In vain has he obeyed！ He has allowed his property to be taken， he has left his parsonage， he has given the keys of the church to his successor， he has kept aloof； he does not transgress， either by omission or commission， any article of any decree. In vain does he avail himself of his legal right to abstain from taking an oath repugnant to his conscience. This alone makes him appear to refuse the civic oath in which the ecclesiastical oath is included， to reject the constitution which he accepts in full minus a parasite chapter， to conspire against the new social and political order of things which he often approves of； and to which he almost always submits.[52] In vain does he confine himself to his special and recognized domain， the spiritual direction of things. Through this alone he resists the new legislators who pretend to furnish a spiritual guidance， for， by virtue of being orthodox， he must believe that the priest whom they elect is excommunicated， that his sacraments are vain； and， in his office as pastor， he must prevent his sheep from going to drink at an impure source. In vain might he preach to them moderation and respect. Through the mere fact that the schism is effected， its consequences unfold them selves， and the peasants will not always remain as patient as their pastor. They have known him for twenty years； he has baptized them and married them； they believe that his is the only true mass； they are not satisfied to be obliged to attend another two or three leagues away， and to leave the church， their church which their ancestors built， and where from father to son they have prayed for centuries， in the hands of a stranger， an intruder and heretic， who officiates before almost empty benches， and whom gendarmes， with guns in their hands， have installed. Assuredly， as he passes through the street， they will look upon him askance： it is not surprising that the women and children soon hoot at him， that stones are thrown at night through his windows， that in the strongly Catholic departments， Upper and Lower Rhine， Doubs and Jura， Lozère， Deux-Sêvres and Vendée， Finistère， Morbihan， and C？tes-du-Nord， he is greeted with universal desertion， and then expelled through public ill-will. It is not surprising that his mass is interrupted and that his person is threatened；[53] that disaffection which thus far had only reached the upper class， descends to the popular strata； that， from one end of France to the other， a sullen hostility prevails against the new institutions； for now the political and social constitution is joined to the ecclesiastical constitution like an edifice to its spire， and， through this sharp pinnacle， seeks the storm even within the darkening clouds of heaven. The evil all springs out of this unskillful， gratuitous， compulsory fusion， and， consequently， from those who effected it.
But never will a victorious party admit that it has made a mistake.
In its eyes the nonjuring priests are alone culpable； it is irritated against their factious conscience； and， to crush the rebellion even in the inaccessible sanctuary of personal conviction， there is no legal or brutal act of violence which it will not allow itself to commit.
Behold， accordingly， a new sport thrown open； and the game is immensely plentiful. For it comprises not only the black or gray robes， more than forty thousand priests， over thirty thousand nuns， and several thousand monks， but also the devoted orthodox， that is to say the women of the low or middle class， and， without counting provincial nobles， a majority of the serious， steady bourgeoisie， a majority of the peasantry-almost the whole population of several provinces， east， west， and in the south. A name is bestowed on them， as lately on the nobles； it is that of fanatic， which is equivalent to aristocrat， for it also designates public enemies likewise placed by it beyond the pale of the law.
Little does it matter whether the law favors them， for it is interpreted against them， arbitrarily construed and openly violated by the partial or intimidated administrative bodies which the Constitution has withdrawn from the control of the central authority and subjected to the authority of popular gatherings. From the first months of 1791， the hounding begins； the municipalities， districts， and departments themselves often take the lead in beating up the game. Six months later， the Legislative Assembly， by its decree of November 29，[54] sounds the tally-ho， and， in spite of the King's veto， the hounds on all sides dash forward. During the month of April， 1792， forty-two departments pass against nonjuring priests "acts which are neither prescribed nor authorized by the Constitution，" and， before the end of the Legislative Assembly， forty-three others will have followed in their train. - Through this series of illegal acts， without offense， without trial， non-jurors are everywhere in France expelled from their parishes， relegated to the principal town of the department or district， in some places imprisoned， put on the same footing with the emigrants， and despoiled of their property， real and personal.[55] Nothing more is wanting against them but the general decree of deportation which is to come as soon as the Assembly can get rid of the King.