After listening to this proposal the Emperor was for some time silent and thoughtful; he then replied, “This is a lion’s counsel!  But what would Paris say? what would they do there? what have they been doing for the last three weeks that they have not heard from me? who knows what would be the effect of a suspension of communications for six months!  No; France would not accustom itself to my absence, and Prussia and Austria would take advantage of it.”

Still Napoleon did not decide either to stay or to depart.  Overcome in this struggle of obstinacy, he deferred from day to day the avowal of his defeat.  Amid the dreadful storm of men and elements which was gathering around him, his ministers and his aides-de-camp saw him pass whole days in discussing the merits of some new verses which he had received, or the regulations for the Comedie Francaise at Paris, which he took three evenings to finish.  As they were acquainted with his deep anxiety, they admired the strength of his genius, and the facility with which he could take off or fix the whole force of his attention on whatever he pleased.

It was merely remarked that he prolonged his meals, which had hitherto been so simple and so short.  He seemed desirous of stifling thought by repletion.  He would then pass whole hours, half reclined, as if torpid, and awaiting, with a novel in his hand, the catastrophe of his terrible history.  On beholding this obstinate and inflexible character struggling with impossibility, his officers would then observe to one another, that having arrived at the summit of his glory, he no doubt foresaw that from his first retrograde step would date its decline; that for this reason he continued immoveable, clinging to and lingering a few moments longer on this elevation.

Kutusoff, meanwhile, was gaining that time which we were losing.  His letters to Alexander described “his army as being in the midst of abundance; his recruits arriving from all quarters and being trained; his wounded recovering in the bosom of their families; the peasants, some in arms, some on the look out from the tops of steeples, while others were stealing into our habitations and even into the Kremlin.  Rostopchin received from them a daily report of what was passing at Moscow, as before its capture.  If they undertook to be our guides, it was for the purpose of delivering us into his hands.  His partizans were every day bringing in some hundreds of prisoners.  Every thing concurred to destroy the enemy’s army and to strengthen his own; to serve him and to betray us; in a word, the campaign, which was over for us, was but just about to begin for them.”

Kutusoff neglected no advantage.  He made his camp ring with the news of the victory of Salamanca.  “The French,” said he, “are expelled from Madrid.  The hand of the Most High presses heavily upon Napoleon.  Moscow will be his prison, his grave, and that of all his grand army.  We shall soon take France in Russia!” It was in such language that the Russian general addressed his troops and his Emperor; and nevertheless he still kept up appearances with Murat.  At once bold and crafty, he contrived slowly to prepare a sudden and impetuous warfare, and to cover his plans for our destruction with demonstrations of kindness and honeyed words.