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Textbook Mri From Picture To Proton 3Rd Edition Donald W Mcrobbie Ebook All Chapter PDF
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Cambridge University Press
978-1-107-64323-9 — MRI from Picture to Proton
Donald W. McRobbie , Elizabeth A. Moore , Martin J. Graves , Martin R. Prince
Frontmatter
More Information
Donald W. McRobbie
South Australian Medical Imaging, Adelaide, Australia
Elizabeth A. Moore
Global MR R&D, Royal Philips, the Netherlands
Martin J. Graves
Cambridge University Hospitals, Cambridge, UK
Martin R. Prince
Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, USA
www.cambridge.org
Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781107643239
DOI: 10.1017/9781107706958
© Donald W. McRobbie, Elizabeth A. Moore, Martin J. Graves and
Martin R. Prince 2003, 2007, 2017
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception
and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published: 2003
Second edition 2007
Third edition 2017
Printed in the United Kingdom by Clays, St Ives plc
A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British
Library
Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication data
Names: McRobbie, Donald W., 1958- , author. | Moore,
Elizabeth A. (Scientist), author. | Graves, Martin J., author.
Title: MRI from picture to proton / Donald W. McRobbie, Elizabeth
A. Moore, Martin J. Graves.
Description: 3rd edition. | Cambridge ; New York : University Printing
House, Cambridge University Press, 2016. | Preceded by MRI from
picture to proton / Donald W. McRobbie . . . [et al.]. 2nd ed. 2007. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016008139 | ISBN 9781107643239 (pbk.)
Subjects: | MESH: Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Classification: LCC RC78.7.N83 | NLM WN 185 | DDC 616.07/548–
dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2016008139
ISBN 978-1-107-64323-9 Paperback
Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence
or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites
referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that any
content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.
..................................................................
Every effort has been made in preparing this book to provide accurate
and up-to-date information which is in accord with accepted standards
and practice at the time of publication. Although case histories are
drawn from actual cases, every effort has been made to disguise the
identities of the individuals involved. Nevertheless, the authors, editors
and publishers can make no warranties that the information contained
herein is totally free from error, not least because clinical standards are
constantly changing through research and regulation. The authors,
editors and publishers therefore disclaim all liability for direct or
consequential damages resulting from the use of material contained in
this book. Readers are strongly advised to pay careful attention to
information provided by the manufacturer of any drugs or equipment
that they plan to use.
I would like to acknowledge the following, with thanks: Dr Marc Agzarian, Gregory Brown, Patrick Revel,
Kathryn McClintock
DWMcR
Dedicated to inspirational friends throughout the MRI world (you know who you are).
EAM
To my family, friends and colleagues.
MJG
We could not have completed this without the support of CUP’s editorial staff, particularly Kirsten Bot
and the late Richard Marley.
Contents
Glossary x
1 MR: What’s the Attraction? 1 5 The Devil’s in the Detail: Pixels, Matrices and
1.1 It’s not Rocket Science, but I Like It 1 Slices 55
1.2 A Brief History of Medical Imaging 1 5.1 Introduction 55
1.3 How to Use this Book 5 5.2 From Analogue Signal to
Digital Image 55
5.3 Matrices, Pixels and an Introduction to
Part I The Basic Stuff Resolution 58
5.4 Slices and Orientations 61
2 Early Daze: Your First Week in MR 11
5.5 Displaying Images 61
2.1 Introduction 11
5.6 What do the Pixels Represent? 63
2.2 Welcome to the MR Unit 11
5.7 From 2D to 3D 64
2.3 Safety First 14
2.4 Safety Second: Additional Practical 6 What You Set is What You Get: Basic Image
Guidelines 17 Optimization 67
