"Simpleton!” said Lefebvre. “Why did you
not come to me ? Why did you go and get into
debt witli that ? Well, here are the 400,000
francs; take them to him, and let him goto
the devil!”
Lannes hastened to the first consul:
“What!” he exclaimed, “is it possible you
can be guilty of such baseness as this? To treat
me in such a manner! To lay such a foul
snare for me after all that I have done for you ;
after all the blood that I have shed to promote
your ambition! Is this the recompense vou
had in store for me? You forget the 13th Von
demiaire, to the success of which I contributed
more than you! You forget iMillesimo; I was
colonel before you! For whom did I fight at
Bassane? You wore witness of what I did at
Lodi and at Governele, where I was wounded ;
and yet you play ine such a trick as this! But
for mo you would have lost tho battle at Ma
rengo. I alone, yes, I alone, passed the I’o, at
Montebello, with my division. Yon gave the
credit of that to Berthier, who was not there;
and this is my reward—humiliation. This can
not, this shall not be. I will ”
Bonaparte, pale with anger, listened without
stirring, and Lannes was oh the point of chal
lenginghim when Janet, who heard the uproar,
hastily entered. The unexpected presence of
this general somewhat reassured the first con
sul, and at the .same time calmed in some de
gree the fury of Lannes.
“Well,” said Bonaparte, “go to Lisbon. Vou
will get money there; and when you return
you will not want any one to pay your debts
for you.”
Thus was Bonaparte’s object gained.
