In the midst of all these amusements the congress was startled by the fall of the thunderbolt,--news was received of the landing of Napoleon in the gulf of Juan! It was necessary immediate recourse should be had to military measures, and without a moment's hesitation the direction of the operations was entrusted to the Duke of Wellington, as the person most capable of opposing Napoleon; besides which, as Great Britain gave the impulse to the European league, it was necessary to give her a pledge of their sincerity, and the title of generalissimo, conferred upon the Duke, was undoubtedly due to him, in consideration of the subsidies which the English parliament were about to vote for the advantage of Europe. After a hurried journey to England, Wellington returned with all speed to the Low Countries, to decide in concert with Field-marshal Blucher upon the plan of his campaign; and when opposed to the powerful army of Napoleon, he followed the same system he had been accustomed to pursue in Spain; that is to say, he assumed a defensive attitude, in a well-chosen position. His military reputation had commenced with the lines of Torres Vedras, and was destined to reach its zenith at Waterloo;--thus shewing that the whole of a man's destiny is sometimes comprehended between two ideas. I shall not enter here into military details, but content myself with observing that the battle of Waterloo was a perfect type of the system pursued by two men whose military capacities were entirely dissimilar--the Emperor and the Duke of Wellington. Napoleon was impetuous, actually sublime, when advancing to attack his enemy; but disordered and devoid of reflection in a retreat. The Duke, on the contrary, was timid, watchful, and undecided during an active campaign, to such a degree that he endangered the safety of his troops whenever he attempted a bold movement; but he was at the same time cool and collected, and accustomed to avail himself of every advantage when acting on the defensive. The attack made by Buonaparte at Waterloo recalled the battles of Wagram and Austerlitz, while the Duke of Wellington again saw the lines of Torres Vedras in the intrenched position of Mont St. Jean.