[197] "On approaching Gjatz, we felt the sincerest regret when we perceived that the whole town had disappeared. Gjatz, constructed entirely of wood, was consumed in a day. It contained many excellent manufactories of cloth and leather, and furnished the Russian navy with considerable quantities of tar, cordage, and marine stores."--LABAUME, p. 270. [198] "In this vast wreck, the army, like a great ship tossed by the most tremendous of tempests, threw, without hesitation, into that sea of ice and snow, all that could slacken or impede its progress."--SÉGUR, tom. ii., p. 159. [199] Jomini, tom. iv., p. 173; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 150; Twenty-eighth Bulletin. [200] Labaume, p. 287; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 160. [201] "I delivered the despatches to the Emperor. He opened the packet with haste: a _Moniteur_ was uppermost. He ran it over; the first article which caught his eye was the enterprise of Mallet: 'What is this! what! plots! conspiracies!' He tore open his letters: they contained the detail of the attempt: he was thunderstruck."--RAPP, p. 232.--"As soon as he was alone with the most devoted of his officers, all his emotions burst forth at once in exclamations of astonishment, humiliation, and anger. Presently after he sent for several others, to observe the effect which so extraordinary a piece of intelligence would produce upon them. He perceived a painful uneasiness, consternation, and confidence in the stability of his government completely shaken."--SÉGUR, tom. ii., p. 161. [202] Jomini, tom. iv., p. 186; Rapp, p. 239; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 165. [203] Jomini, tom. iv., p. 193; Twenty-eighth Bulletin of the Grand Army; Ségur, tom. ii., p. 181-202. [204] "Napoleon arrived at Smolensk on the 9th of November, amidst this scene of desolation. He shut himself up in one of the houses in the New Square, and never quitted it till the 14th, to continue his retreat."--SÉGUR, tom. ii., p. 178. CHAPTER LXII.