2.5 The Patient’s Journey 21 6.1 Introduction 67
2.6 MRI Radiographer’s Blog . . . A Few 6.2 Looking on the Bright Side: What are we
Years On 23 Trying to Optimize? 67
6.3 Trading Places: Resolution, SNR and
3 Seeing is Believing: Introduction to Image
Scan Time 72
Contrast 26
6.4 Ever the Optimist: Practical Steps to
3.1 Introduction 26
Optimization 76
3.2 Introduction to the T-Words 27
3.3 T2-Weighted Images 27 7 Improving Your Image: How to Avoid
3.4 FLAIR Images 28 Artefacts 81
3.5 T1-Weighted Images 28 7.1 Introduction 81
3.6 T1w Images Post-Gd 29 7.2 Keep Still Please! Motion Artefacts 81
3.7 STIR Images 30 7.3 Lose the Fat! 88
3.8 PD-Weighted Images 32 7.4 Digital Imaging Artefacts 92
3.9 Gradient-Echo Images 35 7.5 Susceptibility and Metal Artefacts 96
3.10 More About Contrast Agents 37 7.6 Equipment Artefacts 98
3.11 Angiographic Images 38 7.7 What’s Causing this Artefact? 101
3.12 Diffusion-Weighted Images 39 8 Spaced Out: Spatial Encoding 102
4 Lost in the Pulse Sequence Jungle? 41 8.1 Introduction 102
4.1 Introduction 41 8.2 Anatomy of a Pulse Sequence 102
4.2 Anatomy of a Pulse Sequence 41 8.3 From Larmor to Fourier via
4.3 Take Me for a Spin (Echo) 43 Gradients 103
4.4 The Other Branch of the Tree: 8.4 Something to get Excited About:
Gradient Echo 49 The Image Slice 106
4.5 Echo Planar Imaging 54 8.5 In-Plane Localization 110
4.6 The Pulse Sequence Traveller 54 8.6 Consequences of Fourier Imaging 117 vii
Contents
8.7 Speeding It Up 120 13.3 One Tree, Many Branches: FIDs, Echoes
8.8 3D FT 121 and Coherences 207
13.4 Ultra-Fast GE Imaging 218
9 Getting in Tune: Resonance and
Relaxation 124 14 The Parallel Universe: Parallel Imaging and
9.1 Introduction 124 Novel Acquisition Techniques 225
9.2 Spinning Nuclei 124 14.1 Introduction 225
9.3 Measuring the Magnetic Moment 127 14.2 Groundwork 225
9.4 Relaxation Times 129 14.3 Making SENSE: Parallel Imaging in
9.5 Creating Echoes 132 Image Space 227
9.6 Relaxation Time Mechanisms 135 14.4 SMASH Hits: Parallel Imaging in
9.7 Gadolinium-based Contrast Agents 141 k-Space 230
14.5 Undersampling by Simultaneous
10 Let’s Talk Technical: MR Equipment 144 Multi-Slice Excitation 236
10.1 Introduction 144 14.6 Image Quality in Parallel Imaging 237
10.2 Magnets 144 14.7 k-t BLAST 240
10.3 Gradient Subsystem 149 14.8 Non-Cartesian Acquisition
10.4 Radiofrequency Transmit Schemes 242
Subsystem 154 14.9 Compressed Sensing 248
10.5 RF Receiver Subsystem 158
10.6 Computer Systems 162 15 Go with the Flow: MR Angiography 251
10.7 Siting and Installation 163 15.1 Introduction 251
10.8 Other Types of MRI Systems 164 15.2 Effect of Flow in Conventional
Imaging 251
11 Ghosts in the Machine: Quality Control 166 15.3 Non-Contrast MR Angiography 255
11.1 Introduction 166 15.4 Contrast-Enhanced MRA 263
11.2 The Quality Cycle 166 15.5 Susceptibility-Weighted Imaging 267
11.3 Signal Parameters 169
11.4 Geometric Parameters 173 16 A Heart to Heart Discussion: Cardiac MRI 269
11.5 Relaxation Parameters 177 16.1 Introduction 269
11.6 Artefacts 178 16.2 Patient Set-up 269
11.7 Spectroscopic QA 179 16.3 Morphological Imaging 272
11.8 Temporal Stability 179 16.4 Functional Imaging 273
11.9 Other Specialist QA 181 16.5 Myocardial Perfusion 282
16.6 Myocardial Viability 284
16.7 Myocardial Tissue Characterization 286
Part II The Specialist Stuff 16.8 Coronary Artery Imaging 286
12 Acronyms Anonymous I: Spin Echo 185 17 It’s Not Just Squiggles: In Vivo
12.1 Introduction 185 Spectroscopy 288
12.2 Conventional Spin Echo 185 17.1 Introduction 288
12.3 RARING to Go: Fast Spin-Echo 17.2 Some Basic Chemistry 288
Techniques 186 17.3 Single-Voxel Spectroscopy 291
12.4 The Extended Family of TSE 191 17.4 Processing of Single-Voxel Spectra 295
12.5 Combining Gradient and Spin 17.5 Chemical Shift Imaging 297
Echoes 200
18 To BOLDly Go: fMRI, Perfusion and
13 Acronyms Anonymous II: Gradient Echo 207 Diffusion 303
13.1 Introduction 207 18.1 Introduction 303
viii 18.2 Diffusion Imaging 303
13.2 Image Formation in Gradient Echo 207
Contents
ix
Glossary
See also: Liney G (2011) MRI from A to Z, 2nd edition. London: Springer-Verlag.
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
xii ESP Echo SPacing The time interval between refocusing pulses in a
TSE sequence.
