New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-11-11

Robespierre.
He was crushed by the relentless ferccity
and endurance of his antagonists. A de-
cree for his arrest was resolved upon by &C.
clamation. He cast q glance at the gal
leffes, as marveling that they should re-
main passive in face of an outrage upon his
person. They were mute. The nshers ad-
vanced with hesitation to do their duty,
and not without trembling carried him
away, along with Couthon and Saint just.
The brother, for whom he had made honor
able sacrifices in days that seemed to be
divided from the present by an abyss of CEN
turies, insisted with fine heroism on sharing
his fate, and Augustin R0bespierre and LIE
Bas were led off to the prisons along v With
their leader and idol. 1t was now . little
after four o'clock. The convention, with the
self-p0ssession that 60 often amazes Us in its
proceedings, went on with formal business
for another hour. At five they broke mp. For
life. "a the poets tell. is daily stage-play;
men declaim their high heroic parts, then
dot the buskin and the sock, wash away
the paint from their cheeks, and graveiy
cit do Xn to meat The cOnventionals, as
they ate their dinners. we're unconscious
apparently that the great crisis Of the
drama was still to come. The next twelve
pierre had been crusod by the convention;
1t renamed to be seen whether the conven-
tion would not now be crushed by the Com
mune of Paris. RObespierre was first con-
Quoted to the prisons of the Luxembourg.
The jailer, on some plea of intOrmality, re-
fused to receive him. The terrible prisoner
was next taken to the Marie, where he re-
manned among joyful friends from eight in
the evening until eleven. Meanwhile
the old insurrectiOnary methods of
the nights of JnEs and of August IN l792,
of May and of June in 1873, were again fol-
| lowed. The b-ating of the rappel and the
generate was heard in all the sections, and
the tocsin sounded it's dreadful note, re-
| minding all who should hear it that insur-
| rection is the most sacred and the most in
| dispensable of duties. HanriOt, the COM
mandant of the forces had been arrested in
| the evening. but he was speedily released
| by tho agents of the Commune. The coun-
| Gil issued manifestOes and DEGREES from the
| Common Hall every moment. The barriers
! were closed. Cannon were posted opposite
| the doors of tho hall of the Convention.
| The Quays were thronged. Emissaries
| eped to and fro between the Jacobin Club
| and the Common Hall, and between these
two centres and each Of the forty-eight sec-
| tons 1t is one of the inscrutsbIe my steries
| of this delirious night that Hsnri0t did not
at once use the force at bis command
| to break up the convention. There is
no obvious reason why he should not have
done 80. The members of the convention
had reassemblsd after their dinner, toward
| seven o'clock. The hall which had resOuDd-
| ed with the shrieks and yells of the furious
glsdiators Of the factions all day, no " lent
| lugubriOus echo to gloomy reports which
one member after another delivered from
the shadow of the tribune. Toward nine
| O'Clock the members of the two dread com.
mittees came in panic to seek shelter among
| their colleagues, "as detected in their
| peril" says an eve witness, ''as they had
been cruel and insolent in the hour of their
supremacy. When they heard that Han
riot had been released. and that guns were
at their dosr, all gave themselves up for
lOet and made ready for death. News
came that Ro5espierre had broken his ar
rest, and gone to the Common Hall. Robe
sphere, after urgent and repeated soiicita-
tions had been at length persuaded about
an hour before midnight to leave the
Nairie and join his partisans of the
Commune. This was an act of re-
volt against the convention, for the Mai
rie was a legal place of detention. and
so long as he was there he was within the
law. The convention, with heroic intrepid
ity, declared both Hanriot and Robespierre
beyond the pale of the law. This prompt
measure was their salvation. Twelve mem
bers were instantly named to carry the de-
| cree to all the sections. With the scarf of
Office round their waists and sabre in
hand they sailed forth. Mounting horses,
and escorted by attendants with tlaring
torches, they secured Paris, calling all
good citizens to the succor of the conven-
ton, harapguing crowds at the streets
corners with power and authority, and
striking the imagioati0ns of men. At mid.
| night heavy rain began to fall. The lead.
ers of the Commune, meanwhile, In ful
confidence that victory was sure, contented
themselves with incessan: issus ct PP9asr.cii PP9ar.cii
decgeee, to each Of Vaich the convention
replied by eounter-decree. Those who
have studied the situation most minute >
are of opinion that even SO late as one
O'Clock in the morning. the Com
mune might have made a success
full defense, although it had lost the
opportunity which it had certainly pos
eessed up to ten o'clock of destroying the
convention. But on this occasion the
genius of insurrection elumbered. And
there was genuine division of opinion in
the eastern quarters of Paris, the result OF
| q grim distrust of the man who had ht lped
to slay Hebert and Chaumette. At word
this distrust began to declare itself. The
opinion of the sections became more and
more distracted. One armed group cried
"Down with the convention" Another
armed group cried, 1.-THE convention for
ever, and down with the Communer' The
two great faubOurgs were all astir, and
three battallons were ready to march
Emissaries from the convention actually
| succeeded in persuading them-such the
dementia of the night-that Robespierre
was royallst agent, and that the Com
mune was about to deliver the little Louis
from his prison in the Temple. One body
OF communist partisans after another wat
detached from its allegiance. The delugs OF
rain empied the Place de Greve, and when
companies came up from the sections
in obedience to orders from Hanriot and the
Commune, the silence made them suspect q
trap, and they withdrew toward the great
metropolitan church or elsewhere. BArras,
whom the convention had charged with its
military defense, gathered together some
5000 men. With the right instinct of q man
who had studied the history Of Paris since
the July of 'a9, he foresaw the advantage e
being the first to make the attack. He ar
ranged his forces in two divisions. One O1
them marched along the Quays to take the
Common Hall in front; the other along the
Rue Saint H0nore to take it in flank. In
side the Common Hall the staircasss anG
corridors were alive with busting messen
gers, and those mysterious busy bodies
who are always found lingering without 9
purpose on the ekirts of great historic scenes
Robespierre and the other chiefs were il
small room preparing manifestoes ane
aware of tho movements of the convention
An aggressive attack by the party of au
thorify upon the party Of insurrection wa
unknown in the tradition of revolt. They
had an easy assurance that at daybreal
their forces would be prepared once more
to tramp along the familiar road westward
It was now half.past two. Robespierr,
hadlust signed the first two letters Of hi
name to document before him, when b,
was startled by cries and uproar in tn
Place below. In few instants he lay
stretched on the ground, his jaw shattered