After 1789， both appear and both together； from this date onward， says an eye-witness，[55] and， during one quarter of a century， "for most Frenchmen and in whatever class，" the object of life is displaced；each has put it outside of himself； from now on， the essential thing for everybody is "to have lived，" or "to have died for something，" for an idea. A man becomes the slave of his idea， gives himself up to it；consequently， he has experienced the intense satisfaction of considering himself a noble being， of superior essence， foremost among the first， and of seeing himself regarded in that light and proclaimed and glorified as such. - This keen， profound and intense pleasure was first enjoyed by the French on listening to the Declaration of the Rights of Man； from then， and in good faith， they felt themselves citizens， philosophers， the destroyers of prejudices and wrongs， zealots in behalf of truth， liberty and equality， and then， when the war of 1792 came， the defenders of the country， missionaries and propagators of every grand principle.[56] - Towards 1796， principles began to recede in the background；[57] in the ideal portrait which man makes of himself the liberator and benefactor of mankind gradually gives way to the admirable and admired hero capable of great achievements. This inner portrait of himself suffices for his happiness for some years to come： vanity[58] properly so called and a calculating ambition are not the incentives of action； if he obtains promotion it is without asking for it； his aspiration is simply to display himself， to be lavish of himself and live or die courageously and gaily[59] along with his comrade； to be considered， outside the service， the equal， friend and brother of his subordinates and of his chiefs.[60] Pillage， nevertheless， has begun； for， a long continuance of war depraves the conqueror； brutality， indifference to property and to life grows on him； if callous， or he wishes to become so， he eats， drinks and enjoys the passing hour； if provident and wary， he scrapes together what he can or levies contributions and hoards money. - Under the Empire， and especially towards 1808 and 1809， the ideal figure degenerates still more； from now on， it is the successful or the coming officer， with his rank and its accouterments， his gold-embroidered uniform and badges， exercising authority over so many hundreds and thousands of men and enjoying a certain notable sum of regular salaries， besides other gratifications bestowed on him by the master， along with the profits he can make out of the vanquished.[61]
All that he now cares for is rapid promotion， and in any way， noble or ignoble， at first， of course， on the main road， that is in straining himself and risking his life， but likewise on a new road， in an affectation of zeal， in practicing and professing blind obedience， in abandoning all political ideas， in devoting himself no longer to France， but to the sovereign： sympathy for his comrades gives way to harsh rivalry； soldierly friendships， under the anticipation of advancement， die out. A vacancy due to death is for the benefit of survivors and they know it. "At Talavera，" says Stendhal， "two officers stood together at their battery， while a ball comes and the captain falls. 'Good，' says the lieutenant， 'now Fran？ois is dead and I shall be captain.' 'Not yet，' says Fran？ois， who was only stunned and who gets up on his feet. These two men were neither unfriendly nor inimical， only the lieutenant wanted to rise a step higher in rank."And this shrewd observer adds： "Such was the furious egoism then styled love of glory and which， under this title， the Emperor had communicated to the French."On this slope the slide is rapid and abject. Each， at first， thinks of himself； the individual makes of himself a center. The example， moreover， comes from above. Is it for France or for himself that Napoleon works？[62] So many immense enterprises， the conquest of Spain， the expedition into Russia， the installation of his brothers and relations on new thrones， the constant partition and rearrangement of Europe， all those incessant and more and more distant wars， is it for the public good and common safety that he accumulates them？ What does he himself desire if not to push his fortunes still farther？ - He is too much ambitious (trop ambitionnaire)， say his own soldiers；[63]
and yet they follow him to the last. "We have always marched along with him，" replied the old grenadiers，[64] who had traversed Poland to penetrate into Russia； "we couldn't abandon him this time and leave him alone by himself." - But others who see him nearer by， those who stand first and next to him， do as he does； and， however high these have mounted， they want to mount still higher， or， otherwise， to keep their places， or， at least， provide for themselves and hold on to something substantial. Masséna has accumulated forty millions and Talleyrand sixty；[65] in case of a political crash the money remains.