GENERAL HISTORY. 
pethaps, it is impossible to give 
the same extent of liberty to the 
publication of journals and perio- 
dical works ; and in the existing 
state of France, and of Europe, 
in the midst of so many passions 
which the powers wish to tran- 
quillize, the journals which foster 
and excite those passions ought to 
be submitted to another legisla- 
tion.” This remark was intro- 
ductory to a proposed ordinance 
which was adopted by the King, 
and the substance of which con- 
sisted in a revocation of all the 
licences given to public journals 
of every kind, up to the present 
time, which were not to appear 
again without fresh authority from 
the minister of police; and the 
submitting of all periodical writ- 
ings to the examination of a com- 
mission to be appointed by the 
same minister. The declared ne- 
cessity of such a measure paints 
more forcibly the political condi- 
tion of the country at that period, 
than any partial details could do. 
- Nothing was of so much im- 
portance to the security of the 
government as the organization 
of a new army in the place of 
that which was to be disbanded. 
On August ilth a proclamation 
was issued relative to this sub- 
ject, which began with the ob- 
servation that, “ inasmuch as it 
has been endeavoured to detach 
the army from the interests of the 
country for the purpose of mak- 
ing it a mere instrument of a per- 
‘sonal and inordinate ambition, in 
the same degree it is essential for 
the public order to maintain that 
Which is about to be formed in 
the principles of a truly national 
army.” A statement then fol- 
lowed of the number and species 
[87 
of troops of which the active mi- 
litary force of France was to con- 
sist; and an ordinance, contain- 
ing the details of the new army. 
The great mass of infantry was to 
be composed of 86 legions of 
three battalions each, one legion 
to be raised in every department, 
and to bear its name. The sol- 
diers to be disbanded were allow- 
ed to enter after examination into 
the legion of the department to 
which they belonged. Marshal 
Macdonald had at this time been 
appointed to the command of the 
army on the Loire in the room of 
Davoust. Measures were taken 
for bringing to justice those offi- 
cers who were denounced as 
traitors: Labedoyere was under 
trial, and was soon aftercondemn- 
ed and executed ; Ney had been 
apprehended ; and Brune, in or- 
der to avoid the like fate, shot 
himself. By a royal ordinance of 
August 19th the constitution re- 
ceived the improvement of making 
the peerage hereditary. 
France was still far from being 
in a state of internal tranquillity. 
Party feuds raged in many places, 
and were attended with the out- 
rages commonly incident to such 
quarrels, aggravated by the im- 
petuous passions of the nation, 
and the long habits of military 
violence. Several relations had 
been published of the ferocious 
and cruel acts perpetrated at Nis- 
mes and in its vicinity, a part of 
the kingdom in which the pro- 
testants bear the greatest propor- 
tion to the catholics; when, on 
Sept. 2nd, the King issued a pro- 
clamation with the following pre- 
amble. ‘ We have learned with 
pain that in the department of the 
South, several of our subjects have 
