Daring conduct of Mirabeau-The rabble arrive at Versailles-A deputation of Poissardes accompany that of the National Assembly to the king—He gives a conciliatory answer to the former, and the fame night affents to the decrees of the affembly-M. La Fayette, with the Parifian army, arrives at midnight-The court, the deputies, and M. La Fayette, retire to reft-The palace unexpectedly attacked in the morning-Various fcenes of horror-Infolence of the rabble- Magnanimous behaviour of the queen -The royal family carried to Paris-Reception

there.

THE king having poftponed his affent to the decrees, which had paffed in the National Affembly, and had been prefented to him by M. Mounier their prefident, the affembly became more and more impatient on account of this delay: Nothing is a furer indication of weaknefs, in every fense of the word, than betraying fymptoms of hesitation and unwillingness to do what is exacted of us, and what it is clear we must do after all. VOL. II.

B

The hesitation of the court in the prefent inftance injured their cause in various ways. It difpofed the public to give credit to those who were continually afferting, that the king confidered his intereft as oppofite to that of the people; and it provoked fome of the deputies to a petulance of language inconfiftent with the refpect due to the king. "Il me femble," faid Mirabeau, "qu'on pourroit faire au Roi une addreffe, dans laquelle on lui parleroit avec cette franchise et cette vérité, qu'un fou de Philippe mettoit dans ces paroles triviales: Que ferois-tu, Philippe, fi tout le monde difoit non quand tu dis oui* ?”

In the course of the fame debate, Petion declaimed against the tranfactions at the entertainment of the life guards, which was the first time that any notice had been taken of it in the affembly; and he afferted, that many things had occurred at that entertainment of a highly criminal nature on which M. Monfpay observed, that vague infinuations ought not to be regarded; that Petion was therefore bound to mention the names of the guilty perfons, reduce his accufation to writing, and to fign it. To this Petion made no anfwer, but it was generally understood that the queen and the duke de Guiche, colonel of the life guards, were the perfons whom he had chiefly in view.

As Petion feemed to shrink from this challenge, Mirabeau rofe and faid, "Je commence par dé

*It appears to me, that in an addrefs to the king it would not be improper to fpeak with the fame frankness and truth that the court fool of Philip conveyed in this fentence: "What would you do, Philip, if all the world faid No when you said Yes'?

clarer que je regarde comme fouverainement impolitique la dénonciation qui vient d'être provoquée: cependant, fi on perfifte à la demander, je suis prêt, moi, à fournir tous les détails et à les figner; mais auparavant, je demande que cette Affemblée déclare que la perfonne du Roi eft feule inviolable; et que tous les autres individus de l'Etat, quels qu'ils foient, font également fujets et refponfables devant la loi *."

At the earnest request of M. Mounier the Pre-fident, M. Monfpay withdrew his motion, by which the agitation of a question was prevented which might have had the most fatal confequences. Mirabeau then moved, that the Prefident, at the head of a deputation, fhould wait on the King with an expoftulatory address, requesting him to give a pure and fimple fanction to the articles of the Declaration of Rights and the Constitution which had been already presented to him; for the reply which the King had made was rather a comment on the articles than an explicit anfwer. Roberfpierre faid, that fo far from being an acceptance it was a cenfure.

The deputation was immediately decreed; but before the members were appointed, the first tumultuous band that had left Paris, conducted by

* I begin by declaring, that I confider the defiance which has been made as highly imprudent; but, if it is infifted on, I am ready to give a circumftantial account of the whole, and to fign it; but previoufly I expect that this Affembly fhall declare that the perfon of the King alone is inviolable; and that all the other individuals in the State, whofoever they may be, are fubject and refponfible to law.

Maillard, arrived at Verfailles. A detachment of the most furious of the Poiffardes belonging to it marched directly to the National Affembly, and were on the point of forcing the Guards at the gate, when the Affembly prudently decreed, that they fhould be admitted.

Maillard gave a strong proof of the influence he had over those women. He prevailed on them to permit him to speak for them, and to restrain their tongues while he spoke. He faid " they had come to demand bread, of which there was a great fcarcity at Paris, and this scarcity artificially brought on by traitors. He added, that they had likewise come to punish the Gardes-du-Corps, who had offered an affront to the patriotic cockade; that it was criminal to wear any other; and that he would fhew the Affembly how both the black cockades and those who wore them ought to be treated." He then took a cockade of that colour, and tore it in pieces with every mark of indignation. His fpeech and action having excited fome murmurs, "What," faid he," are we not all brethren?" The Prefident obferved, that, notwithstanding their being all brethren, ftill it was unlawful to tear people in pieces merely for wearing cockades of a wrong colour.

By this time the patience of the women was quite. exhaufted, They could keep filence no longer; 'but as they began their remonftrances all together, it was a confiderable time before it could be diftinguifhed that the grievance they chiefly infifted on was the scarcity of bread.

The Prefident declared, that the Affembly were juft going to deliberate on the fpeedieft means of procuring it, and added that the ladies might, withdraw.

Inftead of taking this hint, however, the ladies feated themselves without ceremony on the benches with the Deputies. They did not liften to the debates with the fame filence which they had preferved during Maillard's harangue: but took a degree of intereft in them which must have been embarraffing to all, and peculiarly fo to the orators whofe difcourfe they disapproved. "Parle donc, Député!" they called to one; "Tais-toi, Député !" to another. Sometimes, inftead of Député, they addressed the speakers whom they did not relish by appellations too vile to be mentioned,

In confequence of a decree which had paffed immediately before the arrival of the Poiffardes, M. Mounier and fifteen Deputies went out of the hall. They were again to addrefs the King to give a fimple affent, unclogged with conditions, to the articles which had been prefented to him on the 2d. As foon as the Poiffardes understood this, a number of them infifted on accompanying the Prefident to the King. M. Mounier, with fome difficulty, prevailed on them to limit the number to fix.

The deputation of the National Affembly, with their new affociates, walked under a heavy shower of rain between two rows of an intermingled multitude of armed men and women, from the hall of the Aflembly to the palace.

When they arrived at the gate, a band of Poiffardes who followed, instead of adhering to the