Farmers are forbidden to sell their produce except in the markets， and obliged to bring to these a quota of so many sacks per week， military raids compelling them to furnish their quotas.[38] Shopkeepers are ordered "to expose for sale， daily and publicly， all goods and provisions of prime necessity" that they have on hand， while a maximum price is established， above which no one shall sell "bread， flour and grain， vegetables and fruits， wine， vinegar， cider， beer and brandy， fresh meat， salt meat， pork， cattle， dried， salted， smoked or pickled fish， butter， honey， sugar， sweet-oil， lamp-oil， candles， firewood， charcoal and other coal， salt， soap， soda， potash， leather， iron， steel， castings， lead， brass， hemp， linen， woolens， canvas and woven stuffs， sabots， shoes and tobacco." Whoever keeps on hand more than he consumes is a monopolist and commits a capital crime； the penalty， very severe， is imprisonment or the pillory， for whoever sells above the established price：[39] such are the simple and direct expedients of the revolutionary government， and such is the character of its inventive faculty， like that of the savage who hews down a tree to get at its fruit. - Consequently， after the first application of the "maximum" the shopkeeper is no longer able to carry on business； his customers， attracted by the sudden depreciation in price of his wares， flock to his shop and empty it in a few days；[40] having sold his goods for half what they cost him，[41] he has got back only one-half of his advances； therefore， he can only one-half renew his assortment， less than a half， since he has not paid his bills， and his credit is declining， the (Jacobin) representatives on mission having taken all his coin， plate and assignats. Hence， during the following month， buyers find on his unfurnished counters nothing but rubbish and refuse.
In like manner， after the proclamation of the maximum，[42] the peasant refuses to bring his produce to market， while the revolutionary army is not everywhere on hand to take it from him by force： he leaves his crop unthrashed as long as he can， and complains of not finding the men to thrash it. If necessary， he hides it or feeds it out to his animals. He often barters it away for wood， for a side of bacon or in payment for a day's work. At night， he carts it off six leagues to a neighboring district， where the local maximum is fixed at a higher rate. He knows who， in his own vicinity， still has specie in his pocket and he underhandedly supplies him with his stores. He especially conceals his superabundance and， as formerly， pretends to be poor and suffering. He is on good terms with the village authorities， with the mayor and national agent who are as interested as he is in evading the law， and， on a bribe being necessary， he gives it. At last， he allows himself to be sued， and his property attached；he goes to prison and tires the authorities out with his obstinacy.
Hence， from week to week， less flour and grain and fewer cattle come to market， while meat becomes scarcer at the butcher's， and bread at the baker's. - Having thus paralyzed the lesser organs of supply and demand the Jacobins now have only to paralyze labor itself， the skilled hands， the active and vigorous arms. This is simply done by replacing the independent private workshop by the compulsory national workshop in this way replacing piece-work by work by the day， and the attentive， energetic workman who minds his business and expects to earn money in return by inattentive apathic workmen pressed into a poorly paid service but paid even when they botch the job or laze about. - This is what the Jacobins do by forcibly commanding the services of all sorts of laborers，[43] "all who help handle， transport and retail produce and articles of prime necessity，" "country people who usually get in the crops，" and， more particularly， thrashers， reapers， carters， rafts men， and also shoemakers， tailors， blacksmiths and the rest. - At every point of the social organism， the same principle is applied with the same result. Substitute everywhere an external， artificial and mechanical constraint for the inward， natural and animating stimulant， and you get nothing but an universal atrophy.
Deprive people of the fruits of their labor， and yet more， force them to produce by fear， confiscate their time， their painstaking efforts and their persons， reduce them to the condition of fellahs， create in them the sentiments of fellahs， and you will have nothing but the labor and productions of fellahs， that is to say， a minimum of labor and production， and hence， insufficient supplies for sustaining a very dense population， which， multiplied through a superior and more productive civilization， will not long subsist under a barbarous， inferior and unproductive régime. When this systematic and complete expropriation terminates we see the final result of the system， no longer a dearth， but famine， famine on a large scale， and the destruction of lives by millions. - Among the Jacobins，[44] some of the maddest who are clear-sighted， on account of their fury， Guffroy， Antonelle， Jean Bon Saint-André， Collot d'Herbois， foresee the consequences and accept them along with the principle. Others， who avoid seeing it， are only the more determined in the application of it. However， they all work together with all their might to aggravate the misery of which the lamentable spectacle is so vainly exposed under their eyes.
IV. Hunger.
Famine. - In the provinces. - At Paris. - People standing in lines under the Revolutionary government to obtain food. - Its quality. -Distress and chagrin.