Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-03-28

SArULEoN vt TWENTY TWO.
lishCd rs pensioners. The solicitation
was that the young fellows should bo
educated ut the expense Of tho state.
Marhu'uf invented a fiction. flrCkCd with
fact, about the nobility Uf his wards;
and tho petition WAS granted finally rs
To Napoleon, BUt Joseph had now
passed the limit of his eleventh wear,
and WAS Ho longer CliSihl,-unlv>S hy
violation uf law He must thvr, fore Ia
diverted ~ TIM prirSthnnd, while the
younger brother WAS asst -u,,l. NJ the
public charge. To- the military academy
Mt Bgirnnr- la-C harvllr. ON tho right
bank of the Aubr. in the department of
the Same name, a hundred and eighteen
miles from Paris. Thithcr ho WAS trans
frrrrd i'll the LATTER part uf April, 1919.
and WAS admitted rs a cadet
At .Autun. tho chief business had hvvn
to teach him French. He applied him
self CLOSELY Ia this task. hut nut very
successfully He learned to speak
French. hrokvnly, with an Italian &c
cent. To the end If his life he never nc
QuirCd nice knowledge Of the adopted
tongue. His grammar WAS broken. his
composition ihuudvrstruck, and his
spelling hvrvtlcAh His practical knowl
edge uf the language which lie WAS dcS-
tined To- uSr for frrtv-twn years in his
intercourse with men WAS sufficient; but
his mind was never tulvrvnt of techni-
calitiCS.
This trait uf ncglvrtiug the cxactitudes
was strongly manifested from Napo-
Icons childhood. He went rs far as the
practical in whatever subject he touch
ed; hut having seized thus much, he
cared for nothing else. He desired cor
rectneSS i'll others, for that was useful TO
him; hut as for himself. he wanted only
aggregate results and n knowledge Of
their practical advantages. All authors
have commented on the inaccuracies and
lapscs i'll the Napolconic correspondence
and manuscripts 1t became his habit TO
slur over. in his rapid way, the errors
in his writing; and his arrogance seem
ed TO convince him that, whilo correct
spelling was an accomplishment i'll ped
agOSueS, it was rather fault i'll great
men.
The young Bonapartc is described by
his master rs being of solemn demeanor;
rarely laughing; never happy or mirth-
full: no disposition for playing: proud
and solitary; easily wounded: always
resentful: learning with lightning. like
rapidity, but stopping short Of correct
ness; vain of his faculties; patriotism
almost morbid; dislikinG tho powerful
foreign race with which his lot had been
cast; looking back rcGretfully to Corsi-
l-.,N
of his country than he did Of his home
and mother
Already. before leaving Autun. the
pale little Bonaparto fell into frequent
quarrclS with his French schoolmatcs
about the CorSiCan revolution! They in
suited him with the charge that his
countrymCn had been towards - else
they would have won their indrpend-
| ence. To this he answered anGrily that
| if the French had outnumbered his peo-
| pie only four 10 one, the invaders would
have been defeated. Military calculation
already!
The military academy ut Brienne was
one of ten Of like kind recently cStab-
| lished i'll the Kingdom. Besides these,
there were two higher schools, one at
|
| system had superseded another which
had failed on account of its unpopular
ity. The military education and the right
thereto was plum for the mobiles. Boys
Of the Third Estate had therein no part
or lot. In the schools were gathered the
weakened reproductions of mOribund
nobility The governors of the schools
were even as the cadets. The institu-
tions degnerated, until there was pop
ular reaction against them. There was
o reform. headed by the Church. New
schools were established, and monks
were put in charge of them!
At the time when the boy Napoleon
went to Brienne, the remarkable condi-
ton was presented of a system of mill
tary schools in charge Of the monastio
fathers. The Brienne academy was CON
Quoted by the Minim Fathers, good men
in their way. but as sources of inspira
ton to lads with the gleam of military
glory in their brains they were mere
dullneSs and obfuscation! The course:
of study were mathematics, geography,
history, Latin. modern languages, phi
losophy, and such poor misnamed science
az might be squeezed from the spong,
Of clerical dogmatism in the eighteenth
century.
Such was tho disciplinary fare which
was offered TO the boy Napoleon 81
was now far removed from friends anC
kinsmen. He made the acquaintance o
his schoolmates; admired one Of then
-Bourienne-and seemed to love an
other-Des Mazis: but his character anC
manner were rocks Of offense to the res
of the hundred and fifty. Nothing NOR
striking has been presented in persona
annals than the contrast which the poo
Corsican lad, with his solemn face
long, stiff black hair, naughty expires
sion, close.shut Italian mouth. solitar.
pride of bearing. and questionable in
sular suit afforded to the thrOng O
noble, mocking effeininates among
whom he was washed up as from the sea
On his entrance into the academy
which was n clean. well-ordered plao
I, ! L.