oflivres. Part of this fum was intended to redeem the affignats in circulation at the rate of thirty of thefe for one of the former; and the lands os fale were to be mortgaged, as a fecurity for the payment of the remaining part. The purchafers of thefe lands were to pay for them by inftalments; and, as the property difpofed of was a folid and visible affet; it was hoped that the new emiflion would retain its original value. The directory infifted in the most serious terms on the immediate want of this fupply, for the carrying on of the war, and the fervice of the current year.

The various failures of the French government in its pecuniary operations, had fo much difcouraged the fpeculators in thefe matters, that it was highly neceffary to hold out every encouragement to them. On the decline of the affignats, a paper, known by the name of refcriptions, had been given for advances to government, and made payable in fpecie at a fixed period: but this too had loft its credit, by non-payment. The new fabrication, which went by the name of mandates, loft, at its firft ifluing, one-fourth of its nominal value, and was reduced fhortly after to one-fifth. It continued to decrease, and fell at laft to the bare proportion of one-tenth. So heavy a lofs alarmed the directory, as, at that rate, the national property, which was paid for in mandats, muft of courfe be fold for one-tenth of its value It came to the determination to fhorten the periods of payment, in order to diminish thereby the quantity of mandats in circulation, which would raife the worth of thofe that had remained: but this expedient did not much restore it, and govern

ment, to fecure any farther detri ment, ordained the laft instalment, which was the fourth part of the purchafe, to be paid in fpecie.

Thus the fpeculators were to tally deceived in their calculations of the profit they had expected: the more indeed as private land fold at a cheaper rate than public: but as they were chiefly monied men, and much of their opulence had arifen from their fuccesful fpeculations during the public diftrefs, as their lofles were unheeded, and the conduct of government, however irregular and arbitrary, passed uncer fured.

So great, in the mean time, were the difficulties of the republic, that, according to a statement of the revenue, made at this time by the committee of finances, the whole of it amounted to no more than five hundred millions of livres, while the expenditure was not less than one thoufand. The directory was fully fenfible that in fuch a fituation the boldeft, as well as the moft prudent measures must be reforted to, and that no alternative remained, but either of finishing the content with the enemies of France, on difadvantageous conditions, or of ftraining the authority and power of government to the fartheft extent that could be borne with, or fubmitted to, regardless of the dislatif. faction and murmurs that fuch a conduct would in all likelihood occafion.

France was, at this period, nearly exhaufted of all extraordinary means of levying money. The fale of national property, which was almost the only one remaining, had been decreed. This meature however had not yet taken place in the Auftri an Netherlands, now incorporated

with France, which had hitherto abstained from loading this country with fuch burdens as might prove offenfive to its inhabitants. But the exigences of the republic were now become fo urgent, that the directory thought itfelf entitled to put fo rich a portion of the empire under the fame requifitions as France itfelf. This could not be conftrued into oppreffion of the natives, as they would only be placed on the fame footing as the French, with whom they now formed one nation, united in views and interefts, and having the fame enemies to combat, by whom, if fubdued, they would experience in common the fame ill treatment, and relapfe into that state of flavery, from which they had both taken fuch pains to emancipate themselves.

Such were the motives laid before the people of the Auftrian Netherlands, to induce them to coincide with the defign of the French government, to decree the fale of thofe valuable tracts of land, become the public property in that country, by the fuppreffion of the numerous and opulent monaftic orders. Exclufively of thefe motives, which were of confiderable weight with that part of the people which were well affected to the French, had a precedent to plead of great efficacy in the minds even of those who retained an attachment to the religious eftablish ments in their country. This was the general willingness of the catholic powers to retain no other than the parochial and fecular elergy, and to fupprefs all conventual inflitutions, as the incentives and receptacles of idlenes, and burthening the industrious part of the community, with the maintenance of

a numerous clafs of individuals, wholly heedlefs for the purposes of fociety.

As these representations were founded in truth, and as the minds of the people in Belgium had of late undergone material alterations in their opinions of things, they were not unwilling to admit the va lidity of the reafonings alleged in vindication of the meafures propofed by the French, and the fuppreffion of religious houfes, together with the fale of their lands, for the ufe of the ftate, took place accordingly.

The refources arifing from this ample fund, aided by the impofition of fome new taxes, rendered fupportable by an equitable repartition; and more than all, by an exact and rigid economy, introduced into every channel of expenditure, fupplied the five hundred millions wanted, in addition to the revenue, and enabled the government to provide for the demands of the prefent year.

The difficulties experienced by the French government in matters of finance, great as they were, did not equal thofe that continually obftructed the indefatigable endeavours to preferve internal tranquillity. The inextinguishable animofity of the oppofite parties, that distracted the nation, feemed to increase by failure and difappointment in their refpective projects, and to derive, as it were, new vigour from the repeated fuppreffion of their attempts to overturn the established government.

The jacobin party, though not more active than the royalifts, confifted of men of far fuperior parts. As they had but lately been oufted from the feat of power, they nou

rifhed a fpirit of revenge which prompted them to endless efforts to regain the maftery. In the mean while, their expulfion had not been complete. Many of their partizans ftill remained in places of truft: the legiflature counted many among its members, and the directory itself had one of their wellwishers.

