sters, of which a
company is composed, if, by a judicious distribution, ten ought to be
received by the protestants, give them twenty, and put them all on the
rich, making this pretence, that when there are not soldiers enough in a
town for all to have some, the poor ought to be exempt, and the rich
burdened. His majesty has also thought proper to order, that all
converts be exempted from lodging soldiers for two years. This will
occasion numerous conversions if you take care that it is rigorously
executed, and that in all the distributions and passage of troops, by
far the greatest number are quartered on the rich protestants. His
majesty particularly enjoins that your orders on this subject, either by
yourself or your sub-delegates, be given by word of mouth to the mayors
and sheriffs, without letting them know that his majesty intends by
these means to force to become converts, and only explaining to them,
that you give these orders on the information you have received, that in
these places the rich are excepted by their influence, to the prejudice
of the poor."

The merciless treatment of the women, in this persecution at Nismes, was
such as would have disgraced any savages ever heard of. The widows Rivet
and Bernard, were forced to sacrifice enormous sums; and the house of
Mrs. Lecointe was ravaged, and her goods destroyed. Mrs. F. Didier had
her dwelling sacked and nearly demolished to the foundation. A party of
these bigots visited the widow Perrin, who lived on a little farm at the
windmills; having committed every species of devastation, they attacked
even the sanctuary of the dead, which contained the relics of her
family. They dragged the coffins out, and scattered the contents over
the adjacent grounds. In vain this outraged widow collected the bones of
her ancestors and replaced them: they were again dug up; and, after
several useless efforts, they were reluctantly left spread over the
surface of the fields.

Till the period announced for the sequestration of the property of the
fugitives by _authority_, murder and plunder were the daily employment
of what was called the army of Beaucaire, and the catholics of Nismes.
M. Peyron, of Brossan, had all his property carried off; his wine, oil,
seed, grain, several score of sheep, eight mules, three carts, his
furniture and effects, all the cash that could be found and he had only
to congratulate himself that his habitation was not consumed, and his
vineyards r