PARIS. 
5G6 
round, from motives of curiofity, to view the palling fcene. 
The marines occupied the front of the poop, and the of¬ 
ficers kept the quarter-deck. An univerfal filence pre¬ 
vailed when the barge reached the fide ; and there was a 
grave but anxious afpedl in all the fpe&ators, which was 
no fmall addition to the folemnity of the ceremonial. 
Count Bertrand afcended firft ; and, having bowed, re¬ 
tired a few fteps to give place to him whom he ftill con- 
fidered as his mafter, and in whofe prefence he appeared 
to feel that his molt refpedtful homage was ftill due. The 
whole lhip’s company feemed at this moment to be in 
breathlefs expectation. Lord Keith was the laft who 
quitted the barge ; and we cannot give a more complete 
idea of the wrapt attention of all on-board to the figure 
of Napoleon, than that his lordlhip, high as he is in na¬ 
val character, admiral alfo of the channel-fleet, and ar¬ 
rayed in the full uniform of his rank, and with the deco¬ 
rations of his order, did not feem to be noticed, nor 
fcarcely even to be feen, among the groupe which was 
fuhjeCt to him. 
With a flow ftep Bonaparte mounted the gangway; 
and, on feeling himfelf firm on the quarter-deck, he 
railed his hat, when the guard prefented arms, and the 
drum rolled. The officers of the Northumberland, who 
were uncovered, flood confiderably in advance. Thofe 
he approached, and faluted with an air of the moll affa¬ 
ble politenefs. He then addreffed himfelf to fir George 
Cockburn, and faid “ Jc fuis a vos ordres .” After taking 
leave of the officers who had accompanied him from the 
Bellerophon, and embracing the nephew of Jofephine, 
who was not going to St. Helena, he went into the after¬ 
cabin, where, befides his principal companions, were affem- 
bled lord Keith, fir George Cockburn, lord Lowther, Mr. 
Lyttleton, &c. 
In the afternoon lord Keith took leave of Bonaparte, 
and returned on-board the Tonnant. Lord Lowther and 
Mr. Lyttleton then entered into very earned converfation 
with him, which continued for two hours. As he was very 
communicative, and feemed defirous of a free converfa¬ 
tion with thefe two young gentlemen, they availed them- 
felves of the opportunity, and entered into a review of 
much of his conduCt. To all their queftions he gave full 
anfwers, not avoiding, but rather encouraging, difcuffion. 
A long account of this converfation was prefently given 
in the London papers, the greater part of which was foon 
after contradicted in the Worcefter Herald ; fo our fafeft 
way is to fay nothing about it. In all probability, no¬ 
thing veryimportant was extracted from Bonaparte by thefe 
young men. They, however, returned alhore highly 
gratified at having had two hours’ converfation with fo 
great a perfonage. 
The ftate-cabin for the fallen hero, on-board the Nor¬ 
thumberland, was fitted up with great elegance; his bed 
was peculiarly handfome, and the linen upon it very fine ; 
the toilet is of filver. Among other articles upon it is 
a magnificent lnuff-box, upon which is embofled, in gold, 
an eagle, with a crown, flying from Elba to the coaft of 
France; the eagle juft feeing the coaft of France, and the 
refpeftive diftances, are admirably executed. The valets- 
de-chambre were particularly fine men; they, and all 
about him, always addreffed him by the title of Emperor ; 
one of them was formerly a fervant of the duke of York, 
and perhaps fixed there as a fpy. 
After waiting for the Weymouth ftore-ffiip, and fome 
other veffels deftined to compofe the little fquadron, the 
whole finally failed on the nth of Auguft, bearing Caefar 
and his fortunes to a different fphere from that to which 
he had hitherto been accuftomed. 
The conduCt and converfations of this extraordinary 
perfonage and his fuite, during the voyage and firft 
months of his refidence at that ifland, have been very 
fully related by_ Mr. Warden, furgeon of the Northum¬ 
berland, in a feries of Letters written by him to a friend 
in England, and publiffied in the following year, 1816. 
