nd now that war had been
declared, every desire was gratified.

Thus vanished all those grand projects of descent upon England, which had
been so long matured, so wisely planned. There is no doubt now that with
favorable weather and perseverance the enterprise would have been crowned
with the greatest success; but this was not to be.

A few regiments remained at Boulogne; and while their brethren crushed
the Austrians, they erected upon the seashore a column destined to recall
for all time the memory of Napoleon and his immortal army.

Immediately after the proclamation of which I have just spoken, his
Majesty gave orders that all should prepare for immediate departure; and
the grand marshal of the palace was charged to audit and pay all the
expenses which the Emperor had made, or which he had ordered to be made,
during his several visits, not without cautioning him, according to
custom, to be careful not to pay for too much of anything, nor too high a
price. I believe that I have already stated that the Emperor was
extremely economical in everything which concerned him personally, and
that he was afraid of spending twenty francs unless for some directly
useful purpose. Among many other accounts to be audited, the grand
marshal of the palace received that of Sordi, engineer of military roads,
whom he had ordered to decorate his Majesty's barrack, both inside and
out. The account amounted to fifty thousand francs. The grand marshal
exclaimed aloud at this frightful sum. He was not willing to approve the
account of Sordi, and sent it back to him, saying that he could not
authorize the payment without first receiving the orders of the Emperor.
The engineer assured the grand marshal that he had overcharged nothing,
and that he had closely followed his instructions, and added, that being
the case, it was impossible for him to make the slightest reduction. The
next day Sordi received instructions to attend his Majesty. The Emperor
was in his barrack, which was the subject under discussion, and spread
out before him was, not the account of the engineer, but a map, upon
which he was tracing the intended march of his army. Sordi came, and was
admitted by General Caffarelli. The half-open door permitted the
general, as well as myself, to hear the conversation which followed.
"Monsieur," said his Majesty, "you have spent far too much money in
decorating this miserable barrack. Yes; certainly far too much. Fifty
thousand francs!