the fresh air, and the beauty of the whole surrounding scene,
occasionally afforded me a few hours’ enjoyment: this was my adieu to
life. The rigidity of feeling occasioned by the treatment we had
experienced at St. Helena, relaxed amidst the charms and perfect
tranquillity of this delightful place, and I was oftener than once
tempted to say, why is not the rest of my family here! Alas! if the
Emperor were but as well situated!... But these moments of oblivion
were brief and of rare occurrence; for, I repeat, there can be no
complete and perfect happiness far from one’s country and the objects
we love. With whatever charms we may be surrounded, we are ever amidst
a desert. This state of feeling, and my impatience to arrive at a
termination of my distress, insensibly affected my health. My constant
sleepless nights afforded no respite to my misery. In vain I devoted
myself to occupation and exercise during the day, and delayed until
late the moment of retiring to rest. No sooner did I lie down than, in
spite of myself, my thoughts instantly turned on the interval that had
gone by. I counted one day less in my exile, and I calculated over and
over again the time that must yet elapse before the order for our
deliverance could arrive from London, the accidents that might retard
it, &c. These thoughts having once taken possession of my mind, I
found it absolutely impossible to close my eyes; and thus I nightly
endured the most cruel torments that can be conceived.
Meanwhile, the period of the Governor’s return was at hand; and I
began to be perplexed at the idea of thus finding myself in the same
house with him; I presumed that it would not be very agreeable to
either party, to have to confound together, under the same roof,
hospitality and seclusion. But my embarrassment was soon at an end.
Whether it was fact or pretence, I know not; but the Colonial
Secretary came to inform me that, in consequence of the expected
arrival of Lord Amherst, who was returning to Europe from his embassy
to China, the Governor found it necessary to assign another residence
to me.
This Colonial Secretary, whom I have not yet mentioned, though he was
the second civil officer in the colony, was a man perfectly eccentric,
both in person and character. He had been several times a Member of
Parliament. He knew every thing, discussed every thing, and usually
confused every thing he meddled with: he was said to be like an
encyclopædia, with the sheets bound up in their wrong places. He first
took it into his head to fix our abode in a residence which he had
built, and which he had persuaded the Government to hire. Fortunately,
he relinquished this design, because various difficulties opposed its
execution. We should, I believe, have been obliged to proceed thither
by sea; and, even had we been safely established in this abode, there
would have been some uncertainty respecting the facility of
communication with us when necessary. At length, it was determined
that we should be lodged with a worthy family who resided about eight
or ten leagues from the Cape, at a place called Tygerberg (Tiger
Hill), which name it received from the Dutch, on account of the
numerous tigers that inhabited the place, at the time when it was
first occupied.
This occupation is not of very remote date; for these lands have not
been exclusively in the possession of the civilized inhabitants until
very recently. Several persons informed me that they had themselves
seen tigers in the beautiful grounds of Newlands. It would appear that
the Dutch, confining themselves to maritime affairs, devoted but
little, or at least tardy, attention to the progress of colonization.
Now, however, the industry and activity of the English are giving a
different turn to affairs. All parts of the Cape, and Cape town in
particular, which the sailors call the _half-way house_ of the two
worlds, will infallibly rise to the highest importance. The soil is
rich and the climate admirable. The productions of the temperate zone
and those of the tropics may be cultivated almost in all parts and at
once. English settlers emigrate to the Cape in great numbers; and the
population is rapidly increasing. Europe invaded Africa by the south,
and the European race will, in course of time, spread over the whole
continent, as it is now spread over America. From Botany Bay,
Europeans will, in course of time, extend to New Holland, and thence
subjugate China. The European race will rule the globe; happy should
it expiate, by the blessings of civilization, the crimes of conquest,
or its impurity of origin!
RESIDENCE AT TYGERBERG.—THE NAME OF NAPOLEON
FAMILIAR IN THE DESERT.—MANUSCRIPT OF ST.
HELENA, &C.
