War And Peace: Book 14 - CHAPTER XVII

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THE ACTIONS of the Russian and French armies during the retreat from Moscow

to the Niemen resemble a game of Russian blindman's buff, in which there are two

players, both with their eyes bandaged, and one rings a bell at intervals to let

the other know of his whereabouts. At first he rings his bell with no fear of

his opponent; but when he begins to find himself in a difficult position, he

runs away as noiselessly as he can from his opponent, and often supposing he is

running away from him, walks straight into his arms.

At first Napoleon's army made its whereabouts known—that was in the early

period of the retreat along the Kaluga road—but afterwards, when they had taken

to the Smolensk road, they ran holding the tongue of the bell; and often

supposing they were running away, ran straight towards the Russians.

Owing to the rapidity of the flight of the French, and of the Russians after

them, and the consequent exhaustion of the horses, the chief means of keeping a

close watch on the enemy's position—by means of charges of cavalry—was out of

the question. Moreover, in consequence of the frequent and rapid changes of

position of both armies, what news did come always came too late. If information

arrived on the second that the army of the enemy had been in a certain place on

the first, by the third, when the information could be acted upon, the army was

already two days' march further, and in quite a different position.

One army fled, the other pursued. From Smolensk, there were a number of

different roads for the French to choose from; and one would have thought that,

as they stayed there four days, the French might have found out where the enemy

was, have thought out some advantageous plan, and undertaken something new. Yet,

after a halt of four days, the crowds of them ran back; again not to right or to

left, but, with no man

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