ore words about it, partly because we do not
consider the circumstances are explained simply by attaching blame to
Buonaparte, partly because it might appear as if this, and with it a
great number of similar cases, belonged to that class which we have
designated as so extremely rare, cases in which the general relations
seize and fetter the General at the very beginning of the battle. French
authors in particular, and great admirers of Buonaparte (Vaudancourt,
Chambray, Se'gur), have blamed him decidedly because he did not drive
the Russian Army completely off the field, and use his last reserves to
scatter it, because then what was only a lost battle would have been
a complete rout. We should be obliged to diverge too far to describe
circumstantially the mutual situation of the two Armies; but this much
is evident, that when Buonaparte passed the Niemen with his Army the
same corps which afterwards fought at Borodino numbered 300,000 men, of
whom now only 120,000 remained, he might therefore well be apprehensive
that he would not have enough left to march upon Moscow, the point on
which everything seemed to depend. The victory which he had just
gained gave him nearly a certainty of taking that capital, for that the
Russians would be in a condition to fight a second battle within eight
days seemed in the highest degree improbable; and in Moscow he hoped to
find peace. No doubt the complete dispersion of the Russian Army
would have made this peace much more certain; but still the first
consideration was to get to Moscow, that is, to get there with a force
with which he should appear dictator over the capital, and through that
over the Empire and the Government. The force which he brought with him
to Moscow was no longer sufficient for that, as shown in the sequel, but
it would have been still less so if, in scattering the Russian Army, he
had scattered his own at the same time. Buonaparte was thoroughly alive
to all this, and in our eyes he stands completely justified. But on that
account this case is still not to be reckoned amongst those in which,
through the general relations, the General is interdicted from following
up his victory, for there never was in his case any question of mere
pursuit. The victory was decided at four o'clock in the afternoon, but
the Russians still occupied the greater part of the field of battle;
they were not yet disposed to give up the ground, and if the attack
had been renewed, they would s