From April 6th to August 19th.—We left Newlands about the middle of
the day, and at night reached Tygerberg. Our new host was a Mr. Baker,
a native of Coblentz, or its neighbourhood, and we looked upon him as
one of our countrymen, from his origin, his opinions, and the sympathy
he shewed us. The family altogether formed the most agreeable society
imaginable. It would have been impossible for us to have been treated
with greater respect and attention. All our wishes were anticipated
and gratified. We now commenced the third period of our captivity at
the Cape. The first was our insupportable imprisonment in the Castle,
which fortunately lasted only ten days: the second was our abode in
the charming retreat of Newlands: the third was our residence at the
desert of Tygerberg, which was to continue for the space of four
months; and even this might not be the termination of our captivity!
At Tygerberg, we found ourselves situated on the confines of the
wandering hordes. The country, here and there, presented detached
habitations, at considerable distances from each other. These were
occupied by cultivators of various nations, who were clearing the new
grounds, in order to turn them to profitable account; and, with
perseverance, regularity, and a little capital, their efforts will, no
doubt, be successful. Though now removed to the very extremity of the
civilized world, we found ourselves treated with even more than
kindness. We observed that the people here were neither ignorant nor
indifferent with respect to the events of Europe, which, on the
contrary, excited an unusual degree of interest. The majority of the
population was Dutch, and was, therefore, connected with our national
system. Thus, to my surprise, I found the name of Napoleon familiar in
this desert. The most victorious game-cock in the neighbourhood was
called Napoleon! The swiftest race horse was Napoleon! The most
invincible bull in the country was Napoleon! I could not refrain from
laughing at this. But every one has his own way of rendering honour
and respect; and Napoleon was the noblest of all names in the
estimation of the inhabitants of Tygerberg.
Notwithstanding our removal from the town, we still continued to
receive many visits, and it was very gratifying to us to calculate the
degree of interest that was felt for us, by the degree of reserve and
embarrassment that we excited.
The interest we excited was not confined to Frenchmen alone. An
American captain came to me, and offered to rescue me from captivity.
He informed me that he had adopted every precaution, and made every
necessary arrangement; and he observed that all depended on my own
will, since Mr. Baker was not my jailer, but merely my host. Yet what
would have been the use of embracing this proposal? I had but one
point, one object, in view, and that was, to repair to London and
appeal to the English Ministers.
We endeavoured to amuse ourselves with our usual occupations. I had
procured a person to read to me, and I kept him well employed. In
spite of the distance, our friends still continued to supply us with
the journals and new publications. At this time, I read the Letters
written during the last reign of the Emperor by Mr. Hobhouse, who, I
believe, was the first that ventured to speak favourably of Napoleon.
I also procured Warden’s work, which, though containing many errors,
was, I am confident, written with the very best intentions; and
finally, I obtained a sight of the famous Manuscript of St. Helena,
which excited so much interest and curiosity throughout Europe.
Opinion was powerfully divided on the subject of this publication; a
thousand conjectures were afloat respecting its authenticity and real
origin. It would certainly be difficult for me to describe the
astonishment and doubt which it excited in my mind. What were my
feelings and thoughts when I found pages of truth, which seemed to
have escaped from my own secret collection, mingled with whole pages
of error and frivolity! I several times stopped, doubting whether I
was not dreaming. I recognised not only the substance of certain
passages, but even phrases and expressions, in the literal form in
which I had myself transcribed them from the mouth of the narrator.
They were contained in the very papers which Sir Hudson Lowe had
detained at St. Helena. I could positively have affirmed that all the
grand ideas and noble conceptions formed by Napoleon,—all the
political speculations,—and, in short, all the most attractive and
interesting contents of the celebrated Manuscript, were in my Journal
collected from the conversation of Napoleon. If only this portion of
the publication had been read to me, I should not, for a moment, have
doubted that the work had been obtained directly from Longwood. Even
the dates would have warranted this conclusion; for six or seven
months had now elapsed since my expulsion from St. Helena. But whence
had been procured the alloy with which the better portion of the work
was mixed up? This was a riddle which I could not attempt to guess.
