July 26, 2025 • 17 mins
Dumass Celebrated Crimes isnt a series designed for the faint-hearted. The novelist pulls no punches in his graphic depiction of a tumultuous era, sometimes distorting facts and levelling unfounded accusations. Its a riveting read intended for discerning, seasoned readers who can appreciate and account for the authors dramatic liberties. As per the publishers note.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chapter seven, Section two of Celebrated Crimes, Volume two, The
Massacres of the South. This is a LibriVox recording. All
LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more informational
to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by John
Vanstand Savannah, Georgia. Celebrated Crimes, Volume two, The Massacres of
(00:22):
the South by Alexander Dumas, Chapter seven, section two. As
soon as they were out of hearing, we began to
consider our situation and weigh our chances. There was no
use in going back to the captains, for he was
no longer there, having also succeeded in getting away. If
we were to wander about the country, we should be
recognized as fugitives, and the fate that awaited us as
(00:45):
such was at the moment brought home to us. For
a few yards away, we suddenly heard the shrieks of
a man who was being murdered. They were the first
cries of agony I had ever heard, and for a
few moments I confess I was frozen with terror. But
soon a violent reaction took place within me, and I
felt that it would be better to march straight to
meet peril than to await its coming. And although I
(01:08):
knew the danger of trying to go through Saint Just again,
I resolved to risk it and to get to Marseilles
at all costs. So, turning to Monsieur, I said, you
can remain here without danger until the evening, but I
am going to Marseilles at once, for I cannot endure
this uncertainty any longer. If I find Saint Just clear,
I shall come back and rejoin you, but if not,
(01:29):
I shall get away as best I can alone. Knowing
the danger that we were running and our little chance
there was that we should ever see each other again,
he held out his hand to me, but I threw
myself into his arms and gave him a last embrace.
I started at once. When I reached Saint Just, I
found the free booters still there. So I walked up
(01:50):
to them, trolling a melody, but one of them seized
me by the collar, and two others took aim at
me with their musket. If ever in my life, I shouted,
long Live the King, with less than enthusiasm than the
cry deserves. It was then to assume a rollicking air,
to laugh with cool carelessness when there is nothing between
you and death. But the more or less strong pressure
(02:10):
of a high woman's finger on the trigger of a
musket is no easy task. But all this I accomplished,
and once more got through the village with a whole skin, indeed,
but with the unalterable resolution to blow my brains out
rather than again try such an experiment. Having now a
village behind me which I had vowed never to re enter,
and there being no road available by which I could
(02:33):
hope to get round Marseilles, the only course open to
me was to make my way into the city. At
that moment this was a thing of difficulty, for many
small bodies of troops wearing the white cockade infested the approaches.
I soon perceived that the danger of getting in was
as great as ever, so I determined to walk up
and down till night, hoping the darkness would come to
my aid. But one of the patrols soon gave me
(02:55):
to understand that my prowling about had aroused suspicion, and
ordered me to go on to the city, in which
by all accounts there was small chance of safety for me,
or back to the village, where a certain death awaited me.
A happy inspiration flashed across my mind. I would get
some refreshment, and, seeing an end near by, I went
in and ordered a mug of beer, sitting down near
(03:17):
the window, faintly hoping that before the necessity for a
final decision arrived, someone who knew me would pass by.
After waiting half an hour, I did indeed see an acquaintance,
no other than Monsieur, whom I had left in the vineyard.
I beckoned him and he joined me. He told me that,
being too impatient to await my return, he had soon
(03:37):
made up his mind to follow me, and, by joining
a band of pillagers, was lucky enough to get safely
through Saint just. We consulted together as to what we
had better do next, and, having applied to our host,
found he could supply us with a trusty messenger who
would carry the news of our whereabouts to my brother
in law. After an anxious wait of three hours, we
(03:58):
saw him coming. I was about to run out to
meet him, but Monsieur held me back, pointing out the
danger of such a step. So we sat still, our
eyes fixed on the approaching figure. But when my brother
in law reached the inn, I could restrain my impatience
no longer, but rushing out of the room, met him
on the stairs. My wife, I cried, have you seen
my wife? She is at my house, was the reply,
(04:21):
and with a cry of joy, I threw myself into
his arms. My wife, who had been threatened and salted
and roughly treated because of my opinions, had indeed found
safety at my brother in law's. Night was coming on.
