CHAPTER IV

1834

_London, January 27, 1834._--Sir Henry Halford has just been telling

me that the late King George IV., whose senior physician he was, asked

him two days before his death to say on his word of honour whether the

case was desperate. Sir Henry, with a significantly grave face,

answered that his Majesty's condition was very serious; whereupon the

King thanked him with a movement of his head, desired the Sacrament

and communicated very devoutly, inviting Sir Henry to communicate

along with him. Lady Conyngham was in the adjoining room. So no human

interest was absent from the deathbed of the Royal charlatan while he

partook of the Sacrament for the last time.

_London, February 7, 1834._--Yesterday I was at Lady Holland's, who

finished some story or other which she was telling me by saying, "I

didn't get this from Lady Keith (Mme. de Flahaut), for she hasn't

written to me for more than two months." Then she added, "Did you know

that she hated the present Ministry in France?" "Of course," I

answered; "it was you who told M. de Talleyrand all the nasty things

she was saying here about the French Cabinet at the time when it was

formed." "True," replied Lady Holland, "all the same, the Cabinet must

be preserved. Lord Granville has written to Lord Holland to say that

we must not believe everything Lady Keith says about the

precariousness of the Duc de Broglie's position, for she is a bitter

enemy of his and longs for his downfall." I said nothing, and the

subject dropped. But, after this, don't speak to me of the friendships

of this world!

Anyhow, they write rather amusingly of M. and Mme. de Flahaut from

Paris, saying that their favour at the Tuileries is declining, he

being considered a superannuated coquette, and she a foxy old

intriguer.

_Warwick Castle, February 10, 1834._--I left London the day before

yesterday, and got as far as Stony Stratford, where I advise no one to

pass the night. The beds are bad even for England, and I never

experienced anything more like a trappist's couch. I left yesterday

morning in the midst of a bitterly cold and extremely thick fog. It

was impossible to get any idea of the country, which, however, from

certain occasional glimpses, I believe to be rather pretty, especially

about Iston Hall, a beautiful place owned by Lord Porchester. You pass

a superb gate, from which there stretches a vast park, beyond which

there is a view of a valley which seemed to me charming. Leamington, a

few miles further on, is well built and cheerful.

As to Warwick itself, where I arrived yesterday morning, one enters by

a fortress gate. Its aspect is the most severe, its courtyard the most

sombre, its hall the most enormous, its furniture the most Gothic, and

its style the most perfect that you can possibly imagine. Everything

suggests the feudal system. A large and rapid river bathes the foot of

the great dark old battlemented towers. The monotonous noise of the

water is interrupted by the crackling of the great trees which burn in

the gigantic fireplaces. In the hall huge logs are piled upon the dogs

which stand on slabs of polished marble, and each log requires two men

to put it on the fire.

I have only just glanced rapidly at the stained glass in the great

broad windows, which are on the same scale as the fireplaces, at the

armour and the antlers and the other curiosities of the hall, at the

fine family portraits in the three great drawing-rooms. As yet I am

only familiar with my own room, which is completely furnished with

Boulle and carved walnut, and, in addition to these antique

splendours, is full of all the modern comforts.

Lady Warwick's boudoir is also full of interesting things. She came

to my room yesterday to fetch me, and after showing me the boudoir she

took me to the little drawing-room, where we found Lord Monson, the

son of her first marriage, a little man, or rather boy, shy and

silent, and much embarrassed by the exiguity and weakness of his

person. Lady Monson was also there. She is a striking contrast to her

husband, being a tall blonde Englishwoman, stiff and bony, with long

features and large hands, a great broad flat chest, angular in her

movements, and rather like an old maid, but pretty and kindly. Here,

too, was Lady Eastnor, the sister of Lady Stuart of Rothesay; ugly,

like all her family, but well-bred, like all Lady Hardwicke's

daughters. Lord Eastnor, a mighty hunter and a great eater and

drinker, was also of the party; and his brother, a parson, who, I

believe, has not shaved since Christmas, and who never opened his

mouth except to eat. Lord Brooke, the son of the house, is fifteen and

very nice looking; his tutor was with him, and was silent and

respectful, as tutors should be. Finally, there was the striking

figure of Lady Catherine Neeld, a sister of the Ashleys and a daughter

of Lord Shaftesbury. She is celebrated for the suit she brought

against her husband, of which all the papers were full last year. She

is a friend of Lady Warwick's who protects, shelters, and defends her.

