302 
The council ordered the meflage 
to be printed, fent to the council of 
Ancients, and referred to a com- 
Jnittee, 
Refort of the Council of Five Tindred on 
the Ath Fiutider (Auguft 21) by 
Thibcaudeau, relative to the March 
of the Troops. 
YOU have ordered your Com- 
mittee to prefent to you legiflative 
plans upon the different topics con- 
fained in the meflage which was 
. tranimitted to you on the 22d 
Thermidor laft. The Committee, 
in the firft place, confider it their 
duty to dire& your attention to our 
prefent fituation. The republic 
fately advanced towards peace, 
public confidence was revived, the 
.conftitution began to be contoli- 
dated, every thing prefaged to us 
happy and peaceful deftinies. What 
evil genius has reanimated our paf- 
fions, rekindled our animofities, 
created divifions between thediffer-" 
ent branches of government, and 
planted terror in the breafts of all 
good citizens? It is time to recall 
fecurity, to give confidence to good 
citizens, to reprefs the bad, to re- 
ttore public credit, and to fupport 
the legiflative body in the rank in 
which the conftitution has placed 
it. To attain this objet you mutt 
re-eftablifh your communications 
with the people. Never let your 
voice be unknown ‘o them. From 
this tribune reafon and juftice ought 
always to be heard with that fpirit 
of peace and impartiality in which 
true dignity confifts.. Your Com- 
mittee has proceeded to the exa- 
mination .cf the meflage ef the 
Lirectory. 
ANNUAL REGIS TERS 1797. 
An unexpected change in the 
miniftry, and the march of the 
troops, had fixed. the attention of 
the legiflative body, and merited 
its folicitude. In expreffing our 
regret on account. of the diimiffal 
of the minifters, and our alarms re- 
{pecting the march of the troops, 
we did not conteft with the Diree- 
tory .the right, of changing their 
minifters, and difpo‘ing of the armed 
force; but the legiflative body ‘had 
undoubtedly the right of demand- 
ing information refpecting the vio- 
lation of the conftitutional limits. 
The Directory replied, that it was 
to be attributed to an error in the 
marching orders. You referred 
this mefiage to a Committee, which 
occupied itfelf, as it was wifely faid 
by the reporter (Pichegru), lefs in 
preving the crime than in endea- 
vouring to prevent it from being 
committed hereafter. This Com- 
mittee prefented to you the plan 
of a refolution for afcertaining the 
conftitutional limits. 
We fhall not at prefent inquire 
into the caufe of the marching of 
the troops. Perhaps we {fkall one 
day be made acquainted with its 
we have as yet learned only that 
the conftitutional limits have been 
violated. . General Richepaufe de- 
clares, that having been four years 
on the frontiers, he knew not of 
the diipofitions of the conftitution 
relative to this object. - An excufe 
of this nature would not be admit- 
tedin the courts of juftice; but the 
teftimonials we have had of the 
moral character of the general, in- 
duce us to think there has been na 
evil intention on his part. 
I proceed to.a more important 
object, the addreffes* of the army 
* Alluding to various addreffes from feveral divifidns of the French armies of- 
fering to fupport the Diredtory ot the councils, 
of 
