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+The Project Gutenberg Etext of Reminiscences of Captain Gronow
+by Captain Rees Howell Gronow
+
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+Title:  The Project Gutenberg Etext of Reminiscences of Captain Gronow
+
+Author:  Captain Rees Howell Gronow
+
+Release Date: February, 2003  [Etext #3798]
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+[The actual date this file first posted = 09/13/01]
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+Edition: 10
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+Language: English
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+The Project Gutenberg Etext of Reminiscences of Captain Gronow
+*****This file should be named grnow10.txt or grnow10.zip*****
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+This Project Gutenberg Etext by Tobias D. Robison
+tdr21@columbia.edu
+
+
+
+
+
+The Project Gutenberg Etext of Reminiscences of Captain Gronow
+
+by Captain Rees Howell Gronow
+
+
+
+
+EDITOR'S NOTE
+
+
+The spelling in this book is rather creative (including the occasional
+spelling of "ankle" as "ancle"), and the punctuation is remarkably varied.
+I have tried to preserve both, except that the spaces between a word
+and the following colon or semicolon have been removed. There are also
+many French words and phrases, whose meaning will usually be obvious
+as soon as you realise they are French.  Of course I apologize for any
+genuine errors in spelling and punctuation that have crept into this file.
+
+Captain Gronow is an entertaining raconteur who brings his own experiences
+in the Regency period and the wars with France delightfully to life.
+Gronow published several sets of memoirs.  This file covers the first
+half of what he published.  Search the web for "Captain Gronow" to learn
+more about this interesting gentleman.
+
+The text is arranged as a series of topics, each with a title in capital
+letters.  Sometimes there is continuity in this arrangement, sometimes
+there is not.  There is no other structure to the text.
+
+I have used the character for "pounds" (money) in this text: '£'.
+If the character n single quotes does not look like a pound sign to you,
+well, at least you know what is intended. The book text uses a lower case 'l'
+for this purpose, but in computer fonts the 'l', looking just like a '1' when
+following a string of digits, is confusing.
+
+Many thanks to Pam Wisniewski for profreading this text.
+
+
+- Tobias D.  Robison, September, 2001
+tdr21@columbia.edu
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+Reminiscences of Captain Gronow
+
+
+
+
+Formerly of the Grenadier Guards, and
+M.P. for Stafford:
+
+being
+
+Anecdotes of the camp, the court, and the clubs,
+at the close of the last war with France.
+
+Related by himself.
+
+
+
+"O friends regretted, scenes for ever dear!
+Remembrance hails you with her warmest tear!
+Drooping she bends o'er pensive fancy's urn,
+To trace the hours which never can return."
+
+London:
+
+Smith, Elder and Co., 65, Cornhill.
+
+M.DCCC.LXII.
+
+
+
+
+A FEW WORDS TO THE READER
+
+
+It has been my lot to have lived through the greater part of one of
+the most eventful centuries of England's history, and I have been thrown
+amongst most of the remarkable men of my day; whether soldiers, statesman,
+men of letters, theatrical people, or those whose birth and fortune
+- rather, perhaps, than their virtues or talents - have caused them
+to be conspicuous in society at home or abroad.  Nature having endowed
+me with a strong memory, I can recall with all their original vividness
+scenes that took place fifty years ago, and distinctly recollect the
+face, walk, and voice, as well as the dress and general manner, of everyone
+whom I have known. I have frequently repeated to my friends what I have
+seen and heard since the year that I joined the Guards (1813), and have
+been urged to commit to paper my anecdotes and reminiscences.
+
+Unfortunately, I have not the power of efficiently describing in words
+the pictures that are hung up in the long gallery of my memory: a man
+may see very distinctly the landscape before him, yet he may be unable
+to delineate that which he gazes upon and is intimately acquainted with.
+A viva voce narrative of an incident told to a friend in conversation
+may pass muster, and one is able to fill up any gaps in an imperfect
+description; but it always occurred to me that I had no right to task
+a reader's time and patience unless I could put before him what I had
+to say in a lucid and complete form; I therefore refrained from committing
+myself to print. I have at length, however, yielded to the suggestion
+of friends, and written down some anecdotes in the best way I could.
+Soldiers are not generally famous for literary excellence, and when
+I was young, the military man was, perhaps, much less a scholar than
+he is at the present day; but I hope that the interest of the matter
+will make up for any deficiency of style.
+
+In going over more than half a century, and treating of men, women and
+events, it was necessary to leave out many anecdotes which would, perhaps,
+have been more interesting than most of those that I have given; for
+I would not willingly offend, or hurt the feelings of any one, and I
+wish to respect the memory of the dead, as well as to take into consideration
+the sensitiveness of the living.  My Reminiscences, it will be seen,
+are nothing more than miniature illustrations of contemporary history;
+and though the reader may find here and there scraps of biographical
+matter, I confine myself to facts and characteristics which were familiar
+to the circle in which I moved, and perhaps are as much public property
+as the painted portraits of celebrities.
+
+Should this work meet with the approbation of the public, I hope at
+a future time to publish an additional one, as my memory still serves
+me with sufficient materials for another volume of a similar kind.
+
+R.  H.  Gronow.
+
+
+
+
+
+MY ENTRANCE INTO THE ARMY
+
+
+After leaving Eton, I received an Ensign's commission in the First Guards
+during the month of December, 1812.  Though many years have elapsed,
+I still remember my boyish delight at being named to so distinguished
+a regiment, and at the prospect of soon taking a part in the glorious
+deeds of our army in Spain.  I joined in February 1813, and cannot but
+recollect with astonishment how limited and imperfect was the instruction
+which an officer received at that time: he absolutely entered the army
+without any military education whatever. We were so defective in our
+drill, even after we had passed out of the hands of the sergeant, that
+the excellence of our non-commissioned officers alone prevented us from
+meeting with the most fatal disasters in the face of the enemy.  Physical
+force and our bull-dog energy carried many a hard-fought field.  Luckily,
+nous avons change tout cela, and our officers may now vie with those
+of any other army in an age when the great improvements in musketry,
+in artillery practice, and in the greater rapidity of manoeuvring, have
+entirely changed the art of war, and rendered the individual education
+of those in every grade of command an absolute necessity.
+
+After passing through the hands of the drill sergeant with my friends
+Dashwood, Batty, Browne, Lascelles, Hume, and Masters, and mounting
+guard at St. James's for a few months, we were hurried off, one fine
+morning, in charge of a splendid detachment of five hundred men to join
+Lord Wellington in Spain.  Macadam had just begun to do for England
+what Marshal Wade did in Scotland seventy years before; and we were
+able to march twenty miles a day with ease until we reached Portsmouth.
+There we found transports ready to convey a large reinforcement, of
+which we formed part, to Lord Wellington, who was now making his arrangements,
+after taking St. Sebastian, for a yet more important event in the history
+of the Peninsular War - the invasion of France.
+
+
+DEPARTURE FOR AND ARRIVAL IN SPAIN
+
+
+We sailed under convoy of the Madagascar frigate, commanded by Captain
+Curtis; and, after a favourable voyage, we arrived at Passages.  Our
+stay there was short, for we were ordered to join the army without loss
+of time.  In three hours we got fairly into camp, where we were received
+with loud cheers by our brothers in arms.
+
+The whole British army was here under canvas; our allies, the Spaniards
+and Portuguese, being in the rear.  About the middle of October, to
+our great delight, the army received orders to cross the Bidassoa.
+At three o'clock on the morning of the 15th our regiment advanced through
+a difficult country, and, after a harassing march, reached the top of
+a hill as the gray light of morning began to dawn.  We marched in profound
+silence, but with a pleasurable feeling of excitement amongst all ranks
+at the thought of meeting the enemy, and perhaps with not an equally
+agreeable idea that we might be in the next world before the day was over.
+
+As we ascended the rugged side of the hill, I saw, for the first time,
+the immortal Wellington.  He was accompanied by the Spanish General,
+Alava, Lord Fitzroy Somerset, and Major, afterwards Colonel Freemantle.
+He was very stern and grave-looking; he was in deep meditation, so long
+as I kept him in view, and spoke to no one.  His features were bold,
+and I saw much decision of character in his expression.
+He rode a knowing-looking, thorough-bred horse, and wore a gray overcoat,
+Hessian boots, and a large cocked hat. We commenced the passage of the
+Bidassoa about five in the morning, and in a short time infantry, cavalry,
+and artillery found themselves upon French ground.  The stream at the
+point we forded was nearly four feet deep, and had Soult been aware
+of what we were about, we should have found the passage of the river
+a very arduous undertaking.
+
+Three miles above, we discovered the French army, and ere long found
+ourselves under fire.  The sensation of being made a target to a large
+body of men is at first not particularly pleasant, but "in a trice,
+the ear becomes more Irish and less nice."  The first man I ever saw
+killed was a Spanish soldier, who was cut in two by a cannon ball.
+The French army, not long after we began to return their fire, was in
+full retreat; and after a little sharp, but desultory fighting, in which
+our Division met with some loss, we took possession of the camp and
+strong position of Soult's army.  We found the soldiers' huts very comfortable;
+they were built of branches of trees and furze, and formed squares and
+streets, which had names placarded up, such as Rue de Paris, Rue de
+Versailles, &c.  We were not sorry to find ourselves in such commodious
+quarters, as well as being well housed.  The scenery surrounding the
+camp was picturesque and grand.  From our elevated position, immediately
+in front, we commanded a wide and extensive plain, intersected by two
+important rivers, the Nive and the Nivelle.  On the right, the lofty
+Pyrenees, with their grand and varied outline, stood forth conspicuously
+in a blue, cloudless sky; on our left was the Bay of Biscay, with our
+cruisers perpetually on the move.
+
+We witnessed from the camp, one night about twelve o'clock, a fight
+at sea, between an English brig and a French corvette, which was leaving
+the Adour with provisions and ammunition.  She was chased by the brig,
+and brought to action.  The night was sufficiently clear to enable us
+to discover distinctly the position of the vessels and the measured
+flash of their guns.  They were at close quarters, and in less than
+half an hour we discovered the crew of the corvette taking to their
+boats.  Shortly afterwards the vessel blew up with a loud explosion.
+We came to the conclusion that sea-fighting was more agreeable than
+land-fighting, as the crews of the vessels engaged without previous
+heavy marching, and with loose light clothing; there was no manoeuvring
+or standing for hours on the defensive; the wounded were immediately
+taken below and attended to, and the whole affair was over in a pleasingly
+brief period.
+
+
+
+THE UNIFORM AND BEARING OF THE FRENCH SOLDIER
+
+
+The French infantry soldier averaged about five feet five or six in
+height; in build they were much about what they are now, perhaps a little
+broader over the shoulder.  They were smart, active, handy fellows,
+and much more able to look after their personal comforts than British
+soldiers, as their camps indicated. The uniform of those days consisted
+in a schako, which spread out at the top; a short-waisted, swallow-tailed
+coat; and large, baggy trousers and gaiters.  The clothing of the French
+soldier was roomy, and enabled him to march and move about at ease:
+no pipeclay accessories occupied their attention; in a word, their uniforms
+and accoutrements were infinitely superior to our own, taking
+into consideration the practical necessities of warfare.  Their muskets
+were inferior to ours, and their firing less deadly.  The French cavalry
+we thought badly horsed; but their uniforms, though showy, were, like
+those of the infantry, comfortably large and roomy.
+
+I have frequently remarked that firearms are of little use to the mounted
+soldier, and often an incumbrance to man and horse.  Cavalry want only
+one arm - the sabre.  Let the men be well mounted and at home in the
+saddle.  It requires great knowledge in a Commander-in-chief to know
+when and how to use his cavalry.  It has been my misfortune to witness
+oft-repeated blunders in the employment of the best-mounted regiments
+in the world.  I consider the French generals had more knowledge of
+the use of cavalry than our own, when a great battle was to be fought.
+
+
+
+MAJOR-GENERAL STEWART AND LORD WELLINGTON
+
+
+
+If the present generation of Englishmen would take the trouble of looking
+at the newspaper which fifty years ago informed the British public of
+passing events both at home and abroad, they would, doubtless, marvel
+at the very limited and imperfect amount of intelligence which the best
+journals were enabled to place before their readers.  The progress of
+the Peninsular campaign was very imperfectly chronicled; it will, therefore,
+be easily imagined what interest was attached to certain letters that
+appeared in the Morning Chronicle which criticised with much severity,
+and frequently with considerable injustice, the military movements of
+Lord Wellington's Spanish campaign.
+
+The attention of the Commander-in-Chief being drawn to these periodical
+and personal comments on his conduct of the war, his lordship at once
+perceived from the information which they contained that they must have
+been written by an officer holding a high command under him. Determined
+to ascertain the author - who, in addressing a public journal, was violating
+the Articles of War, and, it might be, assisting the enemy - means were
+employed in London to identify the writer.  The result was, that Lord
+Wellington discovered the author of the letters to be no other than
+Sir Charles Stewart, the late Lord Londonderry.  As soon as Lord Wellington
+had made himself master of this fact, he summoned Sir Charles Stewart
+to head-quarters at Torres Vedras; and on his appearance, he, without
+the least preface, addressed him thus: -
+
+"Charles Stewart, I have ascertained with deep regret that you are the
+author of the letters which appeared in the Morning Chronicle abusing
+me and finding fault with my military plans."
+
+Lord Wellington paused here for a moment, and then continued:
+
+"Now, Stewart, you know your brother Castlereagh is my best friend,
+to whom I owe everything; nevertheless, if you continue to write letters
+to the Chronicle, or any other newspaper, by God, I will send you home."
+
+Sir Charles Stewart was so affected at this rebuke that he shed tears,
+and expressed himself deeply penitent for the breach of confidence and
+want of respect for the Articles of War.  They immediately shook hands
+and parted friends.  It happened, however, that Sir Charles Stewart
+did not remain long in the cavalry, of which he was Adjutant-General.
+Within a few weeks he was named one of the Commissioners deputed to
+proceed to the Allied Armies, where the Sovereigns were then completing
+their plans to crush Napoleon.
+
+
+ST. JEAN DE LUZ
+
+
+During the winter of 1813, the Guards were stationed with head-quarters
+at St Jean de Luz, and most comfortable we managed to make them.  For
+some short time previously we had been on scanty commons, and had undergone
+considerable privation: indeed we might have said, like the Colonel
+to Johnny Newcome on his arrival to join his regiment, "We sons of Mars
+have long been fed on brandy and cigars."  I had no cause to complain
+personally; for my servant, a Sicilian, was one of the most accomplished
+foragers (ill-natured persons might give him a worse name) in the whole
+army; and when others were nearly starving, he always managed to provide
+meat or poultry.  He rode on his mule sometimes from twenty to thirty
+miles, often running the greatest dangers, to procure me a good meal;
+of which he took care to have, very justly, a large share for himself.
+
+At St Jean de Luz, we were more attentive to our devotions than we had
+been for some time.  Divine service was performed punctually every Sunday
+on the sand-hills near the town; Lord Wellington and his numerous Staff
+placed themselves in the midst of our square, and his lordship's chaplain
+read the service, to which Lord Wellington always appeared to listen
+with great attention.
+
+The mayor of the town, thinking to please "the great English lord,"
+gave a ball at the Hotel de Ville: our Commander-in-Chief did not go
+but was represented by Waters.  I was there, and expected to see some
+of the young ladies of the country so famed for their beauty; they were,
+however, far too patriotic to appear, and the only lady present was
+Lady Waldegrave, then living with her husband at head-quarters.  What
+was one partner among so many?  The ball was a dead failure, in spite
+of the efforts of the mayor, who danced, to our intense amusement, an
+English hornpipe, which he had learnt in not a very agreeable manner,
+viz.  when a prisoner of war in the hulks at Plymouth.
+
+There were two packs of hounds at St Jean de Luz; one kept by Lord Wellington,
+the other by Marsden, of the Commissariat: our officers went uncommonly
+straight.  Perhaps our best man across country (though sometimes somewhat
+against his will) was the late Colonel Lascelles of my regiment, then,
+like myself, a mere lad.  He rode a horse seventeen hands high, called
+Bucephalus, which invariably ran away with him, and more than once had
+nearly capsized Lord Wellington.  The good living at St Jean de Luz
+agreed so well with my friend that he waxed fat, and from that period
+to his death was known to the world by the jovial appellation of Bacchus
+Lascelles.
+
+Shortly before we left St Jean de Luz, we took our turn of outposts
+in the neighbourhood of Bidart, a large village, about ten miles from
+Bayonne. Early one frosty morning in December, an order came, that if
+we saw the enemy advancing, we were not to fire or give the alarm.
+About five, we perceived two battalions wearing grenadier caps coming
+on.  They turned out to belong to a Nassau regiment which had occupied
+the advanced post of the enemy, and, hearing that Napoleon had met with
+great reverses in Germany, signified to us their intention to desert.
+They were a fine-looking body of men, and appeared, I thought, rather
+ashamed of the step they had taken.  On the same day, we were relieved,
+and on our way back met Lord Wellington with his hounds.  He was dressed
+in a light blue frock coat (the colour of the Hatfield hunt) which had
+been sent out to him as a present from Lady Salisbury, then one of the
+leaders of the fashionable world, and an enthusiastic admirer of his lordship.
+
+Here, I remember seeing for the first time a very remarkable character,
+the Hon.  W.  Dawson, of my regiment.  He was surrounded by muleteers,
+with whom he was bargaining to provide carriage for innumerable hampers
+of wine, liqueurs, hams, potted meat, and other good things, which he
+had brought from England.  He was a particularly gentlemanly and amiable
+man, much beloved by the regiment: no one was so hospitable or lived
+so magnificently. His cooks were the best in the army, and he, besides,
+had a host of servants of all nations - Spaniards, French, Portuguese,
+Italians - who were employed in scouring the country for provisions.
+Lord Wellington once honoured him with his company; and on entering
+the ensign's tent, found him alone at table, with a dinner fit for a
+king, his plate and linen in good keeping, and his wines perfect.  Lord
+Wellington was accompanied on this occasion by Sir Edward Pakenham and
+Colonel du Burgh, afterwards Lord Downes.  It fell to my lot to partake
+of his princely hospitality and dine with him at his quarters, a farmhouse
+in a village on the Bidassoa, and I never saw a better dinner put upon
+table. The career of this amiable Amphitryon, to our great regret, was
+cut short, after exercising for about a year a splendid but not very
+wise hospitality.  He had only a younger brother's fortune; his debts
+became very considerable, and he was obliged to quit the Guards.  He
+and his friends had literally eaten up his little fortune.
+
+
+FOOLHARDINESS
+
+
+I may here recount an instance of the folly and foolhardiness of youth,
+and the recklessness to which a long course of exposure to danger produces.
+When Bayonne was invested, I was one night on duty on the outer picket.
+The ground inside the breastwork which had been thrown up for our protection
+by Burgoyne was in a most disagreeable state for any one who wished
+to repose after the fatigues of the day, being knee-deep in mud of a
+remarkably plastic nature.  I was dead tired, and determined to get
+a little rest in some more agreeable spot; so calling my sergeant, I
+told him to give me his knapsack for a pillow; I would make a comfortable
+night of it on the top of the breastwork, as it was an invitingly dry
+place.  "For heaven's sake take care, sir," said he; " you'll have fifty
+bullets in you: you will be killed to a certainty."  "Pooh, nonsense,"
+said I, and climbing up, I wrapt myself in my cloak, laid my head on
+the knapsack, and soon fell into a sound sleep.
+
+By the mercy of Providence I remained in a whole skin, either from the
+French immediately underneath not perceiving me, or not thinking me
+worth a shot; but when General Stopford came up with Lord James Hay
+(who not long since reminded me of this youthful escapade) I received
+a severe wigging, and was told to consider myself lucky that I was not
+put under arrest for exposing my life in so foolish a manner.
+
+Among the many officers of the Guards who were taken prisoners in the
+unfortunate sortie from Bayonne, was the Hon.  H. Townshend, commonly
+called Bull Townshend.  He was celebrated as a bon vivant, and in consequence
+of his too great indulgence in the pleasures of the table, had become
+very unwieldy and could not move quick enough to please his nimble captors,
+so he received many prods in the back from a sharp bayonet.  After repeated
+threats, however, he was dismissed with what our American friends would
+be pleased to designate "a severe booting."  The late Sir Willoughby
+Cotton was also a prisoner.  It really seemed as if the enemy had made
+choice of our fattest officers.  Sir Willoughby escaped by giving up
+his watch and all the money which he had in his pockets; but this consisting
+of a Spanish dollar only, the smallness of the sum subjected him to
+the same ignominious treatment as had been experienced by Townshend.
+
+Among the numerous bad characters in our ranks, several were coiners,
+or utterers of bad money.  In the second brigade of Guards, just before
+we arrived at St. Jean de Luz, a soldier was convicted of this offence,
+and was sentenced to receive 800 lashes.  This man made sham Spanish
+dollars out of the pewter spoons of the regiment.  As he had before
+been convicted and flogged, he received this terrible sentence, and
+died under the lash.  Would it not have been better to have condemned
+him to be shot?  - It would have been more humane, certainly more military,
+and far less brutal.
+
+
+DISCIPLINE
+
+
+When the headquarters of the army were at St Jean de Luz, Soult made
+a movement in front of our right centre, which the English general took
+for a reconnaissance.  As the French general perceived that we had ordered
+preparations to receive him, he sent a flag of truce to demand a cessation
+of hostilities, saying that he wanted to shoot an officer and several
+men for acts of robbery committed by them, with every sort of atrocity,
+on the farmers and peasantry of the country.  The execution took place
+in view of both armies, and a terrible lesson it was.  I cannot specify
+the date of this event, but think it must have been the latter end of
+November, 1813. About the same time General Harispe, who commanded a
+corps of Basques, issued a proclamation forbidding the peasantry to
+supply the English with provisions or forage, on pain of death; it stated
+that we were savages, and, as a proof of this, our horses were born
+with short tails.  I saw this absurd proclamation, which was published
+in French and in the Basque languages, and distributed all over the
+country. Before we left the neighbourhood of Bayonne for Bordeaux, a
+soldier was hanged for robbery, on the sands of the Adour. This sort
+of punishment astonished the French almost as much as it did the soldier.
+On a march we were very severe, and if any of our men were caught committing
+an act of violence or brigandage, the offender was tried by a drum-head
+court-martial, and hanged in a very short time.
+
+I knew an officer of the 18th Hussars, W. R., young, rich, and a fine-looking
+fellow, who joined the army not far from St Sebastian.  His stud of
+horses was remarkable for their blood, his grooms were English, and
+three in number.  He brought with him a light cart to carry forage,
+and a fourgon for his own baggage.  All went on well, till he came to
+go on outpost duty; but not finding there any of the comforts to which
+he had been accustomed, he quietly mounted his charger, told his astonished
+sergeant that campaigning was not intended for a gentleman, and instantly
+galloped off to his quarters, ordering his servants to pack up everything
+immediately, as he had hired a transport to take him off to England.
+He left us before any one had time to stop him; and though despatches
+were sent off to the Commander-in-Chief, requesting that a court-martial
+might sit to try the young deserter, he arrived home long enough before
+the despatches to enable him to sell out of his regiment. He deserved
+to have been shot.
+
+Sir John Hope, who commanded our corps d'armee at Bayonne, had his quarters
+at a village on the Adour, called Beaucauld.  He was good enough to
+name me to the command of the village; which honour I did not hold for
+many days, for the famous sortie from Bayonne took place soon after,
+and the general was made prisoner.
+
+
+SIR JOHN WATERS
+
+
+Amongst the distinguished men in the Peninsular war whom my memory brings
+occasionally before me, is the well-known and highly popular Quartermaster
+General Sir John Waters, who was born at Margam, a Welsh village in
+Glamorganshire.  He was one of those extraordinary persons that seem
+created by kind nature for particular purposes; and, without using the
+word in an offensive sense, he was the most admirable spy that was ever
+attached to an army.  One would almost have thought that the Spanish
+war was entered upon and carried on in order to display his remarkable
+qualities.  He could assume the character of Spaniards of every degree
+and station, so as to deceive the most acute of those whom he delighted
+to imitate.  In the posada of the village he was hailed by the contrabandist
+or the muleteer as one of their own race; in the gay assemblies he was
+an accomplished hidalgo; at the bull-fight the toreador received his
+congratulations as from one who had encountered the toro in the arena;
+in the church he would converse with the friar upon the number of Ave
+Marias and Pater-nosters which could lay a ghost, or tell him the history
+of everyone who had perished by the flame of the Inquisition, relating
+his crime, whether carnal or anti-Catholic; and he could join in the
+seguadilla or in the guaracha. But what rendered him more efficient
+than all was his wonderful power of observation and accurate description,
+which made the information he gave so reliable and valuable to the Duke
+of Wellington.  Nothing escaped him.  When amidst a group of persons,
+he would minutely watch the movement, attitude, and expression of every
+individual that composed it; in the scenery by which he was surrounded
+he would carefully mark every object:- not a tree, not a bush, not a
+large stone, escaped his observation; and it was said that in a cottage
+he noted every piece of crockery on the shelf, every domestic utensil,
+and even the number of knives and forks that were got ready for use
+at dinner. His acquaintance with the Spanish language was marvellous;
+from the finest works of Calderon to the ballads in the patois of every
+province, he could quote, to the infinite delight of those with whom
+he associated.  He could assume any character that he pleased: he could
+be the Castilian, haughty and reserved; the Asturian, stupid and plodding;
+the Catalonian, intriguing and cunning; the Andalusian, laughing and
+merry;- in short, he was all things to all men.  Nor was he incapable
+of passing off, when occasion required, for a Frenchman; but as he spoke
+the language with a strong German accent, he called himself an Alsatian.
+He maintained that character with the utmost nicety; and as there is
+a strong feeling of fellowship, almost equal to that which exists in
+Scotland, amongst all those who are born in the departments of France
+bordering on the Rhine, and who maintain their Teutonic originality,
+he always found friends and supporters in every regiment in the French
+service.
+
+He was on one occasion entrusted with a very difficult mission by the
+Duke of Wellington, which he undertook effectually to perform, and to
+return on a particular day with the information that was required.
+
+Great was the disappointment when it was ascertained beyond a doubt
+that just after leaving the camp he had been taken prisoner, before
+he had time to exchange his uniform.  Such, however, was the case: a
+troop of dragoons had intercepted him, and carried him off; and the
+commanding officer desired two soldiers to keep a strict watch over
+him and carry him to head-quarters.  He was of course disarmed, and
+being placed on a horse, was, after a short time, galloped off by his
+guards.  He slept one night under durance vile at a small inn, where
+he was allowed to remain in the kitchen; conversation flowed on very
+glibly, and as he appeared a stupid Englishman, who could not understand
+a word of French or Spanish, he was allowed to listen, and thus obtained
+precisely the intelligence that he was in search of.  The following
+morning, being again mounted, he overheard a conversation between his
+guards, who deliberately agreed to rob him, and to shoot him at a mill
+where they were to stop, and to report to their officer that they had
+been compelled to fire at him in consequence of his attempt to escape.
+
+Shortly before they arrived at the mill, for fear that they might meet
+with some one who would insist on having a portion of the spoil, the
+dragoons took from the prisoner his watch and his purse, which he surrendered
+with a good grace.  On their arrival at the mill, they dismounted, and
+in order to give some appearance of truth to their story, they went
+into the house; leaving their prisoner outside, in the hope that he
+would make some attempt to escape.  In an instant Waters threw his cloak
+upon a neighbouring olive bush, and mounted his cocked hat on the top.
+Some empty flour sacks lay upon the ground, and a horse laden with well-filled
+flour sacks stood at the door.  Sir John contrived to enter one of the
+empty sacks and throw himself across the horse.  When the soldiers came
+out of the house they fired their carbines at the supposed prisoner,
+and galloped off at their utmost speed.
+
+A short time after the miller came out and mounted his steed; the general
+contrived to rid himself of the encumbrance of the sack, and sat up,
+riding behind the man, who, suddenly turning round, saw a ghost, as
+he believed, for the flour that still remained in the sack had completely
+whitened his fellow-traveller and given him a most unearthly appearance.
+The frightened miller was "putrified," as Mrs. Malaprop would say, at
+the sight, and a push from the white spectre brought the unfortunate
+man to the ground, when away rode the gallant quartermaster with his
+sacks of flour, which, at length bursting, made a ludicrous spectacle
+of man and horse.
+
+On reaching the English camp, where Lord Wellington was anxiously deploring
+his fate, a sudden shout from the soldiers made his lordship turn round,
+when a figure, resembling the statue in "Don Juan," galloped up to him.
+The duke, affectionately shaking him by the hand, said -
+
+"Waters, you never yet deceived me; and though you have come in a most
+questionable shape, I must congratulate you and myself."
+
+When this story was told at the clubs, one of those listeners, who always
+want something more, called out, "Well, and what did Waters say?  "
+to which Alvanley replied -
+
+"Oh, Waters made a very flowery speech, like a well-bred man."
+
+
+THE BATTLE OF THE NIVELLE
+
+
+We expected to remain quietly in our winter quarters at St. Jean de
+Luz; but, to our surprise, early one morning, we were aroused from sleep
+by the beating of the drum calling us to arms.  We were soon in marching
+order.  It appeared that our outposts had been severely pushed by the
+French, and we were called upon to support our companions in arms.
+
+The whole of the British army, as well as the division of the Guards,
+had commenced a forward movement.  Soult, seeing this, entirely changed
+his tactics, and from that time, viz. the 9th of December, a series
+of engagements took place. The fighting on the 9th was comparatively
+insignificant.  When we were attacked on the 10th, the Guards held the
+mayor's house, and the grounds and orchards attached: this was an important
+station.
+
+Large bodies of the enemy's infantry approached, and, after desultory
+fighting, succeeded in penetrating our position, when many hand-to-
+hand combats ensued.  Towards the afternoon, officers and men having
+displayed great gallantry, we drove the enemy from the ground which
+they courageously disputed with us, and from which they eventually retreated
+to Bayonne.  Every day there was constant fighting along the whole of
+our line, which extended from the sea to the lower Pyrenees - a distance
+probably not less than thirty miles.
+
+On the 1lth, we only exchanged a few shots, but on the 12th Soult brought
+into action from fifteen to twenty thousand men, and attacked our left
+with a view of breaking our line.  One of the most remarkable incidents
+of the 12th was the fact of an English battalion being surrounded by
+a division of French in the neighbourhood of the mayor's house - which,
+as before observed, was one of our principal strategical positions.
+The French commanding officer, believing that no attempt would be made
+to resist, galloped up to the officer of the British regiment, and demanded
+his sword.  Upon this, without the least hesitation, the British officer
+shouted out, "This fellow wants us to surrender: charge, my boys! and
+show them what stuff we are made of." Instantaneously, a hearty cheer
+rang out, and our men rushed forward impetuously, drove off the enemy
+at the point of the bayonet, and soon disposed of the surrounding masses.
+In a few minutes they had taken prisoners, or killed, the whole of the
+infantry regiment opposed to them.
+
+On the 13th was fought the bloody battle of the Nivelle.  Soult had
+determined to make a gigantic effort to drive us back into Spain.  During
+the night of the 12th, he rapidly concentrated about sixty thousand
+troops in front of Sir Rowland Hill's corps d'armee, consisting of 15,000
+men, who occupied a very strong position, which was defended by some
+of the best artillery in the world.  At daybreak Sir Rowland Hill was
+astonished to find himself threatened by masses of infantry advancing
+over a country luckily intersected by rivulets, hedges, and woods, which
+prevented the enemy from making a rapid advance; whilst, at the same
+time, it was impossible on such ground to employ cavalry.  Sir Rowland,
+availing himself of an elevated position, hurriedly surveyed his ground,
+and concentrated his men at such points as he knew the nature of the
+field would induce the enemy to attack.  The French, confident of success
+from their superior numbers, came gallantly up, using the bayonet for
+the first time in a premeditated attack; Our men stood their ground,
+and for hours acted purely on the defensive; being sustained by the
+admirable practice of our artillery, whose movements no difficulty of
+ground could, on this occasion, impede, so efficiently were the guns
+horsed, and so perfect was the training of the officers.  It was not
+until mid-day that the enemy became discouraged at finding that they
+were unable to make any serious impression on our position; they then
+retired in good order, Sir Rowland Hill not daring to follow them.
