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probable fome imprudent perfons were about to attempt a rifing, which would be as unfuccefsful, on account of the fmallness of their numbers and their foolish conduct, as that which was undertaken fome months before.

I learned at the Marchionefs Maffimi's, that four of the leaders of this affair were the fpies of the government, which had taken measures to defeat the plan of the infurgents, and that the infurgents were to meet at Villa Medicis. We feparated.

On the following morning, at four, I was awakened, and told that there was a revolutionary movement at the Villa Medicis, where from eighty to one hundred men were assembled, and furrounded by the Pope's troops. I went to fleep again. In the course of the morning I learned that a patrole had been attacked by a band of fixty men. Two of the Pope's dragoons were kill ed. Some of the infurgents were apprehended, and the others known to the government. Many individuals had hoifted the French national cockade; a fack filled with which had been left, as if by accident, at the fpot where they were affembled. I went to the fecretary of ftate, whom I found tranquil, and told him, that, far from oppofing the arreft of thofe who had hoifted the cockade, I demanded of him that this arreft fhould take place, with the exception of the French and Italians attached to my embally thefe amounted only to the number of eight, and I pointed them out to him, and propofed his immediately adopting measures against them. I informed him, that there were fix individuals who had taken refuge in my jurifdiction; that if they were in the number of revolters, I fhould willingly come to an accommodation with him, in order that the impunity of these men might not give confidence. It was then two in the afternoon, and the hour of dinner with the cardinal. He begged me to retire for the prefent, promifing to meet me at fix in the evening, at the Spanish minifter's, whither he was to go with the Tuscan minifter. All this we agreed to.

I now returned home, convinced, by the ferenity of the fecretary of state, that the affair of the preceding night would have no difaftrous confequence. I found at my houfe General Duphot and Adjutant-general Sherlock, and two French painters. We fpoke of the paltry revolutionary attempt of the night before, as the news of the moment. We were about to fit down to table, but were retarded by the abfence of my fecretaries, who were engaged in drawing up a correct lift of the perfons entitled to wear the French national cockade. This I wished to fend to the fecretary of frate before dinner, The porter now informed me, that twenty individuals were determined to force the house, and had in their hands a large quantity of French national cockades, which they were diftributing to the paffers by, whom they excited to call out, Vive la republique Vive le peuple Romain!One of them infifted

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infifted on fpeaking with me: it was an artist, whom I knew, having been recommended to me at Paris by the minister, your predeceffor. He preferted himself to me with the air of a fanatic: "We are free," faid he, "but we demand the Support of France." This mad oration was particularly revolting in the mouth of an artist who had been one of the three with whom I had had the conversation on the 26th. I made him fenfible of this. I defired him and his companions to retire immediately from the jurifdiction of France, or otherwife that I fhould take ftrong measures against them. He drew back, confounded. The military men who were with me endeavoured to convince them of the folly of their enterprise. "Were the government of the town," said General Sherlock, "to point a fingle cannon against you, what would become of your pretended liberty?" Upon this, the man withdrew.

A French artift came and informed me, that the number of the multitude without increased; that he had diftinguished in the crowd a number of the fpies of government, who were well known, and who called out, louder than the reft, Vive la republique! Vive le peuple Romain!" that handfuls of piafters were thrown among them, and that the entry to the court was obftruct ed. The French officers demanded of me onders to difperfe the mob by force. I chose rather to speak to them myself in their own tongue. Idreffed myself in my diplomatic robe, and went into the court, accompanied by the French officers who were then in the palace. I heard a long discharge of mufketry. A party of cavalry had penetrated into the midst of the place, within the French jurifdiction, and were croffing it at full gallop. They had fired through the three great porticos of the palace. The mob had taken refuge in the court yard, and on the stair-cafe. I met in my paffage with nothing but perfons dying, intimidated fugitives, bold enthusiasts, and perfons hired to excite and to denounce the agents of commotion. A company of fufiliers had followed the cavalry very close. I found them partly advancing into the portals of my palace. At my prefence, they stopped. Lasked for their leader, whom, being hid in their ranks, I could not diftinguith. I asked this troop, by whofe order they had-entered into the jurisdiction of France. I ordered them to withdraw. They drew back a few paces, and I thought that I had fucceeded in that point. I then withdrew towards the mob, who had retired into the interior of the court. As the troops withdrew, fome of the mob advanced against them as fast as they went off. I told them, in a decided tone, that I would compel the first amongst them who fhould dare to pafs the middle of the ftreet to return; at the fame time General Duphot, Adjutantgeneral Sherlock, two other officers, and myself, drew our

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fwords, to awe this unarmed affemblage, a few of whom only had pistols and stilettoes.

While we were thus bufied, the fufiliers, who had merely retreated to get without the reach of the piftol fhots, made a gene- ' ral difcharge. Some of the people in the outer ranks were wounded by the spent balls. We who were in the middle were, however, refpected. The fufiliers prepared to load again. I took advantage of this moment. I recommended it to citizen Beauharnais, the aide-de-camp of the commander in chief, who chanced to be with me on his return from a miflion to the Levant, and to the affiftant of Adjutant-general Arrighi, to reftrain, fabre in hand, this troop, which was animated by very different fentiments; and I advanced with General Duphot and Adjutant-general Sherlock, in order to perfuade the company of fufiliers to retire, and to ceafe firing. I called out to them to retire from the jurifdiction of France; that the ambaffador would himself undertake to fee juftice done; that they had nothing to do for this purpose but to detach fome of their officers or inferior officers to the Vatican, to their general, to the governor of Rome, or to the fenator, or any other public man, when all would be at an end.

