The life of Napoleon Buonaparte, emperor of the French. By Sir Walter Scott.

380 LIFE OF NAPOLEON BONAPARTE.
manifesting an amicable disposition on her part, by jects rather of negotiation than grounds of an absolute
recalling the order which blockaded the Prussian declaration of war, and that the fortress of Wesel,
ports, and annihilated her commerce. But the ca- and the three abbeys, were scarce of importance
binet of Berlin evinced, in the moment when about enough to plunge the whole empire into blood for
to commence hostilities, the same selfish insincerity the sake of them.
which had dictated all their previous conduct. Prussia, indeed, was less actually aggrieved than
Wthile sufficiently desirous of obtaining British she was mortified and offended. She saw she had
money to maintain the approaching war, they show- been outwitted by Bonaparte in the negotiation of
ed great reluctance to part with Hanover, an acqui- Vienna; that he was juggling with her in the matter
sition made in a manner so unworthy; and the of Hanover; that she was in danger of beholding
Prussian minister, Lucchesini, did not hesitate to Saxony and Hesse withdrawn fiom her protection,
tell the British ambassador, Lord Morpeth, that the to be placed under that of France; and under a ge-
fate of the electorate would depend upon the event neral sense of these injuries, though rather appreof arms. hended than really sustained, she hurried to the
Little good could be augured from the interposi- field. If negotiations could have been protracted
tion of a power, who, pretending to arm in behalf of till the advance of the Russian armies, it might have
the rights of nations, refused to part with an acquisi- given a different face to the war; but in the Nwarlike
tion which she herself had made, contrary to all the ardour which possessed the Prussi.ans, they were
rules of justice and good fisith. Still less was a desirous to secure the advantages which, in military
favourable event to be hoped for, when the manage- affairs, belong to the assailants, without weiglling
ment of' the war was intrusted to the same incapable the circumstances which, in their situation, rendered
or faithless ministers, who had allowed every op- such precipitation fatal.
portunity to escape of asserting the rights of Prussia, Besides, such advantages were not easily to be
when, perhaps, her assuming a firm attitude might obtained over Bonaparte, who was not a man to be
hlave prevented the necessity of war altogether. amused by words when the moment ofaction arrived.
But the resolution which had been delayed, when Four days before the delivery of the Prussian note
so many favourable occasions wvere suffered to es- to his minister, Bonaparte had left Paris, and was
cape unemployed, was at length adopted with an personally in the field collecting his own irlmmense
imprudent precipitation, which left Prussia neither forces, and urging the contribution of those contintime to adopt the wisest warlike measures, nor to gents which the Confederate Princes of the Rhine
look out for those statesmen and generals by whom were bound to supply. His answer to the hostile
such measures could have been most effectually note of the King of Prussia was addiessed, not to
executed.. that monarch, but to his own soldiers. "They have
About the middle of August, Prussia began to dared to demand," he said, "that we should retreat
arm. Perhaps there are few examples of a war de- at the first sight of their army. Fools! could they
clared with the almost unanimous consent of a great not reflect how impossible they found it to destroy
and warlike people, which was brought to an earlier Paris, a task incomparably more easy than to tarnish
and more unhappy termination. On the first of Oc- the honour of the Great Natioin. Let the Prussian
tober, Knobelsdorff, the Prussian envoy, was called army expect the same fate which they encountered
upon by Talleyrand to explain the cause of the mar- fourteen years ago, since experience has not taught
tial attitude assumed by his state. In reply, a them, that while it is easy to acquire additional
paper was delivered, containing three propositions, dominions and increase of power, by the friendslup
or rathler demands. First, That the French troops of France, her enmity; on the contrary, whicil will
which had entered the German territory should in- only be provoked by those who lare totally destitute
stantly re-cross the Rhine. Secondly, that France of sense and reason, is more terrible tiian tile ternshould desist fiorn presenting obstacles to the forma- pests of tihe ocean."
tion of a league in the northern part of Germany, to The King of Prussia hai again placed at the head
comprehend all the states, without exception, which of his armies the Duke of Brunswick. In his youth,
had not been included in the Confederation of the this general had gained renown urnder his uncle
Rhine. Thirdly, that negotiations should be irnme- Prince Ferdinand. But it had been lost in the rediately commenced, for the purpose of detaching treat from Champagne in 1792, where lhe had sufthe fortress of Wesel from the French em: ire, and fered himself to be out-manutlvred by Dumourier
for the restitution of three abbeys, which Murat had and his army of conscripts.? He was seventy-two
chosen to seize upon as a part of his Duchy of Berg. years old, and is said to have added the obstinacy of
With this manifesto was delivered a long explana- age to others of the infirmities which naturally attory letter, containing severe remarks on the system tend it. He was not communicative, nor accessible
of encroachment which France had acted upon. to any of the other generals, excepting Mollendorf;
Such a text and commentary, considering their pe- and this generated a disunion of councils in the
remptory tone; and the pride and power of him to Prussian camp, and the personal dislike of the army
whoirm they were addressed in such unqualified to him by whom it was commanded.
terms, must have been understood to amount to a The plan of the campaign, formed by this ill-fated
declaration of war. And yet, although Prussia, in prince, seems to have been singularly injudicious,
common with all Europe, had just reason to com- and the more so, as it is censurable on exactly the
plain of the encroachments of France, and her rapid same groundls as that of Austria in the late war.
strides to universal empire, it would appear that the
iwo first articles in the king's declaration, were sub- j See p. 90.