shall know my
decision." It was this decision which the Marshals went to wait for at
Ney's.

Most of the members of the Provisional Government attributed the evasive
reply of the Emperor Alexander to the influence of the speech of
Dessolles. For my part, while I do justice to the manner in which he
declared himself on this important occasion, I do not ascribe to his
eloquence the power of fixing Alexander's resolution, for I well know by
experience how easy it is to make princes appear to adopt the advice of
any one when the counsel given is precisely that which they wish to
follow. From the sentiments of Alexander at this time I had not the
slightest doubt as to the course he would finally pursue, and I
considered what he said about consulting the King of Prussia to be merely
a polite excuse, by which he avoided the disagreeable task of giving the
Marshals a direct refusal.

I therefore returned home quite satisfied as to the result of the Emperor
Alexander's visit to the King of Prussia. I knew, from the persons about
the Czar, that he cherished a hatred, which was but too well justified,
towards Bonaparte. Frederick William is of too firm a character to have
yielded to any of the considerations which might on this subject have
been pressed on him as they had been on the Emperor of Russia. But,
besides that the King of Prussia had legitimate reasons for disliking
Napoleon, policy would at that time have required that he should appear
to be his enemy, for to do so was to render himself popular with his
subjects. But the King of Prussia did not need to act under the dictates
of policy; he followed his own opinion in rejecting the propositions of
the Marshals, which he did without hesitation, and with much energy.

While the Marshals had gone to Paris Bonaparte was anxious to ascertain
whether his Commissioners had passed the advanced posts of the foreign
armies, and in case of resistance he determined to march on Paris, for he
could not believe that he had lost every chance. He sent an aide de camp
to desire Marmont to come immediately to Fontainebleau: such was
Napoleon's impatience that instead of waiting for the return of his aide
de camp he sent off a second and then a third officer on the same errand.
This rapid succession of envoys from the Emperor alarmed the general who
commanded the different divisions of Marmont's corps at Essonne. They
feared that the Emperor was aware of the Convention concluded that
mor