240 GENERAL I'ELISSIER. CHAP. IX. The re- sources he disclosed. Opportune and suc- cessful en- deavours of the English Government to check the Emperor's interposi- tion. mind was so constituted as to be able to rise in its strength, so soon as he found himself chal- lenged, and put on his mettle by grave mis- fortune. He not only came to the end of that brief, ill-omened interval of eight days during which, as we saw, his capacity appears to have failed him, but disclosed a great force of character, well supported by adroitness, audacity, and fertile resource, with besides, one must own, a return to his old, clever wiles, no longer now marred by a palpably scornful tone, and to even professions of suppleness which only some five days before, when not yet coerced by misfortune, he seemed to have proudly renounced.* And, at this time, the English Government had happily done a good deal towards sheltering the French and PeTissier from the dangers of their sovereign's wild dictation ; for they had made an agreement with the Emperor, which Lord Pan- mure thus described : — ' We have agreed with the ' Emperor that neither from Paris nor London ' shall any orders for operations be sent which ' are not mutual from our respective Govern- ' ments ; ' t and they also took another wise step, that of sending General Torrens to Paris as their military commissioner, with instructions to keep them informed on the subject of the war, and to
- See ante, p. 133.
t Lord Paninure to Lord Raglan, 18th June 1855. The words may be ' hard to construe ; ' but not to understand, for they must have meant, I suppose, that neither of the two Governments should send out orders for operations without first apprising the other Government of its intention.
