The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1895-03-30

fifteen months. His occupations at that
place were much like those at Valence and
Ajaccio. He performed his military duties
in Il desultory way, but with more exacti-
tude than the French code of military
ethics at that time required. But military
duty demanded only a fraction Of his time;
the rest was given to that intense out
f|ragmentary study by which his mind was
trained and supplied with a wide range
of information.
The ambition Of Napoleon to be an au-
thor did not for the present subside. At
one time he was on tho eve of bringing
out at Paris his History of Corsica" A
publisher agreed to do the work on condi-
ton Of sharo-and-share-alike in the pro-
ceeds. But just at that juncture Mon
seigneur MarbTuf, Bishop Of Sens, to
whom the work was dedicated, was deposed
from his see in disgrace. Here was a state
of things indeed, to dedicate a great work
to a disgraccd ecclcsiastic! The puhlica-
ton was accordingly postponed, and the
manuscript %recaSt, with an inscription to
Paoli. This was "a plain indication that
the authors mind, as between French
despotism and Corsican independence, was
strongly tending to the latter.
Tho winter of 1888 50 was passed by
Bonaparte in his quarters at Auxonne. In
the following April that disturbance oc-
CURED Mt Scurre which called forth a half
months petty campaign from Napoleon's
company, and ended i'll nothing. 1t was
like the episode at Lyons, but less impor-
tant. AS yet, Lieutenant Bonaparto had
never as Il soldier drawn blood, or seen 1t
drawn by others. His rcstlessness now
bore him rapidly on to action. His passion
for doing something and for following
his destiny''-a fiction which he was al.
ways dwelling upon-lod him to commit
himself (ambiguously) to the Corsican pa
troits. His adroitness was such, however,
that he kept ever a cord to his purposes
whereby he might recover himself for
France. In fact, he knew not what thing
he would be called to do, or in what cause
his sword should first be actually un,
shcathod. His nature was always to avail
himself of the first contingency. Napoleon
is doubtloss-such was his ~sleepless vigi.
lancc-the only great mar of history who
never lost an opportunity!
Bonaparte was with his regiment, so.
called "of Iron, " at Auxonne, when the
great Revolution in France began. Within
"A month from the tri1ling event at Seurre,
the States General assembled at Versailles.
There, on the 9th of May, 1889, tho most
remarkable political body of modern times
went into session, OH the condition OF
France and mankind. There was IA process.
sion of great men; Il gathering to Their
seats in the Hall of Menus; a seating OF
six hundred representatives of the people;
a looking down from the gallery of the
young Baroness de Stael- Holstein on the
heads of Riquctti de Mirabeau, the philo.
sophie Nolney, the lean Jean Paul Marat,
the big young Danton of Arcis sur. Aube,
the 1.-the Camille, the Sea green Robes
pierre, and the rest. 1t was the beginning
of the end of much-the opening of !,
small crevasse in the great dyke whereby &
feudal civilization had walled in the DIES
TIMES of mankind for centuries. Outside
that ancient wall lay the roaring ocean
soon to rush in wave on wave, till the del
uge, flecked with blood, should rise to the
pinnacles of all palaces, and splash tn,
domes of all cathedrals.
The bruit of the great event reached tn,
towns and cities and people of France
Men wot not the thing they did. Non,
knew that the ancient order was rushing
on to doom. None imagined that tn,
French monarchy itself was going head
long down to Orcus and eternal night
All stood together on the crumbling verg,
of the chasm, and supposed that the,
would easily bridge it over with some new
card boards of finance and paper billet
legislating bread for men. Vain delusion
of an awful hour! Surely salvation TO
France and for mankind lies not tina
way, o Representatives of the People!
The effects of the extraordinary move
ment thus begun for the reform of thu
French nation were strikingly diverse il
the different parts of the kingdom. Francs
was as yet homogeneous in nothing. TIL,
towns of the South, under the loyal senti
ments of the old Provencal race, received
the news in one spirit, and the towns o
the North in another. They of the Girond
in the far southwest heard the tidings as
proclamation of good news to men; Will
hey of Lyons and Montpelier and Mar
seilles and Toulon and Nice, in the ia
southeast, caught the intelligence witt
o. and animosity.
On men themselves the news fell. from
week to week with varying effects accord
ing to their personal characters and preju
dice of race. In general, they who hat
lmblbed the principles of the new Frencl
philosophy either went after the Revolu
ton or ran before it waving a flag. Sucl
a mind was ~Bonaparte's. No doubt b
was a born NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. Away
he could himself control the revolution
His nature was fitted in every part TO
that state of fruitful anarchy which tend
again to order. He was essentially a maj
for the storm and hurricane. but suitel