eight
o’clock
The Ministry , fearing a defeat , was straining every nerve . It was probable , thought Florent , that no better pretext for a rising would for a long time present itself . One morning , at daybreak , he went to reconnoitre the neighbourhood of the Palais Bourbon . He forgot all about his duties as inspector , and lingered there , studying the approaches of the palace , till eight o'clock , without ever thinking that his absence would revolutionise the fish market . He perambulated all the surrounding streets , the Rue de Lille , the Rue de l'Universite , the Rue de Bourgogne , the Rue Saint Dominique , and even extended his examination to the Esplanade des Invalides , stopping at certain crossways , and measuring distances as he walked along . Then , on coming back to the Quai d'Orsay , he sat down on the parapet , and determined that the attack should be made simultaneously from all sides . The contingents from the Gros-Caillou district should arrive by way of the Champ de Mars ; the sections from the north of Paris should come down by the Madeleine ; while those from the west and the south would follow the quays , or make their way in small detachments through the then narrow streets of the Faubourg Saint Germain .