第395章

What will it be， then， now when the peril， already become palpable and serious， is daily increasing， now when war has begun， when Lafayette's army is falling back in confusion， when the Assembly declares the country in danger， when the King is overthrown， when Lafayette defects and goes abroad， when the soil of France is invaded， when the frontier fortresses surrender without resistance， when the Prussians are entering Champagne， when the insurrection in La Vendée adds the lacerations of civil war to the threats of a foreign war， and when the cry of treachery arises on all sides？ -Already， on the 14th of May， at Metz，[77] M. de Fiquelmont， a former canon， seen chatting with a hussar on the Place Saint-Jacques， was charged with tampering with people on behalf of the princes， carried off in spite of a triple line of guards， and beaten， pierced， and slashed with sticks， bayonets， and sabers， while the mad crowd around the murderers uttered cries of rage： and from month to month， in proportion as popular fears increase， popular imagination becomes more heated and its delirium grows. - You can see this yourself by one example. On the 31st of August， 1792，[78] eight thousand non-juring priests， driven out of their parishes， are at Rouen， a town less intolerant than the others， and， in conformity with the decree which banishes them， are preparing to leave France. Two vessels have just carried away about a hundred of them； one hundred and twenty others are embarking for Ostend in a larger vessel. They take nothing with them except a little money， some clothes， and one or at most two portions of their breviary， because they intend to return soon. Each has a regular passport， and， just at the moment of leaving， the National Guard have made a thorough inspection so as not to let a suspected person escape. It makes no difference. On reaching Quilleboeuf the first two convoys are stopped. A report has spread， indeed， that the priests are going to join the enemy and enlist， and the people living round about jump into their boats and surround the vessels. The priests are obliged to disembark amidst a tempests of "yells， blasphemies， insults， and abuse：" one of them， a white-headed old man， having fallen into the mud， the cries and shouts redouble； if he is drowned so much the better， there will be one less！ On landing all are put in prison， on bare stones， without straw or bread， and word is sent to Paris to know what must be done with so many cassocks. In the meantime the third vessel， short of provisions， has sent two priests to Quilleboeuf and to Pont-Audemer to have twelve hundred pounds of bread baked： pointed out by the village militia， they are chased out like wild beasts， pass the night in a wood， and find their way back with difficulty empty-handed. The vessel itself being signaled， is besieged. "In all the municipalities on the banks of the river drums beat incessantly to warn the population to be on their guard. The appearance of an Algerian or Tripolitan corsair on the shores of the Adriatic would cause less excitement. One of the seamen of the vessel published a statement that the trunks of the priests transported were full of every kind of arms." and the country people constantly imagine that they are going to fall upon them sword and pistol in hand. For several long days the famished convoy remains moored in the stream， are carefully watched. Boats filled with volunteers and peasants row around it uttering insults and threats： in the neighboring meadows the National Guards form themselves in line of battle.