1804. J | 
intended journey. He anfwered, that he 
confidered it to be moft fortunate for them 
to be already without the walls of Paris. 
The King obferved, that it might per- 
haps be difficult to proceed fo far as te 
halons on the Marne; nay, that he 
doubted whether they fhould be able to 
reach that town ; but that, after pafling 
Chalons, he could forefee no obftacle to 
their progrefs. 
The Queen informed M. de Moutftier, 
that, as they came out of the palace, they 
met M. de la Fayette and M. Gouvion ; 
‘but that fhe went a little to one fide, fo 
that thefe gentlemen paffed the Royal Fa- 
mily, as her Majefty believed, without 
knowing them. It muft alfo be oblery- 
ed, that, in order to miflead the public, 
the Queen and Princefs Elizabeth had 
lengthened out their airing in the Bars de 
Boulogne to avery late hour, and did not 
return to the palace till eight.o’clock.. It 
as remarkable that it had been currently 
reported imParis for feveral days, that the 
King was to make his efcape trom Paris 
very foon. One of the journals had even 
fixed this very day for the attempt. 
_. M.de Valory, as was faid, had gone 
on to Bondy, to ‘have horfes ready for the 
next ftage, and aifo to deliver to M. le 
Duc de Choifeul, who was there expecting 
orders, a letter from the King, acquaint- 
ang him, that, foon after his ufual hour of 
retiring to re(t, which was well known to 
every one connected with the Reyal Fa- 
mily to be at midnight, he was to-attempt 
to efcape fromthe Thuilleries ; and di- 
recting M. de Choifeul to take all proper 
precautions for facilitating the jowrney. 
~ Thus M. de Valory rode on before the 
carriage to provide horfes ; M. de Malden 
gode behind it; and M. de Mouftier 
mounted: the coach box, where Count de 
Ferfen bad placed himfelf, and went as 
far as Bondy. Here he took leave of the 
Royal Family, and the King tenderly em- 
braced himat parting. 
The Count returned to Paris with the 
pottillion who kad driven fhe Koyal Fa- 
mily that ftage. 
lt was three quarters of an hour patt 
twelve, or, at molt, one in the morning 
of Tuefday, the g2d of June, when the 
carriage left the gate of St. Martin a 
Paris. The journey from thence to Va- 
rennes, a diltance of fixty leagues of poft, 
{or about one hundred and fitiy Englith 
miles,) was performed between the time 
juft mentioned, anda quarter, or perhaps 
half an hour, paft ten o’gluck at night ; 
that is, in twenty-one hours and a half. 
They travelled without any remarkable 
Fourney of Lours XVI, from Paris to Varennes. 
393 
interruption or delay, excepting that at a 
poft-houfe beyond Chalons, whsn they 
were on the)point of fetting off, the two 
foremoft horfes at once fell down, with 
the driver unde shis horfe—an accident 
inftantaneous and unaccountable: and 
when they had been raifed, and were 
again ready to move, the whole number of 
horfes in the carriage came all together to 
the ground, with the drivers, in a mot 
extraordinary way. 
M. de Moutftier, who had both times 
releafed the drivers from their dangerous 
fituation, complained of the hories : but 
he was aflured by the people of the poft- 
houfe, that thefe were the beft in the 
ftabies, as in fact they appeared to be; 
and that, by their fpeed on the road, the 
delay now occafioned would be amply 
compenfated. 
Thefe fame horfes afterwards went on 
fo well, being almoft conftantly ona can- 
ter, that, upon the whole, no time feemed 
to be loft in this ftage, in which the car- 
riage went fafter than on any other of the 
whole journey.* 
That the Royal Family might avoid 
every caufe of delay on the road, they bad 
taken with them in the carriage a piece of 
cold veal, which they cut, and laid on a 
fice of bread, and ate, asis done by fport/- 
men and travellers in France, who wifb 
to fave the time and expence of eating at 
aninn, They bad alfo ons bottle of mild 
Champaign (vin de Champagne non mouf- 
feux,) together with ix botiles of water. 
‘Chis was the whole beverage of the while 
family all the way from Paris to Vas 
rennes.f 
Thrice 
* During the whole way to Varennes the 
carriage was drawn by fix horfes, and had no 
more even on the returnto Paris, notwith- 
ftanding the crowd of national guards with 
whom it was literally covered, 
+ Very different from this is the account 
fo often and fo confidently circulated by de- 
figning and evil-intentioned perfons in 
france. Being fenfible that, in order to fuc- 
ceed in their atrocious fchemes, it was ne- 
ceffary to render the unfortunate Louis the 
objeét of the contempt, and even of the ab- 
horrence, of an uninformed and deluded mul- 
titude, thefe perfons ceafed not to propagate 
the moft fcandalous, as well as groundleis 
calumnies, againft their devoted Sovereign. 
In particular, they afferted, and it has been 
but too generally believed, that had the 
King been lefs addiéted to the pleafures of 
the table, his journey would not have been 
interrupted, nor his perfon recognized. 
M. de Mouttier his had the grief to hear 
Uuz2 fimiiar 
