France in the Nineteenth CenturyLatimer, Elizabeth Wormeley
History
France in the Nineteenth Century
Latimer, Elizabeth Wormeley
France -- History -- 1789-1900
"After remaining two hours at this barricade, and seeing no fighting,
I turned on to the Boulevard. There, troops were advancing slowly,
with loaded cannon. From time to time they charged the people, who
slipped out of the way by side streets, as I did myself. Coming
back on the Boulevard des Italiens, I found the entire length of
the Boulevards, from the Porte Saint-Denis to the Madeleine, filled
with troops in order of battle. In the novelty and beauty of the
scene I quite lost sight of danger. At one time they chased away
the crowd; but soon sentinels were removed from the corners of the
streets, and as many spectators as thought proper pressed on to
the sidewalks of the Boulevard.... Opposite to me was the Seventh
Lancers,--a fine corps, recently arrived in Paris. Suddenly, at
the upper end of the line, the discharge of a cannon was heard,
followed by a blaze of musketry and a general charge. The spectators
on the Boulevard took to flight. They pitched into open doors,
or loudly demanded entrance at the closed ones. I was fortunate
enough to get into a neighboring carriage-way, through the grated
_porte-cochère_ of which I could see what was going on. The firing
was tremendous. Volley after volley followed so fast that it seemed
like one continued peal of thunder. Suddenly there was a louder
and a nearer crash. The cavalry in front of me wavered; and then,
as if struck by a panic, turned and rushed in disorder down the
street, making the ground tremble under their tread. What could
have occurred? In a few minutes they came charging back, firing
their pistols on all sides. Then came a quick succession of orders:
'Shut all windows! Keep out of sight! Open the blinds!' etc. It
seemed that unexpected shots had been fired from some of the windows
on the soldiers, from which they had suffered so much as to cause a
recoil. The roll of firearms was now terrific. Mortars and cannon
were fired at short-range point-blank at the suspicious houses, which
were then carried by assault. The rattle of small shot against windows
and walls was incessant. This, too, was in the finest part of the
Boulevard. Costly houses were completely riddled, their fronts were
knocked in, their floors pierced with balls. The windows throughout
the neighborhood were destroyed by the concussion of the cannon. Of
the hairbreadth escape of some of the inmates, and of the general
destruction of property, I need not speak. The Government afterwards
footed all the bills for the last. The firing continued for more
than an hour, and then receded to more distant parts of the city;
for the field of combat embraced an area of several miles, and there
were forty thousand troops engaged in it. As soon as I could do
so with safety, I left my covert, and endeavored to see what had
happened elsewhere. But troops guarded every possible avenue, and
fired on all those who attempted to approach any interdicted spot.
I noticed some pools of blood, but the corpses had been removed; in
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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