i106] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1795. 
tune of theday. After a fight, that 
lasted four hours, they were com- 
pelled to give way: they reireated 
' totheirhead-quarters, and continued 
the battle with unabated valour till 
past midnight, when broken and 
defeated onevery side they yieldeda 
dear-bought vittory to the conven- 
tional forces. The ill success of this 
engagement, near the hall of the 
convention, was owing to the ab- 
sence of those sections that were 
coming to their assistance, from that 
rt of Paris which lies on the other 
side of the river Seine. They were 
_crossing the bridges, when they 
were met .by the conventional 
troops, which broke them at once 
with their cannon. As they were un. 
provided with artillery, they were 
unable to renew the charge, and the 
bridges. remained in possession of 
the former. It was in this conflict 
that Buonaparte appeared first on 
the theatre of war, and by his cou. 
rage and conduct laid the foundation 
of that confidence in his powers 
which condutted him so soon after 
to preferment and to glory. 
Thus ended the memorable fifth 
of October, 1795, or the thirteenth 
of Vendemaire, to speak in the re.. 
ublican style. The numbers that 
li were not very considerable, not 
amounting to more than a thousand. 
Buta fatal precedent wasestablished; 
the convention had set itself above 
the law, and had succeeded by force 
of arms jn this unwarrantable at- 
tempt. It was fortunate for the 
convention, that a decision had 
taken place so expeditiously ; for 
numbers were on their march 
to Paris to join the inhabitants ; 
but hearing of their ill success, 
they Jaid down their arms before 
the troops were dispatched from 
the vanquished capital to oppose 
them. No humiliation or disap. 
pointment could be greater than 
was experienced by the citizens of 
Paris, on this disastrous occasion, 
Relying on the amity of the regus. 
lars, they had neglected the most es« 
sential measures for an undertaking 
of so much importance to the com. 
munity, as that of frustrating the 
diGtatorial authority assumed by che 
convention. They had provided 
no artillery, they had appointed no 
commanders, they had formed no 
plan, and hardly a sixth part of the 
city militia was arrayed on this 
fatalday. Had the citizens brought 
their whole force into aétion, and 
prepared for it with their customary 
prudence, many were of opinion, 
that the convention must have 
yielded to their remonstrances, 
especially if they had been enforced 
in due time, and before the conven. 
tion had received those succours 
from the armies, which enabled it 
to triumph over all legal opposition. 
Nevertheless, the discreetest of 
this ambitious body saw the ne. 
cessity of making sucha representa. 
tion of this business to the nation at 
large, as might impress it witha pere 
suasion, that a victory of the utmost . 
consequence had been obtained over 
the royalists, and that the insurgents 
at Paris were people of this party, 
who had long been resorting to 
Paris in order to unite in a general 
struggle against the republicans, 
An agent of the royal a hap- 
pened about this time to be dis. 
covered at Paris. From his papers 
a correspondence was reported to 
have been traced with his employers 
abroad, relating to this very insur. 
rection ; and passages in proof of it 
were published; but they were 
broken and unconneéted, and af 
forded no proper evidence, A va- 
riety 
