The Miserable World

Chapter 266 PART THREE (48)
He rose，walked slowly to the map of France spread out on the wall，and at whose base an island was visible in a separate compartment，laid his finger on this compartment and said：——

'Corsica，a little island which has rendered France very great.'
This was like a breath of icy air.
All ceased talking.
They felt that something was on the point of occurring.
Bahorel，replying to Bossuet，was just assuming an attitude of the torso to which he was addicted.
He gave it up to listen.
Enjolras，whose blue eye was not fixed on any one，and who seemed to be gazing at space，replied，without glancing at Marius：——

'France needs no Corsica to be great.
France is great because she is France.
Quia nomina leo.'
Marius felt no desire to retreat；he turned towards Enjolras，and his voice burst forth with a vibration which came from a quiver of his very being：——

'God forbid that I should diminish France！

But amalgamating Napoleon with her is not diminishing her.
Come！let us argue the question.I am a new comer among you，but I will confess that you amaze me.Where do we stand？

Who are we？

Who are you?

Who am I？

Let us come to an explanation about the Emperor.
I hear you say Buonaparte，accenting the u like the Royalists.
I warn you that my grandfather does better still；he says Buonaparte'.I thought you were young men.
Where，then，is your enthusiasm？

And what are you doing with it？

Whom do you admire，if you do not admire the Emperor？And what more do you want？

If you will have none of that great man，what great men would you like？

He had everything.
He was complete.He had in his brain the sum of human faculties.
He made codes like Justinian，he dictated like Caesar，his conversation was mingled with the lightning-flash of Pascal，with the thunderclap of Tacitus，he made history and he wrote it，his bulletins are Iliads，he combined the cipher of Newton with the metaphor of Mahomet，he left behind him in the East words as great as the pyramids，at Tilsit he taught Emperors majesty，at the Academy of Sciences he replied to Laplace，in the Council of State be held his own against Merlin，he gave a soul to the geometry of the first，and to the chicanery of the last，he was a legist with the attorneys and sidereal with the astronomers；like Cromwell blowing out one of two candles，he went to the Temple to bargain for a curtain tassel；he saw everything；he knew everything；which did not prevent him from laughing good-naturedly beside the cradle of his little child；and all at once，frightened Europe lent an ear，armies put themselves in motion，parks of artillery rumbled，pontoons stretched over the rivers，clouds of cavalry galloped in the storm，cries，trumpets，a trembling of thrones in every direction，the frontiers of kingdoms oscillated on the map，the sound of a superhuman sword was heard，as it was drawn from its sheath；they beheld him，him，rise erect on the horizon with a blazing brand in his hand，and a glow in his eyes，unfolding amid the thunder，his two wings，the grand army and the old guard，and he was the archangel of war！'
All held their peace，and Enjolras bowed his head.
Silence always produces somewhat the effect of acquiescence，of the enemy being driven to the wall.
Marius continued with increased enthusiasm，and almost without pausing for breath：——

'Let us be just，my friends！

What a splendid destiny for a nation to be the Empire of such an Emperor，when that nation is France and when it adds its own genius to the genius of that man！

To appear and to reign，to march and to triumph，to have for halting-places all capitals，to take his grenadiers and to make kings of them，to decree the falls of dynasties，and to transfigure Europe at the pace of a charge；to make you feel that when you threaten you lay your hand on the hilt of the sword of God；to follow in a single man，Hannibal，Caesar，Charlemagne；to be the people of some one who mingles with your dawns the startling announcement of a battle won，to have the cannon of the Invalides to rouse you in the morning，to hurl into abysses of light prodigious words which flame forever，Marengo，Arcola，Austerlitz，Jena，Wagram！To cause constellations of victories to flash forth at each instant from the zenith of the centuries，to make the French Empire a pendant to the Roman Empire，to be the great nation and to give birth to the grand army，to make its legions fly forth over all the earth，as a mountain sends out its eagles on all sides to conquer，to dominate，to strike with lightning，to be in Europe a sort of nation gilded through glory，to sound athwart the centuries a trumpet-blast of Titans，to conquer the world twice，by conquest and by dazzling，that is sublime；and what greater thing is there？'
'To be free，'said Combeferre.
Marius lowered his head in his turn；that cold and simple word had traversed his epic effusion like a blade of steel，and he felt it vanishing within him.
When he raised his eyes，Combeferre was no longer there.
Probably satisfied with his reply to the apotheosis，he had just taken his departure，and all，with the exception of Enjolras，had followed him.
The room had been emptied.
Enjolras，left alone with Marius，was gazing gravely at him.
Marius，however，having rallied his ideas to some extent，did not consider himself beaten；there lingered in him a trace of inward fermentation which was on the point，no doubt，of translating itself into syllogisms arrayed against Enjolras，when all of a sudden，they heard some one singing on the stairs as he went.
(End of this chapter)