Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1873-07-31
THE AZET'IE1
THURSDAY EVENING, JULY 81.
Old Guards Love for the Emperor.
BY HEINRICH HEINE.


Nv neighbour, the old Grenadler, ls seated
at his threshold to-day, lost IN meditaton' ~
,;mns he begins one of bis old Bonapartlst songs,
hnr emotion chokes his voice; his eyes are 10
famed, and, to all appearances the OLD reno"
has been weeping He was at Franconl last
nipb,. and while there witnessed the Battle OF
Ansterlitz," He explained the faults OF the play
70 me. for he had fought at Austerlltz, where
il was so cold that his fingers froze fast to his
musket-while at Franconi's, on the other
hand. the heat was insupportable. He was well
pleased with the powder smoke, and also with
the smell of the horses although he insisted
that the cavalry at Austertz had not had such
well groomed grays. The powder smoke at
Franconi's was, as the old man said, excellent
and affected his chest so bene6cially as to re-
lieve him of his cough. And the Emperor"
| asked him. 1.-The Emperor answered the
old man, was quite unchanged, the very pic
ture of life, with his gray eapote and hls little
three cornered hat, and my heart throbbed IN my
breast. All the Emperor, God knows how much
| love him. During life have often gone through
fire for him, and even after death | shall have to
20 through fire for him again. Ricon, thus was
the old man named, repeated the last words 10
gloomy, mysterious tone. | bad frequently
heard hun say that he expected to go to hell
for the Emperor, and when urged him to ex-
plain his S range words, he told me the follow.
Ing story: "At the time that Napoleon caused
Pope Plus VII, to be removed from Rome and
carried to Savona, Ricou belonged to compa-
ny of grenadiers who were placed as guard over
him. The Pope was at first accorded many
privileges: without hinderance he could leave
his apartments at any hour and repair to the
chanel of the castle, where he read the mass
daily.
" ucn, on such occasion, he passed through
the great hall in which the grenaderS were On
guard, he would bless them. But one morning
the grenadcrs received positive orders to watch
the Pope's exits more strictly than before. and
to prevent him from going through the great
hall. As illluck would have it, the execution
of this order fell to the lot of Ricou, who was
Breton. Poor Ricou was standing guard be-
fore the apartment of the Pope when the latter,
according to his wont, desired to pass through
the great hall in order to read the mass in the
castle chapel. Ricou, however, advanced aud
declared that he had received orders not to
allow the Holy Father to pass Several priests
who were in the Pope's train endeavored
All was in vain Ricou remained firm; always
fell back upon the impossbiity Of dlsobeylDg
orders, aud when, despite this, the Pope at
tempted to advance, he cried out boldly, "Au
nom de I Emperor! !" and, with bayouet pre-
sentcd, forced the Pope to retreat. After
few days the harsh order was revoked, and
the Pope was again permitted to pass through
the great hall on his way to mass And yet
| could not have acted otherwise, the old in
valid added, when he had told me the story.
81 could not have acted otherwise; | had my
orders, and it was my duty to obey the EN-
perior May God forgive me! but at his com
maud I would have run my bayonet through
the Lord himself" l assured the poor fellow
that the Emperor was answerable for all the
sins of the Grande Armee, but that this would
iujure him but little, as there was not devil
in hell who would dare lay hands upon Napo-
leon The old man gladly approved of my
words, and, with voluble enthusiasm, began to
tell me of the splendor of the Empire, and of
the imperial times when all was hourishing and
flowing with gold, while now the whole world
seemed so faded and withered