Thefe Letters were read with great avidity in London, 
becaufe, being the refult of perfonal interviews with the 
ex-emperor, and familiar converfations with his fuite, it 
was concluded that they muft contain correct accounts of 
various important particulars which had been hitherto 
imperfectly underftood, or mifreprefented. But thefe 
converfations have now become lets interefting, and the 
public admiration has paffed away. The Quarterly Re¬ 
view for OCt. 1816. expofed fome inconfiftencies in the 
work, and fhould be read in conjunction with it. Mr. 
Warden confeffes, that “ a certain delicacy was main¬ 
tained” in communicating to Napoleon the contents of 
our public journals; in ihort, that they told him lies. 
And the following paffage is ftill more plaiiuto thepurpofe : 
“ That truth is not to be fpoken, or >n any way imparted, 
at all times, is a proverb which was now faithfully adhered 
to on-board the Northumberland.” In the commu¬ 
nications, therefore of thefe perfons, and of Napoleon 
himfelf, to Mr. Warden, it is obvious to remark, that, 
inftead of a correct account of certain particulars, thefe 
perfons would only give to them that colouring which belt 
fuited their own purpofe; for few will give credit to their 
conftant and repeated declarations, “ that Napoleon’s 
political life was terminated.” That had been the de¬ 
claration after the firft abdication. We do not believe 
that even now they think it terminated. With thefe cau¬ 
tions as to the perufal of Mr. Warden’s Letters, we ftill 
think they contain much interefting matter; and Ihall 
therefore make a few extracts ; but they will not relate, 
we believe, to any controverted points. 
“ Bonaparte, previous to his leaving the Bellerophon, 
was, it feems, recommended to feleCt three of his fuite 
to accompany him to St. Helena. Bertrand was, at that 
time, fuppoled to be particularly profcribed; but it is 
underftood, that lord Keith took upon himfelf the refpon- 
fibility of including fuch an attached friend in the number 
of the exiled general’s attendants. The others were the 
count de las Cafes, who had been a captain in the French 
navy, and is a man of literary attainments ; general count 
Montholon, and lieutenant-general Gourgaud, his two 
aides-de-camp, who were devoted to his fortunes. The 
latter officers ferved him in the Ruffian campaign, and 
defcribe the winter which they encountered there in all 
its horrors. The Ruffian cavalry they extol; but repre- 
fent the Coflacks as ealily difperfed. They do not appear 
to hold the Pruffians in very high eftimation; but confider 
them,, at the fame time, as luperior to the Auftrians. 
The Engliffi infantry, at the battle of Waterloo, filled 
them with abfolute aftoniffiment; but they reprefent our 
cavalry as much too impetuous; they probably found 
them fo on that glorious day. In a converfation with 
Count Bertrand, which happened to glance on that fub- 
je£t, he could not hide his fenfations. The little he faid 
was in a plaintive tone, though exprefled with candour, 
and accompanied with expreffive Ihrugs of lamentation. 
We fought that day, he faid, for the crown of France j 
but you gained the battle, and we are undone. 
“ From the information I received in my converfation 
with our French guefts, it appears, that the emperor’s 
abdication, in favour of his fon, is a matter which, as 
far at lead as my knowledge extends, has been altogether 
mifconceived in England; I mean as to the immediate 
and proximate caufes of it. If the communications made 
to me were correCt, (and I am not willing to imagine that 
they were invented merely to impofe upon me,) a grand 
political fcheme was contrived by Fouche to out-wit his 
mafter, and it proved fuccefsful. The name of that crafty 
politician and ready revolutionift is never mentioned by 
the members of our little cabin Utica without the accom¬ 
paniment of execrations, which it is not neceflary for you 
to hear, as it would be ridiculous for me to repeat. (See p. 
534, 550.) Not Talleyrand himfelf is fo loaded with them 
as the arch-betrayer who has been juft mentioned. It was, 
indeed, a decided opinion of the moment, among our 
exiles, that Fouche would contrive to hang Talleyrand, 
or that the latter would provide an equal fate for the 
.formers 
