history of friedrich ii of prussia v 19-第35部分
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hem go。 Slow…paced Lords in Office have remonstrated; on more than one occasion: 〃Impossible; Sir; these things cannot be got ready at the time you order!〃 〃My Lord; they indispensably must;〃 Pitt would answer (a man always reverent of coming facts; knowing how inexorable they are); and if the Negative continued obstinate in argument; he has been known to add: 〃My Lord; to the King's service; it is a fixed necessity of time。 Unless the time is kept; I will impeach your Lordship!〃 Your Lordship's head will come to lie at your Lordship's feet! Figure a poor Duke of Newcastle; listening to such a thing;and knowing that Pitt will do it; and that he can; such is his favor with universal England;and trembling and obeying。 War…requisites for land and for sea are got ready with a Prussian punctuality; at what multiple of the Prussian expense; is a smaller question for Pitt。
It is about eighteen months ago that Pownal; Governor of New England; a kind of half…military person; not without sound sense; though sadly intricate of utterance;of whom Pitt; just entering on Office; has; I suppose; asked an opinion on America; as men do of Learned Counsel on an impending Lawsuit of magnitude;had answered; in his long…winded; intertwisted; nearly inextricable way; to the effect; 〃Sir; I incline to fear; on the whole; that the Action will NOT lie;that; on the whole; the French will eat America from us in spite of our teeth。〃 'In THACKERAY; ii。 421…452; Pownal's intricate REPORT (his 〃DISCOURSE;〃 or whatever he calls it; 〃ON THE DEFENCE OF THE INLAND FRONTIERS;〃 his &c。 &c。); of date 〃15th January; 1758。〃' January 15th; 1758; that is the Pownal Opinion…of…Counsel;and on September 13th; 1759; this is what we have practically come to。 And on September 7th; 1760: within twelve months more;Amherst; descending the Rapids from Ticonderoga side; and two other little Armies; ascending from Quebec and Louisburg; to meet him at Montreal; have proved punctual almost to an hour; and are in condition to extinguish; by triple pressure (or what we call noosing); the French Governor…General in Montreal; a Monsieur de Vaudreuil; and his Montreal and his Canada altogether; and send the French bodily home out of those Continents。 'Capitulation between Amherst and Vaudreuil (〃Montreal; 8th September; 1760〃); in 55 Articles: in BEATSON; iii。 274…283。' Which may dispense us from speaking farther on the subject。
From the Madras region; too; from India and outrageous Lally; the news are good。 Early in Spring last; poor Lally;a man of endless talent and courage; but of dreadfully emphatic loose tongue; in fact of a blazing ungoverned Irish turn of mind;had instantly; on sight of some small Succors from Pitt; to raise his siege of Madras; retire to Pondicherry; and; in fact; go plunging and tumbling downhill; he and his India with him; at an ever…faster rate; till they also had got to the Abyss。 〃My policy is in these five words; NO ENGLISHMAN IN THIS PENINSULA;〃 wrote he; a year ago; on landing in India; and now it is to be No FRENCHMAN; and there is one word in the five to be altered!Of poor Lally; zealous and furious over…much; and nearly the most unfortunate and worst…used 〃man of genius〃 I ever read of; whose lion…like struggles against French Official people; and against Pitt's Captains and their sea… fights and siegings; would deserve a volume to themselves; we have said; and can here say; as good as nothing;except that they all ended; for Lally and French India; in total surrender; 16th January; 1761; and that Lally; some years afterwards; for toils undergone and for services done; got; when accounts came to be liquidated; death on the scaffold。 Dates I give below。 '28th April; 1758; Lands at Pondicherry; instantly proceeds upon Fort St。 David。 2d June; 1758; Takes it: meant to have gone now on Madras; but finds he has no money;goes extorting money from Black Potentates about; Rajah of Travancore; &c。; in a violent and extraordinary style; and can get little。 Nevertheless; 14th December; 1758; Lays Siege to Madras。
16th February; 1759; Is obliged to quit trenches at Madras; and retire dismally upon Pondicherry;to mere indigence; mutiny (〃ten mutinies〃); Official conspiracy; and chaos come again。
22d January; 1760; Makes outrush on Wandewash; and the English posted there; is beaten; driven back into Pondicherry。 April; 1760; Is besieged in Pondicherry。 16th January; 1761; Is taken; Pondicherry; French India and he;to Madras he; lest the French Official party kill him; as they attempt to do。
23d September; 1761; arrives; prisoner; in England: thence; on parole; to France and Paris; 21st October。 November; 1762; To Bastille; waits trial nineteen months; trial lasts two years。 6th May; 1766; To be BEHEADED;9th May was。 See BEATSON; ii。 369…372; 96…110; &c。; Voltaire (FRAGMENTS SUR L'INDE) in OEuvres; xxix。 183…253; BIOGRAPHIC UNIVERSELLE; Lally。'
〃Gained Fontenoy for us;〃 said many persons;undoubtedly gained various things for us; fought for us Berserkir…like on all occasions; hoped; in the end; to be Marechal de France; and undertook a Championship of India; which issues in this way! America and India; it is written; are both to be Pitt's。 Let both; if possible; remain silent to us henceforth。
