were dictated by his heart and by nature, and that they were only
intended for us; for he would have felt himself much humbled had he
supposed that any body could think for a moment that he endeavoured to
shift the blame upon some other person; or that he condescended to
justify himself. And this feeling was carried so far that, when he was
speaking to strangers, or dictating on that subject for the public
eye, he confined himself to saying that, if he had seen the Prince’s
letter, he should perhaps have forgiven him, on account of the great
political advantages that he might have derived from so doing; and in
tracing with his own hand his last thoughts, which he concludes will
be recorded in the present age, and reach posterity, he still
pronounces on this subject, which he is aware will be considered the
most delicate for his memory, that, if he were again placed in the
same situation, he should again act in the same manner!! Such was the
man, such the stamp of his mind, and the turn of his disposition.
Let those who delight in searching the human heart in its inmost
recesses, to deduce consequences and draw conclusions, now exercise
their ingenuity: I have supplied them with valuable materials, I have
laid genuine documents before them. I will add another and a last,
which will not be the least worthy of notice.
Napoleon one day said to me, with reference to the same subject, “If I
occasioned a general consternation by that melancholy event, what a
universal feeling of horror would have been produced by another
spectacle, with which I might have surprised the world!...
“I have frequently been offered the lives of those whose places I
filled on the throne, at the rate of one million a head. They were
seen to be my competitors, and it was supposed that I thirsted after
their blood; but, even if my disposition had been different from what
it was, had I been formed to commit crimes, I should have repelled all
thoughts of the crime thus proposed to me, as seeming altogether
gratuitous. I was then so powerful, so firmly seated; and they seemed
so little to be feared! Revert to the periods of Tilsit and Wagram; to
my marriage with Maria Louisa; to the state and attitude of Europe!
However, at the height of the crisis of Georges and Pichegru, when I
was assailed by murderers, the moment was thought favourable to tempt
me, and the offer was renewed, having for its object the individual,
whom public opinion, in England as well as in France, pointed out as
chief mover of all these horrible conspiracies. I was at Boulogne,
where the bearer of these offers arrived; I took it into my head to
ascertain personally the truth and the nature of the proposal. I
ordered him to be brought before me.—‘Well, Sir!’ said I, when he
appeared.—‘Yes, First Consul, we will give him up to you for one
million.‘—‘Sir, I will give you two millions; but on condition that
you will bring him alive.’—‘Ah! that I could not promise,’ said the
man, hesitating, and much disconcerted by the tone of my voice and the
expression of my looks at that moment.—‘Do you then take me for a mere
assassin? Know Sir, that, though I may think it necessary to inflict a
punishment or to make a great example, I am not disposed to encourage
the perfidy of an ambuscade;’ and I drove him from my presence. Indeed
his mere presence was already too great a contamination.”
THE SERVANT WHO HAD BEEN TAKEN AWAY FROM ME PAYS ME A SECRET
VISIT.—HIS OFFERS.—SECOND VISIT.—THIRD VISIT.—I INTRUST TO HIM MY
LETTER TO PRINCE LUCIEN, WHICH CAUSES MY REMOVAL FROM ST. HELENA.
From 21st to 24th.—I had remained with the Emperor the preceding day,
as late as one or two o’clock in the morning; on returning to my own
apartment, I found that I had had a visit paid to me, during my
absence, by a person who had become tired of waiting for me.
That _visit_, which my son had received, and which prudence obliged me
to insert in my journal, at the time, under the veil of mystery, may
and shall now be fully explained.
That visit was neither more nor less than the mysterious re-appearance
of the servant whom Sir Hudson Lowe had taken from me, and who,
favoured by the darkness of the night, and his knowledge of the
localities of the island, had surmounted every obstacle, avoided
sentinels, and scaled precipices, to come and see me, in order to tell
me that, having got a situation with a person who was going to set off
for London in a very few days, he came to offer me his services
without reserve. He had waited for me in my own apartment for a
considerable time, and, seeing that I did not return from the
Emperor’s, he had gone away, fearing lest he should be caught; but he
promised to return, either under pretence of visiting his sister, who
was employed in our household; or by having recourse to the same means
to which he had just resorted.