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
Glossary
(cont.)
xix
1
1.1 It’s not Rocket Science, but I Like It makes MR very sensitive as a diagnostic technique.
MR detects subtle changes in the magnetism of the
How would you impress a stranger you meet at a nucleus, the tiny entity that lies at the heart of the
party with your intelligence? You might claim to be atom. This is probing deeper than X-rays, which
a brain surgeon or a rocket scientist. Well Magnetic interact with the clouds or shells of the electrons that
Resonance (MR) is not rocket science, it’s better. MR orbit the nucleus. MR is a truly powerful modality. At
involves an amazing combination of advanced science its most advanced, MR can be used not just to image
and engineering, including the use of superconduct- anatomy and pathology but to investigate organ func-
ivity, cryogenics, quantum physics, digital and com- tion, to probe in vivo chemistry and even to visualize
puter technology – and all within the radiology the brain thinking.
department of your local hospital. MR imaging has In the early days, the scanners were the domain of
evolved from unpromising beginnings in the 1970s to the physicists and engineers who invented and built
become nowadays the imaging method of choice for a them, and the technique was called NMR imaging
large proportion of radiological examinations and the (NMR stands for nuclear magnetic resonance). The
‘jewel in the crown’ of medical technology. A modern cynics may say that the technique really took off
MRI scanner is shown in Figure 1.1. clinically when the ‘N-word’ was dropped. This was
So what is it? It is an imaging method based sensible as the term ‘nuclear’, although scientifically
principally upon sensitivity to the presence and prop- accurate, implied a connection with nuclear energy
erties of water, which makes up 70–90% of most and, in the last of the Cold War years, resonated in the
tissues. The properties and amount of water in tissue public’s mind with the spectre of nuclear weapons.
can alter dramatically with disease and injury, which Because of the diversity of sciences and technolo-
gies that gave birth to and continues to nurture MR, it
is an extremely hard subject to learn. A lifetime is not
enough to become expert in every aspect. Clinicians,
technologists and scientists all struggle with the study
of the subject. The result is sometimes an obscurity of
understanding or a dilution of scientific truth
resulting in misconceptions. This is why we have
chosen to write this book. Our aim is to introduce
you to MR as a tool – rather like learning to drive a
car. Once you are confident on the road, we can then
start to learn how the engine works.
couple of years most of the basic techniques of radi- unique in involving no ionizing radiation and
ography were established, e.g. the use of fluorescent offering the possibility of safe, non-invasive imaging.
screens in 1896 by Pupin, contrast media reported by Its ability to image in real time and its sensitivity to
Lindenthal in the same year, even the principle of flow, through the Doppler effect, have been key
angiography. Early fluoroscopy entailed direct factors in its widespread role in obstetrics, cardiology,
viewing from a fluorescent plate, i.e. putting your abdominal investigations and vascular imaging, real-
head in the main beam, a practice frowned upon time biopsy guidance and minimally invasive surgery.
today! Unfortunately radiation protection followed As early as 1959, J. R. Singer at the University of
slightly too late for the pioneers of radiology. The California, Berkeley, proposed that NMR could be
next real technical break-through was the develop- used as a non-invasive tool to measure in vivo blood
ment of the image intensifier in the 1950s, but the flow. In 1971 Raymond Damadian discovered that
basis of conventional radiography remained the same certain mouse tumours displayed elevated relaxation
until the recent IT and digital revolutions. Computed times compared with normal tissues in vitro. This
tomography (CT) was a huge break-through, earning opened the door for a completely new way of imaging
Hounsfield and Cormack the Nobel Prize for medi- the human body, where the potential contrast
cine and physiology in 1979. X-ray CT was unique in between tissues and disease was many times greater
producing tomographic images or slices of the living than that offered by X-ray technology and ultrasound
human body for the first time and with a higher (Figure 1.2). At the same time, developments in cryo-
contrast than that achievable by conventional planar genics, or the study of very low temperatures, made
techniques. The combination of a moving X-ray the development of whole-body superconducting
gantry and the computing power necessary to recon- magnets possible. Damadian and his colleagues
struct from projections made CT possible. at the State University of New York, starved of main-
In nuclear medicine a similar evolution was occur- stream research funding, went so far as to design and
ring, from the development of the gamma camera by build their own superconducting magnet operating in
Anger in 1958 to tomographic imaging in the form of their Brooklyn laboratory, and the first human body
Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography image by NMR is attributed to them. There is some
(SPECT) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET), dispute about who actually is the founder of modern
which is ongoing today. PET’s clinical use is increas- Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), but one thing is
ing, particularly in detecting metastases in oncology. certain: Damadian coined the first MR acronym,
Its ability to image minute concentrations of metabol- namely FONAR (Field fOcused Nuclear mAgnetic
ites is unique and makes it a powerful research tool in Resonance). This set a trend, and you can see the
the aetiology of disease and the effects of drugs. development of the acronym family tree in Chapter 4!
