Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1880-01-01

| hiSut L IOsb OU,uQO uUESeS, IrQZaG 10 QeStO
ludecd, I have lost all save my houor sod MI
consciousness of what | owe to valiant people
which, after these unheard of calamities, ha
given ne Dew proofs of its devotion to me, O.
Its conviction that | alone am fit to govern it
have r3medied the losses of last year. Lool
at nay srlng. Consider the victories that hav.
just Won. My troops shall parade before you. y
"Aod it IS just tho armv," | Interrupted
That wishes for peace" No. not the army,
IrtjclIed Napoleon, eagerly, but my generals
! :ney desire peace. | have no generals worth
;Spesk!us OF left. The Moscow winter has de-
morallzed them. | have seen the bravest
among them crying like children. Physically
and morally they are broken down. A tors.
night ago | could have made pesce. Nov
csn DO so 20 more. | have won two battles,
apd will not make peace" | observed,
From ali that your majesty has said to me |
gather afEesh that any understanding between
your msios,y aud Europe is impossible. The
pesces you have concluded have never Vet
occn anything more than Temporary truoas.
Tue moment has srrived OF which Europe and
yourself must cast down your gaurtlets Ht one
/; anc;hc5s feet aud respectively pick them up.
tI the struggle that will eDsurs, believe
; nc, Europe will not succunb." "Do you
! imagine, then. that you eau overthrow
ne b2 coalition 2" reioined Napoleon.
"Ho1 mary are you, your ales-iour, fvs,
SIX, twenty {? The greater your number the
| more l shall be at ny ease. | accept your
challenged But can assure you. ho coutnued
with forced smile That NO shall see one
another again in Vienna next October. By
[ that .lne you will sec what will have become of
your good frioDds, the Russians and Prusslans.
! Do you, perhaps, conat upon Germany Just
! rera all 1910 m r,tnS Nv eolJ;o.,
suffice me- to keep the German populations in
! hand. and for the fidelity Of the German
! princea ! On guaranteed By their fear of you.
! II you will Only declare yourselves neutral and
observe nou; ;r&iitg will commence negotiations
10 Prague. VIII yCu have ~ armed neutrality
/ SO be It. Station 800 900 men 10 Bohemia
| aoG lc: your Emperor give me bis word not to
docara war against me before the negotiations
sha!i bovo terminated. That will be enough
| or no."
"ihe Emperor, y replied. "has offered his
mod!atlco, aot hls neutrality, to the Powers.
kussle end Prussia have accepted bis media
tou. You Ulust loW-this very day-Geolare
whst you mean to do. Either you will Gcocpt
my proposition. END We will settle term for
the duration OF the negotiations, or you viii!
reject it, and my master, the Emperor, will
thoE consider himself OF liberty as far ss bis
iurtke, decisions are concerned. The situation
IS Brgoat up0a us. The army mus, have food
% eat. In Il lew days We shall have $50 900
men IN Bohemia. They can stop there f,r
lew weeks, but not fer months |" Hsre Ms
po!c03 again Interrupted me, to break off into
z long DEPRESSION respecting the possible
strength OF our army. According TO bis oalcu
!atlona nc could rot, at the very most, get
together mCr, than Is 600 men il Bohemia.
10 based his deductions upon the normal cum.
pers Of the empires population, upon his cs-
t!uatc Of onr losses 10 the late wars aud upon
cur system OF recruitment. | betrayed con
siderable surprise liz the correctness Of bis rs
sumption, aud told him stat he could very
easily procure more accurate Information. Il
myself" observed, will be bound to furnish
YOUR hlslesty With complete list of your bas-
;aiious. Cso it DC that Your Majesty is less
correctly informed respecting the strength of
the Austrian army p II am quite we'll in
formed" replied Napoleon. 81 possess most
exhaustive reports upon your combataut
strength, eed an perfectly sure that | have
not been deceived as regards tire chiffre of
your Effective tecaas. NJ. dc Naraouue has
sent cut host OF spies, aud his reports ex.
tend ia datsii even TO the drummetS of your
army. Ny hoa3qasrters staff has been no
less active; End know bcs what relisros is to
be placed rpc1 my Information. My ca!cula-
items are baaod upon mathematical propositions;
therefore they er5 sure. After all, nobody
has got more thGn he Gao have !"
Hu then took rc !ntc his study end showed
ms he muster rolls OF cur army, Just as he re.
csivod them daily. He went over them With
sXlTem0 Careulncss. regiment By regiment.
Over ths question alone wc disputed for more
:hao eu hour. when we returned into his re-
cepioo room be said nothing more about the
political ISSUES at sake, and might have fan
cc0 that he wished to distract my attention
from the pnrp15o Of my mission had | not
kaoTn BY experience how great 60 adopt be
Was iG these we'll calculated roundabout ways.
He ts l,od about hi5 operslona in Russia, and
was exJronlo!y difFcse ancut shat had happened
alter bis last return tc France. Every word ho
said made it More and moro clear to ne that
his exclusive osj c. was TO convince me that bis
rogeTcl 10 1872 Wer0 entirely attributable to the
winter scosoo aGd that his prestige 10 France
had never beea er1ater than in Consequence Of
those vary events. After listening to him for
halt 8n 5Qur | interrupted him With Tho re-
! mark that IBIS oTa words afforded me- q s!rik-
Ing proof Of the necessity that be should bring
all these yarlItloHs Of luck and i'll lnck to full
stop" "t.to may betrsy you, | observed,
'as she did ~ 1912. As rule armies con-
stlt0te only = small pcrc: n!age of the ponula-
| TOO. but you are calling a whole people to
arms Have you not already, 10 assembling
| pour army Of to-day, swept away, 30 10 speak,
a whole g2nera'ioG2 have seen your soIdier.;
| they are mere Children. Your Majesty is CON
gincsd that you arc indispensable to the French
na:ior; bu, is not the nation also necessary to
| you2 And when this army Of feeble strip pinss
shall have been sacrificed what will you do
then?' at these words Napoleon allowed him
| self to bs " rcoms by rags. He turued deadly
palo. and his aiures worked conGul;ively.
Y u are no sOdi6r," be exclaimed fercely,
'aDd y9u DO not understood what goes on 10 a
soldier soul. have been reared on battle
| fields. aud a1ch man as am makes no &C
count CT piioo meo's !vcs!" He used a
uush stronger expression tts1 ,his and as he
| spoke. OF rather screamed these words be funs
his bat. which be had hitherto kept 10 his
| hand into corner Of the room. | dii not
stir. but leaned upon console between the two
Windows, ard SAID, with deep emotion, WHY
| do sou auuly to me- Wh7 do you make such