The Sun.
London, England, 1804-10-12 00:00:00

THE 'FRENCH GRNS D'AfiltlES.

Divons the Revolution this dorm was called La
Afar rebate:se, and composed of 6,000 men. The
Corps of Gent Arnie; atbount at present to 2c,000
men, of whOm 70,0d0 are on horseback, and co,oo
On foot. To these have 'lately been added 3,-obto
chosen men, selected from the agents of the secret
"Police, and known by the name of' Gees Pi/ft-met
•d'Eliie. These haVe five'livres each a (Jay (four
shillings and two-pence); .whilst the others have
only half.a.crown, or three livres. The-Gpts
d'Armei are ,quartered, iind (Ling ditty all over
France; and'every two leagues,' or six. Miles,iltime
of them are found. They pattohe the' high and bye.
roads n'ght and day; stop every person teavellFfig
on foot, to look at his pass, and'every one in Car.
riages, postchaises, or diligcnces, as often as they
change horses, and oftener, if they 'are so- inclined,
as they have no account to give of their Futultitt
but to rheirGencral Officer,' who depeOds entirely
upon the Minister of the Police, fromtwhomhe re.
,selves confidential Ordeti•or instrtiditins. T9'him
area senuall the descriptions of criminals car suipeded
persons,. 'and he disrribures them to every blirde
under his command, and they are posted up inside
in r all the Corps de' Carder &the Gent d'Aintes all
over Frpnce. On the frontier departments, or in
those,provinees 'where the- Constitution is,susvend.
ed,: the vigilance
,and the. Gent d'Armet ate d 'u_
bled ; but they are exceedingly- troublesome to all
,foreign travellers nor accustomed to 'the organized
shivery of ,mcdern France, and ignorant of the
numerous formalities required to make • a pass
good in that, free country"; from' which the Gent
d' Anne, take advantage to extort money, and to
detain them until they have purchased their liberty.
They escort all prisoners every where in France to
the tribunals, to the gallies, or to, the; scaffold.
They guard the prisons and houses ofActe,,/;,„
assist the Nice Agents in making, domiciliary vi.
sits, or in arresting, guilty pr suiet'B::•:/ persons.,
They are chosen frOTTl.the most desperate charaders
in the!ArMy ; mast know how to read and write:,
and cannot be. accepted ,wirhout having mode three
.campaigns;, and received wounds.', :
The Grns d' Armes belong tothe Secret,
or, as it is sometimes called, Haute Police, 'and are
the confidential servants of the Minister, Diredors,
and •Membersi of the Secret Police Ofilee....,They are
employed On the must trusty, as,wellason the,most
desperate, undertakings and :expeditions., ~They
escorted the Duke of ENtritiztiN ,fTpm,Straibtiret to
is, guarded him at Vincennes, and were, present
at his midnight, wader. They rase the exclusive
guards of the TeMple, and other State Prisons, the
adors in torttire, the distributors of the'poisonons
draughts, aod the secret executioners -of thoseun_
collimate individuals QT families 'whom RuNA.
PAATE'S, FP,UCiiiel,and REAL'S Ti;iirti 4, iti-ts Ortaft.
..• , „
moire to TeMoVe or to COTiCrat. Wiwi Ts.i!lr.4u..
tionary, Tyrants call Grand Coupt d' Erat, isbutCh.
etiog, 'poisoning, or drowning'eir masse, they are
exc.:iv is/se!, employed. They mast have been five
years Agents, or, which is the Same, Spies of, the
Secret Police, beforethey can be 'received among the
Gent Arinet 'given- proofs 'not only
of dexterity, but of that barbarous' mind requisite
to comMit those enormous crimes, ivhicll the vcn,
ge4rice and Safety of Revolntionary "Tyrants ;remand.
• They 4re called.. inTrances ," The ihttet- V-1141'444
parte."
•
The dresses of all the Gent.d' Armes are'the same ;
dark blue coats with tett and with • white
• Witons ; waistcoats and breeches of yellow cloth.
. The 'uniforms of the ci.ns &Armes d.",tl;te, are of
finer cloth ; but. these, .except ,uppn guard, are
mostly dressed in coloured clothes, to enable' them to
►observe.,and report more easily wI6C is' going for.
ward. Many of them are waiters in cotree.bouest
at, restaurateurs, and, in hotels. They frequent .all
the theatres, 'gardens, and other places of resort,
In the gambling.houses they do duty night arid day,
in coloured clothcs.,(Nopt;e/ho a la Mata,2o
Frudidorf year iz t. or 6th SepteMber,

Yestert)ay te'linight a ;bny,-belonging to.ibe brig
Hauke, fell into the Tees, at StuAtoo,,Cipplike
the wharf, and was-drowned.

A Correspondent gives the following —hint to
Hackney-coachmen,' Publicans, •nnd others, in the
habit of taking silver, and particularly' in the dark :
---Cetirom 'm ason 's shop a piece 'of marble, with
a flat surface,' but unpolished, and as big as a dollar.
If you carry .thi's about you, a bad shilling tnaihe'
discovered in the dark, As well .as in the light; 'by •
just-touching.the edge'of' the shiHing,'hall-crown,
and dollar on the' marble, if it be gond; 4t will
hold to 'the marble ; and if' it be bad; "it ivill pais
over the tnirble, and notrhold, 'Fhis•May-be'pur.
chased for two or, threepence, end any mason) if it
gets smooth, will put it in older for •a' few pence.
A'publieari, in' Edgwate.Roati near the" Okfcird.
street turnpike, 'took tBl.. in silver, A-little
back after Hyde-Park view'; -never looked, par..
ticulirly at any one 'piece; just-tried each on the •
stone; and,did" not take sixpence bid,-though very.
many thoi shillings were offered ,him, his wile,•ehil.-
dren,' and servants, in the cotelte:of that day.---If
the InJthle is not kept in a case it *rill' get smooth
and greasv and should be washed with sAud.