The eyes of France and Germany, nay of all Europe, were riveted upon
this small point on the border of Germany and Italy, for there the
immediate future of Europe was to be decided; there the dice were to
fall which were to bring peace or war to the world.

Austria wanted peace; it was a necessity for her, because she did
not feel strong enough for war, and was afraid of the dangers and
losses of continued defeats. But she did not want peace, coute qui
coute; she wanted to derive substantial advantages from it--she
intended to aggrandize herself at the expense of Italy, at the
expense of Prussia--and, if need be, at the expense of Germany.

But what did France want, or rather, what did General Bonaparte
want? None but himself knew. None could read his thoughts in his
marble countenance. None could decipher his future actions from his
laconic utterances. None could tell what Bonaparte intended to do
and what aim his ambition had in view.

The negotiations with Austria had been going on for months. For
several weeks the Austrian plenipotentiaries and General Bonaparte
had had daily interviews of many hours' duration, which alternately
took place at Udine and at Passeriano, but the work of pacification
would not come to a satisfactory conclusion. Austria demanded too
much, and France would not yield enough. These conferences had
frequently assumed a very stormy character, and often, during the
debates, Bonaparte's voice had resounded in thundering tones, and
flashes of anger had burst forth from his eyes. But the Austrian
plenipotentiaries had not been struck by them. The flashes from the
great chieftain's eyes had recoiled powerlessly from their