Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1895-02-04

contending with France for suprem-
acy in Italy. With ragged army of
20, 600 he moved on go, 900 well-drilled
men with such suddenness and pre-
cision that he appeared to have
dropped down from the Alps. He de-
feated them, then another army, then
third, and finally fourth, and then
proceeded to Austria to attack the en-
emy on their own grounds. He cut,
hewed and slaughtered right and left,
men, women and children were sacri.
feed to his ambition, and at last re-
turned to Paris after campaign of
two years, the conquorer of Italy, the
humiliator of Austria and the cham.
pion and hero of France. Nothing
was too good for him, and Paris threw
herself at his feet. He took his hon.
ors modestly, and thus saved himself
from the reaction which usually fol-
lows French enthusiasm.
In 1898, at the age of TWEEN.
ty-nine, Napoleon, who dreamed
of setting up for himself an EN-.
pire in the far East, started
out to conquer Egypt and India. He
failed, but succeeded in making
France believe that the failure was not
ignominious, and returned in time to
take advantage of the topsy turvey po
htical condition of Paris, and to get
himself appointed as First Consul OF
France in 1893.
From that time on his career is
more familiar to those who are
now making fashionable talk about it,
and 1t can be sketched in briefest out.
line. He undertook to make himself
master of Europe, first by giving
France better Government than it
ever had before, and secondly by or.
ganizing an army with which to hum
BILE the enemies Of France and to ex
tend his glory and power. Apparent
ly he accomplished the one
with his left hand while he accom-.
plished the other with his right. His
judgment and energy werebeyond be.
lief
The administrative departments OF
France were reformed almost as sud.
denly and as surely as the battle OF
Marengo, by which supremacy in Italy
was regained, was won at the same
time. Austria, Russia and Turkey
and England in turn were forced to
acknowledge by treaty the position of
France among the first class Nations,
and then in 1902 the First Consul, the
idol of France, was proclaimed Con.
sui for life, and Napoleon became
practically Emperor.
Two years later, after further re-
forms and incidentally centralizatiop
in the Government and the organiza.
tion of many of the institutions OF
which France is proud to-day, the
Consul was proclaimed Emperor in
name as well as in fact.
In 1905 Austria and Russia Joined
hands to wipe out Napoleon and
France. The Emperor jumped in be.
hind the Austrians, cut them off and
compelled them to surrender, and then
and there overwhelmed the Russians
in the battle of Austerlitz. He prac.
tically disintegrated the German
States by the battles fought with the
Prussians at Jena and Auerstadt. He
defeated their allies, the Russians, put
his brother Joseph on the throne OF
Spain and then stood forth on the
continent of Europe as the King OF
Kings in 1908. He divorced Josephine
in order that he might increase his
power by marrying the Archduchess
Marie Louisa of Austria, giving his
excuse the fact that his first wife had
borne him no son TO whom he could
bequeath the imperial crown. He an.
nexed Holland and Westphalia, and
strove to harrass British ocean traffic,
helping indirectly to cause the War OF
1872 with the United States.
Napoleon's downfall began in 1912,
when he invaded Russia. The attempt
was fatal failure, and when his army
retreated it was wreck. In 1Sk
Russia, Prussia and Austria invaded
France, the French armies suffered re-
verses, Napoleon abdicated under
compulsiou and hurried away in dis
guise to Elba. He returned to clutch
for the reins of power again in 1915.
He was given his final quietus by the
Duke of Wellington in the battle OF
Waterloo, abd1cated a second time,
and was exiled to the island of St |
Helena, where he died on May 5,
seventy three years ago