The proclamation of the worship of Reason marked the ascendency of this party, and from that moment its decline began. The orgies which accompanied its triumph, the tyranny which it had established in Paris, and the license and brutality which distinguished its representatives in the departments caused grave dissatisfaction in the Jacobin ranks. The majority of the Convention submitted, but they submitted with indignation and disgust, and though they had not the courage to rebel, they were prepared to welcome anyone who would give voice to the resentment which they felt. Under these circumstances a second party raised its head among the forces of the time. Philippeaux and Fabre d'Églantine, two well-known deputies of the Mountain believed to be on terms of intimacy with Danton, came forward to attack the proceedings of the Hébertists. Others, like Westermann and Bourdon de l'Oise, Legendre, Lecointre, Lacroix and many others, joined in the attack with more or less reserve. On the same side Camille Desmoulins threw himself into the battle with all his impetuous eloquence and ardour; and behind the attacking forces there rose, impressive and conspicuous as ever, the figure of the man whom all regarded as a leader, and whom the rising opposition hoped to make the spokesman of their protest against the Commune and the Terror alike. Danton, like so many of his contemporaries, had soon wearied of the system of the Terror. He watched with repugnance the ruin which it spread. He had no liking for political intrigue. He felt strongly the need of stability and order, if there were ever again to be a settled government in France. It is true that in the earlier days Danton had taken a chief part in securing the Jacobin triumph. In the heat of the revolutionary struggle, in the moment of national danger, no one had been readier to act. He had encouraged and organised the insurrection of the 10th August. He had grasped the helm of State during the perilous days which followed. Many of the characteristic Jacobin measures--the wholesale arrest of the suspected in September, the foundation of the Committee of Public Safety, the establishment of the Revolutionary Tribunal, of the Maximum and of the tax on the rich, the formation of the Revolutionary Army, the proclamation of the Terror, the conscription and the defence of France--had been largely due to his initiative or support. In common with the rest of his party, Danton had opposed the declaration of war, but as soon as the invaders appeared upon the frontier, he had thrown himself into the battle heart and soul. He cared little for party jangles; but he cared intensely for the honour and greatness of his country. Free alike from narrow theories, from absorbing jealousies and from morbid ambition, Danton had always viewed events with a statesman's eye. He had seen Dumouriez' failings, but he had seen also his conspicuous ability, and he had supported him staunchly to the end. He had seen, as Mirabeau had