The corps of general Dwernicki was at Pulawy. The plan of operations which had been assigned to him, and which, indeed, he had already put in execution, was to transfer the seat of hostilities to the right bank of the Vistula, to hang over and harass the left wing of the enemy, to relieve the palatinate of Lublin from his presence, and, in case of danger, to fall back to the fortress of Zamosc, and from that point to act on the neighboring region, according as circumstances might indicate.
Colonel Valentin was in the environs of Pultusk, with his small corps of partizans. In concert with the garrison of Modlin, he was to act on the right wing of the enemy, and hold in check all his manœuvres upon Plock. This concave line of operations, of which the extremities were at Zamosc and Modlin, and the centre at Warsaw and Praga, was strengthened by the Vistula, which, although frozen, would not allow of a passage by the enemy in large bodies, or of the construction of a bridge, as the ice of the river was momentarily expected to break up.
The position of the Russian army was as follows. The right wing was at Nowy-dwor, opposite to Modlin. At Jablonna, which is situated half way from Praga to Nowy-dwor, was placed a strong detachment. At Praga were two divisions, one of infantry, and the other of cavalry, with twelve pieces of cannon, under the command of general Giesmar. The greater body of the Russian forces was between Wawr and Milosna; and with them was the head-quarters of Diebitsch and Constantine. Their left wing occupied Karczew, and their patrols extended themselves along the right bank of the river, as far as Macieowice.
FOOTNOTES:
[40] This regulation led to an occasion for the exhibition of the firmness of general Skrzynecki's character. On the very day of the issuing of the order, the general of division, Szembek, brought in a report, in which he presented for decorations the names of several officers. General Skrzynecki refused his application. General Szembek, thinking himself injured by this refusal, addressed a letter to the general in chief, renewing his application, and adding that if it should not be granted, he would feel obliged to surrender his commission. General Skrzynecki, far from being moved from the resolution which he had adopted, again promptly refused the request. Szembek surrendered his commission. The whole nation regretted the loss of the valuable services of this officer, and under such circumstances. But in regretting their loss they applauded the firmness of general Skrzynecki. The latter indeed felt this regret strongly, but on the other hand he was satisfied that he had done his duty. The opinion of most of the patriots was decidedly expressed against general Szembek, who, upon such a point of personal feeling, could forget his duties to his country, and abandon the ranks of his fellow-soldiers, by whom he was held in high estimation. Szembek indeed more than once reproached himself for the sacrifice which he had thus made. The following anecdote will show the degree to which general Skrzynecki was beloved by the army, and the influence which his appointment to the chief command had on the minds of the soldiers. A soldier named Golembiewski, of the 7th regiment of infantry, who had been wounded in the battle of Boimie, had, on the 1st day of March, left the hospital convalescent, although his wounds were not entirely healed. Skrzynecki, while inspecting the regiment, noticed him with his head still bandaged, and said to him, 'My dear comrade, why have you left the hospital in such a state? You had better return immediately.' The soldier answered, 'General, I have heard of your courage and your achievements, and how much you are beloved by the nation, and I could not refuse myself the satisfaction of being present at the first fire under your command, and in which I hope that the Polish army will be victorious.' Skrzynecki, embracing him, exclaimed, 'With such soldiers to command, I need have no fear that I shall fail to support the honor of my country.'
[41] The Polish women, wishing to share the dangers and sufferings, and to witness the triumphs of their brethren, proposed to follow the example of the daughters of Sparta, and to form three companies under the command of several ladies of the most distinguished families. They proposed to march upon the rear of the army, and when an action occurred, they were to advance to the aid of their countrymen. The first company, to be composed of the young and active, were to receive and carry off the wounded from the field of battle, thus at the same time animating the soldiers by their presence. The second company was to be placed near the vehicles in which the wounded were transported, there to receive and place them, and to dress their wounds. The third was to take charge of the provisions, the preparation of lint and bandages, and even of the washing of the clothing of the soldiers. These patriotic propositions, however, neither the nation nor the general in chief were willing to accept, considering that the fatigues of a campaign would be too trying to the female constitution. But to satisfy in some degree the noble impulses of these ladies, the three companies were distributed among the hospitals, to take care of the sick and wounded there.
