the two brothers went off in a hurry, without taking leave of their landlord, and took the road of St. Venant; from whence, on the 27th, Jofeph-Anthony returned to St. Omers, for the cloaths Damiens had left there, and rejoined him on the 31st.

On the first of August the two brothers separated; and Damiens stopped at an inn in Zutnoland, juft by Poperingue. Here he went by his mother's name; and staid at this inn till the 9th, during which time he had himself bled. His landlady going by chance into his room, found him weltering in his blood, though he did not feem in a fwoon. He told her his bandage had loofed of itself (tho' it was afterwards judged to be of his own doing) and it was immediately taken care of. The reft of the time he paffed partly in bed, where he lay late, and partly at cards with a grenadier in the Queen of Hungary' troops, called Morel.

The 9th of Auguft he went to Poperingue; ftaid four days at the Pelican; and then changed that lodging for another at Petronilla Hameau's, a Mercer's, where he lay for about fifteen days, in the fame room with one Playouft, a stockingframe weaver. It was to this Playoust that he made use of these words. If I return to France -Yes, I will return thither ; I fhall die there, and the greatest man of the earth shall die also; I will do fomething to be talked of. Words that characterize the man perfectly.

September 10, a Town-beadle having acquainted Damiens, that the Magistrate wanted to speak with him, he left Poperingue that afternoon; and on the 12th he came to Coeurjoyeux, near St. Omers. From thence he went to Arcq, to fee his father, who sent for his fon Jofeph-Anthony, and his daughter Collet with whom Damiens had a difpute, wanting to take back about fourteen Lewidores he had put into his fifter's hands, and three hundred livres from Jofeph Anthony: but as they, by the advice of the Curate Fenès before-mentioned, had actually taken effectual measures to restore this money to Mr. Michel, they would not return it to him.

Nothing happened to Damiens worth notice, till the 3d of December 1756, when, at Arras, he ended his difputes with his family, and received about 400 livres.

From the 9th to the 20th he paffed his time at a public-house in Arras, gaming and drinking, with his ufual taciturnity, scarce ever entering into converfation. The 20th he was let blood at his lodgings, defiring the Surgeon to make a large orifice; and for several days he took opium. The 21ft he went to a relation's at Falefque near Arras, and talked like a madman, faying, that the kingdom, that his wife and daughter were

ruined.

ruined. He ftaid at Falefque till the 23d. The 25th he left his lodging at Saquet's, and came to the French Arms, an inn from which the ftages fet out for Paris, and took a place in the coach, for which he was booked under the name of Breval.The 28th he fet out in the coach for Paris, with three paffengers, with whom it did not appear that he had the leaft connexion. The gift he arrived at St. Martin's Bar, where he took a hackney-coach, and had the civility to fet down a young Gentleman, one of the paffengers, at a houfe to which he was recommended. At three in the afternoon he went to a publichoufe in Beaubourg-ftreet, where he waited for his brother Lewis Damiens, then a fervant in a family in Simon-le-franc-ftreet. This brother foon came, and was greatly furprized to see him ; Damiens having taken care that he fhould not know beforehand who it was that had fent for him.

Lewis reproached him with his imprudence in returning to Paris, after the robbery he had committed, of which complaint had been made to Juftice. Damiens affured him he should not ftay long, and defired him to recommend to him fome inn to lodge at. This his brother declining, he enquired of him where his wife was; and was told fhe was in a cook's place, at Madam Ripandelly's in St. Nicholas church-yard-street.

After this conversation the two brothers parted. Damiens went at five to Madam Ripandelly's. The Lady's woman, Macé, opened the door to him, and knew him again, having formerly boarded with his wife, before Damiens went out of town. She told him his wife was gone out, but that he might wait her return in the kitchen; and accordingly he did fo. When his wife came in, fhe was furprized to fee him. He told her, he fhould not ftay long, but would return to Artois; upon which the determined to let him lie in her chamber, without acquainting her mistress.

The next day, being the firft of the new year 1757, the daughter of Damiens being apprized of her father's arrival, came about eleven o'clock and found him yet in bed. The next day, January the 2d, the returned with a woman (a friend of her mother's) called Wattebled, a Sempftrefs; and they both reproached Damiens with his return, which expofed him to be taken up for his robbery: Wattebled efpecially made him a very fenfible exhortation upon this fubject. On the evening, towards feven o'clock, Damiens and his wife went from Madam Ripandelly's, to fee their daughter and Wattebled fafe home, who both lodged at St. Stephen's. On the way they ftopped at a beer-houfe, in St. Martin's-ftreet, near St. Mederick. There these women reiterated their request to him, to

leave Paris inftantly. He promifed he would, and bid Watteled an eter nal farewel.

The next day, towards eight o'clock in the evening, Damiens left the houfe of Madam Ripandelly, in company with his wife and daughter, who faw him as far as St. Martin's ftreet, where he took his leave of them, after affuring them, that he would return inftantly into his own country.

It is hard to afcertain what Damiens did between half an hour paft eight in the evening, when he left his wife, to eleven, when he came to the carriage-office for Verfailles, where he hired a chaife, and arrived at Versailles about three in the morning of the 4th of January,He ftaid at the poft-office there till feven s and after having drank fome ratafia with the coachman, and the waiter at the poft-office, for which he paid very freely, he flept foundly for about two hours. As foon as he waked, he defired this waiter to direct him to an inn; and upon his recommending Fortier in Sartory-ftreet, he took up his lodging there. As he had no bundle, Mrs. Fortier required of him, to give her earneft for his expences; which he did. After drinking a glafs of wine, he went to bed, and lay till about two in the afternoon; then having put on his cloaths, he went out of the inn, and it does not clearly appear how he difpofed of himself juft afterwards. He pretended, that he had spent part of his time in the park, the courts, and in drinking at a public-houfe in the ftreet of the Recollects: but whatever enquiry could be 'made as to this matter, there was no arriving at any certainty.

