"[126] It reduces these to
the levying of taxes and the supervision of roads and canals; it
purges them out through its agents; it even purges out the governments
of municipalities and districts. To suppress beforehand all
probability of popular opposition, it has had the sessions of the
sections reduced to two per week; it installs in these sections, for
about forty sous a day, a majority of sans-culottes ; it orders the
suspension "until further directives" of all municipal elections.[127]
Finally, to have full control on the spot, it appoints its own men,
first, the commissioners and the representatives on missions, a sort
of temporary corps of directors sent into each department with
unlimited powers;[128] next, a body of national agents, a sort of
permanent body of sub-delegates, through whom in each district and
municipality it replaces the procureurs-syndics.[129] To this army of
functionaries is added in each town, bourg or large village, a
revolutionary committee, paid three francs a day per member, charged
with the application of its decrees, and required to make reports
thereon. Never before was such a vast and closely woven network cast
from above to envelope and keep captive twenty-six million people.
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