Ultrasound was developed in the 1950s following In 1973, in an article in Nature, Paul Lauterbur
the development of SONAR in World War II and was proposed using magnetic field gradients to distinguish
Figure 1.4 0.15 T resistive magnet used by Philips in the early development of MRI. Courtesy of Philips Healthcare.
‘for his contributions to the development of the meth- Paul Lauterbur is said to have been inspired
odology of high resolution nuclear magnetic reson- to use field gradients to produce an image while
ance spectroscopy’. You could say Richard Ernst eating a hamburger. His seminal paper ‘Image For-
achieved the same trick twice: by his novel applica- mation by Induced Local Interactions. Examples
tions of 2D FT in both spectroscopy and imaging. Employing Nuclear Magnetic Resonance’ (Nature
The 2003 Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine 242, 16 March 1973) was originally rejected. Thirty
was awarded to Professor Paul Lauterbur and Sir years later, Nature placed this work in a book of the
Peter Mansfield ‘for their discoveries concerning 21 most influential scientific papers of the twentieth
magnetic resonance imaging’. Peter Mansfield left century.
school at 15 with no qualifications, aiming to become Other Nobel Laureates associated with NMR
a printer. His scientific curiosity was sparked by the include Norman Ramsey (1989), a spectroscopy pion-
V1 and V2 flying bombs and rockets that fell on eer who developed the theory of the chemical shift;
London in 1944, when he was 11. After working as Isidor Rabi (1944), Ramsey’s PhD mentor, ‘for his
a scientific assistant at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory resonance method for recording the magnetic prop-
and a spell in the army, he went back to college to erties of atomic nuclei’; and Kurt Wüthrich (2002) for
complete his education, eventually becoming Profes- his development of NMR spectroscopy for determin-
sor of Physics at the University of Nottingham. He ation of the three-dimensional structure of biological
4 was knighted in 1993. macromolecules in solution.
Figure 1.5 Nobel prize-winners in NMR: (a) Purcell 1912–1997, (b) Bloch 1901–1999, (c) Bloembergen b. 1920, (d) Ernst b. 1933, (e) Lauterbur
1929–2007 and (f) Mansfield b. 1933–2017. Images courtesy of Ullstein Bild/Getty Images; Bettman/Getty Images; Ira Wyman/Getty Images; the
Nobel Museum; and Sven Nackstrand/Getty Images (x2) respectively.
Due to problems of low signal and high sensitivity MR development has since then exploded into
to motion, body MR did not really take off until the new innovations and clinical applications explored
1990s. The key factors were the development of fast throughout this book, some of which are illustrated
imaging techniques, particularly gradient echo, and in Figure 1.6.
phased array coil technology. The 1990s also saw the
coming of age of earlier developments, namely cardiac
MRI and Echo Planar Imaging (EPI). EPI, which is the 1.3 How to Use this Book
fastest and one of the most cutting-edge methods, was Everyone starts MRI with the same basic problem: it’s
actually one of the first imaging methods to be pro- like nothing else they’ve learned in the past. All that
posed, by Sir Peter Mansfield. EPI is now extensively knowledge you have about radioactive isotopes and
used in neurological imaging through functional MRI film-screen combinations is useless to you now. 5
(fMRI) and diffusion imaging. Where do you start? Most MRI books start at the
beginning (a very good place to start, according to the things you can touch and look at: the equipment you
song), and introduce protons, net magnetization, pre- find in an MR unit and what the images look like, using
cession and the Larmor equation all in the first three terms like ‘T1-weighted’ simply as labels. Later on we
pages. We think there is another way: starting at the talk about how the images are produced and finally we
end with the images that are produced, which is much cover the underlying physics. By that stage you will be
more useful if you’re already working in the MR unit. able to link these rather difficult concepts back to
After all, you don’t expect to understand how the things which matter – the images.
internal combustion engine works before you learn Part II contains more advanced topics, such as
to drive. cardiac MR and spectroscopy, in no particular order.
The book is divided into two parts. In Part I you You don’t have to work right through Part I before
6 will find everything you need to know about the basics you read these chapters; we just couldn’t fit them
of MRI, but presented in reverse order. We start with neatly into the reverse order!