+
+Lord Wellington arrived just in time to witness the end of the battle;
+and while going over the field with Sir Rowland Hill, he remarked that
+he had never seen so many men hors de combat in so small a space.
+
+I must not omit to mention a circumstance which occurred during this
+great fight, alike illustrative of cowardice and of courage.  The colonel
+of an infantry regiment, who shall be nameless, being hard pressed,
+showed a disposition not only to run away himself, but to order his
+regiment to retire.  In fact, a retrograde movement had commenced, when
+my gallant and dear friend Lord Charles Spencer, aide-de-camp to Sir
+William Stewart, dashed forward, and, seizing the colours of the regiment,
+exclaimed, "If your colonel will not lead you, follow me, my boys."
+The gallantry of this youth, then only eighteen years of age, so animated
+the regiment, and restored their confidence, that they rallied and shared
+in the glory of the day.
+
+
+THE PASSAGE OF THE ADOUR
+
+
+Immediately after the battle of Nivelle, Lord Wellington determined
+to advance his whole line on to French ground.  The right, under his
+own command, pushed on towards Orthes, whilst the left, under the command
+of Sir John Hope, proceeded in the direction of Bayonne.  We (the Guards)
+were incorporated in the latter corps d'armee.
+
+Whilst these operations were going on, Soult was organizing his discouraged
+army, in order to make, as early as possible, another convenient stand.
+The enemy fell back on Orthes, and there took up a strong position;
+Soult was, nevertheless, destined to be beaten again at Orthes.  It
+so happened that, for the first time since the battle of Vittoria, our
+cavalry were engaged: the nature of the ground at Nive and Nivelle was
+such as to prevent the possibility of employing the mounted soldier.
+
+I must here record an incident which created a considerable sensation
+in military circles in connection with the battle of Orthes.  The 10th
+Hussars, officered exclusively by men belonging to the noblest families
+of Great Britain, showed a desire to take a more active part in the
+contest than their colonel (Quintin) thought prudent. They pressed hard
+to be permitted to charge the French cavalry on more than one occasion,
+but in vain.  This so disgusted every officer in the regiment, that
+they eventually signed a round robin, by which they agreed never again
+to speak to their colonel.  When the regiment returned to England, a
+court of inquiry was held, which resulted, through the protection of
+the Prince Regent, in the colonel's exoneration from all blame, and
+at the same time the exchange of the rebellious officers into other regiments.
+
+It was at the battle of Orthes that the late Duke of Richmond was shot
+through the body, gallantly fighting with the 7th Fusiliers. Lord Wellington
+had determined to cross the Adour, and Sir John Hope was intrusted with
+a corps d'armee, which was the first to perform this difficult operation.
+It was necessary to provide Sir John Hope with a number of small boats;
+these were accordingly brought on the backs of mules from various Spanish
+ports, it being impossible, on account of the surf at the entrance of
+the Adour, as well as the command which the French held of that river,
+for Lord Wellington to avail himself of water carriage.  Soult had given
+orders for the forces under General Thevenot to dispute the passage.
+
+The first operations of our corps were to throw over the 3rd Guards,
+under the command of the gallant Colonel Stopford; this was not accomplished
+without much difficulty: but it was imperatively necessary, in order
+to protect the point where the construction of the bridge of boats would
+terminate.  They had not been long on the French side of the river before
+a considerable body of men were seen issuing from Bayonne. Sir John
+Hope ordered our artillery, and rockets, then for the first time employed,
+to support our small band.  Three or four regiments of French infantry
+were approaching rapidly, when a well-directed fire of rockets fell
+amongst them. The consternation of the Frenchmen was such, when these
+hissing, serpent-like projectiles descended, that a panic ensued, and
+they re- treated upon Bayonne.  The next day the bridge of boats was
+completed, and the whole army crossed. Bayonne was eventually invested
+after a contest, in which it was supposed our loss exceeded 500 or 600
+men.  Here we remained in camp about six weeks, expecting to besiege
+the citadel; but this event never came off: we, however, met with a
+severe disaster and a reverse.  The enemy made an unexpected sortie,
+and surrounded General Sir John Hope, when he and the whole of his staff
+were taken prisoners.  The French killed and wounded about 1,000 men
+on this occasion.
+
+The hardly-contested battle of Toulouse was fought about this period,
+but the Guards were not present to share the honours of a contest which
+closed the eventful war of the Spanish Peninsula.
+
+
+ARRIVAL OF THE GUARDS AT BORDEAUX
+
+
+When we reached Bordeaux, which had now become a stronghold of the Royalists,
+we were received by the inhabitants with a welcome which resembled what
+would be shown to friends and deliverers, rather than to a foreign soldiery.
+Nothing could be more gratifying and more acceptable to our feelings,
+since it was the first time after our arrival on the Continent that
+we met with cordiality and an apparent desire to make our quarters as
+comfortable as possible. The Duc d'Angouleme had reached Bordeaux before
+us, and no doubt his presence had prepared the way for all the friends
+of the Bourbons. Everywhere some description of white rag was doing
+duty for a Royalist banner. I lived at M.  Devigne's, a rich wine-merchant
+who had a family of two sons and two beautiful daughters; the latter
+were, as I thought, taken remarkable care of by their maternal parent.
+Here I had evidently fallen upon my legs, for not only was the family
+a most agreeable one, but their hospitality was of the most generous
+kind. Sir Stapylton Cotton was our frequent visitor, together with M.
+Martignac, afterwards Minister of Charles the Tenth.
+
+Here I had an opportunity of meeting some of the prettiest women of
+a city famed all over Europe for its female beauty.  The young ladies
+were remarkable for their taste in dress, which in those days consisted
+of a mantilla a l'Espagnole, and silken shawls of varied hues, so admirably
+blended, that the eye was charmed with their richness of colour.  The
+grisettes, who were as much admired by the soldiers as were the high
+dames by the officers, were remarkable for a coquettish species of apron
+of a red dye, which was only to be obtained from the neighbourhood.
+
+Of course we were all very anxious to taste the Bordeaux wines; but
+our palates, accustomed to the stronger vintages of Spain, I suspect
+were not in a condition to appreciate the more delicate and refined
+bouquets which ought to characterize claret.  A vin ordinaire, which
+now at restaurateur's would cost three francs, was then furnished at
+the hotels for fifteen sous: a Larose, Lafitte, Margot, such as we are
+now paying eight or ten francs a bottle for, did not cost a third.
+I must not, however, forget that greater attention and care is now employed
+in the preparation of French wines. The exportation to England of the
+light red wines of France was not sufficiently profitable, as I learnt
+from my host, at that time to attract the cupidity of commerce.
+
+In the Guards, Bordeaux was more affectionately remembered in connexion
+with its women than its wine.  We left it with regret, and the more
+youthful and imaginative amongst us said that we were wafted across
+the Channel by the gentle sighs of the girls we left behind us."
+
+
+MRS. MARY ANNE CLARKE
+
+
+Our army, despite its defects, was nevertheless infinitely better administered
+at home when I joined than it had been a few years before; owing principally
+to the inquiry that had taken place in the House of Commons, relative
+to the bribery and corruption which had crept in, and which had been
+laid open by the confessions of a female, who created no small sensation
+in those days, and who eventually terminated her extraordinary career,
+not very long since, in Paris.
+
+The squibs fired off by Mrs. Mary Anne Clarke had a much greater influence,
+and produced more effect upon the English army, than all the artillery
+of the enemy directed against the Duke of York when commanding in Holland.
+This lady was remarkable for her beauty and her fascinations; and few
+came within the circle over which she presided who did not acknowledge
+her superior power.  Her wit, which kept the House of Commons, during
+her examination, in a continued state of merriment, was piquant and
+saucy.  Her answers on that occasion have been so often brought before
+the public, that I need not repeat them; but, in private life, her quick
+repartee, and her brilliant sallies, rendered her a lively, though not
+always an agreeable companion.  As for prudence, she had none; her dearest
+friend, if she had any, was just as likely to be made the object of
+her ridicule as the most obnoxious person of her acquaintance.
+
+Her narrative of her first introduction to the Duke of York has often
+been repeated; but, as all her stories were considered apocryphal, it
+is difficult to arrive at a real history of her career.  Certain however,
+is it that, about the age of sixteen, she was residing at Blackheath
+- a sweet, pretty, lively girl - when, in her daily walk across the
+heath, she was passed, on two or three occasions, by a handsome, well-dressed
+cavalier, who, finding that she recognised his salute, dismounted; pleased
+with her manner and wit, he begged to be allowed to introduce a friend.
+Accordingly, on her consenting, a person to whom the cavalier appeared
+to pay every sort of deference was presented to her, and the acquaintance
+ripened into something more than friendship.  Not the slightest idea
+had the young lady of the position in society of her lover, until she
+accompanied him, on his invitation, to the theatre, where she occupied
+a private box, when she was surprised at the ceremony with which she
+was treated, and at observing that every eye and every lorgnette in
+the house were directed towards her in the course of the evening. She
+accepted this as a tribute to her beauty.  Finding that she could go
+again to the theatre when she pleased, and occupy the same box, she
+availed herself of this opportunity with a female friend, and was not
+a little astonished at being addressed as Her Royal Highness.  She then
+discovered that the individual into whose affections she had insinuated
+herself was the son of the King, the Duke of York, who had not long
+before united himself to a lady, for whom she had been mistaken.
+
+Mrs. Mary Anne Clarke was soon reconciled to the thought of being the
+wife of a prince by the left hand, particularly as she found herself
+assiduously courted by persons of the highest rank, and more especially
+by military men.  A large house in a fashionable street was taken for
+her, and an establishment on a magnificent scale gave her an opportunity
+of surrounding herself with persons of a sphere far beyond anything
+she could in her younger days have dreamt of; her father having been
+in an honourable trade, and her husband being only a captain in a marching
+regiment.  The duke, delighted to see his fair friend so well received,
+constantly honoured her dinner-table with his presence, and willingly
+gratified any wish that she expressed; and he must have known (and for
+this he was afterwards highly censured) that her style of living was
+upon a scale of great expense, and that he himself contributed little
+towards it.  The consequence was that the hospitable lady eventually
+became embarrassed, and knew not which way to turn to meet her outlay.
+It was suggested to her that she might obtain from the duke commissions
+in the army, which she could easily dispose of at a good price.  Individuals
+quickly came forward, ready to purchase anything that came within her
+grasp, which she extended not only to the army, but, as it afterwards
+appeared, to the Church; for there were reverend personages who availed
+themselves of her assistance, and thus obtained patronage, by which
+they advanced their worldly interests very rapidly.
+
+
+MRS. MARY ANNE CLARKE AND COL. WARDLE
+
+
+Amongst those who paid great attention to Mrs. Mary Anne Clarke was
+Colonel Wardle, at that time a remarkable member of the House of Commons,
+and a bold leader of the Radical Opposition.  He got intimately acquainted
+with her, and was so great a personal favourite that it was believed
+he wormed out all her secret history, of which he availed himself to
+obtain a fleeting popularity.
+
+Having obtained the names of some of the parties who had been fortunate
+enough, as they imagined, to secure the lady's favour, he loudly demanded
+an inquiry in the House of Commons as to the management of the army
+by the Commander-in-Chief, the Duke of York.  The nation and the army
+were fond of his Royal Highness, and every attempt to screen him was
+made; but in vain.  The House undertook the task of investigating the
+conduct of the duke, and witnesses were produced, amongst whom was the
+fair lady herself, who by no means attempted to screen her imprudent
+admirer.  Her responses to the questions put to her were cleverly and
+archly given, and the whole mystery of her various intrigues came to
+light.  The duke consequently resigned his place in the Horse Guards,
+and at the same time repudiated the beautiful and dangerous cause of
+his humiliation.  The lady, incensed at the desertion of her royal swain,
+announced her intention of publishing his love-letters, which were likely
+to expose the whole of the royal family to ridicule, as they formed
+the frequent themes of his correspondence.  Sir Herbert Taylor was therefore
+commissioned to enter into a negotiation for the purchase of the letters;
+this he effected at an enormous price, obtaining a written document
+at the same time by which Mrs. Clarke was subjected to heavy penalties
+if she, by word or deed, implicated the honour of any of the branches
+of the royal family.  A pension was secured to her, on condition that
+she should quit England, and reside wherever she chose on the Continent.
+To all this she consented, and, in the first instance, went to Brussels,
+where her previous history being scarcely known, she was well received;
+and she married her daughters without any inquiry as to the fathers
+to whom she might ascribe them.
+
+Mrs. Clarke afterwards settled quietly and comfortably in Paris, receiving
+occasionally visits from members of the aristocracy who had known her
+when mingling in a certain circle in London.  The Marquis of Londonderry
+never failed to pay his respects to her, entertaining a very high opinion
+of her talents.  Her manners were exceedingly agreeable, and to the
+latest day she retained pleasing traces of past beauty.  She was lively,
+sprightly, and full of fun, and indulged in innumerable anecdotes of
+the members of the royal family of England - some of them much too scandalous
+to be repeated.  She regarded the Duke of York as a big baby, not out
+of his leading-strings, and the Prince of Wales as an idle sensualist,
+with just enough of brains to be guided by any laughing, well-bred individual
+who would listen to stale jokes and impudent ribaldry.  Of Queen Charlotte
+she used to speak with the utmost disrespect, attributing to her a love
+of domination and a hatred of every one who would not bow down before
+any idol that she chose to set up; and as being envious of the Princess
+Caroline and her daughter the Princess Charlotte of Wales, and jealous
+of their acquiring too much influence over the Prince of Wales.  In
+short, Mary Anne Clarke had been so intimately let into every secret
+of the life of the royal family that, had she not been tied down, her
+revelations would have astonished the world, however willing the people
+might have been to believe that they were tinged with scandal and exaggeration.
+
+
+The way in which Colonel Wardle first obtained information of the sale
+of commissions was singular enough: he was paying a clandestine visit
+to Mrs. Clarke, when a carriage with the royal livery drove up to the
+door, and the gallant officer was compelled to take refuge under the
+sofa; but instead of the royal duke, there appeared one of his aide-de-camps,
+who entered into conversation in so mysterious a manner as to excite
+the attention of the gentleman under the sofa, and led him to believe
+that the sale of a commission was authorised by the Commander-in-Chief;
+though it afterwards appeared that it was a private arrangement of the
+unwelcome visitor.  At the Horse-Guards, it had often been suspected
+that there was a mystery connected with commissions that could not be
+fathomed; as it frequently happened that the list of promotions agreed
+on was surreptitiously increased by the addition of new names.  This
+was the crafty handiwork of the accomplished dame; the duke having employed
+her as his amanuensis, and being accustomed to sign her autograph lists
+without examination.
+
+
+SOCIETY IN LONDON IN 1814
+
+
+In the year 1814, my battalion of the Guards was once more in its old
+quarters in Portman Street barracks, enjoying the fame of our Spanish
+campaign.  Good society at the period to which I refer was, to use a
+familiar expression, wonderfully "select."  At the present time one
+can hardly conceive the importance which was attached to getting admission
+to Almack's, the seventh heaven of the fashionable world. Of the three
+hundred officers of the Foot Guards, not more than half a dozen were
+honoured with vouchers of admission to this exclusive temple of the
+beau monde; the gates of which were guarded by lady patronesses, whose
+smiles or frowns consigned men and women to happiness or despair. These
+lady patronesses were the Ladies Castlereagh, Jersey, Cowper, and Sefton,
+Mrs. Drummond Burrell, now Lady Willoughby, the Princess Esterhazy,
+and the Countess Lieven.
+
+The most popular amongst these grandes dames was unquestionably Lady
+Cowper, now Lady Palmerston.  Lady Jersey's bearing, on the contrary,
+was that of a theatrical tragedy queen; and whilst attempting the sublime,
+she frequently made herself simply ridiculous, being inconceivably rude,
+and in her manner often ill-bred.  Lady Sefton was kind and amiable,
+Madame de Lieven haughty and exclusive, Princess Esterhazy was a bon
+enfant, Lady Castlereagh and Mrs. Burrell de tres grandes dames.
+
+Many diplomatic arts, much finesse, and a host of intrigues, were set
+in motion to get an invitation to Almack's.  Very often persons whose
+rank and fortunes entitled them to the entree anywhere, were excluded
+by the cliqueism of the lady patronesses; for the female government
+of Almack's was a pure despotism, and subject to all the caprices of
+despotic rule: it is needless to add that, like every other despotism,
+it was not innocent of abuses.  The fair ladies who ruled supreme over
+this little dancing and gossiping world, issued a solemn proclamation
+that no gentleman should appear at the assemblies without being dressed
+in knee-breeches, white cravat, and chapeau bras.  On one occasion,
+the Duke of Wellington was about to ascend the staircase of the ball-room,
+dressed in black trousers, when the vigilant Mr. Willis, the guardian
+of the establishment, stepped forward and said, "Your Grace cannot be
+admitted in trousers," whereupon the Duke, who had a great respect for
+orders and regulations, quietly walked away.
+
+In 1814, the dances at Almack's were Scotch reels and the old English
+country-dance; and the orchestra, being from Edinburgh, was conducted
+by the then celebrated Neil Gow.  It was not until 1815 that Lady Jersey
+introduced from Paris the favourite quadrille, which has so long remained
+popular.  I recollect the persons who formed the very first quadrille
+that was ever danced at Almack's: they were Lady Jersey, Lady Harriet
+Butler, Lady Susan Ryder, and Miss Montgomery; the men being the Count
+St. Aldegonde, Mr. Montgomery, Mr. Montague, and Charles Standish.
+The "mazy waltz" was also brought to us about this time; but there were
+comparatively few who at first ventured to whirl round the salons of
+Almack's; in course of time Lord Palmerston might, however, have been
+seen describing an infinite number of circles with Madame de Lieven.
+Baron de Neumann was frequently seen perpetually turning with the Princess
+Esterhazy; and, in course of time, the waltzing mania, having turned
+the heads of society generally, descended to their feet, and the waltz
+was practised in the morning in certain noble mansions in London with
+unparalleled assiduity.
+
+The dandies of society were Beau Brummell (of whom I shall have to say
+something on another occasion), the Duke of Argyle, the Lords Worcester,
+Alvanley, and Foley, Henry Pierrepoint, John Mills, Bradshaw, Henry
+de Ros, Charles Standish, Edward Montagu, Hervey Aston, Dan Mackinnon,
+George Dawson Damer, Lloyd (commonly known as Rufus Lloyd), and others
+who have escaped my memory.  They were great frequenters of White's
+Club, in St. James's Street, where, in the famous bay window, they mustered
+in force.
+
+Drinking and play were more universally indulged in then than at the
+present time, and many men still living must remember the couple of
+bottles of port at least which accompanied his dinner in those days.
+Indeed, female society amongst the upper classes was most notoriously
+neglected; except, perhaps, by romantic foreigners, who were the heroes
+of many at fashionable adventure that fed the clubs with ever acceptable
+scandal. How could it be otherwise, when husbands spent their days in
+the hunting-field, or were entirely occupied with politics, and always
+away from home during the day; whilst the dinner-party, commencing at
+seven or eight, frequently did not break up before one in the morning.
+There were then four-, and even five-bottle men; and the only thing
+that saved them was drinking very slowly, and out of very small glasses.
+The learned head of the law, Lord Eldon, and his brother, Lord Stowell,
+used to say that they had drunk more bad port than any two men in England;
+indeed, the former was rather apt to be overtaken, and to speak occasionally
+somewhat thicker than natural, after long and heavy potations.  The
+late Lords Panmure, Dufferin, and Blayney, wonderful to relate, were
+six-bottle men at this time; and I really think that if the good society
+of 1815 could appear before their more moderate descendants in the state
+they were generally reduced to after dinner, the moderns would pronounce
+their ancestors fit for nothing but bed.
+
+
+THE ITALIAN OPERA.  - CATALANI
+
+
+The greatest vocalist of whom I have a recollection, is Madame Catalani.
+In her youth, she was the finest singer in Europe, and she was much
+sought after by all the great people during her sejour in London. She
+was extremely handsome, and was considered a model as wife and mother.
+Catalani was very fond of money, and would never sing unless paid beforehand.
+She was invited, with her husband, to pass some time at Stowe, where
+a numerous but select party had been invited; and Madame Catalani, being
+asked to sing soon after dinner, willingly complied. When the day of
+her departure came, her husband placed in the hands of the Marquis of
+Buckingham the following little billet: - "For seventeen songs, seventeen
+hundred pounds." This large sum was paid at once, without hesitation;
+proving that Lord Buckingham was a refined gentleman, in every sense
+of the word.
+
+Catalani's husband, M.  de Valabreque, once fought a duel with a German
+baron who had insulted the prima donna; the weapons used were sabres,
+and Valabreque cut half of the Baron's nose clean off.  Madame Catalani
+lived for many years, highly respected, at a handsome villa near Florence.
+Her two sons are now distinguished members of the Imperial court in
+Paris; the eldest being Prefet du Palais, and the youngest colonel of
+a regiment of hussars.
+
+When George the Fourth was Regent, Her Majesty's Theatre, as the Italian
+Opera in the Haymarket is still called, was conducted on a very different
+system from that which now prevails. Some years previous to the period
+to which I refer, no one could obtain a box or a ticket for the pit
+without a voucher from one of the lady patronesses; who, in 1805, were
+the Duchesses of Marlborough, Devonshire, and Bedford, Lady Carlisle,
+and some others. In their day, after, the singing and the ballet were
+over, the company used to retire into the concert-room, where a ball
+took place, accompanied by refreshments and a supper.  There all the
+rank and fashion of England were assembled on a sort of neutral ground.
+At a later period, the management of the Opera House fell into the hands
+of Mr. Waters, when it became less difficult to obtain admittance; but
+the strictest etiquette was still kept up as regarded the dress of the
+gentlemen, who were only admitted with knee-buckles, ruffles, and chapeau
+bras. If there happened to be a drawing-room, the ladies would appear
+in their court-dresses, as well as the gentlemen, and on all occasions
+the audience of Her Majesty's Theatre was stamped with aristocratic
+elegance.  In the boxes of the first tier might have been seen the daughters
+of the Duchess of Argyle, four of England's beauties; in the next box
+were the equally lovely Marchioness of Stafford and her daughter, Lady
+Elizabeth Gore, now the Duchess of Norfolk: not less remarkable was
+Lady Harrowby and her daughters Lady Susan and Lady Mary Ryder.  The
+peculiar type of female beauty which these ladies so attractively exemplified,
+is such as can be met with only in the British Isles: the full, round,
+soul-inspired eye of Italy, and the dark hair of the sunny south, often
+combined with that exquisitely pearly complexion which seems to be concomitant
+with humidity and fog.  You could scarcely gaze upon the peculiar beauty
+to which I refer without being as much charmed with its kindly expression
+as with its physical loveliness.
+
+
+DINING AND COOKERY IN ENGLAND FIFTY YEARS AGO
+
+
+England can boast of a Spenser, Shakspeare, Milton, and many other illustrious
+poets, clearly indicating that the national character of Britons is
+not deficient in imagination; but we have not had one single masculine
+inventive genius of the kitchen.  It is the probable result of our national
+antipathy to mysterious culinary compounds, that none of the bright
+minds of England have ventured into the region of scientific cookery.
+Even in the best houses, when I was a young man, the dinners were wonderfully
+solid, hot and stimulating.  The menu of a grand dinner was thus composed:
+- Mulligatawny and turtle soups were the first dishes placed before
+you; a little lower, the eye met with the familiar salmon at one end
+of the table, and the turbot, surrounded by smelts, at the other.  The
+first course was sure to be followed by a saddle of mutton or a piece
+of roast beef; and then you could take your oath that fowls, tongue,
+and ham, would as assuredly succeed as darkness after day.
+
+Whilst these never ending pieces de resistance were occupying the table,
+what were called French dishes were, for custom's sake, added to the
+solid abundance.  The French, or side dishes, consisted of very mild
+but very abortive attempts at Continental cooking, and I have always
+observed that they met with the neglect and contempt that they merited.
+The universally adored and ever popular boiled potato, produced at the
+very earliest period of the dinner, was eaten with everything, up to
+the moment when sweets appeared.  Our vegetables, the best in the world,
+were never honoured by an accompanying sauce, and generally came to
+the table cold.  A prime difficulty to overcome was the placing on your
+fork, and finally in your mouth, some half-dozen different eatables
+which occupied your plate at the same time.  For example, your plate
+would contain, say, a slice of turkey, a piece of stuffing, a sausage,
+pickles, a slice of tongue, cauliflower, and potatoes.  According to
+habit and custom, a judicious and careful selection from this little
+bazaar of good things was to be made, with an endeavour to place a portion
+of each in your mouth at the same moment.  In fact, it appeared to me
+that we used to do all our compound cookery between our jaws.  The dessert
+- generally ordered at Messrs. Grange's, or at Owen's, in Bond Street
+- if for a dozen people, would cost at least as many pounds. The wines
+were chiefly port, sherry, and hock; claret, and even Burgundy, being
+then designated "poor, thin, washy stuff."  A perpetual thirst seemed
+to come over people, both men and women, as soon as they had tasted
+their soup; as from that moment everybody was taking wine with everybody
+else till the close of the dinner; and such wine as produced that class
+of cordiality which frequently wanders into stupefaction. How all this
+sort of eating and drinking ended was obvious, from the prevalence of
+gout, and the necessity of everyone making the pill-box their constant
+bedroom companion.
+
+
+THE PRINCE REGENT
+
+
+When the eldest son of George the Third assumed the Regency, England
+was in a state of political transition. The convulsions of the Continent
+were felt amongst us; the very foundations of European society were
+shaking, and the social relations of men were rapidly changing.  The
+Regent's natural leanings were towards the Tories; therefore as soon
+as he undertook the responsibility of power, he abruptly abandoned the
+Whigs and retained in office the admirers and partisans of his father's
+policy.  This resolution caused him to have innumerable and inveterate
+enemies, who never lost an opportunity of attacking his public acts
+and interfering with his domestic relations.
+
+The Regent was singularly imbued with petty royal pride.  He would rather
+be amiable and familiar with his tailor than agreeable and friendly
+with the most illustrious of the aristocracy of Great Britain; he would
+rather joke with a Brummell than admit to his confidence a Norfolk or
+a Somerset.  The Regent was always particularly well-bred in public,
+and showed, if he chose, decidedly good manners; but he was in the habit
+very often of addressing himself in preference to those whom he felt
+he could patronise.  His Royal Highness was as much the victim of circumstances
+and the child of thoughtless imprudence as the most humble subject of
+the crown.  His unfortunate marriage with a Princess of Brunswick originated
+in his debts; as he married that unhappy lady for one million sterling,
+William Pitt being the contractor!  The Princess of Wales married nothing
+but an association with the Crown of England.  If the Prince ever seriously
+loved any woman, it was Mrs. Fitzherbert, with whom he had appeared
+at the altar.
+
+Public opinion in England, under the inspiration of the Whigs, raised
+a cry of indignation against the Prince.  It was imagined, I presume,
+that royal personage should be born without heart or feeling; that he
+should have been able to live only for the good of the State and for
+the convenience of his creditors.  The Princess of Wales was one of
+the most unattractive and almost repulsive women for an elegant-minded
+man that could well have been found amongst German royalty. It is not
+my intention to recall the events of the Regency. It is well known that
+the Prince became eventually so unpopular as to exclude himself as much
+as possible from public gaze.  His intimate companions, after the trial
+of Queen Caroline, were Lords Cunningham and Fife, Sir Benjamin Bloomfield,
+Sir William Macmahon, Admiral Nagle, Sir A. Barnard, Lords Glenlyon,
+Hertford, and Lowther.  These gentlemen generally dined with him; the
+dinner being the artistic product of that famous gastronomic savant,
+Wattiers.  The Prince was very fond of listening after dinner to the
+gossip of society.  When he became George the Fourth, no change took
+place in these personnels at the banquet, excepting that with the fruits
+and flowers of the table was introduced the beautiful Marchioness of
+Conyngham, whose brilliant wit, according to the estimation of his Majesty,
+surpassed that of any other of his friends, male or female.
+
+
+PRINCESS CHARLOTTE OF WALES AT A FETE IN THE YEAR 1813, AT CARLTON HOUSE
+
+
+Carlton House, at the period to which I refer, was a centre for all
+the great politicians and wits who were the favorites of the Regent.
+The principal entrance of this palace in Pall Mall, with its screen
+of columns, will be remembered by many. In the rear of the mansion was
+an extensive garden that reached from Warwick Street to Marlborough
+House; green sward, stately trees, (probably two hundred years old),
+and beds of the choicest flowers, gave to the grounds a picturesque
+attraction perhaps unequalled.  It was here that the heir to the throne
+of England gave, in 1813, an open-air fete, in honour of the battle
+of Vittoria.  About three o'clock P.M. the elite of London society,
+who had been honoured with an invitation, began to arrive - all in full
+dress; the ladies particularly displaying their diamonds and pearls,
+as if they were going to a drawing-room.  The men were, of course, in
+full dress, wearing knee-buckles.  The regal circle was composed of
+the Queen, the Regent, the Princess Sophia and Mary, the Princess Charlotte,
+the Dukes of York, Clarence, Cumberland, and Cambridge.
+
+This was the first day that her Royal Highness the Princess Charlotte
+appeared in public.  She was a young lady of more than ordinary personal
+attractions; her features were regular, and her complexion fair, with
+the rich bloom of youthful beauty; her eyes were blue and very expressive,
+and her hair was abundant, and of that peculiar light brown which merges
+into the golden: in fact, such hair as the Middle-Age Italian painters
+associate with their conceptions of the Madonna.  In figure her Royal
+Highness was somewhat over the ordinary height of women, but finely
+proportioned and well developed.  Her manners were remarkable for a
+simplicity and good-nature which would have won admiration and invited
+affection in the most humble walks of life.  She created universal admiration,
+and I may say a feeling of national pride, amongst all who attended
+the ball.  The Prince Regent entered the gardens giving his arm to the
+Queen, the rest of the royal family following.  Tents had been erected
+in various parts of the grounds, where the bands of the Guards were
+stationed.  The weather was magnificent, a circumstance which contributed
+to show off the admirable arrangements of Sir Benjamin Bloomfield, to
+whom had been deputed the organization of the fete, which commenced
+by dancing on the lawn.
+
+The Princess Charlotte honoured with her presence two dances.  In the
+first she accepted the hand of the late Duke of Devonshire, and in the
+second that of the Earl of Aboyne, who had danced with Marie Antoinette,
+and who, as Lord Huntley, lived long enough to dance with Queen Victoria.
+The Princess entered so much into the spirit of the fete as to ask for
+the then fashionable Scotch dances.  The Prince was dressed in the Windsor
+uniform, and wore the garter and star.  He made himself very amiable,
+and conversed much with the Ladies Hertford, Cholmondeley, and Montford.
+Altogether, the fete was a memorable event.
+
+A year afterwards, the Duke of York said to his royal niece, "Tell me,
+my dear, have you seen anyone among the foreign princes whom you would
+like to have for a husband?"  The Princess naively replied, "No one
+so much prepossesses me as Prince Leopold of Coburg.  I have heard much
+of his bravery in the field, and I must say he is personally agreeable
+to me.  I have particularly heard of his famous cavalry charge at the
+battle of Leipsic, where he took several thousand prisoners, for which
+he was rewarded with the Order of Maria Therese."  In a few months afterwards
+she became the wife of the man whom she so much admired, and from whom
+she was torn away not long after by the cruel hand of death.  It will
+be remembered that she died in childbirth, and her offspring expired
+at the same time.  The accoucheur who attended her was so much affected
+by the calamity, that he committed suicide some short time afterwards.
