At once, by temper and belief, they were formed to find their
element in such a decent and whiggish convulsion, spectacular in
its course, moderate in its purpose. For them,


Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive,
But to be young was very heaven.


And I cannot but smile when I think that (again like Wordsworth)
they should have so specially disliked the consequence.

It came upon them by surprise. Liberal friends of the precise
right shade of colour had assured them, in Mrs. Turner's drawing-
room, that all was for the best; and they rose on January 23
without fear. About the middle of the day they heard the sound of
musketry, and the next morning they were wakened by the cannonade.
The French who had behaved so 'splendidly,' pausing, at the voice
of Lamartine, just where judicious Liberals could have desired -
the French, who had 'no cupidity in their nature,' were now about
to play a variation on the theme rebellion. The Jenkins took
refuge in the house of Mrs. Turner, the house of the false
prophets, 'Anna going with Mrs. Turner, that she might be prevented
speaking English, Fleeming, Miss H. and I (it is the mother who
writes) walking together. As we reached the Rue de Clichy, the
report of the cannon sounded close to our ears and made our hearts
sick, I assure you. The fighting was at the barrier Rochechouart,
a few streets off. All Saturday and Sunday we were a prey to great
alarm, there came so many reports that the insurgents were getting
the upper hand. One could tell the state of affairs from the