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第61章

the origins of contemporary france-2-第61章

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arbitrary verdicts; but also the riots which they stir up by their

instigation and which they sanction by their toleration。'80'  He is

driven out of his parish; consigned to the county town; and kept in

a safe place。  The Directory of Aisne denounces him as a disturber

of the public peace; and forbids him; under severe penalties; from

administering the sacraments。  The municipality of Cahors shuts up

particular churches and orders the nonjuring ecclesiastics to leave

the town in twenty…four hours。  The electoral corps of Lot denounces

them publicly as 〃ferocious brutes;〃 incendiaries; and provokers of

civil war。  The Directory of the Bas…Rhin banishes them to

Strasbourg or to fifteen leagues from the frontier。  At Saint…Leon

the bishop is forced to fly。  At Auch the archbishop is imprisoned;

at Lyons M。  de Boisboissel; grand vicar; is confined in Pierre…

Encize; for having preserved an archiepiscopal mandate in his house;

brutality is everywhere the minister of intolerance。  A certain cure

of Aisne who; in 1789; had fed two thousand poor; having presumed to

read from his pulpit a pastoral charge concerning the observance of

Lent; the mayor seizes him by the collar and prevents him from going

to the altar; 〃two of the National Yeomanry〃 draw their sabers on

him; and forthwith lead him away bareheaded; not allowing him to

return to his house; and drive him to a distance of two leagues by

beat of drum and under escort。  At Paris; in the church of Saint…

Eustache; the curé is greeted with outcries; a pistol is pointed at

his head; he is seized by the hair; struck with fists; and only

reaches the sacristy through the intervention of the National Guard。

In the church of the Théatins; rented by the orthodox with all legal

formality; a furious band disperses the priests and their

assistants; upsets the altar and profanes the sacred vessels。  A

placard; posted up by the department; calls upon the people to

respect the law; 〃I saw it;〃 says an eye…witness; 〃torn down amidst

imprecations against the department; the priests; and the devout。

One of the chief haranguers; standing on the steps terminated his

speech by stating that schism ought to be stopped at any cost; that

no worship but his should be allowed; that women should be whipped

and priests knocked on the head。〃 And; in fact; 〃a young lady

accompanied by her mother is whipped on the steps of the church。〃

Elsewhere nuns are the sufferers; even the sisters of Saint…Vincent

de Paul; and; from April; 1793; onward; the same outrages on modesty

and against life are propagated from town to town。  At Dijon; rods

are nailed fast to the gates of all the convents; at Montpellier;

two or three hundred ruffians; armed with large ironbound sticks;

murder the men and outrage the women。    Nothing remains but to

put the gangsters under the shelter of an amnesty; which is done by

the Constituent Assembly; and to legally sanction the animosity of

local administrations; which is done by the Legislative

Assembly。'81'  Henceforth the nonjuring ecclesiastics are deprived

of their sustenance; they are declared 〃 suspected of revolt against

the law and of evil intentions against the country。〃 … Thus; says a

contemporary Protestant; 〃on the strength of these suspicions and

these intentions; a Directory; to which the law interdicts judicial

functions; may arbitrarily drive out of his house the minister of a

God of peace and charity; grown gray in the shadow of the altar〃

Thus; 〃everywhere; where disturbances occur on account of religious

opinions; and whether these troubles are due to the frantic

scourgers of the virtuous sisters of charity or to the ruffians

armed with cow…hides who; at N?mes and Montpellier; outrage all the

laws of decorum and of liberty for six whole months; the non…juring

priests are to be punished with banishment。  Torn from their

families whose means of living they share; they are sent away to

wander on the highways; abandoned to public pity or ferocity the

moment any scoundrel chooses to excite a disturbance that he can

impute to them。〃 … Thus we see approaching the revolt of the

peasantry; the insurrections of N?mes; Franche…Comté; la Vendée and

Brittany; emigration; transportation; imprisonment; the guillotine

or drowning for two thirds of the clergy of France; and likewise for

myriads of the loyal; for husbandmen; artisans; day…laborers;

seamstresses; and servants; and the humblest among the lower class

of the people。  This is what the laws of the Constituent Assembly

are leading to。   In the institution of the clergy; as in that of

the nobles and the King; it demolished a solid wall in order to dig

through it an open door; and it is nothing strange if the whole

structure tumbles down on the heads of its inmates。  The true course

was to respect; to reform; to utilize rank and corporations: all

that the Assembly thought of was the abolition of these in the name

of abstract equality and of national sovereignty。  In order to

abolish these it executed; tolerated; or initiated all the attacks

on persons and on property。  Those it is about to commit are the

inevitable result of those which it has already committed; for;

through its Constitution; bad is changed to worse; and the social

edifice; already half in ruins through the clumsy havoc that is

effected in it; will fall in completely under the weight of the

incongruous or extravagant constructions which it proceeds to

extemporize。



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Notes:



'1' Cf。  〃The Ancient Régime;〃 books I。  and V。



'2' Perhaps we are here at the core of why all regimes end up

becoming corrupt; inefficient and sick; their leaders take their

privileges for granted and become more and more inattentive to the

work which must be done if the people are to be kept at work and

possible adversaries kept under control。  (SR。)



'3' A special tax paid the king by a plebeian owning a fief。  (TR)



'4' The right to an income from trust funds。  (SR。)



'5' Arthur Young; I。  209; 223。  〃If the communes steadily refuse

what is now offered to them; they put immense and certain benefits

to the chance of fortune; to that hazard which may make posterity

curse instead of bless their memories as real patriots who had

nothing in view but the happiness of their country。



'6' According to valuations by the Constituent Assembly; the tax on

real estate ought to bring 240;000;000 francs; and provide one…fifth

of the net revenue of France; estimated at 1;200;000;000。

Additionally; the personal tax on movable property; which replaced

the capitation; ought to bring 60;000;000。  Total for direct

taxation; 300;000;000; or one…fourth   that is to say; twenty…five

per cent; of the net revenue。 If the direct taxation had been

maintained up to the rate of the ancient régime (190;000;000;

according to Necker's report in May; 1689); this impost would only

have provided one…sixth of the net revenue; or sixteen percent。



'7' Dumont; 267。  (The words of Mirabeau three months before his

death:) 〃Ah; my friend; how right we were at the start when we

wanted to prevent the commons from declaring themselves the National

Assembly! That was the source of the evil。  They wanted to rule the

King; instead of ruling through him。〃



'8' Gouverneur Morris; April 29; 1789 (on the principles of the

future constitution); 〃One generation at least will be required to

render the public familiar with them。〃



'9' Cf。  〃The Ancient Régime;〃 book II; ch。  III。



'10' French women did not obtain the right to vote until 1946。 (SR。)



'11' According to Voltaire (〃L'Homme aux Quarante écus〃); the

average duration of human life was only twenty…three years。



'12' Mercure; July 6; 1790。  According to the report of Camus

(sitting of July 2nd); the official total of pensions amounted to

thirty…two millions; but if we add the gratuities and allowances out

of the va

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