PARIS. 
Volution, the horror of that fituation was fo ftrong upon 
his mind, he could not bring himfelf to place any other 
human being in a fimilarone. 
This was on the 6th ; and the promptnefs of the exe¬ 
cution after fentence put folks in mind, as in the cafe of 
Labedoyere, of the good times of the republic; for at 
nine'o’clock on the following morning he was put to 
death. The expreffion ufed at the time was, that he was 
“ put to death clandtjiinely by which, however, nothing 
more is meant, than that he was executed at an earlier 
hour, and on a different fpot, from what was expected ; 
and hence the multitude, who intended to witnefs his death, 
were difappointed, The coach which conveyed him, tra- 
verfing the garden of the Luxembourg, proceeded to the 
end of the grand walk that leads to the obfervatory, which 
was the. fpot fixed on for the execution. On finding the 
coach flop, the marfhal, who thought they were going to 
carry him to the Place de Grenelle, expreffed foine fiur- 
prife. Alking if that was the place of execution, he was 
anfwered in the affirmative ; and immediately alighted. 
After embracing his confefior, to whom he gave his fnuff- 
box for his wife, and fome pieces of gold to be diflributed 
to the poor, he proceeded with a quick flep to within 
eight paces of the wall : he then faced the detachment 
of veterans who were to fire : he took off his hat to 
them, eroded his arms, and faid, “ Soldiers, I am in¬ 
nocent, I die innocent; and I appeal from this ini¬ 
quitous judgment to God and to pofterity.” He then 
immediately unfolded his arms, and exclaimed, “ Do 
your duty !” The volley was fired, and he fell : two 
balls llruck him in the head, four in the body, and one 
palled through his heart. Conformably to military regu¬ 
lations, the body remained expofed on the place of exe¬ 
cution for a quarter of an hour. There were but few per- 
lons, however, prefent ; for the populace, believing that 
the execution would happen on the Place de Grenelle, 
had repaired thither. The body was placed upon a litter, 
covered with a cloth, and carried by the veterans to the 
Hofpital of the Foundlings. All this was over before 
linif-paft nine; and, at ten, madame Ney, ignorant, like 
the people, that the execution had taken place, went to 
the Tuileries to implore the king’s clemency; but the 
duke of Duras, to whom flie addreffed lierfelf in order to 
be introduced, was obliged to inform her that the marfhal 
no longer exifted ! 
The next trial of importance which took place in Paris, 
after that of marfhal Ney, was that of general Lavalette, 
the direitor-general of the poll-office, who was accufed of 
high-treafon, in taking poffeffion of the poll-office on the 
fioth of March, before the arrival of Bonaparte. Lava¬ 
lette was related to the Bonaparte family, having, in 1802, 
married a niece of the emprefs Jofephine. He ferved as 
aide-de-camp to Bonaparte in his Italian campaigns, par¬ 
took of his fortune in Egypt, and continued to ferve un¬ 
der him till the peace of Luneville, in 1801, when he was 
appointed counfellor-of-ftate, and diredor-general of the 
polls, which place he occupied till the reltoration of the 
Bourbons in 1814, when he was difmiffed, and his place 
given to M. Ferrand. His trial commenced on the 20th 
of November, before the court of affife for the depart¬ 
ment of the Seine. 
It is to be obferved, that a pofl-mafler, in Paris and 
other great towns of France, is an officer of great impor¬ 
tance ; for he not only direits the conveyance or deten¬ 
tion of letters, but has alfo all the inn-keepers under his 
jurifdiiflion, fo that no traveller can obtain pott-horfes 
without his confent. Lavalette, having gone to the poll- 
office, and difplaced M. Ferrand, immediately circulated 
the following order : 
“ March 20, 1815. The pofl-mafler muff: give horfes to 
no perfon who does not produce an order figned by me, 
or the emperor’s miniflers. Lavalette.” 
It is not necefiary for us to enter into the particulars 
of the trial, which occupied two days. About twelve 
o’clock at night, on the aid, he was brought in guilty, 
587 
and fentence of death was pronounced upon him. He 
appealed, in the ufual manner, againfl the fentence ; but 
the attempt proved unavailing ; and, on the 15th of De¬ 
cember, he received a notification which confirmed the 
decifion of the court of affife. 
