Taking the Bastile

monument which had for five centuries weighed like an incubus on the breast of France-a rock of

seal of feudalism

there a man was forgotten, isolated, sequestered, buried alive, annihilated. He stayed there till the mo

that, to this day, the tramp on the dusty road speaks of the "Steel," without pe

te was the Bastile pre-eminently.

criminals; but others like Latude had don

the King's mistress, and wrote her a note w

g that the Bastile wa

the dragoons who defy a people till a champion r

n's hopeless grief at his father

he would never be liberated

ay be felt when the shout ros

an insane project to think of ca

d provisions. The walls were fifteen fee

of gunpowder in the magazine, and had promised in case of an

ed forward, but he did no

e of their kind, and commenting on his words and bear

had behind him more than three thousand men, a

ting: "On, to

knowledge of the stronghold warranted, and

the enterprise was s

xpression of those to whom he had first b

to answer to these mothers and fathers, girls and children, for the lives of thos

lecting his followe

enants to control

e than one power in France. There are two-the head

or the Chief civic magistrate. It

he repeated; "a noble and

e is a sen

te-chamber where he met an usher, who

rd Flesselles,"

is completing the list for the mi

men ready under arms, I am worth a Flesselles who is only going to get his together. Let m

rvant who hastened to notify the Traders' Provost, to w

ng them: he left the council and came into the ante-room. Perce

nting me?" h

ost Flesselles,"

you? please, be quic

knowledge in France, my Lo

ian. "If you ask Bailly the Mayor he will say 'The National

s yours betw

at present," rejoined Flesse

ion," repeat

with the wood-choppers and carving-kn

s no mistake in their warranti

s do you belong to?" inqu

for the Grand Spirit and the ange

the King?

ase of Dr. Gilbert w

teers I believe," said the

r of ma

ittle chances of obtaining such a favor from the King. If

"he shall offer his reasons an

g is so busy that he

e in, I shall walk in wit

is true he failed to do that with the National Assembly in a body; but that failur

ply to the Nati

Versailles

y three thousa

ve thousand Swiss soldiers and two or three thousand Austrians who wil

euse am I t

e flagstones with thumps of their halberds, and smoking. In the vaults are seven or eigh

e farmer, "I will not trouble the King or the Assembl

h wh

ave kindly told me is

me that?" snee

thing. The cella

joking," faltere

collar with both hands. "Let me have the keys or I shall slin

eeth closed so convulsively but his voice did n

. Only do not forget that I am your first magistrate, and that if you are so unfortunate as to handle me roughly before others as you have don

divide it out my

ifference to you, I should prefer the distribution to go on during my absence. It has been foretold me t

a favor in return. Come to this w

ged: in wh

d out, as the two stood at the win

ied the thousa

provost who gives us all there is in t

ost-Flesselles fore

owd or when alone," said Billet: "for if you do not give the powde

way of asking for anyth

e," said Billet, w

, have you m

u know Gove

le? he is a f

him. To prevent that, ask him to give up the p

that I have any

-all I want is an i

likely that you will never come out again. Still I will give you a passport into the Bastile, o

faces-one laughing with the aristocrats and the other smiling on the people, you wil

provost, turning to the ill-

Ma

at, the philosop

as a medical man ought to attend to the insane; he

n asks a passport to Governor Launay. I would point out that you are

; he shall

over his forehead before writing wi

ion," he said, presenti

w how to read

" said Marat; and he saw that th

of Paris, send you M. Billet to

th Jul

sse

et me have it

ed Marat; "Wait for the provost to ad

h a scornful air not only the two men who were the jaws of a vice which enclosed him, but a

his friend and was ready t

g postscript to improve

pe

and pointing with his crooked finger to

er flag of truce, I confi

if he had a strongest desire to smash it

ate?" demande

y ask what is fair," replied

to bear in mind that I do not

s: "for your liberty is here to answer for his-your head

d for his coach

iends, you are as

ied the tw

him pass?"

er too insufficiently clad to stand guard at my door. If you feel constrained to d

u again, looking at the speaker

Bille

stepped aside; "he was a good hostage to hold: but in any c

ing to serve out the powder. If the City Hall goes up in an explosion I should li

thousands of spectators. The Provost feared that his departure might be misint

he National

on the balcony, outside, Mar

going to the Assembly but to t

er be stopped?"

go where he may, and however quickly, we shall travel

he powder,"

there were eight thousand pou

with a lantern which they hung to a b

f confusion as it was not known what was the amount and some feared they could not get any if they did not scramble for it. Bu

und of powder, which would

s discovered that guns were short.

s about the national guards of which the usher had mentioned a word to Billet. It was settled that the force should consis

e weaponless men. The people had formed a

or they would not let him pass though he had shown the royal order for hi

yelled at him as so

re must be some at the

City Hall. The provost had no firearms or he would not tell of them. He packed them off to th

overnor Launay to induce him to draw in the cannon. He had made the populace howl dreadfully on the evening before by running ou

rting when the arm-see

ions, Billet and Marat cam

itude. He proposed a resolution that the wards should forge

is playing with us,

his new fri

an hour I shall be sending you twenty t

the country. He never thought to ask him how he was going to get them. He noticed a priest in the crowd working lustily a

one horseblock. The up

d out; "I am Marat

hed and every eye was

me to the Invalides where are twenty-five th

ides!" shoute

"you be off to the Bastile but sta

smiled to see that it also bore a masonic sign. He and Marat belonged to the Order of the In

per having no name or addr

ell-known. Ask the first workingman you come

that on your

in Latin," repeated Pit

elled the voices with

t, "and may the spirit of L

n to the Invalides," sh

away some six hundred in his train, but they were armed. As the two

en it is the color of Artois, though it may also be that

orus, with Billet's

r a color, take that good old Paris town

erhaps having the stars and stripes of the Republic he had fought for in his mind, suggested the addi

d, and there was a rain of red and blue ribbons. But this was scant supply for a thousand only. Aprons, silk dresses, tapes, scarves, all sorts of tis

looded and strongest of its sons. They reached in good order Lesdigures Street, where a number of folk wer

e drumcorps, a hundred French Guards who came down the main avenue, and Billet's rough fellows upwar

ts as twice as many fists were shaken at the brazen

me out to the pieces and retired them until they were no longer visible from below. The

nd down the ramparts, with alternat

of "Draw back the Swiss!" arose, in continuation

he same to march up and down

t struck the grey stone wall a foot above the cornice of the tower, above the soldier'

gnal for a mad and unheard-of attack; the tumult had more dread in it than rage; man