Can it be, thought I, that the facts contained in this publication
have been surreptitiously derived from my papers, certain parts of
which may have been selected and put together by strange hands? But,
besides that, I could not bring myself to cherish such a disagreeable
suspicion without better proof. What probability was there that the
hostile authority of St. Helena would favour the publication of that,
which was, upon the whole, favourable to the illustrious victim of the
ostracism of kings?
What was the real sentiment which dictated the Manuscript of St.
Helena? This is, in many instances, very equivocal. By what hands was
it produced? This question gives rise to many contradictory
conjectures. Finally, it may be asked, what was the real object of the
publication? It presents various styles, various sentiments, and bears
evidence of various degrees of information. This publication must have
been the patchwork production of various hands; for how could the
individual, who appears to have been so familiar with the secret
designs of the supposed author and his cabinet, have been ignorant of
his opinion on various public acts, when that opinion was accessible
to every body? as, for example, on the subject of Napoleon’s first
marriage; the situation of the French in Egypt; the trial of the Duke
d’Enghien; &c.
Is it probable that the man, who could have procured by his own means
facts of so confidential a nature, should have been reduced to the
necessity of mixing them up with vulgar errors? And, even supposing
any one to have had sufficient shrewdness to guess these great truths,
would not his judgment have suggested to him the propriety of being
correct with respect to the rest? I shall say nothing of the
far-fetched and singular phraseology which disfigures the work, and
which can only be regarded as a proof of bad taste and an unsuccessful
attempt at imitation. Neither shall I comment on the numerous and
extraordinary anachronisms which this Manuscript contains. These and
other circumstances render the publication totally inexplicable.
Meanwhile, time was running on, and I saw no probable termination of
my exile. The interval necessary for obtaining a return of
communication from England had now expired, and still I heard nothing
of my removal. I was seized with profound melancholy, and almost
reduced to despair. I suffered severely from continual and violent
pains in my stomach. My restlessness at night still continued, my
health daily declined, and disease made rapid inroads on my
constitution. I was at this time attacked with pains in the head which
have never since quitted me.
I have in vain had recourse to the faculty. No remedy has afforded me
any immediate relief, and hitherto I have found that the most
effectual method is to abstain entirely from medicine.
After my return to France I experienced a considerable improvement in
my health. By dint of repose and retirement, I found myself daily
gathering strength. But still, whenever I tried to converse for any
length of time, or to bend my thoughts to any particular subject, I
immediately experienced a recurrence of my disorder.
During the increasing indisposition under which I was labouring at
Tygerberg, I wrote to request that the Governor would permit me to
return to the town, for the sake of obtaining medical aid. But this
request was vain: Lord Charles Somerset now turned a deaf ear to my
representations.
In the impatience and irritation excited by the prolongation of my
captivity, I several times, during my residence at Tygerberg, resumed,
and perhaps in energetic terms, my appeals to the Governor, requesting
that he would permit me to return to Europe. I have reason to believe
that I succeeded in moving him. Whether from feelings of justice on
his part, or from what other cause I know not, but I am sure he was
not without hesitation and anxiety respecting me. He probably asked
himself whether it was proper in him to become a jailor after the
manner of Sir Hudson Lowe? And whether he had a right, after all, to
deprive me of my liberty? But whenever he thus wavered, his
ill-natured advisers were at hand to confirm him in his resolution of
detaining me. “Is he not well lodged and well fed?” said they. “What
then has he to complain of? and how has he acknowledged the good
treatment he has experienced? By confining himself and refusing to go
abroad, in order to give a greater colouring of probability to what he
is pleased to call his tyrannical imprisonment.—What have been the
expressions of his letters, always so misplaced and so violent?” Every
thing was turned to my prejudice, and one circumstance, in particular,
was taken advantage of for this purpose. On the arrival of Lord
Amherst and Admiral Plampin, Lord Charles Somerset, with the intention
