These outlaws declared that "they were acting under orders； they compelled the mayor and prosecuting attorney to take part in their robberies； they likewise took the precaution to force a few honest citizens， by using the severest threats， to march along with them."These people come the next day to apologize to the pillaged proprietor， while the municipal officers draw up a statement of the violence practiced against them. The violence nevertheless， is accomplished， and， as it will go unpunished， it is soon to be repeated.
A beginning and an end are already made in the two neighboring departments. There， especially in the south， nothing is more instructive than to see how an outbreak stimulated by enthusiasm for the public good immediately degenerates under the impulse of private interest， and ends in crime. - Around Lyons，[14] under the same pretext and at the same date， similar mobs perform similar visitations， and， on all these occasions， "the rent-rolls are burnt， and houses are pillaged and set on fire. Municipal authority， organized for the security of property， is in many hands but one facility more for its violation. The National Guard seems to be armed merely for the protection of robbery and disorder." - For more than thirty years， M. de Chaponay， the father of six children of whom three are in the service， expended his vast income on his estate of Beaulieu， giving occupation to a number of persons， men， women， and children. After the hailstorm of 1761， which nearly destroyed the village of Moranée， he rebuilt thirty-three houses， furnished others with timber for the framework， supplied the commune with wheat， and， for several years， obtained for the inhabitants a diminution of their taxation. In 1790， he celebrated the Federation Festival on a magnificent scale， giving two banquets， one of a hundred and thirty seats， for the municipal bodies and officers of the National Guards in the vicinity， and the other of a thousand seats for the privates. If any of the gentry had reason to believe himself popular and safe it was certainly this man. - On the 24th of June， 1791， the municipal authorities of Moranée， Lucenay， and Chazelai， with their mayors and National Guards， in all nearly two thousand men， arrive at the chateau with drums beating and flags flying. M. de Chaponay goes out to meet them， and begs to know to what he owes "the pleasure" of their visit. They reply that they do not come to offend him， but to carry out the orders of the district， which oblige them to take possession of the chateau and to place in it a guard of sixty men： on the following day the "district" and the National Guard of Villefranche are to come and inspect it. - Be it noted that these orders are imaginary， for M.
de Chaponay asks in vain to see them； they cannot be produced. The cause of their setting out， probably， is the false rumor that the National Guard of Villefranche is coming to deprive them of a booty on which they had calculated. - Nevertheless M. de Chaponay submits； he merely requests the municipal officers to make the search themselves and in an orderly manner. Upon this the commandant of the National Guard of Lucenay exclaims， with some irritation， that "all are equal and all must go in，" and at the same moment all rush forward. "M. de Chaponay orders the apartments to be opened； they immediately shut them up， purposely to let the sappers break through the doors with their axes." - Everything is pillaged， "plate， assignats， stocks of linen， laces and other articles； the trees of the avenues are hacked and mutilated； the cellars are emptied， the casks are rolled out on the terrace， the wine is suffered to run out， and the chateau keep is demolished. .
. . The officers urge on those that are laggard." Towards nine o'clock in the evening M. de Chaponay is informed by his servants that the municipal authorities have determined upon forcing him to sign an abandonment of his feudal dues and afterwards beheading him.
He escapes with his wife through the only door which is left unguarded， wanders about all night， exposed to the gun-shots of the squads which are on his track， and reaches Lyons only on the following day. - ？Meanwhile the pillagers send him notice that if he does not abandon his rentals， they will cut down his forests and burn up everything on his estate. The chateau， indeed， is fired three distinct times， while， in the interval， the band sack another chateau at Bayère， and， on again passing by that of M. de Chaponay， demolish a dam which had cost 10，000 livres. - The public prosecutor， for his part， remains quiet， notwithstanding the appeals to him： he doubtless says to himself that a gentleman whose house has been searched is lucky to have saved his life， and that others， like M. Guillin-Dumoutet， for example， have not been as fortunate.