[42] To satisfy the reader that marshal Diebitsch had began to be conscious of his weakness, the following trifling circumstances will suffice. On the first day of March, two of our soldiers who had been made prisoners by the Russians, returned to Warsaw, and presented themselves to the general in chief. One of them, who was a Galician volunteer, on the question being asked in what way they escaped, answered, that general Diebitsch himself dismissed them with a present of four ducats each, enjoining them to make it known in the army, and to say that each soldier who should go over to the Russians, would receive a like sum, and in addition to it a portion of land sufficient for his maintenance; and that moreover they should not be forced to enter the service of the army. He also assured them that if they should return with many of their comrades, to accept these terms, they should be made officers. 'Dear general,' the Galician added, 'we have sought your presence, in order to apprize you of these circumstances, and to place you upon your guard. The money which we have received, we request you to take as a contribution to the service of our country. We have no need of it; your care will provide for our wants, and our desires are limited to the satisfaction of fighting for the cause of our beloved country.' These brave soldiers were hailed with enthusiastic expressions of respect and affection by their comrades, and the circumstance was published in an order of the day, to the whole army. This adoption of such a system of intrigue and espionage indicated sufficiently the sense of weakness which marshal Diebitsch began to feel, in the situation in which he was then placed.
One of our generals published in the Gazette some remarks upon this conduct of general Diebitsch, from which the following is a passage. 'Marshal! such conduct is reproachful to you; and by it, you have strengthened the current suspicions of the world, that the passage of the Balkan, which has given you such a name in history, was made upon a bridge of gold. But if such measures might have been successful in Turkey, they will not do in Poland. If you do not by this time know it, I can assure you that every Pole is willing to sacrifice his all in the cause of his country, and your offers can therefore avail little. I repeat to you, that the words of our motto are, "to die or conquer." Come then, Marshal, with the sabre, and not with ducats, to the contest!'
[43] Extract from the proclamation of Yermolow. 'Brave sons of Russia! An old man of seventy, who, the contemporary of four reigns, knows well his nation and its sovereigns, lifts his voice towards you, with a heart devoted to the good of his country. He wishes, in the decline of a life which has been agitated by the storms of despotism, to infuse into your hearts the sentiments of liberty, and to die a freeman. Our complaints have been uttered in vain: our blood has been shed in vain. Are these complaints the only arms worthy of the Russian people? No! It is with the sword in hand, in the capital itself, on the field of battle, in the north and in the south, that you should claim your national liberty. The idols of despotism will fall before you. The books of the divine law will be opened. The Czars will become the fathers of their people: we shall be no longer orphans and strangers upon our native soil. As the French and English have done, and even as the Greeks, our brethren in Jesus Christ, have done, we will swear to conquer our liberty, and that achievement will immortalize us. Nations less celebrated, and less populous than ours, surrounded by monarchs who have combined to destroy them, have arisen. Their brave men have joined together. They hasten, at the call of their country, to defend their national liberty, by their arms and their acts of valor. The hour is come. God, who holds in his hands the fate of kings and people, will bless us. Russians! break the chains of despotism! You have sworn fidelity to the Czar, but he also has sworn to be our father. He has perjured himself, and we are therefore released from our oaths. Respect nevertheless the person of the Czar, for he is the anointed of the Lord, and our sovereign. Limit yourselves to a change of the form of the government, and demand a constitution. Rise up, and the throne will tremble. But if the despot should attempt to arrest your enterprize by the aid of the accomplices upon whom he lavishes all his favors, forgetting that he is our monarch, and not theirs, and that he is the father of the great family of Russians; it is then that it will be seen that the autocracy must cease to exist, that the Russians long for liberty, that they can and will be free.