My brother in law, who wore the uniform of the
National Guard, which was at the moment a safeguard, took
us each by an arm, and we passed the barrier
(04:42):
without anyone asking us who we were. Choosing quiet streets.
We reached his house unmolested, but in fact the whole
city was quiet, for the carnage was practically at an end.
My wife safe. This thought filled my heart with joy
almost too great to bear. Her adventures were the following.
My wife and her mother had gone to our house
(05:03):
as agreed upon, to pack our trunks. As they left
their rooms, having accomplished their task, they found the landlady
waiting on the staircase, who had once overwhelmed my wife
with a torrent of abuse. The husband, who until then
had known nothing of their tenant's return, hearing the noise,
came out of his room, and, seizing his wife by
the arm, pulled her in and shut the door. She, however,
(05:24):
rushed to the window, and just as my wife and
her mother reached the street, shouted to a free band
who were on guard across the way. Fire they are bonaparties. Fortunately,
the men, more merciful than the woman, seeing two ladies
quite alone, did not hinder their passage, and as just
then my brother in law came by, whose opinions were
well known and whose uniform was respected, he was allowed
(05:46):
to take them under his protection and conduct them to
his house in safety. A young man employed at the Prefecture,
who had called at my house the day before, I,
having promised to help him in editing the Journal des
bouchet Drone, was not so lucky. His occupation and his
visit to me laid him under suspicion of possessing dangerous opinions,
(06:07):
and his friends urged him to fly, but it was
too late. He was attacked at the corner of the
Rue de Noaia and fell wounded by a stab from
a dagger. Happily, however, he ultimately recovered. The whole day
was passed and the commission of deeds still more bloody
than those of the day before. The sewers ran blood,
and every hundred yards a dead body was to be met.
(06:30):
But this sight, instead of satiating the thirst for blood
of the assassins, only seemed to awaken a general feeling
of gaiety. In the evening, the streets resounded with song
and round delay, and for many a year to come,
that which we looked back on as the day of
the massacre lived in the memory of the royalists as
the day of the farce. As we felt we could
(06:51):
not live any longer in the midst of such scenes,
even though as far as we were concerned, all danger
was over, we set out for Names that same evening
had been offered the use of a carriage. Nothing worthy
of note happened on the road to Orgonne, which we
reached next day, but the isolated detachments of troops which
we passed from time to time reminded us that the
(07:12):
tranquility was nowhere perfect. As we neared the town, we
saw three men going about arm in arm. This friendliness
seemed strange to us after our recent experiences, for one
of them wore a white cockade the second a tricolor,
and the third none at all. And yet they went
about on the most brotherly terms, each awaiting under a
different banner the outcome of events. Their wisdom impressed me much, and,
(07:35):
feeling I had nothing to fear from such philosophers, I
went up to them and questioned them, and they explained
their hopes to me with the greatest innocence, and above
all their firm determination to belong to whatever party got
the upper hand. As we drove into Orgone, we saw
at a glance that the whole town was simmering with excitement.
Everybody's face expressed anxiety. A man, who we were told
(07:58):
was the mayor, was hares hanging a group. As every
one was listening with the greatest attention. We drew near
and asked them the cause of the excitement. Gentlemen, said
he You ought to know the news. The king is
in his capital, and we have once more hoisted the
white flag, and there has not been a single dispute
to mar the tranquility of the day. One party has
(08:19):
triumphed without violence, and the other has submitted with resignation.
