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90
Recollections of
[Ch. IX.

A day or two before his departure, General Bertrand came to the Briars and informed Napoleon that Longwood smelt so strongly of paint that it was unfit to go into. I shall never forget the fury of the emperor. He walked up and down the lawn, gesticulating in the wildest manner. His rage was so great that it almost choked him. He declared that the smell of paint was so obnoxious to him that he would never inhabit a house where it existed; and that if the grand marshal's report were true, he should send down to the admiral, and refuse to enter Longwood. He ordered Las Cases to set off early the next morning to examine the house and report if the information of General Bertrand was correct. At this time I went out to him on the lawn, and inquired the cause of his being in such a rage. The instant I joined him he changed his manner, and in a calm tone mentioned the reason of his annoyance. I was perfectly amazed at the power

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