tain ruin. Egypt was, he thought, the right place to maintain his reputation, and to add fresh glory to his name. On the 12th of April, 1798, he was appointed General-in-chief of the Army of the East.

Having rifled to such purpose the cabinets and galleries of the Italian princes, he was resolved not to lose the opportunity of appropriating some of the rich antiquarian treasures of Egypt; nor was it likely that he should undervalue the opportunities which his expedition might afford, of extending the boundaries of science, by a careful observation of natural phenomena. He drew together therefore a body of eminent artists and connoisseurs, under the direction of Monge, who had managed his Italian collections: it was perhaps the first time that a troop of Savans (there were 100 of them) formed part of the staff of an invading army.

The English government, meanwhile, although they had no suspicion of the real destination of the arma ment, had not failed to observe what was passing in Toulon. They probably believed that the ships there assembled were meant to take part in the great scheme of the invasion of England. However this might have been, they had sent a considerable reinforcement to Nelson, who then commanded on the Mediterranean station; and he, at the moment when Bonaparte reached Toulon, was cruising within sight of the port. Napoleon well knew that to embark in the presence of Nelson would be to rush into the jaws of ruin; and waited until some accident should relieve him from this terrible watcher. On the evening of the 19th of May fortune favoured him. A violent gale drove the English off the coast, and disabled some ships so much that Nelson was obliged to go into the harbours of Sardinia, to have them repaired. The French general instantly commanded the embarkation of all his troops; and as the last of them got on board, the sun rose on the mighty armament; it was one of those dazzling suns which the soldiery delighted afterwards to call 'the suns of Napoleon.'

CHAP. VII.

The Expedition to Egypt-Arrival at Malta-the Fleet escapes Nelson-Alexandria taken-the Battle of the Pyramids-Cairo surrenders-the French Fleet destroyed at Aboukir.

We left Paris on the 3d of May, 1798. Ten days before the departure of General Bonaparte for the conquest of Egypt and Syria, a prisoner, Sir Sidney Smith, escaped from the Temple, who was destined to contribute most materially to the failure of an expedition which had been conceived with the greatest boldness. This escape was pregnant with future events; a forged order of the Minister of Police prevented the revolution of the East. We arrived at Toulon on the 8th. Bonaparte knew by the movements of the English that not a moment was to be lost; contrary winds delayed us ten days, which he employed in the examination of the most minute details of the expedition.

The squadron sailed on the 19th of May. Seldom have the shores of the Mediterranean witnessed a nobler spectacle. The unclouded sun rose on a semicircle of vessels, extending in all to not less than six leagues: consisting of thirteen ships of the line, fourteen frigates, and 400 transports, under the command of Admiral Brueys. They carried 40,000 picked soldiers, and these were commanded by officers, whose names were only inferior to that of the general-in-chief: of the men as well as of their leaders the far greater part were already accustomed to follow Napoleon, and to consider his presence as the pledge of victory.

We arrived off Malta on the 10th of June. It was not taken by force of arms, but by a previous arrangement with the imbecile knights. Bonaparte has stated himself, that he took Malta when he was at Mantua. No one acquainted with Malta could imagine that an island surrounded with such formidable and perfect fortifications, would have surrendered in two days to a fleet which was pursued by an enemy. General Caffarelli observed to the general-in-chief, that it is lucky there is some one in the town to open the gates for us.'

After having provided for the government and defence of the island, with his usual activity and foresight, we

left it on the 19th of June. Many of the knights followed us, and took military and civil appointments.

During the night of the 22d of June, the English squadron was almost close upon us. It passed within six leagues of the French fleet. Nelson, who learned at Messina of the capture of Malta, on the day we left the island, sailed direct for Alexandria, which he rightly considered as the point of our destination. By making all sail, and taking the shortest course, he arrived be fore Alexandria on the 28th; but on not meeting with the French fleet he immediately put to sea.

On the morning of the 1st of July, the expedition arrived off the coast of Africa, and the column of Severus pointed out to us the city of Alexandria. Bonaparte determined on an immediate landing. This the admiral opposed on account of the state of the weather, and recommended a delay of a few hours. he observed, that Nelson could not return for several days; but the general-in-chief sternly refused, and said, 'There is no time to be lost; fortune gives me three days; if I do not make the most of them, we are lost.' The admiral then gave the signal for a general landing, which, on account of the surge, was not effected without much difficulty and danger, and the loss of many by drowning.

