Napoleon accepts none but competent candidates； now， in 1800， there is a dearth of acceptable candidates for places in the civil service and not， as in 1789， or at the present time， a superabundance and even too great a crowd. - In the military service especially， capacity is innate； natural endowments， courage， coolness， quick perception， physical activity， moral ascendancy， topographical imagination form its principal elements； men just able to read， write and cipher became， in three or four years， during the Revolution， admirable officers and conquering generals. - It is not the same in relation to civil capacity； this requires long and continuous study. To become a priest， magistrate， engineer， professor， prefect or school-teacher， one must have studied theology or law， mathematics or Latin， administration or the finances. If not， the functionary is not qualified to serve： he must， at the very least， know how to spell， be able to write French， examine a law-case， draw up a report， keep accounts， and if needs be， comprehend a plan， make an estimate and read off a map. Men of this stamp are rare at the beginning of the Consulate. As notables，[40] the Revolution mowed them down first.
Among all their sons and so many well-bred youth who have become soldiers through patriotism， or who have left their families to prevent these from becoming suspect， one half repose on the battlefield or have left the hospital only for the cemetery； "the muscadin[41] died from the first campaign." In any event， for them and their younger brothers， for the children beginning to learn Latin and mathematics， for all who hoped to pursue liberal professions， for the entire generation about to receive either a superior， a common， or even a primary instruction， and hence to furnish brains prepared for intellectual work， there was a lack of this for ten years. Not only were the endowments which provided for instruction confiscated but the educational staff， nearly all ecclesiastic， was one of the most proscribed among those proscribed. Whilst military requisition and the closing of the schools suppressed the pupils， massacres， banishment， imprisonment， destitution and the scaffold suppressed the teachers.
Whilst the ruin of universities and colleges did away with theoretical apprenticeship， the ruin of manufactures and of trade abolished practical apprenticeship. Through the long interruption of all studies， general instruction as well as special competency became rare product in the market. - Hence it is that， in 1800， and during the three or four following years， whoever brought to market either one the other of these commodities was certain of a quick sale；[42] the new government needed them more than anybody. The moment the seller made up his mind， he was bought， and， whatever he may be， a former Jacobin or a former émigré； he is employed. If he brings both commodities and is zealous， he is promptly promoted； if， on trial， he is found of superior capacity， he will， like Mollien， Gaudin， Tronchet， Pasquier and Molé， attain to the highest posts， for he finds scarcely any competitors. These he would have had had things followed their usual course； it is the Revolution which has cleared the ground around him； without that the road would have been obstructed；competent candidates would have swarmed. Reckon， if possible， how many men of talent who were destroyed， royalists， monarchists， feuillants， Girondists and even Jacobins. They were the élite of the noblesse， of the clergy， of the bourgeoisie， of the youth and those of riper age.
Thus rid of their most formidable rivals the survivors pursue their way at top speed； the guillotine has wrought for them in advance； it has effected openings in their own ranks， made by bullets in every battle in the ranks of the army， and， in the civil hierarchy as in the military hierarchy， merit， if demonstrated by services， or not arrested by death， reaches the highest summit in very few years.
The prizes offered on these summits are splendid； no attraction is lacking. The great trainer who displays them has omitted none of the seductions which excite and stimulate an ordinary mind. He has associated with the positive values of power and wealth every value incident to imagination and opinion； hence his institution of decorations and the Legion of Honor.[43]
"They call it a toy，"[44] said he， " but men are led by toys. . .
Frenchmen are not changed by ten years of revolution. . . . See how the people prostrate themselves before foreign decorations： they have been surprised by them and accordingly do not fail to wear them. . . .