But I have just learned that a band of vagabonds
numbering about three hundred have assembled on the bridge over
the Durrance, and are preparing to raid our little town
to night, intending by pillage or extortion to get at
what we possess. I have a few guns left, which
I am about to distribute, and each man will watch
(08:40):
over the safety of all. Although he had not enough
arms to go round, he offered to supply us, But
as I had my double barreled pistols, I did not
deprive him of his weapons. I made the ladies go
to bed, and, sitting at their door, tried to sleep
as well as I could, a pistol in each hand.
But at every instant the noise of a false alarm
sounded through the t and when day dawned, my only
(09:01):
consolation was that no one else in organ had slept
any better than I. The next day we continued our
journey to Tarascon, where new excitements awaited us. As we
got near the town, we heard the tocsin clanging and
drums beating the generale. We were so accustomed to the
uproar that we were not very much astonished. However, when
(09:22):
we got in, we asked what was going on, and
we were told that twelve thousand troops from Nimes had
marched on Beaucaire and laid it waste with fire and sword.
I insinuated that twelve thousand men was a rather large
number for one town to furnish, but was told that
that included troops from the Gardonika and the Cevennes. Nimes
still clung to the tricolor, but Beaucaire had hoisted the
(09:45):
white flag, and it was for the purpose of pulling
it down and scattering the royalists who were assembling in
numbers at Beaucaire that Nimes had sent forth her troops
on this expedition. Seeing that Tarascon and Beaucaire are only
separated by the Rhone, me as peculiar that such quiet
should prevail on one bank while such fierce conflict was
raging on the other. I did not doubt that something
(10:07):
had happened, but not an event of such gravity as
was reported. We therefore decided to push on to Beaucaire,
and when we got there, we found the town in
the most perfect order. The expedition of twelve thousand men
was reduced to one of two hundred, which had been
easily repulsed, with the result that of the assailants, one
had been wounded and one made prisoner. Proud of this success,
(10:28):
the people of Beaucaire entrusted us with a thousand objurgations
to deliver to their inveterate enemies, the citizens of Names.
If any journey could give a correct idea of the
preparations for civil war and the confusion which already prevailed
in the South, I should think that without contradiction, it
would be that which we took that day. Along the
four leagues which lie between Beaucaire and Names, were posted
(10:51):
at frequent intervals detachments of troops displaying alternately the white
and the tricolored cockade. Every village upon our route, except
those just outside of Names, had definitely joined either one
party or the other, and the soldiers who were stationed
at equal distances along the road were now Royalist and
now Bonapartist. Before leaving Beaucaire, we had all provided ourselves,
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taking example by the men we had seen at or
gone with two cockades, one white and one tricolored, and
by peeping out from the carriage windows we were able
to see which was worn by the troops we were approaching,
in time to attach a similar one to our hats
before we got up to them, whilst we hid the
other in our shoes. Then as we were passing, we
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stuck our heads, decorated according to the circumstances, out of
the windows, and shuttered vigorously, Long live the King or
long live the Emperor, as the case demanded. Thanks to
this concession to political opinions on the highway, and in
no less degree to the money which we gave by
way of tips to everybody everywhere, we arrived at length
(11:56):
at the barriers of Names, where we came up with
the National Guard guards who had been repulsed by the
townspeople of Beaucaire. This is what had taken place just
before we arrived in the city. The National Guard of
Nemes and the troops of which the garrison was composed
had resolved to unite in giving a banquet on Sunday,
the twenty eighth of June to celebrate the success of
the French army. The news of the Battle of Waterloo
(12:20):
traveled much more quickly to Marseilles than to Neimes, so
the banquet took place without interruption. A bust of Napoleon
was carried in procession all over the town, and then
the regular soldiers in the National Guard devoted the rest
of the day to rejoicings, which were followed by no excess.
