Meeting of the Estates-General, 178 9. 7% 
reported upon a conversation which he had had with the king 
the previous day, relative to the situation of affairs.2, Whether 
he had been summoned by the king or whether he had sought 
the interview, the record does not state. Nor is there any 
further statement as to the subjects of the conference. It is 
reasonable to suppose, however, that the irregular action of the 
majority of the clergy, the revolutionary attitude of the third 
_ estate and the outbreak against the Archbishop of Paris engaged 
the attention of king and cardinal. There can be no doubt 
that the staunch adherents of separate assemblies must have 
been alarmed by the defections from their own ranks which 
went to swell the size of the national assembly. The fact that, 
despite his orders of June 23, the king had let the third estate 
go on its way unmolested must have been further cause for 
anxiety on the part of the extreme conservatives. It mattered 
little that the clergy who had joined the third estate were by 
no means in full accord with the latter’s policy. In as far as 
possible, the commons acted upon the presumption that these 
deputies were in harmony with them and the people interpreted 
their union to mean'‘that all gave their support to the national 
assembly’s ideal of a single body. Hence, it was highly neces- 
sary that the supporters of the policy of separate assemblies 
keep the king on their side. Louis XVI commissioned the 
cardinal to testify to the chamber of the clergy his royal satis- 
faction with its course.? Presumably encouraged by their 
sovereign’s approval, the clergy proceeded to their regular 
business. 
The minutes of the previous session were read, approved, and 
signed.t Then the election of officers was completed. The 
candidates for the sécretaryship were the secretaries pro tem, 
of the day before, Abbé de Barmond, Councillor of the Parlia- 
ment of Paris, and Abbé Coster, arch-deacon and deputy of 
Verdun. The former was chosen,® and the latter states that 
2 Thid., 271. 
3 Barmond, Récit, 271, 
abil. 270. 
5 Coster, Récit, 341; Barmond, Récii, 271. The latter does refer to Coster’s 
candidacy. 
185 
