of putting off my sailor's dress, and then flying to the palace of
Napoleon. But I had been watched and followed: and the functionaries
despatched by general Cambronne, the Commandant of the town,
immediately appeared to secure me. I tranquillized them, and they
accompanied me to the town-house, where General Bertrand then lodged.
I sent in my name, and the General came out. "Sir, do you come from
France?"--"Yes, Monsieur le Marechal."--"What do you want here?"--"I
wish to see the Emperor, and to solicit employment."--"Does the
Emperor know you?"--"Yes, Sir, and M. X*** has also given me the
means of proving to the Emperor that I am not unworthy of his
goodness."--"Do you bring us any news from France?"--"I do, Monsieur
le Marechal; and I think that the intelligence which I bring is
good."--"Well, Heaven hears you; as for us, we are so wretched--I am
dying with impatience to have a talk with you about France; but I must
inform the Emperor of your arrival. Perhaps he may not be able to see
you immediately. To-day the English corvette[35] is here, and those
people are suspicious of every thing: is it publicly known who you
are?"--"It is known that I am a French officer."--"So much the worse;
hide your decorations, hold your tongue, and remain within doors and
rest yourself at your inn. I will send for you."--Half an hour
afterwards the Marshal desired me to proceed as quickly as possible to
the Emperor's garden-gate: the Emperor, would come there, and speak to
me without appearing to know me. I went accordingly: the Emperor,
according to his custom, was walking with his hands behind his back.
He passed several times before me without lifting up his eyes; at last
he looked at me: he stopped, and asked me in Italian what countryman
I was. I answered in French that I was a Parisian; that business had
called me to Italy; and that I could not resist the desire of seeing
my old sovereign.--"Well, Sir, talk to me about Paris and
France;"--and as he finished these words he began to walk again. I
accompanied him; and after he had put several indifferent questions to
me aloud, he desired me to enter his apartments: he then ordered
Bertrand and Drouot to retire, and forced me to sit down by his side.
Napoleon began in a reserved and absent manner: "The grand Marshal
tells me that you have just arrived from France."--"Yes, Sire."--"What
do you want here?"--"Sire, I wish to offer my services to you; my
conduct in 1814--" Napoleon interrupting me,--"Sir, I do not question
but that you are a very good officer, however I have so many officers
with me already, that it will be very difficult for me to assist you;
yet we will see: it appears that you know M. X***."--"Yes,
Sire."--"Has he sent a letter for me by you?"--"No, Sire."--Napoleon,
interrupting me, "I see he forgets me just like the rest; since I have
been here, I have not heard a word of him or of any body."--I
interrupted the Emperor in my turn, "Sire, he has never ceased to
entertain those sentiments of devotion and attachment towards your
Majesty which are still cherished by all true Frenchmen; and--"
Napoleon, with disdain; "What, do they still think of me in
France?"--"Never will they forget you."--"Never! that is a strong
expression; the French have another Sovereign, and they are commanded
both by their duty and their tranquillity to think on him alone." This
answer did not please me: the Emperor, thought I to myself, is out of
humour because I have not brought him any letters; he mistrusts me: it
was not worth while to come so far for the sake of such an ungracious
reception.--Napoleon, continuing, "What do they think about me in
France?"--"There, your Majesty is universally deplored and
regretted."--"Yes, and there, also, they manufacture all sorts of lies
concerning me. Sometimes they say that I am mad, sometimes that I am
ill, and you may see (here the Emperor looked at his _embonpoint_), if
I look like an ailing man. It is also given out that they intend to
transport me either to St. Helena or to Malta. I would not advise them
to try. I have provisions for six months, and brave followers to