But the day was not quite finished before news came
(12:40):
that numerous meetings were taking place at Beaucaire. So although
the news of the defeat at Waterloo reached Nimes on
the following Tuesday, the troops which we had seen returning
to the gates of the city had been dispatched on
Wednesday to disperse these assemblies. Meantime, the Bonapartists, under the
command of General Gilly, amongst whom was a redgil meant
of chasseurs, beginning to despair of the success of their cause,
(13:04):
felt that their situation was becoming very critical, especially as
they learnt that the forces at Beauquet had assumed the
offensive and were about to march upon Nemes. As I
had had no connection with anything that had taken place
in the capital of the Guard, I personally had nothing
to fear, But having learned by experience how easily suspicions arise,
(13:25):
I was afraid that the ill luck, which had not
spared either my friends or my family, might lead to
their being accused of having received a refugee from Marseilles,
a word in which itself had small significance, but which
in the mouth of an enemy might be fatal. Fears
for the future. Being thus aroused by my recollections of
the past, I decided to give up the contemplation of
(13:47):
a drama which might become redoubtable, asked to bury myself
in the country, with the firm intention of coming back
to Nemes as soon as the white flag should once
more float from its towers. An old castle in the Cevennes, which,
from the days when the Albigenses were burnt down to
the massacre of La Bagara, had written as many a
revolution and counter revolution became the asylum of my wife,
(14:09):
my mother, Monchieur, and myself. As the peaceful tranquility of
our life there was unbroken by any event of interest.
I shall not pause to dwell on it. But at
length we grew weary, for such as man of our
life of calm, and being left once for nearly a
week without any news from outside, we made that an
excuse for returning to Nemes, in order to see with
(14:30):
our own eyes how things were going on. When we
were about two leagues on our way, we met the
carriage of a friend, a rich landed proprietor from the city.
Seeing that he was in it, I alighted to ask
him what was happening in Nimes. I hope you do
not think of going there, said he, especially at this moment.
The excitement is intense, blood has already flowed, and catastrophe
(14:53):
is imminent. So back we went to our mountain castle,
but in a few days became again a prey to
the same restlessness. In not being able to overcome it,
decided to go at all risks and see for ourselves
the condition of affairs, And this time, neither advice nor
warning having any effect, we not only set out, but
we arrived at our destination the same evening. We had
(15:15):
not been misinformed, phrase having already taken place in the
streets which had heated public opinion. One man had been
killed on the Esplanada by a musket shot, and it
seemed as if his death would be only the forerunner
of many. The Catholics were awaiting with impatience the arrival
of those doughty warriors from Beaucaire, on whom they placed
their chief reliance. The Protestants went about in painful silence,
(15:39):
and fear blanched every face. At length, the white flag
was hoisted and the king proclaimed, without any of the
disorders which had been dreaded taking place. But it was
plainly visible that this calm was only a pause before
a struggle, and that on the slightest pretext, the pent
up passions would break loose again. Just at this time,
the memory of our quiet life in the mountains inspired
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us with a happy idea. We had learned that the
obstinate resolution of Marshal Bruna never to acknowledge Louis the
eighteenth as King had been softened, and that the Marshal
had been induced to hoist the white flag at Toulon,
while with a cockade in his hat, he had formally
resigned the command of that place into the hands of
the royal authorities. Henceforward, in all the province there was
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no spot where he could live unmarked. His ultimate intentions
were unknown to us. Indeed, his movements seemed to show
great hesitation on his part, So it occurred to us
to offer him our little country house as a refuge
where he could await the arrival of more peaceful times.
