Before the Rue Neuve St. Augustin these pacific demonstration-men disarmed and ill-treated two detached sentries of the National Guard. Seeing this, the Federals of the Place Vendome seized their muskets and hurried in marching order to the top of the Rue Neuve des Petits-Champs. They were but 200, the whole garrison of the place; the two cannon levelled at the Rue de la Paix had no cartridges. The reactionists soon encountered the first line with the cry, "Down with the Committee! Down with the assassins!" waving a banner and their handkerchiefs, while some of them stretched out their hands to seize the muskets. Bergeret, Maljournal, members of the Committee, in the first ranks, summoned the rioters to retire. Furious cries of "Cowards! brigands!" drowned their voices, and sword-canes were pointed at them. Bergeret made a sign to the drummers. A dozen times the _sommations_ were made and repeated. For several minutes only the roll of the drums was heard, and between these savage cries. The ranks in the rear of the manifestation pushed on those in front and tried to break through the lines of the Federals. At last, despairing no doubt of succeeding by mere bravado, the insurgents fired their revolvers;[96] two guards were killed and seven wounded;[97] Maljournal was struck in the thigh. The muskets of the guards went off, so to say, spontaneously. A volley and a terrible cry, followed by silence more dismal. In a few seconds the crowded Rue de la Paix was emptied. In the deserted road, strewn with revolvers, sword-canes, and hats, lay about a dozen corpses. If the Federals had only aimed at foes' hearts, there would have been 200 killed, for in this compact mass no shot would have missed. The insurgents had killed one of their own, the Vicomte de Molinat, fallen in the front ranks, his face towards the place, a ball in the occiput. On his body was found a poniard fixed by a small chain. A witty ball struck in the rear the chief editor of the _Paris Journal_, the Bonapartist De Pene, one of the basest revilers of the movement. The runaways traversed Paris shouting, "Murder!" The shops of the boulevards were closed and the Place de la Bourse filled with rabid groups. At four o'clock some of the reactionist companies appeared, resolute, in good order, their muskets on their shoulders, and took possession of the quarters of the Bourse. At three o'clock the event became known at Versailles. The Assembly had just rejected Louis Blanc's bill on the municipal council, and Picard was reading another one refusing all justice to Paris, when the news arrived. The Assembly precipitately raised the sitting; the Ministers looked dumbfoundered.