+
+
+BEAU BRUMMELL
+
+
+Amongst the curious freaks of fortune there is none more remarkable
+in my memory than the sudden appearance, in the highest and best society
+in London, of a young man whose antecedents warranted a much less conspicuous
+career: I refer to the famous Beau Brummell.  We have innumerable instances
+of soldiers, lawyers, and men of letters, elevating themselves from
+the most humble stations, and becoming the companions of princes and
+lawgivers; but there are comparatively few examples of men obtaining
+a similarly elevated position simply from their attractive personal
+appearance and fascinating manners.  Brummell's father, who was a steward
+to one or two large estates, sent his son George to Eton.  He was endowed
+with a handsome person, and distinguished himself at Eton as the best
+scholar, the best boatman, and the best cricketer; and, more than all,
+he was supposed to possess the comprehensive excellences that are represented
+by the familiar term of "good fellow."  He made many friends amongst
+the scions of good families, by whom he was considered a sort of Crichton;
+and his reputation reached a circle over which reigned the celebrated
+Duchess of Devonshire. At a grand ball given by her Grace, George Brummell,
+then quite a youth, appeared for the first time in such elevated society.
+He immediately became a great favourite with the ladies, and was asked
+by all the dowagers to as many balls and soirees as he could attend.
+
+At last the Prince of Wales sent for Brummell, and was so much pleased
+with his manner and appearance, that he gave him a commission in his
+own regiment, the 10th Hussars.  Unluckily, Brummell, soon after joining
+his regiment, was thrown from his horse at a grand review at Brighton,
+when he broke his classical Roman nose.  This misfortune, however, did
+not affect the fame of the beau; and although his nasal organ had undergone
+a slight transformation, it was forgiven by his admirers, since the
+rest of his person remained intact.  When we are prepossessed by the
+attractions of a favourite, it is not a trifle that will dispel the
+illusion; and Brummell continued to govern society, in conjunction with
+the Prince of Wales. He was remarkable for his dress, which was generally
+conceived by himself; the execution of his sublime imagination being
+carried out by that superior genius, Mr. Weston, tailor, of Old Bond
+Street.  The Regent sympathised deeply with Brummell's labours to arrive
+at the most attractive and gentlemanly mode of dressing the male form,
+at a period when fashion had placed at the disposal of the tailor the
+most hideous material that could possibly tax his art.  The coat may
+have a long tail or a short tail, a high collar or a low collar, but
+it will always be an ugly garment.  The modern hat may be spread out
+at the top, or narrowed, whilst the brim may be turned up or turned
+down, made a little wider or a little more narrow, still it is inconceivably
+hideous.  Pantaloons and Hessian boots were the least objectionable
+features of the costume which the imagination of a Brummell and the
+genius of a Royal Prince were called upon to modify or change. The hours
+of meditative agony which each dedicated to the odious fashions of the
+day have left no monument save the coloured caricatures in which these
+illustrious persons have appeared.
+
+Brummell, at this time, besides being the companion and friend of the
+Prince, was very intimate with the Dukes of Rutland, Dorset, and Argyll,
+Lords Sefton, Alvanley, and Plymouth.  In the zenith of his popularity
+he might be seen at the bay window of White's Club, surrounded by the
+lions of the day, laying down the law, and occasionally indulging in
+those witty remarks for which he was famous.  His house in Chapel Street
+corresponded with his personal "get up"; the furniture was in excellent
+taste, and the library contained the best works of the best authors
+of every period and of every country.  His canes, his snuff-boxes, his
+Sevres china, were exquisite; his horses and carriage were conspicuous
+for their excellence; and, in fact, the superior taste of a Brummell
+was discoverable in everything that belonged to him.
+
+But the reign of the king of fashion, like all other reigns, was not
+destined to continue for ever.  Brummell warmly espoused the cause of
+Mrs. Fitzherbert, and this of course offended the Prince of Wales.
+I refer to the period when his Royal Highness had abandoned that beautiful
+woman for another favourite.  A coldness sprang up between the Prince
+and his protege, and finally, the mirror of fashion was excluded from
+the royal presence. A curious accident brought Brummell again to the
+dinner-table of his royal patron; he was asked one night at White's
+to take a hand at whist, when he won from George Harley Drummond 20,000£.
+This circumstance having been related by the Duke of York to the Prince
+of Wales, the beau was again invited to Carlton House.  At the commencement
+of the dinner, matters went off smoothly; but Brummell, in his joy at
+finding himself with his old friend, became excited, and drank too much
+wine.  His Royal Highness - who wanted to pay off Brummell for an insult
+he had received at Lady Cholmondeley's ball, when the beau, turning
+towards the Prince, said to Lady Worcester, "Who is your fat friend?"
+- had invited him to dinner merely out of a desire for revenge.  The
+Prince therefore pretended to be affronted with Brummell's hilarity,
+and said to his brother, the Duke of York, who was present, "I think
+we had better order Mr. Brummell's carriage before he gets drunk."
+Whereupon he rang the bell, and Brummell left the royal presence.  This
+circumstance originated the story about the beau having told the Prince
+to ring the bell. I received these details from the late General Sir
+Arthur Upton, who was present at the dinner. The latter days of Brummell
+were clouded with mortifications and penury.  He retired to Calais,
+where he kept up a ludicrous imitation of his past habits.  At least
+he got himself named consul at Caen; but he afterwards lost the appointment,
+and eventually died insane, and in abject poverty, either at Boulogne
+or Calais.
+
+
+ROMEO COATES
+
+
+This singular man, more than forty years ago, occupied a large portion
+of public attention; his eccentricities were the theme of general wonder,
+and great was the curiosity to catch a glance at as strange a being
+as any that ever appeared in English society.  This extraordinary individual
+was a native of one of the West India Islands, and was represented as
+a man of extraordinary wealth; to which, however, he had no claim.
+
+About the year 1808 there arrived at the York Hotel, at Bath, a person
+about the age of fifty, somewhat gentlemanlike, but so different from
+the usual men of the day that considerable attention was directed to
+him.  He was of a good figure; but his face was sallow, seamed with
+wrinkles, and more expressive of cunning than of any other quality.
+His dress was remarkable: in the day-time he was covered at all seasons
+with enormous quantities of fur; but the evening costume in which he
+went to the balls made a great impression, from its gaudy appearance;
+for his buttons as well as his knee-buckles were of diamonds. There
+was of course great curiosity to know who this stranger was; and this
+curiosity was heightened by an announcement that he proposed to appear
+at the theatre in the character of Romeo.  There was something so unlike
+the impassioned lover in his appearance - so much that indicated a man
+with few intellectual gifts - that everybody was prepared for a failure.
+No one, however, anticipated the reality.
+
+On the night fixed for his appearance the house was crowded to suffocation.
+The playbills had given out that "an amateur of fashion" would for that
+night only perform in the character of Romeo; besides, it was generally
+whispered that the rehearsals gave indication of comedy rather than
+tragedy, and that his readings were of a perfectly novel character.
+
+The very first appearance of Romeo convulsed the house with laughter.
+Benvolio prepares the audience for the stealthy visit of the lover to
+the object of his admiration; and fully did the amateur give the expression
+to one sense of the words uttered, for he was indeed the true representative
+of a thief stealing onwards in the night, "with Tarquin's ravishing
+strides," and disguising his face as if he were thoroughly ashamed of
+it.  The darkness of the scene did not, however, show his real character
+so much as the masquerade, when he came forward with hideous grin, and
+made what he considered his bow, - which consisted in thrusting his
+head forward and bobbing it up and down several times, his body remaining
+perfectly upright and stiff, like a toy mandarin with moveable head.
+
+His dress was outre in the extreme: whether Spanish, Italian, or English,
+no one could say; it was like nothing ever worn.  In a cloak of sky-blue
+silk, profusely spangled, red pantaloons, a vest of white muslin, surmounted
+by an enormously thick cravat, and a wig a la Charles the Second, capped
+by an opera hat, he presented one of the most grotesque spectacles ever
+witnessed upon the stage.  The whole of his garments were evidently
+too tight for him; and his movements appeared so incongruous, that every
+time he raised his arm, or moved a limb, it was impossible to refrain
+from laughter: but what chiefly convulsed the audience was the bursting
+of a seam in an inexpressible part of his dress, and the sudden extrusion
+through the red rent of a quantity of white linen sufficient to make
+a Bourbon flag, which was visible whenever he turned round.  This was
+at first supposed to be a wilful offence against common decency, and
+some disapprobation was evinced; but the utter unconsciousness of the
+odd creature was soon apparent, and then urestrained mirth reigned throughout
+the boxes, pit, and gallery.  The total want of flexibility of limb,
+the awkwardness of his gait, and the idiotic manner in which he stood
+still, all produced a most ludicrous effect; but when his guttural voice
+was heard, and his total misapprehension of every passage in the play,
+especially the vulgarity of his address to Juliet, were perceived, everyone
+was satisfied that Shakspeare's Romeo was burlesqued on that occasion.
+
+The balcony scene was interrupted by shrieks of laughter, for in the
+midst of one of Juliet's impassioned exclamations, Romeo quietly took
+out his snuff-box and applied a pinch to his nose; on this a wag in
+the gallery bawled out, "I say, Romeo, give us a pinch," when the impassioned
+lover, in the most affected manner, walked to the side boxes and offered
+the contents of his box first to the gentlemen, and then, with great
+gallantry, to the ladies.  This new interpretation of Shakspeare was
+hailed with loud bravos, which the actor acknowledged with his usual
+grin and nod.  Romeo then returned to the balcony, and was seen to extend
+his arms; but all passed in dumb show, so incessant were the shouts
+of laughter. All that went on upon the stage was for a time quite inaudible,
+but previous to the soliloquy "I do remember an apothecary," there was
+for a moment a dead silence; for in rushed the hero with a precipitate
+step until he reached the stage lamps, when he commenced his speech
+in the lowest possible whisper, as if he had something to communicate
+to the pit that ought not to be generally known; and this tone was kept
+up throughout the whole of the soliloquy, so that not a sound could be heard.
+
+The amateur actor showed many indications of aberration of mind, and
+seemed rather the object of pity than of amusement; he, however, appeared
+delighted with himself, and also with his audience, for at the conclusion
+he walked first to the left of the stage and bobbed his head in his
+usual grotesque manner at the side boxes; then to the right, performing
+the same feat; after which, going to the centre of the stage with the
+usual bob, and placing his hand upon his left breast, he exclaimed,
+"Haven't I done it well ?"  To this inquiry the house, convulsed as
+it was with shouts of laughter, responded in such a way as delighted
+the heart of Kean on one great occasion, when he said, "The pit rose
+at me." The whole audience started up as if with one accord, giving
+a yell of derision, whilst pocket-handkerchiefs waved from all parts
+of the theatre.
+
+The dying scene was irresistibly comic, and I question if Liston, Munden,
+or Joey Knight, was ever greeted with such merriment; for Romeo dragged
+the unfortunate Juliet from the tomb, much in the same manner as a washerwoman
+thrusts into her cart the bag of foul linen. But how shall I describe
+his death?  Out came a dirty silk handkerchief from his pocket, with
+which he carefully swept the ground; then his opera hat was carefully
+placed for a pillow, and down he laid himself.  After various tossings
+about he seemed reconciled to the position; but the house vociferously
+bawled out, "Die again, Romeo!"  and, obedient to the command, he rose
+up, and went through the ceremony again.  Scarcely had he lain quietly
+down, when the call was again heard, and the well-pleased amateur was
+evidently prepared to enact a third death; but Juliet now rose up from
+her tomb, and gracefully put an end to this ludicrous scene by advancing
+to the front of the stage and aptly applying a quotation from Shakspeare: -
+
+"Dying is such sweet sorrow,
+That he will die again until to-morrow."
+
+Thus ended an extravaganza such as has seldom been witnessed; for although
+Coates repeated the play at the Haymarket, amidst shouts of laughter
+from the playgoers, there never was so ludicrous a performance as that
+which took place at Bath on the first night of his appearance.  Eventually
+he was driven from the stage with much contumely, in consequence of
+its having been discovered that, under pretence of acting for a charitable
+purpose, he had obtained a sum of money for his performances. His love
+of notoriety led him to have a most singular shell-shaped carriage built,
+in which, drawn by two fine white horses, he was wont to parade in the
+park; the harness, and every available part of the vehicle (which was
+really handsome) were blazoned over with his heraldic device - a cock
+crowing, and his appearance was heralded by the gamins of London shrieking
+out "cock-a-doodle-doo." Coates eventually quitted London and settled
+at Boulogne, where a fair lady was induced to become the partner of
+his existence, notwithstanding the ridicule of the whole world.
+
+
+HYDE PARK AFTER THE PENINSULAR WAR
+
+
+That extensive district of park land, the entrances of which are in
+Piccadilly and Oxford Street, was far more rural in appearance in 1815
+than at the present day.  Under the trees cows and deer were grazing;
+the paths were fewer and none told of that perpetual tread of human
+feet which now destroys all idea of country charms and illusions. As
+you gazed from an eminence, no rows of monotonous houses reminded you
+of the vicinity of a large city, and the atmosphere of Hyde Park was
+then much more like what God has made it than the hazy, gray, coal-darkened
+half-twilight of the London of to-day.  The company which then congregated
+daily about five, was composed of dandies and women in the best society;
+the men mounted on such horses as England alone could then produce.
+The dandy's dress consisted of a blue coat with brass buttons, leather
+breeches, and top boots; and it was the fashion to wear a deep, stiff
+white cravat, which prevented you from seeing your boots while standing.
+All the world watched Brummell to imitate him, and order their clothes
+of the tradesman who dressed that sublime dandy.  One day a youthful
+beau approached Brummell and said, "Permit me to ask you where you get
+your blacking?"  "Ah!"  replied Brummell, gazing complacently at his
+boots, "my blacking positively ruins me.  I will tell you in confidence;
+it is made with the finest champagne!"
+
+Many of the ladies used to drive into the park in a carriage called
+a vis-a-vis, which held only two persons.  The hammer-cloth, rich in
+heraldic designs, the powdered footmen in smart liveries, and a coachman
+who assumed all the gaiety and appearance of a wigged archbishop, were
+indispensable.  The equipages were generally much more gorgeous than
+at a later period, when democracy invaded the parks, and introduced
+what may be termed a "brummagem society," with shabby-genteel carriages
+and servants. The carriage company consisted of the most celebrated
+beauties, amongst whom were remarked the Duchesses of Rutland, Argyle,
+Gordon, and Bedford, Ladies Cowper, Foley, Heathcote, Louisa Lambton,
+Hertford, and Mountjoy.  The most conspicuous horsemen were the Prince
+Regent (accompanied by Sir Benjamin Bloomfield); the Duke of York and
+his old friend, Warwick Lake; the Duke of Dorset, on his white horse;
+the Marquis of Anglesea, with his lovely daughters; Lord Harrowby and
+the Ladies Ryder; the Earl of Sefton and the Ladies Molyneux; and the
+eccentric Earl of Moreton on his long-tailed grey.  In those days "pretty
+horsebreakers" would not have dared to show themselves in Hyde Park;
+nor did you see any of the lower or middle classes of London intruding
+themselves in regions which, with a sort of tacit understanding, were
+then given up exclusively to persons of rank and fashion.
+
+
+LONDON HOTELS IN 1814
+
+
+There was a class of men, of very high rank, such as Lords Wellington,
+Nelson, and Collingwood, Sir John Moore and some few others who never
+frequented the clubs. The persons to whom I refer, and amongst whom
+were many members of the sporting world, used to congregate at a few
+hotels.  The Clarendon, Limmer's, Ibbetson's, Fladong's, Stephens',
+and Grillon's, were the fashionable hotels. The Clarendon was then kept
+by a French cook, Jacquiers, who contrived to amass a large sum of money
+in the service of Louis the Eighteenth in England, and subsequently
+with Lord Darnley.  This was the only public hotel where you could get
+a genuine French dinner, and for which you seldom paid less than three
+or four pounds; your bottle of champagne or of claret, in the year 1814,
+costing you a guinea.
+
+Limmer's was an evening resort for the sporting world; in fact, it was
+a midnight Tattersal's, where you heard nothing but the language of
+the turf, and where men with not very clean hands used to make up their
+books.  Limmer's was the most dirty hotel in London; but in the gloomy,
+comfortless coffee-room might be seen many members of the rich squirearchy,
+who visited London during the sporting season.  This hotel was frequently
+so crowded that a bed could not be obtained for any amount of money;
+but you could always get a very good plain English dinner, an excellent
+bottle of port, and some famous gin-punch.  Ibbetson's hotel was chiefly
+patronized by the clergy and young men from the universities.  The charges
+there were more economical than at similar establishments. Fladong's,
+in Oxford Street, was chiefly frequented by naval men; for in those
+days there was no club for sailors.  Stephens', in Bond Street, was
+a fashionable hotel, supported by officers of the army and men about
+town.  If a stranger asked to dine there, he was stared at by the servants,
+and very solemnly assured that there was no table vacant.  It was not
+an uncommon thing to see thirty or forty saddle-horses and tilburys
+waiting outside this hotel.  I recollect two of my old Welsh friends,
+who used each of them to dispose of five bottles of wine daily, residing
+here in 1815, when the familiar joints, boiled fish and fried soles,
+were the only eatables you could order.
+
+
+THE CLUBS OF LONDON IN 1814
+
+
+The members of the clubs in London, many years since, were persons,
+almost without exception, belonging exclusively to the aristocratic
+world.  "My tradesmen," as King Allen used to call the bankers and the
+merchants, had not then invaded White's, Boodle's, Brookes', or Wattiers',
+in Bolton Street, Piccadilly; which, with the Guards, Arthur's, and
+Graham's, were the only clubs at the West End of the town.  White's
+was decidedly the most difficult of entry; its list of members comprised
+nearly all the noble names of Great Britain.
+
+The politics of White's club were then decidedly Tory.  It was here
+that play was carried on to an extent which made many ravages in large
+fortunes, the traces of which have not disappeared at the present day.
+General Scott, the father-in-law of George Canning and the Duke of Portland,
+was known to have won at White's 200,000£.; thanks to his notorious
+sobriety and knowledge of the game of whist.  The General possessed
+a great advantage over his companions by avoiding those indulgences
+at the table which used to muddle other men's brains.  He confined himself
+to dining off something like a boiled chicken, with toast-and-water;
+by such a regimen he came to the whist-table with a clear head, and
+possessing as he did a remarkable memory, with great coolness and judgment,
+he was able honestly to win the enormous sum of 200,000£.  At Brookes',
+for nearly half a century, the play was of a more gambling character
+than at White's.  Faro and macao were indulged in to an extent which
+enabled a man to win or to lose a considerable fortune in one night.
+It was here that Charles James Fox, Selwyn, Lord Carlisle, Lord Robert
+Spencer, General Fitzpatrick, and other great Whigs, won and lost hundreds
+of thousands; frequently remaining at the table for many hours without rising.
+
+On one occasion, Lord Robert Spencer contrived to lose the last shilling
+of his considerable fortune, given him by his brother, the Duke of Marlborough;
+General Fitzpatrick being much in the same condition, they agreed to
+raise a sum of money, in order that they might keep a faro bank.  The
+members of the club made no objection, and ere long they carried out
+their design.  As is generally the case, the bank was a winner, and
+Lord Robert bagged, as his share of the proceeds, 100,000£. He retired,
+strange to say, from the foetid atmosphere of play, with the money in
+his pocket, and never again gambled. George Harley Drummond, of the
+famous banking-house, Charing Cross, only played once in his whole life
+at White's Club at whist, on which occasion he lost 20,000£. to Brummell.
+This event caused him to retire from the banking-house of which he was
+a partner.
+
+Lord Carlisle was one of the most remarkable victims amongst the players
+at Brookes', and Charles Fox, his friend, was not more fortunate, being
+subsequently always in pecuniary difficulties.  Many a time, after a
+long night of hard play, the loser found himself at the Israelitish
+establishment of Howard and Gibbs, then the fashionable and patronized
+money-lenders.  These gentlemen never failed to make hard terms with
+the borrower, although ample security was invariably demanded.
+
+The Guards' Club was established for the three regiments of Foot Guards,
+and was conducted upon a military system.  Billiards and low whist were
+the only games indulged in.  The dinner was, perhaps, better than at
+most clubs, and considerably cheaper.  I had the honour of being a member
+for several years, during which time I have nothing to remember but
+the most agreeable incidents.  Arthur's and Graham's were less aristocratic
+than those I have mentioned; it was at the latter, thirty years ago,
+that a most painful circumstance took place.  A nobleman of the highest
+position and influence in society was detected in cheating at cards,
+and after a trial, which did not terminate in his favour, he died of
+a broken heart.
+
+Upon one occasion, some gentlemen of both White's and Brookes' had the
+honour to dine with the Prince Regent, and during the conversation,
+the Prince inquired what sort of dinners they got at their clubs; upon
+which, Sir Thomas Stepney, one of the guests, observed that their dinners
+were always the same, "the eternal joints, or beefsteaks, the boiled
+fowl with oyster sauce, and an apple tart - this is what we have, sir,
+at our clubs, and very monotonous fare it is."  The Prince, without
+further remark, rang the bell for his cook, Wattier, and, in the presence
+of those who dined at the Royal table, asked him whether he would take
+a house and organize a dinner club.  Wattier assented, and named Madison,
+the Prince's page, manager, and Labourie, the cook, from the Royal kitchen.
+The club flourished only a few years, owing to the high play that was
+carried on there.  The Duke of York patronized it, and was a member.
+I was a member in 1816, and frequently saw his Royal Highness there.
+The dinners were exquisite; the best Parisian cooks could not beat Labourie.
+The favourite game played there was macao.  Upon one occasion, Jack
+Bouvrie, brother of Lady Heytesbury, was losing large sums, and became
+very irritable; Raikes, with bad taste, laughed at Bouverie, and attempted
+to amuse us with some of his stale jokes; upon which, Bouverie threw
+his play-bowl, with the few counters it contained, at Raikes's head;
+unfortunately it struck him, and made the City dandy angry, but no serious
+results followed this open insult.
+
+
+REMARKABLE CHARACTERS OF LONDON ABOUT THE YEARS 1814, 1815, 1816
+
+
+It appears to be a law of natural history that every generation produces
+and throws out from the mob of society a few conspicuous men, that pass
+under the general appellation of "men about town." Michael Angelo Taylor
+was one of those remarkable individuals whom everyone was glad to know;
+and those who had not that privilege were ever talking about him, although
+he was considered by many a bit of a bore.  Michael Angelo was a Member
+of Parliament for many years, and generally sat in one of the most important
+committees of the House of Commons; for he was a man of authority and
+an attractive speaker.  In appearance he was one of that sort of persons
+whom you could not pass in the streets without exclaiming, "Who can
+that be?"  His face blushed with port wine, the purple tints of which,
+by contrast, caused his white hair to glitter with silvery brightness;
+he wore leather breeches, top boots, blue coat, white waistcoat, and
+an unstarched and exquisitely white neckcloth, the whole surmounted
+by a very broad-brimmed beaver; - such was the dress of the universally
+known Michael Angelo Taylor.  If you met him in society, or at the clubs,
+he was never known to salute you but with the invariable phrase, "What
+news have you?"  Upon one occasion, riding through St. James's Park,
+he met the great Minister, Mr. Pitt, coming from Wimbledon, where he
+resided. He asked Mr. Pitt the usual question, upon which the Premier
+replied, "I have not yet seen the morning papers."
+
+"Oh, that won't do, Mr.  Pitt.  I am Sure that you know something, and
+will not tell me." Mr.  Pitt good-humouredly replied: "Well, then, I
+am going to a Cabinet Council, and I will consult my colleagues whether
+I can divulge State secrets to you or not." Upon another occasion, on
+entering Boodle's, of which he was a member, he observed the celebrated
+Lord Westmoreland at table, where the noble lord was doing justice to
+a roast fowl. Taylor, of course, asked him the news of the day, and
+Lord Westmoreland coolly told the little newsmonger to go into the other
+room and leave him to finish his dinner, promising to join him after
+he had done.  The noble Lord kept his word, and the first thing he heard
+from Mr. Taylor was, "Well, my lord, what news?  what had you for dinner?"
+
+His lordship replied, "A Welsh leg of mutton." "What then - what then?"
+"Don't you think a leg of mutton enough for any man?"  "Yes, my lord,
+but you did not eat it all." "Yes, Taylor, I did." "Well, I think you
+have placed the leg of mutton in some mysterious place, for I see no
+trace of it in your lean person."
+
+Lord Westmoreland was remarkable for an appetite which made nothing
+of a respectable joint, or a couple of fowls.
+I know not whether Mr.  Poole, the author of Paul Pry, had Michael Angelo
+in his head when he wrote that well-known comedy; but certainly he might
+have sat for a character whose intrusive and inquisitive habits were
+so notorious, that people on seeing him approach always prepared for
+a string of almost impertinent interrogations.
+
+Another remarkable man about town was Colonel Cooke, commonly called
+Kangaroo Cooke, who was for many years the private aide-de-camp and
+secretary of H.  R.  H.  the Duke of York. He was the brother of General
+Sir George Cooke and of the beautiful Countess of Cardigan, mother of
+the gallant Lord Cardigan, and the Ladies Howe, Baring, and Lucan.
+During his career he had been employed in diplomatic negotiations with
+the French, previous to the peace of Paris.  He was in the best society,
+and always attracted attention by his dandified mode of dress.
+
+Colonel Armstrong, another pet of the Duke of York, was known, when
+in the Coldstream Guards, to be a thorough hard-working soldier, and
+his non-commissioned officers were so perfect, that nearly all the adjutants
+of the different regiments of the line were educated by him.  He was
+a strict disciplinarian, but strongly opposed to corporal punishment,
+and used to boast that during the whole time that he commanded the regiment
+only two men had been flogged.
+
+Colonel Mackinnon, commonly called "Dan," was an exceedingly well-made
+man, and remarkable for his physical powers in running, jumping, climbing,
+and such bodily exercises as demanded agility and muscular strength.
+He used to amuse his friends by creeping over the furniture of a room
+like a monkey.  It was very common for his companions to make bets with
+him: for example, that he would not be able to climb up the ceiling
+of a room, or scramble over a certain house-top.  Grimaldi, the famous
+clown, used to say, "Colonel Mackinnon has only to put on the motley
+costume, and he would totally eclipse me."
+
+Mackinnon was famous for practical jokes; which were, however, always
+played in a gentlemanly way.  Before landing at St. Andero's, with some
+other officers who had been on leave in England, he agreed to personate
+the Duke of York, and make the Spaniards believe that his Royal Highness
+was amongst them.  On nearing the shore, a royal standard was hoisted
+at the masthead, and Mackinnon disembarked, wearing the star of his
+shako on his left breast, and accompanied by his friends, who agreed
+to play the part of aides-de-camp to royalty.  The Spanish authorities
+were soon informed of the arrival of the Royal Commander-in-Chief of
+the British army; so they received Mackinnon with the usual pomp and
+circumstance attending such occasions.  The mayor of the place, in honour
+of the illustrious arrival, gave a grand banquet, which terminated with
+the appearance of a huge bowl of punch. Whereupon Dan, thinking that
+the joke had gone far enough, suddenly dived his head into the porcelain
+vase, and threw his heels into the air . The surprise and indignation
+of the solemn Spaniards was such, that they made a most intemperate
+report of the hoax that had been played on them to Lord Wellington;
+Dan, how- ever, was ultimately forgiven, after a severe reprimand.
+
+Another of his freaks very nearly brought him to a court- martial.
+Lord Wellington was curious about visiting a convent near Lisbon, and
+the lady abbess made no difficulty; Mackinnon, hearing this, contrived
+to get clandestinely within the sacred walls, and it was generally supposed
+that it was neither his first nor his second visit. At all events, when
+Lord Wellington arrived, Dan Mackinnon was to be seen among the nuns,
+dressed out in their sacred costume, with his head and whiskers shaved,
+and as he possessed good features, he was declared to be one of the
+best-looking amongst those chaste dames.  It was supposed that this
+adventure, which was known to Lord Byron, suggested a similar episode
+in Don Juan, the scene being laid in the East.  I might say more about
+Dan's adventures in the convent, but have no wish to be scandalous.
+
+Another dandy of the day was Sir Lumley Skeffington, who used to paint
+his face, so that he looked like a French toy; he dressed a la Robespierre,
+and practised other follies, although the consummate old fop was a man
+of literary attainments, and a great admirer and patron of the drama.
+Skeffington was remarkable for his politeness and courtly manners; in
+fact, he was invited everywhere, and was very popular with the ladies.
+You always knew of his approach by an avant-courier of sweet smells;
+and when he advanced a little nearer, you might suppose yourself in
+the atmosphere of a perfumer's shop.  He is thus immortalized by Byron,
+in the English Bards and Scotch Reviewers, alluding to the play written
+by Skeffington, The Sleeping Beauty:-
+
+"In grim array though Lewis' spectres rise,
+Still Skeffington and Goose divide the prize:
+And sure great Skeffington must claim our praise,
+For skirtless coats and skeletons of plays
+Renowned alike; whose genius ne'er confines
+Her flight to garnish Greenwood's gay designs,
+Nor sleeps with 'sleeping beauties' but anon
+In five facetious acts comes thundering on,
+While poor John Bull, bewildered with the scene,
+Stares, wondering what the devil it can mean;
+But as some hands applaud - a venal few -
+Rather than sleep, John Bull applauds it too."
+
+Long Wellesley Pole was a fashionable who distinguished himself by giving
+sumptuous dinners at Wanstead, where he owned one of the finest mansions
+in England.  He used to ask his friends to dine with him after the opera
+at midnight; the drive from London being considered appetisant.  Every
+luxury that money could command was placed before his guests at this
+unusual hour of the night.  He married Miss Tylney Pole, an heiress
+of fifty thousand a-year, yet died quite a beggar: in fact, he would
+have starved, had it not been for the charity of his cousin, the present
+Duke of Wellington, who allowed him three hundred a-year.
+
+
+THE GUARDS MARCHING FROM ENGHIEN ON THE 15TH OF JUNE
+
+
+Two battalions of my regiment had started from Brussels; the other (the
+2nd), to which I belonged, remained in London, and I saw no prospect
+of taking part in the great events which were about to take place on
+the Continent.  Early in June I had the honour of dining with Colonel
+Darling, the deputy adjutant-general, and I was there introduced to
+Sir Thomas Picton, as a countryman and neighbour of his brother, Mr.
+Turbeville, of Evenney Abbey, in Glamorganshire.  He was very gracious,
+and, on his two aides-de-camp - Major Tyler and my friend Chambers,
+of the Guards - lamenting that I was obliged to remain at home, Sir
+Thomas said, "Is the lad really anxious to go out?"  Chambers answered
+that it was the height of my ambition.  Sir Thomas inquired if all the
+appointments to his staff were filled up; and then added, with a grim
+smile, "If Tyler is killed, which is not at all unlikely, I do not know
+why I should not take my young countryman: he may go over with me if
+he can get leave." I was overjoyed at this, and, after thanking the General
+a thousand times, made my bow and retired.
+
+I was much elated at the thoughts of being Picton's aide-de-camp, though
+that somewhat remote contingency depended upon my friends Tyler, or
+Chambers, or others, meeting with an untimely end; but at eighteen on
+ne doute de rien. So I set about thinking how I should manage to get
+my outfit, in order to appear at Brussels in a manner worthy of the
+aide-de-camp of the great General.  As my funds were at a low ebb, I
+went to Cox and Greenwood's, those staunch friends of the hard-up soldier.
+Sailors may talk of the "little cherub that sits up aloft," but commend
+me for liberality, kindness, and generosity, to my old friends in Craig's
+Court. I there obtained 200£., which I took with me to a gambling-house
+in St. James' Square, where I managed, by some wonderful accident, to
+win 600£.; and, having thus obtained the sinews of war, I made numerous
+purchases, amongst others two first-rate horses at Tattersall's for
+a high figure, which were embarked for Ostend, along with my groom.
+I had not got leave; but I thought I should get back, after the great
+battle that appeared imminent, in time to mount guard at St.  James's.
