170 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1794. 



to reclaim people by a mild and 

 humane treatment, than by re- 

 straints and severities ; which, as 

 experu ice had shewn, instead of 

 prod- cjng r«-al submission, harden- 

 ed them in their enmity tt) govern- 

 ment. To conciliate, therefore, 

 was a readier and surer method of 

 governing, than to compel. This 

 might so far opt rate as to extoit-a 

 feigned acquiescence; but the sen- 

 timents of men would still remain 

 unchanjTcd^ and wiuld break one in- 

 to acts of open resistance whenever 

 opportunity inviteJ. The majority 

 of the nation were clearly on this 

 side of the question. The heads 

 and principal of the royalists ex- 

 pressed moreapprehensionf of losing . 

 their pai'tizans by these lenient 

 than by compulsory measures ; and 

 the wisest in the Convention re- 

 eolved that a fair trial should be 

 given to the system of indulgence 

 and moderation, before any farther 

 recourse should be permitted to the 

 former systemof severity and terror. 

 The tyranny exercised by Robes- 

 pierre, and so severely felt by the 

 whole nation, had rendeied people 

 extremely anxicus to obviate the 



jl^ return of such a calamity, by pre- 



* Venting its cause. 



This was manifestly the too long 

 retention of official power In the 

 hands of those who were invested 

 with the principal posts of govern- 

 ment. It was for this reason the 

 universalwi&h, thatsomeplan should 

 be adopted, by which a more fre- 

 <juent rotation or election should 

 jbe established. By making the su- 

 preme power often ".hifT, men would 

 be less wedded to it ; they wwlild 

 be upon a stricter equality, less fear- 

 ful of each other, and more dis- 

 posed to examine critically every 

 person's conduct in office. This 



was no less the opinion of the 

 Convention than of the nation ^t 

 large. The members of that body 

 had lived in perpetual terror during 

 the whole time of Robespierre's 

 administration. Diffident of each 

 other, and conscious that the least 

 indication of discontent at his mea- 

 sures vvoi;ld expose them to instant 

 destruction, they carefully conceal- 

 ed their real smtiments, and ex- 

 prej-ed so niucli approbation of his 

 conduct, that his pajtizans in that 

 assembly had no room to suspect its 

 general a'tachment to him, and 

 were struck viUi astonishment, as 

 well as hinjscif, when they fyund 

 their ipistake: but the discovery 

 was made too late ; the antipathy 

 to Rcbcspierre hurst out like a sud- 

 den explosion J it came upon hitn 

 so unexpectedly, that though he 

 was apprized that an opposition was 

 formed agaiDst him, he never con- 

 ceived it to be so extensive as to 

 include the whole Convention. 

 After their deliverance from his 

 oppression, and, what was no less 

 grievous, from thr ir fears and sus- 

 picions of each other, they began 

 immediately after his fall to iiPr 

 prove the auspicious opportunity 

 that arose from the knowledge of 

 each other's political opinions and 

 inclinations. Being all determined 

 republicans, they resolved to franoe 

 such a plan of government as might 

 efficaciously prevent the accumula- 

 tion of the whole power of the 

 state into the hands of one. But 

 as the formation of such a plan 

 would ct^iploy a cons!der;*bleej>ace 

 of time and deliberation, they 

 thought it advisable to frame a 

 provisional body of regulations for 

 the security of internal peace, an^ 

 to serve at the same time as a guid? 

 in the construction of the new plan 