Emboldened by thefe circumftances, and unintimidated by the difcovery and fuppreflion of the dreadful confpiracy, headed by Babeuf, they had the audaeity to frame another, at a diftance from the capital, hoping, if fuccefsiul, to rally around the infurgents, the numerous, jacobins ftill remaining in thofe parts.

The place where the infurrection broke out was Marleilles, a city famous, in the annals of the revolution, for tumults and difturbances. On the nineteenth of July, while the citizens were occupied in the annual election of their magiftrates, the jacobins assembled in multitudes, armed with a variety of weapons. They ran through the ftreets, exclaiming live the mountain and the conftitution of ninety-three. A party of them rushed into the hall of election, from whence they drove the citizens, and murdered all who oppofed them.

As the plan of this hafty infurrection was ill contrived, it had no other confequence than to throw the city of Marfeilles into a temporary confufion. It appeared, however, that the intereft of the jacobins, in that place, had more ftrength and patronage than had been imagined. The commiflary of the directory, in his difpatches to govern ment, inftead of laying before it the criminal behaviour of the jacobins, reprefented the whole as an

affray between the royalifts and the republicans. But the council of five hundred ordered an inquiry to be made, which detected the perfidy of the commiffary, in confequence of which, the forced elections of magiftrates, that had been made by the jacobin party, were annulled, and proper measures taken to prevent them from difturbing the peace of that municipality.

But the jacobins were not the only difturbers of the public tranquillity. The royalifts, however juft their caufe, frequently difgraced it by the ridiculous zeal which they manifefied in its fupport. Actuated by thofe illiterate and bigoted priests, that fwarm in France, they formed themselves into bands that affumed the appellation of companions of Jefus and the king. They fell upon thofe, who, during the reign of terrorifin, had perfecuted and treated them with barbarity, on whom they exerciled the most unmerciful retaliation. Affrays of this nature often happened, efpecially in the fouth of France, where the vindictive difpolition of the inhabitants is apt to lead them into exceffes of a fatal tendency, from the duration and obftinacy of their refentment.

It was cafier, however, to crush both the spirit and the infurrections of the royalifts, than of the jacobins. The former were ufually excited to action through their implicit fubmiffion to the advice and exhortation of the refractory ecclefiaflics: but the latter acted from the unfubdued and inceflant impulle of their own principles, the very nature of which rendered them independent of the opinion of others, and perpetually excited them to

action,

action, without needing any other ftimulation. Men of this character are not eafily tamed into fubjection to thofe who differ from them in fentiments, and are much more ready to rife in opposition to them, than those who are governed by the dictates of others.

This confpicuoufly appeared in that other attempt, which the jacobins made to overthrow the eftablishment, fo very foon after having failed in their late confpiracy. The numbers that voted against the impeachment of Drouet, and his evafion from confinement, plainly fhewed the influence of the jacobin faction. Relying on its many concealed partifans, a refolution was taken, by the undifcovered accomplices of Babeuf in that confpiracy, to refcue him and his affociates from the hands of government, at the time when they were to be removed from their prifon at Paris, and transferred to Vandame, for trial before the high criminal court.

In order to conceal from the public the real actors in the intended rescue, the jacobins affumed the appearance of royalifts. They put on white cockades, difplayed white colours, and every other token of royalifm, and in this manner proceeded in their enterprize: but they were quickly difcovered, and their project entirely fruftrated.

Whether through neglect or connivance, no inquiry was made into this bufinels. This induced the jacobins to meditate another plan, and to take what they hoped might prove more efficient means to fucceed. They collected as many of their most daring atiociates as could be procured in the capital and its vicinity. They tampered with the foldiery, fome of whom they fe

10

duced, by whofe medium they vainly imagined the majority of the remainder would be brought over to them. When they thought they were fufficiently prepared, they embodied themselves, to the number of five or fix hundred, and marched to the camp in the Plain of Gre nelle, at a very finall distance from Paris. They feemed to entertain no doubt of being joined by the troops there, and confidently entered the camp, crying out, the conftitution of ninety-three, and down with the two councils and the five tyrants. At the head of this defperate body of men were three members of the late convention, with as many generals who had been dismissed the fervice, and Drouet himself, it was faid, not long escaped from his prifon. They warmly exhorted the foldiers to join them, promifing every remuneration that could be required; but they were totally deceived in their expectations. The foldiers remained true to their offcers, and, at the word of command, fell upon the confpirators, who, unable to contend with fuch a force, betook themselves to flight. Numbers were killed upon the spot, and about one hundred and thirty taken. They were tried as infurgents by a military commiffion. Sentence of

death or banishment was passed upon the most notorioufly guilty, and the others were discharged.

The objects proposed by these rafh and furious confpirators, were fimilar in every refpect to those of Babeuf and his affociates. Blood and the extermination of all perfons in power, thofe only excepted whom they confidered as favourable to their defigns.

While the jacobins were intent upon thofe deftructive: fchemes,

which,