THE FIRST SAXON CAMPAIGN Despite the loss of the most splendid army ever marshalled by man, Napoleon abated no whit of his resolve to dominate Germany and dictate terms to Russia.

At Warsaw, in his retreat, he informed De Pradt that there was but one step from the sublime _to the ridiculous_, that is, from the advance on Moscow to the retreat.

At Dresden he called on his allies, Austria and Prussia, to repel the Russians; and at Paris he strained every nerve to call the youth of the Empire to arms.

The summons met with a ready response: he had but to stamp his foot when the news from East Prussia looked ominous, and an array of 350,000 conscripts was promised by the Senate (January 10th).
In truth, his genius had enthralled the mind of France.

The magnificence of his aims, his hitherto triumphant energy, and the glamour of his European supremacy had called forth all the faculties of the French and Italian peoples, and set them pulsating with ecstatic activity.