nued his retrograde march night and day; and traversed
in silence the places, which his army had made ring with the shouts of
victory but a few days before. The mountaineers, who had suffered so
much from the exactions and ill treatment of the royal volunteers, now
repeated in their turn "Wo to the vanquished!" and did not allow a
moment's rest to the Duke of Angouleme and his followers. Pressed on
one side by the columns of Grouchy, on the other by the troops of
General Gilly; shut in, without hope of succour, between the Drome,
the Rhone, the Durance, and the mountains, the Duke of Angouleme had
only two resources: one was, to abandon his army, and get over the
mountains to Marseilles or Piedmont; the other, to submit, with his
companions in misfortune, to the law of the conqueror.

The Prince would not separate his fate from that of his army. He
consented to surrender. Baron de Damas and General Gilly regulated
the conditions of the capitulation. It was agreed, that the Prince
should disband his army, and have liberty to embark at Cette. As soon
as this intelligence was announced by a telegraphic despatch, it was
immediately made known to the Emperor by the Duke of Bassano, who
prevailed on him, though opposed by several distinguished persons, to
return an answer, by the same mode of conveyance, approving of the
capitulation. At the same instant a second despatch announced, that
General Grouchy refused to sign the treaty, unless he had the consent
of the Emperor, and the Duke of Angouleme was deemed a prisoner. Upon
this the Duke of Bassano hastened to transmit the first orders of
Napoleon, and delayed informing him of the impediment to the
ratification, till night rendered any new orders by telegraph
impracticable. Being made acquainted with this noble daring of his
minister, instead of reprimanding him, the Emperor dictated to him the
following letter:

"M. le Count Grouchy, the ordinance of the king, dated on the 6th of
March, and the declaration signed at Vienne on the 13th by his
ministers, would authorize me to treat the Duke of Angouleme, as that
ordinance, and that declaration, would have had me and my family
treated: but, persevering in that disposition, which induced me to
ordain, that the members of the Bourbon family might have free egress
from France, my intention is, that you give orders for the Duke of
Angouleme to be conducted to Cette, where he shall be embarked, and
that you watch over his safety,