FRA 
laid the plains and fea-fhores under water. The fecond 
aflault was to be made by thirty thoufand men, divided 
into four column's, to whom about twenty-five thoufand, 
moftly French, were oppofed. The objeft was to difiodge 
the enemy from the main pofition of Bergen : this poll 
was to be turned and taken in reverfe by the column un¬ 
der Abercrombie ; it was to be attacked in front by that 
of general Eden, fupported by two brigades of the third 
column : the latter had for its objeft to carry Schorel- 
dam ; and tlie fourth was to aft as the referve. The 
Ruffians were placed in the centre, and the Englith on the 
two wings. The aftion took place on the 2d of Oftober, 
when rite hopes of the Englifh were again fmftrated by 
the Ruffians, who refufed to advance, and were with diffi¬ 
culty prevented from retreating from Schgreldatn. The 
conteft was vigorous and obftinate in all directions; tlie 
allies remained matters of the field, and the republicans 
retreated during the night to a new pofition. The vic¬ 
tory, however, was not commenfurate to the expectations 
of the Britifh commander. His force was reduced by the 
lofsot 2125 men, including officers, killed, wounded, and 
prifoners; nor was he confoled by the reflection that the 
lofs of his opponents confiderably exceeded 3000. 
The duke of York had now gained the whole extent of 
country between Egmont-op-Zee and Alkmaar; and it 
may be faid alfo of that between that town and the Zuy- 
der Zee, and employed himfelf in fortifying his new po- 
fitions^ Still lie was under the neceflity, notwithftanding 
the diminution of his force and the feverity of the feafon, 
of making'further advances, or renouncing his enterprife. 
As a preparatory meafure, he difpatched general Don on 
a million to the Batavian direftory on the 6th of Oftober; 
but Brune not only refufed him a paffport, but detained 
him prifoner. The duke of York therefore directed 
the advanced pods of the front and centre to pufh for¬ 
ward, in order to prepare and facilitate a general attack 
which he had in contemplation. The Ruffians took the 
village of Baccum ; but, conceiving that the poffelfion of 
a height beyond it would make them more fecure, ex¬ 
ceeded their orders by advancing to Caflricum. This 
brought on a general engagement, upon unexpected 
ground, which was fought with great obftinacy, and 
proved extremely deftruftive : it equally fruitrated the 
intended operations of both parties ; but the allies found 
their fitnation daily worfe, their force confuming, and 
their hopes of co-operation from the natives diminifliing, 
while their antagonilts were continually receiving rein¬ 
forcements, and gaining courage by the profperous turn 
of their affairs. 
Impreffed by thefe circumftances, fir Ralph Abercrom¬ 
bie, and the other general officers, drew up a reprefenta- 
ticn to the commander in chief, shewing the reduced fiate 
of the troops, which had fuffered a diminution of near ten 
thoufand men ; the difficulties oppofed to their progrefs 
by the feafon, the bad roads, and the daily augmenting 
force of the republicans ; the increafing impediments to 
the receipt of fupplies; and the impoffibility, from the 
imwillingnefs of the Dutch to rife in infurreftion, of ef¬ 
fecting the great objefts of the enterprife : and fubmitting 
to his royal highnels the propriety of conducting back the 
army to its pofition of the Zype, where it would be nearer 
its magazines, and where inftruftions could fpeedily be 
obtained from England. This remonftrance was attended 
with the defired effeft ; and the whole army retreated in 
the face of its opponents, without diforder or purfuit. 
Here the duke of York found that it was impoflible again 
to march forward ; he could have maintained his pofition, 
but the health of his troops mull have been facrificed, 
nor could the ultimate ends of the expedition be attained. 
To return to England was the moll beneficial meafure he 
could adopt ; but in retreating on fhip-board before a foe 
fuperior in numbers, he found that, even under the mod 
favourable circumflances, he muff facrifice many valuable 
Jives, or inundate the country, arefource from which his 
humanity and juttice equally revolted, Negotiation be. 