defend me: but I cannot think that Europe will be so dishonourable as
to rise in arms against a single man, who has neither the power nor
the inclination of hurting others. The emperor Alexander has too much
love for posterity to lend himself to such a crime. They have
guaranteed the sovereignty of the isle of Elba to me by a solemn
treaty. Here I am in my own home; and as long as I do not go out to
pick a quarrel with my neighbours, they have no right to come and
disturb me ... have you served in the grand army?"--"Yes, Sire, I had
the felicity of distinguishing myself under your Majesty's eyes in the
plains of Champagne; your Majesty appeared to take such particular
notice of me, that I had dared to hope that your Majesty would
recollect me."--"Why, yes; I thought, somehow, that I knew your face
when I saw you, but I have only a confused recollection of you."--Poor
mortals! thought I to myself, go and expose your lives for the sake of
Kings, go and sacrifice your youth, your repose, your happiness for
their sake!--"In what affairs have you distinguished yourself?"--"Sire,
at *****, and at ***** Marshal Ney there presented me to your majesty,
saying, 'Sire, here is the intrepid S.... P..... of whom I have spoken
to your Majesty.'"--"Ah! ah! I really do recollect--yes, I was very
well pleased indeed, with your behaviour at **** and at ****; you
showed much resolution, much strength of character. Did I not
'decorate' you on the field of battle?"--"Yes, Sire."--Napoleon, with
greater warmth and confidence, "_Eh bien!_ how are they all treated in
France by the Bourbons?"--"Sire, the Bourbons have not realized the
expectations of the French, and the number of malcontents increases
every day."--Napoleon, sharply; "So much the worse, so much the worse:
but how, has not X. sent me any letters?"--"No, Sire; he was afraid
lest they might be taken from me; and as he thought that your Majesty,
being now compelled to be vigilant, and to distrust all the world,
might distrust me also, he has revealed several circumstances to me,
which are only known to your Majesty and to himself; thus enabling me
to give a proof that I am worthy of your Majesty's confidence."--"Let
us hear them." I began my detail, but he exclaimed, without allowing
me to finish, "that's enough; why did you not begin by telling me all
that? there is half an hour that we have lost." This storm[36]
disconcerted me. He perceived my confusion, and resumed his discourse
with mildness.--"Come, make yourself easy, and repeat to me, with the
greatest minuteness, all that has passed between you and X****." I
then related the circumstances which had induced me to have an
interview with Monsieur X****. I repeated our conversation word for
word. I gave him a complete account of all the faults and excesses of
the royal government; and I was going to draw the inferences which had
occurred to Monsieur X**** and me. But the Emperor, who, when he was
affected, was incapable of listening to any recital without
interrupting it, and making his comments at every moment, stopped my
mouth. "I thought so, too," said he, "when I abdicated, that the
Bourbons, instructed and disciplined by adversity, would not fall
again into the errors which ruined them in 1789. I thought that the
King would govern you '_en bon homme_.' This was the only way by which
he could obtain a pardon from you, for having been put upon you by
foreigners. But since they have stepped into France, they have done
nothing but acts of madness. Their treaty of the twenty-third of
April," (raising his voice,) "has made me deeply indignant: with one
stroke of the pen they have robbed France of Belgium, and of all the
territory acquired since the revolution. They have deprived the nation
of its docks, its arsenals, its fleets, its artillery, and the immense
_materiel_ which I had collected in the fortresses and the ports which
they have ceded. Talleyrand has led them into this infamous business:
he must have been bribed. Peace is easy upon such terms. If, like
them, I had consented to the ruin of France, they would not now be on
my throne:" (with energy,) "I would sooner have cut off my right hand.
