If intoxication is needed to awaken the brute， a dictatorship suffices to arouse the madman. The mental equilibrium of most of these new sovereigns is disturbed； the distance between what the man once was and what he now is， is too great. Formerly he was a petty lawyer， village doctor， or schoolmaster， an unknown mover of a resolution in a local club， and only yesterday he was one voter in the Convention out of seven hundred and fifty. Look at him now， the arbiter， in one of the departments， of all fortunes and liberties， and master of five thousand lives. Like a pair of scales into which a disproportionate weight has been thrown， his reason totters on the side of pride. Some of them regard their competency unlimited， like their powers， and having just joined the army， claim the right of being appointed major-generals.[112] "Declare officially，" writes Fabre to the Committee of Public Safety，[113] "that， in future， generals shall be simply the lieutenants of the delegates to the Convention." Awaiting the required declaration， they claim command and， in reality， exercise it. "I know of neither generals nor privates，" says Gaston， a former justice of the peace， to the officers； "as to the Minister， he is like a bull in a china shop； I am in command here and must be obeyed." "What are generals good for？" adds his colleague Guiter； "the old women in our faubourgs know as much as they do. Plans， formal maneuvers， tents， camps， redoubts？ All this is of no use！ The only war suitable to Frenchmen after this will be a rush with side arms." To turn out of office， guillotine， disorganize， march blindly on， waste lives haphazard， force defeat， sometimes get killed themselves， is all they know， and they would lose all if the effects of their incapacity and arrogance were not redeemed by the devotion of the officers and the enthusiasm of the soldiers. - The same spectacle is visible at Charleroy where， through his absurd orders， Saint-Just does his best to compromise the army， leaving that place with the belief that he is a great man.[114] - There is the same spectacle in Alsace， where Lacoste， Baudot， Ruamps， Soubrany， Muhaud， Saint-Just and Lebas， through their excessive rigor， do their best to break up the army and then boast of it. The revolutionary Tribunal is installed at headquarters， soldiers are urged to denounce their officers， the informer is promised money and secrecy， he and the accused are not allowed to confront each other， no investigation， no papers allowed， even to make exception to the verdict - a simple examination without any notes， the accused arrested at eight o'clock， condemned at nine o'clock， and shot at ten o'clock.[115]
Naturally， under such a system， no one wants to command； already， before Saint Just's arrival， Meunier had consented to act as Major-General only ad interim； "every hour of the day" he demanded his removal； unable to secure this， he refused to issue any order. The representatives， to procure his successor， are obliged to descend down to a depot captain， Carlin， bold enough or stupid enough to allow himself to take a commission under their lead， which was a commission for the guillotine. - If such is their presumption in military matters， what must it be in civil affairs！ On this side there is no external check， no Spanish or German army capable of at once taking them in flagrante delicto， and of profiting by their ambitious incapacity and mischievous interference. Whatever the social instrumentality may be - judiciary， administration， credit， commerce， manufactures， agriculture - they can dislocate and destroy it with impunity. - They never fail to do this， and， moreover， in their dispatches， they take credit to themselves for the ruin they cause.
That， indeed， is their mission； otherwise， they would be regarded as bad Jacobins； they would soon become "suspects；" they rule only on condition of being infatuated and destructive； the overthrow of common-sense is with them an act of State grace， a necessity of the office， and， on this common ground of compulsory unreason， every species of physical delirium may be set established.
With those that we can follow closely， not only is their judgment perverted， but the entire nervous apparatus is affected； a permanent over-excitement and a morbid restlessness has begun. - Consider Joseph Lebon， son of a sergeant-at-arms， subsequently， a teacher with the Oratoriens of Beaune， next， curé of Neuville-Vitasse， repudiated as an interloper by the élite of his parishioners， not respected， without house or furniture， and almost without a flock.[116] Two years after this， finding himself sovereign of his province， his head is spinning. Lesser events would have made it turn； his is only a twenty-eight-year-old head， not very solid， without any inside ballast，[117] already disturbed by vanity， ambition， rancor， and apostasy， by the sudden and complete volteface which puts him in conflict with his past educational habits and most cherished affections： it breaks down under the vastness and novelty of this greatness. - In the costume of a representative， a Henry IV hat， tri-color plume， waving scarf， and saber dragging the ground， Lebon orders the bell to be rung and summons the villagers into the church， where， aloft in the pulpit in which he had formerly preached in a threadbare cassock， he displays his metamorphosis.
"Who would believe that I should have returned here with unlimited powers！"[118]
And that， before his counterfeit majesty， each person would be humble， bowed down and silent！ To a member of the municipality of Cambray who， questioned by him， looked straight at him and answered curtly， and who， to a query twice repeated in the same terms， dared to answer twice in the same terms， he says：