On the same day Nansouty’s outposts near Velizh were attacked by those of Winzingerode. The intelligence all went to show that the Russians were advancing against the French left wing. On the 8th Napoleon received Davout’s report upon the roads along the Dnieper; and at 2 a.m. on the 9th he replied to say that he had decided to march upon Smolensk by the left bank, and ordered the Marshal to trace the itinerary. Murat hurried to the front to resume his command. Ney drew towards him the three divisions of the 1st Corps to meet a Russian advance. On the 8th the Guard had been paid, and had received brandy for ten days. Friant, who was to fall at the head of the Old Guard on the field of Waterloo, was nominated Colonel-General of the Foot Grenadiers in place of General Dorsenne, recently deceased. He was welcomed at a parade on the 9th by Napoleon himself--much to his pleasure. On the 10th General Eblé was sent to Rasasna, 22 miles above Orsha, with orders to throw four bridges over the Dnieper. The weather was very bad, with heavy rain, which broke up the roads and impeded the march of the troops. Nansouty’s and Montbrun’s cavalry (except Sebastiani’s division), Ney’s corps, and the divisions of Morand, Friant and Gudin, were directed on Rasasna. Eugène would follow, forming the rear-guard of the movement, which was covered on its left by extensive forests. Davout’s army was also ordered on Rasasna, except Dombrowski’s division, which was to remain near Mohilev to observe Bobruisk. It is characteristic of Napoleon’s methods that Ney knew nothing of the proposed movement until late on the 10th. On the 11th the Guard left Vitebsk. The weather was still bad, and it was probably owing to this that Ney was unable to evacuate all his sick, earning thereby another reprimand from Napoleon. General Charpentier was left to garrison Vitebsk with the new Guard regiment of “Flanqueurs-Chasseurs,” Guyon’s cavalry brigade of the 4th Corps, the 3rd battalion of the 1st Vistula Regiment, and a Hesse-Darmstadt battalion on the way from Vilna--3800 men in all, a number which would be increased by the 16th to over 7000 by various _bataillons de marche_. Sebastiani’s division, temporarily commanded by General Pajol, was to remain in observation near Rudnia. Dombrowski’s division was between Rogachev and Mohilev. A battalion of Westphalians garrisoned Orsha. Deducting these detachments, Napoleon had available for the advance on Smolensk over 200,000 men, exclusive of the head-quarter troops. By the 13th the whole huge mass was either at or within easy reach of Rasasna, and Nansouty, Montbrun and Ney crossed the river and took the lead.