They placed at my disposal the force necessary to secure their independence. I was bound, in duty to my fellow citizens, to the soldiers perishing in our armies, and to the national glory, acquired at the cost of so much blood, to accept the command.
"The councils assembled at St. Cloud. Republican troops guaranteed their safety from without, but assassins created terror within. Many members of the Council of the Five Hundred, armed with stilettos and pistols, spread menaces of death around them.
"The plans which ought to have been developed were withheld. The majority of the council was rendered inefficient; the boldest orators were disconcerted, and the inutility of submitting any salutary proposition was quite evident.
"I proceeded, filled with indignation and grief, to the Council of the Ancients. I besought them to carry their noble designs into execution. I directed their attention to the evils of the nation, which were their motives for conceiving those designs. They concurred in giving me new proofs of their uniform good-will.
"I presented myself before the Council of the Five Hundred, alone, unarmed, my head uncovered, just as the Ancients had received
