《the origins of contemporary france-4》

下载本书

添加书签

the origins of contemporary france-4- 第78部分


按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页,按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页,按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部!

employment。  〃Members of the Feurs Revolutionary Committee … those who

make that objection to me;〃 wrote a lawyer in Clermont;'66' 〃are

persuaded that those only who secluded themselves; felt the Terror。

They are not aware; perhaps; that nobody felt it more than those who

were compelled to execute its decrees。  Remember that the handwriting

of Couthon which designated some citizen for an office also conveyed a

threat; and in case of refusal; of being declared 'suspect;' a threat

which promised in perspective the loss of liberty and the

sequestration of property! Was I free; then; to refuse?〃 … Once

installed; the man must act; and many of those who do act let their

repugnance be seen in spite of themselves: at best; they cannot be got

to do more than mechanical service。



 〃Before going to court;〃 says a judge at Cambray; 〃I swallowed a big

glass



  of spirits to give me strength enough to preside。〃



He leaves his house with no other intention than to finish the job;

and; the sentence once pronounced; to return home; shut himself up;

and close his eyes and ears。



 〃I had to pronounce judgment according to the jury's declaration …

what could I do?〃'67'



 Nothing; but remain blind and deaf: 〃I drank。  I tried to ignore

everything; even the names of the accused。〃 … It is plain enough that;

in the local official body; there are too many agents who are weak;

not zealous; without any push; unreliable; or even secretly hostile;

these must be replaced by others who are energetic and reliable; and

the latter must be taken wherever they can be found。'68'  This

reservoir in each department or district is the Jacobin nursery of the

principal town; from this; they are sent into the bourgs and communes

of the conscription。  The central Jacobin nursery for France is in

Paris; from whence they are dispatched to the towns and departments。



V。  Jacobins sent to the Provinces。



Importation of a staff of strangers。  … Paris Jacobins sent into the

provinces。  … Jacobins of enthusiastic towns deported to moderate

ones。  … The Jacobins of a district headquarters spread through the

district。  … Resistance of public opinion。  … Distribution and small

number of really Jacobin agents。



 Consequently; swarms of Jacobin locusts spread from Paris out over

the provinces; and from the local country…towns over the surrounding

country。  … In this cloud of destructive insects; there are various

figures of different sizes: in the front rank; are the representatives

on mission; who are to take command in the departments; in the second

rank; 〃the political agents;〃 who; assigned the duty of watching the

neighboring frontier; take upon themselves the additional duty of

leading the popular club of the town they reside in; or of urging on

its administrative body。'69' Besides that; there issue from the Paris

headquarters in the rue St。  Honoré; select sans…culottes who;

authorized or delegated by the Committee of Public Safety; proceed to

Lyons; Marseilles; Bordeaux; Tonnerre; Rochefort and elsewhere; to act

as missionaries among the too inert population; or form the committees

of action and the tribunals of extermination that are recruited with

difficulty on the spot。'70' … Sometimes also; when a town has a bad

record; the popular club of a sounder…minded city sends its delegates

there; to bring it into line; thus; four deputies of the Metz club

arrive without notice in Belfort; catechize their brethren; associate

with them on the local Revolutionary Committee; and; suddenly; without

consulting the municipality; or any other legal authority; draw up a

list of 〃moderates; fanatics and egoists;〃 on whom they impose an

extraordinary tax of one hundred and thirty…six thousand six hundred

and seventeen livres;'71' in like manner; sixty delegates from the

club of C?te…d'Or; Haute…Marne; Vosges; Moselle; Saone…et…Loire and

Mont…Terrible; all 〃tempered by the white heat of Pére Duchesne;〃

proceed to Strasbourg at the summons of the representatives; where;

under the title of 〃propagandists;〃 they are to regenerate the town。

… At the same time; in each department; the Jacobins of the principal

town are found scattered along the high ways; that they may inspect

their domain and govern their subjects。  Sometimes; it is the

representative on mission; who; personally; along with twenty 〃hairy

devils;〃 makes his round and shows off his traveling dictatorship;

