equiousness to him at Tilsit and at Erfurt
confirmed the French emperor in that fallacious opinion.

He remained till the 29th of May at Dresden, proud of the homage which
he knew how to appreciate, exhibiting to Europe princes and kings,
sprung from the most ancient families of Germany, forming a numerous
court round a prince deriving all distinction from himself. He appeared
to take a pleasure in multiplying the chances of the great game of
fortune, as if to encircle with them, and render less extraordinary,
that which placed him on the throne, and thus to accustom others as well
as himself to them.

CHAP. II.

At length, impatient to conquer the Russians, and escape from the homage
of the Germans, Napoleon quitted Dresden. He only remained at Posen long
enough to satisfy the Poles. He neglected Warsaw, whither the war did
not imperiously call him, and where he would have again been involved in
politics. He stopped at Thorn, in order to inspect his fortifications,
his magazines, and his troops. There the complaints of the Poles, whom
our allies pillaged without mercy, and insulted, reached him. Napoleon
addressed severe reproaches, and even threats, to the King of
Westphalia: but it is well known that these were thrown away; that their
effect was lost in the midst of too rapid a movement; that, besides, his
fits of anger, like all other fits, were followed by exhaustion; that
then, with the return of his natural good humour, he regretted, and
frequently tried, to soften the pain he had occasioned; that, finally,
he might reproach himself as the cause of the disorders which provoked
him; for, from the Oder to the Vistula, and even to the Niemen, if
provisions were abundant and properly stationed, the less portable
foraging supplies were deficient. Our cavalry were already forced to cut
the green rye, and to strip the houses of their thatch, in order to feed
their horses. It is true, that all did not stop at that; but when one
disorder is authorized, how can others be forbidden?

The evil augmented on the other side of the Niemen. The emperor had
calculated upon a multitude of light cars and heavy waggons, each
destined to carry several thousand pounds weight, through a sandy
region, which carts, with no greater weight than some quintals, with
difficulty traversed. These conveyances were organized in battalions and
squadrons. Each battalion of light cars, called _comtoises_, consisted
of six hundred, and mig