385 
ROBESPIERRE; 
HIS PRINCIPLES AND CHARACTER. 
TuHOosE whose opinions are opposed to the French Revolution fre- 
quently express their abhorrence of it by pronouncing the single 
word Robespiérre. Those, on the other hand, who entertain more 
favourable views of that great convulsion, identify his name with 
the calamities and bloodshed attending it, which, however, they 
conceive, are also to be ascribed to the profligacy of the aristocracy, 
the intrigues of courtiers, the unconquerable vanity of the nobility, 
and the despotic interference of foreign courts. 
Robespierre, indignantly disowned by all the conflicting parties 
of the day, each of which desired to stigmatize its opponents by 
thrusting him into their ranks, stands alone in terrific solitude 
amidst the agitated masses of the Revolution : he who, nevertheless, 
when in the zenith of his power, controlling the destinies of men, 
was ardently adored by some and countenanced by all. His habits, 
pursuits, and disposition, not assimilating with those of his contem- 
poraries, Robespierre may be said to have been the only chief who, 
though not identified with any party, directed the great revolution- 
ary torrent. This will be apprehended more easily when we com- 
pare the man with the elements by which he was surrounded ; the 
projects he contemplated, with the means employed to carry them 
into effect ; and the ultimate consequences which followed them. 
The unbounded esteem with which he was regarded by his adhe- 
rents, and the execration attached to his name in the pages of his- 
tory, when duly considered, can scarcely fail to assist the impartial 
inquirer in forming a just opinion of his character and designs, at 
the same time that it may, possibly, in some measure, relieve his 
memory from the most serious imputation of having wantonly de- 
luged the country with the blood of its children. 
The passions of the head, as displayed in the youth, formed like- 
wise the prominent and characteristic feature of the man; for so 
those ideas may be designated which, like deep-rooted sensual incli- 
nations, exercise an uncontrolled sovereignty over the will, acquir- 
ing strength slowly, yet by sure and certain steps. The passions of 
the head, concentrated as they are within the range of the thoughts 
and imagination, are imperceptible ; while the passions of the heart 
take root in practical life, amidst the intercourse of a boisterous 
world. Again, the passions of the head are instant in their effects, 
VOL. IX., NO. XXVII, 49 
