CHAPTER XLIII. THE MARCH ON THE DANUBE.
There is a strange, unnatural kind of pleasure felt sometimes in thecontinued attacks of evil fortune: the dogged courage with which we bearup against the ills of fate, swimming more strongly as the waves growrougher, has its own meed of consolation. It is only at such a time,perhaps, that the really independent spirit of our natures is in theascendant, and that we can stand amid the storm, conscious of ourfirmness, and bid the winds "blow and crack their cheeks." Yet, throughhow many sorrows must one have waded, ere he reach this point! throughwhat trials must he have passed I how must hope have paled, andflickered, and died out I how must all self-love, all ambition, alldesire itself have withered within us, till we become like the mere rockamid the breakers, against which the waves beat in vain! When that hourcomes, the heart has grown cold and callous, the affections have driedup, and man looks no more upon his fellow-men as brothers.
Towards this sad condition I found myself rapidly verging; the isolationof my homeless, friendless state, the death of my hopes, the uncheeredpath in which I walked, all conspired to make me feel depressed, andI perceived that a half-recklessness was already stealing over me, andthat in my indifference as to fortune now lay my greatest consolation.There was a time when such a rencontre as lately befell me had made memiserable till the hour came when I should meet my adversary; now, myblood boiled with no indignant passion, no current of angry vengeancestirred through my veins, a stupid sullenness was over me, and I carednothing what might happen. And if this state became not permanent, I oweit to youth alone--the mainspring of many of our best endeavors.
We had travelled some seven or eight miles when we stopped for a fewseconds at the door of a cabaret, and then I discovered for the firsttime that my old friend Pioche was the corporal of our little party. Tomy slight reproach for his not having sooner made himself known tome, the honest fellow replied that he saw I was low in spirits aboutsomething, and did not wish to obtrude upon me.
"Not but, after all, mon lieutenant, the best way is always to 'facefront' against bad luck, and charge through; _sapermint_, that's the waywe did at Marengo, when Desaix's corps was cut off from the left--Butpardon, mon officier, I forgot you were not there."
There was something so pleasant in the gruff courtesy of the hardycuirassier, that I willingly led him on to speak of his formerlife,--a subject which, once entered on, he followed as fancy or memorysuggested.
"I used to feel low-spirited myself, once," said Pioche, as he smootheddown his great mustache with a complacent motion of his fingers--"I usedto be very low in heart when I entered the service first, and saw all myold school-fellows and companions winning their epaulettes and becomingcaptains and colonels,--ay, _parbleu_, and marshals, too,--while,because I could not read, I was to remain all my life in the ranks; asif one could not force a palisade nor break through a square till he hadstuffed his head with learning. All this made me very sad, and I wouldsit brooding over it for hours long. But at last I began to think myown lot was not the worst after all; my duty was easily done, and, whenover, I could sleep sound till the _reveil_ blew. I ran no danger of beingscolded by the Petit Caporal, because my division was not somewhereyesterday, nor in some other place to-day. He never came with a frown toask me why I had not captured another howitzer and taken more prisoners.No, faith! It was always,--'Well done, Pioche! bravely done, mon enfant!here's a piece of twenty francs to drink my health.' Or perhaps he'dmutter between his teeth, 'That honest fellow there would make a bettergeneral than one half of them.' Not that he was in earnest, you know;but still it was pleasant just to hear it."
"And yet, Pioche," said I, "it does surprise me why, seeing that thiswant of learning was the bar to your promotion, you did not--"
"And so I did, mon lieutenant; at least I tried to learn to read._Morbleu!_ it was a weary time for me. I'd rather be under arrest threedays a week, than be at it again. Mademoiselle Minette--she was thevivandiere of ours--undertook to teach me; and I used to go over to thecanteen every evening after drill. Many a sad heart had I over thesesame lessons. Saprelotte, I could learn the look of every man in abrigade before I could know the letters in the alphabet, they looked soconfoundedly alike when they stood up all in a line. The only fellowsI could distinguish were the big ones, that were probably the sergeantsand sous-officiers; and when my eye was fixed on one column, it wouldstray away to another; and then mademoiselle would laugh, and that wouldlead to something else. Et, _ma foi_, the spelling-book was soon thrownaside, and lessons given up for that evening."
"I suppose Mademoiselle Minette was pretty, Pioche?"
