Following this long line of murders and robbery， the Minister reaches Marseilles， and I imagine him stopping at this city some-what dumbfounded. Not that he is in any way astonished at widespread murders； undoubtedly he has had received information of them from Aix， Aubagne， Apt， Brignolles， and Eyguières， while there are a series of them at Marseilles， one in July， two in August， and two in September；[97] but this he must be used to. What disturbs him here is to see the national bond dissolving； he sees departments breaking away， new， distinct， independent， complete governments forming on the basis of popular sovereignty；[98] publicly and officially， they keep funds raised for the central government for local uses； they institute penalties against their inhabitants seeking refuge in France； they organize tribunals， levy taxes， raise troops， and undertake military expeditions.[99] Assembled together to elect representatives to the Convention， the electors of the Bouches-du-Rh？ne were， additionally， disposed to establish throughout the department "the reign of liberty and equality，" and to this effect they found， says one of them， "an army of 1，200 heroes to purge the districts in which the bourgeois aristocracy still raises its bold， imprudent head." Consequently， at Sonas， Noves， St. Remy， Maillane， Eyrages， Graveson， Eyguières， extended over the territory consisting of the districts of Tarascon， Arles and Salon， these twelve hundred heroes are authorized to get a living out of the inhabitants at pleasure， while the rest of the expenses of the expedition are to be borne "by suspected citizens."[100] These expeditions are prolonged six weeks and more；one of them goes outside of the department， to Monosque， in the Basses-Alpes， and Monosque， obliged to pay 104，000 francs to its "saviors and fathers，" as an indemnity for traveling expenses， writes to the Minister that， henceforth， it can no longer meet his impositions.
What kind of improvised sovereigns are these who have instituted perambulating brigandage？ Roland， on this point， has simply to question his friend Barbaroux， their president and the executive agent of their decrees. "Nine hundred persons，" Barbaroux himself writes， "generally of slight education， impatiently listening to conservatives， and yielding all attention to the effervescent， cunning in the diffusion of calumnies， petty suspicious minds， a few men of integrity but unenlightened， a few enlightened but cowardly； many of them patriotic， but without judgment， without philosophy"； in short， a Jacobin club， and Jacobin to such an extent as to "make the hall ring with applause[101] on receiving the news of the September massacre"；in the foremost ranks， "a crowd of men eager for office and money， eternal informers， imagining trouble or exaggerating it to obtain for themselves lucrative commissions；"[102] in other words， the usual pack of hungry appetites in full chase. - To really know them， Roland has only to examine the last file， that of the neighboring departments， and consider their colleagues in Var. In this great wreck of reason and of integrity， called the Jacobin Revolution， a few stray waifs still float on the surface； many of the department administrations are composed of liberals， friends of order， intelligent men， upright and firm defenders of the law. Such was the Directory of Var.[103] To get rid of it the Toulon Jacobins contrived an ambush worthy of the Borgias and Oliverettos of the sixteenth century.[104] On the 28th of July， in the forenoon， Sylvestre， president of the club， distributed among his trusty men in the suburbs and purlieus of the town an enormous sack of red caps， while he posted his squads in convenient places. In the mean time the municipal body， his accomplices， formally present themselves at the department bureau， and invite the administrators to join them in fraternizing with the people. The administrators， suspecting nothing， accompany them， each arm in arm with a municipal officer or delegate of the club. They scarcely reach the square when there rushes upon it from every avenue a troop of red-caps lying in wait. The syndic-attorney， the vice-president of the department， and two other administrators， are seized， cut down and hung； another， M. Debaux， succeeding in making his escape， hides away， scales the ramparts during the night， breaks his thigh and lies there on the ground； he is discovered the next morning； a band， led by Jassaud， a harbor-laborer， and by Lemaille， calling him self "the town hangman，" come and raise him up， carry him away in a barrow， and hang him at the first lamppost. Other bands dispatch the public prosecutor in the same fashion， a district administrator， and a merchant， and then， spreading over the country， pillage and slay among the country houses. -- In vain has the commandant of the place， M.
