by three of their
number. Meetings were held every day, and at last became so numerous
that the town authorities called in the aid of the militia-dragoons to
disperse them. Now these gatherings consisted chiefly of those tillers
of the soil who are called cebets, from a Provencal word cebe, which
means "onion," and they could easily be recognised as Catholics by their
red pouf, which they wore both in and out of uniform. On the other hand,
the dragoons were all Protestants.

However, these latter were so very gentle in their admonitions, that
although the two parties found themselves, so to speak, constantly face
to face and armed, for several days the meetings were dispersed without
bloodshed. But this was exactly what the cebets did not want, so they
began to insult the dragoons and turn them into ridicule. Consequently,
one morning they gathered together in great numbers, mounted on asses,
and with drawn swords began to patrol the city.

At the same time, the lower classes, who were nearly all Catholics,
joined the burlesque patrols in complaining loudly of the dragoons, some
saying that their horses had trampled on their children, and others that
they had frightened their wives.

The Protestants contradicted them, both parties grew angry, swords were
half drawn, when the municipal authorities came on the scene, and instead
of apprehending the ringleaders, forbade the dragoons to patrol the town
any more, ordering them in future to do nothing more than send twenty men
every day to mount guard at the episcopal palace and to undertake no
other duty except at the express request of the Town Council. Although
it was expected that the dragoons would revolt against such a
humiliation, they submitted, which was a great disappointment to the
cebets, who had been longing for a chance to indulge in new outrages.
For all that, the Catholics did not consider themselves beaten; they felt
sure of being able to find some other way of driving their quarry to bay.

Sunday, the 13th of June, arrived. This day had been selected by the
Catholics for a great demonstration. Towards ten o'clock in the morning,
some companies wearing the red tuft, under pretext of going to mass,
marched through the city armed and uttering threats. The few dragoons,
on the other hand, who were on guard at the palace, had not even a
sentinel posted, and had only five muskets in the guard-house. At two
o'clock P.M. there was a meeting held in the