In all the chapters you will find the most basic better, re-read the chapter, this time taking in some of
information in the main text. Clinical boxes, shaded the boxes. And when you’re ready for more advanced
green, provide the clinical context as you go along. subjects like spectroscopy or fMRI, head over to Part
Yellow boxes are about trying things for yourself: II. The topics can seem to jump around a bit by
simple (and not-so-simple) imaging experiments to splitting them up this way, but we think it is a good
run on your own scanner. Advanced boxes, shaded in compromise, which allows us to include enough
blue, deal with various topics in more detail and are information for everyone, whether you are a new
placed at appropriate places throughout the text. radiographer hoping to make a good impression in
If you’re completely new to MR, we suggest you your new job, a radiologist interested in improving
read straight through Part I, skipping all the advanced diagnostic image quality or a physicist studying for a
boxes. When you need to understand something a bit postgraduate degree.
2
2.1 Introduction 2.2.1 The MR Suite
In any first week of a new job or in a new environ- The MR suite will probably be arranged differently
ment, it takes a little time to become orientated and to from the remainder of the imaging department. It
find your way around. This chapter aims to ease those may have its own dedicated reception, administration,
initial experiences so that you will feel more like a waiting and patient-handling areas. Security will be
seasoned campaigner than a raw recruit. The high on the staff’s agenda and the suite usually has its
following are your essential instructions: own lockable doors. The preoccupation with security
Magnet safety, especially from ferromagnetic and the ‘separateness’ of the MR suite is principally to
projectiles, is paramount to the safe operation of prevent anyone introducing ferromagnetic items into
any MR unit; do nothing to endanger the the vicinity of the magnet, where the outcome could
wellbeing of your patients and colleagues. be disastrous.
The MRI unit should have clearly written policies MR accommodation may comprise:
and procedures for checking that patients and staff facilities for patient management: reception,
have no contraindications. waiting areas, changing facilities, toilets,
Aside from the magnet itself, the coils are the anaesthesia and recovery area, counselling room;
main items of equipment that you will have to facilities for staff: reception/office, administration
learn to handle (don’t break them!), and learn how office, reporting rooms;
to position patients comfortably and effectively MR system: the MRI scanner room (magnet/
with them. examination room), computer/technical room
Good patient cooperation is essential for safe and and operator’s console/host computer;
effective scanning; you will need good people dedicated storage areas: trolley bay, general store,
skills. resuscitation trolley bay, cleaner’s store.
The MR environment is a bit confusing at first, but
An example of a typical MRI suite layout is given in
you will soon feel at home. Enjoy the experience!
Figure 2.1.
The MRI scanner room, or magnet room or examin-
2.2 Welcome to the MR Unit ation room is a restricted access or controlled access area.
On your first day you will be asked to complete a staff See Box ‘Zonal Defence: Control and Access’ for further
safety questionnaire and should undergo a thorough details. The MR system is actually distributed between
safety induction. (Once you are MR trained you will three of the rooms in the suite: the magnet room
find yourself doing strange things such as taking off which houses the magnet and coils, an air-conditioned
your watch and emptying your pockets when you go technical (computer) room which is full of supporting
into a CT room!) As part of your induction you will electronics and electrical plant, and the control room
need to become familiar with your institution’s MR which contains the MR console.
safety policy or Local Rules. These will contain infor- You will spend most time in the control room
mation about access to the controlled area or zones, at the MR scanner console: where you enter
local policy on implants, dealing with emergencies, patient details, select and customise scan acquisition
staff roles and responsibilities, and other site-specific parameters, view and post-process images, archive
safety-related information.
11
images and send them to the Picture Archiving
Workstation
Control
Magnet room RF cage room
Reporting
Quench
pipe
RF Window Console
PACS monitors Zone 1
Penetration
panel
Zone 2
Store
Electronics
Zone 3
Change
Technical room
Reception WC
Zone 4
Trolley Quench
button
Prep/recovery Self-locking
Waiting
doors
Sink
Lockers
Hospital corridor
Figure 2.1 Typical MR imaging suite, showing Zones I to IV as defined by the ACR, and the controlled access area as defined by MHRA. Access
to Zones III–IV and the controlled areas is strictly controlled.
And he told them all about their walk through the strange crowd, so
lively and so full of enthusiasm, turning now and then to Cornélie for
corroboration. But Cornélie wore an absent air, replying only in
monosyllables, for she had just learnt that her dress had not yet arrived;
though she took some comfort on hearing that her sisters were in no better
plight.
"You may well ask, but when Maximilien talks I forget everything."
Then taking up her basket of salad, she called Victoire to help her. They
used to dine out of doors when the weather was fine; the table was already
there, and had only to be laid. Ah! that fête—how it turned everybody's
head! Mother Duplay was certainly late, to her great discomfiture. Yes, she
was late—she, the pink of punctuality.
She ran to the kitchen, on the ground floor, next to the dining room, and
found her youngest daughter, Madame Lebas, already there.
