As we
approached the railway, the barricades were no longer formed of
palings, planks, or stones; but they had got all the omnibuses as
they passed, sent the horses and passengers about their business,
and turned them over. A double row of overturned coaches made a
capital barricade, with a few paving stones.
'When I got home I found to my astonishment that in our fighting
quarter it was much quieter. Mamma had just been out seeing the
troops in the Place de la Concorde, when suddenly the Municipal
Guard, now fairly exasperated, prevented the National Guard from
proceeding, and fired at them; the National Guard had come with
their muskets not loaded, but at length returned the fire. Mamma
saw the National Guard fire. The Municipal Guard were round the
corner. She was delighted for she saw no person killed, though
many of the Municipals were. . . . .
'I immediately went out with my papa (mamma had just come back with
him) and went to the Place de la Concorde. There was an enormous
quantity of troops in the Place. Suddenly the gates of the gardens
of the Tuileries opened: we rushed forward, out gallopped an
enormous number of cuirassiers, in the middle of which were a
couple of low carriages, said first to contain the Count de Paris
and the Duchess of Orleans, but afterwards they said it was the
King and Queen; and then I heard he had abdicated.
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