Year: 1877

The Directory was established. It
had now to renew its champion. Barras


having become chief of the Directors,
resigned his military appointment, the
command of the Army of the Interior,
as it was called; and procured it for his
recent coadjutOr. But such post,
which must either keep him out of
actual warfare. or cOnfine his energies
TO civil contests, if any more should
arise, was far from satisfying the am
bitiOn of BOnaparte. Ii was equally
far from meeting the requirements of
the State. The Republic was AT war on
all sides: in Germany, in Spain and in


Italy. In the other quarters il had not
been successful; but in the North of
Italy, series of disasters had befallen
its arms, and the feeling of dissatisfac-
tion with its general, SchereI, was uni
rersal. A change was evidently re-
quired there; and Bonaparte, who was
perhaps alone in his perception how


grand a field for exertion aud distinc-
tion was open in that country, conceiv-
ed an earnest desire to obtain the COM
mand, for which the experience of the
state and character of the adjacent dis
tricts, which he had acquired while
serving in the Alps, was some recon-
incubation. And while his mind was
full of this hope, chance threw him in
the way of lady who had great infiu-
ence with Barras. Among the victims
of The Terror had been II General


Beauharnais. lie had left widow and
two children; and while Bonaparte was
General of the Army of the Interior,
his son, fine boy of twelve years old,
came to him one day TO beg that his
fathers sword might be returned to
him. Bonaparte complied with the re-
quest, the very character OF which COM
mended it to his favor, and spoke to the
child with such encouraging kindness
that his mother visited him a few days
afterward to thank him for his notice of
her boy. Madame Beauharnais was
handsome and pre-eminently graceful
and attractive. She had shared her
husbands prison, but had been released
at the fall of Robespierre, since which
event she had been on terms of the clos
est intimacy with BarraS. Her graces
now made a very deepimpression on the
young general, whose previous circum-
stances had not thrown him much into
the society of ladies of high breeding.
After short acquaintance he sought
her in marriage. She hesitated. Some
of those who envied him have fixed ON
him the nickname of General Vende-
miaire; as if the only triumphs which
he was qualified to gain were over citi-
zen soldiers. And there were not
wanting friends of her own to ridicule
his somewhat wild appearance; his
meagre face, and long hair hanging
down over his shoulders; and. what
was a greater objection still, his evident
poverty. But she, too, was ambitious;
he had an enthusiastic way of talking
which persuaded her that he was capa-
BILE of great deeds; and BarraS promised
her that, if she would consent To marry
him, ne would procure for him as her
husband the command of the army of
Italy. His argument prevailed; the
lady consented: the Director kept his
promise; the marriage took place on
March 10, 1896, and two days afterwarl,
the young commander in chief quilted
his brides arms to commence cam
paign which was TO lead to the attain
rnent of loftier destiny than either of
them had as yet ventnred to expect.