She is a bold, rather loud person, with a malicious tongue and

familiar and somewhat audacious manners. She is well made, has a white

skin and beautiful fair hair, but neither eyebrows nor eyelashes. Her

face is long and narrow; her eyes have no special merit, and her nose

and mouth remind you of what Madame de Sévigné said of Madame de

Sforze when she described her as being like "a parrot eating a

cherry."

Lord Warwick had a touch of rheumatic gout, and kept his room. No one

seemed to miss him.

The lady of the house is far from being in harmony with the splendid

pile which she inhabits. She has been pretty without being beautiful;

she is naturally witty, but has not improved her gifts by study. She

knows nothing of the traditions of her castle. Her disposition is all

towards fun and informality; her bodily habits are nonchalant, and

altogether this plump, lazy, idle little woman seems anything but the

natural mistress of her vast, sombre, and almost terrifying house.

Moreover, every one seems to me a pigmy in these rooms, to fill which

you would require superhuman creatures like the King-maker. Our

generation is too meanly proportioned for such an abode.

The dining-room is fine, but less grandiose than the rest of the

house. On leaving table a long time before the men we went to the

great drawing-room, which is flanked by two smaller ones. In this huge

room there are some splendid Van Dycks, and the panelling is entirely

of cedar in its natural colour. The perfume of this wood is very

agreeable. The furniture is covered in velvet damask, the prevailing

tone of which is deep red. There are many really magnificent pieces of

Boulle, and several marbles brought back from Italy. The two enormous

windows form deep recesses and have no curtains, being simply framed

in cedar wood. In this huge area there were only about a score of

candles, which reminded me of will-o'-the-wisps, which deceived the

eye rather than illuminated the room. I have never seen anything more

chilling and depressing than this drawing-room, in which the ladies'

conversation was very languid indeed. I kept thinking that the

portrait of Charles the First and the bust of the Black Prince would

come and join us at coffee before the fire. At last the men came, and

after them the tea, and at ten o'clock a sort of supper. At eleven a

general move was made to bed, which seemed to be a relief for every

one.

During this long evening I thought many times of the description given

by Corinne of her mother-in-law's château. At dinner nothing was

talked of but county balls and Leamington Spa, and other petty gossip

of the neighbourhood. Feature by feature it recalled Madame de Staël's

description.

In the morning Lady Warwick took me over the Castle, which I should

have got to know better if I had been left to myself, or had been put

in charge of one of the two housekeepers, the elder of whom is

ninety-three. To look at her you would think she was going to tell you

all about the Wars of the Roses. The châtelaine cares nothing whatever

about all the curiosities with which her domain is stored, and took me

through them at breakneck speed.

I did, however, manage to stop for a moment before the saddle and

caparison of Queen Elizabeth, which she used on her progress from

Kenilworth to Warwick, and I took up the lute presented by Lord

Leicester to her Majesty, a wonderfully carved instrument, with the

Queen's arms in raised copper on the wood, and close by them the

favourite's own, which seemed to me a trifle impertinent. I noticed a

curious portrait of the Queen in her coronation robes which showed a

terrible resemblance to her terrible father. _A propos_ of this

portrait Lord Monson told me a thing I did not know, viz., that

Elizabeth, who always affected a youthful appearance, never allowed

herself to be painted except in full face and so lighted as to avoid

any shadow on her features which might accentuate the lines, and so

indicate the number of her years. It is said that this idea was so

constantly in her mind that she always faced the light when she gave

audience.

