Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 8.djvu/162

 130 SECRET TERMS OF NIEL'S MISSION. CHAP. V. Way in which tho Imperial will was brought to bear on Canrobert No appar- ent reluc- tance on the part of Canrobert to be guided by his Emperor's wish. disloyalty. Whilst consulting together in secrecy, the Emperor and General Niel were at liberty to frame a new plan without being bound to disclose it to any ally; but, after having caused General Canrobert to know — nay to share — their conclu- sion, and prove ready to give it effect, they of course could no longer — with honour — go on maintaining concealment against the English Commander. The Emperor did not yet go the length of ad- dressing to General Canrobert decisive, positive orders which would force him, whether willing or not, to break loose from his engagements of the 1st of January ; but proceeding from an un- fettered Sovereign whose will in such matters was legally absolute, the expression of a formal opin- ion, and of a consequent wish, may have natural- ly appeared all-sufficing ; and so it apparently proved. Nor indeed do we see that the General deferred to the wish of his Sovereign with any degree of reluctance. On the contrary, we are led to believe that this sudden interposition of Louis Napoleon found an eager — because ready — wel- come at the French Headquarters. There, apparently, unless signs mislead us, the authorities after a while had grown to be so little enamoured of the frowning Malakoff that they re- pented — and not without anger — of having under- taken the task. Forgetting that the English had themselves desired eagerly to undertake the Mala- koff instead of the Redan, and had only been pre- vented from doing so by Canrobert's rejection of