It was on the 2d of July, at one o'clock in the morning, that we landed on the soil of Egypt, at Marabou, about three leagues from Alexandria. At three o'clock the same morning, the general-in-chief marched on Alexandria, with the divisions of Kleber, Bon, and Morand. The Bedouin Arabs, who hovered about our right flank and rear, carried off the stragglers. Having arrived within gun-shot of the city, the walls were scaled, and French valour soon triumphed over all obstacles.

The first blood I had seen shed in this war was that of General Kleber; he was struck on the head by a ball, not in scaling the wall, but in directing the attack. He came to Pompey's pillar, where the general-in-chief and many members of the staff were assembled. It was on this occasion that I first spoke to him, and from that day our friendship commenced.

The capture of Alexandria was only the work of a few hours. It was not given up to pillage, as has been asserted, and often repeated.

Bonaparte employed the six days he remained in

Alexandria in establishing order in the eity and the province, with that activity and talent which I could never sufficiently admire; and in preparing for the march of the army across the province of Bohahireh. During his stay he issued a proclamation, which contained this passage:

'People of Egypt! You will be told that I am come tc destroy your religion-do not believe it. Be assured that I come to restore your rights, to punish the usurpers, and that I respect, more than the Mamelukes, God, his Prophet, and the Alcoran. Tell them that all men are equal in the eye of God: wisdom, talents, and virtue make the only difference.'

He sent Desaix,* with 4,500 infantry and sixty cavalry: to Beda, on the road to Damanhour. This general was the first to experience the privations and sufferings of the campaign, which the whole army had soon to endure. His noble character, and his attachment to Bonaparte seemed about to give way to the obstacles which surrounded him. On the 15th of July he wrote from Boha. hireh, I beseech you, do not allow us to remain in this position; the soldiers are discouraged and murmur. Order us to advance or fall back; the villages are mere huts, and absolutely without resources.'

In these immense plains, burned up by a vertical sun, water, every where so common, becomes an object of contest. The wells and springs, those secret treasures of the desert, are carefully concealed from the traveller; and frequently, after our most oppressive marches, nothing was found to allay the thirst but disgusting vools of brackish water.

On the 7th of July, Bonaparte left Alexandria for Damanhour, and during the march was incessantly harassed by the Arabs: they had filled up or poisoned the cisterns and springs, which already were so rare in the desert. The soldiers, who on this first march began to suffer from an intolerable thirst, felt but little relief from the brackish and unwholesome water which they

General Desaix, whom Bonaparte had made the confidant of all his plans, at their interview in Italy, after the preliminaries of Leoben, wrote to him from Affenbourg, on his return to Germany, that he re-. garded the fleet of Corfu with great interest. If ever,' said he, "it should be engaged in the grand enterprises of which I have heard you speak, do not, I beseech you, forget me.' Bonaparte was far from forgetting him.

met with. The miseries of this progress were extreme. The air is crowded with pestiferous insects; the glare of the sand weakens most men's eyes, and blinds many; water is scarce and bad: and the country had been swept clear of man, beast, and vegetable. Under this torture even the gallant spirits of such men as Murat and Lannes could not sustain themselves :-they trod their cockades in the sand. The common soldiers asked, with angry murmurs, if it was here the general designed to give them their seven acres which he had promised them? He alone was superior to all these evils. Such was the happy temperament of his frame.

On reaching Damanhour, our head-quarters were established at the residence of the Sheik. The house had been recently white-washed, and looked very well outside; but the interior was in a state of ruin not to be described. Bonaparte knew the owner to be rich, and, having inspired him with confidence, he inquired, through the medium of an interpreter, how, having the means, he deprived himself of every comfort, assuring him, at the same time, that any avowals he might make should not be wrested to his prejudice. Look at my feet,' said he; it is now some years since I repaired my house, and purchased a little furniture. It became known at Cairo; a demand for money followed, because my expenses proved that I was rich. I refused; they then punished me, and obliged me to pay. Since that time, I have allowed myself only the necessaries of life, and I repair nothing.' The old man was lame in consequence of the infliction he had suffered. Woe to him, who in this country is supposed to be rich; the outward appearance of poverty is the only security against the rapacity of power, and the cupidity of barbarism.

One day a small troop of mounted Arabs assailed our head-quarters; Bonaparte, who was at the window, indignant at this audacity, said to young Croisier, an aid-decamp in attendance, Croisier, take some guides, and drive these fellows away.' In an instant Croisier appeared upon the plain, with fifteen guides. The parties skirmished; we saw the combat from the window; there was an appearance of hesitation in the attack, which surprised the general. He called from the window, as if they could have heard him. Forward! I say why don't you charge?' Our horsemen seemed to fall back