The Insurrection in Paris | Page 3

thing in the church,
cellars and calorifères. They insist on finding there arms and
ammunition.
It is true that, during the siege, the gunners of the national guard, who
occupied the park of artillery established round the basilic, demanded
of the chapter's steward the authorisation to put in the cellars and
calorifères their ammunition which was exposed to the shells of the
Prussians, and that this authorisation was granted them without the
least difficulty.

After the Armistice, they took away all these arms; but could they have
had the indelicacy to leave some behind in order to be able to justify
the impious and sacrilegious robbery they were meditating. This would
be odious but not impossible in such times as these.
A few days before two men employed in guarding the church were
arrested. They were kept 3 or 4 days, and, before being set at liberty,
the keys of the church were taken from them. What took place is
however unknown, for the poor fellows are afraid to utter a word.
A commissary came, in the name of the commune, to sequester the
objects belonging to the church Sainte-Marguerite, in the little borough
of St. Antoine. A picket of 10 national guards is in permanence in the
church to keep sight of the clergy.
The church Saint-Merry has also been ransacked by the sicaires of the
Commune.
The vicar, fortunately, had stolen away from their fraternal visit.
The church Saint-Nicolas-des-Champs is transformed into a
club-house.
The parishioners are robbed, plundered, driven from their temples, and
the preaching of the Gospel is replaced in the pulpit by the
declamations of epileptic tribunes.
At Plaisance they have sequestered a chalice and a sum of 175 franks,
the personal property of M. l'abbé Orse, first vicar.
The curate, M. Blondeau, is in the prisons of the Commune.
MAY 3d.
A manifestation, provoked by the Freemasons, took place in the
afternoon. A body of several thousands of people crossed the
Champs-Élysées, carrying green branches and white flags. Arrived at
the gate Maillot, the firing ceased, but the manifestation was warned

not to approach and that only two parliamentarians would be received.
They accordingly presented themselves and will be this evening at
Versailles. It is reported that yesterday 200 soldiers, wearing the
uniform of troops of the Line, went down the Champs-Élysées. It was
said they were deserters from Versailles. We can positively state as a
certain fact, that from the first week of april no deserter has been
counted in the army of Versailles.
MAY 4th.
Two brigades carried off last night the park, the castle and cemetery of
Issy, taking 8 guns, ammunition and a hundred prisoners. They had a
few dead and 20 wounded. The cemetery is about 210 yards from the
fort. The capture of this fort appears imminent.
Yesterday, Mr. Thiers received two parliamentarians, freemasons, who
declared, however, they had no mandate. Mr. Thiers gave them an
answer similar to those already known; that he desired more than any
body the end of the civil war, but that France could not capitulate
before a few insurgents; that they must apply for peace to the commune
who had troubled it.
Yesterday evening, a parliamentarian summoned the fort of Issy to
capitulate.
The insurgents answered that they were going to deliberate about it,
that they would give a reply in half an hour; then they asked for a
prolongation of the delay.--The parliamentarian returned.
The negociations for the capitulation, resumed in the morning, will
probably succeed.
The coup de main on the farm of Bonamy, in front of Châtillon, was
executed by a company of the 70th. and by that of the scouts of 71st.
Two officers of the insurgents were killed, and 30 insurgents killed or
wounded. They made 75 prisoners and among them 4 officers.

The last military facts of the day took place in the quarries and park of
Issy which were vigorously carried by the battalions of the brigades
Derocha, Paturel and Berthe, with the assistance of the marine
musketeers.
The insurgents, in very large numbers, retired precipitately, leaving
numerous dead and wounded, as well as a hundred prisoners, 8 pieces
of artillery, much ammunition and 8 horses.
Nothing particular this afternoon. The insurgents are busy about mining
Paris, and the Versailles troops have silenced the firing of the fort of
Issy which is now completely invested.
The fort of Issy is summoned to surrender, but Rossel, previously
colonel, who has replaced General Cluseret, gives the parliamentarian a
most arrogant answer of refusal threatening to have shot any other
messenger of the army of Versailles, the bearer of such a demand.
MAY 5, 6th.
Such was the remark I heard made yesterday by a poor and very old
peasant woman as she stopped work for a moment in a field