Vegetarianism and the French Revolution

We don't typically associate the French Revolution with vegetarianism, but according to this post in NPR, vegetarianism was alive and kicking during the era:

"...nearly lost to history were the middle and upper class opponents of the political system, some of whom were reported to have used vegetarianism — not the guillotine — to protest the monarchy.  
Vegetarianism during the French Revolution is most often traced to the political writings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau. He was a philosopher who greatly influenced the revolutionaries, says Tristram Stuart, author of the book The Bloodless Revolution: A Cultural History of Vegetarianism: From 1600 to Modern Times.
Rousseau writes in Emile, his treatise on education:

"The indifference of children towards meat is one proof that the taste for meat is unnatural; their preference is for vegetable foods, such as milk, pastry, fruit, etc. Beware of changing this natural taste and making children flesh-eaters, if not for their health's sake, for the sake of their character." "