Part 72 (1/2)
Lucien Bonaparte, on the other hand, surrounded by his escort of soldiers, marched rapidly from the hall of the Five Hundred towards a large a.s.semblage of troops drawn up in the middle of the park of St.
Cloud. A great drove of people, inhabitants of the commune or arrivals from Paris, drawn thither by curiosity, crowded behind the ranks of soldiers; among these spectators were John Lebrenn and Duresnel.
Bonaparte and his staff were in front of the troops. The General was pale and seemed a prey to keen anxiety; for the rumor had spread among the throng of onlookers and the soldiers that he had just been outlawed by the Council of Five Hundred. When Lucien, feigning intense indignation, ran up and spoke to his brother, his first words rea.s.sured and put new heart into the would-be dictator. a.s.suredly, failing of Lucien's presence of mind, the fortune of that day would have gone against the house of Bonaparte, for the youngster at once faced the troops and cried, in ringing tones:
”Citizens! Soldiers! I, president of the Council of Five Hundred, declare to you that the majority of the Council is at this moment under the terror of several Representatives armed with stilettos, who besiege the tribunal, threatening their fellow-members with death, and carrying on the most frightful deliberations.
”Soldiers,” he continued, ”I declare to you that these audacious brigands, who are without doubt sold to England, have set themselves up in rebellion against the Council of Ancients; they have dared to declare a sentence of outlawry against the general charged to execute its decree, just as if we were still living in the frightful times of the Reign of Terror, when that one word--'outlaw'--sufficed to cause the dearest heads of the fatherland to fall under the knife.”
The aides and generals about Bonaparte began to utter threats against the members of the Council of Five Hundred. Colonel Oliver, drawing his sword and brandis.h.i.+ng it aloft, cried:
”These bandits must be put an end to!”
”Aye! Aye!” replied several voices from the ranks of the soldiery. ”Long live General Bonaparte!”
”Soldiers, I declare to you,” continued Lucien, ”that this little handful of rabid Representatives has read itself outside the law by its a.s.saults on the liberty of the Council. Well, in the name of that people which is a by-word with this miserable sp.a.w.n of the Terror, I confide to you, brave soldiers, the necessity of delivering the majority of its Representatives, so that, freed by the bayonet from the stiletto, they may deliberate on the welfare of the Republic.”
Prolonged acclamation on the part of the officers and soldiers greeted these words of Lucien's. Exasperation ran high against the 'Representatives of the stiletto.' ”The villains,” exclaimed several soldiers, ”it is with poniard at throat that they have forced the others to decree our general an outlaw. They should be shot on the spot!
Death to the a.s.sa.s.sins! To the firing squad with these aristocrats.”
Noticing that his brother was more and more regaining his confidence, at the success of this jugglery with facts, Lucien continued, addressing him at first:
”General! And you, soldiers! You shall not recognize as legislators of France any but those who follow me. As to those who remain in the Orangery, let force be invoked to expel them. These folks are no longer Representatives of the people, but Representatives of the poniard. Let that t.i.tle stick to them--let it follow them forever, and when they dare to show themselves before the people, let all fingers point them out under that well-deserved designation, 'Representatives of the poniard'!
Long live the Republic!”
While Lucien was thus haranguing his brother's troops, the Representatives of the people, no longer doubting the complicity of their president in the schemes of the aspiring dictator, and beset by inexpressible anxiety, set about averting the evils which they felt impending. Motion after motion followed hard upon one another, and pa.s.sed unnoticed amid the tumult.
”Let us die for liberty!” ”Outlawry for the dictator!” ”Long live the Const.i.tution!” ”Long live the Republic!” Such were the cries that rang within the Orangery.
All at once the roll of drums was heard approaching, then the heavy and regular tread of a marching army. The Orangery door was battered down with the b.u.t.ts of muskets. General Leclerc, his sword drawn, entered, followed by grenadiers. At this apparition, a death-like stillness fell as if by enchantment upon the a.s.sembly. The Representatives, calm and grave, regained their benches, where they sat immovable as the Senators of ancient Rome. Right, succ.u.mbing to the blows of brutal force, protested as it fell, and denounced Iniquity triumphant, a denunciation which will ring through the ages.
From the tribunal General Leclerc gave the word of command:
”In the name of General Bonaparte, the Council of Five Hundred is dissolved. Let all good citizens retire. Forward, grenadiers! Strike for the breast!”
The grenadiers swarmed down the length of the hall, presenting the points of their bayonets to the b.r.e.a.s.t.s of the elected legislators of the nation. Most of the Representatives of the people fell back slowly, step by step, still facing the soldiers and crying ”Long live the Republic!” Others threw themselves upon the bayonet-blades; but the grenadiers raised their guns and dragged the Representatives out of the hall.
Caesar triumphed; but the day of Brutus will come! Execration on Bonaparte!
Such were the days of Brumaire.
CHAPTER VII.
GLORY; AND ELBA.
The war, immediately after the Brumaire coup d'etat, was pushed with vigor. Moreau received the commanders.h.i.+p-in-chief of the Army of the Rhine, and Bonaparte, on the 16th Floreal of the same year (May 6, 1800), left Paris to put himself at the head of the Army of Italy. On the 25th Prairial (June 14), he achieved the brilliant victory of Marengo, which, completing the work begun under the Directorate, expelled the Austrians from Italy.
Between January 8, 1801, and the 25th of March, 1802, the various powers at war with France were one by one forced to sue for peace. The first treaty was signed by England at Amiens. The peace was to be short-lived, but Bonaparte improved his days of calm to restore a great part of the abuses overthrown by the Revolution, and to lay the foundations for his future hereditary power. Himself a sceptic, but considering religion in the light of an instrument of domination, he treated with the Pope of Rome toward the end of re-establis.h.i.+ng Catholicism in all its splendor.
He founded the order of the Legion of Honor, a ridiculous and anti-democratic body, and in so much a restoration of social inequality.