m the sudden fury of the people. The royal
fugitives having been stopped at Varennes and brought back to the
Tuileries on the 25th, he saved them, by his personal efforts, from
being torn in pieces by the mob, but was compelled to guard them
much more strictly than before. On July 17th a disorderly assemblage
gathered in the Champ de Mars to petition for the overthrow of the
monarchy, and, in the tumult that ensued on the appearance of the
troops, Lafayette ordered a volley of musketry, whereby the rioters
were dispersed with a loss of several killed and wounded, but
whereby, also, while that act of firmness elicited commendation from
all lovers of order, occasion was given for further intrigues on the
part of his enemies and the shattering of his influence among the
lower classes. A momentary gleam of sunshine broke forth in
September, when, the king having accepted the new constitution,
Lafayette took advantage of the general state of good feeling
thereby produced to propose a comprehensive act of amnesty for all
offences committed on either side during the revolution, which was
passed by the Constituent Assembly just before its final adjournment
on the 30th. On that day he resigned, permanently, the command of
the National Guard, and retired to his estate at Chavaignac, being
followed by the most gratifying testimonials of public regard, among
them a sword and a marble statue of Washington, presented by the
city of Paris, and a sword cast from one of the bolts of the
Bastille, given by his old soldiers. Contrary to his personal
wishes, his friends and his patriotism persuaded him, in November,
to stand as a candidate for the mayoralty of Paris, with the result
that might have been foreseen, for Petion, being supported both by
the Jacobins and by the court party, was elected by a large
majority. This defeat did not prevent Lafayette's appointment, a
month later, to the command of one of the three armies formed to
defend the frontier against an expected invasion of the Austrians,
the rank of lieutenant-general being given to him, with the exalted
honor of marshal of France. War was declared against Austria, April
20, 1792, and hostilities began, but even the active service in
which he was engaged could not keep his thoughts from the political
condition of the country, and on June 16th he wrote to the
Legislative Assembly, which had succeeded the Constituent in the
previous autumn, a letter in which he pointed out the d