‘ 
Meeting of the Estates-General, 1789. 183 
orders finally came. They advanced in two files toward the hall 
of the estates, the clergy, headed by the Cardinal de la Roche- 
- foucauld at the right, and the nobility led by its president, at 
the left.2 Very few members of the national assembly and not 
many spectators were left in the hall when they made their 
entrance some time between four and five o’clock.2 Thus cir- 
cumstances favored the discomfited conservatives. Most of the 
third estate had gone to*lunch and even Bailly was not in the 
room. Only two secretaries at the desk and a handful of depu- 
ties testified to the fact that the assembly was still in session.4 
Consequently, their reception was a cool enough affair on both 
sides. Bailly states that he was summoned in haste and hurried 
2 Coster, Récit, 346. 
8 Procés-verbal (no. 9) says: ‘‘ A quatre heures;”’ Point du jour (I, 66), 
““Vers les cing heures;’’ Assemblée nationale (1, 262) indicates five o’clock 
as the hour; Jallet (107) says that the recess was fixed for two hours, from 
three o’clock till five, and adds that the upper orders came during the interval. 
Courrier de Provence (Lettre XIV, 10) has “‘a 5 heures du soir.’’ Biauzat 
and Duquesnoy do not say anything of the time. The account in the Efats- 
généraux, Extrait du journal de Paris, I, 125, says: ‘Il était environs quatre 
heures.”” The letter of the deputy written from Paris, le 27, a miniut says 
“cing heures.”’ Histoire de la rév. (I, 240) gives ‘‘ Quatre heures et demi ”’ 
as the time when the nobility was ready to go. Boullé says: ‘‘ Quatre heures.” 
Bailli de Virieu had heard that the clergy went at two o'clock, the nobility 
at four. 
4Jallet (107) says: ‘‘Le président et les secrétaires étaient absents;”’ 
Bailly (I, 250) does not mention the secretaries, but says of himself: ‘‘ Un 
nombre de députés sortit pour aller diner. J’allai chez moi un moment; 
a peine y étais-je, qu’on vint me chercher en m’annoncant I|’arrivée des députés 
des deux ordres.”’ Assemblée nationale (I, 262) says: ‘‘ M. Bailly était déja 
dans la salle avec un petit nombre de députés.”’ This man must have been 
misinformed in regard to Bailly’s presence. Point du jour (I, 66) gives this: 
“L’assemblée nationale ... était peu nombreuse dans ce moment-la.” 
Jallet says that there were no more than fifty present. Histoire de la rév. 
(I, 241) says there were only twenty-seven to thirty and a very small number 
of spectators. Boullé, Documents inédits, Revue de la rév., XIV, 29; Coster, 
Récit, 346. Coster states that two secretaries, one for the clergy, the other 
of the third estate, sat at the desk, but the presidents were gone. fats 
généraux, Extrait du journal de Paris, 1, 125; Procés-verbal . . . de la noblesse, 
303. 
5 Histoire de la révolution, I, 241; Point du jour, I, 66; Biauzat, II, 147; 
Duquesnoy, I, 137; Procés-verbal, No. 9, 8. The first two assert that the 
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