North Branch democrat. [volume] (Tunkhannock, Pa.) 1854-1867, 1863-03-18


nineteen in number,lwere onnthe 17th OF
| March, 1874, in five carts, conducted to the
| scaffold. oa
Danton and Robespierre now quarrelled,
Robespierre again conquered in the death
| struggle, and Danton was doomed to die
Before the dawning of the morning, gems
d'armes entered his chamber and tore him
| from the arms of his wife. a.~ .s.#..
AS he entered his prison, in the vaults of
the Luxembourg, he said, sadly .,a-
At length perceive that i'll revolutions
the supreme power ultimately rests with the
most abandoned. We are sacrificed to the
ambition of few brgands. But they will
not long enjoy the fruit of their villainy. /
drag Robespierre after me, RobespieIre fol-
lows me to the grave" r.. ... ...s
As Oanton, with Camille Desmoulins and
others who were to be executed with him,
alighted from the cart at the scaffold, Her.
auft de Sechelles, who was to suffer first, en-.
deavored to take leave of Danton in parting
embrace. The brutal +executioner interposed
WRETCH" said Danton, "you will not at
least prevent our heads from kissing present
ly in the basket" AS he was bound to the
fatal plank, he said, 80, my wife, my dear
wife shall | never see you again 2" Then, as
if ashamed of this emotion, he added, I" But
Danton, no weakness" Then, as the plank
fell to its place beneath the slide he proudly
remarked to the executioner, you will show
my head to the people. 1t will be worth the
display szi Il p -..s-t.
Robespierre was now the undisputed vic
tor. Day after day he punished his foes, and
the guillotine ran red with blood. He was
not maliciously cruel, but thorough fanatic,
believing that all political opponents should
be executed. The mother Of Lucille, the
young wife of Desmoulins, wrote in the fol-
lowing terms to Robespierre, who had doom
ed her daughter to death. She and Lucille
and Desmoulins had formerly been Robes
perre's most intimate friends.
Robespierre," she wrote, q is it not en- ouf
to have assassinated your best friend Do
you desire the blood of his wife, my daugh-
ter! Two hours more and she will not be
in existence. Robespierre, if you are not
tiger in human shape, if the blood of Camille
has not iebriated you to the losing of your
reason rely-if you recall still our even
ings of intimacy-if you recall the caresses
Iavished on our little Horace, and how you
delighted to hold him upon your knees, spare
an innocent victim. But if the fury is that
of the lion, come and take me also, and my
daughter Adele and little Horace. Come,
with hands reeking in the blood of Camille,
and let one single thumb re unite u.s."
But Robesperre was inexorable, and young
and beautiful Lucille perished beneath the fa-
tai axe. Robesrerre Is one of the most mex
plicable Of men. His moral character was ir-
rcproachable No bribes could corrupt him.
He sincerely endeavored to establish repub-
lie upon the basis of popular liberty and vir-
tue Self-aggrandizement was no part of his
plan. But he was as merciless as the slide
of the guilotine. At times, indeed, he SEEM
cd weary of blood. On one occasion he re-
marked, Death, always death; and the scoun-
dres threw all the responsibility on me
What a memory shall leave behind me, if
this lasts! Life is burden to me-,
A Young girl, Cecil Regnault, but seventeen
years of age, was accused of plottiong the as
sassination of Robespierre. She and all her
friends perished on the scafold, and eight
carts were filled with victims to avenge this
crime. But the tickle populace at last began
to suspect their idol of being unfriendly to
the Revolution and of wishing to arrest its
torrent of blood.
In six months two thousand three hundred
and seventy five had perished upon the scat
fold in Paris alone. Robespierre, weary of
blood, attempted to check their senseless
atrocities. A conspiracy Of very energetic
men was formed against him. As he entered
the convention on the Goth of July, 1874,
cries of Down with the tyrantp filled the
house. Overwhelmed by the clamor, Robes
pierre in vain endeayored to speak in self de-
fence president of the assassins,' he shout
ed, will you hear me? p He was arrested and
led to the Hotel de Brnne in the Place du
Carousel His friends rescued him and car
ried him to the Mayors room at the Hotel de
Vile.
1t was now night, aud all Paris was in
Of commotion, mobs 'surging through the
streets. A detachment of soldiers were sent
by the convention to arrest Robespierre again
He was sitting calmly at the table awaiting
his fate. One of the soldiers discharged a
pistol at him.
The ball entered his cheek, breaking his jaw
and producing terrible wound His head
dropped upon the table, deluged it with blood.
Thus nangled, he was borne on litter, just
as the day was beginning to sink. The blood
flowed freely from his wound coagulating in