for the great chief had
lost nothing of its force or vitality. Paoli seemed sincerely to
return this inclination of Napoleon and of his brother, and in the
long evening walks, which both brothers made with him, Napoleon's
mind opened itself, before his old, experienced companion, the great
general, the noble republican, with a freedom and a candor such as
he had never manifested to others. With subdued admiration Paoli
listened to his short, energetic explanations, to his descriptions,
to his war-schemes, to his warm enthusiasm for the republic; and one
day, carried away by the warmth of the young captain of artillery,
the general, fixing his glowing eyes upon him, exclaimed: "Young
man, you are modelled after the antique; you belong to Plutarch!"
"And to General Paoli!" replied Napoleon, eagerly, as he pressed his
friend's hand affectionately in his own.
But now this harmonious concord between General Paoli and the young
men was destroyed by the passion of party views. Joseph as well as
Napoleon belonged to the French party; they soon became its leaders;
they were at the head of the club which they had organized according
to the maxims and principles of the Jacobin Club in Paris, and to
which they gave the same name.
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