probably of affording the strangers an opportunity of seeing and
questioning me, sent me, in the midst of my desert at Tygerberg, a
formal invitation to a ball, which, as well as I can recollect, was
given in honour of the Prince Regent’s birth-day. The messenger was
directed to wait for my answer. I wrote it on the card of invitation,
and in very decided terms. I was vexed that Lord Charles Somerset
seemed to have so little idea of the melancholy situation in which I
was placed as to imagine me capable of going to a ball. The persons
about the Governor probably insinuated that, if his Excellency had
committed a fault in detaining me, it was now too late to remedy it;
that the thing was done, and his Lordship would be held responsible
for it; that to alter his determination would be an acknowledgment
that he did not know how to act; would be condemning himself, &c. I
presume, therefore, that it was resolved to run the risk of letting
the affair come to a close any way it would.[29]
Footnote 29:
Chance has thrown in my way a document, which affords a decided
proof of the manner in which Lord Charles Somerset acted. I have now
in my possession a duplicate of a letter from Mr. Goulburn, the
Under Secretary of State, addressed to Madame Las Cases, at Paris,
and dated February 21st, 1817. The letter states that Mr. Goulburn
is commissioned, by Lord Bathurst, to inform Madame Las Cases of the
departure of her husband from St. Helena for the Cape; and that, in
case he should determine on returning to Europe, he might be
expected about the month of May. Yet I did not leave the Cape until
three months later, namely, about the end of August! Thus it would
appear that Lord Bathurst had no intention of detaining me there;
and that Lord Charles Somerset, instead of executing the orders of
the English Minister, merely obeyed the suggestions of Sir Hudson
Lowe. I certainly have no reason to suppose that Lord Bathurst
would, in the slightest degree, regret this irregularity, however
fatal it might be to me. But, if I know any thing of the character
of Lord Charles, I am sure he must have been sorry for it. Being
fully persuaded of this, I sincerely forgive him for the treatment I
experienced.
All these adverse circumstances combined to estrange Lord Charles
Somerset entirely from me, and so far offended him that, in spite of
his natural disposition, he treated me with a degree of inhumanity. I
addressed a letter to him, describing the state of my health, and
urging the indispensable necessity of my removal to the town. But to
this he coolly replied, in a note sent by his Aide-de-camp, that,
though he could not alter his arrangements, he had given orders for my
obtaining medical attendance. But I was situated at a distance of
eight or ten leagues from Cape Town; the Doctor could only visit me
once a week; and as he prescribed remedies which could only be
procured in the town, their application was impracticable. I lost all
patience on reading this answer, which seemed to be an act of cruel
irony rather than a measure of relief; and I indignantly addressed a
letter directly to the Colonial Secretary. I stated that, “as it was
by his direction I had been removed to Mr. Baker’s, I took the liberty
of informing him that, as it was absolutely necessary I should be near
my medical attendant, I presumed he could have no objection to my
removal to the town, to the house of Dr. Leisching, Mr. Baker’s
father-in-law.” He replied that he had consulted with the Governor,
and that his Excellency had declared that his instructions did not
admit of my coming back to Cape Town.
But I determined not to be satisfied with this, and I again wrote to
the Colonial Secretary. I informed him that, “in spite of his letter,
nothing but absolute force should prevent me from quitting Tygerberg.
I was determined to repair to the town, and that the Governor might,
if he pleased, confine me there, and even keep me a closer prisoner
than I was at Tygerberg, as, at least, I should enjoy the advantage of
being within reach of medical advice and remedies; that though perhaps
I had no reason to attach great value to existence, yet I felt it to
be a kind of duty to defend my life.” Fortunately, the permission for
my departure at length arrived from England, just at the very moment
when I was about to execute my determination; otherwise I know not how
the matter would have ended. The Governor communicated this welcome
intelligence to me, accompanied by the offer of a lodging prepared for
me in the town. But I declined accepting it, and proceeded, as I had
originally intended, to the house of Dr. Leisching, where I
experienced all the attention and hospitality of Tygerberg, in a truly
patriarchal family, whose society produced a beneficial effect on my
health and spirits.
