The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-06-11

frightful mortality at Waterloo. which, es Victor
Hugo says. was rather n massacre than n
battle. Comparing II with other famous battles
Of the Napoleonc wars. we observe that at
Austerlitz the French loss was but IA per
cent. the Russian being 80 per cent. and the
Austrian Al per cent; at Moskowa the French
lost 81 per cent. and the Russians A per cent, (;
at Waterloo the French actually lost 56 per
cent. and the allies 81 per cent. or, in other
words. out of some la. 900 fighting men actually
engaged. GO. 600 were killed.
Mr. Gardner follows Col. Charras in attribut-
ng the failure Of the Waterloo campaign al
most exclusively to Napoleon himself. Our
author undertakes to demonstrate that the
Emperors plan WAS ruined by delays and es-
pecially by the tardy advance Of tho army on
June 10. by his own loss Of the morning Of
June 1G by his omission to pursue the Prus-
slams and his own dlatoriness on the morning
of June II; by his delay in beginning the bat
tie Of Waterloo. and his failure to oppose the
Prussan attack In season. Among other faults
OF Napoleon in the conduct OF the campaign
are enumerated his repeated neglect to inform
himself Of the enemies movements his failure
to use DErlon's corps and Lobau's at Ligny.
and to personally supervise the details at the
battle OF Waterloo. Among the omissions OF
which he was guilty on the last fatal
day. and Of which he would once
have been incapable. are specified
his failure to check the destruction Of his
cavalry. his neglect to support his cav
airy charges by infantry. and finally to
support the charge OF the Guard by cav
airy. At St Helena Napoleon charged Ney
with having greatly weakened the French
cavalry by his alleged rash action at Ligny.
but Mr.. Gardner succeeds in proving that Ney
asked Napoleon for infantry supports. but was
refused. These numerous symptoms OF intel
lectual eclipse on the part Of Napoleon are at
tributed by Mr.. Gardner to general physical
decline. and especially to serious malady
which Frustrated him on the first evening Of
the invasion June 15). and again before the
battle Of Ligny; which after the battle OF Ligny.
and again on the morning June H. rendered
him inaccessible to his officers. and occasioned
delays in pursuing Blncher: which finally pros
trated him Immediately before the battle OF
Waterloo. and actually incapacitated him
n ment. Much S r Of the evidence tending
to show that Napoleon was seriously Ill at Wa
terloo, and throughout the campaign IN Bel
GUM. had been previously collected by Col.
Charras: but his conclusion. which might be
viewed with some suspicion, owing to the
writer's well-known hostility to the Napoleonic
legend, seems corroborated by the subsequent
n 2Hnf ses T9 ~
me hundred times that during the battle OF
Waterloo which was deciding his fate. Napoo.
leon remained long time seated before n table
placed upon the field that they frequently saw
his head, overcome by sleep, sink down unon
the map spread out before his heavy eye" The
fact is also established by the testimony Of eye.
witnesses that on the morning Of the battle Of
nearly noon. and thus lost the hours during
which he might have overwhelmed the Anglo
allied force before the Prussians camo up.
According to Segur. Napoleon had contracted,
before the end of 1910 an inconvenent degree
OF embonpoint the result of which was that he
could not ride the shortest distance without
fatigue. Nor was this by any means the
worst indication Of physical deterioration;
He was obliged to he constantly on his guard
against painful malady. an access Of which
might PROSTATE him at any moment. when he
required the unimpaircd energies Of both mind
and body. From the description of tho symp-
toms quoted by Mr.. Gardner from the En-
| peror's body surgeon, we should infer that this
mysterious malady was disorder OF tho kid
neys and bladder. There We're. according to
Scgur. four or five occasions ON which the des-
| TIMES of the empire were more or less inlu-
enced by this complaint. At Borodino and
! at Dresden. as we'll ~ at Waterloo he is as
| serted by Scgur TO have been incapacitated from
| this cause. In view OF these facts. 1t seems
| impossible to accept the allegation of Theirs
| that at the battle Of Waterloo Napoleon was
| physically capable OF fully bearing the fatigues
| incident to II bold aggressive campaign On
| the contrary, we incline To accept the judgment
! Of CharraS suhstHntiatcd, as Mr. Gardner
! shows, by evidence published since he wrote.
| that Napoleon was old before his time, and that
| the failure Of his military efforts during tho
! hundred days was due to a marked intellectual
| decadence. the result of physical decay. OF
| course. this theory MIL always be unpleasant
| to the adulators OF Wellington. who do not like
| to believe that their hero triumphed over. not
but an, enfecbled. pain-racked, and mind
| clOuueu man.