第868章

[81] "Journal d'un Bourgeois d'Evreux，" 143. (March 20， 1799.) "The next day the primary assemblies began； very few attended them； nobody seemed disposed to go out of his way to elect men whom they did not like." - Dufort de Cheverney， "Mémoires，" March， 1799. "Persons who are not dupes think it of very little consequence whether they vote or not. The elections are already made or indicated by the Directory.

The mass of the people show utter indifference. (March 24.) "In this town of twenty thousand souls (Blois) the primary assemblies are composed of the dregs of the people only a very few honest people attend them； 'suspects，' the relations of émigrés and priests， all expelled， leave the field free to intriguers. Not one proprietor is summoned. The terrorists rule in three out of the four sections. .

. The Babouvists always employ the same tactics； they recruit voters in the streets who sell their sovereignty five or six times over for a bottle of wine." (April 12， according to an intelligent man coming from Paris.) "Generally， in Paris， nobody attends the primary assemblies， the largest not returning two hundred voters." - Sauzay， IX.， ch. 83. (Notes on the election at Besan？on 1798， by an eye-witness.) "Jacobins were elected by most frightful brigandage， supported by the garrison to which wine had been distributed， their election being made at the point of the bayonet and under blows with sticks and swords. A good many Catholics were wounded."[82] Albert Babeau， II.， 444. (Declaration of the patriotic and secessionist minority of the canton of Riquy at the elections of the year VI.)[83] Mercure Britannique， No. for August 25， 1799. (Report read， July 15 and August 5， before the Five Hundred on the conduct of the Directors Reubell， La Révellière-Lepaux， Merlin de Douai and Treilhard， and summary of the nine articles of indictment.) - Ibid.， 3rd article. "They have violated our constitution by usurping legislative powers through acts which prescribe that a certain law shall be executed， in all that is not modified to the present act， and by passing acts which modify or render the present laws illusory."[84] Fiévée， "Correspondance avec Buonaparte，" I.， 147.

[85] Barbé-Marbois， I.， 64， 91， 96， 133； II.， 18， 25， 83. - Dufort de Cheverney， "Mémoires.' (September 14， 1797.) - Sauzay， IX.， chapters 81 and 84.

[86] Sauzay， vols. IX. and X. - Mallet-Dupan， II.， 375， 379， 382.

- Schmidt， "Tableau de Paris Pendant la Revolution，" III.， 290.

(Report by the administrators of the Seine department.)[87] Dufort de Cheverney， "Mémoires，" August， 1798， October， 1797 and 1799， passim.

[88] Archives Nationales， F.7， 3219. (Letter of M. Alquier to the First Consul， Pluvi？se 18， year III.) "I wanted to see the central administration； I found the ideas and language of 1793."[89] Dufort de Cheverney， "Mémoires，" (February 26， March 31 and September 6， 1797). "That poor theoristic imbecile， La Révellière-Lepaux， who， joining Barras and Reubell against Barthélémy and Carnot， made the 18th of Fructidor， and shut himself in his room so as not to witness it， himself avows the quality of his staff." ("Memoires，" II.， 164.) " The 18th of Fructidor necessitated numerous changes on the part of the Directory. Instead of putting republicans， but above all， honest， wise and enlightened men in the place of the functionaries and employees dismissed or revoked， the selections dictated by the new Councils fell for the most part on anarchists and men of blood and robbery."[90] Lacretelle， "Dix ans d'épreuves，" p.317. A few days after Fructidor， Robert， an old Jacobin， exclaimed with great joy on the road to Brie-Comté， "All the royalists are going to be driven out or guillotined！" The series F.7 in the Archives Nationales， contains hundreds of files filled with reports "on the state of the public mind，" in each department， town or canton between the years III. and VIII. I have given several months to their examination and， for lack of space， cannot copy any extracts. The real history of the last five years of the Revolution may be found in these files. Mallet-Dupan gives a correct impression of it in his "Correspondance avec la cour de Vienne，" also in the "Mercure Britannique."[91] Sauzay， X.， chaps. 8o and 90. - Ludovic Sciout， IV.， ch. 17.

(See especially in Sauzay， X.， pp.170 and 281， the instructions given by Duval， December 16， 1796， and the circulars of Fran？ois de Neufchateau from November 20， 1798， down to June 18， 1798， each of these pieces being a masterpiece in its way.

[92] "Journal d'un Bourgeois d'Evreux，" p.134. "June 7， 1798." "The day following the décade， the gardeners， who as usual came to show themselves off on the main street， were fined six livres for having treated with contempt and broken the décade." January 21， 1799.

"Those who were caught working on the décade， were fined three livres for the first offence if they were caught more than once the fine was doubled and it was even followed by imprisonment"[93] Ludovic Sciout， IV.， 160. Examples of "individual motives"alleged to justify the sentence of transportation. One has refused to baptize an infant whose parents were only married civilly. Another has "declared to his audience that the catholic marriage was the best." Another "has fanaticized." Another "has preached pernicious doctrines contrary to the constitution." Another "may， by his presence， incite disturbances，" etc. Among the condemned we find septuagenarians， known priests and even married priests. - Ibid.， 634， 637.

[94] Sauzay， IX.， 715.. (List of names.)[95] Ludovic Sciout， IV.， 656.