With the naked eye Prince Andréy saw below them to the right, not more than five hundred paces from where Kutúzov was standing, a dense French column coming up to meet the Ápsherons.

“Here it is! The decisive moment has arrived. My turn has come,” thought Prince Andréy, and striking his horse he rode up to Kutúzov.

“The Ápsherons must be stopped, your excellency,” cried he. But at that very instant a cloud of smoke spread all round, firing was heard quite close at hand, and a voice of naive terror barely two steps from Prince Andréy shouted, “Brothers! All’s lost!” And at this as if at a command, everyone began to run.