the Hotel de
Ville, and endeavoured to force the Government to declare that it would
not treat with the Prussians whilst they were on French soil, and to
allow them to establish a "Commune" as an _imperium in imperio_. "The
army of the Loire," said my friend, "will soon fall on the rear of the
Prussians; we have only to hold out for a few weeks, and this, depend
upon it, we shall do." Now, to the best of my belief, the army of the
Loire only exists on paper, but here was a sensible man talking of it as
though it consisted of some 200,000 seasoned troops; and what is more
strange, he is by no means singular in his belief. A fortnight ago it
was the army of Lyons, now it is the army of the Loire. How reasonable
men can allow themselves to put their faith in these men of buckram, I
cannot imagine.

_September 23rd._

Firing has been going on since three o'clock this morning. The
newspapers contain accounts more or less veracious respecting fights
outside the forts, in which great numbers of Prussians have been killed.
M. Jules Favre publishes an account of his interview with Count Bismarck
in the _Journal Officiel_. M. Villemessant in the _Figaro_ informs the
world that he has left his wife outside, and would willingly allow one
of his veins to be opened in exchange for a letter from her. We are
still engaged in our old occupation--vowing to die for our country. I
hear that there has been serious fighting in the neighbourhood of St.
Denis. This morning I saw another of the '48 Republicans--he seemed
inclined to upset the Government more on the ground that they are
incapable than because he differs with them in politics. I give this
letter to a friend who will get it into the balloon, and go off to the
Trocadero, to see how things are getting on.

The Solferino Tower on the Buttes Montmartre has been pulled down. No
one is to be allowed to hoist the Geneva flag unless the house contains
at least six beds for wounded. We have now a bread as well as a meat
maximum.

_September 24th._

We are as despondent to-day as we were jubilant yesterday. The success
at the front seems to have dwindled down to an insignificant artillery
combat. The _Electeur Libre_ gives the following account of it. On the
previous evening 8,000 Prussians had taken the redoubt of _Villejuif_.
At one in the morning some regiments advanced from there towards Vitry,
and occupied the mill of Saqui, while on the left about 5,000
established themsel