"Was I ay, and is, too. What! mon lieutenant, did you never see her onparade? She's the handsomest girl in the army, and rides so well,--millecannons! She might have been a great lady before this if she 'd haveleft the regiment; but no, she'd die first! Her father was tambour-majorwith us, and killed at Groningen when she was only an infant; and weused to carry her about in our arms on the march, and hand her fromone to another. I have seen her pass from the leading files to thebaggage-guard, on a long summer's day; that I have. Le Petit Caporalknows her well; she gave him a gourd full of eau-de-vie at Cairo whenhe was so faint he could scarcely speak. It was after that he saw her inthe breach at Acre; one of our fellows was lying wounded in the ruins,and mademoiselle waited till the storming party fell back, and then ranup to him with her flask in her hand. 'Whose pretty ankles are these? Ithink I ought to know them,' said an officer, as she passed along. 'Noflattery will do with me, Monsieur,' cried Minette; 'it's hard enoughto get one's living here, without giving Nantz brandy for nothing.'Saerigtif when the laugh made her turn about, she saw it was the PetitCaporal himself who spoke to her. Poor Minette! she blushed scarlet, andnearly dropped with shame; but that did not prevent her dashing up thebreach towards the wounded man; not that it was of any use, though,--hewas dead when she got up."
"I should like much to see mademoiselle. Is she still with the Fourth?"
"Yes, mon lieutenant; I parted with her a few hours ago."
A half suppressed sigh that followed these words showed that the worthycorporal was touched on the most tender key of his nature, and for sometime he lapsed into a silence I could not venture to break. At length,desiring to give the conversation a turn, I asked if he knew theCapitaine Pichot.
"Know him!" cried Pioche, almost bounding in his saddle as he spoke."That I do. _Peste!_ I have good reason to know him: see there." Withthat he lifted the curled mustache from his upper lip, and disclosedto my view a blue scar that marked one side of his mouth. "That was hisdoing."
"Indeed! How so, pray?"
"I 'll tell you. We were in garrison at Metz, where, as you know, thegreat commissariat station is held,--thousands of cannon and mortars,shells and shot, and tons of powder without end. Well, the orders werevery strict against smoking; any man found with a pipe in his mouth wassentenced to a week in the 'salle de police,' and I can't say what elsebesides. When we marched into the town, this order stared us in theface; a great placard, with big letters, which they who could read saidwas against smoking. Now, most of us came from Alsace, and it was prettymuch like setting a fish to live on dry land, bidding us go withouttobacco. As for me, I smoke just as I breathe, without knowing orthinking of it. My pipe lies in my mouth as naturally as my foot restsin the stirrup; and so, although I intended to obey the order, I knewwell the time might come when, just from not thinking, I should becaught smoking away; for if I were on guard over a magazine it would beall the same,--I could not help it. So I resolved, as the only way notto be caught tripping, to leave all my pipes in a secret place, tillthe time came for us to leave Metz,--an hour, I need not say, we allanxiously longed for. This I did," continued Pioche, "that same evening,and all went on favorably for some time, when one night, as I wasreturning to quarters, the devil, who meddles with everything in thisworld, made me stick my hands into the pocket of my undress jacket, andI there discovered a little bit of a pipe about the length of one jointof your t
humb,--a poor scrubby thing of clay, sure enough; but thereit was, and, worse still, ready filled with tobacco. Had it been a goodsized meerschaum, with a tassel and an amber mouthpiece, I had resistedlike a man; but the temptation came in so humble a shape, I thought Iwas only guilty of a small sin in transgressing, and so I lit my littlefriend, and went gayly along towards the barracks. Just as I passed thecorner of the market-place I heard a great noise of voices and laughingin the cafe, and recognized the tones of our major and some of theofficers, as they sat sipping their wine in the verandah. Before I couldraise my hand to my mouth, Capitaine Pichot cried out, 'Halte-la!--rightabout face!--attention!--left wheel!--eyes front!' This I did, as if onparade, and stood stock still; when suddenly crack went a noise, and apistol-bullet smashed the pipe in two, and grazed my lip, when a roar oflaughing followed, as he called out louder than before, 'Quick march!'and I stepped out to my quarters, never turning my head right or left,not knowing what other ball practice might be in store for me. _Tonnerrede Dieu!_ a little windage of the shot might have cost me every tooth Ihave in the world!"
"It was a cruel jest, Pioche, and you 're a good-humored fellow to takeit so easily."
"Not so. Lieutenant. I had no punishment afterwards, and was wellcontent to be quit for the fright."
