[198] "In this vast wreck, the army, like a great ship tossed by the most tremendous of tempests, threw, without hesitation, into that sea of ice and snow, all that could slacken or impede its progress."—Ségur, tom. ii., p. 159.
[199] Jomini, tom. iv., p. 173; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 150; Twenty-eighth Bulletin.
[200] Labaume, p. 287; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 160.
[201] "I delivered the despatches to the Emperor. He opened the packet with haste: a Moniteur was uppermost. He ran it over; the first article which caught his eye was the enterprise of Mallet: 'What is this! what! plots! conspiracies!' He tore open his letters: they contained the detail of the attempt: he was thunderstruck."—Rapp, p. 232.—"As soon as he was alone with the most devoted of his officers, all his emotions burst forth at once in exclamations of astonishment, humiliation, and anger. Presently after he sent for several others, to observe the effect which so extraordinary a piece of intelligence would produce upon them. He perceived a painful uneasiness, consternation, and confidence in the stability of his government completely shaken."—Ségur, tom. ii., p. 161.
[202] Jomini, tom. iv., p. 186; Rapp, p. 239; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 165.
[203] Jomini, tom. iv., p. 193; Twenty-eighth Bulletin of the Grand Army; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 181-202.
[204] "Napoleon arrived at Smolensk on the 9th of November, amidst this scene of desolation. He shut himself up in one of the houses in the New Square, and never quitted it till the 14th, to continue his retreat."—Ségur, tom. ii., p. 178.
[205] Ségur, tom. ii., p. 220.
[206] Colonel Boutourlin praises the address of Koutousoff, who, he says, managed with such skill as always to present a superior force to that which the French had upon the field of battle, although his army was on the whole inferior to that of Napoleon. Without admitting the exactness of the last statement, which there is considerable cause to dispute, little merit can be assumed for the Russian general's dexterity in obtaining a numerical superiority at Wiazma, Krasnoi, and elsewhere, when it is considered that Napoleon himself had divided his army into four columns, and placed one day's march betwixt each. The Russians had, therefore, only one column of ten or twelve thousand men to deal with at once.—S.
[207] "He called Mortier, and squeezing his hand sorrowfully, told him, that he had not a moment to lose; that the enemy were overwhelming him in all directions; that Koutousoff might have already reached Liady, perhaps Orcsa, and the last winding of the Boristhenes before him; that he would, therefore, proceed thither rapidly with his old guard, in order to occupy the passage. Then, with his heart full of Ney's misfortunes, and despair at being forced to abandon him, he withdrew slowly towards Liady."—Ségur, tom. ii., p. 227.