Everybody rushed for the emperor's carriage, and naturally I was one of the foremost.
He was seated at the back, on the right, dressed in a green uniform with white facings, and he wore the star of the Legion of Honour.
His face was pale and sickly-looking, as though his head had been clumsily carved out of a block of ivory, and it was bent slightly forward on his chest; his brother Jérôme was seated on his left; and the aide-de-camp, Letort, was opposite Jérôme, on the front seat.
He lifted his head, looked round him, and asked:
"Where are we?"
"At Villers-Cotterets, sire," someone replied.
"Six leagues from Soissons, then," he answered.
"Yes, sire, six leagues from Soissons."
"Hurry up."