I preferred renouncing my throne rather than to retain it by staining
my glory, and the honour of the French nation.... A degraded crown is
an intolerable burthen. My enemies have published everywhere, that I
obstinately refused to make peace. They have represented me as a
wretched madman, eager only for blood and carnage: this language
answered their turn. When you wish to hang your dog, you give out
that he is mad: _Quand on veut tuer son chien, il faut bien faire
accroire qu'il est enrage._ But Europe shall know the truth: I will
let the world know all that was said and done at Chatillon. I will
unmask the Austrians, the Russians, and the English with a powerful
hand. Europe shall judge: Europe shall say who was the rogue, and who
was wishing to shed human blood. If I had been mad for war, I might
have retired with my army beyond the Loire, and I might have enjoyed
mountain warfare to my heart's content. I would not; I was tired of
carnage ... my name, and the brave fellows who remained faithful to
me, yet made the allies tremble, even in my capital. They offered
Italy to me as the price of my abdication: I refused it. After once
reigning over France, one ought not to reign anywhere else. I chose
the isle of Elba. They were too happy to give Elba to me. This
position suited me. I can watch France and the Bourbons. All that I
have done has been only for France. It is for her sake and not for
mine that I wished to render her the first nation in the universe. My
glory is made for myself[37] *******. If I had only thought of
myself, I would have returned to a private station, but it was my duty
to retain the imperial title for my family and my son.... Next to
France, my son is the dearest object in the world to me."
[Footnote 35: The corvette commanded by Captain
Campbell.]
[Footnote 36: Napoleon usually liked to intimidate
and disconcert those who approached him. Sometimes
he feigned that he could not hear you, and then he
would make you repeat in a very loud tone what he
had heard perfectly well before. However, he was
really deaf in a slight degree. At other times he
would overwhelm you with such rapid and abrupt
interrogatories, that you had not time to
understand him, and were compelled to give your
answers in confusion. He used then to laugh at your
embarrassment; and when he had driven you out of
your presence of mind and confidence, he amused
himself at your expense.--_Note of the author of
the work._]
[Footnote 37: "Ma gloire est faite a moi. _Mon nom
vivra autant que celui de Dieu!!!_"]
During the whole of this discourse, the Emperor continued striding up
and down, and appeared violently agitated. He paused a little while,
and then he began again. "They (i.e. the emigrants) know too well that
I am here, and they would like to assassinate me. I discover new
plots, new snares every day. They have sent to Corsica one of the
assassins of Georges, a wretch whom the English journals themselves
have pointed out to Europe as a blood-thirsty assassin; but let us be
on the alert. If he misses me, I won't miss him. I shall send my
grenadiers after him, and he shall be shot as an example to others."
After a few moments of silence, he said, "Do my generals go to court?
they must cut a sad figure there." I waited for the end of this
digression, in order to resume the thread of my discourse. As I was
convinced that I could not possibly lead the conversation, I resolved
to let the Emperor have it according to his own way, and I answered,
"Yes, Sire, and they are furious to see themselves superseded in
favour by emigrants who have never heard the sound of a cannon."--"The
emigrants will never alter. As long as they were only required to
dance attendance in my anti-chamber, I had more than enough of them.
When it was necessary to show any heart, they slunk away like.... I
committed a great error, when I recalled that anti-national race into
France. If it had not been for me, they would have died of starvation
abroad; but then I had great motives. I wanted to reconcile Europe to
us, and to close the revolution.... What do my soldiers say about
me?"--"The soldiers, Sire, talk constantly about your immortal
victories. They never pronounce your name but with respect,
admiration, and grief. When the Princes give money to the soldiers,
they drink it out to your health, and when they are forced to cry
_Vive le Roi!_ they add in a whisper, _de Rome_."--"And so they still
love me?" (smiling.)--"Yes, Sire, and I may even venture to say, more
than ever."--"What do they say about our misfortunes?"--"They consider
them as the effect of treachery; and they constantly repeat, that they
never would have been conquered, if they had not been sold to their
enemies. They are particularly indignant with respect to the
capitulation of Paris."--"They are right: had it not been for the
infamous defection of the Duke of Ragusa, the allies would have been
lost. I was master of their rear, and of all their resources; not a
man would have escaped. They too would have had their twenty-ninth
bulletin. Marmont is a wretch; he has ruined his country, and
delivered up his sovereign. His convention with Schwartzenburg would
alone suffice to dishonour him. If he had not known when he
surrendered, that he compromised my person and my army, he would not
have found it necessary to make stipulations in favour of my liberty
and life. This piece of treachery is not the only one. He has
intrigued with Talleyrand to take the regency from the Empress, and
the crown from my son. Caulincourt, Macdonald, and the rest of the
marshals, have been cheated and gulled by him in the most shameful
manner. All his blood would not be sufficient to expiate the harm
which he has done to France.... I will devote his name to the
execration of posterity. I am glad to learn that my soldiers retain
the feeling of their superiority, and that they attribute our great
misfortunes to the right authors. I collect with great pleasure, from
the intelligence which you have brought, that the opinion which I had
formed respecting the situation of France, is correct. The family of
the Bourbons is not fit to reign. Their government may be good for
priests, nobles, and old fashioned countesses: it is good for nothing
for the present generation. The revolution has taught the people to
know their rank in the state. They will never consent to fall back
into their former nullity, and to be tied up by the nobility and the
clergy. The army can never belong to the Bourbons. Our victories and
our misfortunes have established an indissoluble tie between the army
and myself. It is only through me that the soldiers can earn
vengeance, power, and glory. From the Bourbons they can get nothing
but insults and blows. Kings can only retain their power by the love
of their subjects or by fear. The Bourbons are neither loved nor
feared. At last they will throw themselves off their throne; but they
may yet retain their position for a long time. Frenchmen do not know
how to conspire."
