turn it to your advantage. The king has chosen to quit his post at
the moment of our most deadly perils, both at home and abroad. The
Assembly has lost its credit; all men's minds are excited by the
approaching elections. The emigres are at Coblentz. The emperor and the
king of Sweden are at Brussels; our harvests are ripe to feed their
troops; but three millions of men are under arms in France, and this
league of Europe may easily be vanquished. I fear neither Leopold, nor
the king of Sweden. That which alone terrifies me, seems to reassure all
others. It is the fact that since this morning all our enemies affect to
use the same language as ourselves. All men are united, and in
appearance wear the same aspect. It is impossible that all can feel the
same joy at the flight of a king who possessed a revenue of forty
millions of francs, and who distributed all the offices of state amongst
his adherents and our enemies; there are traitors, then, among us; there
is a secret understanding between the fugitive king and these traitors
who have remained at Paris. Read the king's manifesto, and the whole
plot will be there unveiled. The king, the emperor, the king of Sweden,
d'Artois, Conde, all the fugitives, all these brigands, are about to
march against us. A paternal manifesto will appear, in which the king
will talk of his love of peace, and even of liberty; whilst at the same
time the traitors in the capital and the departments will represent you,
on their part, as the leaders of the civil war. Thus the Revolution will
be stifled in the embraces of hypocritical despotism and intimidated
moderatism.
"Look already at the Assembly: in twenty decrees the king's flight is
termed carrying off by force (_enlevement_). To whom does it intrust the
safety of the people? To a minister of foreign affairs, under the
inspection of diplomatic committee. Who is the minister? A traitor whom
I have unceasingly denounced to you, the persecutor of the patriot
soldiers, the upholder of the aristocrat officers. What is the
committee? A committee of traitors composed of all our enemies beneath
the garb of patriots. And the minister for foreign affairs, who is he? A
traitor, a Montmorin, who but a short month ago declared a perfidious
_adoration_ of the constitution. And Delissart, who is he? A traitor, to
whom Necker has bequeathed his mantle to cover his plots and
conspiracies.
"Do you not see the coalition of these men with the king, and th
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