The powers exercised by the crown were more intolerable still. The
sovereign was absolute master of the liberties of his subjects. Without
alleging the commission of any crime, he could issue warrants--letters
under seal, as they were called--which consigned the person named in them
to imprisonment, which was often perpetual. The unhappy prisoner had no
power of appeal. No judge could inquire into his case, much less release
him. The arrests were often made with such secrecy and rapidity that his
nearest relations knew not what had become of him, but he was cut off from
the outer world, for the rest of his life, as completely as if he had at
once been handed over to the executioner.[15]

It was impossible but that such customs should produce general discontent,
and a resolute demand for a complete reformation of the system. And one of
the problems which the minister had to determine was, how to organize the
States-general so that they should be disposed to promote such measures as
reform as should be adequate without being excessive; as should give due
protection to the middle and lower classes without depriving the nobles of
that dignity and authority which were not only desirable for themselves,
but useful to their dependents; and, lastly, such as should carefully
preserve the rightful prerogatives of the crown, while putting an end to
those arbitrary powers, the existence of which was incompatible with the
very name of freedom.

In making the necessary arrangements, the long disuse of the Assembly was
a circumstance greatly in favor of the Government, if Necker had had skill
to avail himself of it, since it wholly freed him from the obligation of
being guided by former precedents. Those arrangements were long and warmly
debated in the king's council. Though the records of former sessions had
been so carelessly preserved that little was known of their proceedings,
it seemed to be established that the representatives of the Commons had
usually amounted to about four-tenths of the whole body, those of the
clergy and of the nobles being each about three-tenths; and that they had
almost invariably deliberated and voted in separate chambers; and the
princes and the chief nobles presented memorials to the king, in which
they almost unanimously recommended an adherence to these ancient forms;
while, with patriotic prudence, they sought to obviate all jealousy of
their own pretensions or views which might be entertained or f