In pronouncing these words, the Emperor continued walking hastily, and
using many gestures. He rather appeared to be soliloquizing than
addressing any one else; he then continued, looking at me aside, "Does
M. X*** think that those people can stand much longer?"--"His opinion
on this point is exactly conformable to the general opinion; that is
to say, it is now the general impression and conviction, that the
government is hastening to its fall. The priests and the emigrants are
its only partisans; every man of patriotism or soul is its
enemy."--Napoleon (with energy), "Yes, all men in whose veins any
national blood is flowing must be its enemies; but how will all this
end? Is it thought that there will be a new revolution?"--"Sire,
discontent and irritation prevail to such an extent, that the
slightest partial effervescence would inevitably cause a general
insurrection, and nobody would be surprised if it were to take place
to-morrow."--"But what would you do were you to expel the Bourbons:
would you re-establish the republic?"--"The republic, Sire! nobody
thinks about it; perhaps they would create a regency."--Napoleon (with
vehemence and surprise), "A regency! And wherefore? am I dead?"--"But
your absence...."--"My absence makes no difference. In a couple of
days I would be back again in France, if the nation were to recal me.
Do you think it would be well, if I were to return?" The Emperor
turned away his eyes, and I could easily remark, that to this
question he attached more importance than he cared to manifest, and
that he expected my answer with anxiety. "Sire, I dare not personally
attempt to answer such a question, but...."--Napoleon (abruptly),
"That's not what I am asking you; answer yes or no."--"Why then,
Sire,--yes."--Napoleon (with tenderness), "You really think
so?"--"Yes, Sire, I am convinced, and so is M. X****, that the people
and the army would receive you as their deliverer, and that your cause
would be embraced with enthusiasm."--Napoleon (appearing agitated and
impatient), "Then X*** advises me to return?"--"We had foreseen that
your Majesty would make inquiries on this point, and the following is
literally his answer. You will tell his Majesty that I would not dare
to decide so important a question, but that he may consider it as a
positive and incontrovertible fact, that our present government has
wholly lost the confidence of the people and of the army; that
discontent has increased to the highest pitch, and that it is
impossible to believe that the government can stand much longer
against the universal dislike. You will add, that the Emperor is the
only object of the regret and hope of the nation. He, in his wisdom,
will decide what he ought to do."
The Emperor became silent and pensive; and, after a long meditation,
he said, "I will reflect upon it; I will keep you with me. Come here
to-morrow at eleven o'clock."
