Page:The Rise and Fall on the Paris Commune in 1871.djvu/51

 journal of the government, but on hearing of the murder of the two generals, it was withdrawn.

The Hotel de Ville was taken possession of about 4 o'clock, the Mayor of the 24th Arrondissement, wearing his scarf, presented himself at the building and demanded admission, which was refused; a crowd collected and cheered him, and at last the doors were opened and he entered. The people then went to the Napoleon barrack and cheered the soldiers of the 109th regiment who were at the windows. The latter replied with cries of "Vive la Republique!" The commanding officer ordered the windows to be closed, and the troops disappeared. The mob then tried to break open the gates, and seizing a sentry-box, used it as a battering-ram. At this moment a door of the Hotel de Ville opened, and a company of gendarmes fell upon the crowd with the butt-ends of their muskets. An indescribable scene of tumult occurred. Women, children, and National Guards fled in every direction amidst screams and cries. The gendarmes afterward entered the building, and at a later hour, on the resignation of Jules Ferry becoming known, the doors were opened and the Central Committee took possession.

General Chanzy, Commander of the Army of the Loire, returning from Tours in the afternoon, was totally in the dark as to the events that had taken place during the day. The insurgents, evidently forewarned of his arrival, took possession of the Orleans station, and when the train stopped, a number of individuals, armed with revolvers, presented themselves at the door of the compartment in which the General was seated in full uniform, and ordered him to alight; resistance was useless, and he was carried off to the Chateau-Rouge and there confined, a prisoner in the hands of the Central Committee.

The evening of this eventful day was perfectly calm, although the crowds were great on the streets and