+On a Saturday I accompanied Chambers in his carriage to Ramsgate, where
+Sir Thomas Picton and Tyler had already arrived; we remained there for
+the Sunday, and embarked on Monday in a vessel which had been hired
+for the General and suite.  On the same day we arrived at Ostend, and
+put up at an hotel in the square; where I was surprised to hear the
+General, in excellent French, get up a flirtation with our very pretty
+waiting-maid.
+
+Sir Thomas Picton was a stern-looking, strong-built man, about the middle
+height, and considered very like the Hetman Platoff.  He generally wore
+a blue frock-coat, very tightly buttoned up to the throat; a very large
+black silk neckcloth, showing little or no shirt-collar; dark trousers,
+boots, and a round hat: it was in this very dress that he was attired
+at Quatre Bras, as he had hurried off to the scene of action before
+his uniform arrived. After sleeping at Ostend, the General and Tyler
+went the next morning to Ghent, and on Thursday to Brussels.  I proceeded
+by boat to Ghent, and, without stopping, hired a carriage, and arrived
+in time to order rooms for Sir Thomas at the Hotel d'Angleterre, Rue
+de la Madeleine, at Brussels: our horses followed us.
+
+While we were at breakfast, Colonel Canning came to inform the General
+that the Duke of Wellington wished to see him immediately.  Sir Thomas
+lost not a moment in obeying the order of his chief, leaving
+the breakfast-table and proceeding to the park, where Wellington was
+walking with Fitzroy Somerset and the Duke of Richmond.  Picton's manner
+was always more familiar than the Duke liked in his lieutenants, and
+on this occasion he approached him in a careless sort of way, just as
+he might have met an equal.  The Duke bowed coldly to him, and said,
+"I am glad you are come, Sir Thomas; the sooner you get on horseback
+the better; no time is to be lost.  You will take the command of the
+troops in advance.  The Prince of Orange knows by this time that you
+will go to his assistance."  Picton appeared not to like the Duke's
+manner; for, when he bowed and left, he muttered a few words which convinced
+those who were with him that he was not much pleased with his interview.
+
+
+QUATRE BRAS
+
+
+I got upon the best of my two horses, and followed Sir Thomas Picton
+and his staff to Quatre Bras at full speed.  His division was already
+engaged in supporting the Prince of Orange, and had deployed itself
+in two lines in front of the road to Sombref when he arrived. Sir Thomas
+immediately took the command. Shortly afterwards, Kempt's and Pack's
+brigades arrived by the Brussels road, and part of Alten's division
+by the Nivelles road.
+
+Ney was very strong in cavalry, and our men were constantly formed into
+squares to receive them.  The famous Kellerman, the hero of Marengo,
+tried a last charge, and was very nearly being taken or killed, as his
+horse was shot under him when very near us.  Wellington at last took
+the offensive; - a charge was made against the French, which succeeded,
+and we remained masters of the field.  I acted as a mere spectator,
+and got, on one occasion, just within twenty or thirty yards of some
+of the cuirassiers; but my horse was too quick for them.
+
+On the 17th, Wellington retreated upon Waterloo, about eleven o'clock.
+The infantry were masked by the cavalry in two lines, parallel to the
+Namur road.  Our cavalry retired on the approach of the French cavalry,
+in three columns, on the Brussels road.  A torrent of rain fell, upon
+the Emperor's ordering the heavy cavalry to charge us; while the fire
+of sixty or eighty pieces of cannon showed that we had chosen our position
+at Waterloo.  Chambers said to me, "Now, Gronow, the loss has been very
+severe in the Guards, and I think you ought to go and see whether you
+are wanted; for, as you have really nothing to do with Picton, you had
+better join your regiment, or you may get into a scrape." Taking his
+advice, I rode off to where the Guards were stationed; the officers
+- amongst whom I remember Colonel Thomas and Brigade-Major Miller -
+expressed their astonishment and amazement on seeing me, and exclaimed,
+"What the deuce brought you here?  Why are you not with your battalion
+in London?  Get off your horse, and explain how you came here!"
+
+Things were beginning to look a little awkward, when Gunthorpe, the
+adjutant, a great friend of mine, took my part and said, "As he is here,
+let us make the most of him; there's plenty of work for everyone.  Come,
+Gronow, you shall go with the Hon.  Captain Clements and a detachment
+to the village of Waterloo, to take charge of the French prisoners."
+I said, "What the deuce shall I do with my horse ?"  Upon which the
+Hon.  Captain Stopford, aide-de-camp to Sir John Byng, volunteered to
+buy him.  Having thus once more become a foot soldier, I started according
+to orders, and arrived at Waterloo.
+
+
+GENERAL APPEARANCE OF THE FIELD OF WATERLOO
+
+
+The day on which the battle of Waterloo was fought seemed to have been
+chosen by some providential accident for which human wisdom is unable
+to account.  On the morning of the 18th the sun shone most gloriously,
+and so clear was the atmosphere that we could see the long, imposing
+lines of the enemy most distinctly. Immediately in front of the division
+to which I belonged, and, I should imagine, about half a mile from us,
+were posted cavalry and artillery; and to the right and left the French
+had already engaged us, attacking Huguemont and La Haye Sainte.  We
+heard incessantly the measured boom of artillery, accompanied by the
+incessant rattling echoes of musketry.
+
+The whole of the British infantry not actually engaged were at that
+time formed into squares; and as you looked along our lines, it seemed
+as if we formed a continuous wall of human beings. I recollect distinctly
+being able to see Bonaparte and his staff; and some of my brother officers
+using the glass, exclaimed, "There he is on his white horse."  I should
+not forget to state that when the enemy's artillery began to play on
+us, we had orders to lie down, when we could hear the shot and shell
+whistling around us, killing and wounding great numbers; then again
+we were ordered on our knees to receive cavalry. The French artillery
+- which consisted of three hundred guns, though we did not muster more
+than half that number - committed terrible havoc during the early part
+of the battle, whilst we were acting on the defensive.
+
+
+THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON IN OUR SQUARE
+
+
+About four P.M. the enemy's artillery in front of us ceased firing
+all of a sudden, and we saw large masses of cavalry advance: not a man
+present who survived could have forgotten in after life the awful grandeur
+of that charge.  You discovered at a distance what appeared to be an
+overwhelming, long moving line, which, ever advancing, glittered like
+a stormy wave of the sea when it catches the sunlight.  On they came
+until they got near enough, whilst the very earth seemed to vibrate
+beneath the thundering tramp of the mounted host.  One might suppose
+that nothing could have resisted the shock of this terrible moving mass.
+They were the famous cuirassiers, almost all old soldiers,
+who had distinguished themselves on most of the battlefields of Europe.
+In an almost incredibly short period they were within twenty yards of
+us, shouting "Vive l'Empereur!"  The word of command, "Prepare to receive
+cavalry," had been given, every man in the front ranks knelt, and a
+wall bristling with steel, held together by steady hands, presented
+itself to the infuriated cuirassiers.
+
+I should observe that just before this charge the duke entered by one
+of the angles of the square, accompanied only by one aide-de-camp; all
+the rest of his staff being either killed or wounded.  Our commander-in-chief,
+as far as I could judge, appeared perfectly composed; but looked very
+thoughtful and pale.  He was dressed in a grey great-coat with a cape,
+white cravat, leather pantaloons, Hessian boots, and a large cocked
+hat a la Russe.
+
+The charge of the French cavalry was gallantly executed; but our well-directed
+fire brought men and horses down, and ere long the utmost confusion
+arose in their ranks.  The officers were exceedingly brave, and by their
+gestures and fearless bearing did all in their power to encourage their
+men to form again and renew the attack. The duke sat unmoved, mounted
+on his favourite charger.  I recollect his asking the Hon. Lieut.-Colonel
+Stanhope what o'clock it was, upon which Stanhope took out his watch,
+and said it was twenty minutes past four.  The Duke replied, "The battle
+is mine; and if the Prussians arrive soon, there will be an end of the war."
+
+
+THE FRENCH CAVALRY CHARGING THE BRUNSWICKERS
+
+
+Soon after the cuirassiers had retired, we observed to our right the
+red hussars of the Garde Imperiale charging a square of Brunswick riflemen,
+who were about fifty yards from us. This charge was brilliantly executed,
+but the well-sustained fire from the square baffled the enemy, who were
+obliged to retire after suffering a severe loss in killed and wounded.
+The ground was completely covered with those brave men, who lay in various
+positions, mutilated in every conceivable way.  Among the fallen we
+perceived the gallant colonel of the hussars lying under his horse,
+which had been killed, All of a sudden two riflemen of the Brunswickers
+left their battalion, and after taking from their helpless victim his
+purse, watch, and other articles of value, they deliberately put the
+colonel's pistols to the poor fellow's head and blew out his brains.
+"Shame!  shame!"  was heard from our ranks, and a feeling of indignation
+ran through the whole line; but the deed was done: this brave soldier
+lay a lifeless corpse in sight of his cruel foes, whose only excuse
+perhaps was that their sovereign, the Duke of Brunswick, had been killed
+two days before by the French.
+
+Again and again various cavalry regiments, heavy dragoons, lancers,
+hussars, carabineers of the Guard, endeavoured to break our walls of
+steel. The enemy's cavalry had to advance over ground which was so heavy
+that they could not reach us except at a trot; they therefore came upon
+us in a much more compact mass than they probably would have done if
+the ground had been more favourable.  When they got within ten or fifteen
+yards they discharged their carbines, to the cry of "Vive l' Empereur!"
+their fire produced little effect, as that of cavalry generally does.
+Our men had orders not to fire unless they could do so on a near mass;
+the object being to economize our ammunition, and not to waste it on
+scattered soldiers.  The result was, that when the cavalry had discharged
+their carbines, and were still far off, we occasionally stood face to
+face, looking at each other inactively, not knowing what the next move
+might be.  The lancers were particularly troublesome, and approached
+us with the utmost daring.  On one occasion I remember, the enemy's
+artillery having made a gap in the square, the lancers were evidently
+waiting to avail themselves of it, to rush among us, when Colonel Staples
+at once observing their intention, with the utmost promptness filled
+up the gap, and thus again completed our impregnable steel wall; but
+in this act he fell mortally wounded.  The cavalry seeing this, made
+no attempt to carry out their original intentions, and observing that
+we had entirely regained our square, confined themselves to hovering
+round us.  I must not forget to mention that the lancers in particular
+never failed to despatch our wounded whenever they had an opportunity
+of doing so.
+
+When we received cavalry, the order was to fire low; so that on the
+first discharge of musketry the ground was strewed with the fallen horses
+and their riders, which impeded the advance of those behind them and
+broke the shock of the charge.  It was pitiable to witness the agony
+of the poor horses, who really seemed conscious of the dangers that
+surrounded them: we often saw a poor wounded animal raise its head,
+as if looking for its rider to afford him aid.  There is nothing perhaps
+amongst the episodes of a great battle more striking than the debris
+of a cavalry charge, where men and horses are seen scattered and wounded
+on the ground in every variety of painful attitude. Many a time the
+heart sickened at the moaning tones of agony which came from man and
+scarcely less intelligent horse, as they lay in fearful agony upon the
+field of battle.
+
+
+THE LAST CHARGE AT WATERLOO
+
+
+It was about five o'clock on that memorable day, that we suddenly received
+orders to retire behind an elevation in our rear.  The enemy's artillery
+had come up en masse within a hundred yards of us.  By the time they
+began to discharge their guns, however, we were lying down behind the
+rising ground, and protected by the ridge before referred to.  The enemy's
+cavalry was in the rear of their artillery, in order to be ready to
+protect it if attacked; but no attempt was made on our part to do so.
+After they had pounded away at us for about half an hour, they deployed,
+and up came the whole mass of the Imperial infantry of the Guard, led
+on by the Emperor in person.  We had now before us probably about 20,000
+of the best soldiers in France, the heroes of many memorable victories;
+we saw the bearskin caps rising higher and higher as they ascended the
+ridge of ground which separated us, and advanced nearer and nearer to
+our lines. It was at this moment the Duke of Wellington gave his famous
+order for our bayonet charge, as he rode along the line: these are the
+precise words he made use of - "Guards, get up and charge!"  We were
+instantly on our legs, and after so many hours of inaction and irritation
+at maintaining a purely defensive attitude - all the time suffering
+the loss of comrades and friends - the spirit which animated officers
+and men may easily be imagined.  after firing a volley as soon as the
+enemy were within shot, we rushed on with fixed bayonets, and that hearty
+hurrah peculiar to British soldiers.
+
+It appeared that our men, deliberately and with calculation, singled
+out their victims; for as they came upon the Imperial Guard our line
+broke, and the fighting became irregular.  The impetuosity of our men
+seemed almost to paralyze their enemies: I witnessed several of the
+Imperial Guard who were run through the body apparently without any
+resistance on their parts.  I observed a big Welshman of the name of
+Hughes, who was six feet seven inches in height, run through with his
+bayonet, and knock down with the butt end of his firelock, I should
+think a dozen at least of his opponents.  This terrible contest did
+not last more than ten minutes, for the Imperial Guard was soon in full
+retreat, leaving all their guns and many prisoners in our hands.  The
+famous General Cambronne was taken prisoner fighting hand to hand with
+the gallant Sir Colin Halkett, who was shortly after shot through the
+cheeks by a grape-shot.  Cambronne's supposed answer of "La Garde ne
+se rend pas" was an invention of after-times, and he himself always
+denied having used such an expression.
+
+
+HUGUEMONT
+
+
+Early on the morning after the battle of Waterloo, I visited Huguemont,
+in order to witness with my own eyes the traces of one of
+the most hotly-contested spots of the field of battle.  I came first
+upon the orchard, and there discovered heaps of dead men, in various
+uniforms: those of the Guards in their usual red jackets, the German
+Legion in green, and the French dressed in blue, mingled together.
+The dead and the wounded positively covered the whole area of the orchard;
+not less than two thousand men had there fallen.  The apple-trees presented
+a singular appearance; shattered branches were seen hanging about their
+mother-trunks in such profusion that one might almost suppose the stiff-growing
+and stunted tree had been converted into the willow: every tree was
+riddled and smashed in a manner which told that the showers of shot
+had been incessant. On this spot I lost some of my dearest and bravest
+friends, and the country had to mourn many of its most heroic sons slain here.
+
+I must observe that, according to the custom of commanding officers,
+whose business it is after a great battle to report to the Commander-in-Chief,
+the muster-roll of fame always closes before the rank of captain.  It
+has always appeared to me a great injustice that there should ever be
+any limit to the roll of gallantry of either officers or men.  If a
+captain, lieutenant, an ensign, a sergeant, or a private, has distinguished
+himself for his bravery, his intelligence, or both, their deeds ought
+to be reported, in order that the sovereign and nation should know who
+really fight the great battles of England.  Of the class of officers
+and men to which I have referred, there were many of even superior rank
+who were omitted to be mentioned in the public despatches.
+
+Thus, for example, to the individual courage of Lord Saltoun and Charley
+Ellis, who commanded the light companies, was mainly owing our success
+at Huguemont.  The same may be said of Needham, Percival, Erskine, Grant,
+Vyner, Buckley, Master, and young Algernon Greville, who at that time
+could not have been more than seventeen years old.  Excepting Percival,
+whose jaws were torn away by a grape-shot, everyone of these heroes
+miraculously escaped.
+
+I do not wish, in making these observations, to detract from the bravery
+and skill of officers whose names have already been mentioned in official
+despatches, but I think it only just that the services of those I have
+particularized should not be forgotten by one of their companions in arms.
+
+
+BYNG WITH HIS BRIGADE AT WATERLOO
+
+
+No individual officer more distinguished himself than did General Byng
+at the battle of Waterloo. In the early part of the day he was seen
+at Huguemont, leading his men in the thick of the fight; later he was
+with the battalion in square, where his presence animated to the utmost
+enthusiasm both officers and men.  It is difficult to imagine how this
+courageous man passed through such innumerable dangers from shot and
+shell without receiving a single wound.  I must also mention some other
+instances of courage and devotion in officers belonging to this brigade;
+for instance, it was Colonel MacDonell, a man of colossal stature, with
+Hesketh, Bowes, Tom Sowerby, and Hugh Seymour, who commanded from the
+inside the Chateau of Huguemont.  When the French had taken possession
+of the orchard, they made a rush at the principal door of the chateau,
+which had been turned into a fortress.  MacDonell and the above officers
+placed themselves, accompanied by some of their men, behind the portal
+and prevented the French from entering. Amongst other officers of that
+brigade who were most conspicuous for bravery, I would record the names
+of Montague, the "vigorous Gooch," as he was called, and the well-known
+Jack Standen.
+
+
+THE LATE DUKE OF RICHMOND
+
+
+One of the most intimate friends of the Duke of Wellington was the Earl
+of March, afterwards Duke of Richmond.  He was a genuine hard-working
+soldier, a man of extraordinary courage, and one who was ever found
+ready to gain laurels amidst the greatest dangers.  When the 7th Fusiliers
+crossed the Bidassoa, the late duke left the staff and joined the regiment
+in which he had a company.  At Orthes, in the thick of the fight, he
+received a shot which passed through his lungs; from this severe wound
+he recovered sufficiently to be able to join the Duke of Wellington,
+to whom he was exceedingly useful at the battle of Waterloo.  On his
+return to England, he united himself to the most remarkably beautiful
+girl of the day, the eldest daughter of Lord Anglesea, and whose mother
+was the lovely Duchess of Argyle.
+
+
+THE UNFORTUNATE CHARGE OF THE HOUSEHOLD BRIGADE
+
+
+When Lord Uxbridge gave orders to Sir W. Ponsonby and Lord Edward Somerset
+to charge the enemy, our cavalry advanced with the greatest bravery,
+cut through everything in their way, and gallantly attacked whole regiments
+of infantry; but eventually they came upon a masked battery of twenty
+guns, which carried death and destruction through our ranks, and our
+poor fellows were obliged to give way.  The French cavalry followed
+on their retreat, when, perhaps, the severest hand-to-hand cavalry fighting
+took place within the memory of man.  The Duke of Wellington was perfectly
+furious that this arm had been engaged without his orders, and lost
+not a moment in sending them to the rear, where they remained during
+the rest of the day.  This disaster gave the French cavalry an opportunity
+of annoying and insulting us, and compelled the artillerymen to seek
+shelter in our squares; and if the French had been provided with tackle,
+or harness of any description, our guns would have been taken.  It is,
+therefore, not to be wondered at that the Duke should have expressed
+himself in no measured terms about the cavalry movements referred to.
+I recollect that, when his grace was in our square, our soldiers were
+so mortified at seeing the French deliberately wa1king their horses
+between our regiment and those regiments to our right and left, that
+they shouted, "Where are our cavalry?  why don't they come and pitch
+into those French fellows?"
+
+
+THE DUKE OF WELLINGTON'S OPINION OF THE FRENCH CAVALRY
+
+
+A day or two after our arrival in Paris from Waterloo, Colonel Felton
+Hervey having entered the dining-room with the despatches which had
+come from London, the Duke asked, "What news have you, Hervey?"  upon
+which, Colonel Felton Hervey answered, "I observe by the Gazette that
+the Prince Regent has made himself Captain-General of the Life Guards
+and Blues, for their brilliant conduct at Waterloo."
+
+"Ah!"  replied the Duke, "his Royal Highness is our Sovereign, and can
+do what he pleases; but this I will say, the cavalry of other European
+armies have won victories for their generals, but mine have invariably
+got me into scrapes.  It is true that they have always fought gallantly
+and bravely, and have generally got themselves out of their difficulties
+by sheer pluck."
+
+The justice of this observation has since been confirmed by the charge
+at Balaklava, where our cavalry undauntedly rushed into the face of
+death under the command of that intrepid officer Lord Cardigan.
+
+
+MARSHAL EXCELMANN'S OPINION OF THE BRITISH CAVALRY
+
+
+Experience has taught me that there is nothing more valuable than the
+opinions of intelligent foreigners on the military and naval excellences,
+and the failures, of our united service.  Marshal Excelmann's opinion
+about the British cavalry struck me as remarkably instructive: he used
+to say, "Your horses are the finest in the world, and your men ride
+better than any Continental soldiers; with such materials, the English
+cavalry ought to have done more than has ever been accomplished by them
+on the field of battle.  The great deficiency is in your officers, who
+have nothing to recommend them but their dash and sitting well in their
+saddles; indeed, as far as my experience goes, your English generals
+have never understood the use of cavalry: they have undoubtedly frequently
+misapplied that important arm of a grand army, and have never, up to
+the battle of Waterloo, employed the mounted soldier at the proper time
+and in the proper place.  The British cavalry officer seems to be impressed
+with the conviction that he can dash and ride over everything; as if
+the art of war were precisely the same as that of fox-hunting.  I need
+not remind you of the charge of your two heavy brigades at Waterloo:
+this charge was utterly useless, and all the world knows they came upon
+a masked battery, which obliged a retreat, and entirely disconcerted
+Wellington's plans during the rest of the day."
+
+"Permit me," he added, "to point out a gross error as regards the dress
+of your cavalry. I have seen prisoners so tightly habited that it was
+impossible for them to use their sabres with facility." The French Marshal
+concluded by observing - "I should wish nothing better than such material
+as your men and horses are made of; since with generals who wield cavalry,
+and officers who are thoroughly acquainted with that duty in the field,
+I do not hesitate to say I might gain a battle."
+
+Such was the opinion of a man of cool judgment, and one of the most
+experienced cavalry officers of the day.
+
+
+
+APPEARANCE OF PARIS WHEN THE ALLIES ENTERED
+
+
+I propose giving my own impression of the aspect of Paris and its vicinity
+when our regiment entered that city on the 25th of June, 1815.  I recollect
+we marched from the plain of St. Denis, my battalion being about five
+hundred strong, the survivors of the heroic fight of the 18th of June.
+We approached near enough to be within fire of the batteries of Montmartre,
+and bivouacked for three weeks in the Bois de Boulogne.  That now beautiful
+garden was at the period to which I refer a wild pathless wood, swampy,
+and entirely neglected.  The Prussians, who were in bivouac near us,
+amused themselves by doing as much damage as they could, without any
+useful aim or object: they cut down the finest trees, and set the wood
+on fire at several points.  There were about three thousand of the Guards
+then encamped in the wood, and I should think about ten thousand Prussians.
+Our camp was not remarkable for its courtesy towards them; in fact,
+our intercourse was confined to the most ordinary demands of duty, as
+allies in an enemy's country.
+
+I believe I was one of the first of the British army who penetrated
+into the heart of Paris after Waterloo.  I entered by the Porte Maillot,
+and passed the Arc de Triomphe, which was then building.  In those days
+the Champs Elysees only contained a few scattered houses, and the roads
+and pathways were ancle deep in mud. The only attempt at lighting was
+the suspension of a few lamps on cords, which crossed the roads. Here
+I found the Scotch regiments bivouacking; their peculiar uniform created
+a considerable sensation amongst the Parisian women, who did not hesitate
+to declare that the want of culottes was most indecent.  I passed through
+the camp, and proceeded on towards the gardens of the Tuilleries.  This
+ancient palace of the Kings of France presented, so far as the old front
+is concerned, the same aspect that it does at the present day; but there
+were then no flower-gardens, although the same stately rows of trees
+which now ornament the grounds were then in their midsummer verdure.
+
+Being in uniform, I created an immense amount of curiosity amongst the
+Parisians; who, by the way, I fancied regarded me with no loving looks.
+The first house I entered was a cafe in the garden of the Tuilleries,
+called Legac's.  I there met a man who told me he was by descent an
+Englishman; though he had been born in Paris, and had really never quitted
+France.  He approached me, saying, "Sir, I am delighted to see an English
+officer in Paris, and you are the first I have yet met with."  He talked
+about the battle of Waterloo, and gave me some useful directions concerning
+restaurants and cafes.  Along the Boulevards were handsome houses, isolated,
+with gardens interspersed, and the roads were bordered on both sides
+with stately, spreading trees, some of them probably a hundred years
+old.  There was but an imperfect pavement, the stepping-stones of which
+were adapted to display the Parisian female ankle and boot in all their
+calculated coquetry; and the road showed nothing but mother earth, in
+the middle of which a dirty gutter served to convey the impurities of
+the city to the river.  The people in the streets appeared sulky and
+stupefied: here and there I noticed groups of the higher classes evidently
+discussing the events of the moment.
+
+How strange humanity would look in our day in the costume of the first
+empire.  The ladies wore very scanty and short skirts, which left little
+or no waist; their bonnets were of exaggerated proportions, and protruded
+at least a foot from their faces, and they generally carried a fan.
+The men wore blue or black coats, which were baggily made, and reached
+down to their ankles; their hats were enormously large, and spread out
+at the top.
+
+I dined the first day of my entrance into Paris at the Cafe Anglais,
+on the Boulevard des Italiens, where I found to my surprise several
+of my brother officers.  I recollect the charge for the dinner was about
+one-third what it would be at the present day.  I had a potage, fish
+- anything but fresh, and, according to English predilections and taste,
+of course I ordered a beef-steak and pommes de terre.  The wine, I thought,
+was sour.  The dinner cost about two francs. The theatres at this time,
+as may easily be imagined, were not very well attended.  I recollect
+going to the Francais, where I saw for the first time the famous Talma.
+There was but a scanty audience; in fact all the best places in the
+house were empty.
+
+It may easily be imagined that, at a moment like this, most of those
+who had a stake in the country were pondering over the great and real
+drama that was then taking place.  Napoleon had fled to Rochfort; the
+wreck of his army had retreated beyond the Loire; no list of killed
+and wounded had appeared; and, strange to say, the official journal
+of Paris had made out that the great Imperial army at Waterloo had gained
+a victory.  There were, nevertheless, hundreds of people in Paris who
+knew to the contrary, and many were already aware that they had lost
+relations and friends in the great battle.
+
+Louis XVIII. arrived, as well as I can remember, at the Tuileries on
+the 26th of July, 1815, and his reception by the Parisians was a singular
+illustration of the versatile character of the French nation, and the
+sudden and often inexplicable changes which take place in the feeling
+of the populace.  When the Bourbon, in his old lumbering state carriage,
+drove down the Boulevards, accompanied by the Garde du Corps, the people
+in the streets and at the windows displayed the wildest joy, enthusiastically
+shouting "Vive le Roi!"  amidst the waving of hats and handkerchiefs,
+while white sheets or white rags were made to do the duty of a Bourbon
+banner.  The king was dressed in a blue coat with a red collar, and
+wore also a white waistcoat and a cocked hat with a white cockade in
+it.  His portly and good-natured appearance seemed to be appreciated
+by the crowd, whom he saluted with a benevolent smile.  I should here
+mention that two great devotees of the Church sat opposite to the King
+on this memorable occasion.  The cortege proceeded slowly down the Rue
+de la Paix until the Tuileries was reached, where a company of the
+Guards, together with a certain number of the Garde Nationale of Paris,
+were stationed.
+
+It fell to my lot to be on duty the day after, when the Duke of Wellington
+and Lord Castlereagh arrived to pay their respects to the restored monarch.
+I happened to be in the Salle des Marechaux when these illustrious personages
+passed through that magnificent apartment.  The respect paid to the
+Duke of Wellington on this occasion may be easily imagined, from the
+fact that a number of ladies of the highest rank, and of course partisans
+of the legitimate dynasty, formed an avenue through which the hero of
+Waterloo passed, exchanging with them courteous recognitions.  The King
+was waiting in the grand reception apartment to receive the great British
+captain.  The interview, I have every reason to believe, was not confined
+to the courtesies of the palace.
+
+The position of the Duke was a difficult one. In the first place, he
+had to curb the vindictive vandalism of Blucher and his army, who would
+have levelled the city of Paris to the ground, if they could have done
+so; on the other hand, he had to practise a considerable amount of diplomacy
+towards the newly-restored King. At the same time the Duke's powers
+from his own Government were necessarily limited.  A spirit of vindictiveness
+pervaded the restored Court against Napoleon and his adherents, which
+the Duke constantly endeavoured to modify.  I must not forget to give
+an illustration of this state of feeling.  It was actually proposed
+by Talleyrand, Fouche, and some important ecclesiastics of the ultra-royalist
+party, to arrest and shoot the Emperor Napoleon, who was then at Rochfort:
+so anxious were they to commit this criminal, inhuman, and cowardly
+act, on an illustrious fallen enemy, who had made the arms of France
+glorious throughout Europe, that they suggested to the Duke, who had
+the command of the old wooden-armed semaphores, to employ the telegraph
+to order what I should have designated by no other name than the assassination
+of the Caesar of modern history.
+
+
+
+MARSHAL NEY AND WELLINGTON
+
+
+As an illustration of the false impressions which are always disseminated
+concerning public men, I must record the following fact: - The Duke
+of Wellington was accused of being implicated in the military murder
+of Ney.  Now, so far from this being the truth, I know positively that
+the Duke of Wellington used every endeavour to prevent this national
+disgrace; but the Church party, ever crafty and ever ready to profit
+by the weakness and passions of humanity, supported the King in his
+moments of excited revenge.  It is a lamentable fact, but no less historical
+truth, that the Roman Catholic Church has ever sought to make the graves
+of its enemies the foundations of its power.  The Duke of Wellington
+was never able to approach the King or use his influence to save Marshal
+Ney's life; but everything he could do was done, in order to accomplish
+his benevolent views. I repeat, the influence of the ultra-montane party
+triumphed over the Christian humanity of the illustrious Duke.
+
+
+THE PALAIS ROYAL AFTER THE RESTORATION
+
+
+France has often been called the centre of European fashion and gaiety;
+and the Palais Royal, at the period to which I refer, might be called
+the very heart of French dissipation.  It was a theatre in which all
+the great actors of fashion of all nations met to play their parts:
+on this spot were congregated daily an immense multitude, for no other
+purpose than to watch the busy comedy of real life that animated the
+corridors, gardens, and saloons of that vast building, which was founded
+by Richelieu and Mazarin, and modified by Philippe Egalite.  Mingled
+together, and moving about the area of this oblong-square block of buildings,
+might be seen, about seven o'clock P.M., a crowd of English, Russian,
+Prussian, Austrian, and other officers of the Allied armies, together
+with countless foreigners from all parts of the world.  Here, too, might
+have been seen the present King of Prussia, with his father and brother,
+the late king, the Dukes of Nassau, Baden, and a host of continental
+princes, who entered familiarly into the amusements of ordinary mortals,
+dining incog. at the most renowned restaurants, and flirting with painted
+female frai1ty,
+
+A description of one of the houses of the Palais Royal, will serve to
+portray the whole of this French pandemonium.  On the ground floor is
+a jeweller's shop, where may be purchased diamonds, pearls, emeralds,
+and every description of female ornament, such as only can be possessed
+by those who have very large sums of money at their command.  It was
+here that the successful gambler often deposited a portion of his winnings,
+and took away some costly article of jewellery, which he presented to
+some female friend who had never appeared with him at the altar of marriage.
+Beside this shop was a staircase, generally very dirty, which communicated
+with the floors above.  Immediately over the shop was a cafe, at the
+counter of which presided a lady, generally of more than ordinary female
+attractions, who was very much decolletee, and wore an amount of jewellery
+which would have made the eye of an Israelite twinkle with delight.
+And there la creme de la creme of male society used to meet, sip their
+ice and drink their cup of mocha, whilst holding long conversations,
+almost exclusively about gambling and women.