Now commenced a new series of vexations. I was doomed to drain the cup
of disappointment to the very dregs. The Governor, when he informed me
of my release, mentioned that two opportunities presented themselves
for my departure, and he wished me to make choice of one. I
immediately replied that the speediest would be the most desirable. I
now confidently expected the receipt of my passports, and the final
commands of the Governor. I was confined to my bed. Two days elapsed;
and in the mean time one of the ships sailed. What was my vexation and
disappointment, particularly when I was afterwards informed that the
Governor had nothing more to communicate to me; and that I was at
liberty to make whatever arrangements I pleased respecting my
departure. I vehemently complained that the first opportunity should
have been allowed to escape; but for this there was no remedy. A large
transport was lying in the harbour, which was destined to convey a
regiment of artillery to England. I begged the Governor would permit
me to take my passage in this vessel, as there were medical officers
on board. His answer was that there was no accommodation for me. In
vain I represented that if there had been two additional
artillery-officers, they would certainly not have been left behind;
that if there were two more sailors to be embarked, they would surely
find room for them; and we wanted no better accommodation. All these
arguments were unavailing. I was informed that the ship was to touch
at St. Helena, and that this circumstance, in itself, would preclude
the possibility of my taking my passage on board her. I was compelled
to yield, and to confine myself to the choice which the Governor had
so generously left me, which was to proceed to Europe by the only ship
that was then in the harbour. This was an extremely small brig, an
absolute cock-boat, destined to perform a voyage of three thousand
leagues. However, I felt no hesitation. I would have leaped into the
sea rather than have delayed another moment. The bargain was soon
struck, and I was now all impatience for the moment of departure.
The Captain of the brig informed me that he had received orders from
the Governor to prohibit me from having any communication on shore, if
he should be obliged to touch at any place in the course of the voyage
and on reaching England, he was not to suffer me to land until he
should previously receive orders from Government. Thus I was
absolutely a prisoner in the hands of this man, though I was bound to
pay him the sum which he had been pleased to demand for my passage.
This circumstance appeared to me so extraordinary that I wished to
obtain a confirmation of it, lest it might be the subject of doubt
when I should have to relate it. Therefore, when, for the last time, I
applied to the Governor for my passports, I called his attention to
this extraordinary fact. I begged that he would certify, in his answer
to me, that I had myself agreed to pay for my passage on board the
brig, which, by his instructions, was now converted into my prison.
But, as it may be supposed, I received my passports and nothing more.
-------------------------
PASSAGE TO EUROPE.
-------
A space of about a Hundred Days.
-------
_From Wednesday, August 20, to Friday, November 15._
WE SAIL FROM THE CAPE.—OUR PASSAGE.—WE
ANCHOR IN THE DOWNS.
Towards evening we proceeded to the beach, accompanied by our two
excellent hosts of Tygerberg and the Cape, whose hospitable cares,
extreme attention, and all the proofs of true affection which they
gave us, have inspired us with deep feelings of gratitude. The weather
was calm, but as we entered the boat, a favourable breeze sprung up,
as by enchantment. We all exclaimed that this was an auspicious omen;
but it was far from proving so: for it will be seen that our passage
turned out to be one of the longest, and, towards the end, most
frightful and terrible. We got on board, the anchor was weighed, and
we at last set sail for that Europe we had so long wished for.
From the moment we got under weigh, I and my son were separated from
Cape Town and the coast of Africa for ever. Not that they were out of
sight even on the next day; but, because we both remained shut up
below, suffering most terribly from sea-sickness, the effects of which
lasted a considerable time, and of which we thought we should die. Our
berth was small, dirty, and inconvenient; our brig was of about two
hundred tons’ at most; and the crew consisted of twelve hands, two of
whom were boys; and indeed, with the exception of the Captain and the
Mate, the only two who could be reckoned able sea-men, and of the
Cook, an infirm old man, all the rest were mere lads. This want of
hands was the more striking to me, and tended the more to increase my
natural disposition to sea-sickness; as, with the exception of the
Griffin, I had never been on board any but seventy-four gun ships,
manned by seven or eight hundred men.