6. CHAPTER IV.--It must have disconcerted Napoleon to hear Grouchy expostulating as to the orders which he had just given him. The Napoleon of earlier days would have dealt with a heavy hand on the man who dared discuss his orders. No doubt Grouchy felt very strongly on the subject, and his views may very well have been sound--in fact, they were sound up to a certain point; but it is never a soldier’s duty to discuss or argue about his orders. The story of Grouchy’s insubordination--for insubordination it certainly was--would be difficult to credit, but that some of the best authorities on the campaign give it in their works; and Grouchy himself, in his “Relation Succincte,” openly admits that he made no attempt, in his conversation with the Emperor, to conceal his misgivings. 7. CHAPTER IV.--The mismanagement of the places of assembly and the times of starting the march of different bodies of troops which have to take the same road, leads to miserable confusion. In the present case, there were two Corps d’Armée, Gérard’s and Vandamme’s, which were required to march from Ligny and St Amand La Haye respectively, to Point-du-Jour by one and the same road. It seems obvious that, time being important, and considering the positions of the two Corps, Gérard’s Corps should be marched off first, while Vandamme’s should follow as soon as it was ready. But Grouchy, for no reason which can be found, ordered Vandamme to take the lead. Gérard had to wait over one hour while Vandamme’s Corps passed him. It is not an easy matter to arrange, in a case of this kind, that the front corps should be clear by the time that the head of the corps in rear comes up; but Gérard’s Corps was sufficiently far ahead of Vandamme’s to allow plenty of time for his men to get on their way before the latter approached, and, at all events, it would have been better to halt Vandamme, while Gérard moved well on the road, than to keep Gérard waiting while Vandamme passed him. 8. CHAPTER IV.--Vandamme’s march on Gembloux was extremely slow. He left his bivouac at 12 noon, and arrived at Point-du-Jour, less than 4 miles off, at 3 P.M., and at Gembloux, another 5 miles, at 7 P.M. The roads, it must be remembered, were in a deplorable condition, and the rain was falling steadily; but the rate of marching, when compared with the rate of the Prussians over the same road, in only slightly better condition of surface, and with the rate in Grouchy’s subsequent retreat, also in heavy weather, is extraordinarily slow. The guns were moved with great difficulty, and it must be supposed that infantry in large numbers were used to drag them along, but there were still horses to be used, and the Prussians had moved all their guns and waggons successfully. The state of the weather has always been urged in extenuation of Grouchy’s slowness in this campaign, but it has been laboured too much. It certainly was a very heavy factor against him, but not so overpowering as is alleged.