Bonaparte frequently visited the school of infantry at St. Cyr, reviewed
the cadets, and gave them cold collations in the park. But he had never
visited the school of cavalry since its establishment, of which we were
very jealous, and did all in our power to attract him. Whenever he
hunted, the cadets were in grand parade on the parterre, crying, _"Vive
l'Empereur!"_ with all their young energies; he held his hat raised as
he passed them; but that was all we could gain. Wise people whispered
that he never would go whilst they were so evidently expecting him; that
he liked to keep them always on the alert; it was good for discipline.
The general took another plan, and once allowed no sign of life about
the castle when the emperor passed--it was like a deserted place. But it
did not take neither; he passed, as if there were no castle there. It
was _desesperant._ When, lo! the next day but one after I had spoken to
him, he suddenly galloped into the court of the castle, and the cry of
the sentinel, _"L'Empereur!"_ was the first notice they had of it. He
examined into every thing. All were in undress, all at work, and this
was what he wanted. In the military-schools the cadets got
ammunition-bread, and lived like well-fed soldiers; but there was great
outcry in the circles of Paris against the bread of the school of St.
Germain's. Ladies complained that their sons were poisoned by it; the
emperor thought it was all nicety, and said no man was fit to be an
officer who could not eat ammunition-bread. However, being there, he
asked for a loaf, which was brought, and he saw it was villanous trash,
composed of pease, beans, rye, potatoes, and every thing that would make
flour or meal, instead of good brown wheaten flour. He tore the loaf in
two in a rage, and dashed it against the wall, and there it stuck like a
piece of mortar, to the great annoyance of those whose duty it was to
have attended to this. He ordered the baker to be called, and made him
look at it _sticking_. The man was in great terror first at the
emperor's anger, but, taking heart, he begged his majesty not to take
his contract from him, and he would give good bread in future; at which
the emperor broke into a royal and imperial passion, and threatened to
send him to the galleys; but, suddenly turning round, he said, "Yes, he
would allow him to keep his contract, on condition that, as long as it
lasted, he should furnish the school with good white household bread,
_(pain de ménage,)_ such as was sold in the bakers' shops in Paris; that
he might choose that, or lose his contract;" and the baker thankfully
promised to furnish good white bread in future, at the same
price.--_Appendix to the 9th volume of Scott's Life of Napoleon._