ar. I say no fear, for the nation was familiarised
with the idea of war. The patriotism and energy, with which it felt
itself animated, filled it with such confidence, that it deemed itself
sufficiently strong, to dispense with the support of the Neapolitans,
and struggle alone against the coalition. It recalled to mind the
campaign of 1814; and, if at that period Napoleon, with sixty thousand
soldiers, had beaten and held in check the victorious foreign armies,
what might it not hope now, when an army of three hundred thousand
fighting men would form, in case of need, only the advanced guard of
France? The royalists and their newspapers, by repeating the
manifestoes of Ghent and Vienna, enumerating the foreign armies, and
exaggerating our dangers, had indeed succeeded in abating the courage
of a few, and shaking their opinions; but the sentiments of the bulk
of the nation had lost nothing of their vigour and energy. Every day
fresh offerings[20] were deposited on the altar of their country; and
every day new corps of volunteers, equally numerous and formidable,
were establishing, under the names of lancers, partisans, federates,
mountain chasseurs, and tirailleurs.

[Footnote 20: The departments of the Centre, and of the
East, particularly distinguished themselves. A great
number of their inhabitants gave considerable sums, and
equipped at their own expense companies, battalions,
whole regiments, of partisans or national guards.

A single citizen of Paris, Mr. Delorme, proprietor of
the fine _passage_ of the same name, offered his country
a hundred thousand francs.

Another, one day when the national guard was reviewed,
caused a roll of paper, tied with a ribbon of the legion
of honour, to be delivered to the Emperor. On opening
it, it was found to contain twenty-five thousand francs,
in notes on the Bank, with these words: "for Napoleon,
for my country." The Emperor was desirous of knowing the
person, who had made this delicate and mysterious
offering; and at length discovered, that it was M.
Gevaudan, whose noble sentiments and patriotism had
already been proved by several actions of a similar
kind.]

The Parisians, so frequently peaceable spectators o