the origins of contemporary france-4-第111章
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p。 10。 (The Delécluze family live in Mendon in 1794 and for most of
1795。 M。 Delécluze; senior; and his son go to Meaux and obtain of a
farmer a bag of good flour weighing three hundred and twenty five
pounds for about ten louis d'or and fetch it home; taking the greatest
pains to keep it concealed。 Both father and son 〃after having covered
the precious sack with hay and straw in the bottom of the cart; follow
it on foot at some distance as the peasant drives along。〃 Madame
Delécluze kneads the bread herself and bakes it。
'120' Archives Nationales; AF。; II。; 74。 The following shows some of
the municipal expenditures。 (Deliberations of the commune of Annecy;
Thermidor 8; year II I。) 〃Amount received by the commune from the
government; 1;200;000 francs。 Fraternal subscriptions; 400;000
francs。 Forced loan; 2;400;000 francs。 Amount arising from grain
granted by the government; but not paid for; 400;000 francs。〃 (Letter
from the municipality of Lille; Fructidor 7 ) 〃The deficit; at the
time we took hold of the government; which; owing to the difference
between the price of grain bought and the price obtained for bread
distributed among the necessitous; had amounted to 2;270;023 francs;
so increased in Thermidor as to amount to 8;312;956 francs。〃
consequently; the towns ruin themselves with indebtedness to an
incredible extent。 … Archives Nationales; AF。; II。; 72。 (Letter of
the municipality of Tours; Vendémiaire 19; year IV。) Tours has not
sufficient money with which to buy oil for its street lamps and which
are no longer lit at night。 A decree is passed to enable the agent
for provisions at Paris to supply its commissaries with twenty
quintals of oil which; for three hundred and forty lamps; keeps one
hundred agoing up to Germinal 1。 The same at Toulouse。 (Report of
Destrene; Moniteur; June 24; 1798。) On November 26; 1794; Bordeaux is
unable to pay seventy two francs for thirty barrels of water to wash
the guillotine。 (Granier de Cassagnac; I。; 13。 Extract from the
archives of Bordeaux。) Bordeaux is authorized to sell one thousand
casks of wine which had formerly been taken on requisition by the
government; the town to pay for them at the rate at which the Republic
bought them and to sell them as dear as possible in the way of regular
trade。 The proceeds are to be employed in providing subsistence for
its inhabitants。 (Archives Nationales; AF。; II。; 72; orders of
Vendémiaire 4; year IV。) As to aid furnished by the assignats granted
to towns and departments cf。 the same files; 400;000 francs to
Poitiers; Pluvi?se 18; four millions to Lyons; Pluvi?se 17; three
millions a month to Nantes; after Thermidor 14; ten millions to the
department of Herault in Frimaire and Pluvi?se ; etc。
'121' Archives Nationales; II。; § 1; file 2。 (Deliberations of the
commune of Troyes; Vent?se 15; year III。) … 〃Un Sejour en France。〃
(Amiens; May 9; 1795。) 〃As we had obtained a few six franc crowns and
were able to get a small supply of wheat。 。 。 。 Mr。 D and the
servants eat bread made of three fourths bran and one fourth flour。
When we bake it we carefully close the doors; paying no attention to
the door bell; and allow no visitor to come in until every trace of
the operation is gone。 。 。 The distribution now consists of a
mixture of sprouted wheat; peas; rye; etc。; which scarcely resembles
bread。〃 (April 12。) 〃The distribution of bread (then) was a quarter of
a pound a day。 Many of those who in other respects were well off; got
nothing at all。〃
'122' Ibid。 (Letters of the municipality of Troyes; Vent?se 15; year
III。; and Germinal 6。) Letter of the three deputies; sent by the
municipality to Paris; Pluvi?se ; year III。 (no date。)
'123' 〃Un Sejour en France。〃 (Amiens; Jan。 30; 1795。) Archives
Nationales。 AF。;II。; 74。 (Deliberation of the commune of Amiens;
Thermidor 8; and Fructidor 7; year III。)
'124' 〃Souvenirs et Journal d'un Bourgeois d'Evreux;〃 p。 97。 (The
women stop carts loaded with wheat; keep them all night; stone and
wound Representative Bernier; and succeed in getting; each; eight
pounds of wheat。)
'125' Archives Nationales; AF。;II。; 73。 (Letter of the municipality
of Dieppe; Prairial 22。) … AF。;II。; 74。 (Letter of the municipality
of Vervins; Messidor 7。 Letter of the municipality of Lille;
Fructidor 7。)
'126' 〃Correspondance de Mallet du Pan avec la Cour de Vienne;〃 I。;
90。 Ibid。; 131。 One month later a quintal of flour at Lyons is worth
two hundred francs and a pound of bread forty…five sous。
'127' Archives Nationales; AF。; II。; 13。 (Letter of the deputies
extraordinary of the three administrative bodies of Chartres;
Thermidor 15: 〃In the name of this commune dying of hunger 〃) … 〃The
inhabitants of Chartres have not even been allowed to receive their
rents in grain; all has been poured into the government storehouses。〃
'128' Ibid。 (Petition of the commune of La Rochelle; Fructidor 25;
that of Painb?uf; Fructidor 9; that of the municipality of Nantes;
Thermidor 14; that of Rouen; Fructidor 1。) … Ibid。; AF。;II; 72。
(Letter of the commune of Bayonne; Fructidor 1。) 〃Penury of provisions
for more than two years。 。 。 。 The municipality; the past six
months; is under the cruel necessity of reducing its subjects to half…
a…pound of corn…bread per day。 。 。 。 at the rate of twenty…five
