34 MEMOIR OF FLEEMING JENKIN 



[At] ' ten minutes to ten ... I went a long way 

 along the Boulevards, passing by the office of 

 Foreign Affairs, where Guizot lives, and where to- 

 night there were about a thousand troops protecting 

 him from the fury of the populace. After this was 

 passed, the number of the people thickened, till 

 about half a mile further on, I met a troop of vaga- 

 bonds, the wildest vagabonds in the world — Paris 

 vagabonds, well armed, having probably broken 

 into gunsmiths' shops and taken the guns and 

 swords. They were about a hundred. These were 

 followed by about a thousand (I am rather diminish- 

 ing than exaggerating numbers all through), indiffer- 

 ently armed with rusty sabres, sticks, &c. An 

 uncountable troop of gentlemen, workmen, shop- 

 keepers' wives (Paris women dare anything), ladies' 

 maids, common women — in fact, a crowd of all 

 classes, though by far the greater number were of 

 the better dressed class — ^followed. Indeed, it 

 was a splendid sight : the mob in front chanting 

 the " Marseillaise,^^ the national war hymn, grave 

 and powerful, sweetened by the night air — though 

 night in these splendid streets was turned into 

 day, every window was filled with lamps, dim 

 torches were tossing in the crowd . . . for Guizot 

 has late this night given in his resignation, and this 

 was an improvised illumination. 



' I and my father had turned with the crowd, and 

 were close behind the second troop of vagabonds. 