The next day, I immediately communicated my good fortune to the
Emperor, who appeared much pleased at the intelligence, and to attach
some value to the circumstance. I was very warm on the subject; I
strenuously urged that we had already been here above a year, without
having taken one single step towards the prospect of better days; on
the contrary, we were every day more and more restricted, ill used,
and tormented. We were lost in the universe; Europe was ignorant of
our real situation; it behoved us to make it known. Day after day, the
newspapers shewed us the veil of imposture which had been thrown over
us, and the impudent and disgusting falsehoods of which we were the
objects; it was for us, I urged, to publish the truth; it would find
its way to the ears of the Sovereigns, to whom it was perhaps unknown;
it would become known to the people, whose sympathy would be our
consolation, and whose indignation would, at least, revenge us upon
our cruel persecutors, &c.
We immediately began to search amongst our records. The Emperor
portioned them out, pointing out the share which each of us was to
take, in order to transcribe them with greater despatch. The day
however passed without any thing being done on the subject. The next
day (Friday), as soon as I saw the Emperor, I took the liberty of
reminding him of our plans of the preceding day; but he now appeared
to think less of the matter, and ended the conversation by saying,
“_We must see_.” This day passed like the preceding; I was on thorns.
At night, as if to add to my impatience, my man came again, and
renewed the unreserved offer of his services. I told him that I should
take advantage of them, and that he might act without scruple, as I
should not involve him in any criminality or danger. To this he
replied that he did not care about that, and that he would take charge
of any thing I might wish to give him, observing only, that he would
call for it, without fail, the day after the next (Sunday), which
would, in all probability, be the eve of his sailing. The next day
(Saturday) as soon as I saw the Emperor, I hastened to communicate to
him what I had heard from the servant, dwelling upon the circumstance
of our having only twenty-four hours more; but the Emperor, with the
utmost indifference, turned the conversation to some other topic,
totally foreign to my object. I was struck with surprise. I knew the
Emperor’s disposition, and I was perfectly satisfied that the
indifference, the sort of absence of mind, which he manifested at this
moment could not be the effect of chance, still less the result of
caprice; but what then could his motives be? This idea haunted my mind
the whole day, and rendered me melancholy and miserable. At night, the
same sentiment which agitated my breast during the day, prevented me
from sleeping. I painfully recalled to my mind every circumstance
connected with this affair, when suddenly a new light broke in upon
me. What do I require of the Emperor, thought I? that he should stoop
to the execution of trifling details too much beneath him! No doubt,
disgust and secret dissatisfaction have occasioned the silence which
has caused my uneasiness. Ought we to be useless to him? Can we not
serve him without afflicting him? And then several of his former
observations came across my mind. Had I not informed him of the
affair; had he not approved of it; what more could I expect?[23]
Henceforth it was for me to act, and I made up my mind in one instant.
I resolved to proceed in the business, without mentioning another word
to him on the subject: and, in order that it might remain more secret,
I determined to keep it entirely to myself.
Footnote 23:
Mr. O’Meara’s work informs me, after a lapse of six years, that I
had guessed precisely the Emperor’s feeling on this occasion.
Some months had now elapsed since I had succeeded in forwarding the
celebrated letter, in answer to Sir Hudson Lowe, concerning the
Commissioners from the Allied Powers, and which was the only document
that had been sent to Europe up to that period. The person who had
kindly taken charge of it had brought me a large piece of satin, on
part of which the letter had been written. Some was still left; and
that was precisely what I wanted. Thus every thing combined to urge me
towards the precipice, down which I was destined to fall.
As soon as daylight appeared, I gave the remainder of the satin to my
son, on whose discretion I could rely; and he spent the whole of the
day in copying upon it my letter to Prince Lucien. Night came, and,
faithful to his word, my young mulatto appeared. He had some knowledge
of the business of a tailor; he sewed with his own hands the satin
into his clothes, and took his leave of me. I promised to give him
some other things if he came to see me again before his departure, and
wished him a pleasant voyage in case I should not see him
again:—afterwards I went to bed with a light heart, and a feeling of
satisfaction, arising from the contemplation of a day well employed,
and marked by a fortunate event. I was far from thinking, at that
moment, that I had just cut with my own hands the thread of my destiny
at Longwood!
