except as they do。〃
'46' 〃Correspondance;〃 by Métra; III。 200; IV。 131。
'47' 〃Mémoires du Chancelier Pasquier; _Ed。 Plon Paris 1893; Vol。
I。 page26。
'48' De Vaublanc; 〃Souvenirs;〃 I。 117; 377。
'49' De Ségur; 〃Mémoires;〃 I。 17。
'50' Ibid。 I。 151。 〃I saw the entire Court at the theater in
the chateau at Versailles enthusiastically applaud Voltaire's tragedy
of 'Brutus;' and especially these lines:
Je suis fils de Brutus; et je porte en mon coeur
La liberté gravée et les rois en horreur。〃
'51' De Lauzun; 80 (in relation to his expedition into Corsica)。
'52' De Ségur; I。 87。
'53' The assemblies of Berry and Haute…Guyenne began in 1778 and
1779; those of other generalships in 1787。 All functioned until
1789。 (Cf。 Léonce de Lavergne; 〃Les Assemblées provinciales〃)。
'54' Léonce de Lavergne; ibid。 26; 55; 183。 The tax department
of the provincial assembly of Tours likewise makes its demands on the
privileged class in the matter of taxation。
'55' Procés…verbaux of the prov。 ass。 of Normandy; the
generalship of Alen?on; 252。 … Cf。 Archives nationales; II;
1149: in 1778 in the generalship of Moulins; thirty…nine persons;
mostly nobles; supply from their own funds 18;950 livres to the 60;000
livres allowed by the king for roads and asylums。
'56' Archives nationales; procès…verbaux and registers of the
States…General; vol。 XLIX。 p。712; 714 (the nobles and clergy of
Dijon); vol。 XVI。 p。 183 (the nobles of Auxerre) vol。 XXIX。
pp。352; 455; 458 (the clergy and nobles of Berry); vol。 CL。 p。266
(the clergy and nobles of Tours); vol。 XXIX; the clergy and nobles
of Chateauroux; (January 29; 1789); pp。 572; 582。 vol。 XIII。
765 (the nobles of Autun)。 … See as a summary of the whole; the
〃Résumé des Cahiers〃 by Prud'homme; 3 vols。
'57' Prud'homme; ibid。。 II。 39; 51; 59。 De Lavergne; 384。
In 1788; two hundred gentlemen of the first families of Dauphiny sign;
conjointly with the clergy and the Third…Estate of the province; an
address to the king in which occurs the following passage: 〃Neither
time nor obligation legitimizes despotism; the rights of men derive
from nature alone and are independent of their engagements。〃
'58' Lacretelle; 〃Hist。 de France au dix…huitième siècle;〃 V。2。
'59' Procès…verbeaux of the prov。 ass。 of the Ile…de…France
(1787); p。127。
'60' De Lavergne; ibid。。 52; 369。
'61' 〃Le cri de la raison;〃 by Clerget; curé d'Onans (1789); p。258。
'62' Lucas de Montigny; 〃Mémoires de Mirabeau;〃 I。 290; 368。 …
Théron de Montaugé; 〃L'agriculture et les classes rurales dans le pays
Toulousain;〃 p。 14。
'63' 〃Foreigners generally could scarcely form an idea of the power
of public opinion at this time in France; they can with difficulty
comprehend the nature of that invisible power which commands even in
the king's palace。〃 (Necker; 1784; quoted by De Tocqueville)。
'64' Granier de Cassagnac; II。 236。 … M。 de Malesherbes;
according to custom; inspected the different state prisons; at the
beginning of the reign of Louis XVI。 〃He told me himself that he had
only released two。〃 (Senac de Meilhan; 〃Du gouvemement; des moeurs; et
des conditions en France。〃)。
'65' Archives nationales; II。 1418; 1149; F。 14; 2073。
(Assistance rendered to various suffering provinces and places。)
'66' Aubertin; p。484 (according to Bachaumont)。
'67' De Lavergne; 472。
'68' Mathieu Dumas; 〃Mémoires;〃 I。426。 … Sir Samuel Romilly;
〃Mémoires;〃 I。 99。 〃Confidence increased even to extravagance;〃
(Mme。 de Genlis)。 … On the 29th June; 1789; Necker said at the
council of the king at Marly; 〃What is more frivolous than the fears
now entertained concerning the organization of the assembly of the
States…General? No law can be passed without obtaining the king's
assent〃 (De Barentin; 〃Mémoires;〃 p。 187)。 … Address of the
National Assembly to its constituents; October 2; 1789。 〃A great
revolution of which the idea should have appeared chimerical a few
months since has been effected amongst us。〃
CHAPTER III。 THE MIDDLE CLASS。
I。 THE PAST。
The former spirit of the Third…Estate。 … Public matters concern
the king only。 … Limits of the Jansenist and parliamentarian
opposition。
The new philosophy; confined to a select circle; had long served
as a mere luxury for refined society。 Merchants; manufacturers;
shopkeepers; lawyers; attorneys; physicians; actors; professors;
curates; every description of functionary; employee and clerk; the
entire middle class; had been absorbed with its own cares。 The
horizon of each was limited; being that of the profession or
occupation which each exercised; that of the corporation in which each
one was comprised; of the town in which each one was born; and; at the
utmost; that of the province which each one inhabited'1'。 A dearth of
ideas coupled with conscious diffidence restrained the bourgeois
within his hereditary barriers。 His eyes seldom chanced to wander
outside of them into the forbidden and dangerous territory of state
affairs; hardly was a furtive and rare glance bestowed on any of the
public acts; on the matters which 〃belonged to the king。〃 There was no
critical irritability then; except with the bar; the compulsory
satellite of the Parliament; and borne along in its orbit。 In 1718;
after a session of the royal court (lit de justice); the lawyers of
Paris being on a strike the Regent exclaims angrily and with
astonishment; 〃What! those fellows meddling too!〃'2' It must be
stated furthermore that many kept themselves in the background。 〃My