l be
accompanied by proofs of their genuineness, we do not believe a word of
the pretence of their authorship. It is a fact, however, not unworthy of
note, in a psychological point of view, that the earliest development of
Napoleon's ambition and powers, before a fit field of action had been
opened to them, was in a literary form. At the age of fifteen, when at
the royal school at Paris, he voluntarily prepared a memoir upon the
luxury and expense attending education at that place, in which he urged
the propriety of the students adopting hardy habits and a simple fare,
and themselves to such toils and exposure as they would encounter in
war. In 1787, at the age of eighteen, at Valence, he gained,
anonymously, a prize proposed to the Academy of Lyons by the Abbe
Raynal, on the question, "What are the principles and institutions best
adapted to advance mankind in happiness?" In this essay he defined
happiness as consisting in the "perfect enjoyment of life according to
the laws of our physical and moral organization:" and the forcible
views, well adapted to the temper of the times, and the vivid style of
writing, attracted much attention. When he was emperor, he was one day
conversing with Talleyrand about this essay, and the latter, a few days
after, took occasion to present it to him, having procured it from the
archives of the academy at Lyons. The emperor took it, and after reading
a few pages, threw it into the fire, saying, "One can never observe
every thing." Talleyrand had not taken the precaution to transcribe it;
but it has been said that Louis Bonaparte had had it copied, and that it
is now in print. About the same time he began a history of Corsica,
which he dedicated to the Abbe Raynal, by whom he had been noticed and
caressed. He corresponded with Paoli in relation to it, and was in
treaty with M. Joly, a bookseller of Dole, for its publication. Raynal,
who read the manuscript, advised its completion; but some change of
purpose prevented its being finished, and it is now lost. During his
residence at Auxonne, in 1790, Napoleon wrote and printed a letter to
Buttafoco, the Corsican deputy for the nobles in the National Assembly.
It is a brilliant and powerful piece of argument and invective, strongly
on the revolutionary side. It produced a marked impression, and was
adopted and reprinted by the patriotic society at Ajaccio. While at
Marseilles, in 1793, Napoleon wrote and published a political dialogue,
called