+
+Men's thoughts, in this region, seemed to centre night and day upon
+the tapis vert, and at the entrance of this salon was that fatal chamber,
+over which might have been written the famous line of Dante, "Voi che
+entrate lasciate ogni speranza."  The reader will at once understand
+that I am referring to the gambling-house, the so-called "hell" of modern
+society.  In one room was the rouge et noir table, which, from the hour
+of twelve in the morning, was surrounded by men in every stage of the
+gambling malady. There was the young pigeon, who, on losing his first
+feather, had experienced an exciting sensation which, if followed by
+a bit of good luck, gave him a confidence that the parasites around
+him, in order to flatter his vanity, would call pluck.  There were others
+in a more advanced stage of the fever, who had long since lost the greater
+part of their incomes, having mortgaged their property, and been in
+too frequent correspondence with the Jews.  These men had not got to
+the last stage of gambling despair, but they were so far advanced on
+the road to perdition that their days were clouded by perpetual anxiety,
+which reproduced itself in their very dreams.  The gambler who has thus
+far advanced in his career, lives in an inferno of his own creation:
+the charms of society, the beauty of woman, the attractions of the fine
+arts, and even the enjoyment of a good dinner, are to him rather a source
+of irritation than delight.  The confirmed gamester is doing nothing
+less than perpetually digging a grave for his own happiness.
+
+The third and most numerous group of men round the tapis vert consisted
+of a class most of whom had already spent their fortunes, exhausted
+their health, and lost their position in society, by the fatal and demoralizing
+thirst for gold, which still fascinated them.  These became the hawks
+of the gambling table; their quick and wild-glancing eyes were constantly
+looking out for suitable game during the day, and leaving it where it
+might be bagged at night.  Both at the rouge et noir table and roulette
+the same sort of company might be met with.  These gambling-houses were
+the very fountains of immorality: they gathered together, under the
+most seductive circumstances, the swindler and the swindled.  There
+were tables for all classes - the workman might play with 20 sous, or
+the gentleman with 10,000 francs.  The law did not prevent any class
+from indulging in a vice that assisted to fill the coffers of the municipality
+of Paris.
+
+The floor over the gambling-house was occupied by unmarried women.
+I will not attempt to picture some of the saddest evils of the society
+of large cities; but I may add that these Phrynes lived in a style of
+splendour which can only be accounted for by the fact of their participating
+in the easily-earned gains of the gambling-house regime. Such was the
+state of the Palais Royal under Louis XVIII. and Charles X. : the Palais
+Royal of the present day is simply a tame and legitimately-commercial
+mart, compared with that of olden times.  Society has changed; Government
+no longer patronizes such nests of immorality; and though vice may exist
+to the same extent, it assumes another garb, and does not appear in
+the open streets, as at the period to which I have referred.
+
+At that time, the Palais Royal was externally the only well-lighted
+place in Paris.  It was the rendezvous of all idlers, and especially
+of that particular class of ladies who lay out their attractions for
+the public at large.  These were to be seen at all hours in full dress,
+their bare necks ornamented with mock diamonds and pearls; and thus
+decked out in all their finery, they paraded up and down, casting their
+eyes significantly on every side.  Some strange stories are told in
+connection with the gambling houses of the Palais Royal.  An officer
+of the Grenadier Guards came to Paris on leave of absence, took apartments
+here, and never left it until his time of absence had expired.  On his
+arrival in London one of his friends inquired whether this was true,
+to which he replied, "Of course it is; for I found everything I wanted
+there, both for body and mind."
+
+
+THE ENGLISH IN PARIS AFTER THE RESTORATION OF THE BOURBONS
+
+
+There is no more ordinary illusion belonging to humanity than that which
+enables us to discover, in the fashions of the day, an elegance and
+comeliness of dress which a few years after we ourselves regard as odious
+caricatures of costume.  Thousands of oddly-dressed English flocked
+to Paris immediately after the war: I remember that the burden of one
+of the popular songs of the day was, "All the world's in Paris;" and
+our countrymen and women having so long been excluded from French modes,
+had adopted fashions of their own quite as remarkable and eccentric
+as those of the Parisians, and much less graceful.  British beauties
+were dressed in long, strait pelisses of various colours; the body of
+the dress was never of the same colour as the skirt; and the bonnet
+was of the bee-hive shape, and very small.  The characteristic of the
+dress of the gentleman was a coat of light blue, or snuff-colour, With
+brass buttons, the tail reaching nearly to the heels; a gigantic bunch
+of seals dangled from his fob, whilst his pantaloons were short and
+tight at the knees; and a spacious waistcoat, with a voluminous muslin
+cravat and a frilled shirt, completed the toilette.  The dress of the
+British military, in its stiff and formal ugliness, was equally cumbrous
+and ludicrous.
+
+Lady Oxford - that beautiful and accomplished woman, who lived in her
+hotel in the Rue de Clichy - gave charming soirees, at which were gathered
+the elite of Paris society.  Among these were Edward Montague, Charles
+Standish, Hervey Aston, Arthur Upton, "Kangaroo" Cook, Benjamin Constant,
+Dupin, Casimir Perier, as well as the chief Orleanists.  On one occasion,
+I recollect seeing there George Canning and the celebrated Madame de
+Stael.  Cornwall, the eldest son of the Bishop of Worcester, had, from
+some unaccountable cause, a misunderstanding with Madame de Stael, who
+appeared very excited, and said to Lady Oxford, in a loud voice, "Notre
+ami, M. Cornewal, est grosso, rosso, e furioso."  It should be observed
+that the gentleman thus characterized was red-haired, and hasty in temper.
+All who heard this denunciation were astounded at the lady's manner,
+for she looked daggers at the object of her sarcasm.
+Fox, the secretary of the embassy, was an excellent man, but odd, indolent,
+and careless in the extreme; he was seldom seen in the daytime, unless
+it was either at the embassy in a state of negligee, or in bed.  At
+night he used to go to the Salon des Etrangers; and, if he possessed
+a Napoleon, it was sure to be thrown away at hazard, or rouge et noir.
+On one occasion, however, fortune favoured him in a most extraordinary
+manner.  The late Henry Baring having recommended him to take the dice-box,
+Fox replied, "I will do so for the last time, for all my money is thrown
+away upon this infernal table."  Fox staked all he had in his pockets;
+he threw in eleven times, breaking the bank, and taking home for his
+share 60,000 francs.  After this, several days passed without any tidings
+being heard of him; but upon my calling at the embassy to get my passport
+vised, I went into his room, and saw it filled with Cashmere shawls,
+silk, Chantilly veils, bonnets, gloves, shoes, and other articles of
+ladies' dress.  On my asking the purpose of all this millinery, Fox
+replied, in a good-natured way, "Why, my dear Gronow, it was the only
+means to prevent those rascals at the salon winning back my money."
+
+
+LES ANGLAISES POUR RIRE
+
+
+An order had been given to the managers of all the theatres in Paris
+to admit a certain number of soldiers of the army of occupation, free
+of expense.  It happened that a party of the Guards, composed of a sergeant
+and a few men, went to the Theatre des Varietes on the Boulevards, where
+one of the pieces, entitled Les Anglaises pour Rire, was admirably acted
+by Potier and Brunet.  In this piece Englishwomen were represented in
+a very ridiculous light by those accomplished performers.  This gave
+great offence to our soldiers, and the sergeant and his men determined
+to put a stop to the acting; accordingly they stormed the stage, and
+laid violent hands upon the actors, eventually driving them off.  The
+police were called in, and foolishly wanted to take our men to prison;
+but they soon found to their cost that they had to deal with unmanageable
+opponents, for the whole posse of gendarmes were charged and driven
+out of the theatre.  A crowd assembled on the Boulevards; which, however,
+soon dispersed when it became known that English soldiers were determined,
+coute qu'il coute, to prevent their countrywomen from being ridiculed.
+It must be remembered that the only revenge which the Parisians were
+able to take upon the conquerors was to ridicule them; and the English
+generally took it in good humour, and laughed at the extravagant drollery
+of the burlesque.
+
+The English soldiers generally walked about Paris in parties of a dozen,
+and were quiet and well-behaved.  They usually gathered every day on
+the Boulevard du Temple, where they were amused with the mountebanks
+and jugglers there assembled.
+
+This part of Paris is now completely changed: but at the time I speak
+of, it was an extensive open place, where every species of fun was carried
+on, as at fairs: there were gambling, rope-dancing, wild beasts, and
+shows; booths for the sale of cakes, gingerbread, fruit, and lemonade;
+and every species of attraction that pleases the multitude; but that
+space has now been built upon, and these sports have all migrated to
+the barriers.
+
+During the time our troops remained, we had only one man found dead
+in the streets: it was said that he had been murdered; but of that there
+was considerable doubt, for no signs of violence were found.  This was
+strongly in contrast to what occurred to the Prussian soldiers. It was
+asserted, and, indeed, proved beyond a doubt, that numbers of them were
+assassinated; and in some parts of France it was not unusual to find
+in the morning, in deep wells or cellars, several bodies of soldiers
+of that nation who had been killed during the night; so strong was the
+hatred borne against them by the French.
+
+
+COACHING AND RACING IN 1815
+
+
+Stage-coaches, or four-in-hand teams, were introduced in Paris in 1815
+by Captain Bacon, of the 10th Hussars (afterwards a general in the Portuguese
+service), Sir Charles Smith, Mr.  Roles, the brewer, and Arnold, of
+the 10th.  They used to meet opposite Demidoff's house, afterwards the
+Cafe de Paris, and drive to the Boulevard Beaumarchais, and then back
+again, proceeding to the then unfinished Arc du Triomphe.  Crowds assembled
+to witness the departure of the teams; and it created no little amusement
+to the Parisian to see perched upon Sir C. Smith's coach one or two
+smartly-dressed ladies, who appeared quite at home.  Sir Charles was
+likewise a great supporter of the turf, and was the first man who brought
+over from England thorough-bred horses. By his indefatigable energy
+he contrived to get up very fair racing in the neighbourhood of Valenciennes;
+his trainer at this time being Tom Hurst, who is now, I believe, at
+Chantilly; and all the officers of our several cavalry and infantry
+regiments contributed their efforts to make these races respectable
+in the eyes of foreigners.  Be this as it may, they were superior to
+those in the Champs de Mars, though under the patronage of the King.
+
+I shall not forget the first time I witnessed racing in Paris, for it
+was more like a review of Gensdarmes and National Guards; the course
+was kept by a forest of bayonets, while mounted police galloped after
+the running horses, and, in some instances, reached the goal before
+them. The Duc d' Angouleme, with the Duc de Guiche and the Prefet, were
+present; but there was only one small stand, opposite to a sentry-box
+where the judge was placed.  The running, to say the least of it, was
+ridiculous: horses and riders fell; and the fete, as it was called,
+ended with a flourish of trumpets.  Wonderful changes have taken place
+since that time, and at the Bois de Boulogne and at Chantilly may be
+seen running equal to that of our best races in England; and our neighbours
+produce horses, bred in France, that can carry off some of the great
+prizes in our own "Isthmian games."
+
+
+PARISIAN CAFES IN 1815
+
+
+At the present day, Paris may be said to be a city of cafes and restaurants.
+The railroads and steamboats enable the rich of every quarter of the
+globe to reach the most attractive of all European cities with comparative
+economy and facility.  All foreigners arriving in Paris seem by instinct
+to rush to the restaurateurs', where strangers may be counted by tens
+of thousands.  It is not surprising that we find in every important
+street these gaudy modern triclinia, which, I should observe, are as
+much frequented by a certain class of French people as by foreigners,
+for Paris is proverbially fond of dining out; in fact, the social intercourse
+may be said to take place more frequently in the public cafe than under
+the domestic roof.
+
+In 1815, I need scarcely remark that the condition of the roads in Europe,
+and the enormous expense of travelling, made a visit to Paris a journey
+which could only be indulged in by a very limited and wealthy class
+of strangers. Hotels and cafes were then neither so numerous nor so
+splendid as at the present day: Meurice's Hotel was a very insignificant
+establishment in the Rue de l'Echiquier; and in the Rue de la Paix,
+at that time unfinished, there were but two or three hotels, which would
+not be considered even second-rate at the present time.  The site of
+the Maison Dore, at the corner of the Rue Lafitte, was then occupied
+by a shabby building which went by the name of the Hotel d'Angleterre,
+and was kept by the popular and once beautiful Madame Dunan.  The most
+celebrated restaurant was that of Beauvilliers, in the Rue de Richelieu;
+mirrors and a little gilding were the decorative characteristics of
+this house; the cuisine was far superior to that of any restaurateur
+of our day, and the wines were first-rate. Beauvilliers was also celebrated
+for his supreme de volaille, and for his cotelette a la Soubise.  The
+company consisted of the most distinguished men of Paris; here were
+to be seen Chateaubriand, Bailly de Ferrette, the Dukes of Fitzjames,
+Rochefoucauld, and Grammont, and many other remarkable personages. It
+was the custom to go to the theatres after dinner, and then to the Salon
+des Etrangers, which was the Parisian Crockford's.
+Another famous dining-house was the Rocher de Cancaille, in the Rue
+Mandar, kept by Borel, formerly one of the cooks of Napoleon.  Here
+the cuisine was so refined that people were reported to have come over
+from England expressly for the purpose of enjoying it: indeed, Borel
+once showed me a list of his customers, amongst whom I found the names
+of Robespierre, Charles James Fox, and the Duke of Bedford.  In the
+Palais Royal the still well-known Trois Freres Provenceaux was in vogue,
+and frequented much by the French officers; being celebrated chiefly
+for its wines and its Provence dishes: it was in the Palais Royal that
+General Lannes, Junot, Murat, and other distinguished officers, used
+to meet Bonaparte just before and during the Consulate; but the cafes,
+with the exception of the Mille Colonnes, were not nearly so smartly
+fitted-up as they now are.  The Cafe Turc, on the Boulevard du Temple,
+latterly visited chiefly by shopkeepers, was much frequented: smoking
+was not allowed, and then, as now, ladies were seen here; more especially
+when the theatres had closed.
+
+
+REVIEW OF THE ALLIED ARMIES BY THE ALLIED SOVEREIGNS IN PARIS
+
+
+In July, 1815, it was agreed by the Sovereigns of Russia, Austria, Prussia,
+Bavaria, Wurtemberg, and a host of petty German Powers - who had become
+wonderfully courageous and enthusiastically devoted to England, a few
+hours after the Battle of Waterloo - that a grand review should be held
+on the plains of St. Denis, where the whole of the allied forces were
+to meet.  Accordingly, at an early hour on a fine summer morning, there
+were seen issuing from the various roads which centre on the plains
+of St.  Denis, numerous English, Russian, Prussian, and Austrian regiments
+of horse and foot, in heavy marching order, with their bands playing;
+and finally a mass of men, numbering not less than 200,000, took up
+their positions on the wide-spreading field.  About twelve o'clock,
+the Duke of Wellington, commander-in-chief of the allied army, approached,
+mounted on a favourite charger; and, strange as it may appear, on his
+right was observed a lady in a plain riding-habit, who was no other
+than Lady Shelley, the wife of the late Sir John Shelley.  Immediately
+behind the Duke followed the Emperors of Austria, and Russia; the Kings
+of Prussia, Holland, Bavaria, and Wurtemberg; several German princes,
+and general officers; the whole forming one of the most illustrious
+and numerous staffs ever brought together.  The Duke of Wellington,
+thus accompanied, took up his position, and began manoeuvering, with
+a facility and confidence which elicited the admiration of all the experienced
+soldiers around him.  Being on duty near his grace, I had an opportunity
+of hearing Prince Schwartzenberg say to the Duke, "You are the only
+man who can so well play at this game."  The review lasted two hours;
+then the men marching home to their quarters, through a crowd of spectators
+which included the whole population of Paris.  The most mournful silence
+was observed throughout on the part of the French.
+
+
+
+CONDUCT OF THE RUSSIAN AND PRUSSIAN SOLDIERS DURING THE OCCUPATION OF
+PARIS BY THE ALLIES
+
+It is only just to say that the moderation shown by the British army,
+from the Duke of Wellington down to the private soldier, during our
+occupation of Paris, contrasted most favourably with that of the Russian
+and Prussian military.  Whilst we simply did our duty, and were civil
+to all those with whom we came in contact, the Russians and Prussians
+were frequently most insubordinate, and never lost an opportunity of
+insulting a people whose armies had almost always defeated them on the
+day of battle.  I remember one particular occasion, when the Emperor
+of Russia reviewed his Garde Imperiale, that the Cossacks actually charged
+the crowd, and inflicted wounds on the unarmed and inoffensive spectators.
+I recollect, too, a Prussian regiment displaying its bravery in the
+Rue St.  Honore on a number of hackney coachmen; indeed, scarcely a
+day passed without outrages being committed by the Russian and Prussian
+soldiers on the helpless population of the lower orders.
+
+
+THE BRITISH EMBASSY IN PARIS
+
+
+England was represented at this period by Sir Charles Stuart, who was
+one of the most popular ambassadors Great Britain ever sent to Paris.
+He made himself acceptable to his countrymen, and paid as much attention
+to individual interests as to the more weighty duties of State.  His
+attaches, as is always the case, took their tone and manner from their
+chief, and were not only civil and agreeable to all those who went to
+the Embassy, but knew everything and everybody, and were of great use
+to the ambassador, keeping him well supplied with information on whatever
+event might be taking place.  The British Embassy, in those days, was
+a centre where you were sure to find all the English gentlemen in Paris
+collected, from time to time.  Dinners, balls, and receptions, were
+given with profusion throughout the season: in fact, Sir Charles spent
+the whole of his private income in these noble hospitalities. England
+was then represented, as it always should be in France, by an ambassador
+who worthily expressed the intelligence, the amiability, and the wealth,
+of the great country to which he belonged.  At the present day, the
+British Embassy emulates the solitude of a monastic establishment; with
+the exception, however, of that hospitality and courtesy which the traveller
+and stranger were wont to experience, even in monasteries.
+
+
+ESCAPE OF LAVALETTE FROM PRISON
+
+
+Few circumstances created a greater sensation than the escape of Lavalette
+from the Conciergerie, after he had been destined by the French Government
+to give employment to the guillotine. The means by which the prisoner
+avoided his fate and disappointed his enemies, produced a deep respect
+for the English character, and led the French to believe that, however
+much the Governments of France and England might be disposed to foster
+feelings either of friendship or of enmity, individuals could entertain
+the deepest sense of regard for each other, and that a chivalrous feeling
+of honour would urge them on to the exercise of the noblest feelings
+of our nature. This incident likewise had a salutary influence in preventing
+acts of cruelty and of bloodshed, which were doubtless contemplated
+by those in power.
+
+Lavalette had been, under the Imperial Government, head of the Post
+Office, which place he filled on the return of the Bourbons; and when
+the Emperor Napoleon arrived from Elba, he continued still to be thus
+employed.  Doubtless, on all occasions when opportunity presented itself,
+he did all in his power to serve his great master; to whom, indeed,
+he was allied by domestic ties, having married into the Beauharnais
+family.  When Louis the Eighteenth returned to Paris after the battle
+of Waterloo, Lavalette and the unfortunate Marshal Ney were singled
+out as traitors to the Bourbon cause, and tried, convicted, and sentenced
+to death. The 26th of December was the day fixed for the execution of
+Lavalette, a man of high respectability and of great connections, whose
+only fault was fidelity to his chief.  On the evening of the 21st, Madame
+Lavalette, accompanied by her daughter and her governess, Madame Dutoit,
+a lady of seventy years of age, presented herself at the Conciergerie,
+to take a last farewell of her husband.  She arrived at the prison in
+a sedan chair.  On this very day the Procureur-general had given an
+order that no one should be admitted without an order signed by himself;
+the greffier having, however, on previous occasions been accustomed
+to receive Madame Lavalette with the two ladies who now sought also
+to enter the cell, did not object to it; so these three ladies proposed
+to take coffee with Lavalette. The under gaoler was sent to a neighbouring
+cafe to obtain it, and during his absence Lavalette exchanged dresses
+with his wife.  He managed to pass undetected out of the prison, accompanied
+by his daughter, and entered the chair in which Madame Lavalette had
+arrived; which, owing to the management of a faithful valet, had been
+placed so that no observation could be made of the person entering it.
+The bearers found the chair somewhat heavier than usual, but were ignorant
+of the change that had taken place, and were glad to find, after proceeding
+a short distance, that the individual within preferred walking home,
+and giving up the sedan to the young lady.  On the greffier entering
+the cell, he quickly discovered the ruse, and gave the alarm; the under
+gaoler was despatched to stop the chair, but he was too late.
+
+Lavalette had formed a friendship with a young Englishman of the name
+of Bruce; to whom he immediately had recourse, throwing himself upon
+his generosity and kind feeling for protection, which was unhesitatingly
+afforded.  But as Bruce could do nothing alone, he consulted two English
+friends who had shown considerable sympathy for the fate of Marshal
+Ney - men of liberal principles and undoubted honour, and both of them
+officers in the British service: these were Captain Hutchinson and General
+Sir Robert Wilson.  To the latter was committed the most difficult task,
+that of conveying out of France the condemned prisoner; but for this
+achievement few men were better fitted than Sir Robert Wilson, a man
+of fertile imagination, ready courage, great assurance, and singular
+power of command over others; who spoke French well, and was intimately
+acquainted with the military habits of different nations.
+
+Sir Robert Wilson's career was a singular one: he had commenced life
+an ardent enemy of Bonaparte, and it was upon his evidence, collected
+in Egypt and published to the world, that the great general was for
+a long time believed to have poisoned his wounded soldiers at Jaffa.
+Afterwards he was attached to the Allied Sovereigns in their great campaign;
+but upon his arrival in Paris, his views of public affairs became suddenly
+changed; he threw off the yoke of preconceived opinions, became an ardent
+liberal, and so continued to the last hours of his life.  The cause
+of this sudden change of opinion has never been thoroughly known, but
+certain it is that on every occasion he supported liberal opinions with
+a firmness and courage that astonished those who had known him in his
+earlier days.
+
+Sir Robert undertook, in the midst of great dangers and difficulties,
+to convey Lavalette out of France; having dressed him in the uniform
+of an English officer, and obtained a passport under a feigned name,
+he took him in a cabriolet past the barriers as far as Compiegne, where
+a carriage was waiting for them.  They passed through sundry examinations
+at the fortified towns, but fortunately escaped; the great difficulty
+being that, owing to Lavalette's having been the director of the posts,
+his countenance was familiar to almost all the postmasters who supplied
+relays of horses.  At Cambray three hours were lost, from the gates
+being shut, and at Valenciennes they underwent three examinations; but
+eventually they got out of France. The police, however, became acquainted
+with the fact that Lavalette had been concealed in the Rue de Helder
+for three days, at the apartments of Mr.  Bruce, and this enabled them
+to trace all the circumstances, showing that it was at the apartments
+of Hutchinson that Lavalette had changed his dress, and that he had
+remained there the night before he quitted Paris.  The consequence was
+that Sir Robert Wilson, Bruce, and Hutchinson, were tried for aiding
+the escape of a prisoner; and each of them was condemned to three months'
+imprisonment: the under-gaoler, who had evidently been well paid for
+services rendered, had two years' confinement allotted to him. I went
+to see Sir Robert Wilson during his stay in the Conciergerie - a punishment
+not very difficult to bear, but which marked him as a popular hero for
+his life.  A circumstance I remember made a strong impression on me,
+proving that, however great may be the courage of a man
+in trying circumstances, a trifling incident might severely shake his
+nerves.  I was accompanied by a favourite dog of the Countess of Oxford,
+who, not being aware of the high character of Sir Robert, or dissatisfied
+with his physiognomy, or for some good canine reason, took a sudden
+antipathy, and inserted his teeth into a somewhat fleshy part, but without
+doing much injury.  The effect, however, on the General was extraordinary:
+he was most earnest to have the dog killed; but being certain that the
+animal was in no way diseased, I avoided obeying his wishes, and fear
+that I thus lost the good graces of the worthy man.
+
+
+DUELLING IN FRANCE IN 1815
+
+
+When the restoration of the Bourbons took place, a variety of circumstances
+combined to render duelling so common, that scarcely a day passed without
+one at least of these hostile meetings.  Amongst the French themselves
+there were two parties always ready to distribute to each other "des
+coups d'epees" - the officers of Napoleon's army and the Bourbonist
+officers of the Garde du Corps.  Then, again, there was the irritating
+presence of the English, Russian, Prussian, and Austrian officers in
+the French capital.  In the duels between these soldiers and the French,
+the latter were always the aggressors.  At Tortoni's, on the Boulevards,
+there was a room set apart for such quarrelsome gentlemen, where, after
+these meetings, they indulged in riotous champagne breakfasts. At this
+cafe might be seen all the most notorious duellists, amongst whom I
+can call to mind an Irishman in the Garde du Corps, W--, who was a most
+formidable fire-eater.  The number of duels in which he had been engaged
+would seem incredible in the present day: he is said to have killed
+nine of his opponents in one year!
+
+The Marquis de H--, descended of an ancient family in Brittany, also
+in the Garde du Corps, likewise fought innumerable duels, killing many
+of his antagonists.  I have heard that on entering the army he was not
+of a quarrelsome disposition, but was laughed at, and bullied into fighting
+by his brother officers; and, like a wild beast that had once smelt
+blood, from the day of his first duel he took a delight in such fatal
+scenes - being ever ready to rush at and quarrel with any one.  The
+marquis has now, I am glad to say, subsided into a very quiet, placable,
+and peacemaking old gentleman; but at the time I speak of he was much
+blamed for his duel with F--, a young man of nineteen.  While dining
+at a cafe he exclaimed, "J'ai envie de tuer quelq'un," and rushed out
+into the street and to the theatres, trying to pick a quarrel; but he
+was so well known that no one was found willing to encounter him. At
+last, at the Theatre de la Porte St.  Martin, he grossly insulted this
+young man, who was, I think, an eleve of the Ecole Polytechnique, and
+a duel took place, under the lamp-post near the theatre, with swords.
+He ran F-- through the body, and left him dead upon the ground.
+
+The late Marshal St. A-- and General J-- were great duellists at this
+time, with a whole host of others whose names I forget.  The meetings
+generally took place in the Bois de Boulogne, and the favourite weapon
+of the French was the small sword, or the sabre; but foreigners, in
+fighting with the French, who were generally capital swordsmen, availed
+themselves of the use of pistols.  The ground for a duel with pistols
+was marked out by indicating two spots, which were twenty-five paces
+apart; the seconds then generally proceeded to toss up who should have
+the first shot; when the principals were placed, and the word was given
+to fire.
+
+The Cafe Foy, in the Palais Royal, was the principal place of rendezvous
+for the Prussian officers, and to this cafe the French officers on half-pay
+frequently proceeded in order to pick quarrels with their foreign invaders;
+swords were quickly drawn, and frequently the most bloody frays took
+place: these originated not in any personal hatred, but from national
+jealousy on the part of the French, who could not bear the sight of
+foreign soldiers in their capital; which, ruled by the great captain
+of the age, had, like Rome, influenced the rest of the world.  On one
+occasion our Guards, who were on duty at the Palais Royal, were called
+out to put an end to one of these encounters, in which fourteen Prussians
+and ten Frenchmen were either killed or wounded.
+
+The French took every opportunity of insulting the English; and very
+frequently, I am sorry to say, those insults were not met in a manner
+to do honour to our character, Our countrymen in general were very pacific;
+but the most awkward customer the French ever came across
+was my fellow-countryman the late gallant Colonel Sir Charles S--, of
+the Engineers, who was ready for them with anything: sword, pistols,
+sabre, or fists - he was good at all; and though never seeking a quarrel,
+he would not put up with the slightest insult.  He killed three Frenchmen
+in Paris, in quarrels forced upon him.  I remember, in October, 1815,
+being asked by a friend to dine at Beauvillier's, in the Rue Richelieu,
+when Sir Charles S--, who was well known to us, occupied a table at
+the farther end of the room.  About the middle of the dinner we heard
+a most extraordinary noise, and, on looking up, perceived that it arose
+from S--'s table; he was engaged in beating the head of a smartly-dressed
+gentleman with one of the long French loaves so well known to all who
+have visited France.  Upon asking the reason of such rough treatment
+on the part of our countryman, he said he would serve all Frenchmen
+in the same manner if they insulted him.  The offence, it seems, proceeded
+from the person who had just been chastised in so summary a manner:
+he had stared and laughed at S-- in a rude way, for having ordered three
+bottles of wine to be placed upon his table.  The upshot of all this
+was a duel, which took place next day at a place near Vincennes, and
+in which S-- shot the unfortunate jester.
+
+When Sir Charles returned to Valenciennes, where he commanded the Engineers,
+he found on his arrival a French officer waiting to avenge the death
+of his relation, who had only been shot ten days before at Vincennes.
+They accordingly fought, before S-- had time even to shave himself or
+eat his breakfast; he having only just arrived in his coupe from Paris.
+The meeting took place in the fosse of the fortress, and the first shot
+from S--'s pistol killed the French officer, who had actually travelled
+in the diligence from Paris for the purpose, as he boasted
+to his fellow-travellers, of killing an Englishman.
+
+I recollect dining, in 1816, at Hervey Aston's, at the Hotel Breteuil
+in the Rue de Rivoli, opposite the Tuileries, where I met Seymour Bathurst
+and Captain E--, of the Artillery, a very good-looking man.  After dinner,
+Mrs. Aston took us as far as Tortoni's, on her way to the Opera.  On
+entering the cafe, Captain E-- did not touch his hat according to the
+custom of the country, but behaved himself, a la John Bull, in a noisy
+and swaggering manner; upon which, General, then Colonel J--, went up
+to E-- and knocked off his hat, telling him that he hoped he would in
+future behave himself better.  Aston, Bathurst, and I, waited for some
+time, expecting to see E-- knock J-- down, or, at all events, give him
+his card as a preliminary to a hostile meeting, on receiving such an
+insult; but he did nothing.  We were very much disgusted and annoyed
+at a countryman's behaving in such a manner, and, after a meeting at
+my lodgings, we recommended Captain E--, in the strongest terms, to
+call out Colonel J--, but he positively refused to do so, as he said
+it was against his principles. This specimen of the white feather astonished
+us beyond measure.  Captain E-- shortly after received orders to start
+for India, where I believe he died of cholera - in all probability of FUNK.
+
+I do not think that Colonel J-- would altogether have escaped with impunity,
+after such a gratuitous insult to an English officer; but he retired
+into the country almost immediately after the incident at Tortoni's,
+and could not be found.
+
+There were many men in our army who did not thus disgrace the British
+uniform when insulted by the French.  I cannot omit the names of my
+old friends Captain Burges, Mike Fitzgerald, Charles Hesse, and Thoroton;
+each of whom, by their willingness to resent gratuitous offences, showed
+that insults to Englishmen were not to be committed with impunity.
+The last named officer having been grossly insulted by Marshal V--,
+without giving him the slightest provocation, knocked him down: this
+circumstance caused a great sensation in Paris, and brought about a
+court of inquiry, which ended in the acquittal of Captain Thoroton.
+My friend, B--, though he had only one leg, was a good swordsman, and
+contrived to kill a man at Lyons who had jeered him about the loss of
+his limb at Waterloo.  My old and esteemed friend, Mike Fitzgerald,
+son of Lord Edward and the celebrated Pamela, was always ready to measure
+swords with the Frenchmen; and, after a brawl at Silves', the then fashionable
+Bonapartist cafe at the corner of the Rue Lafitte and the Boulevard,
+in which two of our Scotch countrymen showed the white feather, he and
+another officer placed their own cards over the chimney-piece in the
+principal room of the cafe, offering to fight any man, or number of
+men, for the frequent public insult offered to Britons.  This challenge,
+however, was never answered.
+
+A curious duel took place at Beauvais during the occupation of France
+by our army.  A Captain B--, of one of our cavalry regiments quartered
+in that town, was insulted by a French officer, B-- demanded satisfaction,
+which was accepted; but the Frenchman would not fight with pistols.
+B-- would not fight with swords; so at last it was agreed that they
+should fight on horseback, with lances.  The duel took place in the
+neighbourhood of Beauvais, and a crowd assembled to witness it.  B--
+received three wounds; but, by a lucky prod, eventually killed his man.
+B-- was a fine-looking man and a good horseman.  My late friend the
+Baron de P--, so well known in Parisian circles, was second to the Frenchman
+on this occasion.