N C E. 843 
came the only eligible mode of proceeding ; and general 
Knox was difpatched to the head.quarters of the repub. 
Means with propofals for evacuating Holland, which, after 
fcveral papers had been exchanged, was, on the 18th, 
agreed on. The principal conditions wereiiie relinquifh- 
ment of the Helder in,as good a ftateas it had been taken, 
the unconditional refiitution of eight thoufand French 
and Dutch prifoners to be felefted by agents of thofe na¬ 
tions, and the umnolefted embarkation of the allies, which 
took place before the end of November. 
The affairs of France now began to affhme a lefs unfa¬ 
vourable afpeCt. They were indeed driven to the extre¬ 
mities of Italy ; btft they retained the Genoefe territory, 
and Swifferland and Holland continued under their con- 
troul. No where, but in Egypt, had the republicans been 
completely foiled ; and here, Bonaparte finding the ground 
no longer tenable, haflened back to Paris, where he was 
received with acclamation and applaufe. The parties 
in the government were equally balanced ; and both the 
jacobins and the Moderates equally courted his alii fiance. 
The Jacobins ftill poffeffed a majority in the council of 
five hundred ; but in the other council their antagonifls 
were fuperior. The direftor Syeyes was underfiood to be 
of the party of the Moderates ; and the Jacobins had un- 
fuccefsfully attempted to remove him from his office. 
Neither party was fatisfied with the exifting authorities; 
but none of the ufual indications of hoflility appeared. 
The Jacobins were far from fufpefting that Syeyes had a 
plot 1 ipe for execution, which was to overwhelm them in 
an inftant. They were even in fome meafure laid afleep 
by an artful feene of feftivity, in which the whole mem¬ 
bers of the councils were induced to engage, on the 6th 
of November, under pretence of doing honour to the ar¬ 
rival of Bonaparte. 
On the morning of the 9th, one o.f the committees of 
the council of ancients prefented a report, in which they 
afferted that the country was in danger, and propofed to 
adjourn the fitting of the legiflature to St. Cloud, about 
fix miles from Paris. As the council of five hundred had 
no conftitutional right to difpute the authority of this de¬ 
cree, and as the ruling party in it was completely taken by 
furprife, its members filently fubmitted, and both coun¬ 
cils affembled on the 10th of November at the place ap¬ 
pointed. The council of five hundred,* however, exhi¬ 
bited a feene of much agitation. They received a letter 
from Legarde, fecretary to the direftory, dating, that four 
of its members had fent refignations of their offices, and 
that the fifth (Barras) was in cuftody by order of general 
Bonaparte, who had been appointed commander of their 
guard by the council of ancients. While the council 
were deliberating, Bonaparte entered the hall, attended 
by about twenty officers and grenadiers. He advanced 
towards the chair, where his brother Lucien Bonaparte 
fat as prefident. Great confufion enfued ; he was brand¬ 
ed with the epithets of Cromwell, a Caefar, an ufurper. 
The members began to prefs upon him, and his country¬ 
man Arena attempted to fiab him with a dagger. He was 
however refeued by the military. Lucien Bonaparte then 
left the chair, and caff afide the badge of office which he 
wore as a member of the council. The confufion did not 
dirninifh ; but in a fhort time a party of armed men rufii- 
ed into the hall, and carried off Lucien Bonaparte. A 
tumultuous debate now began ; in which it was propofed 
that Bonaparte fhould be declared an outlaw ; when the 
doors of the hall were again burft open ; military mufic 
was heard ; a body of troops entered the hall in full array, 
and the members were compelled to difperfe. 
In the evening, a feleft number of the council of an¬ 
cients met by their own authority, and voted that the 
grenadiers who had made a rampart of their bodies 
around the commander in chief, had deferved well of the 
country. A committee of Sv.g was formed to t^onfider of 
meafures of public fafety. At eleven, Boulay de la 
Meurtlie, appearing as their reporter, declared the vices 
and radical defefts of the exifting conftiUH'ion j and the 
2 council 