sous the pound; although the pound costs over five francs。〃 After the
suppression of the 〃maximum 〃 it loses about twenty…five thousand
francs per day。
'129' Ibid。 (Letter of Representative Porcher; Caen; Prairial 24;
Messidor 3 and 26。 Letter of the municipality of Caen; Messidor 3。)
'130' Ibid。 AF。;II。; 71。 (Letter of the municipality of Auxerre;
Messidor 19。) 〃We have kept alive thus far through all sorts of
expedients as if by miracle。 It has required incalculable efforts;
great expenditure; and really supernatural means to accomplish it。
But there is still one month between this and the end of Thermidor。
How are we going to live! Our people; the majority of whom are farmers
and artisans; are rationed at half…a…pound a day for each person and
this will last but ten or twelve days at most。〃
'131' Meissner; 〃Voyage à Paris;〃 339。 〃There was not a morsel of
bread in our inn。 I went myself to five or six bakeries and pastry
shops and found them all stripped。〃 He finds in the last one about a
dozen of small Savoy biscuits for which he pays fifteen francs。 …
See; for the military proceedings of the government in relation to
bread; the orders of the Committee of Public Safety; most of them by
the hand of Lindet; AF。; II。; 68…74。
'132' Schmidt; 〃Tableaux de Paris;〃 vols。 II。 and III 。;passim。
'133' Archives Nationales; AF。;II。; 68。 (Orders of Vent?se 20; year
III。 ; Germinal 19 and 20; Messidor 8; etc。)
'134' ibid。 Orders of Niv?se 5 and 22。
'135' Ibid。 Orders of Pluvi?se 19; Vent?se 5; Floréal 4 and 24。 (The
fourteen brewers which the Republic keeps agoing for itself at Dunkirk
are excepted。) … The proceedings are the same in relation to other
necessary articles; … returns demanded of nuts; rape…seed; and other
seeds or fruits producing oil; also the hoofs of cattle and sheep;
with requisitions for every other article entering into the
manufacture of oil; and orders to keep oil…mills agoing。 〃All
administrative bodies will see that the butchers remove the fat from
their meat before offering it for sale; that they do not themselves
make candles out of it; and that they do not sell it to soap…
factories; etc。 〃 … (Orders of Veridémiaire 28; year III。) The
executive committee will collect eight hundred yoke of oxen and
distribute them among the dealers in hay in order to transport wood
and coal from the woods and collieries to the yards。 They will
distribute proportionately eight hundred sets of wheels and harness。
The wagoners will be paid and guarded the same as military convoys;
and drafted as required。 To feed the oxen; the district
administrators will take by pre…emption the necessary fields and
pasturages; etc。〃 (Orders of Pluvi?se 10; year III。)
'136' Moniteur; XXIV。; 397。 … Schmidt; 〃Tableaux de Paris。〃 (Reports
of Frimaire 16; year IV。) 〃Citizens in the departments wonder how it
is that Paris costs them five hundred and forty six millions per month
merely for bread when they are starving。 This isolation of Paris; for
which all the benefits of the Revolution are exclusively reserved。
has the worst effect on the public mind。〃 … Meissner; 345。
'137' Mercier; 〃Paris Pendant la Révolution;〃 I。; 355…357。 … Schmidt;
〃Pariser Zustande;〃 I。; 224。 (The Seine is frozen over on November 23
and January 23; the thermometer standing at sixteen degrees
(Centigrade) below zero。) … Schmidt; 〃Tableaux de Paris。〃 (Reports of
the Police; Pluvi?se 2; 3 and 4。)
'138' Schmidt; 〃Pariser Zustande;〃 I。; 228; and following pages。
(February 25; the distribution of bread is reduced to one and one…half
pounds per person; March 17; to one and onehalf pounds for workmen and
one pound for others。 Final reduction to one…quarter of a pound;
March 31。) … Ibid。; 251; for ulterior rates。 … Dufort de Cheverney;
(MS。 Mémoires; August; 1795。) M。 de Cheverney takes up his quarters
at the old Louvre with his friend Sedaine。 〃I had assisted them with
food all I could: they owned to me that; without this; they would have
died of starvation notwithstanding their means。〃
'139' Schmidt; 〃Tableaux de Paris。〃 (Reports of Germinal 15 and 27;
and Messidor 28; year III。; Brumaire 14 and Frimaire 23; year IV。) …
Ibid。 (Germinal 15; year III。) Butter is at eight francs the pound;
eggs seven francs for four ounces。 … Ibid。; (Messidor 19) bread is at
sixteen francs the pound; (Messidor 28) butter at fourteen francs the
pound; (Brumaire 29) flour at 14;000 francs the bag of 325 pounds。
'140' Ibid。 (Report of Germinal 12; year III。) 〃The eating houses and
pastry…cooks are better supplied than ever。〃 ?〃Memoires (manuscript)
of M。 de Cheverney。〃 〃My sister…in…law; with more than forty thousand
livres income; registered in the 'Grand Ledger;' was reduced to
cultivating her garden; assisted by her two chambermaids。 M。 de
Richebourg; formerly intendant…general of the Post…Office; had to sell
at one time a clock and at another time a wardrobe to live on。 'My
friends;' he said to us one day; 'I have been obliged to put my clock
in the pot。' 〃 … Schmidt。 (Report of Frimaire 17; year IV。) 〃A
frequenter of the Stock…Exchange sells a louis at five thousand
francs。 He dines for one thousand francs and loudly exclaims: 'I have
dined at four francs ten sous。 They are really superb; these
assignats! I couldn't have dined so well formerly at twelve francs。'〃
'141' Schmidt。 (Reports of Frimaire 9; year IV。) 〃The reports
describe the sad condition of those who; with small incomes and hav