O.M.? Silent--sombre--dogged--we go through
the dreary round. Tout casse--tout passe--tout lasse.
CHAPTER XVII.
THE FIGHT IN THE HOUSE.
[Sidenote: The fatal Thursday.]
By this time everybody has read to his heart's content all the
proceedings of that historic and dreadful Thursday night. I have already
published elsewhere an account of my experiences; and within my limits
here I must somewhat curtail the story. But it is well to correct some
of the many errors which have found their way into the press. In the
slight reaction which has followed the first wild outburst, it is now
seen that there were certain exaggerations in the accounts. For
instance, though there was an exchange of blows, altogether not more
than five people were concerned in this most odious part of the whole
transaction.
[Sidenote: Herod--Judas.]
The row began in a curious kind of way; and, indeed, to properly
understand the events of the night, it is necessary to make a perfectly
complete separation between two distinct periods. The fall of the
guillotine is always certain to be accompanied by a scene of some
excitement and violence. The violence has been diminishing steadily, as
the different compartments have succeeded each other; and though there
were some ugly rumours, the general expectation was that things would
not be so very bad.
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