68                    THE FIRST FRENCH DEFEATS.
French people in which she frankly avowed that the
French arms had submitted to a check, and she implored
the people to be firm in their reverse and hasten to re-
pair it ; that there should be among them only one party,
that of France, and only one thought, and that of the
national arms. She closed by adjuring all good citizens
to maintain order ; for to trouble it, would be to conspire
with the enemy. It is hard to imagine the excitement
and indignation among the people of Paris upon the re-
ception of the news of the first disastrous battle. After
the declaration of war, they seemed to have convinced
themselves that the French army would go straight for-
ward, conquering and to conquer, and that Berlin would
be at their feet " en huit jours" (in eight days). The
trifling affair at Saarbrucken having been unwarrantably
exaggerated, had given the people great hopes. While
waiting with confidence reports of new victories, the
unquestioned defeats at Weissenburg, Reichshoffen and
Forbach produced the most stunning effect. They had
been most completely humbugged by the canard in regard
to the pretended victory by MacMahon. Like all people
who have been deceived and humbugged, they became
very much exasperated. The Empress-Regent had come
to the Tuileries and had issued her proclamation, all of
which tended to increase the excitement.
All Paris was under the empire of the most profound
emotion. It was in the evening that there was the great-
est excitement ; the gatherings on the Boulevards were
immense, and people were singing, swearing and yelling
by turns. One evening when I was down town an im-
mense procession had been formed, and the people were
marching in twos on the Boulevards des Italiens and
Madeleine, and they kept step to the words issuing from
every mouth, "Vive chassepôt, Vive chassepôl."