Alas! it will soon be seen that twenty-four hours had not elapsed
when, under pretence of my having written that letter, I was removed
from Longwood, and my person and papers were in the power and at the
entire disposal of the Governor, Sir Hudson Lowe. And if I should now
be asked how I could be so unguarded, and not suspect that possibly a
snare might be laid for me, I should say that my servant had appeared
to me honest, that I believed him to be faithful, and that I was still
a stranger to all idea of instigating spies, a new invention, the
honour of which the British Ministers of that period may claim as
their own, and which has since thriven so well on the continent!
MY REMOVAL FROM LONGWOOD.—SOLITARY CONFINEMENT
AT ST. HELENA (A SPACE OF ABOUT SIX WEEKS).
25th.—The Emperor sent for me at about four o’clock; he had just
finished work, and appeared much pleased with the result of his
occupations of the day. “I have been busy with Bertrand all day on
fortifications,” said he to me, “and the day has appeared to me very
short.” I have already said that this was a newly acquired taste of
the Emperor’s, quite of the moment; and such pastimes are valuable
here, God knows!
I had followed the Emperor to the kind of grassplot which adjoins the
tent; we thence went to the corner of the walk that leads to the
bottom of the garden. Five oranges were brought on a plate, with a
knife and some sugar. Oranges are very scarce on the island; they are
sent from the Cape. The Emperor is very fond of this fruit. These were
a present from Lady Malcolm, and the Admiral never failed to send him
some, whenever he had any. We were three of us at this moment with the
Emperor; he gave me one of these oranges to put in my pocket for my
son, and proceeded to cut the others in slices, and prepare them; and,
seated on the trunk of a tree, was eating them cheerfully, and
familiarly distributing part of them to us at the same time. By a
fatal instinct, I was precisely at that instant contemplating the
pleasure of this momentary situation! Alas! I was far from thinking
that I was then taking the last present I could receive from his
hands!...
The Emperor then took some turns in the garden; the wind had become
cold: he went into the house again, and bade me follow him alone into
the drawing-room, and the billiard-room, whilst he paced up and down
the whole extent of the two rooms. He was talking to me again about
the manner in which he had passed his day, and asked me how I had
spent mine; then, the conversation having turned on his marriage, he
was speaking of the festivities which had taken place on that
occasion, and which had ended in the terrible accident that happened
at M. Schwartzenberg’s ball. I was listening, and inwardly proposing
to make an interesting article in my journal on the subject, when the
Emperor suddenly interrupted his conversation, to observe through the
window a great number of English officers, who were advancing towards
us from the gate of our enclosure: it was the Governor, surrounded by
several of his staff. The Grand Marshal, who at this moment came into
the room, observed that the Governor had already been there in the
morning; and that he had been at his house, and remained there some
time; he added that a certain movement of the troops was spoken of.
These circumstances appeared singular; and—mark the effect of a guilty
conscience!—the idea of my letter clandestinely sent, immediately
occurred to my mind, and a secret foreboding instantly warned me that
all these strange proceedings concerned me. Such in fact, was the
case, for a few minutes afterwards, a message was brought to me,
informing me that the English Colonel, the creature of Sir Hudson
Lowe’s, was waiting for me in my own apartment. I made a sign that I
was with the Emperor, who, a few minutes afterwards, said to me, “Go,
Las Cases, and see what that animal wants of you.” And, as I was
going, he added, “_and come back soon_.” These were the last words of
Napoleon to me. Alas, I have never seen him since! but his accent, the
tone of his voice, still sound in my ears. How often since have I
taken delight in allowing my imagination to dwell upon them! and what
mingled sensations of pleasure and regret may be produced by a painful
recollection!
The Colonel who wished to see me was a man entirely devoted to the
Governor’s wishes, his factotum, and with whom I had frequently to
communicate as interpreter. I had no sooner entered the room than,
with an expression of benevolence and kindness both in his voice and
countenance, he inquired after my health with a tender interest. This
was the kiss of Judas; for, having made a sign to him with my hand to
sit down on the sofa, and having also taken a seat on it myself, he
seized this opportunity to place himself between me and the door: and,
altering at once his tone and expression, he informed me that he
arrested me in the name of the Governor, Sir Hudson Lowe, on the
deposition of my servant, who had charged me with having carried on a
secret correspondence.