On leaving the Emperor, I met the Grand Marshal, who said, "the
Emperor has detained you a long time. I am in terror lest this
interview should have been noticed. We are surrounded by English
spies. The slightest indiscretion might cost us dear. I do not ask you
to relate to me any thing which was reserved for the Emperor; but if,
without violating your duty, you could give me any details relating to
France, you would be doing me a great favour. We hear nothing of what
is going forward, except from the journals and a few commercial
travellers; and the intelligence which we thus obtain is so trifling
and so contradictory, that we do not know what to make of it."--"I can
satisfy you, Monsieur le Marechal, and without acting indiscreetly:
what I have told to the Emperor is known to all France. Discontent is
at its greatest height, and the royal government is on its last
legs."--"I cannot tell what futurity promises to us; but whatever our
fate may be, we cannot be worse off than we are at present. Our
resources are dwindling away daily; we are becoming home-sick. If we
were not a little upheld by hope, I really do not know what would
become of us. Has the Emperor allowed you to remain with us?"--"Yes,
Monsieur le Marechal."--"I give you joy, but I pity you. There is no
happiness out of one's own country. I do not regret having followed
the Emperor--this step was dictated to me by my duty and my gratitude;
but I regret France, like an infant who has lost its mother; like a
lover who has lost his mistress." The Grand Marshal's eyes were filled
with tears; he pressed my hand affectionately, and then said, "Come
and breakfast with us to-morrow morning. I will introduce you to my
wife; it will be as good as a fete to her when she has an opportunity
of receiving a Frenchman, and above all, a true Frenchman."
It was soon known all over the town, that a Frenchman had arrived from
the continent. My inn was besieged by a crowd of officers and
grenadiers, who overwhelmed me with inquiries after their friends and
relations. They seemed to think that I must be acquainted with every
living creature in France. Many inquired respecting the state of
public affairs. I evaded their interrogatories, by declaring that I
had quitted France five months since.
I waited on the Grand Marshal according to his invitation. He resided
in one wing of the building occupied by the municipality. In his
apartment, there was hardly any thing to be seen except the four
walls. He took notice that I was surveying its appearance.--"You are
contemplating our misery," said he: "Perhaps it contrasts itself with
the opinion which you may have formed respecting our situation. It is
supposed throughout Europe, that the Emperor carried off immense
treasures; but his camp-plate, his camp bed, and a few broken down
horses, are the only objects which he has preserved, or which he
wished to preserve. Like Saladin, he could cause an outcry to be made
at his door, whilst he exposes our tatters,--behold all that Napoleon
the Great, the conqueror of the universe, has retained from his
conquests!"
The General was as good as his word: he introduced me to Madame la
Marechale. I was enchanted by her manners and her amiability. Our
conversation turned upon France and the Isle of Elba, the present and
the future; and on quitting Madame Bertrand, I did not know what I
ought most to admire--the lively graces of her mind, or the dignity
and energy of her character.
At eleven o'clock I attended, to present myself to the Emperor. They
made me wait in his saloon on the ground floor. The striped silk
hangings were half worn out and faded; the carpet was threadbare, and
patched in several places; a few shabby arm chairs completed the
furniture of the apartment. I thought upon the splendour of the
imperial palaces, and I drew a deep and melancholy sigh. The Emperor
arrived: he had assumed a degree of calmness in his manner, which was
belied by his eyes. It was easy to see that he had been violently
agitated. "Sir," said he, "I declared to you yesterday, that I
retained you in my service. I repeat the same to you to-day. From this
instant you belong to me, and I hope you will fulfil your duties
towards me like a good and faithful subject: you swear that you
will--is it not so?"--"Yes, Sire, I swear."--"That's right." After a
pause, "I had foreseen the crisis to which France would come, but I
did not think that things were so ripe. It was my intention not to
interfere any longer in political affairs. The intelligence which you
have brought to me has changed my resolutions. I have caused the
misfortunes of France; therefore I must remove them: but before I
commit myself, I wish to have a thorough knowledge of the state of
our affairs. Sit down: repeat to me all that you told me yesterday; I
like to hear you."