The library at Warwick is not particularly remarkable, and did not

appear to me to be much used. Queen Anne's bed-chamber with the bed of

the period is a fine room.

At ten Lady Warwick and I entered a carriage, Lady Monson and Lord

Brooke escorting us on horseback, and we drove through an interesting

landscape to the celebrated ruins of Kenilworth. There I was really

disappointed, not because the ruins do not give the idea of a vast and

noble building, but because the country is so flat, and the absence of

trees is so complete, that there is nothing which you could call

picturesque. It is true that there is a superb coat of ivy over all,

which is good as far as it goes, but is not enough to make a picture.

Lady Monson is less ignorant of the locality than her mother-in-law,

and she pointed out to me the banqueting-hall, Queen Elizabeth's room,

the buildings constructed by Leicester which, though more modern, are

more ruinous than the rest, and the gate-house through which the

Queen's procession passed, and which was built specially for the

occasion. This erection is still in a good state of preservation, and

is inhabited by one of the tenants of Lord Clarendon, the owner of the

ruins. In the interior there is a chimney-piece with the initials and

the crest of Leicester. The wing in which Sir Walter Scott lodges Amy

Robsart owes its celebrity to romance and not to history.

I was not allowed to ascend the towers, as the stability of the ruins

is doubtful, and only last year Lady Sefton's niece had an accident

here. Besides I was assured that the view was in no way remarkable.

We made a _détour_ on the return journey and passed right through

Leamington. The whole town, and especially the bathing establishment,

seemed to me quite pretty. Just now it is gay with hunting men, who

live here much as they do at Melton Mowbray.

When we got back it was not yet dark, and Lady Warwick took me to see

a pretty view of the River Avon at the bottom of the park, which is

beautifully planted. I was also shown some glass-houses, which are

neither very well kept nor very full of flowers, but in which is kept

the Warwick Vase--a huge vessel of white marble beautifully shaped and

carved. It was brought back from the Garden of Trajan by the father of

the present Lord Warwick.

To-morrow I return to London.

_London, February 12, 1834._--M. de Talleyrand told me that yesterday

evening, while playing whist with Madame de Lieven, who had Lord

Sefton for a partner, the Princess, with her habitual absence of mind,

revoked twice, whereupon Lord Sefton quietly remarked that it was

quite natural that these abominable Dardanelles should often cause

Madame de Lieven to revoke. This caused much merriment to the company.

I have a letter from M. Royer-Collard in which occurs the following

sentence: "I like M. de Bacourt very much indeed. His clear, simple

and intelligent conversation is charming, and I find no one here who

talks so well. Our mutual understanding is complete."

_London, February 15, 1834._--The Duchess-Countess of Sutherland

called for me yesterday and took Pauline and me to the _Panorama of

the North Pole_ in which Captain Ross plays a prominent part. Both

painting and perspective are beyond anything I have seen of its kind;

but everything which relates to adventures so terrible and sufferings

so prolonged is intensely interesting.

One of Captain Parry's crew in the _Fury_ who had afterwards been with

Captain Ross, happened by chance to be there. He gave Pauline a little

piece of the fur with which he had covered himself when among the

Esquimaux, and presented me with a fragment of granite taken from the

most northerly point reached by the expedition. We asked him many

questions, and he often recurred to the moment when they sighted the

_Isabella_, which rescued them and brought them home. This was on the

26th of August, and he told us that as long as he lived he would drink

to the memory of that happy moment on every anniversary.

Last night we had a rout, at which there was nothing remarkable either

in the way of dresses or of beauties or of absurdities. The Marquis of

Douglas is extraordinarily handsome, and Miss Emily Hardy seemed to me

rather smitten with him.