again; it is his secretary or delegate who; in his place and in his

name; comes to a second…class town and draws up his documents。'72' At

another time; it is 〃a committee of investigation and propaganda〃

which; 〃chosen by the club and provided with full powers;〃 comes; in

the name of the representatives; to work up for a month all the

communes of the district。'73'  Again; finally; it is the revolutionary

committee of the principal town; which;〃 declared central for the

whole department;〃'74' delegates one or the other of its members to go

outside the walls; and purge and recompose suspected municipalities。

… Thus does Jacobinism descend and spread itself; story after story;

from the Parisian center to the smallest and remotest commune:

throughout provincial France; whether colorless or of uncertain color;

the imposed or imported administration imposes its red stigma。



But the stamp is only superficial; for the sans…culottes; naturally;

are not disposed to confer offices on any but men of their sort; while

in the provinces; especially in the rural districts; such men are

rare。  As one of the representatives says: there is a 〃dearth of

subjects。〃 … At Macon; Javogues tries in vain;'75' he finds in the

club only 〃disguised federalists;〃 the people; he says; 〃will not open

their eyes it seems to me that this blindness is due to the physique

of the country; which is very rich。〃 Naturally; he storms and

dismisses; but; even in the revolutionary committee; none but dubious

candidates are presented to him for selection; he does not know how to

manage in order to renew the local authorities。  〃They play into each

others' hands;〃 and he ends by threatening to transfer the public

institutions of the town elsewhere; if they persist in proposing to

him none but bad patriots。  … At Strasbourg;'76' Couturier; and

Dentzel; on mission; report that: 〃owing to an unexampled coalition

among all the capable citizens; obstinately refusing to take the

office of mayor; in order; by this course; to clog the wheels; and

subject the representatives to repeated and indecent refusals;〃 he is

compelled to appoint a young man; not of legal age; and a stranger in

the department。  … At Marseilles; write the agents;'77' 〃in spite of

every effort and our ardent desire to republicanize the Marseilles

people; our pains and fatigues are nearly all fruitless。  。  。  。

Public spirit among owners of property; mechanics and journey…men is

everywhere detestable。  。  。  。  The number of discontented seems to

increase from day to day。  All the communes in Var; and most of those

in this department are against us。  。  。  。  they constitute a race to

be destroyed; a country to be colonized anew。  。  。  。



 〃I repeat it; the only way to work out the Revolution in the

federalized departments; and especially in this one; is to deport all

the indigenous population who are able to bear arms; scatter them

through the armies and put garrisons in their places; which; again;

will have to be changed from time to time。〃 … At the other extremity

of the territory; in Alsace; 〃republican sentiments are still in the

cradle; fanaticism is extreme and incredible; the spirit of the

inhabitants in general is in no respect revolutionary。  。  。  Nothing

but the revolutionary army and the venerated guillotine will cure them

of their conceited aristocracy。  The execution of the laws depends on

striking off the heads of the guilty; for nearly all the rural

municipalities are composed only of the rich; of clerks of former

bailiffs; almost always devoted to the ancient régime。〃'78'… And in

the rest of France; the population; less refractory; is not more

Jacobin; here where the people appear 〃humble and submissive〃 as in

Lyons and Bordeaux; the inspectors report that it is wholly owing to

terror;'79' there; where opinion seems enthusiastic; as at Rochefort

and Grenoble; they report that it is 〃artificial heat。〃'80'  At

Rochefort; zeal is maintained only 〃by the presence of five or six

Parisian Jacobins。〃 At Grenoble; Chépy; the political agent and

president of the club; writes that 〃he is knocked up; worn out; and

exhausted; in trying to keep up public spirit and maintain it on a

level with events;〃 but he is 〃conscious that; if he should leave; all

would crumble。〃 … There are none other than Moderates at Brest; at

Lille; at Dunkirk; if this or that department; the Nord; for instance;

hastened to accept the 〃Montagnard〃 constitution; it is only a

pretense: 〃an infinitely small portio
小提示:按 回车 [Enter] 键 返回书目,按 ← 键 返回上一页, 按 → 键 进入下一页。 赞一下 添加书签加入书架