+
+A friend of mine - certainly not of a quarrelsome turn, but considered
+by his friends, on the contrary, as rather a good-natured man - had
+three duels forced upon him in the course of a few weeks.  He had formed
+a liaison with a person whose extraordinary beauty got him into several
+scrapes and disputes.  In January 1 1817, a few days after this acquaintance
+had been formed, Jack B--, well known at that time in the best society
+in London, became madly in love with the fair lady, and attempted one
+night to enter her private box at Drury Lane; this my friend endeavoured
+to prevent; violent language was used, and a duel was the consequence.
+The parties met a few miles from London, in a field close to the Uxbridge
+Road, where B--, who was a hot-tempered man, did his best to kill my
+friend; but, after the exchange of two shots, without injury to either
+party, they were separated by their seconds. B-- was the son of Lady
+Bridget B--, and the seconds were Payne, uncle to George Payne, and
+Colonel Joddrell of the Guards.
+
+Soon after this incident, my friend accompanied the lady to Paris, where
+they took up their residence at Meurice's, in the Rue de l'Echiquier.
+The day after their arrival, they went out to take a walk in the Palais
+Royal, and were followed by a half-pay officer of Napoleon's army, Colonel
+D. - a notorious duellist, who observed to the people about him that
+he was going to bully "un Anglais."  This man was exceedingly rude in
+his remarks, uttered in a loud voice; and after every sort of insult
+expressed in words, he had the impudence to put his arm round the lady's
+waist.  My friend indignantly asked the colonel what he meant; upon
+which the ruffian spat in my friend's face: but he did not get off with
+impunity, for my friend, who had a crab stick in his hand, caught him
+a blow on the side of the head, which dropped him.  The Frenchman jumped
+up, and rushed at the Englishman; but they were separated by the bystanders.
+Cards were exchanged, and a meeting was arranged to take place the next
+morning in the neighbourhood of Fassy.  When my friend, accompanied
+by his second, Captain H--, of the 18th, came upon the ground, he found
+the colonel boasting of the number of officers of all nations whom he
+had killed, and saying, "I'll now complete my list by killing an Englishman."
+Mon petit tir aura bientot ton conte, car je tire fort bien."  My friend
+quietly said, "Je ne tire pas mal non plus," and took his place.  The
+colonel, who seems to have been a horrible ruffian, after a good deal
+more swaggering and bravado, placed himself opposite, and, on the signal
+being given, the colonel's ball went through my friend's whiskers, whilst
+his ball pierced his adversary's heart, who fell dead without a groan.
+
+This duel made much noise in Paris, and the survivor left immediately
+for Chantilly, where he passed some time.  On his return to Paris, the
+second of the man who had been killed, Commander P., insulted and challenged
+my friend. A meeting was accordingly agreed upon, and pistols were again
+the weapons used.  Again my friend won the toss, and told his second,
+Captain H--, that he would not kill his antagonist, though he richly
+deserved death for wishing to take the life of a person who had never
+offended him; but that he would give him a lesson which he should remember.
+My friend accordingly shot his antagonist in the knee; and I remember
+to have seen him limping about the streets of Paris twenty years after
+this event.
+
+When the result of this second duel was known, not less than eleven
+challenges from Bonapartists were received by the gentleman in question;
+but any further encounters were put a stop to by the Minister of War,
+or the Duc d'Angouleme (I forget which), who threatened to place the
+officers under arrest if they followed up this quarrel any further.
+When the news reached England, the Duke of York said that my friend
+could not have acted otherwise than he had done in the first duel, considering
+the gross provocation that he had received; but he thought it would
+have been better if the second duel had been avoided.
+
+In the deeds I have narrated, the English seem to have had the advantage,
+but many others took place, in which Englishmen were killed or wounded:
+these I have not mentioned, as their details do not recur to my memory;
+but I do not remember a single occasion on which Frenchmen were not
+the aggressors.  At a somewhat later period than this, the present Marquis
+of H--, then Lord B--, had a duel with the son of the Bonapartist General
+L--.  General S-- was Lord B--'s second, and the principals exchanged
+several shots without injury to either party.  This duel, like the preceding,
+originated with the Frenchman, who insulted the Englishman at the Theatre
+Francais in the most unprovoked manner.  At the present day our fiery
+neighbours are much more amenable to reason, and if you are but civil,
+they will be civil to you; duels consequently are of rare occurrence.
+Let us hope that the frequency and the animus displayed in these hostile
+meetings originated in national wounded vanity rather than in personal
+animosity.
+
+In the autumn of 1821 I was living in Paris, when my old friend H--,
+Adjutant of the 1st Foot Guards, called upon me, and requested that
+I would be his second in a duel with Mr.  N--, an officer in the same
+regiment. After hearing what he had to say, and thinking I could serve
+him, I consented.  It was agreed by Captain F--, R.N., of Pitmore, Mr.
+N--'s second, that the duel should take place in the Bois de Boulogne.
+After an exchange of shots, Captain F.  and myself put an end to the
+duel. The cause of the quarrel was that Mr.  N --, now Lord G--, proclaimed
+in the presence of Captain H-- and other officers, that a lady, the
+wife of a brother officer, was "what she ought not to be."  When the
+report reached the ear of the Colonel, H.  R.  H.  the Duke of York
+requested Mr.  N-- to leave the regiment, or be brought to a court-martial;
+and then the duel took place, happily without bloodshed.  Both of the
+officers, it need scarcely be stated, behaved with courage and coolness.
+
+
+PISTOL SHOOTING
+
+
+From 1820 to 1830 pistol shooting was not much practised.  One evening,
+in the Salon des Etrangers, I was introduced to General F--, a very
+great duellist, and the terror of every regiment he commanded; he was
+considered by Napoleon to be one of his best cavalry officers, but was
+never in favour, in consequence of his duelling propensities.  It was
+currently reported that F--, in a duel with a very young officer lost
+his toss, and his antagonist fired first at him; when, finding he had
+not been touched, he deliberately walked close up to the young man,
+saying, "Je plains ta mere," and shot him dead.  But there were some
+doubts of the truth of this story; and I trust, for the honour of humanity,
+that it was either an invention or a gross exaggeration.
+
+The night I was introduced to F--, I was told to be on my guard, as
+he was a dangerous character.  He was very fond of practising with pistols,
+and I frequently met him at Lapage's, the only place at that time where
+gentlemen used to shoot.  F--, in the year 1822, was very corpulent,
+and wore an enormous cravat, in order, it was said, to hide two scars
+received in battle. He was a very slow shot.
+
+The famous Junot, Governor-General of Paris, whom I never saw, was considered
+to be the best shot in France.  My quick shooting surprised the habitues
+at Lapage's, where we fired at a spot chalked on the figure of a Cossack
+painted on a board, and by word of command, "One - two - three."  F--,
+upon my firing and hitting the mark forty times in succession, at the
+distance of twenty paces, shrieked out, "Tonnerre de Dieu, c'est magnifique!"
+We were ever afterwards on good terms, and supped frequently together
+at the Salon.  At Manton's, on one occasion, I hit the wafer nineteen
+times out of twenty.  When my battalion was on duty at the Tower in
+1819, it happened to be very cold, and much snow covered the parade
+and trees.  For our amusement it was proposed to shoot at the sparrows
+in the trees from Lady Jane Grey's room; and it fell to my lot to bag
+eleven, without missing one: this, I may say, without flattering myself,
+was considered the best pistol-shooting ever heard of.
+
+Manton assigned as the reason why pistols had become the usual arms
+for duels, the story (now universally laughed at) of Sheridan and Captain
+Matthews fighting with swords on the ground, and mangling each other
+in a frightful way.  These combatants narrated their own story; but
+its enormous exaggeration has been proved even on Sheridan's own evidence,
+and the blood that poured from him seems merely to have been the excellent
+claret of the previous night's debauch. The number of wounds said to
+have been inflicted on each other was something so incredible that nothing
+but the solemn asseverations of the parties could have gained belief;
+and in those days Sheridan had not obtained that reputation for rodomontade
+which he afterwards enjoyed by universal consent.
+
+
+THE FAUBOURG ST. GERMAIN
+
+
+The distinguishing characteristics of the residents of the "noble Faubourg,"
+as it was called at the time I am speaking of, were indomitable pride
+and exclusiveness, with a narrow-minded ignorance of all beyond the
+circle in which its members moved.  In our day of comparative equality
+and general civility, no one who has not arrived at my age, and lived
+in Paris, can form any idea of the insolence and hauteur of the higher
+classes of society in 1815.  The glance of unutterable disdain which
+the painted old duchesse of the Restoration cast upon the youthful belles
+of the Chausse d'Antin, or the handsome widows of Napoleon's army of
+heroes, defies description. Although often responded to by a sarcastic
+sneer at the antediluvian charms of the emigree, yet the look of contempt
+and disgust often sank deep into the victim's heart, leaving there germs
+which showed themselves fifteen years later in the revolution of 1830.
+In those days, this privileged class was surrounded by a charmed circle,
+which no one could by any means break through.  Neither personal attractions
+nor mental qualifications formed a passport into that exclusive society;
+to enter which the small nobility of the provinces, or the nouveau riche,
+sighed in vain.  It would have been easier for a young Guardsman to
+make his way into the Convent des Oiseaux - the fashionable convent
+in Paris - than for any of these parvenus to force an entrance into
+the Faubourg St. Germain.
+
+One of the first acts which followed the Restoration of the Bourbons
+was the grant of a pecuniary indemnity, amounting to a milliard, or
+forty millions sterling, to be distributed amongst the emigres who had
+lost fortunes or estates by their devotion to the royal family. They
+had now, therefore, the means of receiving their friends, political
+partisans, and foreigners, with more than usual splendour; and it must
+be admitted that those who were thought worthy to be received were treated
+like spoiled children, and petted and flattered to their heart's content.
+In their own houses they were really des grands seigneurs, and quite
+incapable of treating their invited guests with the insolence that became
+the fashion among the Jewish parvenus during the reign of the "citizen
+king."  It is one thing to disdain those whom one does not think worthy
+of our acquaintance, and another to insult those whom one has thought
+proper to invite.
+
+In their own houses, the inhabitants of the Faubourg St.  Germain were
+scrupulously polite: even if some enterprising foreigner should have
+got in surreptitiously, as long as he was under his host's roof he was
+treated with perfect courtesy; though ignominiously "cut" for the remainder
+of his days.  All this was not very amiable; but the inhabitants of
+the "noble Faubourg" were never distinguished for their amiability.
+Their best characteristics were the undaunted courage with which they
+met death upon the scaffold, and the cheerfulness and resignation with
+which they ate the bitter bread of exile.  In general, les grandes dames
+were not remarkable for their personal attractions, nor for the elegance
+of their appearance or dress.  The galaxy of handsome women that formed
+the court of the Emperor had perhaps sent beauty somewhat out of fashion;
+for the high-born ladies who took their place were what we should call
+dowdy, and had nothing distinguished in their appearance.  Many of those
+who belonged to the most ancient families were almost vulgar in outward
+form and feature: their manner had a peculiar off-hand, easy style;
+and they particularly excelled in setting down any unlucky person who
+had happened to offend them.  Their main object, at this time, was to
+stand well at court, therefore they adapted themselves to circumstances,
+and could be devout with the Dauphine and sceptical with Louis the Eighteenth.
+
+The men of the aristocracy of the Revolution were less clever and satirical
+than the women; but, on the other hand, they had far more of the distinguished
+bearing and graceful urbanity of the grands seigneurs of the olden time.
+The emigre nobles would have gazed with unutterable horror at their
+degenerate descendants of the present day; but these young, booted,
+bearded, cigar-smoking scions of la jeune France would have run round
+their courteous, but, perhaps, rather slow ancestors, in all the details
+of daily life.
+
+The principal houses of reception in those days were those of the Montmorencys,
+the Richelieus, Birons, Rohans, Goutaut Talleyrands, Beauffremonts,
+Luxemburgs, Crillons, Choiseuls, Chabots, Fitzjames, Grammonts, Latours
+de Pin, Coislins, and Maillys.  Most of these mansions are now occupied
+as public offices, or Jesuitical schools, or by foreign Ministers.
+Those who are now supposed to be the great people of the Faubourg St.
+Germain are nothing more than actors, who put on a motley dress and
+appear before the public with the view of attracting that attention
+to which they are not entitled; it is, therefore, an error to suppose
+that the modern faubourg is anything like what it was during the days
+of the Bourbons.  At the present moment the only practical aid the inhabitants
+of this locality can accord to the legitimist cause in Europe, is by
+getting up subscriptions for the Papacy, and such exiled Sovereigns
+as Francis II.; and, in order to do so, they generally address themselves
+to married women and widows: in fact, it is from the purses of susceptible
+females, many of whom are English, that donations are obtained for legitimacy
+and Popery in distress.
+
+It is to be regretted that the most renowned and ancient families of
+France have, in society and politics, yielded their places to another
+class.  That refinement of perception, sensitiveness, and gentle bearing,
+which take three or four generations to produce, are no
+longer the characteristics of Parisian society.  The gilded saloons
+of the Tuileries, and those magnificent hotels whose architects have
+not been geniuses of art, but the children of Mammon, are occupied by
+the Jew speculator, the political parasite, the clever schemer, and
+those who - whilst following the fortune of the great man who rules
+France - are nothing better than harpies.  Most of these pretended devotees
+of imperialism have, speaking figuratively, their portmanteaus perpetually
+packed, ready for flight.  The Emperor's good nature, as regards his
+entourage, has never allowed him to get rid of men who, perhaps, ought
+not to be seen so near the Imperial throne of France. The weakest feature
+of Napoleon III.'s Government is the conspicuous presence of a few persons
+in high places, whose cupidity is so extravagant that, in order to gratify
+their lust of wealth, they would not hesitate, indirectly at least,
+to risk a slur on the reputation of their master and benefactor, in
+order to gain their own ends.
+
+
+THE SALON DES ETRANGERS IN PARIS
+
+
+When the allies entered Paris, after the Battle of Waterloo, the English
+gentlemen sought, instinctively, something like a club.  Paris, however,
+possessed nothing of the sort; but there was a much more
+dangerous establishment than the London clubs, namely, a rendezvous
+for confirmed gamblers. The Salon des Etrangers was most gorgeously
+furnished, provided with an excellent kitchen and wines, and was conducted
+by the celebrated Marquis de Livry, who received the guests and did
+the honours with a courtesy which made him famous throughout Europe.
+The Marquis presented an extraordinary likeness to the Prince Regent
+of England, who actually sent Lord Fife over to Paris to ascertain this
+momentous fact. The play which took place in these saloons was frequently
+of the most reckless character; large fortunes were often lost, the
+losers disappearing, never more to be heard of.  Amongst the English
+habitues were the Hon. George T--, the late Henry Baring, Lord Thanet,
+Tom Sowerby, Cuthbert, Mr. Steer, Henry Broadwood, and Bob Arnold.
+
+The Hon.  George T--, who used to arrive from London with a very considerable
+letter of credit expressly to try his luck at the Salon des Etrangers,
+at length contrived to lose his last shilling at rouge et noir.  When
+he had lost everything he possessed in the world, he got up and exclaimed,
+in an excited manner, "If I had Canova's Venus and Adonis from Alton
+Towers, my uncle's country seat, it should be placed on the rouge, for
+black has won fourteen times running!"
+
+The late Henry Baring was more fortunate at hazard than his countryman,
+but his love of gambling was the cause of his being excluded from the
+banking establishment.  Col. Sowerby, of the Guards, was one of the
+most inveterate players in Paris; and, as is frequently the case with
+a fair player, a considerable loser.  But, perhaps, the most incurable
+gamester amongst the English was Lord Thanet, whose income was not less
+than 50,000£. a year, every farthing of which he lost at play.  Cuthbert
+dissipated the whole of his fortune in like manner.  In fact, I do not
+remember any instance where those who spent their time in this den did
+not lose all they possessed.
+
+The Marquis de L-- had a charming villa at Romainville, near Paris,
+to which, on Sundays, he invited not only those gentlemen who were the
+most prodigal patrons of his salon, but a number of ladies, who were
+dancers and singers conspicuous at the opera; forming a society of the
+strangest character, the male portion of which were bent on losing their
+money, whilst the ladies were determined to get rid of whatever virtue
+they might still have left. The dinners on these occasions were supplied
+by the chef of the Salon des Etrangers, and were such as few renommes
+of the kitchens of France could place upon the table.
+
+Amongst the constant guests was Lord Fife, the intimate friend of George
+IV., with Mdlle. Noblet, a danseuse, who gave so much satisfaction to
+the habitues of the pit at the opera, both in Paris and London.  His
+lordship spent a fortune upon her; his presents in jewels, furniture,
+articles of dress, and money, exceeded 40,000£. In return for all this
+generosity, Lord Fife asked nothing more than the lady's flattery and
+professions of affection.
+
+Hall Standish was always to be seen in this circle; and his own hotel
+in the Rue le Pelletier was often lighted up, and fetes given to the
+theatrical and demi-monde.  Standish died in Spain, leaving his gallery
+of pictures to Louis Philippe.
+
+Amonst others who visited the Salon des Etrangers were Sir Francis Vincent,
+Gooch, Green, Ball Hughes, and many others whose names I no longer remember.
+Of foreigners the most conspicuous were Blucher, General Ormano, father-in-law
+of Count Walewski, Pacto, and Clari, as well as most of the ambassadors
+at the court of the Tuileries.  As at Crockford's, a magnificent supper
+was provided every night for all who thought proper to avail themselves
+of it.  The games principally played were rouge et noir and hazard;
+the former producing an immense profit, for not only were the whole
+of the expenses of this costly establishment defrayed by the winnings
+of the bank, but a very large sum was paid annually to the municipality
+of Paris.  I recollect a young Irishman, Mr. Gough, losing a large fortune
+at this tapis vert. After returning home about two A.M., he sat down
+and wrote a letter, giving reasons as to why he was about to commit
+suicide: these, it is needless to say, were simply his gambling reverses.
+A pistol shot through the brain terminated his existence.  Sir Francis
+Vincent - a man of old family and considerable fortune - was another
+victim of this French hell, who contrived to get rid of his magnificent
+property, and then disappeared from society.
+
+In calling up my recollections of the Salon des Etrangers, some forty
+years since, I see before me the noble form and face of the Hungarian
+Count Hunyady, the chief gambler of the day, who created considerable
+sensation in his time.  He became tres a la mode: his horses, carriage,
+and house were considered perfect, while his good looks were the theme
+of universal admiration. There were ladies' cloaks "a la Huniade," whilst
+the illustrious Borel, of the Rocher de Cancaile, named new dishes after
+the famous Hungarian. Hunyady's luck for a long time was prodigious:
+no bank could resist his attacks; and at one time he must have been
+a winner of nearly two millions of francs.  His manners were particularly
+calm and gentlemanlike; he sat apparently unmoved, with his right hand
+in the breast of his coat, whilst thousands depended upon the turning
+of a card or the hazard of a die.  His valet, however, confided to some
+indiscreet friend that his nerves were not of such iron temper as he
+would have made people believe, and that the count bore in the morning
+the bloody marks of his nails, which he had pressed into his chest in
+the agony of an unsuccessful turn of fortune.  The streets of Paris
+were at that time not very safe; consequently the Count was usually
+attended to his residence by two gensdarmes, in order to prevent his
+being attacked by robbers.  Hunyady was not wise enough (what gamblers
+are?) to leave Paris with his large winnings, but continued as usual
+to play day and night.  A run of bad luck set in against him, and he
+lost not only the whole of the money he had won, but a very large portion
+of his own fortune.  He actually borrowed 50£. of the well-known Tommy
+Garth - who was himself generally more in the borrowing than the lending
+line - to take him back to Hungary.
+
+
+THE DUCHESS DE BERRI AT MASS AT THE CHAPELLE ROYALE
+
+
+I had the honour of being invited to an evening party at the Tuileries
+in the winter of 1816, and was in conversation with the Countess de
+l'Espinasse, when the Duchess did me the honour to ask me if I intended
+going to St. Germain to hunt.  I replied in the negative, not having
+received an invitation; upon which the Duchess graciously observed that
+if I would attend mass the following morning in the Royal Chapel, she
+would manage it. Accordingly I presented myself there dressed in a black
+coat and trousers and white neckcloth; but at the entrance, a huge Swiss
+told me I could not enter the chapel without knee-buckles.  At that
+moment Alexandre Gerardin, the grand veneur, came to my assistance;
+he spoke to the Duchess, who immediately gave instructions that Mr.
+Gronow was to be admitted "sans culottes." The card for the hunt came;
+but the time to get the uniform was so short, that I was prevented going
+to St. Germain.  At that time the fascinating Duchess de Berri was
+the theme of admiration of everyone.  All who could obtain admission
+to the chapelle were charmed with the grace with which, on passing through
+the happy group who had been fortunate enough to gain the privilege,
+she cast her glance of recognition upon those who were honoured with
+her notice.  When again I had the honour of being in the presence of
+the Duchess, she inquired whether the hunt amused me; and upon my telling
+her that I had been unable to go, in consequence of the want of the
+required uniform, the Duchess archly remarked "Ah!  M. le Capitaine,
+parceque vous n'avez pas jamais des culottes."
+
+
+LORD WESTMORELAND
+
+
+When I was presented at the Court of Louis XVIII., Lord Westmoreland,
+the grandfather of the present lord, accompanied Sir Charles Stewart
+to the Tuileries. On our arrival in the room where the King was, we
+formed ourselves into a circle, when the King good-naturedly inquired
+after Lady Westmoreland, from whom his lordship was divorced, and whether
+she was in Paris.  Upon this, the noble lord looked sullen, and refused
+to reply to the question put by the King.  His Majesty, however, repeated
+it, when Lord Westmoreland hallooed out, in bad French, "Je ne sais
+pas, je ne sais pas, je ne sais pas."  Louis, rising, said, "Assez,
+milord; assez, milord."
+
+On one occasion, Lord Westmoreland, who was Lord Privy Seal, being asked
+what office he held, replied, "Le Chancelier est le grand sceau (Sot);
+moi je suis le petit sceau d' Angleterre."  On another occasion, he
+wished to say "I would if I could, but I can't," and rendered it, "Je
+voudrais si je coudrais, mais je ne cannais pas."
+
+
+ALDERMAN WOOD
+
+
+Among the many English who then visited Paris was Alderman Wood, who
+had previously filled the office of Lord Mayor of London.  He ordered
+a hundred visiting cards, inscribing upon them, "Alderman Wood, feu
+Lord Maire de Londres," which he had largely distributed amongst people
+of rank - having translated the word "late" into "feu," which I need
+hardly state means "dead."
+
+
+THE OPERA
+
+
+A few years after the restoration of the Bourbons, the opera was the
+grand resort of all the fashionable world.  Sostennes de la Rochefoucauld
+was Minister of the Household, and his office placed him at the head
+of all the theatres.  M. de la Rochefoucauld was exceedingly polite
+to our countrymen, and gave permission to most of our dandies to go
+behind the scenes, where Bigottini, Fanny Bias, Vestris, Anatole, Paul,
+Albert, and the other principal dancers, congregated.  One of our countrymen,
+having been introduced by M. de la Rochefoucauld to Mademoiselle Bigottini,
+the beautiful and graceful dancer, in the course of conversation with
+this gentleman, asked him in what part of the theatre he was placed;
+upon which he replied, "Mademoiselle, dans un loge rotie," instead of
+"grillee."  The lady could not understand what he meant, until his introducer
+explained the mistake, observing, "Les diables des Anglais pensent toujours
+a leur Rosbif."
+
+
+FANNY ELSSLER
+
+
+In 1822 I saw this beautiful person for the first time.  She was originally
+one of the figurantes at the opera at Vienna, and was at this time about
+fourteen years of age, and of delicate and graceful proportions.  Her
+hair was auburn, her eyes blue and large, and her face wore an expression
+of great tenderness. Some years after the Duke of Reichstadt, the son
+of the great Napoleon, was captivated with her beauty; in a word, he
+became her acknowledged admirer, while her marvellous acting and dancing
+drew around her all the great men of the German court.  The year following
+she went to Naples, where a brother of the King fell desperately in
+love with her.  Mademoiselle Elssler went soon afterwards to Paris,
+where her wit electrified all the fashionable world, and her dancing
+and acting in the Diable Boiteux made the fortune of the entrepreneur.
+In London her success was not so striking; but her cachucha will long
+be remembered, as one of the most exquisite exhibitions of female grace
+and power ever seen at her Majesty's Theatre, and in expressiveness,
+her pantomimic powers were unrivalled.
+
+
+CHARLES X. AND LOUIS PHILIPPE
+
+
+When the father of the present ex-King of Naples came to Paris during
+the reign of Charles X., Louis Philippe, then Duke of Orleans, living
+at the Palais Royal, gave a very grand fete to his royal cousin. I had
+the honour to be one of the party invited, and witnessed an extraordinary
+scene, which I think worth relating.  About eleven o'clock, when the
+rooms were crowded, Charles X. arrived, with a numerous suite.  On entering,
+he let fall his pocket-handkerchief - it was then supposed by accident;
+upon this, Louis Philippe fell upon one knee and presented the handkerchief
+to his Sovereign; who smiled and said, "Merci, mon cher; merci."  This
+incident was commented upon for many days, and several persons said
+that the handkerchief was purposely thrown down to see whether Louis
+Philippe would pick it up.
+
+At that period, the Orleans family were en mauvais odeur at the Tuileries,
+and consequently, this little incident created considerable gossip among
+the courtly quidnuncs.  I remember that when Lord William Bentinck was
+asked what he thought of the circumstance, he good-naturedly answered,
+"The King most probably wanted to know how the wind blew."
+
+It was known that a large number of persons hostile to the court were
+invited; and among these were Casimir Perier, the Dupins, Lafitte, Benjamin
+Constant, and a host of others who a few years afterwards drove out
+the eldest branch that occupied the throne to make way for Louis Philippe.
+
+
+LORD THANET
+
+
+The late Lord Thanet, celebrated for having been imprisoned in the Tower
+for his supposed predilection for republicanism, passed much of his
+time in Paris, particularly at the Salon des Etrangers.  His lordship's
+infatuation for play was such, that when the gambling-tables were closed,
+he invited those who remained to play at chicken-hazard and ecarte;
+the consequence was that, one night, he left off a loser of 120,000£.
+When told of his folly and the probability of his having been cheated,
+he exclaimed, "Then I consider myself lucky in not having lost twice
+that sum!"
+
+
+LORD GRANVILLE, THE BRITISH AMBASSADOR
+
+
+Soon after Lord Granville's appointment, a strange occurrence took place
+at one of the public gambling-houses.  A colonel, on half-pay, in the
+British service, having lost every farthing that he possessed, determined
+to destroy himself, together with all those who were instrumental in
+his ruin.  Accordingly, he placed a canister full of fulminating powder
+under the table, and set it on fire: it blew up, but fortunately no
+one was hurt.  The police arrested the colonel, and placed him in prison;
+he was, however, through the humane interposition of our ambassador,
+sent out of France as a madman.
+
+
+MARSHAL BLUCHER
+
+
+Marshal Blucher, though a very fine fellow, was a very rough diamond,
+with the manners of a common soldier.  On his arrival in Paris, he went
+every day to the salon, and played the highest stakes at rouge et noir.
+The salon, during the time that the marshal remained in Paris, was crowded
+by persons who came to see him play.  His manner of playing was anything
+but gentlemanlike, and when he lost, he used to swear in German at everything
+that was French, looking daggers at the croupiers.  He generally managed
+to lose all he had about him, also all the money his servant, who was
+waiting in the ante-chamber, carried. I recollect looking attentively
+at the manner in which he played; he would put his right hand into his
+pocket, and bring out several rouleaus of Napoleons, and throw them
+on the red or black. If he won the first coup, he would allow it to
+remain; but when the croupier stated that the table was not responsible
+for more than ten thousand francs, then Blucher would roar like a lion,
+and rap out oaths in his native language, which would doubtless have
+met with great success at Billingsgate, if duly translated: fortunately,
+they were not heeded, as they were not understood by the lookers-on.
+
+At that period there were rumours - and reliable ones, too - that Blucher
+and the Duke of Wellington were at loggerheads.  The Prussians wanted
+to blow up the Bridge of Jena; but the Duke sent a battalion of our
+regiment to prevent it, and the Prussian engineers who were mining the
+bridge were civilly sent away: this circumstance created some ill-will
+between the chiefs.
+
+A sort of congress of the Emperors of Austria and Russia and the King
+of Prussia, with Blucher and Wellington, met at the Hotel of Foreign
+Affairs, on the Boulevard, when, after much ado, the Duke of Wellington
+emphatically declared that if any of the monuments were destroyed he
+would take the British army from Paris: this threat had the desired
+effect.  Nevertheless, Blucher levied contributions on the poor Parisians,
+and his army was newly clothed. The Bank of France was called upon to
+furnish him with several thousand pounds, which, it was said, were to
+reimburse him for the money lost at play.  This, with many other instances
+of extortion and tyranny, was the cause of Blucher's removal, and he
+took his departure by order of the King.
+
+I once saw a regiment of Prussians march down the Rue St. Honore when
+a line of half-a-dozen hackney-coachmen were quietly endeavouring to
+make their way in a contrary direction; suddenly some of the Prussian
+soldiers left their ranks, and with the butt-end of their muskets knocked
+the poor coachmen off their seats.  I was in uniform, and felt naturally
+ashamed at what I had seen: some Frenchmen came up to me and requested
+me to report what I had witnessed to the Duke of Wellington; but, upon
+my telling them it would be of no avail, they one and all said the English
+ought to blush at having allies and friends capable of such wanton brutality.
+
+The fact is that the French had behaved so ill at Berlin, after the
+Battle of Jena, in 1806, that the Prussians had sworn to be revenged,
+if ever they had the opportunity to visit upon France the cruelties,
+the extortion, insults, and hard usage their own capital had suffered;
+and they kept their word.
+
+One afternoon, when upwards of a hundred Prussian officers entered the
+galleries of the Palais Royal, they visited all the shops in turn, insulting
+the women and striking the men, breaking the windows and turning everything
+upside down: nothing, indeed, could have been more outrageous than their
+conduct.  When information was brought to Lord James Hay of what was
+going on, he went out, and arrived just as a troop of French gensdarmes
+were on the point of charging the Prussians, then in the garden.  He
+lost no time in calling out his men, and, placing himself between the
+gensdarmes and the officers, said he should fire upon the first who
+moved. The Prussians then came to him and said, "We had all vowed to
+return upon the heads of the French in Paris the insults that they had
+heaped upon our countrymen in Berlin; we have kept our vow, and we will
+now retire."  Nothing could equal the bitter hatred which existed, and
+still exists, between the French and the Prussians.
+
+
+JEW MONEY-LENDERS
+
+
+One of the features of high society after the long war was a passion
+for gambling; so universal was it that there are few families of distinction
+who do not even to the present day retain unpleasant reminiscences of
+the period.  When people become systematic players, they are often obliged
+to raise money at an exorbitant interest, and usually under such circumstances
+fly to the Israelites.  I have often heard players wish these people
+in almost every uncomfortable quarter of the known and unknown worlds.
+The mildness and civility with which the Christian in difficulties always
+addresses the moneyed Israelite, contrast forcibly with the opprobrious
+epithets lavished on him when the day for settlement comes.  When a
+man requires money to pay his debts of honour, and borrows from the
+Jews, he knows perfectly well what he is doing; though one of the last
+things which foolish people learn is how to trace their own errors to
+their proper source. Hebrew money-lenders could not thrive if there
+were no borrowers: the gambler brings about his own ruin.  The characteristics
+of the Jew are never more perceptible than when they come in contact
+with gentlemen to ruin them.  On such occasions, the Jew is humble,
+supercilious, blunderingly flattering; and if he can become the agent
+of any dirty work, is only too happy to be so, in preference
+to a straightforward and honest transaction.  No man is more vulgarly
+insulting to those dependent upon him than the Jew, who invariably cringes
+to his superiors; above all, he is not a brave man.  It will be seen,
+from these observations, what is my opinion of a class of traders who
+in all parts of the world are sure to embrace what may be termed illicit
+and illegitimate commerce.  At the same time, I suspect that the Jew
+simply avails himself of the weakness and vices of mankind, and will
+continue in this line of business so long as imprudent and extravagant
+humanity remains what it is.