The fame day, Tuesday the 4th, he returned to his inn at Fortier's, and flew into a rage at his coming in, faying, there is no dispatching of bufinefs at that curfed Verfailles; and that the King was going again to Trianon till the next Saturday. Afterwards he called for a fowl, but took up with fome mutton that was offered him; and after eating a bit, went to bed.

January the 5th, 1757, the fatal day! Mrs. Fortier going up by chance into his room, about eleven o'clock, he defired her to fend for a Surgeon to bleed him; it was then exceeding cold weather, and the believing he was jefting with her, answered him on the fame footing. He has fince, in his interrogatories before the Court, when confronted with the faid Fortier, infifted, that if he had been bled, as he defired, he had not committed that crime.

However that may be, having dreffed himself about two o' clock, he left Fortier's inn. From four o'clock he was feen to faunter about the courts of the castle; which he owns.

2

One of

the

the guards of the gate declared, that being on duty under the archway that leads to the apartment of the Princeffes, he saw a perfon, whom he fince knew to be Damiens: that this perfon was accofted by another, unknown, a thin man, about five feet high; who faid to Damiens, as he came up to him, Well? To which Damiens answered, Well! I am waiting. Damiens pretends, that this guard of the gate has inverted the order of the dialogue, for it was himself who faid Well; and that it was the other who answered, Well, I am waiting. Damiens, being preffed to declare who this perfon was, pretended that it was one who was folliciting permiffion to make a public fhew of a machine. Perquifitions were made thereon, but this man, who is known, has no resemblance to the defcription furnifhed by the guard of the gate, being above five feet and a half high, and of a thick make. Damiens, in the whole course of his examination, perfifted in what he had declared to this purport*.

On the afternoon of the fame day, Wednesday the 5th of January, the King came from Trianon, to fee the Princeffes; and defigning to go back thither, left their apartment about three quarters after five, accompanied by his whole Court, and by the Dauphin. Damiens had hid himself in a little hollow, at the bottom of the stairs, near the archway. At the instant that the King was stepping into the coach, leaning on the Count of Brionne, the grand Equerry, and the Marquis of Beringhen, First Equerry, the coach door being open, the affaffin rushed into the midst of the crowd of Courtiers, and, in his way, ran against the Dauphin, whom he joftled, as likewife the Duke of Ayen, Captain of the Guards-du-corps upon duty; then laying violent hands on the King's perfon, and putting one of them on his fhoulder, he with the other stabbed him in the right fide, just at the fifth rib, with a knife made pen-knife fafhion. The King immediately faid, I have had a furious Stroke given me: then paling his hand under his cloaths, and drawing it back all bloody, he cried out he was wounded. At that inftant he turned about, and perceiving Damiens, who had his hat upon his head (which he had never taken off, though bid, before the blow, to do it, when he answered, it is my way) he faid, there is the man who ftruck me, let him be seized,

The perfon defcribed by the guard, was, as before remarked, thin, and of a stature at most of five feet; about five and thirty, or forty, yers of age; his hair in a bag, his coat brown, and rather thread-bare, with a plain hat; but though a perfon fomewhat anfwering this defcription was taken up, on fufpicion, after the execution of Damiens, nothing has yet appeared to convict him: and in truth the most probable opinion is, that Damiens had no accomplice, or abettor, in his defperate attempt.

and

and no harm done to him: and then his Majefty immediately went up to his apartment.

This is not the place to exprefs the confternation, the horror, the affliction with which the whole people were feized on the news of this execrable attempt; nor how great their confolation was, when the next day they were aflured, that his life was out of danger.

The villain was inftantly feized by one of the King's footmen, and delivered up to the guards; who carried him into their hall, where he was itripped, fearched, and the fatal knife found upon him, with which he had committed the crime. This knife had two blades, the one a common one, pretty large, and pointed; the other, in the shape of a penknife, five or fix inches long; he had had the time to wipe and shut it, for there was no blood to be feen upon it. There were alfo found upon him fix or feven and thirty, lewidores, fome filver money, and a book entitled, Chriftian Prayers and Inftructions; the book he declared was given him by his brother at St. Omers: This was all that was found upon him worth notice.

From the firft inftant that he was in the hands of the King's guards, on the questions that were made to him, he faid twice or thrice. Let them take care of my Lord the Dauphin: do not let my Lord the Dauphin go out for the rest of the day. Being preffed to impeach his accomplices, he faid, They were a great way off by this time, and out of reach; but that if he impeached them, all would be over. He alfo faid, that if four or five BiShops heads had been ftruck off, this would not have happened.

In the midst of these extra-judicial interrogations, the zeal of those who put them to him, and their juft horror of the villain, incited them to try to wring from him the impeachment of His accomplices, by dint of torture. They placed him near a violent fire, and pinched his feet about the ankles with red-hot tongs; but it was not long before they were fenfible of the dan ger of thus torturing the criminal.

The Provost of the palace took the cause in hand, and confined him to the jail of Verfailles, till further orders; and in the mean time care was taken to feize all the perfons any ways related to Damiens, as his father, wife, daughter, brothers, and fifter, Madam Ripandelly's maid who had let Damiens into the house, and others with whom he had connexions:

In the jail of Verfailles, one Belot, an Exempt of the guards, being employed as a fweetener, by affecting to pity him, wormed himself fo far into his confidence, that he prevailed on him Riv. July, 1757.

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