ine and specious phrases which thenceforth were never wanting in his
utterances at revolutionary crises. "Law," he wrote about this time,
"is like those statues of some of the gods which are veiled under
certain circumstances." For a few weeks there was little or nothing to
do in the way of electioneering at home; he therefore obtained
permission to travel with the famous Volney, who desired a
philosopher's retreat from Paris storms and had been chosen director
of commerce and manufactures in the island. This journey was for a
candidate like Buonaparte invaluable as a means of observation and of
winning friends for his cause.

Before the close of this trip his furlough had expired, his regiment
had been put on a war footing, and orders had been issued for the
return of every officer to his post by Christmas day. But in the
execution of his fixed purpose the young Corsican patriot was heedless
of military obligations to France, and wilfully remained absent from
duty. Once more the spell of a wild, free life was upon him; he was
enlisted for the campaign, though without position or money to back
him. The essay on happiness which he had presented to the Academy of
Lyons had failed, as a matter of course, to win the prize, one of the
judges pronouncing it "too badly arranged, too uneven, too
disconnected, and too badly written to deserve attention." This
decision was a double blow, for it was announced about this time, at a
moment when fame and money would both have been most welcome. The
scanty income from the lands purchased with the legacy of the old
archdeacon remained the only resource of the family for the lavish
hospitality which, according to immemorial, semi-barbarous tradition,
was required of a Corsican candidate.

A peremptory order was now issued from Paris that those officers of
the line who had been serving in the National Guard with a grade lower
than that of lieutenant-colonel should return to regular service
before April first, 1792. Here was an implication which might be
turned to account. As a lieutenant on leave, Buonaparte should of
course have returned on December twenty-fifth; if, however, he were an
officer of volunteers he could plead the new order. Though as yet the
recruits had not come in, and no companies had been formed, the mere
idea was sufficient to suggest a means for saving appearances. An
appointment as adjutant-major was solicited from the major-general in
command of the department, a