person to Bâle, to a correspondent of Metternich, and he now came to ask whether it would be his Majesty's pleasure that he should avail himself of the opening, in order to learn the secret purposes of the enemy?" Napoleon was not deceived by this trick. There were several mirrors in the room, by which he could perceive and enjoy his perfidious minister's ill-concealed embarrassment. "Monsieur Fouché," he said, "it may be dangerous to treat me as a fool: I have your agent in safe custody, and penetrate your whole intrigue. Have you sent to Bâle?"--"No, Sire."--"The happier for you: had you done so, you should have died." Fleury was unable to extract any thing of consequence from Werner, the confidant of Metternich, who met him at Bâle. The Austrian seemed to expect communications from Fouché, without being prepared to make them. Fleury touched on the plan of assassinating Buonaparte, which Werner rejected with horror, as a thing not to be thought of by Metternich or the allies. They appointed a second meeting, but in the interim Fouché made the Austrian aware of the discovery, and Baron Fleury, on his second journey to Bâle, found no Mr. Werner to meet him.--See Fleury de Chamboullon, tom. ii., p. 6. Buonaparte gives almost the same account of this intrigue in his St. Helena Conversations as Fouché in his Memoirs. But Napoleon does not mention Carnot's interposition to prevent Fouché from being put to death without process of law. "You may shoot Fouché to-day," said the old Jacobin, "but to-morrow you will cease to reign. The people of the Revolution permit you to retain the throne only on condition you respect their liberties. They account Fouché one of their strongest guarantees. If he is guilty, he must be legally proceeded against." Buonaparte, therefore, gaining no proof against Fouché by the mission of Fleury, was fain to shut his eyes on what he saw but too well.--S. CHAPTER LXXXVIII. _Army of Wellington covers Brussels--that of Blucher on the Sambre and Meuse--Napoleon reviews his Grand Army on 14th June--Advances upon Charleroi--His plan to separate the Armies of the two opposing Generals fails--Interview of Wellington and Blucher at Bric--British Army concentrated at Quatre-bras--Napoleon's plan of attack--Battle of Ligny, and defeat of Blucher on 16th June--Action at Quatre-bras on the same day--The British retain possession of the field--Blucher eludes the French pursuit--Napoleon joins Ney--Retreat of the British upon Waterloo._