The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-04-24

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| bringing $1,000 mon from Italy. THROWN
. himself like lion upon KorsakofY. Massen
beat him and drove him with immense loss
the Rhine. Then. darting upon souvarofr. h
treated him rs he bad done his lieutenant
In these engagements 10000 OF the enem
, were killed or takcn. tho independence o
Switzerland was confirmed. and France wa
saved from invasion. Massena's fame wa
never 80 high. and he and his army wer
thrice thanked by the Legislature.
Massena took no hand In tho revolution o
the 18th Brumaire. which made Bonapart'
First Consul and was not much pleased will
the new state Of things. Nevertheless. he &C
copied the command Of tho Army Of Italy. ant
second time saved France from invasion
by his obstinate defence at Genoa. which al
lowed Napoleon time to concentrate the arm,
destined to beat the Austrians at Marengo
After that victory tho Army OF Italy was again
left in Mass6na's hands. butthe old complaints
OF peculation broke out. and he was suddenly
removed from the command and relegated to
private life. When In 1906. however. France
was n third time threatened by coalition,
4 Massena was called upon to defend northern
Italy against the Archduke Charles. He not
| only saved Lombardy. but attacked the enemy.
and by forcing the Archduke to halt and
| face him every day. he delayed him until he
|
| army which was beaten ut Austerlitz. Strange
to say. Napoleon did not seem to appre-
ciate Mass6na's services in this campaign very
| highly, but this did not prevent him sending
| him soon afterward to conquer the kingdom
| OF Naples. In month Massena occupied the
| whole country except tho fortress OF Gaeta.
and this he took after vigorous siege. Dur
| ing his Lacquer OF this town he experienced a
| keen annoyance which he never got over. An
! immense sum which. he asserted. belonged to
him was conHscated by the Emperor.
1t seems that Mass6na had issued inn umera-
BILE licenses to smugClers. and that he found
this business very profitable Tho Emperor.
hearing that he had deposited three millions
OF francs with u banker at Leghorn. and that
his chief of staff, Gen. SoliGnac. had deposited
100000 francs at the same time. wrote to the
Marshal asking for tho loan Of million and
requesting two hundred thousand from the
chief Of stafY-just third Of the profits which
each had made. At sight OF this new kind Of
draft Massena shrieked as though his bowels
were being torn out. and replied to Napoleon
that he was the poorest Of the Marshals. had a
numerous family to maintain. and was over
head and ears in debt: no regretted. there
fore. that he could not send him any
thing. Gen. Soignac made similar
answer. and both were congratulating them
selves on having taken in the Emperor
when the son OF the Leghorn banker
arrived post haste. announcing that the In
spector OF the French Treasury had called on
his father escorted by the Commissary OF Po-
lice and several gendarmes. had ordered the
cash book to be handed over to him. and had
given q receipt for the 100000 francs paid in
by tho Marshal and Gen. Solignac. adding
that this sum belonged to the army. and had
only been left on trust with the depositors. So
great was the fury Of Massena on hearing that
his fortune had been snatched away from him
that he fell Ill. After tho peace OF Tilsit the
title Of Duke OF Rivoli and pension OF 100000
francs were tho rewards Of his services. but
these did not console him for what he had lost.
In spite OF his cautious habits he was heard
sometimes TO cry: I was fighting in his SER
vice. and he was cruel enough to take away
my little savings which l had invested
at Leghorn."
Marriott does full justice to the glorious part
taken by Massena in the ca mpaign Of 1909. In
recognition OF his conduct at this time the
Emperor made him Prince OF Essling. with
further pension Of 100000 francs in addition
to the 100000 which he had as Duke OF Rivoli.
and the 100000 which came to him as Mar
shall and Commander in Chief. The new
made Prince. however. did not increase his ex-
penditures by a halfpenny. The campaigns in
Spain and Portugal were Mass6na's last. and
they were not fortunate. In Marbot's opinion
his mind was not what it was. and he expe-
rienced reyerses when he might and ought to
have been victorious. After resigning his
in tho peninsula he passed the |
whole OF 1872 in retirement at Nice. but whom |
Napoleon in the following year found it neces-
sary to use all his resources. he made Massena
Governor OF the eighth military division.
Erap in
Mass6na. who had indeed but few troops |
at his disposal. did nothing to check
their advance. On April 10 he made
his submission to the Duke of Angouleme.
who created him Commander Of tho Order Of
st. Louis. but did not make him a peer Of
France on the plea that he was born IL foreign
err and had not been naturalized. On Napo-
eon's landing from Elba. MassGna's conduct
was so vacillating as to satisfy neither side
He ultimately Joined the Emperor. but as
after the battle Of Waterloo he gave the opfn-
on that Paris could not resist. he was not de-
prived OF his rank on the return OF Louis
XVIII He was. indeed. denounced for pecula-
ion before the Chamber OF Deputies. but the
charge was not sustained. Thenceforward
he Marshal lived in retirement at his chateau
If Rueil. and ended his career in misfortune
md solitude on April 4. 1917.
Mass6na was lean and spare and below tho
middle height. He had q highly expressive
Italian face. The bad points In his character
we're II want OF candor. tendency to bear
malice. harshness, and avarice. He had much
natural ability. but his low origin and adven-
urous youth gave him no chance OF studying,
md he was totally lacking In what is called
cultivation. He was however. q born General;
lis courage and tenacty did tho rest. In the
,est DAYS Of his military career no saw &C.
,urately. decided promptly. and never let him
,ef be cast down by reverses. AS he grew old
10 pushed caution to the point OF timidity,
rom the fear Of compromising the reputation
10 had earned. He hated reading. and thus
lad no knowledge OF what had been written
.bout war; With him every order was an in
'piration. and Napoleon judged him rightly
when he said In his memoirs that when Massena
arrived upon q battlefield no did not know what
10 should do and circumstances decided him.
Marriott pronounces 1t a mistake to represent
Hassens, as some have done. as stranger to
iattery. speaking tho truth to the Emperor
rankly and even brusquely. He says that on
he contrary. Masscna was under his rough