to reply.

"You who pretend to have the courage of virtue, have the courage of
truth," cried Charlier; "name the individuals you accuse."

Tumult and confusion followed these daring words. Robespierre, unable to
gain the ear of the assembly, which now seemed filled with his enemies,
and finding the feeling against him rapidly spreading, left the hall and
took refuge with the Jacobins, where he repeated his address, this time
to applauding hearers. Violent councils followed. Henriot, commandant of
the troops, proposed to march on the Convention and put an end to its
existence. "Name thy enemies," shouted the members to Robespierre; "we
will deliver them to thee." Yet there was hesitation and doubt among the
leaders; they feared the result of violent measures, and felt inclined
to temporize and wait.

The Convention met the next day. It met inspired with a new spirit.
Courage animated the members. They had crossed the Rubicon, and felt
that there was no return. During the interval since the last session
their forces had been organized, their plans considered. Saint-Just
appeared and sought to speak. He was interrupted and his words drowned
by the voices of indignant members.

"I see here," cried Billaud-Varennes, who stood beside him, "one of the
men who yesterday, at the Jacobins, promised the massacre of the
National Convention; let him be arrested."

The officers obeyed this order. Saint-Just was in custody. Billaud
continued his remarks, declaring that the members were in danger of
massacre, denouncing Robespierre and his supporters, bidding them to be
firm and resolute. His boldness infected the assembly; the deputies
stood up and waved their hats, shouting their approval. In the midst of
this scene Robespierre appeared, livid with rage, his eyes flashing with
the fury which inspired him.

"I demand liberty to speak," he exclaimed.

"Down with the tyrant!" rose in a roar from a hundred voices.

Tallien, the leader of the opposition, sprang into the tribune.

"I demand that the veil be torn away instantly," he exclaimed. "The work
is done, the conspirators are unmasked. Yesterday, at the Jacobins, I
saw the army of the new Cromwell formed, and I have come here armed with
a dagger to pierce his heart if the Assembly dares not decree his
accusation. I demand the arrest of Henriot and his staff."

The debate went on, growing more violent minute by minute. Several times
Robespierre strove to speak, but each t