the Austrians, Napoleon left Troyes to the
Marshals Victor and Oudinot, and flew
straight at Blucher.

The blow was indeed needed; for
Blucher, believing the French to be entangled
and held in check by Schwartzenberg, had
hurried on, driven Macdonald from
Château Thierry-on-the-Marne, and advanced
to Vertus; while Sacken, with his vanguard,
pushed on light troops to Ferté la Jouarre,
and was now nearer Paris than Napoleon
was; while General d' York had advanced
as far as Meaux, only twenty-eight miles
from Paris.

By marches across almost impracticable
winter roads, Napoleon resolved to leave
the Troyes for the Chalons road, and drop
like a thunderbolt on the Silesian army. The
mayor of Barbonne collected five hundred
horses to drag the guns over the marshes,
drains, and ditches. By this daring march,
on the 18th of February Bonaparte came
suddenly on the unsuspecting Silesian
army. Sacken was in front, the Russians,
under Alsusieff, in the centre, and Blucher
in the rear. The three divisions were
straggling and far apart. Between these
loosened vertebra this terrible surgeon at
once applied the knife. He fell headlong on
the astonished Alsusieff's corps at Champ
Aubert, surrounded, defeated, and routed
them, taking their artillery and two thousand
men prisoners, while the frightened
residue fled to the woods. Sacken was
soon back to help his friends, but on the
12th of February he was overwhelmed by
the French; and having lost five thousand
men (one- fourth of his division), retreated
to Château Thierry, where General d'York
and Prince William of Prussia joined him,
and secured his retreat by destroying the
bridge over the Marne. The fugitives left
by Sacken being murdered by the
peasantry, the Allies, in revenge, burnt
Château Thierry.

Blucher, returning to attack he scarcely
knew whom, found himself suddenly in a
wide, unenclosed country, face to face with
his dreadful enemy, now flushed with
victory. To retreat was more dangerous than
to advance. The old hussar was always
prompt. He had only three regiments
of cavalry, so he threw his infantry into
squares, and, protected by artillery, he
then commenced his retreat by alternate
divisions, the fire of the stationary squares
protecting those moving to the rear, they
themselves being covered as soon as they
receded. The French cavalry, though
enveloping these stubborn Germans, could
not break a single square. After several
leagues of this work, the Prussians
suddenly found the road barred by a vast
column of French horse, which had made
a circuit to intercept them. Blucher only
broke through them by a murderous fire
of infantry and artillery. The village of
Etoges, also, had in the same way to be
forced by hard fighting. Nevertheless,
Blucher escaped.

While the Parisians were still shouting
over the display of Prussian banners and
prisoners, the news came that Cossacks and
Tartars had appeared at Nangis (seventy
odd miles from the capital), and also
even at Fontainebleau (thirty-seven miles
from Paris), while the Allies had carried,
at the point of the bayonet, Nogent and
Montereau, and had advanced their
headquarters to Pont-sur-Seine, Schwartzenberg
had also pushed forward from three directions
on Paris, and sent forces from his right
to Provins, to threaten Napoleon's rear.
This drew the emperor off Blucher, and
compelled him to countermarch on Meaux. At
Guignes he was joined by Oudinot and
Victor, who were retreating before Schwartzenberg,
and also by twenty thousand tried
veterans from Spain. Napoleon now turned
on Schwartzenberg, and on the 17th of
February took Nangis, and nearly destroyed
Count Pahlen's corps at Mormant, forcing
the Prince Royal of Wurtemburg to retreat
to Montereau (forty- nine miles from Paris).
The Allies again began to waver, and talked
of a peace to be signed at Chatillon. But
Napoleon made no reply. He recovered the
bridge of Montereau after a desperate attack,
and, from, the heights of Surville, himself
directed the cannon of the Guard on the
dense masses of the enemy crowding over
before the French cuirassiers. The soldiers
were alarmed when they saw Napoleon's
battery under fire. " Go, my children,"
he said; " the ball is not cast that is to
kill me." It was all the Allies could do to
escape to Sens by blowing up the bridge
over the Yonne. Napoleon was vexed at
the loss he had sustained in this storm.
He accused Montbrun of want of energy,
Dejean of giving the artillery insufficient
ammunition. On Victor, however, the Duke
of Belluno, his chief displeasure fell, and he
gave Victor's corps d'armée to Girard.

"Your health is broken," he said;
"infirm and wounded, you need repose. Let
the best and softest bed be sought out for
the once indefatigable Victor."

The marshal replied: " I have not
forgotten my original trade. I will take a
musket; yes, Victor will become a private
in the Guard."