ame chamber during his severe
malady, and especially of the skilful and voluntary
assistance lent him by General O'Hara's surgeon. He relates
an anecdote of himself which may not be unworthy of
repeating. An arret of the Committee of Public Welfare had
given directions to the administrators of the palace
[Luxembourg] to enter all the prisons with additional guards
and dispossess every prisoner of his knives, forks, and
every other sharp instrument; and also to take their money
from them. This happened a short time before Mr. Paine's
illness, and as this ceremony was represented to him as an
atrocious plunder in the dregs of municipality, he
determined to avert its effect so far as it concerned
himself. He had an English bank note of some value and gold
coin in his pocket, and as he conceived the visitors would
rifle them, as well as his trunks (though they did not do so
by any one) he took off the lock from his door, and hid the
whole of what he had about him in its inside. He recovered
his health, he found his money, but missed about three
hundred of his associated prisoners, who had been sent in
crowds to the murderous tribunal, while he had been
insensible of their or his own danger." This was probably
the money (L200) loaned by Paine to General O'Hara (who
figured at the Yorktown surrender) in prison.--_Editor._

During the whole of my imprisonment, prior to the fall of Robespierre,
there was no time when I could think my life worth twenty-four hours,
and my mind was made up to meet its fate. The Americans in Paris went in
a body to the Convention to reclaim me, but without success. There was
no party among them with respect to me. My only hope then rested on the
government of America, that it would _remember me_. But the icy heart of
ingratitude, in whatever man it be placed, has neither feeling nor
sense of honour. The letter of Mr. Jefferson has served to wipe away the
reproach, and done justice to the mass of the people of America.(1)

1 Printed in the seventh of this series of Letters.--
_Editor._.

When a party was forming, in the latter end of 1777, and beginning of
1778, of which John Adams was one, to remove Mr. Washington from the
command of the army on the complaint that _he did nothing_, I wrote the
fifth number of the Crisis, and published it at Lancaster, (Congress
then bein