We decided that Malshore and another friend of ours, who
had just arrived from Paris, should go to him and
(16:44):
make the offer, which he would at once accept, all
the more readily because it came from the hearts which
were deeply devoted to him. They set out, but to
my great surprise, returned the same day. They brought us
word that Marshal Bruna had been assassinated at Avignon. We
could not believe the dreadful news and took it for
one of these ghastly rumors which circulate with such rapidity
(17:06):
during periods of civil strife. But we were not left
long and uncertainty, for the details of the catastrophe arrived
all too soon. End of Chapter seven, Section two. Reading
by John Vanstan Savannah, Georgia
Chapter seven, Section two of Celebrated Crimes, Volume two, The
Massacres of the South. This is a LibriVox recording. All
LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more informational
to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by John
Vanstand Savannah, Georgia. Celebrated Crimes, Volume two, The Massacres of
(00:22):
the South by Alexander Dumas, Chapter seven, section two. As
soon as they were out of hearing, we began to
consider our situation and weigh our chances. There was no
use in going back to the captains, for he was
no longer there, having also succeeded in getting away. If
we were to wander about the country, we should be
recognized as fugitives, and the fate that awaited us as
(00:45):
such was at the moment brought home to us. For
a few yards away, we suddenly heard the shrieks of
a man who was being murdered. They were the first
cries of agony I had ever heard, and for a
few moments I confess I was frozen with terror. But
soon a violent reaction took place within me, and I
felt that it would be better to march straight to
meet peril than to await its coming. And although I
(01:08):
knew the danger of trying to go through Saint Just again,
I resolved to risk it and to get to Marseilles
at all costs. So, turning to Monsieur, I said, you
can remain here without danger until the evening, but I
am going to Marseilles at once, for I cannot endure
this uncertainty any longer. If I find Saint Just clear,
I shall come back and rejoin you, but if not,
(01:29):
I shall get away as best I can alone. Knowing
the danger that we were running and our little chance
there was that we should ever see each other again,
he held out his hand to me, but I threw
myself into his arms and gave him a last embrace.
I started at once. When I reached Saint Just, I
found the free booters still there. So I walked up
(01:50):
to them, trolling a melody, but one of them seized
me by the collar, and two others took aim at
me with their musket. If ever in my life, I shouted,
long Live the King, with less than enthusiasm than the
cry deserves. It was then to assume a rollicking air,
to laugh with cool carelessness when there is nothing between
you and death. But the more or less strong pressure
(02:10):
of a high woman's finger on the trigger of a
musket is no easy task. But all this I accomplished,
and once more got through the village with a whole skin, indeed,
but with the unalterable resolution to blow my brains out
rather than again try such an experiment. Having now a
village behind me which I had vowed never to re enter,
and there being no road available by which I could
(02:33):
hope to get round Marseilles, the only course open to
me was to make my way into the city. At
that moment this was a thing of difficulty, for many
small bodies of troops wearing the white cockade infested the approaches.
I soon perceived that the danger of getting in was
as great as ever, so I determined to walk up
and down till night, hoping the darkness would come to
my aid. But one of the patrols soon gave me
(02:55):
to understand that my prowling about had aroused suspicion, and
ordered me to go on to the city, in which
by all accounts there was small chance of safety for me,
or back to the village, where a certain death awaited me.
A happy inspiration flashed across my mind. I would get
some refreshment, and, seeing an end near by, I went
in and ordered a mug of beer, sitting down near
(03:17):
the window, faintly hoping that before the necessity for a
final decision arrived, someone who knew me would pass by.
After waiting half an hour, I did indeed see an acquaintance,
no other than Monsieur, whom I had left in the vineyard.
I beckoned him and he joined me. He told me that,
being too impatient to await my return, he had soon
(03:37):
made up his mind to follow me, and, by joining
a band of pillagers, was lucky enough to get safely
through Saint just. We consulted together as to what we
had better do next, and, having applied to our host,
found he could supply us with a trusty messenger who
would carry the news of our whereabouts to my brother
in law. After an anxious wait of three hours, we
(03:58):
saw him coming. I was about to run out to
meet him, but Monsieur held me back, pointing out the
danger of such a step. So we sat still, our
eyes fixed on the approaching figure. But when my brother
in law reached the inn, I could restrain my impatience
no longer, but rushing out of the room, met him
on the stairs. My wife, I cried, have you seen
my wife? She is at my house, was the reply,
(04:21):
and with a cry of joy, I threw myself into
his arms. My wife, who had been threatened and salted
and roughly treated because of my opinions, had indeed found
safety at my brother in law's. Night was coming on.
