Third: Though from a tactical point of view the chances of success in the open country were unfavorable to Bonaparte, yet from a strategical point of view they were greatly in his favor. He had severed the Austrian communications by closing the great highway leading from Alessandria to Mantua. Along the Ticino he had a strong force to prevent Melas from escaping in that direction; in the Stradella Pass he had established a fortified camp; and from Pavia to Cremona he held the line of the Po, across which he had constructed five bridges that could be used for a retreat in case he should be defeated. In the open country, therefore, a defeat would, at the most, be but a temporary check, for he could fall back, cross the Po, unite his defeated troops with the French forces on the north side of the river, and be ready in a short time to fight another battle. On the other hand, since the communications of the Austrians were already in possession of the French, the defeat of Melas must result in the capture or destruction of his army, and in the loss of northern Italy. It follows, therefore, that in the plain of Marengo Bonaparte could gain much more by a victory than he could lose by a defeat. Fourth: He never was satisfied to take up a defensive position, and there await an adversary. He seldom fought defensive battles. He believed in the offensive. His method of making war was to march and to fight. It was necessary to seek the enemy, to meet him face to face, to crush him on the battle-field. At the battle of Marengo, Bonaparte was surprised. Having but a small cavalry force under his immediate command, he held it in reserve in rear of his infantry in order that it might, in case of battle, be used against the Austrian cavalry, which greatly outnumbered his own. Had he ordered it to the front to seek the Austrians and to screen the movements of Victor and Lannes, doubtless he would not have remained completely in the dark as to the position and intention of his enemy. It has been said that "Cavalry are the eyes of an army." Certainly for the want of it at Marengo, or for the failure to use what he had for screening and reconnoitring purposes, Bonaparte lost touch of his enemy.