26] 
Appointment. The affembly ex- 
prefled great fatisfattion at the 
choice of thefe minifters, which 
the king had immediately commu- 
“nicated to them by letter. 
It happened unfortunately, that 
‘the fame evil, which had already 
ge fo fatal to the king and to 
is adminiftrations, ftillf[continued to 
prefS upon the executive govern- 
ment with greater weight than it 
even had done before. Thc pay- 
ment of the taxes was generally re- 
fufed or evaded in moft parts of the 
‘kingdom, and there was no money 
to fupport government or carry on 
the public buifinefs. In this flate 
of things the new minifters demand- 
ed an audience of the affembly; 
and the archbifhop of Bourdeaux, 
as keeper of the feal, having expa- 
tiated largely on the difordered and 
melancholy ftate of public affairs, 
M. Neckar, as minifter of finance, 
‘demanded that the affembly fhould 
give its fanétion to a loan of thirty 
millions of livres, as a meafure in- 
difpentably neceflary. The neceffity 
was too evident to admit of a dif- 
cuffion; but fome objections were 
made on account of the inftructions 
which the delegates had received 
from their conftituents, not to grant 
any fubfidies until they had com- 
pleted the conftitution. Thefe ob- 
jyections, however, gave way to the 
inftant and extreme diftrels of the 
ftate for want of money ; but ‘this 
occafion afforded the firf inftance of 
the total change which had taken 
place in the countenance of the af- 
fembly With refpect to Neckar. 
Inftead of + adopting the fcheme 
formed by the financial minifter, 
whofe abilities and integrity they 
had fo often extolled in a degree 
which approached to the hyperbole, 
they now ceclaéed their total want 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1790. 
of confidence in him, by altering 
his plan, and narrowing the terms 
which he propofed as an induce- 
ment to the lenders for fubfcribing 
to the loan. ‘The confequence was 
natural ; the monied men would not 
part with their cafb; and no body 
fubfcribed; and by this very ill- 
judged management the weaknefs 
or failure of public credit, which 
might otherwile have been kept in 
the dark, was expofed to all Eu- 
rope. This conduct, however, drew 
a degree of unpopularity, and even 
of odium,upon the national affembly, 
which it did not eafily get quit of ; 
for as Neckar did not fcruple 
licly to vindicate himfelf, the whole 
blame fell upon that body, to 
whom in reality it properly belong- 
ed. 
Upon ‘this failure, the neceffity 
for money every hour increafing, 
Neckar was permitted to prefcribe 
fuch terms as he thought wou'd an- 
{wer the purpofe, for raifing a loan 
of eighty millions of livres, at five 
per cent. on the credit of a vote 
pafled by the affembly. But the 
fortunate moment was paft, and 
could not be regained; although ~ 
the propofals were fufficiently al- — 
luring, the fubfcription hung too 
heavily on hand to produce the de- 
fired effe&t, and, im fine, was not 
half filled. In the mean time a © 
{cheme of promoting and receiving 
patriottc conrributions was adopt- 
ed; and, like other novelties in that 
country, raged for its time as am 
epidemic. Silver buckles and gold 
rings were the moft common con- 
tributions to the affembly ; fo that 
in a few days not a filver buckle 
was to be feen, nor probably many 
wedding rings to be. found, any 
where in or near Paris. The na~- 
tional aflembly themfelves, in a 
fudden — 
pub- — ' 