My brother in law, who wore the uniform of the
National Guard, which was at the moment a safeguard, took
us each by an arm, and we passed the barrier
(04:42):
without anyone asking us who we were. Choosing quiet streets.
We reached his house unmolested, but in fact the whole
city was quiet, for the carnage was practically at an end.
My wife safe. This thought filled my heart with joy
almost too great to bear. Her adventures were the following.
My wife and her mother had gone to our house
(05:03):
as agreed upon, to pack our trunks. As they left
their rooms, having accomplished their task, they found the landlady
waiting on the staircase, who had once overwhelmed my wife
with a torrent of abuse. The husband, who until then
had known nothing of their tenant's return, hearing the noise,
came out of his room, and, seizing his wife by
the arm, pulled her in and shut the door. She, however,
(05:24):
rushed to the window, and just as my wife and
her mother reached the street, shouted to a free band
who were on guard across the way. Fire they are bonaparties. Fortunately,
the men, more merciful than the woman, seeing two ladies
quite alone, did not hinder their passage, and as just
then my brother in law came by, whose opinions were
well known and whose uniform was respected, he was allowed
(05:46):
to take them under his protection and conduct them to
his house in safety. A young man employed at the Prefecture,
who had called at my house the day before, I,
having promised to help him in editing the Journal des
bouchet Drone, was not so lucky. His occupation and his
visit to me laid him under suspicion of possessing dangerous opinions,
(06:07):
and his friends urged him to fly, but it was
too late. He was attacked at the corner of the
Rue de Noaia and fell wounded by a stab from
a dagger. Happily, however, he ultimately recovered. The whole day
was passed and the commission of deeds still more bloody
than those of the day before. The sewers ran blood,
and every hundred yards a dead body was to be met.
(06:30):
But this sight, instead of satiating the thirst for blood
of the assassins, only seemed to awaken a general feeling
of gaiety. In the evening, the streets resounded with song
and round delay, and for many a year to come,
that which we looked back on as the day of
the massacre lived in the memory of the royalists as
the day of the farce. As we felt we could
(06:51):
not live any longer in the midst of such scenes,
even though as far as we were concerned, all danger
was over, we set out for Names that same evening
had been offered the use of a carriage. Nothing worthy
of note happened on the road to Orgonne, which we
reached next day, but the isolated detachments of troops which
we passed from time to time reminded us that the
(07:12):
tranquility was nowhere perfect. As we neared the town, we
saw three men going about arm in arm. This friendliness
seemed strange to us after our recent experiences, for one
of them wore a white cockade the second a tricolor,
and the third none at all. And yet they went
about on the most brotherly terms, each awaiting under a
different banner the outcome of events. Their wisdom impressed me much, and,
(07:35):
feeling I had nothing to fear from such philosophers, I
went up to them and questioned them, and they explained
their hopes to me with the greatest innocence, and above
all their firm determination to belong to whatever party got
the upper hand. As we drove into Orgone, we saw
at a glance that the whole town was simmering with excitement.
Everybody's face expressed anxiety. A man, who we were told
(07:58):
was the mayor, was hares hanging a group. As every
one was listening with the greatest attention. We drew near
and asked them the cause of the excitement. Gentlemen, said
he You ought to know the news. The king is
in his capital, and we have once more hoisted the
white flag, and there has not been a single dispute
to mar the tranquility of the day. One party has
(08:19):
triumphed without violence, and the other has submitted with resignation.
