If he is in possession of these, his ownership is at second hand; if he derives any benefit there from, it is as a concession.

He is their depository, trustee and administrator, and nothing more.[2102] In other words, with respect to these he is simply a managing director, that is to say a functionary like others, with a precarious appointment and always revocable by the State which has appointed him.
"As nature gives to every man absolute power over the members of his body the social pact gives the social body absolute power over all its members." The State, as omnipotent sovereign and universal proprietor, exercises at discretion, its boundless rights over persons and things; consequently we, its representatives, take all things and persons into our hands; as they belong to it, so do they belong to us.
We have confiscated the possessions of the clergy, amounting to about four billion livres; we confiscate the property of the emigres, amounting to three billion livres;[2103] we confiscate the property of the guillotined and deported: all this amounts to some hundreds of millions; later on, the count will be made, because the list remains open and is being daily added to.

We will sequestrate the property of "suspects," which gives us the right to use it: here are many hundred millions more; after the war and the banishment of "suspects," we shall seize the property along with its income: here, again, are billions of capital.[2104] Meanwhile we take the property of hospitals and of other benevolent institutions, about eight hundred million livres; we take the property of factories, of endowments, of educational institutions, and of literary and scientific associations: another lot of millions.[2105] We take back the domains rented or surrendered by the State for the past three centuries and more, which gives again about a couple of billions.[2106] We take the possessions of the communes up to the amount of their indebtedness.

We have already received as inheritance the ancient domains of the crown, also the later domain of the civil list.
More than three-fifths[2107] of the soil thus falls into our hands, which three-fifths are much the best stocked; they comprise almost all the large and fine edifices, chateaux, abbeys, mansions, houses of superintendents and nearly all the royal, episcopal, seigniorial and bourgeois stock of rich and elegant furniture; all plate, libraries, pictures and artistic objects accumulated for centuries .-- Remark, again, the seizure of specie and all other articles of gold and silver; in the months alone of November and December, 1793, this swoop puts into our coffers three or four hundred millions,[2108] not assignats, but ringing coin.

In short, whatever the form of established capital may be we take all we can get hold of, probably more than three-fourths of it .-- There remains the portion which is not fixed capital, that which disappears in use, namely, all that is consumed, all the fruits of the soil, every description of provision, all the products of human art and labor which contribute the maintenance of existence.