"Now then! Let us make haste!" said Madame Duplay, highly amused at
being caught by her daughter. "Strain the soup while I prepare the salad.
Oh, Victoire, we haven't laid the cloth yet!"
With the Duplays, it was a long-established custom that everything
connected with the kitchen or the table should be entrusted only to the
family; the maid washed up when the meal was over. Perhaps this was an
excess of prudence, or a fear of poison. Whatever the motive was,
Robespierre highly approved the practice.
The two girls and Madame Lebas took it in turns to wait at table, and so
they could all speak freely, without being restrained by the presence of the
servant.
The soup was now served up, steaming hot, and Madame Lebas was
ladling it out in equal portions, reserving the last, as the hottest, for
Robespierre.
"To table! To table!" she cried, placing chairs for every one.
But Robespierre and Duplay did not move. They were deeply interested
in something Lebas was telling them. Duplay's son-in-law had just returned
from the Tuileries, where he had gone "to feel the pulse of the Convention,"
as he expressed it. The National Assembly, although undermined by some
evil-minded members, would be excellently represented at the fête on the
morrow. The abominable rogues who had charged Robespierre with
intending to turn this popular manifestation to his own profit had been
disappointed—an appropriate reward for their drivelling calumny! No one
attached the slightest importance to their scandalous reports. The
Convention, as well as the people, were with Robespierre. Only the
Committee of Public Safety...
"But, I say, children, the soup will be cold," Madame Duplay called out
in desperation.
Simon the wooden-legged came down from his room, declaring that he
was famished.
"Here we are! Here we are!" the three men exclaimed, taking their seats.
Robespierre had made a sign to Lebas to change the conversation on
account of the women. Then significantly shrugging his shoulders, he
whispered to him—
Victoire cleared away the soup plates as slowly as possible, waiting for
Robespierre. When he had finished, she said—
"That is right, bon ami. You know you have to keep up your strength for
to-morrow."
Madame Lebas now returned from the kitchen with the capon, and was
greeted by a general murmur of admiration.
"To-morrow, children, you shall have duck, duck and turnips!" said
Madame Duplay, much gratified, as she set to work to carve the fowl,
giving Robespierre the white meat, which he took mechanically, deep in
thought. Lebas told them that he had seen Fouquier-Tinville, the Public
Prosecutor, who was returning from the Bastille, where he had been to
inspect the new installation.
"It will not work to-morrow either," said Robespierre, "but the day after
to-morrow ..."
"At all events," he said, "the fête to-morrow will be a warning for every
one; for the aristocrats, as well as for many a Judas of the party."
"I am sure the front door has just been opened," he said.
Simon Duplay took out a match to light a lamp, and young Maurice
rose, looking out into the dark.
It was, after all, only the dresses, which the dressmaker had at last
brought. The enormous box was handled by them eagerly; they wished to
open it there and then. However, Victoire, prudently fearing to soil the
contents, carried it into the dining-room, followed by her sisters.
The conversation was resumed with lively interest by the light of the
lamp just lit, and opinions were freely expressed that as Royalty had her
fêtes, the world would now see what a Republican fête could be like. It
would be truly national, imposing, and symbolical.
The young women had not yet returned.
"Hullo! you children! what are you doing there?" called out old Duplay.
"Doesn't it suit me?" she said. "Oh! don't look at my hair; it isn't
arranged," and she ran down the steps followed by Madame Lebas and
Cornélie, also arrayed in their new finery.
Robespierre smiled.
"Let them alone, bonne mère. It's not fête every day!"
The noise of hurrying feet, the sound of voices and music, the hum of
Paris in the distance preparing for the coming fête centered through the
open window. Fireworks burst in mid-air, then suddenly seemed to radiate
in a blaze of glory.
"Oh, look!" exclaimed the boy Maurice, as showers of golden fire fell in
a cascade of light. Robespierre musingly watched their slow descent, which
to his overstrained imagination took the form of one huge halo of glory.
"The sky is naturally propitious for the fête of the Supreme Being," said
Victoire; "but you will have some breakfast, I suppose?"
They now surrounded him, retaining him to arrange the folds of his
cravat, or brush grains of powder from the revers of his coat, which they all
declared suited him to perfection. He received the compliment with visible
pleasure, as he had given himself no little trouble over his toilet for the
great occasion.
He wore a light blue coat, nankeen breeches buttoned above the knees,
where a stream of tri-colour ribbons was attached. White silk stockings and
buckled shoes completed the array of this real Republican dandy. He was
powdered of course, as usual, and had even indulged in an extra puff or so,
but his most extravagant conceit was displayed in the lace waistcoat which
spread like a filmy foam across his breast. The women went into ecstasies
over this, and declared his taste exquisite. As he was taking leave, Cornélie
appeared with an enormous bouquet of wild flowers and ears of corn in her
hand.
