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Marguis de Bouillé was at their head. 
As the fquadron of a hundred and fifty 
men could not advance towards the bridge 
of Varennes, which was ftill blocked up, 
without pafling under the fire of that re- 
giment ; it was neceflary either to turn 
back, or to take the chance of fighting 
one againit fix. Frégeville gave orders 
to halt, end drew up his detachment in a 
Jine. A fingle fhot would have been the 
fienal of a imaflacre; and perhaps of a 
civil war. 
Fortunately a woman came up to them; 
and.was afked by the lieutenant-colonel if 
there was no other road that weuld take 
hjm to the column that was marching 
back with the king, befides that which 
would oblige him to pafs in front of 
Bouillé’s troops. ‘ Follow me,’ faid 
the woman... ‘* She then conduéted the 
detachment through a morafs, along a 
path only two feet wide. Frégeville thus 
found himielf quite unexpectedly in fo ad- 
vantageous a pofition, that he had it in 
his power to ftop de Bouillé, had he been 
inclined to follow the king. The latter 
would have been forced to defile through 
the morais, while Frégeville would al- 
ready have had his {quadron drawn up in 
order of battle. 
Wien Fréseville had croffed the mo- 
rafs, he halted’ a moment to give up the 
command toan older officer than himfelf, 
who came poft-hafte from Verdun, very 
difcontented in appearance at the detach- 
ment’s fetting off without his knowledge, 
but in reality at the arreftation of the 
king. The fpeed with which they had 
marched furnifhed him with a pretence 
for giving vent to his choler: ‘¢ You 
wanted, I fuppofe, faid he, to kill the 
horfes.”” The object of the two com- 
manders was very different—one wifhed 
to advance with promptitude, the other as 
flowly as peffible. The lieutenant colo- 
nel, who had marched the firit, felt no 
concern about his juftification, being pro- 
videa with a perfonal requifiticn from the 
municipality of ‘Verdun ; nor would he 
indeed have given up the command of the 
detachment, if he had not been perivaded 
that the dragoons would make the other 
officer get on in fpiteof him. In effeét, 
a few moments after, they infifted with 
loud cries upon joining the efcor't that ac- 
companied the king. They were accord- 
ingly put in motion; the lieutenant colo- 
nel taking no cther precaution, than that 
of intorming the column that the troops 
th-y faw on their left came from Verdun, 
wich was faying quite enough, 
Original Anecdotes of the French Revolution. 
[ May 
After reaching the high road from Va- 
rennes to Clermont, Frégeville, in {pite of 
the impatience of the dragoons, thought 
proper to flacken his pace for about half 
an hour, and to leave a diftance of near 
three quarters of a mile between his 
{quadron and the column of infantry, in 
order that there might be a rear guard, 
ready to face Bouillé, fhould he prefent 
himielf; and that the king’s carriage 
might {till continue to advance during 
the action, efcorted by thofe who were 
able tu proceed the fafteft on foot. 
As foon as the king had arrived at 
Clermont, the road from Varennes was 
blocked up with carts and cafks, in fuch 
a way that only a fingle man on horfeback 
could pafs at a time. The lieutenant 
colonel, before he entered the city, gave 
orders to halt, and thought it incumbent 
upon him to communicate to the directory 
ci the diftrit the requifition by virtue of 
which he had marched. He fent an offi- 
cer upon the iervice; entrufted to him 
the original documents ; and recommended 
to him particularly to requeft the diftri& 
to furnith oats for the horfes, and retrefh- 
ments for the men. Both che cattle and 
their riders were ready to faint from in- 
anition, having been kept on a fuii gal- 
lop the greater part of the time from two 
o’clock in the morning to the very heat of 
the day. 
Clermont was in the greateft diforder ; 
the conftituted authorities wifhed on one 
hand to fhew the greateft refpe&t to the 
king ; on the other they were harrafied 
by twenty thoufand men afking for bread 
and wine. Every inhabitant {pread be- 
fore his door all his provifions, and all the 
wine his cellar afforded; fq that ma very 
fhort time thefe twenty thoufand men 
were almoft all intoxicated by the com- 
bined efieét of the wine, and the exceilive 
heat. 
The officer {ent on a miffion to the dif- 
trict not being able, in confequence of 
their being fo fully occupied, to procure 
their attention to his bufinefs, ftopped to 
look at the king, inftead of returning to 
the lieutenant colonel. In the mean time 
the dragoons, who were dying of hunger 
and thirit infifted upon marching forward ; 
but were {topped when they came to the 
firft barricade. Frégeville, who knew fe- 
veral members of the diltriG, refolved to 
pafs alone; and cleared the {econd barri- 
cade ; but a little farther he found a kind 
of guard, confifting of about forty men, 
all in a complete ftaté of intoxication. 
They rufhed towards him—fome levelled 
their 
