Mortier, as governor of the city, immediately issued his orders, and was putting forth every exertion, when at daylight Napoleon hastened to him. Affecting to disbelieve the reports that the inhabitants were firing their own city, he put more rigid commands on Mortier to keep the soldiers from the work of destruction. The marshal simply pointed to some iron-covered houses that had not yet been opened, from every crevice of which smoke was issuing like steam from the sides of a pent-up volcano. Sad and thoughtful, Napoleon turned towards the Kremlin, the ancient palace of the Czars, whose huge structure rose high above the surrounding edifices.

作为这座城市的州长，莫蒂埃立即发号施令、全力救火。黎明时分拿破仑赶来，他不敢相信居民们竟然放火烧了自己的家园，他向莫蒂埃下达严格的命令让士兵们远离烧坏的建筑。元帅简单地指了指那些铁皮房屋，那些房屋还是关闭着的，从门缝里冒出来的烟像火山四周喷出来的蒸汽般令人压抑。拿破仑沉思着、神情忧伤地转而望向克林姆宫，那是古代沙皇的宫殿，巨大的宫殿高耸在周围所有的建筑之上，十分地雄伟壮观。

In the morning, Mortier, by great exertions, was enabled to subdue the fire. But the next night, Sept. 15, at midnight, the sentinels on watch upon the lofty Kremlin saw below them the flames bursting through the houses and palaces, and the cry "Fire! fire!" again passed through the city. The dread scene was now fairly opened. Fiery balloons were seen dropping from the air and alighting on the houses; dull explosions were heard on every side from the shut-up dwellings: the next moment light burst forth from them, and the flames were raging through the apartments.

莫蒂埃一上午消耗了巨大的精力才令火势减弱，但是到了第二天晚上，即9月15日午夜时分，在高耸的克里姆林宫上站岗的哨兵们发现火焰正从下面的房屋和宫殿里喷涌而出，“着火啦！着火啦！”，尖叫声再一次响彻莫斯科，恐怖的一幕现在才开始真正上演。士兵们看到燃烧着的火球从空中往下坠落在屋顶之上，密合的住宅四周不断传来沉闷的爆炸声：下一秒只见火光在士兵们面前喷发，火焰在公寓里熊熊燃烧。

All was uproar and confusion. The serene air and moonlight of the night before had given way to driving clouds, and a wild tempest, like the roar of the sea, swept over the city. Flames arose on every side, blazing and crackling in the storm; white clouds of smoke and sparks in an incessant shower went driving towards the Kremlin. The clouds themselves seemed turned into fire, rolling wrath over devoted Moscow. Mortier, crushed with the responsibility thrown upon his shoulders, moved with his Young Guard amid this desolation, blowing up the houses and facing the tempest and the flames—struggling nobly to arrest the conflagration.

到处都是喧嚣和混乱，先前那宁静的空气和月光已被浓厚的乌云取代，一场突如其来的暴风雨就像大海的咆哮般席卷了整座城市，四面八方蹿起的火焰在暴风雨中噼里啪啦地燃烧着。而那白色的烟雾和不停蹿出的火花正向克林姆宫慢慢逼近，就连云层似乎也变成了火焰，愤怒地在莫斯科上空翻滚着。面对暴风雨和大火，被肩上的重担压垮了的莫蒂埃在废墟之中和年轻的士兵们一起行动，他们炸毁房屋，最终壮丽地阻止了大火的蔓延。