The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-03-25
CENTENARY OF GREAT WEEK THE DOWNFALL OF NAPOLEON

OF NAPULtt1EN. H
 To-day is the. centenary of the first day of what has since been called the Great Week.'' It began with the advance of the army of the allies on Paris. while Napoleon, no longer Flu ropes mighty monarch. but branded start and bandit. stood at bay against the world. It ended, that memorable week. on the last day Of March. when fhe allies made their triumphal en- try into Paris.
 When the armed host of the al- lies set out for Paris on March 2 5, 1914, all negotiations for peace had been broken off, and the enemies of Napoleon had announced that they would no longer treat with him as an Emperor, but would pursue him as an outlaw. a malefactor, disturb CT of the worlds peace. an upstart pretender to that divinity which doth hedge king For the proud and l inperious man whose will had so lately been law for all Europe. the I-Great week was one of bitterness. The worst was yet to corne-the ban
 
 -but that first taste of the dregs of l degradation must have been the bit terest. Then he realized that he was no longer the colossal war god, in the; guise of an undersized human, who. shook Europe with his tread The halo of superstitious awe vanished, and he stood forth mere human Ecreature who by the force of gf1is. gen. Illus had clothed himself with the man l tie Of divinity, now to be stripped from him Society had at last turn ed against him, and sent it's ernissar- ies with blazing brands to drive him from his 1asterefuge.
 When the allies began their march on Parts. one of Napoleon's generals I approached him and said: Your Majesty has no doubt sother resour- ces that we do not know of ?'' Napoleon replied with sweep of his hand to where his shattered army was vainly resisting the enemy,s ad- vance; Nothing more than is before I yofr eyes.
 Earlier in the month. at Chau- I mont, Lord Caatlereagfss treaty of alliapce had bound together the four great powers of Austria, Russia, Prussia and England in a war to the I death against Napoleon. The latter WAS given q fortnight the proposal lcalIing for reduction of the empire to the original limits Of France. Tn case Of refusal. he was to be deemed an outlaw. and the nations banded themselves together to hunt him
 
 financed by England, and eachl coun try promised to keep 15o, ,ooo men in the field The commissioners mani fested their contempt for the "olt- law by making the sealing of the 1 compact the incident of a game of chess.
 Inevitably the conflict was to be fought out on the chess boardkof war -aI Napoleon the naughty could not ac- lcept such terms as were offered. and he rejected the proposal of the allies with scorn and contumely On the twenty-f1fth of March the stage was ], all set for the last act and the dra. nnatic spectacle called the .'Grea1 :. Week, was commenced.
 Shortly before noon On the first da. ,, oI I1e adVances JuSC B. century Sdgx -I to-day, the allies came up with ths columns of Mortier and Marnont and swept them into, the discard 5 Pacthod's national guardsmen wer, 2 s1ashed to pieces. The Cossack made a dash for Napoleon's head 5 quarters. and came so close that thu Emperor's horse WAS shot under him His Polish lancers saved Napoleon from capture. At Grand-Farcy tn, brilliant Ney fought in vain to sta, the enemy. Equally futile wa Friant's sacrifice of the Imperia
 guards. Napoleon tried to take tn
 enemyson the rear He was outwit ted. and before he realized that h had been dupede and that the force : around him were only detached caval iI ry, the main body of the allies wa two marches ahead of hin-on tn 2 way to Paris.