With such stray memories of his campaigning days did Pioche beguile theway: now moralizing over the chances and changes of a soldier's fortune;now comforting himself with some pleasant reflection, that even in hisown humble walk he had assisted at some of the greatest triumphs of theFrench armies. Of the future he spoke with the easy confidence of onewho felt that in the Emperor's guidance there could be full trust,--bothof the cause being a just one, and the result victorious. A perfecttype of his class, his bravery was only to be equalled by the implicitconfidence he felt in his leader. That the troops of any country, nomatter how numerous and well equipped, could resist a French army wasa problem he could not even entertain. The thing was too absurd; and ifNapoleon did not at that moment wield undisputed sway over the whole ofEurope, it was simply owing to his excess of moderation, and the willingsacrifice of his ambition to his greater love of liberty.
I confess, if I were sometimes tempted to smile at the simplicity of thehonest soldier, I was more often carried away by his warm enthusiasm; sofrequently, too, did he interweave in his narrative the mention of thosegreat victories, whose fame was unquestionable, that in my assent tothe facts I went a great way in my concurrence with the inferences hededuced from them. And thus we travelled on for several days inadvance of the division, regulating the halting-places and the billets,according to the nature and facilities of the country. The towns andvillages in our "route" presented an aspect of the most profound peace;and however strange it seemed, yet each day attested how completelyignorant the people were of the advance of that mighty army that now, infour vast columns of march, was pouring its thousands into the heart ofGermany. The Princes of Baden and Darmstadt, through whose territorieswe passed, had not as yet given in their adherence to the Emperor; andthe inhabitants of those countries seemed perplexed and confused atthe intentions of their powerful neighbor, whose immense trains ofammunition and enormous parks of artillery filled every road and blockedup every village.
At length we reached Manheim, where a portion of the corps of MarechalDavoust were in waiting to join us: and there we first learned, by theimperial bulletin, the object of the war and the destination of thetroops. The document was written by Napoleon himself, and bore abundantevidence of his style. After the usual programme, attesting his sincerelove for peace, and his desire for the cultivation of those happy andindustrious habits which make nations more prosperous than glorious,it went on to speak of the great coalition between Russia and Austria,which, in union with the "_perfide_ Albion," had no other thought norwish than the abasement and dismemberment of France. "But, soldiers!"continued he, "your Emperor is in the midst of you. France itself in allits majesty, is at your back, and you are but the advanced guard of amighty people! There are fatigues and privations, battles, and forcedmarches, before you; but let them oppose to us every resistance they areable, we swear never to cry 'Halt!' till we have planted our eagles onthe territory of our enemies!"
We halted two days at Manheim to permit some regiments to come up, andthen marched forward to Nordlingen, which place the Emperor himself hadonly quitted the night before. Here the report reached us that asmart affair had taken place the previous morning between the Austriandivision and a portion of Ney's advanced guard, in which we hadrather the worst of it, and had lost some prisoners. The news excitedconsiderable discontent among the troops, and increased their impatienceto move forward to a very great degree. Meanwhile, the differentdivisions of the French army were converging towards Ulm, from thenorth, south, and west; and every hour brought them nearer to thatdevoted spot, which as yet, in the security of an enormous garrison,never dreamed of sudden attack.
The corps of Soult was now pushed forward to Augsburg, and, extended bya line of communication to Meiningen, the only channel of communicationwhich remained open to the enemy. The quartier-general of the Emperorwas established at Zummerhausen; Ney was at Guntzburg: Marmontthreatened in the west; and Bernadotte, arriving by forced marchesfrom Prussia, hovered in the north.--so that Ulm was invested in everydirection at one blow, and that in a space of time almost inconceivable.
While these immense combinations were being effected,--requiring asthey did an enormous extent of circumference to march over before thefortress could be thus enclosed, as it were, within our grasp,--ourastonishment increased daily that the Austrians delayed to give battle;but, as if terror-stricken, they waited on day after day while themeasures for their ruin were accomplishing. At length a desperate sortiewas made from the garrison; and a large body of troops, escaping by theleft bank of the Danube, directed their course towards Bohemia; whileanother corps, in the opposite direction, forced back Ney's advancedguard, and took the road towards Nordlingen. Having directed a strongdetachment in pursuit of this latter corps, which was commanded bythe Archduke Frederick himself, the Emperor closed in around Ulm, andforcing the passage of the river at Elchingen, prepared for the finalattack.
