266 
repeated, all the preparations: of 
defence had been neglected. Ne- 
vertheless, their uneasiness, their 
distrust, still rested) on the former 
ministers, on the secret councils of 
the king; but they soon saw the 
patriotic ministers crossed in their 
operations, attacked with rancour 
by the partizans of the royal autho- 
rity, by those who made.a parade of 
personal attachment to the king. 
Our armies were tormented with 
political divisions: discord was 
sown among the commanders of 
the troops, as between the generals 
and the ministry. Attempts were 
made. to transform into the instru- 
ments of a party, which concealed 
not its desire of substituting its will 
for that of the representatives of 
the nation, those very armies that 
were destined to the external de- 
fence of the French territory, and 
to maintaining the national inde- 
pendence. 
Lhe machinations of the priests, 
become more active in the moment 
of war, made.a restraining law in- 
dispensable ; one was passed. 
The formation of a camp be- 
tween Paris and the frontiers was a 
disposition: happily calculated for 
external defence, while at the same 
time it served to give security to 
the. internal departments, and to 
prevent the troubles which their 
disquiets might have produced: the 
formation of such a camp was) or- 
dered; but these two decrees were 
rejected by the king, and the patri- 
otic ministers were dismissed. 
The constitution:had granted to 
the King a'guard of 1800 men, and 
this guard audaciously manifested a 
contempt of civic duties, which in- 
spired the citizens with indignation 
or with terror; hatred of the con- 
stitution, and, aboye.all, of liberty 
ANNUAL REGISTER, 1702. 
and equality, were the best: titles 
for being admitted into it, 6.0 60" 
- The Assembly: was forced to: dis 
solve this guard, to prevent botly 
the troubles which it could not; fail 
soon to occasion, and the plots of 
counter-revolution, of which but 
too many indications were already 
manifest. The decree was sane= 
tioned; but a proclamation by the 
King bestowed praises on those very: 
men whose dismission from his ser= 
vice. he had just pronounced, to 
those whom he had admitted to be 
men; justly accused of being the 
enemies of liberty. 
The new ministers excited ‘well! 
founded distrust; and as thisdistrust:. 
could not stop at them, it fell‘on 
the King himself. tt 
The application of the refusalo 
sanction to decrees rendered neces- 
sary by circumstances, of which the 
execution ought to have been 
prompt, and must’ stop with the 
decrees, was regarded, in the gene- 
ral opinion, as an interpretation of 
the constitutional act contrary to 
liberty, and even tothe spirit of the 
constitution. The agitation of the 
people of Paris\ became extreme’; 
an immense crowd of citizens join- 
ed to form a petition; in it they 
solicited the recall of the patriotic 
ministers, and the retraction of the: 
refusal to sanction the decrees in’ 
favour of which the publie opinion’ 
had been loudly declared. They’ 
desired leave to pass in arms’before’ 
the National Assembly after’ their 
deputies had read ‘their’ petition. 
This Jeave, which: other armed bo-' — 
dies had before obtained, was grant-) 
ed them. They desired to present — 
the same petition to the king, and’ 
to present it under the forms esta- 
blished by the law ; but at the mo-> — 
ment when municipal officers were’ 
coming 
‘ 
4 
7 
