I swear to your majesty, upon my honor, that I will hurl
Bonaparte from his throne--that I will not rest before the crown has
fallen from his head! God has spared me that I may chastise
Napoleon; He has told me every night in my dreams, 'Do not despond,
do not lose heart! Keep up thy courage and thy confidence, for I
shall soon need thee! Thou shalt soon cut Napoleon down from his
power, and throw him into the dust whence he sprang.' And I have
answered, 'I am on hand, and wait only for the struggle to begin.'
Now I say to your majesty what I then said, 'I am on hand, and the
struggle is to begin!' I have sworn every day to chastise Bonaparte,
and while I live I shall thank your majesty for giving me an
opportunity. I am, then, general-in-chief of the Silesian army?"
"Yes, I appoint you, and his majesty the emperor approves my
selection," said the king. "All necessary directions, instructions,
and orders, you will receive to-morrow in writing. You will
immediately enter upon your office, and place yourself at the head
of the troops. Do you wish to prefer requests and impose
conditions?"
"Yes, your majesty, I must impose two conditions. In the first
place, General Scharnhorst must be my chief of staff, for Blucher is
only half a man when Scharnhorst is not with him. I have the arm, he
has the head; therefore we must be together.
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