All that can be said about it is, that
she is a French woman, who rouges, and wears lilac ribbons, at
seventy-four. I hope, in my zeal to obey you, my reflections will not
be too voluminous.--For the present I will be warned by my conscience,
and add only, that I am, Yours.
June 10, 1792.
You observe, with some surprize, that I make no mention of the Jacobins--
the fact is, that until now I have heard very little about them. Your
English partizans of the revolution have, by publishing their
correspondence with these societies, attributed a consequence to them
infinitely beyond what they have had pretensions to:--a prophet, it is
said, is not honoured in his own country--I am sure a Jacobin is not.
In provincial towns these clubs are generally composed of a few of the
lowest tradesmen, who have so disinterested a patriotism, as to bestow
more attention on the state than on their own shops; and as a man may be
an excellent patriot without the aristocratic talents of reading and
writing, they usually provide a secretary or president, who can supply
these deficiencies--a country attorney, a _Pere de l'oratoire,_ or a
disbanded capuchin, is in most places the candidate for this office.
The clubs often assemble only to read the newspapers; but where they
are sufficiently in force, they make motions for "fetes," censure the
municipalities, and endeavour to influence the elections of the members
who compose them.
Pages:
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47