Page:Notes and Queries - Series 10 - Volume 10.djvu/85

 10 s. x. JULY 25,

NOTES AND QUERIES.

65

which Bonaparte had so forcibly reprobated and ridiculed. " A Frenchman," the Em- peror exclaimed, " would never submit to the discipline of the Spanish doctor" ; but he no longer argued against it. On meeting Mr. Warden he would apply his fingers to the bend of the opposite arm, and ask : " Well, how many have you bled to-day ? " Nor did he fail to exclaim, when any of his own people were indisposed, " O, bleed him, bleed him ! To the powerful lancet with him, that's the infallible remedy."

On the Sabbath day, after the performance of divine service, some conversation on the subject of the Emperor's religious faith had taken place with him and some of the principal persons of his suite. It was, how- ever, not deemed necessary to communicate anything further than that his opinions were generally of the most liberal and tolerant character. He wished it to be stated

" that his profession of the faith of Mahomet and avowed devotion to the Crescent in Egypt was a mere act of policy, to serve the purpose of the moment. This fact appeared to be asserted with particular energy, from the knowledge possessed by the party communicating it of the abhorrence which Bonaparte's having declared himself a Mussulman excited in England."

It was on a Sunday at the Admiral's table that Bonaparte catechized the chaplain in a curious and unexpected manner. [ give some of the Emperor's questions. It is not necessary to quote the answers given by the chaplain, who was well qualified to reply to questions respecting the faith of a far more profound nature.

" How many sacraments does the Church of England acknowledge ? "

" Does the Church of England consider marriage as a sacrament ? "

" What are the tenets of the Church of England?"

" How often is the sacrament of the Lord's Supper administered ? "

" Do all communicants drink out of the same cup ? "

common bread ? "
 * Is the bread made use of in the sacrament

" Supposing that wine could not be procured, would any other liquid be allowed as its sub- stitute?"

" Do the bishops frequently preach ? " ' Do they wear the mitre ? "

" Have not the bishops a seat in the House of Peers ? "

There are many more questions of a similar import, but these are sufficient to show the nature of Bonaparte's inquiries.

On another occasion the author gives a further description of the ^ex-Emperor :

J< He has an uncommon face : large, full, and pale, but not sickly. In conversation the muscles suffer little or no exertion ; with the exception of those in the immediate vicinity of the mouth, the whole seems fixed anft the forehead perfectly

smooth However earnestly Napoleon may be m

conversation, he discovers no distortion of features-

He sometimes smiles, but I believe he never

laughs The interesting children on board, who-

amuse everybody, do not attract his attention.

" Once indeed, when Bertrand was in conver- sation with his master, the Count's little girl intruded upon it with a story which all her father prohibitions could not silence. On this occasion Napoleon took her by the hand, heard out her little tale, and at the conclusion kissed her. But this- very uncommon attention was probably paid to the child as the only mode of getting rid of her which might not have been painful to the father."

As for Napoleon at cards and at chess, there is the following :

" I have observed that at cards our extraordinary man plays rather a careless game, and loses his- money with great good humour. Nay, he is frequently inaccurate in reckoning his points, &c. T but as often, most assuredly, to his loss as his gain, At chess, indeed, which is a scientific game, independent of fortune, and considered as being connected with a leading branch of military tactics, he may not possess the same indifference. However that may be, I shrewdly suspect that Montholm, when he plays with him, takes care to be the loser,"

The excitement in the interesting little colony of St. Helena on the arrival of their extraordinary guest may be easily imagined. Bonaparte did not leave his cabin for a full hour after the ship had anchored in the bay.

" When the deck oecame clear he made his- appearance and ascended the poop ladder, from which he could see every gun that bristles at the mouth of the James Valley, in the centre of which

the town of that name is situate While he stood

there I watched his countenance with the most observant attention, and it betrayed no particular sensation. He looked, as any other man would have looked, at a place which he beheld for the first time."

It may be remarked that in the course of his narrative our worthy surgeon some- times speaks of Napoleon as the General, sometimes as the ex-Emperor, and occasion- ally as the Emperor. He didjiot disembark till the 17th of August after sunset, much to the chagrin of the expectant inhabitants, who had retired to their homes. His first residence on the island was The Briars, the residence of Mr. Balcombe, where he re- mained till Longwood could be completed for him. The worthy doctor had many interesting interviews and conversations with Napoleon on the island before he finally left him. These may form the subject of another article. E. MAHSTON.