While these dispositions were being effected, the cavalry brigade, underGeneral d'Auvergne, consisting of three regiments of heavy dragoons, theFourth Cuirassiers, and Eighth Hussars, continued to descend the leftbank of the Danube in pursuit of a part of the Austrian garrison whichhad taken that line in retreat towards Vienna. We followed as faras Guntzburg without coming up with them; and there the news of thecapitulation of Meiningen, with its garrison of six thousand men, toMarechal Soult, reached us, along with an order to return to Ulm.
Up to this time all I had seen of war was forced marches, bivouacshastily broken up, hurried movements in advance and retreat, the fatigueof night parties, and a continual alert. At first the hourly expectationof coming in sight of the enemy kept up our spirits; but when day afterday passed, and the same pursuit followed, where the pursued neverappeared, the younger soldiers grumbled loudly at fatigues undertakenwithout object, and, as it seemed to them, by mistake.
On the night of the 17th of October we bivouacked within a league ofUlm. Scarcely were the pickets formed for the night, when orders camefor the whole brigade to assemble under arms at daybreak. A thousandrumors were abroad as to the meaning of the order, but none came nearthe true solution; indeed, the difficulty was increased by the addedcommand, that the regiments should appear _en grande tenue_, or in fulldress.
I saw that my old commander made a point of keeping me in suspense as tothe morrow, and affected as much as possible an air of indifference onthe subject. He had himself arrived late from Ulm, where he had seenthe Emperor; and amused me by mentioning the surprise of an Austrianaide-de-camp, who, sent to deliver a letter, found his Majesty sittingwith his boots off, and stretched before a bivouac fire. "Yes," saidNapoleon, divining at once his astonishment, "it is even so. Your masterwished to remind me of my old trade, and I
hope that the imperial purplehas not made me forget its lessons."
By daybreak the next morning our brigade was in the saddle, and inmotion towards the quartier-general,--a gently rising ground, surmountedby a farmhouse, where the Emperor had fixed his quarters. As we mountedthe hill we came in sight of the whole army drawn up in battle array.They stood in columns of divisions, with artillery and cavalry betweenthem, the bands of the various regiments in front. The day was abrilliant one, and heightened the effect of the scene. Beyond us layUlm,--silent as if untenanted: not a sentinel appeared on the walls; thevery flag had disappeared from the battlements. Our surprise was greatat this; but how was it increased as the rumor fled from mouth tomouth,--"Ulm has capitulated; thirty-five thousand men have becomeprisoners of war!"
Ere the first moments of wonder had ceased, the staff of the Emperor wasseen passing along the line, and finally taking up its station on thehill, while the regimental bands burst forth into one crash the mostspirit-stirring and exciting. The proud notes swelled and filled theair, as the sun, bursting forth with increased brilliancy, tipped everyhelmet and banner, and displayed the mighty hosts in all the splendorof their pageantry. Beneath the hill stretched a vast plain in thedirection of Neuburg; and here we at first supposed it was the Emperor'sintention to review the troops. But a very different scene was destinedto pass on that spot.
Suddenly a single gun boom, out; and as the lazy smoke moved heavilyalong the earth, the gates of Ulm opened, and the head of an Austriancolumn appeared. Not with beat of drum or colors flying did theyadvance; but slow in step, with arms reversed, and their heads downcast,they marched on towards the mound. Defiling beneath this, they movedinto the plain, and, corps by corps, piled their arms and resumedtheir "route," the white line serpentining along the vast plain, andstretching away into the dim distance. Never was a sight so sad asthis! All that war can present of suffering and bloodshed, all that thebattlefield can show of dead and dying, were nothing to the miserableabasement of those thousands, who from daybreak till noon poured ontheir unceasing tide!
On the hill beside the Emperor stood several officers in white uniform,whose sad faces and suffering looks attested the misery of their hearts."Better a thousand deaths than such humiliation!" was the muttered cryof every man about me; while in very sorrow at such a scene, the tearscoursed down the hardy cheeks of many a bronzed soldier, and some turnedaway their heads, unable to behold the spectacle.
Seventy pieces of cannon, with a long train of ammunition wagons, andfour thousand cavalry horses, brought up the rear of this melancholyprocession,--the spoils of the capitulation of Ulm. Truly, if that daywere, as the imperial bulletin announced it, "one of the most gloriousfor France," it was also the darkest in the history of Austria,--whenthirty-two regiments of infantry and fifteen of cavalry, with artilleryand siege defences of every kind, laid down their arms and surrenderedthemselves prisoners.
Thus in fifteen days from the passing of the Rhine was the campaignbegun and ended, and the Austrian Empire prostrate at the feet ofNapoleon.