The too brave General Duphot, accustomed to conquer, threw himself among the bayonets of the Pope's foldiers; he pre vented one from charging, and avoided the push of another; he followed him, as it were, by inftinct. He was fimply a mediator between the two parties. Mifled by his courage, he proceeded as far as the Gate Septiminiana. A foldier fired a musket at him, and the contents lodged in his breaft. He fell, but rofe again, and fupported himself on his fabre. A fecond fhot extended him on the pavement, and about fifty more were directed against his inanimate body.

The Adjutant-general Sherlock received no wound; he faw his brave comrade fall: all their attention was now directed against us. He pointed out a way to me which led us to the garden of the palace, and withdrew us from all danger-from the affaffins of Duphot, and from another which had now come up, and was firing on us from the other fide of the street. The two young officers, preffed by this fecond company, joined us: they fuggefted a new fpecies of danger to me. This newly-arrived company might enter the palace, whither my wife and her fifter, who was on the following day to be married to General Duphot, had been carried by force by my fecretaries, who had returned, and by fome young artifts. We regained the palace by the way of the garden. The courts were filled with bafe wretches who had contrived this horrible fcene. About twenty of them, together, with fomne peaceable citizens who had remained on the field

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of battle, entered the palace; the ways were dyed with blood; dying men were feen drawing their limbs after them, and wounded men lamenting at every step. The gates of the portico were at length (hut.

The lamentation of the miftrefs of Duphot, that young hero, who conftantly commanded the advanced guard of the armies of the Pyrenées and of Italy, had always been victorious, now cut off, without defence, by mean ruffians-the absence of the mother of my wife, and of her brother, whom curiofity had caufed to leave the palace, in order to view the monuments-the firing which continued in the streets and before the gates of the palacethe palace of Corfini, which I inhabit, furrounded by people of whose intentions I was ignorant: thefe circumstances, and feveral others, rendered the fcene the most affecting I ever witneffed.

I caused my domeftics to be called-three of them were abfent. I caufed the arms with which I had travelled to be ready in that wing of the palace which I inhabited. A fentiment of national pride, which I could not fubdue, prompted fome of the officers to go and refcue the body of their unfortunate general. They fucceeded by the help of feveral faithful domeftics, paffing by a private way, in fpite of the uncertain and ill-directed fire which the debafed and effeminate foldiery of Rome continued on their field of flaughter. They found the body of this amiable general, formerly animated by fuch a fublime fpirit of heroism, ripped, pierced with wounds, ftained with blood, and covered with ftones.

It was fix o'clock in the evening: two hours had elapfed fince the murder of General Duphot, and no perfon came to me on the part of government. Upon hearing the recital of the ftate of the body of our unfortunate fellow-citizen, I determined to quit Rome. Indignation fuggefted this project; no confideration, no power on earth would have made me change it: nevertheless, I determined to write to Cardinal Doria the letter No. I. A faithful domestic traversed the foldiers-his route was traced in the darknefs by his companions from the fire of musketry. At length they knocked with redoubled fury-a carriage ftopped-it was perhaps the governor, the general, the fenator, fome public officer!No; it was a friend; it was the Chevalier Angiolini, minifter of Tufcany. He traverfed the patroles, the troops of the line, and the civic troops: his carriage was ftopped. He was asked if he wished to plunge himfelf into danger. He answered, that no danger could exift within the jurifdiction of the French ambalfador. This generous reproach was a se vere and true criticifm upon the conduct of the Roman governors, against the officers of a nation to whom they owe the remainder of their political existence.

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M le Chevalier Azarra, minifter of Spain, did not delay fto make his appearance. This man, justly honoured by his court, alfo defpifed all dangers. He had been a long time with me. It was then eleven o'clock at night, and they could not avoid expreffing their furprise at feeing no public officer arrive. I wrote to the cardinal the fecond letter, the copy of which is hereunto annexed (No. II.). I received, a few minutes after, his anfwer, hereunto annexed (No. III.). At last, an officer, with forty men, whofe intentions I am fure were good, came, by direc tion of the fecretary of state, in order to protect my communication with him. But neither he, nor any other perfon, capable of concerting any decifive meafures with me, for the purpose of delivering me from the revolters, who ftill occupied one part of my jurifdiction, and from the troops who occupied the other, came to me on the part of government, notwithstanding the repeated demands I had made. I then determined to depart; the fentiments of indignation had given place to reafon. I then wrote the letter No. IV. to the secretary of state, demanding a pallport. He fent it to me two hours after midnight, with the letter No. V. I made all the neceffary regulations in the dead of the night, with the fang froid of a determined refolution.

I wrote to the fecretary of ftate letter VI. which he seemed to defire in answer to that which accompanied the one addreffed to the Marquis of Maflimi, minifter of the Pope at Paris.

At fix o'clock in the morning of the 9th, fourteen hours after the affaffination of General Duphot, and the investing of my palace, and of the malfacre of the people who furrounded its no Roman came to me from government to know the fituation of affairs. fet out, after having taken measures for the fafety of the few French that remained in Rome. The Chevalier Angiolini was requested to deliver them paffports for Tufcany, where they found me, and, after my departure, Citizen Cacault, with whom I am at prefent, with the Frenchmen, who have not quitted me fince the danger commenced.

After the fimple relation of facts which I have made, I fhould do injury to republicans, to infift upon that vengeance which the French government fhould take upon this impious government,which, having affaflinated Baffeville, would willingly have served the first ambatfador whom the French government deigned to fend to them in the fame manner; and to commit that crime upon a general who was diftinguifhed as a prodigy of valour, in an army in which every man was a hero.

Citizen minifter, I will not delay my journey to Paris; as foon as I fhall have regulated the remainder of my affairs, I will give you new details upon the Roman government, and I will ftate the punishment which I think ought to be inflicted upon

them.

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