ascent near the Porte Saint-Martin, a regiment of heavy cavalry
met us. The men were Cuirassiers. Their horses were in a trot,
and their swords were drawn. All of a sudden the regiment came
to a halt. Something was in their way. Their halt detained the
omnibus. My heart was stirred. Close before me, a yard from me,
were Frenchmen turned into Mamelukes, citizen-supporters of the
Republic transformed into the mercenaries of a Second Empire! From
my seat I could almost put my hand upon them. I could no longer
bear the sight. I let down the glass, I put my head out of the
window, and looked steadily at the close line of armed men. Then
I shouted: 'Down with Louis Bonaparte! Those who serve traitors
are traitors!' The nearest soldiers turned their faces towards
me, and looked dazed with astonishment. The rest did not stir.
When I shouted, Armand let down his glass and thrust half his body
out of his window, shaking his fist at the soldiers. He too cried
out: 'Down with all traitors!' Our example was contagious. 'Down
with traitors!' cried my other two friends in the omnibus. 'Down
with the dictator!' cried a generous young man who sat beside me.
All the passengers in the omnibus, except this young man, seemed
to be filled with terror. 'Hold your tongues!' they cried; 'you
will have us all massacred.' The most frightened of them let down
his glass and shouted to the soldiers: 'Vive le Prince Napoleon!
Vive l'empereur!' The soldiers looked at us in solemn silence.
A mounted policeman menaced us with his drawn sword. The crowd
seemed stupefied.... The soldiers had no orders to act, so nothing
came of it. The regiment started at a gallop, so did the omnibus.
As long as the Cuirassiers were passing, Armand and I, hanging
half out of our windows, continued to shout at them, 'Down with
the dictator!'"

This foolhardy and melodramatic performance was one of many such
scenes, calculated to turn tragedy into farce.

Meantime, from early morning the hall of the representatives had
been surrounded by soldiers with mortars and cannon. As the deputies
arrived they were allowed to pass the gates, but were not permitted
to enter their chamber. Their president, or Speaker, M. Dupin, was
appealed to. He said he could do nothing; it was hopeless to resist
such a display of force. At last the representatives, becoming,
as the soldiers put it, "noisy and troublesome," were collared
and turned out into the street. One by one the most excited w