Achard is covered with saber and bayonet gashes： "there is not a thread on him which is not dyed with the blood that ran down even into his shoes." In this condition he is led to the chateau along with M. de Saifrey. Others break down the door of the house of M.
du Rosel， an old officer of seventy-five years， of which fifty-nine have been passed in the service， and pursue him even over the wall of his garden. A fourth squad seizes M. d'Héricy， another venerable officer， who， like M. du Rosel， was ignorant of all that was going on， and was quietly leaving for his country seat. - The town is full of tumult， and， through the orders of the municipal authorities， the general alarm is sounded.
The time for the special constables to act has come； about sixty gentlemen， with a number of merchants and artisans， set out.
According to the rules of their association， and with significant scruple， they beg an Officer of the National Guard， who happens to be passing， to put himself at their head； they reach the Place Saint-Sauveur， encounter the superior officer sent after them by the municipal authorities， and， at his first command， follow him to the H？tel-de-Ville. On reaching this， without any resistance on their part， they are arrested， disarmed， and searched. The rules and regulations of their league are found on their persons； they are evidently hatching a counter-revolution. The uproar against them is terrible. "To keep them safe，" they are conducted to the chateau， while many of them are cruelly treated on the way by the crowd.
Others， seized in their houses - M. Levaillant and a servant of M.
d'Héricy - are carried off bleeding and pierced with bayonets.
Eighty-two prisoners are thus collected， while fears are constantly entertained that they may escape. "Their bread and meat are cut up into little pieces， to see that nothing is concealed therein； the surgeons， who are likewise treated as aristocrats， are denied access to them." Nocturnal visits are， at the same time， paid to their houses； every stranger is ordered to present himself at the H？tel-de-Ville， to state why he comes to the town to reside， and to give up his arms； every nonjuring priest is forbidden to say mass. The Department， which is disposed to resist， has its hands tied and confesses its powerlessness. "The people，" it writes， "know their strength： they know that we have no power； excited by disreputable citizens， they permit whatever serves their passions or their interests； they influence our deliberations， and force us to those which， under other circumstances， we should carefully avoid." -Three days after this the victors celebrate their triumph "with drums， music， and lighted torches； the people are using hammers to destroy on the mansions the coats-of-arms which had previously been covered over with plaster；" the defeat of the aristocrats is accomplished. - And yet their innocence is so clearly manifest that the Legislative Assembly itself cannot help recognizing it.
After eleven weeks of durance the order is given to set them free， with the exception of two， a youth of less than eighteen years and an old man， almost an octogenarian， on whom two letters， misunderstood， still leave a shadow of suspicion. - But it is not certain that the people are disposed to give them up. The National Guard refuses to discharge them in open daylight and serve as their escort. Even the evening before numerous groups of women， a few men mingled with them， talk of murdering all those fellows the moment they set foot outside the chateau." They have to be let out at two o'clock in the morning， secretly， under a strong guard， and to leave the town at once as six months before they left the rural districts.
- Neither in country nor in the town[20] are they under the protection of civil or religious law； a gentleman， who is not compromised in the affair， remarks that their situation is worse than that of Protestants and vagabonds during the worst years of the Ancient Régime. of them and who abuse the use of them？ Why should one be on an equality for purposes of payment， and distinguished"Does not the law allow (nonjuring) priests the liberty of saying mass？ Why then can we not listen to their mass except at the risk of our lives？ Does not the law command all citizens to preserve the public peace？ Why then are those whom the cry to arms has summoned forth to maintain public order assailed as aristocrats？ Why is the refuge of citizens which the laws have declared sacred， violated without orders， without accusation， without any appearance of wrong-doing？ Why are all prominent citizens and those who are well off disarmed in preference to others？ Are weapons exclusively made for those but lately deprived only for purposes of annoyance and insult"He has spoken right. Those who now rule form an aristocracy in an inverse sense， contrary to the law， and yet more contrary to nature.[21] For， by a violent inversion， the lower grades in the graduated scale of civilization and culture now are found uppermost， while the superior grades are found at the uniform. The Constitution having suppressed inequality， this has again arisen in an inverse sense. The populace， both of town and country， taxes， imprisons， pillages， and slays more arbitrarily， more brutally， more unjustly than feudal barons， and for its serfs or villains it has its ancient chieftains.
V.
Persecutions in private life.
