as celebrated in
honor of the Empress Marie Louise with almost unparalleled pomp and
brilliancy.

A few days after these rejoicings, their Majesties held in the Bois de
Boulogne a review of the regiments of the Imperial Guard of Holland,
which the Emperor had recently ordered to Paris. In honor of their
arrival his Majesty had placed here and there in the walks of the Bois
casks of wine with the heads knocked in, so that each soldier could drink
at will; but this imperial munificence had serious results which might
have become fatal. The Holland soldiery more accustomed to strong beer
than to wine, nevertheless found the latter much to their taste, and
imbibed it in such great quantities, that in consequence their heads were
turned to an alarming extent. They began at first with some encounters,
either among themselves or with the curious crowd who observed them too
closely. Just then a storm arose suddenly, and the promenaders of
Saint-Cloud and its environs hastened to return to Paris, passing
hurriedly through the Bois de Boulogne; and these Hollanders, now in an
almost complete state of intoxication, began fighting with each other in
the woods, stopping all the women who passed, and threatening very,
rudely the men by whom, most of them were accompanied. In a flash the
Bois resounded with cries of terror, shouts, oaths, and innumerable
combats. Some frightened persons ran as far as Saint-Cloud, where the
Emperor then was; and he was no sooner informed of this commotion, than
he ordered squad after squad of police to march on the Hollanders and
bring them to reason. His Majesty was very angry, and said, "Has any
one ever seen anything equal to these big heads? See them turned
topsy-turvy by two glasses of wine!" but in spite of this jesting, the
Emperor was not without some anxiety and placed himself at the grating
of the park, opposite the bridge, and in person gave directions to the
officers and soldiers sent to restore order. Unfortunately the darkness
was too far advanced for the soldiers to see in what direction to march;
and there is no knowing how it would have ended if an officer of one of
the patrol guards had not conceived the happy idea of calling out, "The
Emperor! there is the Emperor!" And the sentinels repeated after him,
"There is the Emperor," while charging the most mutinous Hollanders. And
such was the terror inspired in these soldiers by the simple name of his
Majesty, that thousands of armed men,