The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-09-19
NAPOLEON Al AUsTERLITz

| From the Chicago Herald.
The story of how the great Napoleon
met and conquered the very flower of
the armies of the allied nations of the
old world, there arrayed against the
trenchmen, is pretty story-in fact,
IL is not a story at all, but matter Of
history. Those who have read history
or the life of Napolean will remember
| that his motto was punctual and i'm
plicit obedience to orders. With
| Napolean five o'clock meant five o'clock
or before, not five minutes or one min
ute after five. One incident will be
found in Napoleon's career where he
| punished favorite general, after hav-
| ing publicly reprimanded him. for APP
! pearing at certain bridge some ten
minutes later than he had been ordered
to appear there by his superior officer.
The general offered as an excuse that
the weather was rigorous, but Napo-
| leon impetuously interfered with the
remark: Not too rigorous for me to
be here on time"
The French troops had implicit con-
| fdence in their leader. The night be-
! fore the great battle Of Austerlitz the
| men sang patriotic songs until eau
toned that they were within earshot
of the enemy and must be silent, but
some time later, when just before re-
firing to his tent for the night-though
it is said that Napoleon did not sleep
that great general passed among his
warriors outstretched on the ground.
| Suddenly one enthusiastic soldier fast
ened his little pallet of straw on his
bayonet, fired it and tossed it in the
air. Others followed and the flames lit
up the entire country surrounding, car
rying to the enemy the news that the
Erenchmen were near. Such action
was decidedly unjudicious, it is true,
but it showed the wonderful faith and
confidence the soldiers had in their
and at whose command they would face
without iinching what. at least, APP
peared to be certain death.
The battle began at an early hour in
the morning. Napoleon saw before
him more than 100000 of the very
flower of the army of Russia, Austria,
Germany, England and other nations,
while he had scarcely $4,000 SCARED,
worried and not too well-fed or clothed
soldiers with which to face the seem
ingly overwhelming. better cared for
allied army of 100000 tried men, and
yet Napoleon won and all the nations
marveled thereat, though it is not a
matter of history that he should have
won for the reason that his plans were
successfully carried out, because of the
implicit confidence of his soldiers and
their prompt obedience to each order
issued.
Some of Napoleon's generals differed
with the greatest of all generals or
ders, but they did not stop to question
and carried out their instruction to the
letter. Napoleon threw his entire
army of $4,000 men first on the right
wing, then on the left, then Jon the
center. Several times the enemy was
fianlled without knowing how the trick
had been accomplished, but, torn as
they might. the allies found confronting
them $4,000 men in compact mass,
while to save themselves the generals
of the allied army could not swing
their eco, 900 into such position as to
face Napoleon's army at the same time
That was the very trick Napoleon
wanted to play. While there were
200. 900 men arrayed against him, he
was fighting about one-fourth that
number with a superior force behind
him. True, upon each rnaneuver he
faced fresh men, but never more men
than he threw against that particular
part of the allied armies.
He won because there was organiza-
ton. and the men who did the fighting
asked no questions as TO the wisdom of
this or that order, but simply knew
that the ultimate result to be achieved
was defeat of their enemy. and, being
properly organized aud disciplined.
they accomplished the result aimed