The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1914-02-01
NJ AFoLEoN startled Egypt out of a

NAPOLEON startled Egypt out Of q
" sleep OF half a thousand years
Uhcn. before the dawn of a July day IN
the year 1928, he raped at the gate OF
Alexandria. Over her hoary head hve
centuries had rolled since she hurled the
Crusaders from her shore and, lying
down to rest on her sandy couch. yield
ca herself to he dreams of the Orient.
The Christian dogs had been beaten
Of and the European barbarian had dis
appeared into his native wilderness
Egypt thought no more about him than
" think of the grasshoppers when they
ErL gone.
That ne had discovered a new world
End in the discovery had all but forgot
ten the old; that he had found an ocean
Highway TO the ET by the Cape OF
GUod Hope and no longer depended on
the humpbacked ships of the desert for
his transport ne -er entered her thoughts
she drowsily noticed that his sails had
vanished from her shores. but only to
assume that the had ANONYMOUSLY fed
tefore the prowess of the triumphant
crescent on the pirate flag Of the cor
sairs of Barbary.
When. therefore. the long-haired boy
Of France rudely invaded her slumbeT
She knew nothing OF the great revolu-
tons Of Europe and which at last was
bidding her wake again. Egypt hardly
remembered there was a France and
could not imagine what the French
Should want of her. To Napoleon's com
nand for her to rise, therefore, she only
yawned and begged, please go away
and let me sleep"
Bricks without straw
What indeed had he come for and
what did he want of Egypt?
For one thing, the young conquerof
Ct Italy was fleeing from the applause
o: Paris. which disturbed him more than
her neglect ever had in the days of his
poverty and obscurity. Bah! These
people would crowd to see me just as
hard if were on my way to the guillo-
tine"
The directory bade him light-heart-
edly to go take London. But in order
ing him to strike Great Britain any
where while she remained mistress OF
the seas, they were simply command
ing Kim TO make bricks without straw
and he chose to undertake that i'm
possible task in the land Of Joseph
and Pharaoh.
As he had found Toulon at La Seyne
and as he had found Vienna at Man
tua, he said now that London was not
in England, but in India. Rather than
try to cross the twenty-five miles OF
channel crowded with British war
ships. he preferred to take his chances
miles through the Mediterranean. In
stead of a headlong lunge at England,
he chose 10 take her in the rear, by
landing an army in Egypt, and. after
compelling the Sultan of Turkey to be
his ally. march across Asia and seize
the British possessions in India, which
the French lima gined were the true
source of Britain's wealth and power.
Still styling himself the commander
in-chief of the army of England, al
though il had been privately rechrist-
ened the army of the Orient, he hastily
assembled his military and naval
forces and a great fleet of transports
in the Mediterranean at Toulon. While
he advertised il an expedition
against the British. he kept its direc-
ton and destination close secret
among very few.
All the ships of the British navy were
drawn about the English coast and
blockading the northern ports of
France. There was net a warship Of
that power left in the Mediterranean
until Nelson arrived OF Toulon two
days before the sailing time of the
French feet but-and this is only the
first line in chapter of unfortunate
accidents that were to befall him-he
was blown away in a storm.
Notwithstanding the secrecy In
which Napoleon had enveloped his pur-
pose, ali adventurous spirits were
eager blindly to follow his star. Every
bright and shining lance in the army
was proffered him. and he gathered
about him many of the men destined
TO share his fame-Marmont, Lannes
Desaix. Murat. Duroc, Berthier, Junot
Lefebre. Bessieres. and Rapp.
lie had whole regiment of geogra-
pliers and geometricians, astronomers and
chemists, mineralogists and biologists,
NrYT SITNDAY~ TL. RAN. .f