My room was already guarded by dragoons, all representations on my
part became useless, I was obliged to yield to violence, and was
carried away strongly escorted. The Emperor has since written, as it
will be seen hereafter, that, on seeing me from his window, hurried
along through the plain, surrounded by armed men, the alacrity of the
numerous staff prancing about me, and the rapid undulation of their
high feathers floating in the air, had put him in mind of the
ferocious joy of the savage inhabitants of the islands of the Pacific
Ocean, dancing round the prisoner whom they are about to devour.
I had been separated from my son, who had been detained prisoner in my
apartment; but he soon joined me also under escort: so that the sudden
interruption and final termination of our communications with Longwood
date from that moment. We were both shut up in a wretched hovel, near
the former habitation of General Bertrand and his family. I was
obliged to sleep on a miserable pallet, and to make room for my poor
son by my side, lest he should have to lie on the floor; I considered
his life to be at this moment in danger, he was threatened with an
aneurism, and had been on the point of expiring in my arms a few days
before. We were kept until eleven o’clock without food; and when, in
order to supply the wants of my son, I went to the door and to each of
the windows to ask the men who guarded them for a morsel of bread,
they answered me only by presenting their bayonets.
MY PAPERS ARE EXAMINED, &C.
25th, 26th.—What a terrible night is the first night spent in prison,
within four walls! What ideas, what reflections, arise in the mind! My
last thought at night, and the first on waking in the morning, had
been that I was still only a few minutes’ walk from Longwood, and yet
that perhaps I was already separated from it for ever.
In the course of the morning, the Grand Marshal, accompanied by an
officer, passed within hail of my hovel. I was enabled to ask him from
my dungeon how the Emperor was. The Grand Marshal was going to the
Governor’s at Plantation House. His visit was undoubtedly on my
account, but what could be the object of his mission? What were the
ideas and the wishes of the Emperor on the subject? This occupied all
my thoughts. On passing again, on his return, the Grand Marshal, with
an expression of melancholy, made a sign to me, which gave me the idea
of bidding me adieu, and which went to my heart. In the course of the
morning, General Gourgaud and M. de Montholon also came as far as the
late residence of Madame Bertrand, which was opposite to my prison,
and not far from it. It was consolatory to me to see and to interpret
their signs of friendship and tender interest. They solicited in vain
to be allowed to come into my prison; they were obliged to return
without having succeeded. Shortly afterwards, Madame Bertrand sent me
some oranges, informing me, at the same time, that she had just
received indirectly some news of my wife, and that she was in good
health. These attentions, these demonstrations of kindness, from all
my companions, were to me a proof that the first appearance of
misfortune is sufficient to awaken the feelings of family affection,
and I found some consolation at this moment in being a prisoner.
No time had been lost in my late apartment, after my arrest: a police
officer (a recent importation into the colony, and, I presume, the
first attempt of the kind that had been made on British ground) had
made his first essay on me. He had searched my secretaire, broken open
my drawers, and seized all my papers; and, anxious to shew his
dexterity and the extent of his abilities, he had immediately set
about undoing our beds, and taking my sofa to pieces, and even spoke
of taking up the flooring.
The Governor, having got possession of all my papers, now proceeded to
produce them to me in triumph. He went into the late house of Madame
Bertrand, opposite to me, followed by eight or ten officers, and sent
to ask me whether I would go over and there be present at the
inventory which was to be made of them, or whether I preferred that he
should come to me. I replied that since he left me the option, the
latter plan would be most agreeable to me. Every body being seated, I
rose to protest most positively against the indecorous manner in which
I had been taken away from Longwood, against the illegality of sealing
up my papers in my absence, and against the violation about to be
committed on my private papers, the sacred depositories of my
thoughts, which should exist for me only, and which had remained to
this day a secret to all the world. I protested against the abuse that
might be made of their contents by power; I told Sir Hudson Lowe that,
if he thought that the circumstances of the case required that he
should examine them, he must use his own discretion; that I had no
fear of the consequences; but that I owed to myself and to general
principles to throw the responsibility of the act entirely upon him,
to yield only to violence, and not to authorize it by my consent.
