“The fate of France is in your hands,” the Emperor had written, and Ney had not understood. All the hours of the morning of the 16th he had not understood. Precious hours had glided by unimproved. Now it is afternoon, and at last Ney understands. And it is too late. Were he the ally of Wellington and Blücher, he could not serve them better. Were he the mortal enemy of France, he could not serve her worse. Overwhelmed by the sudden consciousness of his terrible mistake, the heroic Ney was almost demented. “Oh, that all these English balls were buried in my body!” Impotent rage, vain remorse: _the English were up, and all of Wellington’s delays and blunders were remedied_. Verily, those who say there is no such thing as _Luck_ have never studied the history of the Hundred Days! * * * * * The fatality of the day was, of course, the pendulum swing of D’Erlon’s corps--a pendulum which swung first toward Napoleon, then toward Ney, reaching neither. Had not the Emperor turned it back when on its way to join Ney, Wellington would have been crushed. Had not Ney recalled it when it was in sight of the Emperor, Blücher would have been destroyed. But Napoleon took it away from Ney, and Ney took it away from Napoleon, and neither got to use it. D’Erlon’s corps of 20,000 men was utterly lost to the French, although it was on the march all day and burning to be in the fight. Nothing in military history equals the ill-luck of this day. In the first place, Soult’s order to D’Erlon was ambiguous. D’Erlon did not understand it, and the inexperienced staff-officer, Forbin-Janson, was unable to explain it. This accounts for D’Erlon showing up at the wrong place and creating consternation among the French which delayed the final blow and saved Blücher. In the second place, Soult sent only one staff-officer, and this one did not carry out orders. _He did not inform Ney._ An experienced staff-officer would have understood the necessity of notifying Ney of the Emperor’s orders to D’Erlon, for the Emperor had placed D’Erlon under the immediate command of Ney. As it was, Marshal Ney was needing D’Erlon as badly as the Emperor needed him, and was expecting him every minute. Therefore, he continued to send urgent, peremptory orders that D’Erlon should hasten to join him. Even when General Delcambre, sent by D’Erlon after D’Erlon was well on his way back to Ligny, reported the retrograde movement to Ney, the insubordinate Marshal flew into a passion and sent General Delcambre back with an imperative order that D’Erlon should march on Quatre Bras. In taking upon himself to overrule his Emperor, he did not even consider the lateness of the hour, which made it impossible for D’Erlon to join him in time to be of any service. CHAPTER VII