# XXXVII explained — Sir Percy Hits Back

> Chapter companion for Sir Percy Hits Back by Baroness Orczy.

## What happens

After the dramatic trial, the crowd waits in vain for the prisoners to be brought out. Tartine, Pochart, Danou, and others discover that the private door is locked and the prisoners have vanished. The crowd eventually disperses, believing the devil himself spirited away Fleurette and Amédé. Tartine later recounts how Rémi, a supposed scavenger, orchestrated the escape.

## Themes in this chapter

### Disguise and Deception

Rémi and his mates pose as scavengers and soldiers, deceiving the authorities to rescue the prisoners.

### Revolutionary Tyranny and Injustice

The arbitrary trial and the crowd's thirst for spectacle highlight the oppressive and capricious nature of revolutionary justice.

## Character check-ins

### Citizen Tartine

The butcher who first suspects something is wrong and helps break down the locked door.

### Citizen Pochart

One of the notabilities who worries about Chauvelin's fate and later searches for the prisoners.

### Citizen Danou

Another notability who shares Pochart's concerns and helps close the Hôtel de Ville portals.

### Chief Warder Motus

The chief warder who vouches for Rémi as a patriot, unwittingly aiding the escape.

### Citizen Rémi

The giant scavenger who leads the mock soldiers and orchestrates the prisoners' disappearance.

### Public Prosecutor Isnard

Mentioned as returning from Paris, hoping for Chauvelin's punishment.

## Key lines

> Tartine, the butcher, was the first to suspect that there might be something wrong.

Tartine was the first to realize something was amiss.

_Highlights Tartine's role in uncovering the escape._

> The crowd waited, says the Moniteur, with sufficient patience.

According to the Moniteur, the crowd waited patiently at first.

_Illustrates the crowd's initial calm before realizing they were cheated._

> Nothing would take that idea out of the people’s mind, and long after these horrible days of the revolution had passed away... those who were present... would recount the marvellous story of how the devil had entered the courthouse and spirited the accused away.

The people long believed the devil himself had taken the prisoners, a story that persisted after the Revolution.

_Shows the lasting superstitious interpretation of the escape._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/sir_percy_hits_back_se/chapters/xxxvii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/sir_percy_hits_back_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/sir_percy_hits_back_se/chapters