Note 18 — Chapter XXIV

A report similar to that spread against Harasvámin was in circulation during the French Revolution. Taine in his history of the Revolution, Vol. I, p. 418 tells the following anecdote: “M. de Montlosier found himself the object of many unpleasant attentions when he went to the National Assembly. In particular a woman of about thirty used to sharpen a large knife when he passed and look at him in a threatening manner. On enquiry he discovered the cause—Deux enfants du quartier ont disparu enlevés par de bohémiens, et c’est maintenant un bruit répandu que M. de Montlosier, le marquis de Mirabeau, et d’autres députés du côté droit se rassemblent pour faire des orgies dans lesquelles ils mangent de petits enfants.”