The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-05-10
Napoleon on the Men Behind the Guns
 In war men are nothing; is everything. GA note in 1808)

the brow of the hill in advance of his suite and alone, he eagerly watched the Russians emerging from ,ank of fog and disappearing in another as they de- seconded into a deep hollow beyond the farther slopes of Pratzen They were so near him that without lifting his field glass he could distinguish the cavalry from the infantry
 His forecast of the battle was being verified, and to some passing regiments he exultantly shouted in his rich, full tones, which sent a thrill through the ranks: Soldiers, we mds1 finish this cam paign with a thunderclap, that shall con found the pride of our enemiesl" The re- sponse was lusty roar of 'Vive iEm- pereur!' as the men lifted their hats on their bayonets.
 Just then two, men riding in front of a party of horsemen galloped along the road toward the village of Pratzen, near the foot of the big hill, one in black uniform with a white plume and a chest nut horse, the other in white uniform on black horse. They were the allied field from their hill of observation close to the town of Austerlitz to see for themselves the cause of a great confu- sion among their troops. The presence of their majesties and the commands they gave stirred tardy movement to occupy the still bare heights of Pratxen.
 Waiting to Spring the Trap
 As Napoleon saw the Russians climb ing the hill, he turned in his saddle and, breaking long silence, quickly inquired. Marshal Soult. how much time will you require to reach the heights of Pratzen?' Less than 20 minutes. sire. Soult replied My troops are ready at hot of Ia ValIqV and red with fog and the bivouac smoke so that the enemy cannot see them."
 After a moments calculation, Napoleon said. "In that case, let us walt quar- ter of an hour more" The longer he permitted the allies to go on with the movements that were weakening their center, the more he would profit by their mistake They were embarked in fam fly operation and it was not for him to show them their error too soon.
 Already he heard the echoes of heavy musketry firing from the direction of his threatened right wing. where Marshal Davouse was struggling by a brook to check the advance of 30,O00 Russians and Austrians, Meanwhile the line of the allied center grew thinner and thinner and gaps had begun to appear in 1t here and there, for other thousands had been detached to assail the French left along the Brunn road.
 It was not far from o'clock when Napoleon decided that the time had come when he must let the allies see their mistake He had drawn off the glove from his white. feminine right hand, and now waving it toward Pratt zen, he gave the order to storm the nights Soult's fog-wrapped battalions burst out of the valley at the western foot of the hill and racing up the steep slope in. overwhelming numbers. spread panic among its Russian defenders, who had only just toiled up the opposite side. The Czar's green lines were quickly steadfed by endorsements. but Soult had 20 more batallions at his heels. and 1t was not long until the Russians were tumbled down the hill in -demoralfzed mob, abandoning their cannon where they were stalled in the mud of the thawInR earth.
 The French were masters of the nights of Pratzen. the Gibraltar of the field. Napoleon himself now moved nearer the disgarnished center of tho enemy. and