Re-assured by these words, and by a look full of kindness and
benignity, I abandoned myself without reserve to all the inspirations
of my heart and soul. The picture which I drew of the sufferings and
hopes of the nation, which I presented to the Emperor, was so touching
and so animated, that he was astonished. "You are a noble young
fellow," said he, "you have truly the soul of a Frenchman; but are you
not carried away by your imagination?"--"No, Sire; the recital which I
have made to your Majesty is quite faithful. I may have expressed
myself with warmth, because I cannot express my feelings otherwise;
but all that I have told you is exact and true. Under such important
circumstances, I should have thought it a crime to substitute the
inspirations of my imagination in the place of truth."--"You therefore
think that France awaits her redemption from me; that I shall be
received as a deliverer."--"Yes, Sire; I will even say more: the royal
government is so exceedingly hateful and disgusting to the French, the
government weighs so very heavily on the nation and the army, that not
only your Majesty, but any body else who would endeavour to liberate
the French would find them disposed to second him."--Napoleon (with
dignity): "Repeat that to me again."--"Yes, Sire, I do repeat it. The
French are so wearied, and degraded, and incensed, by the
anti-national yoke of the emigrants and the priests, that they are
ready to join any one who will promise to deliver them."--"But if I
were to disembark in France, is there not reason to fear that the
patriots may be massacred by the emigrants and the chouans?"--"No,
Sire, I do not think so; we are the most numerous and the bravest
party."--"Yes, but they may heap you in the prisons, and cut your
throats."--"Sire, the people will not let them do that."--"I hope you
may not be deceived; to be sure, I shall get to Paris so speedily,
that they won't have time to consider where they are to hide their
heads. I shall be there as soon as the news of my disembarkation....
Yes," the Emperor continued, after taking a few steps, "I have
resolved.... It was I who gave the Bourbons to France, and it is I who
must rid France of them.... I will set off.... The enterprise is vast,
it is difficult, it is dangerous, but it is not beyond me. On great
occasions fortune has never abandoned me.... I shall set off, but not
alone; I won't run the risk of allowing myself to be collared by the
gensdarmes. I will depart with my sword, my Polanders, my grenadiers
... all France is on my side. I belong to France; and for her I will
sacrifice my repose, my blood, my life, with the greatest joy." After
this speech, the Emperor stopped; his eyes sparkled with hope and
genius: his attitude announced energy, confidence, victory; he was
grand, he was beautiful, he was adorable!--he resumed his discourse,
and said, "Do you think that they will dare to wait for me?"--"No,
Sire."--"I don't think so, either: they will quake when they hear the
thunder of my name; and they will know that they can only escape me by
a speedy flight. But what will be the conduct of the national guards?
Do you think they will fight for them?"--"I think, Sire, that the
national guards will remain neutral."--"Even that's a great deal; as
to their 'gardes du corps,' and their red regiments, I am not afraid
of them: they are either old men or boys: they will be frightened by
the mustachios of my grenadiers. I will make my grenadiers hoist the
national flag;" lifting up his voice and his hand: "I will appeal to
my old soldiers; I will speak to them. None of them will refuse to
hear the voice of their old general.... It is certain that the
soldiers cannot hesitate to choose between the white flag and the
tricoloured flag; between me, by whom they have been covered with
rewards and glory, and the Bourbons, who wish to dishonour them....
And the Marshals, what will they do?"--"The Marshals, who are full of
money and titles, have nothing to wish for but repose. They would fear
to compromise their existence by embracing a doubtful party; and
perhaps they will continue merely spectators of the crisis. Perhaps
even the fear lest your Majesty may possibly punish them for their
defection or treason in 1814 may induce them to adhere to the
king."--"I will punish no one. Do you take me rightly? Tell M. ****
clearly, that I will forget every thing. We have all reason to
reproach each other."--"Sire, I will tell him so with the greatest
joy. This assurance will completely gain all opinions over to your
side; because even amongst your partisans there are men who dread your
return; lest you should revenge yourself."--"Yes, I know that it is
thought that I am revengeful, and even sanguinary; that I am
considered as a kind of ogre, as a man-eater. They are mistaken: I
will make every one do his duty, and I will be obeyed; and that's
all. A weak sovereign is a calamity to his subjects. If he allows
criminals and traitors to fancy that he does not know how to punish,
there is no longer any security either for the state or for
individuals. More crimes are prevented than repressed by severity. A
sovereign must govern by his head, and not by his heart. Yet, tell
X*** that I except Talleyrand, Augereau, and the Duke of Ragusa, out
of the general pardon. They caused all our misfortunes. The country
must be revenged."--"But why exclude them, Sire? Is there not reason
to fear that this exclusion may deprive you of the fruits of your
clemency, and may even raise doubts as to your sincerity in
future?"--"It would be much more exposed to doubt were I to pardon
them."--"But, Sire...."--"Don't you trouble your head about it ...
