enters Malo-Yaroslawetz. The Russians, in mass occupied this hollow way:
Delzons and his Frenchmen rushed upon them head foremost; the Russians
were broken and overthrown; they gave way and presently our bayonets
glistened on the heights.

Delzons, conceiving himself sure of the victory, announced it as won. He
had nothing but a pile of buildings to storm, his soldiers hesitated. He
himself advanced and was encouraging them by his words, gestures and
example, when a ball struck him on the forehead, and extended him on the
ground. His brother threw himself upon him, covered him with his body,
clasped him in his arms, and would have borne him off out of the fire
and the fray, but a second ball hit him also, and both expired together.

This loss left a great void, which required to be filled up. Guilleminot
succeeded Delzons, and the first thing he did was to throw a hundred
grenadiers into a church and church-yard, in the walls of which they
made loop-holes. This church stood on the left of the high road, which
it commanded, and to this edifice we owed the victory. Five times on
that day was this post passed by the Russian columns, which were
pursuing ours, and five times did its fire, seasonably poured upon their
flank and rear, harass them and slacken their progress: afterwards when
we resumed the offensive, this position placed them between two fires
and ensured the success of our attacks.

Scarcely had that general made this disposition when he was assailed by
hosts of Russians; he was driven back towards the bridge, where the
viceroy had stationed himself, in order to judge how to act and prepare
his reserves. At first the reinforcements which he sent came up but
slowly one after another; and as is almost always the case, each of
them, being inadequate to any great effort, was successively destroyed
without result.

At length the whole of the 14th division was engaged: the combat was
then carried, for the third time, to the heights. But when the French
had passed the houses, when they had removed from the central point from
which they set out; when they had reached the plain, where they were
exposed, and where the circle expanded; they could advance no farther:
overwhelmed by the fire of a whole army they were daunted and shaken:
fresh Russians incessantly came up; our thinned ranks gave way and were
broken; the obstacles of the ground increased their confusion: they
again descended precipitately and abandoned eve