These words, uttered by me in presence of all his officers, irritated
the Governor, who exclaimed, “Count Las Cases, do not render your
situation worse than it is; it is bad enough already!” alluding
probably to the punishment of death, which he often reminded us of our
being liable to, if we assisted in endeavouring to effect the escape
of the great Captive. He concluded, no doubt, that my papers would
produce the most important discoveries: God knows how far his ideas
might go on that subject.
Before Sir Hudson began to read my papers, he called General Bingham,
the second in command in the island, to assist personally in their
perusal; but that officer’s ideas of delicacy differed entirely from
those of the Governor. “Sir Hudson Lowe,” answered he, with a marked
expression of disgust, “I beg you will excuse me, I do not think that
I shall be able to read that kind of French hand-writing.”
I had, in fact, no real objection to the Governor’s examining my
papers; and I therefore told him that, not in his capacity of judge or
magistrate, for he was neither the one nor the other to me, but of my
own accord and out of pure condescension, I thought proper to allow
him to read them. He fell immediately upon my Journal. His joy and his
expectations may be imagined, when he perceived that it would inform
him, day by day, of all that happened among us at Longwood. It was
sufficiently arranged to have a table of contents, or index to the
subjects at the beginning of each month. Sir Hudson Lowe, on meeting
frequently with his name, would immediately refer to the page pointed
out in the index to read the details; and I could not help observing
to him that if he found it often necessary to use forbearance, it was
not my fault, but the fault of his own indiscretion. I assured him
that my Journal was not known to any body; that the Emperor himself,
who was the sole subject of it, had only read the first pages of it;
that its contexture was far from being settled, and that it was
intended to remain, for some time to come, a secret known to myself
only.
After Sir Hudson Lowe had spent two or three hours in looking over my
Journal, I told him that my intention had been to enable him to form a
correct idea of the nature of its contents, and that, having now done
so, I felt bound, for many reasons, to prohibit, as far as it was in
my power, his going any further; that he _could_ of course do as he
pleased, but that I should protest against the violence he would thus
exercise, and the abuse of his authority. I could easily perceive that
this was a great disappointment to him; he even hesitated: however, my
protest produced its effect, and my Journal was not touched again. I
might have extended the protest to all my other papers, but I did not
care much about them; and they were, during several days, most
minutely examined.
I had my last will sealed up: I was obliged to open it as well as
other papers equally sacred. Having got to the bottom of a portfolio
containing some things which I had not ventured to look at since my
absence from Europe, I was obliged to open them. This day was to be a
day of emotion to me: the sight of these objects awoke in my breast
some old recollections which my courage had stifled, since certain
painful separations had taken place. I was affected, and obliged to
hasten out of the room. My son, who remained in it, told me afterwards
that the Governor himself had appeared somewhat affected by this
circumstance.
MY REMOVAL TO BALCOMBE’S COTTAGE.
From 28th to 30th.—This day, 28th, we have been removed from our
wretched hovel to a kind of cottage belonging to Mr. Balcombe, our
former host when at Briars, and situated about a league distant. The
house was small, but very tolerable, and situated opposite to
Longwood, and at a short distance from it: we were only separated from
it by several ridges of precipices and steep summits of mountains. We
were guarded by a detachment of the sixty-sixth regiment; numerous
sentinels watched over us, and forbade the approach to our prison. An
officer was at our disposal, Sir Hudson Lowe obligingly said, and, as
he affirmed, for our convenience. All communications were strictly
intercepted; we were placed in a state of the most absolute seclusion.
On the summit of the hills which surrounded the hollow in which our
house was situated, there was a road on which we saw to-day General
Gourgaud, accompanied by an English officer. We could observe his
efforts to come as near to us as possible, and we received with
feelings of joy and affection the signs and demonstrations of
friendship which our companion addressed to us from that distance, and
returned ours to him in the same manner. The kind and excellent Madame
Bertrand sent us again some oranges: we were not allowed to write to
her to thank her, and were obliged to confine the expression of our
gratitude by sending her some roses which we had gathered in our
prison.