28th.—The Emperor during dinner was speaking of the probability of
danger in the Chinese ships, of which one in thirty perished, according
to the accounts he had received from some captains. This led him to the
chances of danger in battle, which he said were less than that. Wagram
was pointed out to him as a destructive battle; he did not estimate the
killed at more than 3,000, which was only a fiftieth: we were there
160,000. At Essling they were about 4000, we were 40,000: this was a
tenth; but it was one of the most severe battles. The others were
incomparably lower.
This brought on a conversation on the bulletins. The Emperor declared
them to be very correct: assured us that, excepting what the proximity
of the enemy compelled him to disguise, that when they came into their
hands they might not derive any information prejudicial to him from
them, all the remainder was very exact. At Vienna and throughout Germany
they did them more justice than among us. If they had acquired a bad
character in our armies—if it was a common saying, _as false as a
bulletin_, it was personal rivalships, party spirit, that had
established it: it was the wounded self-love of those who were not
mentioned in them, and who had, or fancied they had, a right to a place
there: and still more than all, our ridiculous national defect of having
no greater enemies to our successes and our glory than ourselves.
The Emperor after dinner played some games at chess. The day had been
very rainy: he was unwell and retired early.