y Corps and the Imperial Guard. But the
heroism of our troops was sublime. Every man knew that the safety
of France depended upon him, and was ready to sacrifice his life, if
need be, with a joyful enthusiasm. They not only resisted the enemy's
attack but took the offensive, and, in spite of their overpowering
numbers, gave them a tremendous punishment. They had to recoil
before our guns, which swept their ranks, and their columns were
broken and routed. Hundreds of them were bayoneted, and hundreds
more hurled into the river, while the whole front of battle was outlined
by the dead and dying men whom they had to abandon. Certainly
their losses were enormous, and when I fell the German retreat was
in full swing, and for the time being we could claim a real victory."
Nevertheless the inevitable happened. Owing to the vast reserves
the enemy brought up fresh divisions, and the French were
compelled to fall back upon Laon and La Fere.

On Tuesday the German skirmishers with light artillery were coming
southwards to Beauvais, and the sound of their field guns greeted my
ears in this town, which I shall always remember with unpleasant
recollections, in spite of its old-world beauty and the loveliness of the
scene in which it is set.

Beauvais lies directly between Amiens and Paris, and it seemed to
me that it was the right place to be in order to get into touch with the
French army barring the way to the capital. As a matter of fact it
seemed to be the wrong place from all points of view.

8

I might have suspected that something was wrong by the strange
look on the face of a friendly French peasant whom I met at Gournay.
He had described to me in a very vivid way the disposition of the
French troops on the neighbouring hills who had disappeared in the
undulation below the sky-line, but when I mentioned that I was on the
way to Beauvais he suddenly raised his head and looked at me in a
queer, startled way which puzzled me. I remember that look when I
began to approach the town. Down the road came small parties of
peasants with fear in their eyes. Some of them were in farm carts,
and they shouted to tired horses and put them to a stumbling gallop.
Women with blanched faces, carrying children in their arms, trudged
along the dusty highway, and it was clear that these people were
afraid of something behind them--something in the direction of
Beauvais. There were not many of them, and when they had passed
the countrysi