HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
of the fitting on the next morning, 
the archbifhop of Paris, in the 
name of his brethren, furrendered 
all the tithes of the church into the 
‘hands of the nation ; accompanying 
the furrender with the following 
fhort fpeech: « Let the gofpel be 
« preached ; let divine worthip be 
“ celebrated with decency and dig- 
« nity; let the church be provided 
“ with virtuous and zealous paftors; 
« let the poor amongft the people 
“ be fuccoured. This is the defti- 
“nation of our riches; thefe are 
“< the objects of our miniftry, and 
«< of our wifhes: we truft ourielves, 
« without referve, to a juft and ge- 
“ nerous nation.”? This facrifice 
was received with an affected accla- 
mation of applaufe, as if any one 
could be perfuaded that it was a free 
and voluntary gift. It was not an 
incurious circumftance to obferve 
‘the fudden change which took place 
in the countenance and manner of 
the affembly. That body, fo agi- 
tated, fo noify, fo tumultuous and 
violent on the preceding day and 
night, was now fo calm, fo tranquil 
and placid, that it was difficult to fup- 
pofe it compofed of the fime men. 
It coft the affembly feveral days 
to digeft and frame into laws the 
refolutions paffed on the night of 
the 4th of Auguft and the tranf- 
actions and debates of that night are 
fo intermixed, in the publifhed re- 
Jations, with thofe which fucceeded, 
and that without any mark of dif- 
tinction, that it is not eafy to aflign 
their proper time or place to fome 
of them. It feems, however, to 
have been on that night that the 
deputies from Dauphiny reminded 
the aflembly of the with declared 
by that province, that France fhould 
no longer remain parcelled out a- 
mongit Bretons, Dauphinois, and 
a 
4 
[23 
Provengaux, but fhould for the fu- 
ture’ be inhabited by French citi« 
zens only. It was ftated, in fupport 
of this propofal, that the French 
had not hitherto been properly a 
nation, but rather an incoherent and 
fantaftical aflemblage of different 
people, who had fortuitouily pail- 
ed under the fame monarchy; fome, 
by virtue of a will, bequeathing 
them as property; others, in con- 
fequence of a marriage, which 
transferred them as a daughter’s 
portion ; and all by different titles, 
‘and upon different conditions; all 
preferving their diftinét laws and 
cuftoms, and having nothing in 
common, but the difadvantage of 
fuffering all the miferies of fervi- 
tude, without the folitary recom- 
pence of poflefling uniform laws 
and fimilar interefts. 
‘This application was received 
with great and yniverfai applaufe ; 
and it was probably upon this oc- 
cafion that the deputies of feveral 
privileged towns and diftritts made 
a furrender, as we have alreaiy 
feen, of the charters and municipal 
documents of the places they repre- 
fented. But many other of the de- 
puties, being more fcrupulous, did 
not chdofe to furrender the local 
privileges of their conftituents with- 
out confulting them ; and although 
the aflembly had already declared or 
decreed, that no pofitive intructions 
from the conftituents fhould be con- 
fidered as binding; yet apon this 
occafion they allowed time for their 
communicating with them. But 
for the intermediate time a provi- 
fional furrender was however made 
of all exclufive privileges, and it 
was underftood and announced, that 
there Should be one common contti- 
tution throughout the kingdom, and 
that no privilege, or fuppofed right, 
[2 4] fhould 