As to the Invasion…of…England Scheme; Pitt says he does not expect the French will invade us; but if they do; he is ready。 'Speech; 4th November; supra。'
Chapter VII。
FRIEDRICH REAPPEARS ON THE FIELD; AND IN SEVEN DAYS AFTER COMES THE CATASTROPHE OF MAXEN。
November 6th…8th; Daun had gone to Meissen Country: fairly ebbing homeward; Henri following; with Hulsen joined;not vehemently attacking the rhinoceros; but judiciously pricking him forward。 Daun goes at his slowest step: in many divisions; covering a wide circuit; sticking to all the strong posts; till his own time for quitting them: slow; sullenly cautious; like a man descending dangerous precipices back foremost; and will not be hurried。 So it had lasted about a week; Daun for the last four days sitting restive; obstinate; but Henri pricking into him more and more; till the rhinoceros seemed actually about lifting himself;when Friedrich in person arrived in his Brother's Camp。 'Tempelhof; iii。 301…305。'
At the Schloss of Herschstein; a mile or two behind Lommatsch; which is Henri's head…quarter (still to westward of Meissen; Daun hanging on; seven or eight miles to southeastward ahead; loath to go; but actually obliged);it was there; Tuesday; November 13th; that the King met his Brother again。 A King free of his gout; in joyful spirits; and high of humor;like a man risen indignant; once more got to his feet; after three months' oppressions and miseries from the unworthy。 〃Too high;〃 mourns Retzow; in a gloomy tone; as others do in perhaps a more indulgent one。 Beyond doubt; Friedrich's farther procedures in this grave and weighty Daun business were more or less imprudent; of a too rapid and rash nature; and turned out bitterly unlucky to him。 〃Had he left the management to Henri!〃 sighed everybody; after the unlucky event。
Friedrich had not arrived above four…and…twenty hours; when news came in: 〃The Austrians in movement again; actually rolling off Dresden…ward again。〃 〃Haha; do they smell me already!〃 laughed he: 〃Well; I will send Daun to the Devil;〃not adding; 〃if I can。〃 And instantly ordered sharp pursuit;and sheer stabbing with the ox…goad; not soft and delicate pricking; as Henri's lately。 'Retzow; ii。 168; Tempelhof; iii。 306。' Friedrich; in fact; was in a fiery condition against Daun: 〃You trampled on me; you heavy buffalo; these three months; but that is over now!〃and took personally the vanguard in this pursuit。 And had a bit of hot fighting in the Village of Korbitz (scene of that Finck…Haddick 〃Action;〃 21st September last; and of poor Haddick's ruin; and retirement to the Waters);where the Austrians now prove very fierce and obstinate; and will not go; till well slashed into; and torn out by sheer beating:which was visibly a kind of comfort to the King's humor。 〃Our Prussians do still fight; then; much as formerly! And it was all a hideous Nightmare; all that; and Daylight and Fact are come; and Friedrich is himself again!〃
They say Prince Henri took the liberty of counselling him; even of entreating him: 〃Leave well alone; why run risks?〃 said Henri。 Daun; it was pretty apparent; had no outlook at the present but that of sauntering home to Bohmen; leaving Dresden to be an easy prey again; and his whole Campaign to fall futile; as the last had。 Under Henri's gentle driving he would have gone slower; but how salutary; if he only went! These were Henri's views: but Friedrich was not in the slow humor; impatient to be in Dresden; 〃will be quartered there in a week;〃 writes he; 〃and more at leisure than now。〃 '〃Wilsdruf; 17th November; 1759;〃 and still more 〃19th November;〃 Friedrich to Voltaire。 in high spirits that way ( OEuvres de Frederic; xxiii。 66)。' He is thinking of Leuthen; of Rossbach; of Campaign 1757; so gloriously restored after ruin; and; in the fire of his soul; is hoping to do something similar a second time。 That is Retzow's notion: who knows but there may be truth in it? A proud Friedrich; got on his feet again after such usage;nay; who knows whether it was quite so unwise to be impressive on the slow rhinoceros; and try to fix some thorn in his snout; or say (figuratively); to hobble his hind…feet; which; I am told; would have been beautifully ruinous; and; though riskish; was not impossible? 'Tempelhof; iii。 311; &c。' Ill it indisputably turned out; and we have; with brevity; to say how; and leave readers to their judgment of it。
It was in the Village of Krogis; about six miles forward; on the Meissen…Freyberg road; a mile or two on from Korbitz; and directly after the fierce little tussle in that Village;that Friedrich; his blood still up; gave the Order for Maxen; which proved so unlucky to him。 Wunsch had been shot off in pursuit of the beaten Austrians; but they ran too fast; and Wunsch came back without farther result; still early in the day。 Back as far as Krogis; where the next head…quarter is to be;and finds the King still in a fulminant condition; none the milder; it is likely; by Wunsch's returning without resu