s a
long, ridiculous harangue, which amused us much. When he had finished,
the Emperor said to him: "You were much astonished, then, at hearing
of our having landed?"--"Yes, faith:" answered the orator: "when I
knew you had landed, I said to every body, the man must be mad, he
will never be able to escape."--Napoleon could not help laughing at
this simplicity. "I know," said he, with a sarcastic smile, "that you
are all a little inclined to be frightened; you gave me a proof of
this last campaign; you should have behaved as the men of Chalons did;
you did not maintain the honour of the Burgundians."--"It was not our
fault, Sire," said one of the party: "we were badly commanded; you had
not given us a good mayor."--"That is very possible; we have all been
guilty of foolish actions, and they must be forgotten: the safety and
happiness of France are henceforward the only objects, to which we
ought to attend." He dismissed them in a friendly manner.

The prefect had taken flight. The Emperor asked me his name. It was
one Germain, whom he had made a count, and a gentleman of the
bedchamber, without well knowing why. "What!" said he to me, "does
that little Germain fancy it necessary to shun me? he must be brought
back:" and he thought no more of him.

He directed me, to cause an account of the events at Grenoble and
Lyons to be inserted in the newspaper of the department. The editor, a
furious royalist, had hidden himself. I entrusted to the new
subprefect the business of fulfilling the Emperor's orders; but,
whether it were carelessness or incapacity on his part, he had
recourse to the printer of the paper, who supplied him with an article
far from answering our views.

It began with a very just, but ill-timed eulogy of the goodness of
Louis XVIII.; and ended with declaring in substance, that so good a
king was not fitted to reign over the French, and that they required a
sovereign such as Napoleon, &c.

The Emperor, who would read every thing, asked me for the paper. I
pretended I could not lay my hand upon it: but, after a thousand
attempts to put him off from seeing it, I was at length obliged to
bring it him. I thought he would have given me a severe reprimand, but
he contented himself with saying: "Change that man, he is a fool; and
desire him for the future, never to attempt a eulogy of me." I sent
for him, scolded him, and, like me, he was let off for the fright.

It was at Macon, that we first received officia