Alexandrine is not good, but I never forget a syllable of my reports on positions. I shall find them in my room this evening, and I shall not go to bed until I have read them.'"
And the result is that he knows all the positions on land and at sea—the number, size, and quality of his ships in or out of port, the composition and strength of his enemies' armies, every detail of every ship and of every regiment, better than the naval commanders or staff officers themselves. Added to this, he has a marvellous power of remembering topographical facts; he can revive at will an inner picture of every detail at any distance of time. And this extraordinary result follows:
"His calculation of distance, marches, and manœuvres is so rigid a mathematical operation that, frequently, at a distance of two or four hundred leagues, his military foresight, calculated two or four months ahead, proves correct, almost on the day named, and precisely on the spot designated."
An even more remarkable example occurs when M. de Ségur sends in his report on the coast line. "I have read your reports," he says to M. de Ségur, "and they are exact. Nevertheless, you forgot two cannon at Ostend," and he pointed out the place, "on a road behind the town." "I went out," naturally exclaims M. de Ségur, "overwhelmed with astonishment that among thousands of cannon distributed among