As he was not executed on the following day, accord¬ 
ing to the promptitude ufed in the tw'o former inftances, 
an idea went abroad that it was intended to commute his 
punifhment; and madame Lavalette, whofe health had 
been dreadfully impaired by her fufferings fince the arrefl 
of her hufband, refolved, with the affiftance of marfhal 
Marmont, to endeavour to throw lierfelf into the way of 
the king, and implore his mercy. The following is a 
ffiort account of this affair. It is to be underftood that, 
juft previous to the king’s going to mafs, no perfon is 
permitted to enter from the great ftaircafe into the Salle 
des Marechaux, through which he paffes from his own 
apartments to the chapel. At this moment, however 
Marmont with madame Lavalette on his arm, both in 
deep mourning, contrived to pafs the national guard who 
was on duty at the door; and, as the king, monfieur, 
madame, and the ufual efcort, entered the hall in their 
way to the chapel, madame Lavalette fuddenly and un¬ 
expectedly ruffied forward, feized the hand of the king, 
and, falling at his feet, exclaimed, “ Pardon, pardon, 
fire !” The king could not refrain from tears; but, after 
looking very feverely towards Marmont, he faid to ma¬ 
dame Lavalette, “ I had hoped, madame, to have been 
fpared this painful feene. In thinking you could fave 
your hufband, you have done your duty ; but I muff alfo 
do mine as a king.” He then difengaged himfelf, and 
paffed on, evidently much diftreffed. Madame Lavalette 
then attempted to get to the duchefs d’Angouleme to 
intercede ; but, overcome by the poignancy of her feel¬ 
ings, flie fainted on the floor, and was carried out of the 
hall. 
Notwithftanding the ill-fuccefs of this attempt, how¬ 
ever, Lavalette efcaped the infliClion of the fentence 
paffed upon him, by a flratagem which reflefts everlalting 
honour upon the affedtion, conftancy, and fortitude, of 
his wife. It has been already flated, that her health had 
been ferioufly impaired; in fa 61 , flie had been delivered 
of a dead child; and therefore, for feveral weeks, in 
order to avoid the motion of her carriage, flie had 
made ufe of a fedan-chair. She was accultomed to be 
carried in this vehicle into the prifon, when it was con- 
flantly depofited in the paffage of the under-turnkey’s 
room; thence paffing through a door, the yard, and 
corridor, leading to the prifoner’s apartments. At four 
o’clock on the afternoon of the 20th, madame Lavalette 
arrived, as ufual, with a great French bonnet and a large 
veil, accompanied by her daughter, a young lady about 
eleven years of age. She was affifted up-llairs, and dined 
with her hufband. About half-pall five. Motif. Lavalette, 
arrayed in his wife's clothes, taking his daughter by the 
arm, and fupported by one of the turnkeys, flowly de- 
feended the flairs. Nothing occurring to excite fufpicion, 
he paffed before all the infpe&ors and guardians of the 
prifon, and, at the unbarring of the laff gate, was reftored 
to his friends and liberty. In the mean time, madame 
Lavalette, wdio had throwm over her the large cloak of 
her hufband, was feated, almoft breathlefs, in his arm¬ 
chair, with a book in her hand, and the candle burning 
behind her on the table. At half-pall fix, the gaoler, 
entering the room, fpoke to her, but met with no reply ; 
he repeated the queftion, and, altoniflied at the continued 
filence, he approached nearer to the lady, when with a 
fmile, fucceeded by ftrong convulfions, (he exclaimed, 
“ He is gone !” The confulion may be eafily imagined. 
The prefeil of police was acquainted with the fail at a 
quarter before (even; eftafettes were difpatched in every 
direction, and the barriers were inftantly doled. 
The police traced the chair two ftreets diftant; there, 
it appears, M. Lavalette alighted, and ftepped into a car¬ 
riage that was waiting for him. This well-conduiled plan 
was 
