160 Jeanette Needham. 
were read. Before a decision on the matter was reached, how- 
ever, the so-called majority abandoned the hall.. Consequently, 
the decree of June 19 was still in force. ; . 
The only point open to question was whether the chamber was 
justified in taking up the declaration of the king first, rather than 
heeding the request of a large number of its members. The 
Récit stated that an examination of the circumstances and of 
the declaration itself showed that “it was a strict duty for the 
clergy to begin by considering the declaration.” It was a duty 
of respect to the king to do so, because, on the one hand, he 
had ordered them, in closing the royal session, to meet the next 
day in their own halls; because, on the other hand, he had 
sent them copies of the declarations. It must have been his 
intention that they consider these. Furthermore, the very dis- 
positions of the first declaration itself made examination in- 
dispensable before discussing the deliberation of June1g. Article 
I settled all strife over the method of deliberation when it de- 
clared that the three orders, the distinction of which was posi- 
tively established, might deliberate in common, but under two 
conditions, that the orders agree and that the king approve. 
The second article removed all difficulty relative to the veri- 
fication of credentials. After statements as precise as these, 
there was no occasion for discussion upon the deliberation of 
June 19, which concerned the verification of credentials in 
common. The king had declared against it and it was incon- 
ceivable that the nobility should consent to that form in face of 
the king’s decision. Besides, even if the terms of the declaration 
were not to be accepted, the necessary preliminary was to de- 
liberate upon the document to see whether it would be executed. 
In short, two matters were before the assembly the morning of 
June 24, the deliberation of June 19 and the declaration of the 
king. The latter rendered the former without object; hence, it 
was reasonable to begin the session by considering the declaration. 
Brief attention was given to the further fact that some mem- 
bers raised the question whether the examination of the declara- 
tion should not occur in a general assembly of the three orders. 
The Récit maintained that this would have been contrary to 
the intentions of the king, who had ordered separate meetings 
274 
