25

felt that this crisis would be favourable to the cause

of our country; we felt that we had fought in such

а manner that the French could not boast of а victory

except by the circumstance 0f our retreat and the

abandonment of the ancient capital. 0ur army was

terribly weakened by the battle; but fresh troops we-

re joining us every day; we were in [he middle of our

resoursses, and we had plenty of every thing, we knew

very well that the French army оп the contrary,

if not more weakened by the battle was getting farther

every day from reinforcements and reserves, was in

want of every thing and would be soon in а starving

condition. The sacrifce of Moskow alone had banished

every idea or fear of реасе, and there could be по

longer either object от pretext for concluding опе. Оп

Monday the 1 September, the day before our army left

Moscow and the French entered it, we left Moscow

by the Wladimir road. I resolved to до to Andreev-

sky, ап old family seat about 120 miles from Mos-

cow, where had been twice with ту uncle the count

Alexander who died there in 1Ю5, and where ту

grand-father had also died some 30 years before. А

good number of ту friends and fellow suferers agreed

to до with те, and we arrived there with our

own horses оп the 3-rd day. Оп oui• arrival we were

informed of all that had passed at Moscow, of the

melancholy entry of Napoleon into that ancient city,

where the French army had hoped to fnd population

and resources, and to conclude реасе. Уои know that

they found а desert, that all hopes 0f реасе and even

0f succes were blasted, and that two days after their

arrival, [5

4 0f the city were burnt to the ground.

1 shall дау nothing about the manner in which this