But I have just learned that a band of vagabonds
numbering about three hundred have assembled on the bridge over
the Durrance, and are preparing to raid our little town
to night, intending by pillage or extortion to get at
what we possess. I have a few guns left, which
I am about to distribute, and each man will watch
(08:40):
over the safety of all. Although he had not enough
arms to go round, he offered to supply us, But
as I had my double barreled pistols, I did not
deprive him of his weapons. I made the ladies go
to bed, and, sitting at their door, tried to sleep
as well as I could, a pistol in each hand.
But at every instant the noise of a false alarm
sounded through the t and when day dawned, my only
(09:01):
consolation was that no one else in organ had slept
any better than I. The next day we continued our
journey to Tarascon, where new excitements awaited us. As we
got near the town, we heard the tocsin clanging and
drums beating the generale. We were so accustomed to the
uproar that we were not very much astonished. However, when
(09:22):
we got in, we asked what was going on, and
we were told that twelve thousand troops from Nimes had
marched on Beaucaire and laid it waste with fire and sword.
I insinuated that twelve thousand men was a rather large
number for one town to furnish, but was told that
that included troops from the Gardonika and the Cevennes. Nimes
still clung to the tricolor, but Beaucaire had hoisted the
(09:45):
white flag, and it was for the purpose of pulling
it down and scattering the royalists who were assembling in
numbers at Beaucaire that Nimes had sent forth her troops
on this expedition. Seeing that Tarascon and Beaucaire are only
separated by the Rhone, me as peculiar that such quiet
should prevail on one bank while such fierce conflict was
raging on the other. I did not doubt that something
(10:07):
had happened, but not an event of such gravity as
was reported. We therefore decided to push on to Beaucaire,
and when we got there, we found the town in
the most perfect order. The expedition of twelve thousand men
was reduced to one of two hundred, which had been
easily repulsed, with the result that of the assailants, one
had been wounded and one made prisoner. Proud of this success,
(10:28):
the people of Beaucaire entrusted us with a thousand objurgations
to deliver to their inveterate enemies, the citizens of Names.
If any journey could give a correct idea of the
preparations for civil war and the confusion which already prevailed
in the South, I should think that without contradiction, it
would be that which we took that day. Along the
four leagues which lie between Beaucaire and Names, were posted
(10:51):
at frequent intervals detachments of troops displaying alternately the white
and the tricolored cockade. Every village upon our route, except
those just outside of Names, had definitely joined either one
party or the other, and the soldiers who were stationed
at equal distances along the road were now Royalist and
now Bonapartist. Before leaving Beaucaire, we had all provided ourselves,
(11:14):
taking example by the men we had seen at or
gone with two cockades, one white and one tricolored, and
by peeping out from the carriage windows we were able
to see which was worn by the troops we were approaching,
in time to attach a similar one to our hats
before we got up to them, whilst we hid the
other in our shoes. Then as we were passing, we
(11:35):
stuck our heads, decorated according to the circumstances, out of
the windows, and shuttered vigorously, Long live the King or
long live the Emperor, as the case demanded. Thanks to
this concession to political opinions on the highway, and in
no less degree to the money which we gave by
way of tips to everybody everywhere, we arrived at length
(11:56):
at the barriers of Names, where we came up with
the National Guard guards who had been repulsed by the
townspeople of Beaucaire. This is what had taken place just
before we arrived in the city. The National Guard of
Nemes and the troops of which the garrison was composed
had resolved to unite in giving a banquet on Sunday,
the twenty eighth of June to celebrate the success of
the French army. The news of the Battle of Waterloo
(12:20):
traveled much more quickly to Marseilles than to Neimes, so
the banquet took place without interruption. A bust of Napoleon
was carried in procession all over the town, and then
the regular soldiers in the National Guard devoted the rest
of the day to rejoicings, which were followed by no excess.