+
+Two usurers, who obtained much notoriety from the high game which was
+brought to them, were men known by the names of Jew King and Solomon.
+These were of very different characters: King was a man of some talent,
+and had good taste in the fine arts.  He had made the peerage a complete
+study, knew the exact position of everyone who was connected with a
+coronet, the value of their property, how deeply the estates were mortgaged,
+and what encumbrances weighed upon them.  Nor did his knowledge stop
+there: by dint of sundry kind attentions to the clerks of the leading
+banking-houses, he was aware of the balances they kept; and the credit
+attached to their names; so that, to the surprise of the borrower, he
+let him into the secrets of his own actual position.  He gave excellent
+dinners, at which many of the highest personages of the realm were present;
+and when they fancied that they were about to meet individuals whom
+it would be upon their conscience to recognize elsewhere, were not a
+little amused to find clients quite as highly placed as themselves,
+and with purses quite as empty.  King had a well-appointed house in
+Clarges Street; but it was in a villa upon the banks of the Thames,
+which had been beautifully fitted up by Walsh Porter in the Oriental
+style, and which I believe is now the seat of one of the most favoured
+votaries of the Muses, Sir Edward Bulwer Lytton, that his hospitalities
+were most lavishly and luxuriously exercised. Here it was that Sheridan
+told his host that he liked his table better than his multiplication
+table; to which his host, who was not only witty, but often the cause
+of wit in others, replied, "I know, Mr. Sheridan: your taste is more
+for Jo-king than for Jew King," alluding to King, the actor's admirable
+performance in Sheridan's School for Scandal.
+
+King kept a princely establishment, and a splendid equipage which he
+made to serve as an advertisement of his calling.  A yellow carriage,
+with panels emblazoned with a well-executed shield and armorial bearings,
+and drawn by two richly-caparisoned steeds, the Jehu on the box wearing,
+according to the fashion of those days, a coat of many capes, a powdered
+wig, and gloves a l'Henri Quatre, and two spruce footmen in striking
+but not gaudy livery, with long canes in their hands, daily made its
+appearance in the Park from four to seven in the height of the season.
+Mrs. King was a fine-looking woman, and being dressed in the height
+of fashion, she attracted innumerable gazers, who pronounced the whole
+turn-out to be a work of refined taste, and worthy a man of "so much
+principal and interest."
+
+It happened that during one of these drives, Lord William L., a man
+of fashion, but, like other of the great men of the day, an issuer of
+paper money discounted at high rates by the usurers, was thrown off
+his horse.  Mr. and Mrs. King immediately quitted the carriage and placed
+the noble lord within.  On this circumstance being mentioned in the
+clubs, Brummell observed it was only "a Bill Jewly (duly) taken up
+and honoured."
+
+Solomon indulged in many aliases, being known by the names of Goldsched,
+Slowman, as well as by other noms de guerre; and he was altogether of
+a different cast from King, being avaricious, distrustful, and difficult
+to deal with.  He counted upon his gains with all the grasping feverishness
+of the miser; and owing to his great caution he had an immense command
+of money, which the confidence of his brethren placed in his hands.
+To the jewellers, the coachmakers, and the tailors, who were obliged
+to give exorbitant accommodation to their aristocratic customers, and
+were eventually paid in bills of an incredibly long date, Solomon was
+of inestimable use.  Hamlet, Houlditch, and other dependants upon the
+nobility, were often compelled to seek his assistance.
+
+Hamlet, the jeweller, was once looked up to as the richest tradesman
+at the West End.  His shop at the corner of Cranbourne Alley exhibited
+a profuse display of gold and silver plate, whilst in the jewel room
+sparkled diamonds, amethysts, rubies, and other precious stones, in
+every variety of setting.  He was constantly called on to advance money
+upon such objects, which were left in pawn only to be taken out on the
+occasion of a great banquet, or when a court dress was to be worn.
+His gains were enormous, though it was necessary to give long credit;
+and his bills for twenty or thirty thousand pounds were eagerly discounted.
+In fact, he was looked upon as a second Croesus, or a Crassus, who could
+have bought the Roman empire; and his daughter's hand was sought in
+marriage by peers.  But all at once the mighty bubble collapsed.  He
+had advanced money to the Duke of York, and had received as security
+property in Nova Scotia, consisting chiefly of mines, which, when he
+began to work them, turned out valueless, after entailing enormous expense.
+Loss upon loss succeeded, and in the end bankruptcy.  I have even heard
+that this man, once so envied for his wealth, died the inmate of an almshouse.
+
+Some persons of rank, tempted by the offers of these usurers, lent their
+money to them at a very high interest.  A lady of some position lent
+a thousand pounds to King, on the promise of receiving annually 15 per
+cent.; which he continued to pay with the utmost regularity.  Her son
+being in want of money applied for a loan of a thousand pounds, which
+King granted at the rate of 80 per cent.; lending him of course his
+mother's money.  In a moment of tenderness the young man told his tale
+to her, when she immediately went to King and upbraided him for not
+making her a party to his gains, and demanded her money back.  King
+refused to return it, saying that he had never engaged to return the
+principal; and dared her to take any proceedings against him, as, being
+a married woman, she had no power over the money.  She, however, acknowledged
+it to her husband, obtained his forgiveness, and after threats of legal
+interference, King was compelled to refund the money, besides losing
+much of his credit and popularity by the transaction.
+
+
+LORD ALVANLEY
+
+
+To Lord Alvanley was awarded the reputation, good or bad, of all the
+witticisms in the clubs after the abdication of the throne of dandyism
+by Brummell; who, before that time, was always quoted as the sayer of
+good things, as Sheridan had been some time before. Lord Alvanley had
+the talk of the day completely under his control, and was the arbiter
+of the school for scandal in St. James's.  A bon mot attributed to him
+gave rise to the belief that Solomon caused the downfall and disappearance
+of Brummell; for on some friends of the prince of dandies observing
+that if he had remained in London something might have been done for
+him by his old associates, Alvanley replied, "He has done quite right
+to be off: it was Solomon's judgment."
+
+When Sir Lumley Skeffington, who had been a lion in his day - and whose
+spectacle, the Sleeping Beauty, produced at a great expense on the stage,
+had made him looked up to as deserving all the blandishments of fashionable
+life - re-appeared some years after his complete downfal and seclusion
+in the bench, he fancied that by a very gay external appearance he would
+recover his lost position; but he found his old friends very shy of
+him.  Alvanley being asked, on one occasion, who that smart-looking
+individual was, answered, "It is a second edition of the Sleeping Beauty
+bound in calf, richly gilt, and illustrated by many cuts."
+
+One of the gay men of the day, named Judge, being incarcerated in the
+Bench, some one observed he believed it was the first instance of a
+Judge reaching the bench without being previously called to the bar;
+to which Alvanley replied, "Many a bad judge has been taken from the
+bench and placed at the bar."  He used to say that Brummell was the
+only Dandelion that flourished year after year in the hot-bed of the
+fashionable world: he had taken root. Lions were generally annual, but
+Brummell was perennial, and quoted a letter from Walter Scott: "If you
+are celebrated for writing verses, or for slicing cucumbers, for being
+two feet taller, or two feet less, than any other biped, for acting
+plays when you should be whipped at school, or for attending schools
+and institutions when you should be preparing for your grave, your notoriety
+becomes a talisman, an 'open sesame,' which gives way to everything,
+till you are voted a bore, and discarded for a new plaything."  This
+appeared in a letter from Walter Scott to the Earl of Dalkeith, when
+he himself, Belzoni, Master Betty the Roscius, and old Joseph Lancaster,
+the schoolmaster, were the lions of the season, and were one night brought
+together by my indefatigable old friend, Lady Cork, who was "the Lady
+of Lyons" of that day.
+
+
+GENERAL PALMER
+
+
+This excellent man had the last days of his life embittered
+by the money-lenders. He had commenced his career surrounded by every
+circumstance that could render existence agreeable; fortune, in his
+early days, having smiled most benignantly on him.  His father was a
+man of considerable ability, and was to the past generation what Rowland
+Hill is in the present day - the great benefactor of correspondents.
+He first proposed and carried out the mail-coach system; and letters,
+instead of being at the mercy of postboys, and a private speculation
+in many instances, became the care of Government, and were transmitted
+under its immediate direction.
+
+During the lifetime of Mr. Palmer, the reward due to him for his suggestions
+and his practical knowledge was denied; and he accordingly went to Bath,
+and became the manager and proprietor of the theatre, occasionally treading
+the boards himself, for which his elegant deportment and good taste
+eminently qualified him.  He has often been mistaken for Gentleman Palmer,
+whose portrait is well drawn in the Memoir of Sheridan by Dr. Sigmond,
+prefixed to Bohn's edition of Sheridan's plays.  Mr. Palmer was successful
+in his undertaking, and at his death, his son found himself the inheritor
+of a handsome fortune, and became a universal favourite in Bath.
+
+The corporation of that city, consisting of thirty apothecaries, were,
+in those borough-mongering days, the sole electors to the House of Commons,
+and finding young Palmer hospitable, and intimate with the Marquis of
+Bath and Lord Camden, and likewise desiring for themselves and their
+families free access to the most agreeable theatre in England, returned
+him to Parliament. He entered the army and became a conspicuous officer
+in the 10th Hussars, which, being commanded by the Prince Regent, led
+him at once into Carlton House, the Pavilion at Brighton, and consequently
+into the highest society of the country; for which his agreeable manners,
+his amiable disposition, and his attainments, admirably qualified him.
+His fortune was sufficiently large for all his wants; but, unfortunately,
+as it turned out, the House of Commons voted to him, as the representative
+of his father, 100,000£., which he was desirous of laying out to advantage.
+
+A fine opportunity, as he imagined, had presented itself to him; for,
+in travelling in the diligence from Lyons to Paris, a journey then requiring
+three days, he met a charming widow, who told a tale that had not only
+a wonderful effect upon his susceptible heart, but upon his amply-filled
+purse.  She said her husband, who had been the proprietor of one of
+the finest estates in the neighbourhood of Bordeaux, was just dead,
+and that she was on her way to Paris to sell the property, that it might
+be divided, according to the laws of France, amongst the family.  Owing,
+however, to the absolute necessity of forcing a sale, that which was
+worth an enormous sum would realize one-quarter only of its value.
+She described the property as one admirably fitted for the production
+of wine; that it was, in fact, the next estate to the Chateau Lafitte,
+and would prove a fortune to any capitalist.  The fascinations of this
+lady, and the temptation of enormous gain to the speculator, impelled
+the gallant colonel to offer his services to relieve her
+from her embarrassment; and by the time the diligence arrived in Paris,
+he had become the proprietor of a fine domain, which was soon irrevocably
+fixed on him by the lady's notary, in return for a large sum of money:
+which, had the colonel proved a man of business, would no doubt have
+been amply repaid, and might have become the source of great wealth.
+
+Palmer, however, conscious of his inability, looked around him for an
+active agent, and believed he had found one in a Mr. Gray, a man of
+captivating manners and good connexions, but almost as useless a person
+as the General himself.  Fully confident in his own abilities, Gray
+had already been concerned in many speculations, not one of which had
+ever succeeded, but all had led to the demolition of large fortunes.
+Plausible in his address, and possessing many of those superficial qualities
+that please the multitude, he appeared to be able to secure for the
+claret - which was the production of the estate - a large clientele.
+Palmer's claret, under his auspices, began to be talked of in the clubs;
+and the bon vivant was anxious to secure a quantity of this highly-prized
+wine.  The patronage of the Prince Regent was considered essential,
+who, with his egotistical good nature, and from a kindly feeling for
+Palmer, gave a dinner at Carlton House, when a fair trial was to be
+given to his claret.  A select circle of gastronomes was to be present,
+amongst whom was Lord Yarmouth, well known in those days by the appellation
+of "Red-herrings," from his rubicund whiskers, hair, and face, and from
+the town of Yarmouth deriving its principal support from the importation
+from Holland of that fish; Sir Benjamin Bloomfield, Sir William Knighton,
+and Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt, were also of the party.  The wine was produced,
+and was found excellent, and the spirits of the party ran high; the
+light wine animating them without intoxication.  The Prince was delighted,
+and, as usual upon such occasions, told some of his best stories, quoted
+Shakspeare, and was particularly happy upon the bouquet of the wine
+as suited "to the holy Palmer's kiss."
+
+Lord Yarmouth alone sat in moody silence, and, on being questioned as to the
+cause, replied that whenever he dined at his Royal Highness's table, he drank
+a claret which he much preferred - that which was furnished by Carbonell. The
+Prince immediately ordered a bottle of this wine; and to give them an
+opportunity of testing the difference, he desired that some anchovy sandwiches
+should be served up.  Carbonell's wine was placed upon the table: it was a
+claret made expressly for the London market, well-dashed with Hermitage, and
+infinitely more to the taste of the Englishman than the delicately-flavoured
+wine they had been drinking.  The banquet terminated in the Prince declaring
+his own wine superior to that of Palmer's, and suggesting that he should
+try some experiments on his estate to obtain a better wine.  Palmer
+come from Carlton House much mortified.  On Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt attempting
+to console him, and saying that it was the anchovies that had spoiled
+the taste of the connoisseurs, the general said loudly enough to be
+heard by Lord Yarmouth, "No; it was the confounded red herrings." A
+duel was very nearly the consequence.
+
+General Palmer, feeling it his duty to follow the advice of the Prince,
+rooted out his old vines, planted new ones, tried all sorts of experiments
+at an immense cost, but with little or no result. He and his agent,
+in consequence, got themselves into all sorts of difficulties, mortgaged
+the property, borrowed largely, and were at last obliged to have recourse
+to usurers, to life assurances, and every sort of expedient to raise
+money.  The theatre at Bath was sold, the Reform in Parliament robbed
+him of his seat, and at last he and his agent became ruined men. A subscription
+would have been raised to relieve him, but he preferred ending his days
+in poverty to living upon the bounty of his friends.  He sold his commission,
+and was plunged in the deepest distress; while the accumulation of debt
+to the usurers became so heavy, that he was compelled to pass through
+the Insolvent Court. Thus ended the career of a man who had been courted
+in society, idolized in the army, and figured as a legislator for many
+years.  His friends, of course, fell off, and he was to be seen a mendicant
+in the streets of London - shunned where he once was adored.  Gray,
+his agent, became equally involved; but, marrying a widow with some
+money, he was enabled to make a better fight.  Eventually, however,
+he became a prey to the money-lender, and his life ended under circumstances
+distressing to those who had known him in early days.
+
+
+"MONK" LEWIS
+
+One of the most agreeable men of the day was "Monk" Lewis.  As the author
+of the Monk and the Tales of Wonder, he not only found his way into
+the best circles, but had gained a high reputation in the literary world.
+His poetic talent was undoubted, and he was intimately connected with
+Walter Scott in his ballad researches.  His Alonzo the Brave and the
+Fair Imogene was recited at the theatres, and wherever he went he found
+a welcome reception.  His West Indian fortune and connections, and his
+seat in Parliament, gave him access to all the aristocratic circles;
+from which, however, he was banished upon the appearance of the fourth
+and last dialogue of the Pursuits of Literature.  Had a thunderbolt
+fallen upon him, he could not have been more astonished than he was
+by the onslaught of Mr. Matthias, which led to his ostracism from fashionable
+society.
+
+It is not for me to appreciate the value of this satirical poem, which
+created such an extraordinary sensation, not only in the fashionable,
+but in the political world; I, however, remember that whilst at Canning's,
+at the Bishop of London's, and at Gifford's, it was pronounced the most
+classical and spirited production that had ever issued from the press,
+it was held up at Lord Holland's, at the Marquis of Lansdowne's, and
+at Brookes's, as one of the most spiteful and ill-natured satires that
+had ever disgraced the literary world; and one which no talent or classic
+lore could ever redeem.  Certain it is, that Matthias fell foul of poor
+"Monk" Lewis for his romance: obscenity and blasphemy were the charges
+laid at his door; he was acknowledged to be a man of genius and fancy,
+but this added only to his crime, to which was superadded that of being
+a very young man.  The charges brought against him cooled his friends
+and heated his enemies; the young ladies were forbidden to speak to
+him, matrons even feared him, and from being one of the idols of the
+world, he became one of the objects of its disdain. Even his father
+was led to believe that his son had abandoned the paths of virtue, and
+was on the high road to ruin.
+
+"Monk" Lewis, unable to stand against the outcry thus raised against
+him, determined to try the effects of absence, and took his departure
+for the island in which his property was; but unfortunately for those
+who dissented from the ferocious judgment that was passed upon him,
+and for those who had discrimination enough to know that after all there
+was nothing very objectionable in his romance, and felt assured that
+posterity would do him justice, this amiable and kind-hearted man died
+on his passage out; leaving a blank in one variety of literature which
+has never been filled up.
+
+The denunciation was not followed by any other severe criticism; but
+editors have, in compliance with the insinuations of Matthias, omitted
+the passages which he pointed out as objectionable, so that the original
+text is seldom met with.
+
+"Monk" Lewis had a black servant, affectionately attached to his master;
+but so ridiculously did this servant repeat his master's expressions,
+that he became the laughing-stock of all his master's friends: Brummell
+used often to raise a hearty laugh at Carlton House by repeating witticisms
+which he pretended to have heard from Lewis's servant.  Some of these
+were very stale; yet they were considered so good as to be repeated
+at the clubs, greatly adding to the reputation of the Beau as a teller
+of good things.  "On one occasion," said Brummell, "I called to inquire
+after a young lady who had sprained her ancle; Lewis, on being asked
+how she was, had said in the black's presence, 'The doctor has seen
+her, put her legs straight, and the poor chicken is doing well.' The
+servant, therefore, told me, with a mysterious and knowing look, 'Oh,
+sir, the doctor has been here; she has laid eggs, and she and the chickens
+are doing well.'"
+
+Such extravagances in those days were received as the essence of wit,
+and to such stories did the public give a willing ear, repeating them
+with unwearying zest.  Even Sheridan's wit partook of this character,
+making him the delight of the Prince, who ruled over the fashionable
+world, and whose approbation was sufficient to give currency to anything,
+however ludicrous and absurd.
+
+
+SIR THOMAS TURTON
+
+
+There is a pleasure in recalling to memory even the school-boy pranks
+of men who make a figure in the world.  The career of Turton promised
+to be a brilliant one; and had he not offended against the moral feeling
+of the country, and lost his position, he would have mounted to the
+highest step in the ladder of fortune.  At Eton he showed himself a
+dashing and a daring boy, and was looked upon by Dr. Goodall, the then
+head master, as one of his best classical scholars; by his schoolfellows
+he was even more highly regarded, being the acknowledged "cock of the
+school."  Amongst the qualities that endeared him to them was a fearlessness
+which led him into dangers and difficulties, from which his pluck only
+could extricate him.  He was a determined poacher: not one of the skulking
+class, but of a daring that led him to exert his abilities in Windsor
+Park itself; where he contrived to bag game, in spite of the watchfulness
+of the keepers and the surveillance of the well-paid watchers of the
+night.  On one occasion; however, by some unlucky chance, tidings of
+his successes reached the ears of the royal gamekeeper, who formed a
+plan by which to entrap him; and so nearly were they pouncing upon Turton
+that he was obliged to take to his heels and fly, carrying with him
+a hare which he had caught.  The keepers followed close upon his heels
+until they came to the Thames, into which Turton plunged, and, still
+holding his prize by his teeth, swam to the other side; to the astonishment
+and dismay of his pursuers, who had no inclination for a cold bath:
+their mortification was great at seeing Turton safely landed on the
+other side.  He reached the college in safety; and the hare served for
+the enjoyment of merry friends.
+
+Turton's history in after life I will not pursue; but must express my
+regret that he threw away golden opportunities of showing his love for
+classic lore, and his ability to meet the difficulties of life, in the
+same bold way in which he swam the Thames and baffled the Windsor gamekeepers.
+
+
+GEORGE SMYTHE, THE LATE LORD STRANGFORD
+
+
+This is another friend to whom I am pleased to pay the tribute of a
+reminiscence, and who, if he was not as well known as most of those
+I have spoken of, was yet highly prized by many of the most distinguished
+persons, and formed one of a circle that had great influence in England.
+Being the son of the well-known Lord Strangford, the translator of Camoens,
+he had a first place in aristocratic society, and had he not given himself
+up to indulgences and amusements, might have reached the rank of statesman.
+The late Lord Strangford was distinguished by those external qualifications
+which are everywhere acceptable; his manners were polished and easy,
+his conversation elegant and witty, and these, added to great personal
+attractions, gave him a charm which was generally felt.  Disraeli, Sir
+Edward Bulwer Lytton, and the leading men of the day, were his associates.
+When Lord Aberdeen became Minister for Foreign Affairs he selected George
+Smythe as under secretary; in which capacity he acquitted himself with
+great ability.  He could not, however, act under Lord Palmerston, and
+rather than do so gave up his position.  He did not long survive, but
+died very young; just as he was beginning to learn the value of his
+rare abilities, and had ascertained how best they might have been of
+use to his country.
+
+
+THE HONOURABLE GEORGE TALBOT
+
+
+I have a very vivid recollection of George Talbot, a brother of the
+late Earl of Shrewsbury, and who was a fashionable man about town, of
+whom there are many anecdotes in circulation.  The only one that took
+my fancy was related to me in Paris, where he was as usual in the midst
+of the gayest of the gay, recklessly spending his money, and oftentimes
+resorting for resources to the gambling-table, where at last he was
+thoroughly pigeoned.
+
+Talbot had tried in vain all the usual means of recruiting his empty
+purse.  Being a Roman Catholic, like most of the members of one of the
+oldest families in Great Britain, he was a regular attendant upon the
+ceremonies of his Church, and acquainted with all the clergy in Paris;
+so he took the resolution of going to his confessor, unburdening his
+conscience, and at the same time seeking counsel from the holy father,
+as to the best way of raising the wind. After entering minutely into
+his condition, and asking the priest how he could find funds to pay
+his debts and take him home, the confessor seemed touched by his tale
+of woe, and after much apparent consideration recommended him to trust
+in Providence.  Talbot seemed struck with such sensible advice, and
+promised to call again in a few days.  This second visit was made in
+due course; he again mourned over his condition, and requested the priest's
+advice and assistance.  His story was listened to as before, with much
+commiseration, but he was again recommended to trust in Providence.
+Talbot came away quite crest-fallen, and evidently with little hope
+of any immediate relief.  After the lapse of a few days, however, he
+appeared again before his confessor, apparently much elated, and invited
+the worthy abbe to dine with him at the Rocher du Cancale.  This invitation
+was gladly accepted, the holy father not doubting but that he should
+have all the delicacies in the land, to which, in common with the rest
+of the clergy, he had no objection; nor was he disappointed. The dinner
+was recherche; the best the establishment could furnish was placed before
+them, and most heartily and lovingly did the worthy abbe devote himself
+to what was offered.  At the end of the repast the carte a payer was
+duly furnished; but what was the astonishment of the reverend guest
+when Talbot declared that his purse was completely au sec, and that
+it had been a long time empty; but that upon this occasion, as upon
+all others, he trusted, as the abbe had advised him, in Providence.
+The Abbe Pecheron, recovering from his surprise, and being of a kind
+and generous disposition, laughed heartily at Talbot's impudence, and
+feeling that he had deserved this rebuke pulled out his purse, paid
+for the dinner, and did what he should have done at first - wrote to
+the members of Talbot's family, and obtained for him such assistance
+as enabled him to quit Paris and return home, where he afterwards led
+a more sober life.
+
+
+A DINNER AT SIR JAMES BLAND BURGES'S, IN LOWER BROOK STREET; AUTUMN, 1815
+
+I was once invited to dinner by Sir James Burges, father of my friend,
+Captain Burges, of the Guards: it was towards the end of the season
+1815.  I there met, to my great delight, Lord Byron and Sir Walter Scott;
+and amongst the rest of the company were Lord Caledon, and Croker, the
+Secretary to the Admiralty.  Sir James had been private secretary to
+Pitt at the time of the French Revolution, and had a fund of curious
+anecdotes about everything and everybody of note at the end of the last
+century.  I remember his telling us the now generally received story
+of Pitt dictating a King's speech off-hand - then a more difficult task
+than at the present day - without the slightest hesitation; this speech
+being adopted by his colleagues nearly word for word as it was written down.
+
+Walter Scott was quite delightful, appearing full of fire and animation,
+and told some interesting anecdotes connected with his early life in
+Scotland.  I remember his proving himself, what would have been called
+in the olden times he delighted to portray, "a stout trencher-man."
+Nor were his attentions confined by any means to the eatables; on the
+contrary, he showed himself worthy to have made a third in the famous
+carousal in Ivanhoe, between the Black Knight and the Holy Clerk of
+Copmanhurst.
+
+Byron, whom I had before seen at the shooting galleries and elsewhere,
+was then a very handsome man, with remarkably fine eyes and hair; but
+was, as usual, all show-off and affectation.  I recollect his saying
+that he disliked seeing women eat, or to have their company at dinner,
+from a wish to believe, if possible, in their more ethereal nature;
+but he was rallied into avowing that his chief dislike to their presence
+at the festive board arose from the fact of their being helped first,
+and consequently getting all the wings of the chickens, whilst men had
+to be content with the legs or other parts.  Byron, on this occasion,
+was in great good humour, and full of boyish and even boisterous mirth.
+
+Croker was also agreeable, notwithstanding his bitter and sarcastic
+remarks upon everything and everybody.  The sneering, ill-natured expression
+of his face, struck me as an impressive contrast to the frank and benevolent
+countenance of Walter Scott.
+
+I never assisted at a more agreeable dinner. According to the custom
+of the day, we sat late; the poets, statesmen, and soldiers, all drank
+an immense quantity of wine, and I for one felt the effects of it next
+day.  Walter Scott gave one or two recitations, in a very animated manner,
+from the ballads that he had been collecting, which delighted his auditory;
+and both Lord Byron and Croker added to the hilarity of the evening
+by quotations from, and criticisms on the more prominent writers of
+the period.
+
+
+LORD BYRON
+
+
+I knew very little of Lord Byron personally, but lived much with two
+of his intimate friends, Scrope Davis and Wedderburn Webster; from whom
+I frequently heard many anecdotes of him.  I regret that I remember
+so few; and wish that I had written down those told me by poor Scrope
+Davis, one of the most agreeable men I ever met.
+
+When Byron was at Cambridge, he was introduced to Scrope Davis by their
+mutual friend, Matthews, who was afterwards drowned in the river Cam.
+After Matthews's death, Davis became Byron's particular friend, and
+was admitted to his rooms at all hours.  Upon one occasion he found
+the poet in bed with his hair en papillote, upon which Scrope cried,
+"Ha, ha!  Byron, I have at last caught you acting the part of the Sleeping
+Beauty."
+
+Byron, in a rage, exclaimed, "No, Scrope; the part of a d----d fool,
+you should have said."
+
+"Well, then, anything you please; but you have succeeded admirably in
+deceiving your friends, for it was my conviction that your hair curled
+naturally."
+
+"Yes, naturally, every night," returned the poet; "but do not, my dear
+Scrope, let the cat out of the bag, for I am as vain of my curls as
+a girl of sixteen."
+
+When in London, Byron used to go to Manton's shooting-gallery, in Davis
+street, to try his hand, as he said, at a wafer.  Wedderburn Webster
+was present when the poet, intensely delighted with his own skill, boasted
+to Joe Manton that he considered himself the best shot in London. "No,
+my lord," replied Manton," not the best; but your shooting, to-day,
+was respectable;" upon which Byron waxed wroth, and left the shop in
+a violent passion.
+
+Lords Byron, Yarmouth, Pollington, Mountjoy, Walliscourt, Blandford,
+Captain Burges, Jack Bouverie, and myself, were in 1814, and for several
+years afterwards, amongst the chief and most constant frequenters of
+this well-known shooting-gallery, and frequently shot at the wafer for
+considerable sums of money.  Manton was allowed to enter the betting
+list, and he generally backed me.  On one occasion, I hit the wafer
+nineteen times out of twenty.
+
+Byron lived a great deal at Brighton, his house being opposite the Pavilion.
+He was fond of boating, and was generally accompanied by a lad, who
+was said to be a girl in boy's clothes. This report was confirmed to
+me by Webster, who was then living at Brighton.  The vivid description
+of the page in Lara, no doubt, gave some plausibility to this often-told
+tale.  I myself witnessed the dexterous manner in which Byron used to
+get into his boat; for, while standing on the beach, I once saw him
+vault into it with the agility of a harlequin, in spite of his lame foot.
+
+On one occasion, whilst his lordship was dining with a few of his friends
+in Charles Street, Pall Mall, a letter was delivered to Scrope Davis,
+which required an immediate answer.  Scrope, after reading its contents,
+handed it to Lord Byron.  It was thus worded:-
+
+"MY DEAR SCROPE, - Lend me 500£. for a few days; the funds are shut for
+the dividends, or I would not have made this request.
+
+- - - - - - - - - - "G.  BRUMMELL."
+
+The reply was:-
+
+"My DEAR BRUMMELL, - All my money is locked up in the funds.
+
+- - - - - - - - - - "SCROPE DAVIS."
+
+This was just before Brummell's escape to the Continent.
+
+I have frequently asked Scrope Davis his private opinion of Lord Byron,
+and invariably received the same answer - that he considered Lord Byron
+very agreeable and clever, but vain, overbearing, conceited, suspicious,
+and jealous.  Byron hated Palmerston, but liked Peel, and thought that
+the whole world ought to be constantly employed in admiring his poetry
+and himself: he never could write a poem or a drama without making himself
+its hero, and he was always the subject of his own conversation.
+
+During one of Henry Hobhouse's visits to Byron, at his villa near Genoa,
+and whilst they were walking in the garden, his lordship suddenly turned
+upon his guest, and, apropos of nothing, exclaimed, "Now, I know, Hobhouse,
+you are looking at my foot."  Upon which Hobhouse kindly replied, "My
+dear Byron, nobody thinks of or looks at anything but your head."
+
+
+SHELLEY
+
+
+Shelley, the poet, cut off at so early an age; just when his great poetical
+talents had been matured by study and reflection, and when he probably
+would have produced some great work, was my friend and associate at
+Eton. He was a boy of studious and meditative habits, averse to all
+games and sports, and a great reader of novels and romances.  He was
+a thin, slight lad, with remarkably lustrous eyes, fine hair, and a
+very peculiar shrill voice and laugh. His most intimate friend at Eton
+was a boy named Price, who was considered one of the best classical
+scholars amongst us.  At his tutor, Bethell's, where he lodged, he attempted
+many mechanical and scientific experiments.  By the aid of a common
+tinker, he contrived to make something like a steam-engine,
+which, unfortunately, one day suddenly exploded; to the great consternation
+of the neighbourhood and to the imminent danger of a severe flogging
+from Dr. Reate.
+
+Soon after leaving school, and about the year 1810, he came, in a state
+of great distress and difficulty, to Swansea, when we had an opportunity
+of rendering him a service; but we never could ascertain what had brought
+him to Wales, though we had reason to suppose it was some mysterious
+affaire du coeur.
+
+The last time I saw Shelley was at Genoa, in 1822, sitting on the sea-shore,
+and, when I came upon him, making a true poet's meal of bread and fruit;
+He at once recognized me, jumped up, and appearing greatly delighted,
+exclaimed, "Here you see me at my old Eton habits; but instead of the
+green fields for a couch, I have here the shores of the Mediterranean.
+It is very grand, and very romantic.  I only wish I had some of the
+excellent brown bread and butter we used to get at Spiers's: but I was
+never very fastidious in my diet."  Then he continued, in a wild and
+eccentric manner: "Gronow, do you remember the beautiful Martha, the
+Hebe of Spiers's?  She was the loveliest girl I ever saw, and I loved
+her to distraction."
+
+Shelley was looking careworn and ill; and, as usual, was very carelessly
+dressed.  He had on a large and wide straw hat, his long brown hair,
+already streaked with grey, flowing in large masses from under it, and
+presented a wild and strange appearance.
