yful voice, "war has
commenced; the Austrians have crossed the Inn and invaded the states of
my ally the King of Bavaria. The decisive moment is at hand. I shall set
out this very night. To-day is the 12th of April; on the 17th I shall be
at Donauwoerth and put myself at the head of my army. Now let us go to
work and make our dispositions.--What is the matter now?"

The door opened again, and the court-marshal appeared on the threshold
to announce dinner.

Napoleon cast a hasty glance at the clock. "Indeed, it is six o'clock!"
he exclaimed. "But I cannot go yet. Have every thing kept in readiness.
Tell the empress I wish she would wait for me in the dining-room. I will
soon be with her. Send for the Prince de Benevento and the Duke
d'Otranto. I want to see them immediately. Now come, Champagny," he
said, when the court-marshal had withdrawn; "let us go to work. We have
a great many things to attend to, and there is but little time left,
for, as I told you before, I will set out this very night."

Fifteen minutes afterward Talleyrand and Fouche entered the cabinet
agreeably to the emperor's orders. They found him amid his maps, on
which he marched the various armies by means of the colored pins which
Champagny handed to him.

"Gentlemen," exclaimed Napoleon, saluting the newcomers, "the Austrians
have commenced war; come hither and see!"

In the mean time the empress, according to the wishes of her consort,
had repaired with her ladies of honor to the dining-room, and waited for
the arrival of Napoleon. The dishes had already been served up; for,
owing to the hasty manner in which the emperor liked to dine, the
various courses could not successively be brought from the kitchen, but
had to be placed on the table before dinner commenced. A number of
silver warming-vessels, filled with hot water, always stood on the
imperial table. Only the roast chicken, which every day made the last
course, and was one of the emperor's favorite dishes, had remained in
the kitchen; it was still turning on the spit, and waiting for the
moment when it was to be carried up. But this moment was delayed an
unusually long time to-day. The first chicken had long ago been replaced
by a second, a third, and a fourth, and this one had been roasting so
much that it was tough and juiceless. It had not yet been called for.
The waiters returned from time to time into the kitchen for boiling
water, to fill anew the silver vessels on which the dishes