18 CARNOT. 
the ancient interests, if they have only this same anti- 
quity to invoke in their favour, become excited, résist, 
and struggle, and society is shaken to its foundations. 
The tableau will be complete, Gentlemen, when I add 
that, in these obstinate conflicts, it is never the principles 
that succumb. 
Carnot, as I have already remarked, had but lightly 
touched on the technical part of Vauban’s works, in his 
éloge ; yet, in the few sentences which he wrote on this 
subject, he took occasion to say that “a certain vulgar, 
ignorant, person” took an erroneous view of fortification 
in reducing it to the art of tracing on paper lines sub- 
jected to certain, more or less, systematic conditions. 
These words, in their general sense, seemed as if they 
might have passed unnoticed; but an unfortunate con- 
currence of circumstances gave to them an importance 
which was not foreseen, and still less desired by their 
author. In 1783, a general of infantry, member of this 
Academy, M. le Marquis de Montalembert, published, 
under the title of Perpendicular Fortification, an entirely 
new system of defence of fortresses. This system was 
outrageously opposed by almost the whole corps of mili- 
tary engineers. The scion of an illustrious family, the 
general officer of the French army, the academician, 
might assuredly, without too much vanity, believe him- 
self not included in the tgnorant vulgar that the author 
of the eulogy had lightly designated; but M. de Mont- 
alembert was determined to apply these expressions to 
himself, and to revenge himself he published an edition 
of Vauban’s éloge accompanied by notes, in which offence 
and gross affront were carried to the utmost. ‘There was 
enough in this pamphlet to upset the mind of a young 
man a thousand times; nevertheless, under these diffi- 
oe da 
biel tel 9 
