"
"But it is not necessary to humble ourselves before him," exclaimed the
queen. "Amid our misfortunes we must keep ourselves erect; and if we
perish, we ought to do so with unsullied honor."
"But why perish?" said Alexander. "We are shipwrecked, it is true, and
we are now drifting on the waves, but we must save ourselves. Every one
must try, to the best of his ability, to do so; he must grasp at the
first thing that falls into his hands--at a plank, at a straw. Some
fortunate rope may at last save us, and draw us to the shore. We shall
then build a new ship, and man her with fresh hands. Do you agree with
me, my dear fellow-sufferers?"
"Sire," said Louisa, in a low and mournful voice, "you are magnanimous.
You call yourself our fellow-sufferer. And yet the tempest shipwrecked
us alone."
"By no means," exclaimed Alexander; "I have also suffered; all my hopes,
wishes, and ambition went down. But I did not wish to be drowned, and I
stretched out my arms for something to support me. Do you know what I
found to sustain me? The Emperor Napoleon! Oh, he is a strong support."
"I have heard, sire, your majesty has of late become an ardent admirer
of Napoleon," said the queen, in a tremulous voice.
"Yes," exclaimed Alexander, enthusiastically, "Napoleon is a genius, a
demi-god; the great Alexander of antiquity has risen from the dead. He
realizes the myths of the ancient heroes.
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