These ever open and hungry jaws must be daily fed with an ampler supply of human flesh； not only is he bound to let it eat， but to furnish the food， often with his own hands， except that he must afterwards wash them， declaring， and even believing， that no spot of blood has ever soiled them. He is generally content to caress and flatter the brute， to excuse it， to let it go on. Nevertheless， more than once， tempted by the opportunity， he has launched it against his designated victim.[141] He is now himself starting off in quest of living prey； he casts the net of his rhetoric[142] around it； he fetches it bound to the open jaws； he thrusts aside with an uncompromising air the arms of friends， wives and mothers， the outstretched hands of suppliants begging for lives；[143] he suddenly throttles the struggling victims[144] and， for fear that they might escape， he strangles them in time. Near the end， this is no longer enough； the brute must have grander quarries， and， accordingly， a pack of hounds， beaters-up， and， willingly or not， it is Robespierre who equips， directs and urges them on， at Orange， at Paris，[145] ordering them to empty the prison's， and be expeditious in doing their work. -In this profession of slaughtering， destructive instincts， long repressed by civilization， become aroused. His feline physiognomy， at first "that of a domestic cat， restless but mild， changes into the savage appearance of the wildcat， and close to the ferocious exterior of the tiger. In the Constituent Assembly he speaks with a whine， in the Convention he froths at the mouth."[146] The monotonous drone of a stiff sub-professor changes into the personal accent of furious passion； he hisses and grinds his teeth；[147] Sometimes， on a change of scene， he affects to shed tears.[148] But his wildest outbursts are less alarming than his affected sensibility. The festering grudges， corrosive envies and bitter scheming which have accumulated in his breast are astonishing. The gall bladder is full， and the extravasated gall overflows on the dead. He never tires of re-executing his guillotined adversaries， the Girondists， Chaumette， Hébert and especially Danton，[149] probably because Danton was the active agent in the Revolution of which he was simply the incapable pedagogue； he vents his posthumous hatred on this still warm corpse in artful insinuations and obvious misrepresentations. Thus， inwardly corroded by the venom it distills， his physical machine gets out of order， like that of Marat， but with other symptoms. When speaking in the tribune "his hands crisp with a sort of nervous contraction；"sudden tremors agitate "his shoulders and neck， shaking him convulsively to and fro."[150] "His bilious complexion becomes livid，"his eyelids quiver under his spectacles， and how he looks！ "Ah，" said a Montagnard， "you would have voted as we did on the 9th of Thermidor， had you seen his green eyeballs ！" "Physically as well as morally，" he becomes a second Marat， suffering all the more because his delirium is not steady， and because his policy， being a moral one， forces him to exterminate on a grander scale.
But he is a discreet Marat， of a timid temperament， anxious，[151]
keeping his thoughts to himself， made for a school-master or a pleader， but not for taking the lead or for governing， always acting hesitatingly， and ambitious to be rather the pope， than the dictator of the Revolution.[152] Above all， he wants to remain a political Grandison[153]； until the very end， he keeps his mask， not only in public but also to himself and in his inmost conscience. The mask， indeed， has adhered to his skin； he can no longer distinguish one from the other； never did an impostor more carefully conceal intentions and acts under sophisms， and persuade himself that the mask was his face， and that in telling a lie， he told the truth.
Taking his word for it， he had nothing to do with the September events.[154] "Previous to these events， he had ceased to attend the General Council of the Commune. . . He no longer went there." He was not charged with any duty， he had no influence there； he had not provoked the arrest and murder of the Girondists.[155] All he did was to "speak frankly concerning certain members of the Committee of Twenty-one；" as "a magistrate" and "one of a municipal assembly."Should he not" explain himself freely on the authors of a dangerous plot？" Besides， the Commune "far from provoking the 2nd of September did all in its power to prevent it." After all， only one innocent person perished， "which is undoubtedly one too many. Citizens， mourn over this cruel mistake； we too have long mourned over it！ But， as all things human come to an end， let your tears cease to flow." When the sovereign people resumes its delegated power and exercises its inalienable rights， we have only to bow our heads. - Moreover， it is just， wise and good "in all that it undertakes， all is virtue and truth； nothing can be excess， error or crime."[156] It must intervene when its true representatives are hampered by the law "let it assemble in its sections and compel the arrest of faithless deputies."[157]