But the day was not quite finished before news came
(12:40):
that numerous meetings were taking place at Beaucaire. So although
the news of the defeat at Waterloo reached Nimes on
the following Tuesday, the troops which we had seen returning
to the gates of the city had been dispatched on
Wednesday to disperse these assemblies. Meantime, the Bonapartists, under the
command of General Gilly, amongst whom was a redgil meant
of chasseurs, beginning to despair of the success of their cause,
(13:04):
felt that their situation was becoming very critical, especially as
they learnt that the forces at Beauquet had assumed the
offensive and were about to march upon Nemes. As I
had had no connection with anything that had taken place
in the capital of the Guard, I personally had nothing
to fear, But having learned by experience how easily suspicions arise,
(13:25):
I was afraid that the ill luck, which had not
spared either my friends or my family, might lead to
their being accused of having received a refugee from Marseilles,
a word in which itself had small significance, but which
in the mouth of an enemy might be fatal. Fears
for the future. Being thus aroused by my recollections of
the past, I decided to give up the contemplation of
(13:47):
a drama which might become redoubtable, asked to bury myself
in the country, with the firm intention of coming back
to Nemes as soon as the white flag should once
more float from its towers. An old castle in the Cevennes, which,
from the days when the Albigenses were burnt down to
the massacre of La Bagara, had written as many a
revolution and counter revolution became the asylum of my wife,
(14:09):
my mother, Monchieur, and myself. As the peaceful tranquility of
our life there was unbroken by any event of interest.
I shall not pause to dwell on it. But at
length we grew weary, for such as man of our
life of calm, and being left once for nearly a
week without any news from outside, we made that an
excuse for returning to Nemes, in order to see with
(14:30):
our own eyes how things were going on. When we
were about two leagues on our way, we met the
carriage of a friend, a rich landed proprietor from the city.
Seeing that he was in it, I alighted to ask
him what was happening in Nimes. I hope you do
not think of going there, said he, especially at this moment.
The excitement is intense, blood has already flowed, and catastrophe
(14:53):
is imminent. So back we went to our mountain castle,
but in a few days became again a prey to
the same restlessness. In not being able to overcome it,
decided to go at all risks and see for ourselves
the condition of affairs, And this time, neither advice nor
warning having any effect, we not only set out, but
we arrived at our destination the same evening. We had
(15:15):
not been misinformed, phrase having already taken place in the
streets which had heated public opinion. One man had been
killed on the Esplanada by a musket shot, and it
seemed as if his death would be only the forerunner
of many. The Catholics were awaiting with impatience the arrival
of those doughty warriors from Beaucaire, on whom they placed
their chief reliance. The Protestants went about in painful silence,
(15:39):
and fear blanched every face. At length, the white flag
was hoisted and the king proclaimed, without any of the
disorders which had been dreaded taking place. But it was
plainly visible that this calm was only a pause before
a struggle, and that on the slightest pretext, the pent
up passions would break loose again. Just at this time,
the memory of our quiet life in the mountains inspired
(16:01):
us with a happy idea. We had learned that the
obstinate resolution of Marshal Bruna never to acknowledge Louis the
eighteenth as King had been softened, and that the Marshal
had been induced to hoist the white flag at Toulon,
while with a cockade in his hat, he had formally
resigned the command of that place into the hands of
the royal authorities. Henceforward, in all the province there was
(16:23):
no spot where he could live unmarked. His ultimate intentions
were unknown to us. Indeed, his movements seemed to show
great hesitation on his part, So it occurred to us
to offer him our little country house as a refuge
where he could await the arrival of more peaceful times.
We decided that Malshore and another friend of ours, who
had just arrived from Paris, should go to him and
(16:44):
make the offer, which he would at once accept, all
the more readily because it came from the hearts which
were deeply devoted to him. They set out, but to
my great surprise, returned the same day. They brought us
word that Marshal Bruna had been assassinated at Avignon. We
could not believe the dreadful news and took it for
one of these ghastly rumors which circulate with such rapidity
(17:06):
during periods of civil strife. But we were not left
long and uncertainty, for the details of the catastrophe arrived
all too soon. End of Chapter seven, Section two. Reading
by John Vanstan Savannah, Georgia
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