what is the strength of the army?"--"Sire, I do not know; I only know
that it has been much weakened by desertion and by discharges, and
that few of the regiments consist of more than three hundred
men."--"So much the better; those who are good for nothing have
probably left the army; the good soldiers will have remained. Do you
know the names of the officers who command the maritime districts, and
the eighth division?"--"No, Sire."--Napoleon (out of temper), "Why
did not X*** give you that information?"--"Sire, both M. X*** and
myself were far from supposing that your Majesty would immediately
embrace the glorious resolution of re-appearing in France; besides
which, he might believe, according to the common report, that your
agents did not allow you to remain in ignorance of any circumstance
which might interest you."--"I do know that the newspapers gave out
that I had agents.... It is an idle story. It is true that I sent some
of my people to France, in order to learn what was going on; but they
stole my money, and only treated me with the gabble of the canaille.
C**** has been to see me, but he knew nothing. You are the first
person from whom I have ascertained the situation of France and the
Bourbons under all its extensive bearings. Had it not been for you, I
should never have known that the hour of my return had struck. Had it
not been for you, they would have left me here to dig in my garden. I
have received--I do not exactly know from what quarter--the
description of certain assassins, hired against me; and one or two
anonymous letters besides--all from the same hand, in which I was told
to remain quiet, that the embroideries were coming into fashion, and
other nonsense in the same style; but that's all. It is not upon such
data that one is induced to attempt a crash. But how do you think
foreigners will like my return: there is the great question?"--"Foreign
nations, Sire, have been compelled to confederate against us in order
to protect themselves; allow me to say it...."--"Speak out, speak
out."--"In order to protect themselves against the effects of your
ambition, and the abuse of your strength. Now that Europe has
recovered her independence, and that France has ceased to be
dangerous, foreign powers will probably be unwilling to run the risk
of a new war, which may end by restoring to us that ascendancy which
we have lost."--"If the allied sovereigns were at home in their
capitals they would certainly consider the matter twice before they
would take the field again; but they are yet face to face; and it is
to be feared that war may become an affair of vanity. Do you think it
is true that they are on ill terms with each other?"--"Yes, Sire, it
appears that discord reigns in the congress; that each of the great
powers wishes to seize the largest share of the booty."--"It appears,
also, that their subjects are discontented: is it not so?"--"Yes,
Sire; kings and people, every thing seems to unite in our favour. The
Saxons, the Genoese, the Belgians, the inhabitants of the banks of the
Rhine, the Polanders, all refuse the new sovereigns to whom they are
to be given. Italy, tired of the avarice and the grossness of the
Austrians, pants for the moment of withdrawing from their sovereignty.
Experience has taught the King of Naples that you are his surest
protector, and he will assist the rising of the Italians whenever you
wish it. The princes of the confederation of the Rhine, warned by the
example of Saxony, will become the allies of your majesty after the
first victory. Prussia and Russia will sit quiet, if you will only
allow them to retain their new acquisitions. The Emperor of Austria,
who has every thing to fear from Russia and Prussia, and nothing to
hope for from the King of France, will easily consent, if you only
guarantee Italy to him, to allow you to do what you think best with
the Bourbons. In short, all the powers of Europe, England only
excepted, are more or less interested in not declaring themselves
against you; and before England can have corrupted, or raised the
continent, your Majesty will be so firmly fixed on the throne, that
your Majesty's enemies may try in vain to make you totter."