ls in command have never been
equalled in ability, so that it was no mean foe which lay with its
menacing eyes fixed upon the distant cliffs of England. If Pitt had not
been able to place the first navy in the world between the two shores
the history of Europe might be very different to-day.

Lieutenant Gerard, seeing the interest with which I gazed at the
manoeuvring troops, was good enough to satisfy my curiosity about such
of them as approached the road along which we were journeying.

'Those fellows on the black horses with the great blue rugs upon their
croups are the Cuirassiers,' said he. 'They are so heavy that they
cannot raise more than a trot, so when they charge we manage that there
shall be a brigade of chasseurs or hussars behind them to follow up the
advantage.'

'Who is the civilian who is inspecting them?' I asked.

'That is not a civilian, but it is General St. Cyr, who is one of those
whom they called the Spartans of the Rhine. They were of opinion that
simplicity of life and of dress were part of a good soldier, and so they
would wear no uniform beyond a simple blue riding coat, such as you see.
St. Cyr is an excellent officer, but he is not popular, for he seldom
speaks to anyone, and he sometimes shuts himself up for days on end in
his tent, where he plays upon his violin. I think myself that a soldier
is none the worse because he enjoys a glass of good wine, or has a smart
jacket and a few Brandenburgs across his chest. For my part I do both,
and yet those who know me would tell you that it has not harmed my
soldiering. You see this infantry upon the left?'

'The men with the yellow facings?'

'Precisely. Those are Oudinot's famous grenadiers. And the other
grenadiers, with the red shoulder-knots and the fur hats strapped above
their knapsacks, are the Imperial Guard, the successors of the old
Consular Guard who won Marengo for us. Eighteen hundred of them got the
cross of honour after the battle. There is the 57th of the line, which
has been named "The Terrible," and there is the 7th Light Infantry, who
come from the Pyrenees, and who are well known to be the best marchers
and the greatest rascals in the army. The light cavalry in green are
the Horse Chasseurs of the Guard, sometimes called the Guides, who are
said to be the Emperor's favourite troops, although he makes a great
mistake if he prefers them to the Hussars of Bercheny. The other
cavalry with the green pelisses are a