"And the bouquet?" she asked, giving it to him at the same time.
"Ah! yes! I had forgotten it. How kind you are! Au revoir. I shall see
you by and by, looking your best, I am sure!"
And Robespierre, spick and span in his new clothes, all curled and
perfumed, picked his way daintily across the courtyard.
At the door he found Lebas, Simon the wooden-legged, and the boy
Maurice Duplay awaiting him. They wished to escort him to the Tuileries.
Didier, the agent, now came up, accompanied by two of his men, and they
all started in the direction of the Rue Saint-Honoré, keeping to the right.
The Incorruptible conversed with Lebas.
A breeze stirred the flowers that decorated the front of the houses,
wafting abroad their perfume. People were filling the streets from all
directions, all in festive attire, with palms and ears of corn in their hands.
On recognising the Incorruptible, they bowed to him; delighted, he
discreetly returned their salutations.
Robespierre had turned into the Passage des Feuillantes, and found
himself on the terrace. Here a surprise awaited him. The garden was
already, at that early hour, three-quarters full, looking like an immense sea
with wave upon wave of tricolour ribbons, plumes, and cockades. He
continued his way along the Terrace des Feuillantes, a smile on his lips,
returning the greetings as he went, and then joined the stream of people
moving towards the Tuileries, happy to lose himself in that crowd flocking
to his own apotheosis.
Flowers festooned the front of the Palace from end to end, lending to it
the freshness of spring-tide.
It was Lebas, who, all out of breath, came to tell him that the
Convention was assembled, and only awaited his arrival.
"Vilate sent me here. I was wondering where to find you."
"Half-past twelve?"
The fête had been fixed for noon. He was then half an hour behind time!
And the ironical smiles of some of his colleagues when he appeared in the
tribune were not the least bitter consequences of his unpunctuality.
"He hasn't even the courtesy of kings, yet he has enough of their
insolence!"
It was Barère's. Drops of gall were already falling into his cup of joy.
But as the people began to applaud at the lower end of the gardens,
Robespierre advanced to the edge of the tribune, and bowed. The expectant
crowd swayed as one man towards him, unwilling to lose a single gesture or
a single word. So stood the Incorruptible, enwrapped and penetrated by the
inebriating vapours of adulation and the perfume of all the palms and
bouquets that rose as incense at his feet.
But again a discordant note was touched, and another voice was heard
—
Robespierre turned pale. The fête had certainly not opened auspiciously.
Then, in spite of himself, an instinctive and uncontrollable desire to lean on
some one, which always took possession of him in hours of suffering,
mastered him. As he looked round in search of a sympathising glance, his
eyes fell on a fair, rosy child, in its young mother's arms, trying to play with
bouquets of corn and wild flowers which its mother kept from him.
Robespierre recognised the bouquet which in his excitement he had left on
the tribune, and which the young woman now held out to him. This delicate
attention fell on his parched soul like refreshing dew, and he gratefully
accepted the simple homage offered with such charming frankness.
Robespierre now headed the procession, preceded by trumpets and
drums, followed by the Convention through the line of National Guards,
who kept back the curious crowd on either side of the garden, as the line
wound its way towards the swing-bridge which opened on to the Place de la
Révolution.
The deputies were all there, dressed in official garb: dark blue coat, red
collar and cuffs, tight-fitting knee breeches of doeskin, high boots, broad
tricolour sashes across the breast, fastened on the left shoulder, and tricolour
plumes in their hats. Each member carried in his hand a bouquet of flowers
and ears of corn.
The excitement of the populace was now at its height, and, as the
members of the Convention appeared in sight, a cry rose suddenly—
"He is here!"
"Who?"
"Robespierre."
A tremor of curiosity ran through the crowd who, mad with excitement,
poured forth their welcome in a storm of enthusiastic cheers and plaudits,
even before their hero came in sight. A sheriff, then a delegate, then a
master of ceremonies, were by turns loudly cheered by the eager multitude,
who in their impatience had taken them for the Incorruptible. At last he
passed, smiling affably, hat in his hand, and the cry ran from mouth to
mouth—
This time it was really Robespierre; there was no mistake. Hats, caps,
handkerchiefs, waved on all sides; women raised sprays of loses in the air
and men branches of palm.
The Incorruptible was now passing the very spot where on the previous
day the scaffold still stood. A woman in the crowd called attention to this in
all simplicity. But her voice was quickly drowned by a hundred harps,
whose dulcet music filled the air. All members of the Convention had
reached the Place de la Révolution, when a new cortège came in sight, the
chariot of Agriculture, draped in blue, covered with garlands of roses, and
drawn by a yoke of oxen with gilded horns. The goddess of Agriculture was
impersonated by a beautiful girl from the Opera, who smiled on the crowd
with her light blue eyes, looking the very incarnation of luxuriant youth, her
blonde beauty framed in ripe golden corn and fruits of the rich harvest.
