1829.] De Bourrienne’s Memoirs. , 505 
« Tn the month of April, 1792, I arrived at Paris, and renewed those habits 
of intimacy with Bonaparte which our boyish friendship and college studies 
had rendered dear to both of us. My circumstances were not at that time 
particularly fortunate ; the hand of adversity weighed heavily upon him too ; 
his resources were often totally exhausted. The reader may form to himself 
an idea how the time passed with two young men of 23 years of age, who were 
richer in leisure hours than in worldly wealth; and of the latter commodity 
Bonaparte had still less than myself. Each day gave birth to some new pro- 
ject, and found us busily engaged in endeavouring to seton foot some pro- 
fitable speculation. On one occasion, Bonaparte, in conjunction with myself, 
wished to hire some houses then being built in the Rue Montholon, for the pur- 
pose of sub-letting them. The demands of the proprietors we found most 
exorbitant ; we could therefore do nothing in that way. About the same time, 
he solicited a commission in the army, and I an appointment to a civil situa- 
tion in the foreign department. It will be seen, that for the moment I was 
more fortunate than he. It was before the 20th June that on the occasion of one 
of our frequent excursions to the environs of Paris we went to St. Cyr to see 
Bonaparte’s sister, Marianne (Eliza) who was a boarder in the establishment. 
“ Whilst we rambled away our time in this manner, arrived the never to be 
forgotten 20th of June—the sombre herald of the still more memorable 10th of 
August. Previously to setting out on our daily peregrinations, we had mutu- 
ally agreed upon a rendezvous at the house of a restaurateur in the Rue St. 
Honoré, near the Palais-Royal. On quitting the restawrateur’s we saw a mob 
approaching, apparently collected from the different markets, and amounting, 
as Bonaparte supposed, to about five or six thousand men, in rags, armed in 
a manner absolutely burlesque, shouting, vomiting forth oaths and insults, and 
directing their march with hasty strides towards the palace of the T'willeries. 
A more brutal, or more ferocious rabble could not possibly have been collected 
from the vilest population of the vilest faubourg of Paris. ‘ Let us follow this 
canaille, said Bonaparte. We fortunately obtained the advance of them, and 
took our station on the terrace that borders the river. From that spot Bona- 
parte had a full view of the scandalous scenes that took place. It were dif- 
ficult for me to portray the sentiments of surprise and indignation which they 
excited in his breast. He could scarcely recover from his astonishment, at 
so much patient, I had almost said, so much weak endurance and long suffer- 
ing. But when the king presented himself at one of the windows that look 
into the garden, with the red cap which one of the rabble, more audacious 
than the rest, had placed upon his majesty’s head, the indignation of Bonaparte 
mocked all restraint. ‘ Sacre Diew!’ cried he, aloud, ‘ how came they to let in 
these ruffians 2? It would have been much better to broom away four or five hun- 
dred of them with cannon, and the rest would at this moment be in full flight.’ 
© After the fatal 10th of August, Bonaparte departed for Corsica, whence 
he did not return till 1793. Walter Scott says upon this occasion, that subse- 
quently to the above period, he never went back to Corsica. We shall have 
Occasion to notice this mistake more fully in speaking of Bonaparte’s return 
from Egypt.” 
The following extract relates to Napoleon’s marriage with Josephine, 
in giving his opinion on which, M. de Bourrienne follows the prevailing 
supposition that the union in question appeared desirable to Bonaparte 
motives of ambition rather than of affection. 
At dinner one day, Napoleon directed my attention to a lady seated nearly 
site to him, and asked me what J thought of her. My reply seemed 
to afford him pleasure. He then spoke much of her family—of her personal 
qualities, adding that he had serious thoughts of offering her his hand, from a 
conviction that a union with the young widow could not fail to ensure his hap- 
piness. It was easy to gather from his conversation, that he thought the mar 
riage principally desirable as a means of seconding his ambitious projects, 
increasing intimacy with Madame Beauharnois, brought him into contact 
_M.M. New Serics.—Vou- VIL. No, 41. BT 