+
+During the time I sat by his side he asked many questions about myself
+and many of our schoolfellows; but on my questioning him in turn about
+himself, his way of life, and his future plans, he avoided entering
+into any explanation: indeed, he gave such short and evasive answers,
+that, thinking my inquisitiveness displeased him, I rose to take my
+leave.  I observed that I had not been lucky enough to see Lord Byron
+in any of my rambles, to which he replied, "Byron is living at his villa,
+surrounded by his court of sycophants; but I shall shortly see him at
+Leghorn." We then shook hands.  I never saw him again; for he was drowned
+shortly afterwards, with his friend, Captain Williams, and his body
+was washed ashore near Via Reggio.  Every one is familiar with the romantic
+scene which took place on the sea-shore when the remains of my poor
+friend and Captain Williams were burnt, in the presence of Byron and
+Trelawney, in the Roman fashion. His ashes were gathered into an urn,
+and buried in the Protestant cemetery at Rome.  He was but twenty-nine
+years of age at his death.
+
+
+
+ROBERT SOUTHEY, THE POET
+
+
+In the year 1803, my father received a letter of introduction from Mr.
+Rees, of the well-known firm of Longman, Paternoster Row, presenting
+Robert Southey, the poet, to him.  He came into Wales with the hope
+of finding a cottage to reside in.  Accordingly, a cavalcade was formed,
+consisting of Mr. W. Gwynne, the two brothers Southey, my father, and
+myself, and we rode up the Valley of Neath to look at a cottage about
+eight miles from the town.  The poet, delighted with the scenery and
+situation, decided upon taking it; but the owner, unfortunately for
+the honour of Welshmen, actually declined to let it to Robert Southey,
+fearing that a poet could not find security for the small annual rent
+of twenty-five pounds. This circumstance led the man of letters, who
+eventually became one of the most distinguished men of his day, to seek
+a home elsewhere, and the Lakes were at length chosen as his residence.
+Probably the picturesque beauties of Cumberland compensated the Laureate
+for the indignity put upon him by the Welshman.
+
+An act of Vandalism perpetrated in the same Vale of Neath, and reflecting
+no honour on my countrymen, deserves here to be noted with reprobation.
+A natural cascade, called Dyllais, which was so beautiful as to excite
+the admiration of travellers, was destroyed by an agent to Lord Jersey,
+the proprietor of the estate, in order to build a few cottages and the
+lock of a canal. The rock down which this beautiful cascade had flowed
+from the time of the Flood, and which had created a scene of beauty
+universally admired, was blown up with gunpowder by this man, who could
+probably appreciate no more beautiful sight than that which presents
+itself from a window in Gray's or Lincoln's Inn, of which he was a member.
+
+
+CAPTAIN HESSE, FORMERLY OF THE 18TH HUSSARS
+
+
+One of my most intimate friends was the late Captain Hesse, generally
+believed to be a son of the Duke of York, by a German lady of rank.
+Though it is not my intention to disclose certain family secrets of
+which I am in possession, I may, nevertheless, record some circumstances
+connected with the life of my friend, which were familiar to a large
+circle with whom I mixed.  Hesse, in early youth, lived with the Duke
+and Duchess of York; he was treated in such a manner by them as to indicate
+an interest in him by their Royal Highnesses which could scarcely be
+attributed to ordinary regard, and was gazetted a cornet in the 18th
+Hussars at seventeen years of age.  Shortly afterwards, he went to Spain,
+and was present in all the battles in which his regiment was engaged;
+receiving a severe wound in the wrist at the battle of Vittoria.  When
+this became known in England, a royal lady wrote to Lord Wellington,
+requesting that he might be carefully attended to; and, at the same
+time, a watch, with her portrait, was forwarded, which was delivered
+to the wounded Hussar by Lord Wellington himself.  When he had sufficiently
+recovered, Hesse returned to England, and passed much of his time at
+Oatlands, the residence of the Duchess of York; he was also honoured
+with the confidence of the Princess Charlotte and her mother, Queen Caroline.
+
+Many delicate and important transactions were conducted through the
+medium of Captain Hesse; in fact, it was perfectly well known that he
+played a striking part in many scenes of domestic life which I do not
+wish to reveal.  I may, however, observe that the Prince Regent sent
+the late Admiral Lord Keith to Hesse's lodgings, who demanded, in his
+Royal Highness's name, the restitution of the watch and letters which
+had been sent him when in Spain.  After a considerable amount of hesitation,
+the Admiral obtained what he wanted the following day; whereupon Lord
+Keith assured him that the Prince Regent would never forget so great
+a mark of confidence, and that the heir to the throne would ever afterwards
+be his friend.  I regret to say, from personal knowledge, that, upon
+this occasion the Prince behaved most ungratefully and unfeelingly;
+for, after having obtained all he wanted, he positively refused to receive
+Hesse at Carlton House.
+
+Hesse's life was full of singular incidents.  He was a great friend
+of the Queen of Naples, grandmother of the ex-Sovereign of the Two Sicilies;
+in fact, so notorious was that liaison, that Hesse was eventually expelled
+from Naples under an escort of gendarmes.  He was engaged in several
+affairs of honour, in which he always displayed the utmost courage;
+and his romantic career terminated by his being killed in a duel by
+Count L--, natural son of the first Napoleon.  He died as he had lived,
+beloved by his friends, and leaving behind him little but his name and
+the kind thoughts of those who survived him.
+
+
+VISITING IN THE COUNTRY
+
+
+When I returned to London from Paris, in 1815, upon promotion, I was
+accompanied by Colonel Brooke, who was good enough to invite me to pass
+some time at his brother's, Sir R. Brookes, in Cheshire, upon the occasion
+of the christening of his eldest son. The fete was truly magnificent,
+and worthy of our excellent host; and all the great people of the neighbouring
+counties were present.
+
+Soon afterwards I went to the Hale, a country house near Liverpool,
+belonging to Mr. Blackburn, one of the oldest members of the House of
+Commons, where many persons, who had been at Sir Richard Brookes's,
+met again.  Mr. Blackburn was extremely absent and otherwise odd: upon
+one occasion I gave him a letter to frank, which he deliberately opened
+and read in my presence; and on my asking him if it amused him, he replied
+that he did not understand what it meant.  Upon another occasion the
+Duke of Gloucester, accompanied by Mr. Blackburn, went out to shoot
+pheasants in the preserves near the Hale; when all of a sudden, Mr.
+B. observing that the Duke's gun was cocked, asked his Royal Highness
+whether he always carried his gun cocked.  "Yes, Blackburn, always,"
+was the reply.
+
+"Well then, good morning, your Royal Highness; I will no longer accompany
+you."
+
+At dinner Mr. Blackburn was very eccentric: he would never surrender
+his place at table even to royalty; so the Duke was obliged to sit near
+him.  Whenever the royal servant filled the Duke's glass with wine and
+water, Mr. B. invariably drank it off; until at length, the Duke asked
+his servant for more wine and water, and anticipating a repetition of
+the farce that had so often been played, drank it off, and said, "Well,
+Blackburn, I have done you at last."  After dinner the Duke and the
+men went to join the ladies in the drawing-room, where the servant in
+royal livery was waiting, holding a tray upon which was a cup of tea
+for the Duke.  Mr. Blackburn, observing the servant in waiting, and
+that nobody took the cup of tea, determined on drinking it; but the
+domestic retired a little, to endeavour to prevent it.  Mr. Blackburn,
+however, followed and persisted; Upon which the servant said, "Sir,
+it is for his Royal Highness."
+
+"D--- his Royal Highness, I will have this tea."
+
+The Duke exclaimed, "That's right, Blackburn," and ordered the servant
+to hand it to him.
+
+
+COLONEL KELLY AND HIS BLACKING
+
+
+Among the odd characters I have met with, I do not recollect anyone
+more eccentric than the late Lieutenant-colonel Kelly, of the First
+Foot Guards, who was the vainest man I ever encountered.  He was a thin,
+emaciated-looking dandy, but had all the bearing of the gentleman. He
+was haughty in the extreme, and very fond of dress; his boots were so
+well varnished that the polish now in use could not surpass Kelly's
+blacking in brilliancy; his pantaloons were made of the finest leather,
+and his coats were inimitable: in short, his dress was considered perfect.
+
+His sister held the place of housekeeper to the Custom-house, and when
+it was burnt down, Kelly was burnt with it, in endeavoring to save his
+favorite boots.  When the news of his horrible death became known, all
+the dandies were anxious to secure the services of his valet, who possessed
+the mystery of the inimitable blacking.  Brummell lost no time in discovering
+his place of residence, and asked what wages he required; the servant
+answered, his late master gave him 150£. a-year, but it was not enough
+for his talents, and he should require 200£.; upon which Brummell said,
+well, if you will make it guineas, I shall be happy to attend upon you."
+The late Lord Plymouth eventually secured this phoenix of valets at
+200£. a-year, and bore away the sovereignty of boots.
+
+
+LORD ALLEN AND COUNT D'ORSAY
+
+
+Lord Allen being rather the worse for drinking too much wine at dinner,
+teased Count D'Orsay, and said some very disagreeable things, which
+irritated him; when suddenly John Bush entered the club and shook hands
+with the Count, who exclaimed, "Voila, la difference entre une bonne
+bouche et une mauvaise haleine."
+
+The following bon mot was also attributed to the Count: General Ornano,
+observing a certain nobleman - who, by some misfortune in his youth,
+lost the use of his legs - in a Bath chair, which he wheeled about,
+and inquiring the name of the English peer, D'Orsay answered, "Pere
+la Chaise."
+
+The Count had many disciples among our men of fashion, but none of them
+succeeded in copying the original.  His death produced, both in London
+and in Paris, a deep and universal regret.  The Count's life has been
+so well delineated in the public prints, that nothing I could say would
+add to the praise that has been bestowed upon him.  Perfectly natural
+in manners and language, highly accomplished, and never betraying the
+slightest affectation or pretension, he had formed friendships with
+some of the noblest and most accomplished men in England.  He was also
+a great favourite in Paris, where he had begun to exercise his talent
+as an artist, when death prematurely removed him from society.
+
+Mr. PHELPS
+
+Mr. Phelps, a chorus singer, and an excellent musician, with good looks
+and address, contrived to ingratiate himself with the Marchioness of
+Antrim, and was fortunate enough to marry her ladyship, by whose means
+he was created a baronet, and allied to some of our most aristocratic
+families.
+
+
+THE LATE LORD BLOOMFIELD
+
+
+The late Lord Bloomfield likewise owed his elevation to the Peerage
+to his musical talents.  When the Prince of Wales was living at the
+Pavilion at Brighton, he wanted some one who could accompany him on
+the violoncello, and having ascertained that Captain Bloomfield, of
+the Royal Artillery, who was then at Brighton with his troop, was an
+accomplished violoncello player, the captain was accordingly summoned
+to appear before the Prince, at the Pavilion.  From that night commenced
+an intimacy which for many years existed between the Prince and Captain
+Bloomfield; who for a considerable length of time was well known in
+fashionable circles under the title of Sir Benjamin Bloomfield.  A court
+intrigue, headed by a fascinating marchioness, caused him to be sent
+into splendid exile: this lady attributing to Sir Benjamin Bloomfield
+her being compelled to send back some jewels which had been presented
+to her by the Prince Regent; but which, it was discovered, belonged
+to the Crown, and could not be alienated.  Sir Benjamin was created
+a Peer, and sent to Stockholm as ambassador, where his affable manners
+and his unostentatious hospitality rendered him exceedingly popular;
+and he became as great a favorite with Bernadotte as he had been with
+the Prince Regent.  The name of Bloomfield is at this day respected in Sweden.
+
+
+THE RIGHT HON. GEORGE CANNING
+
+
+When Mr. Canning retired from Portugal, he was received at Paris with
+a distinction and a deference perhaps never before bestowed on a foreign
+diplomatist; he dined with Charles X. almost tete-a-tete, and was scrambled
+for by the leading aristocracy of France.  It happened that he also
+dined, on one occasion, with the Bailly Ferret, who was the oldest foreign
+ambassador in Paris; and it was generally understood that Canning, who
+had the reputation of being a gourmand, and was not in robust health
+at the time, never thoroughly recovered from these Parisian hospitalities.
+A short time after, this great orator, and the most brilliant statesman
+of the day, breathed his last at Chiswick, in the same room in which
+Charles James Fox died.
+
+MRS. BOEHM, OF ST. JAMES'S SQUARE
+
+This lady used to give fashionable balls and masquerades, to which I
+look back with much pleasure. The Prince Regent frequently honoured
+her fetes with his presence.  Mrs. Boehm, on one occasion, sent invitations
+to one of her particular friends, begging him to fill them up, and tickets
+were given by him to Dick Butler (afterwards Lord Glengal) and to Mr.
+Raikes.  Whilst they were deliberating in what character they should
+go, Dick Butler - for by that name he was only then known - proposed
+that Raikes should take the part of Apollo; which the latter agreed
+to, provided Dick would be his lyre.  The noble lord's reputation for
+stretching the long bow rendered this repartee so applicable, that it
+was universally repeated at the clubs.
+
+DR. GOODALL, OF ETON
+
+This gentleman was proverbially fond of punning.  About the same time
+that he was made Provost of Eton, he received, also, a Stall at Windsor.
+A young lady of his acquaintance, while congratulating him on his elevation,
+and requesting him to give the young ladies of Eton and Windsor a ball
+during the vacation, happened to touch his wig with her fan, and caused
+the powder to fly about.  Upon which the doctor exclaimed, "My dear,
+you see you can get the powder out of the canon, but not the ball."
+
+
+LORD MELBOURNE, THE DUKE OF LEINSTER, AND LORD NORMANBY
+
+
+When Lord Melbourne offered the garter to the Duke of Leinster, his
+grace is reported to have answered that he did not want it; adding,
+"It will, no doubt, be eagerly accepted by one of your lordship's supporters
+in the Upper House."  On another occasion, when Lord Normanby was soliciting
+Lord Melbourne to be made a marquis, the noble Premier observed, in
+his jocular way, "Why, Normanby, you are not such a d-----d fool as
+to want that!" The favour, however, was eventually granted.
+
+
+THE DUKE OF GLOUCESTER
+
+
+His Royal Highness, who was in the habit of saying very ludicrous things,
+asked one of his friends in the House of Lords, on the occasion when
+William IV. assented to Lord Grey's Proposition to pass the Reform Bill
+coute qui coute, "Who is Silly Billy now?"  This was in allusion to
+the general opinion that was prevalent of the Royal Duke's weakness,
+and which had obtained for him the sobriquet of "Silly Billy."
+
+The Duke frequently visited Cheltenham during the season.  Upon one
+occasion, he called upon Colonel Higgins, brother to the equerry of
+his Royal Highness the Prince Regent, and, on inquiring of the servant
+if his master was at home, received for answer, "My master is dying."
+
+"Dying!"  repeated the Duke; "have you sent for a doctor?"
+
+"No, sir."
+
+His Royal Highness immediately ran back into the street, and, having
+the good fortune to find a medical man, he requested him to come at
+once to Colonel Higgins, as he was on the point of death.  The Duke
+and the doctor soon reached the colonel's house, and, after again asking
+the servant how his master was, that functionary replied, "I told you,
+sir, that he is dying." They mounted the staircase, and were rather
+amused to find the reported invalid busily occupied in dyeing his hair.
+
+
+LADY CORK
+
+
+In 1819, this venerable lady lived in Old Burlington Street, where she
+gave many parties, to persons of all nations, and contrived to bring
+together foreigners from the wilds of America, the Cape of Good Hope,
+and even savages from the isles of the Pacific; in fact, she was the
+notorious lion-hunter of her age. It was supposed that she had a peculiar
+ignorance of the laws of meum and tuum, and that her monomania was such
+that she would try to get possession of whatever she could place her
+hands upon; so that it was dangerous to leave in the ante-room anything
+of value.  On application being made, however, the articles were usually
+returned the following day, the fear of the law acting strongly upon
+her ladyship's bewildered brain.
+
+
+THE DUCHESS OF GORDON
+
+
+This leader of fashion, who was wont to be the admiration of all circles,
+was looked upon as the most ambitious of women, and her vanity was fully
+gratified by the marriage of her daughters to the first people in the
+realm - the Dukes of Richmond, Manchester, and Bedford, and the Marquis
+of Cornwallis.
+
+
+THE LATE MRS. BRADSHAW (MARIA TREE)
+
+
+The two Miss Trees, Maria and Ellen (the latter now Mrs. Kean), were
+the great favourites of the Bath Stage for many seasons before they
+became leading stars in London.  Miss Ellen Tree made her first appearance
+in a grand entertainment, called the Cataract of the Ganges, in a magnificent
+car drawn by six horses.  Her beauty made a deep impression on the audience,
+which was naturally increased by her subsequent exhibition of great talents.
+
+Miss Maria Tree was much admired as a vocalist, and her Viola, in Twelfth
+Night, was one of the most popular performances of the day.  Mr. Bradshaw
+became desperately enamoured of her during her engagement in London,
+and having learnt that she was about to go by the mail coach to Birmingham,
+where she was to perform her principal characters, thought it a favourable
+opportunity of enjoying her society; so he sent his servant to secure
+him a place by the mail, under the name of Tomkins.  At the appointed
+time for departure, Mr. Bradshaw was at the office, and jumping into
+the coach was soon whirled away; but great was his disappointment at
+finding that the fair object of his admiration was not a fellow-passenger:
+he was not consoled by discovering that there were two mails, the one
+the Birmingham, mail, the other the Birmingham and Manchester, and that
+whilst he was journeying by the latter, Miss Tree was travelling in
+the other.
+
+On arriving at Birmingham, early in the morning, he left the coach and
+stepped into the hotel, determined to remain there, and go to the theatre
+on the following evening.  He went to bed, and slept late the following
+day; and on waking he remembered that his trunk with all his money had
+gone on to Manchester, and that he was without the means of paying his
+way.  Seeing the Bank of Birmingham opposite the hotel, he went over
+and explained his position to one of the partners, giving his own banker's
+address in London, and showing letters addressed to him as Mr. Bradshaw.
+Upon this he was told that with such credentials he might have a loan;
+and the banker said he would write the necessary letter and cheque,
+and send the money over to him at the hotel.  Mr. Bradshaw, pleased
+with this kind attention, sat himself down comfortably to breakfast
+in the coffee-room.  According to promise, the cashier made his appearance
+at the hotel, and asked the waiter for Mr.  Bradshaw.
+
+"No such gentleman here," was the reply.
+
+"Oh, yes, he came by the London mail."
+
+"No, sir; no one came but Mr. Tomkins, who was booked as inside passenger
+to Manchester."
+
+The cashier was dissatisfied; but the waiter added, "Sir, you can look
+through the window of the coffee-room door, and see the gentleman yourself."
+
+On doing so, he beheld the Mr. Tomkins, alias Mr. Bradshaw, and immediately
+returned to the Bank, telling what he himself had heard and seen.  The
+banker went over to the hotel, had a consultation with the landlord,
+and it was determined that a watch should be placed upon the suspicious
+person who had two names and no luggage, and who was booked to Manchester
+but had stopped at Birmingham.
+
+The landlord summoned boots - a little lame fellow, of most ludicrous
+appearance, - and pointing to the gentleman in the coffee-room, told
+him his duty for the day was to follow him wherever he went, and never
+to lose sight of him; but above all to take care that he did not get
+away. Boots nodded assent, and immediately mounted guard.  Mr. Bradshaw
+having taken his breakfast and read the papers, looked at his watch,
+and sallied forth to see something of the goodly town of Birmingham.
+He was much surprised at observing a little odd-looking man surveying
+him most attentively, and watching his every movement; stopping whenever
+he stopped, and evidently taking a deep interest in all he did. At last,
+observing that he was the object of this incessant espionage, and finding
+that he had a shilling left in his pocket, he hailed one of the coaches
+that ran short distances in those days when omnibuses were not.  This,
+however, did not suit little boots, who went up to him and insisted
+that he must not leave the town.
+
+Mr. Bradshaw's indignation was naturally excessive, and he immediately
+returned to the hotel, where he found a constable ready to take him
+before the mayor as an impostor and swindler. He was compelled to appear
+before his worship, and had the mortification of being told that unless
+he could give some explanation, he must be content with a night's lodging
+in a house of detention.  Mr. Bradshaw had no alternative but to send
+to the fair charmer of his heart to identify him; which she most readily
+did, as soon as rehearsal was over.  Explanations were then entered
+into; but he was forced to give the reason of his being in Birmingham,
+which of course made a due impression on the lady's heart, and led to
+that happy result of their interviews - a marriage which resulted in
+the enjoyment of mutual happiness for many years.
+
+
+LADIES' JEWELLERY AND LOVERS
+
+
+Some of the most magnificent fortunes of England have, in the first
+instance, been undermined by an extravagant expenditure on jewellery,
+which has been given to ladies, married and unmarried, who have fascinated
+their wealthy admirers and made them their slaves.  Hamlet, and Rundell
+and Bridge, were in my day patronized by the great, and obtained large
+sums of money from their enamoured clients, to whom they often became bankers.
+
+On the day after the coronation of George IV., Hamlet made his appearance
+at the house of Mr. Coutts, in Piccadilly, the corner of Stratton Street.
+It was during dinner; but, owing no doubt to a previous arrangement,
+he was at once admitted, when he placed before the rich banker a magnificent
+diamond cross, which had been worn the previous day by the Duke of York.
+It at once attracted the admiration of Mrs. Coutts, who loudly exclaimed,
+"How happy I should be with such a splendid specimen of jewellery."
+"What is it worth?"  immediately exclaimed Mr. Coutts.  "I could not
+allow it to pass out of my possession for less than 15,000£.," said
+the wary tradesman.  "Bring me a pen and ink," was the only answer made
+by the doting husband; and he at once drew a cheque for that amount
+upon the bank in the Strand; and with much delight the worthy old gentleman
+placed the jewel upon the fair bosom of the lady:
+
+   "Upon her breast a sparkling cross she wore,
+   Which Jews might kiss, and infidels adore."
+
+The Earl of C--, whose reputation in the sporting world was of the highest
+order, and who had obtained some notoriety by his amours, fell into
+the hands of Hamlet, who was known to the aristocracy by his mock title
+of "Prince of Denmark."  Hamlet placed before him, on one occasion,
+jewels to the amount of thirty thousand pounds, and volunteered, as
+his client was not of age, to give him credit for several months.  The
+offer was accepted, and the brilliant present became the possession
+of a young lady, one of the Terpsichorean tribe (Mademoiselle Le G.),
+whose charms had captivated the youthful nobleman, and who had so irrevocably
+fascinated him by the expression of her love, awakened by the prospect
+of a rich remuneration, that she accepted him as the sole possessor
+of a heart which had been before at the disposal of any rich admirer
+whose purse was worthy her consideration.
+
+This lady, who is now somewhat advanced in years, but has still the
+remains of beauty, is living in France upon her estate; the produce
+of the many charms which she once possessed, and which she turned to
+such advantage, as to make her society even up to this day courted by
+those who look upon wealth as the great source of distinction, and who
+are willing to disbelieve any stories that they may accidentally hear
+of her previous history.
+
+
+THE LATE LORD HENRY SEYMOUR
+
+
+I knew Lord Henry perhaps better than any other Englishman, having lived
+with him on terms of great intimacy.  He was famous for his racing stud
+and good taste in his carriages and riding-horses.  It was said, by
+persons who were little acquainted with him, that he was fond of masquerades,
+fighting, and was also the terror of pugilists, from his great strength
+and science in boxing; on the contrary, he was a gentle, retiring, and
+humane man, and never was known to have been present at a masquerade,
+or any place of the sort.  But it unfortunately happened that a man
+named "Franconi," of the Circus - a low-born and vulgar fellow - resembled
+him in looks and stature, and having been mistaken for my noble friend
+gave himself out as Lord Seymour in those dens of infamy, where the
+noble lord was unknown.
+
+Lord Henry was a man of fine taste, and fond of the arts, and, at his
+death, his paintings, library, and plate fetched a considerable sum
+at public auction.  During his lifetime he patronized young artists:
+often advancing them money, and assisting them in every possible way.
+
+Lord Henry Seymour was the founder of the French Jockey Club, and, in
+conjunction with the late Duke de Gramont (better known in England as
+the Count de Guiche), made racing in France what it now is: that is,
+they placed the turf upon a respectable footing.  Lord Henry established
+a school of arms and gymnasium in his hotel on the Boulevard des Italiens,
+which became the most celebrated in Europe.  He himself was an adept
+in the art of fencing, his skill was considered by the professors to
+be incomparable.
+
+His kindness of heart and unostentatious generosity were his noblest
+qualities.  One morning, whilst we were breakfasting in his library,
+a friend entered, and, with a sad countenance, informed Lord Henry that
+he had that morning been visiting an old friend of his, a man of good
+birth, who, with his wife and children, were absolutely starving, and
+that they were reduced to sleep upon straw.  Lord Henry, touched by
+this painful information, asked where those poor people were to be found,
+and being told, he said not a word more, but ordered his carriage and
+went out.  The next morning the same gentleman made his appearance,
+and said, "I call to tell you, Seymour, that I am just come from my
+poor friend, who, I am happy to say, has received relief, in the shape
+of furniture, bedding, linen, and food, from some kind person, who also
+left a considerable sum of money to purchase wearing apparel for the family."
+
+Seymour never moved a muscle of his face, and we were wondering from
+whence the relief came, when a fine-looking fellow entered, bowing in
+the most respectful manner, and addressed his lordship in the following
+terms:- "My lord, I am obliged to confess that I have taken some trouble
+to discover the name of our benefactor, and, from all I have been able
+to learn, it cannot be any other than your lordship; I therefore deem
+it my duty, on behalf of my wife, children, and self, to return you
+my heartfelt thanks for this unexampled act of charity towards a perfect
+stranger."  The poor fellow shed tears in thus addressing his lordship,
+who kindly gave him his hand, and promised to be his friend for the
+future; which promise he fulfilled, by procuring him a place under the
+Government, that enabled him to live happily and bring up his family
+with honour and comfort.
+
+
+FRANCE AND THE FRENCH
+
+
+I will not permit this little volume to make its appearance in English
+society, without a few words about a people with whom I have mingled
+for nearly forty years.  When I first came to France, few of my countrypeople
+travelled, save those belonging to the rich and aristocratic classes;
+it was not, therefore, surprising that those whose interest it might
+have been, on both sides of the Channel, to create a bad feeling between
+England and France, found little difficulty in doing so.  An Englishman
+was taught to hate the French as well as to observe the Ten Commandments;
+and a Frenchman, on the other hand, was educated with the idea that
+his only enemy on the face of the earth was an Englishman.
+
+I regard this stimulated hostile feeling between two nations which must
+ever influence the welfare of the human race more than any others, as
+one of the greatest calamities that could curse humanity.  We have only
+to read history from the days of Agincourt up to our later struggles
+with Napoleon I., to come to the conclusion that the two bravest and
+the most intelligent nations on the face of the earth have, from DYNASTIC
+ambition, and a want of the people knowing each other, been ever engaged
+in inflicting mutual disasters, which have impeded for centuries the
+progress, civilization, and prosperity of both; whilst the want of a
+proper understanding between the two countries has materially aided
+in retarding other nations in obtaining that political emancipation
+necessary to the happiness of mankind.
+
+I have lived through a period characterized by sanguinary wars and huge
+national debts, and have remained in this world long enough to calculate
+their results.  I am afraid we must often be content with that empty
+glory which lives only in the pages of history.  A battle fought fifty
+years ago appears very often of no more utility than the splendid tomb
+of a Necropolis.  Events and objects for which men by thousands were
+brought together in deadly combat assume, a few years afterwards, mighty
+small proportions; and those who have taken part in deadly struggles,
+at a later period marvel at the enthusiasm which then animated them.
+I am no believer in that era of happiness which some divines imagine
+to be so near at hand; nor do I imagine that the next two or three hundred
+years will witness the sword turned into the reaping-hook of peaceful
+industry; but what I do believe in, and what I hope for, is that nations
+will know each other better than they did of old. It will be more difficult
+for sovereigns and governments to bring about wars between neighboring
+nations now, than it was before the existence of that intercommunication
+which in our day has been created by the press, the railway, and the
+electric telegraph.
+
+I have lived long enough to find hundreds of my countrymen participating
+in a real knowledge of the French, and believing with me that they are
+a brave, intelligent, and generous nation. Nearly half a century of
+experience amongst them has taught me that there is much to learn and
+much that is worthy of imitation in France. The social habits of the
+French, and their easy mode of communication, always gain the admiration,
+and often invite the attachment of foreigners. They are less prejudiced
+than we islanders, and are much more citizens of the world than ourselves.
+I have received an immense amount of courtesy in France; and if there
+be less of solid friendship - which, however, in England is based too
+often on a similarity of birth, position, and wealth - in France, you
+have, at least, a greater chance than in England of making a friend
+of a man who neither looks to your ancestors nor your amount of riches
+before he proffers you the most sincere intimacy, and, if necessary,
+disinterested aid, purely on the ground of your own merit and character.
+
+Many of the better qualities of the French are not discoverable by the
+superficial traveller, any more than the sterling qualities of the Englishman
+are appreciated by the foreigner who makes a brief sojourn in Great
+Britain.  Slowly, but, I believe, surely, the agreeable knowledge that
+I possess of the French is becoming more universal; and I cannot but
+imagine that such a correct appreciation will be fraught with the most
+valuable political as well as social results.
+
+Intelligent Englishmen have lived long enough to appreciate the genius
+of Napoleon I., whose mode of governing France has been applied by Napoleon
+III. with a success which prejudice even has been compelled to acknowledge.
+But I remember a period when probably not a dozen Englishmen could have
+been found to speak of the first Emperor with the most ordinary common
+sense.  I will, however, record one honourable exception to the rule.
+The late Lord Dudley and Ward, an eccentric, but able man, was at Vienna,
+in the midst of a large party, who were all more or less abusing or
+depreciating the fallen hero, whose very name had so long created fear
+and hatred amongst them.  It was naturally supposed that the Englishman
+who was silently listening to this conversation must of course, as the
+natural enemy of France, approve of all that had been said. Prince Metternich
+turned at last to his guest, and said, "Et vous, my Lord, que pensez
+vous de Napoleon?"  "Je pense," replied Lord Dudley, "qu'il a rendu la
+gloire passee douteuse, et la renommee future impossible."
+
+As an old soldier and an admirer of the Duke of Wellington, I cannot
+altogether admit the entire justice of the observation; yet, spoken
+by an Englishman to the enemies of the exiled Emperor, it was a gallant
+homage paid to fallen greatness.
+
+The great man who now wields the destinies of France possesses many
+of the remarkable qualities of the founder of his dynasty: his energetic
+will, his extensive and varied knowledge, his aptitude for government,
+his undaunted bravery, and that peculiar tact which leads him to say
+the right thing at the right time.  But to these rare gifts he joins
+the most princely generosity, and a kind and gentle heart: he has never
+been known to forsake a friend, or leave unrewarded any proofs of devotion
+shown to him in his days of exile. He is adored by the vast majority
+of the French nation, and even his political opponents, if accidentally
+brought under the influence of his particularly winning and gracious
+manner, are, in spite of themselves, charmed and softened,
+
+There can be no doubt that Napoleon III. enjoys a well-merited popularity,
+and that there is throughout all classes a deep and earnest confidence
+that the honour and glory of France are safe in his hands.
+
+It is just this mighty power, founded on the love and trust of his people,
+which is the surest pledge that peace will be maintained between our
+country and France.  Napoleon III. does not require to court popularity
+by pandering to the anti-English prejudices still retained by a small
+minority of his subjects; and, unlike the representatives of less popular
+dynasties, he can afford to show that he is not only the beloved and
+mighty ruler of the French nation, but also the firm ally and faithful
+friend of England.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of this Project Gutenberg Etext of Reminiscences of Captain Gronow
+
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