ii historical chronicle. 



ber, and the butcheries that fol-| were to be confined till th 



lowed it are most horribly tran- 



s;endant. Whether it is pofsible 

 for human nature to attain a 

 higherpitchof barbarity seems 

 to be at present doubtful ; but 

 when men have power to act 

 ■without fear of restraint from 

 the laws, it is impofsible to say 

 what they will do. 



Longwy and Verdan are ta- 

 ken by the Prufsians, with 

 some places of smaller note. 

 Before the capture of Verdun 

 the progrefs of the duke of 

 Brunswick seems to have 

 claimed but little attention at 

 Paris, but that event excited 

 an alarm of the most serious 

 nature. Whether that alarm 

 ■will have any other tendency 

 than to excite confusion, and 

 pave the way for greater havoc 

 and destruction, is very doubt- 

 ful. The following are a few 

 of the most remarkable tran- 

 sactions in the order they oc- 

 curred since our last. 



The king, queen, and royal 

 family remained from the Joth 

 to J 4th of August under the 

 protection of the national af- 

 sembly, when after many deli- 

 berations about the proper 

 mode of proceeding with regard 

 to him, it was decreed that de- 

 legates fliould be sent from all 

 the districts o^f the nation, to 

 form a tribunal for their trial, 

 and that they Ihould meet for 

 tbat purpose at Paris on the 

 20th September. 



Where the rojral prisoners \ 



trial, was the next object c. 

 discufslon ; and it was at length 

 agreed that they Ihould be 

 confined in a building called 

 the temple, to which they were 

 conducted on the 14th •, strong 

 entrenchments were ordered to 

 be thrown up around it in or- 

 der to make it as secure as pof- 

 sible. 



Aug. 17. M.Herault de Schel- 

 les, in the name of the Commrt- 

 teeof Legislation, presented the 

 plan of a decree for establilhing 

 a tribunal to try those accused 

 of criminal proceedings 'on the 

 loth of August. This plaa 

 was adopted. 



The afsembly having then 

 decreed urgency^ decreed as 

 follows : 



I. An electoral body ffiall be immc- 

 dutel) Jormcd to appoint the members 

 of a criminal tribunal to try those ac- 

 cused of having committed crimes on 

 :he 10. h of Augus', as well as other 

 criminals who may have had any con» 

 ccin in the late tumults. 



II. This tribunal (hall He composed of 

 eight judges, eight sup]>teants, two pu- 

 blic accusers, four registers, eight 

 clerks, and two national coriimifs'or>era 

 liamed by the provisionary executive 

 p:.wer. 



III. The {unctions of the j-.idges. pu- 

 blic acciis»rs, and n.itiona! commifsion- 

 cis, as. well as those of the direc orsof 

 the juries, of which mention ihaJl be 

 made hereafter, ihal' be the same as 

 ihosc of the judges of the crimin.il tri« 

 juna], the director of the jury, public 

 iccuser, and king's comm;Ciioner„ 

 settled by the la'v paf^ed r-spectirg ju- 

 r t."! <m the 29th of September 1791. 

 1 he judges ftiall pafs a definitive sen- 

 tence, not subject to be reversed by any 

 o'.h^r tribunal whatever. 