All music had ceased, each voice was silenced, every whisper hushed;
even the cries of pedlars and street-hawkers were unheard. A hundred
thousand eyes were fixed on Robespierre, who, set up on high and wrapped
in clouds of incense, appeared to tower in stature, to dominate that mass of
human beings with all the force of a prevailing pride.
He was thanking the French nation, who had laid aside their work to lift
their thoughts and aspirations towards the Great, the Supreme Being.
But a stir was noticeable in the crowd, not far from Robespierre. A man
had just made an observation in an audible whisper, attracting the attention
of the bystanders. They looked at him in surprise, trying to divine his
meaning, but Robespierre, who was too far off to have heard, continued—
"With the guillotine!" called the voice in the crowd, with a bitter laugh.
A murmur rose round the man, every one whispering out of respect for
Robespierre, who continued his harangue. They questioned the man,
threatened him. Voices grew louder. "Silence!" called the officials, but the
disturbance went on. "He ought to be arrested!" and the words drunkard,
aristocrat, chouan, were thrown at him. "What did he want? What did he
say?"
"Yes, what did you say?" asked a patriot coming close to him.
"I say only what you ought all to cry out to that charlatan—'Instead of
burning incense to your idol, Tyrant, burn the guillotine!'"
This daring critic, as the reader will guess at once, was Olivier.
His voice was drowned in a burst of applause which greeted the words
of Robespierre encouraging him to go on with his speech.
"And they can applaud him, the fools! They can applaud him!"
With the assistance of his men Héron dragged the offender to the feet of
Robespierre, who, being informed of the affair, had asked to see the
interrupter.
A horrified scream rose from the crowd, but was as soon hushed at a
sign from Robespierre. Olivier tried to throw himself on him, but was held
back by the police.
The Incorruptible motioned the agents to remove him out of reach of the
furious and exasperated crowd, who continued to cry out—
"You can kill me, murder me, ruffians! but I have cried out, as others
will cry out after me, 'Down with the scaffold!'"
His words were lost in the tumult. Robespierre reascended the steps of
the statue, and tried to calm the people.
Loud plaudits followed, and cries of "Long live the Republic! Long live
Robespierre! Long live the Incorruptible!"
CHAPTER VIII
Robespierre slowly descended the altar steps with a preoccupied air, for
that last desperate cry of Olivier had struck its mark. However self-
possessed he might be, he had felt the blow acutely. That voice, full of
hatred and revenge, had risen from the crowd he thought entirely at one
with him! In their very applause at that moment the people were protesting
against an insult coming from their ranks! They were driven to defend him,
when he had dreamt that the populace would receive him with instant and
unanimous enthusiasm, insuring to him for ever the esteem of France!
"The fête went very well, didn't it?" asked mother Duplay.
"Perfectly!"
As Cornélie began to tell him of some details which she thought had
escaped him, he put her off gently, saying—
"No, no; I must beg you to excuse me! Au revoir till to-morrow! Au
revoir!"
With these words he went up to his room and locked himself in.
Every one was in low spirits at the Duplays' that evening. They scarcely
tasted their supper. No one was deceived by Robespierre's feigned
indisposition; they were well aware that the fête had been a great
disappointment to him, and they shared his chagrin, though they determined
that this should be in no way apparent.
"But are we not going to see the fireworks?" asked the boy Maurice
anxiously.
"We are not," declared mother Duplay. "How could we enjoy ourselves
without him?"
The house, which had awakened to joy, now slumbered silently whilst
Paris was being lit up to prepare for the populace, again in holiday mood,
the promised display of fireworks.
Robespierre rejoined the Duplays next day at supper. He had spent the
morning and afternoon locked in his room, under pretext of working. And
work he did. Alone, in sullen silence, he prepared that atrocious Prairial
law, which he intended to lay before Convention forthwith—a law which
aimed at nothing less than the entire suppression of the right of defence
before the Revolutionary Tribunal. Moral evidence was to suffice; cross-
examinations, depositions, and the testimony of witnesses were to be done
away with. To be a "suspect" would itself be a proof of guilt.
Ah! he had been insulted! Well, this was his reply to the insult. He had
wished to establish his dictatorship under conditions of peace, but the great
pacific demonstration had not availed him. Were these cowards only to be
subjugated by terror? They should have it then, with renewed vigour, in a
whirlwind of tempestuous violence carrying everything before it. It should
be a fearful and memorable lesson! Every trace of those stubborn,