The Ministry was represented by Lord Grey, Lord Lansdowne, and Lord

Melbourne. The Cabinet is much embarrassed, for every day incidents

are happening in the House of Commons which show up vividly the

serious divisions in its ranks. Last night Lord Grey's face showed

visible traces of this.

_London, February 20, 1834._--A new and very ugly story is afloat

concerning Count Alfred d'Orsay which is as follows: Sir Willoughby

Cotton, writing from Brighton at the same time to Count d'Orsay and to

Lady Fitzroy Somerset, cross-directed the letters so that M. d'Orsay

on opening the letter which he received, instead of seeing the mistake

and stopping at the first line, which ran "Dear Lady Fitzroy," read it

through and found, among other Brighton gossip, some pleasantries

about Lady Tullemore and one of her lovers, and a sharp saying about

himself. What did he do but go to the club, read out the letter before

every one, and finally put it under cover and send it to Lord

Tullemore! The result very nearly was a crop of duels. Lady Tullemore

is very ill, and the guilty lover has fled to Paris. Friends

intervened, however, and the thing was hushed up for the sake of the

ladies, but M. d'Orsay cut (and cuts) an odious figure.

_London, February 27, 1834._--The latest joke is to spread rumours of

Lord Palmerston's marriage with Miss Jerningham. She was at the

Russian Embassy yesterday overdressed and bedizened as usual. Madame

de Lieven made her a target for her wit, but couldn't quite get out of

inviting her. No doubt, in order to avenge this constraint, she said

quite loudly that Miss Jerningham reminded her of the usual

advertisement in the _Times_: "A housemaid wants a situation in a

family where a footman is kept." Clever and only too true, but most

uncharitable! She was good enough to add that the comic papers had

christened Lord Palmerston "the venerable cupid."

_London, May 1, 1834._--Mr. Salomon Dedel arrived this morning from

the Hague, bringing me a letter from General Fagel, which contained

the following: "Someone has found out that Dedel had expressed the

hope that he might reappear in London armed with instructions to bring

the affair to a conclusion." Dedel mentioned the matter to the King,

who replied: "The purpose of your absence was to see your relatives

and friends of whom you can give news if anybody asks you." Further on

the same letter runs: "We wish to be forced by the five powers, and

will take no account of a partial coercion like that of 1832. If the

powers are not unanimous we shall continue to refuse any definite

arrangement. At the worst we prefer the road to Silesia to recognising

Leopold."

Madame de Jaucourt, referring to the insane party spirit now in the

ascendant in France, writes to M. de Talleyrand that her brother M. de

Thiard said at her house the other day: "I would give my right arm to

have Charles X. back in the place from which we deposed him."

Is it not curious that young Baillot, who has just been assassinated

during the late troubles in Paris, should have often boasted of having

killed several people during the days of July 1830 in exactly the same

way as he was killed himself?

I have just heard of an amusing thing said by the old Marchioness of

Salisbury. Last Sunday she was at church, a rare thing with her, and

the preacher, speaking of the Fall, observed that Adam excusing

himself had cried out, "Lord the woman tempted me." At this quotation

Lady Salisbury, who appeared not to have heard of the incident before,

jumped up in her seat saying, "Shabby fellow indeed!"

I have just been paying a morning call on the Queen, whom I found much

agitated, anxious, and yet pleased, about her impending journey to

Germany. The King arranged it without her knowledge and superintended

the smallest details. It is he who has chosen the suite, engaged the

servants, and selected the carriages. It has all been done in such a

hurry that the Queen has not yet recovered from the shock. She doesn't

know whether to be glad at the prospect of seeing her mother, who is

aged and infirm, or to be worried about leaving the King alone for six

weeks. She told me that the King wanted to invite M. de Talleyrand and

me to Windsor during our stay at Salt Hill, but that she herself had

dissuaded him as it would have led to other invitations, and they

would have had to ask, among other people, the Princesse de Lieven,

for whom the King does not care.

The Queen coughs and thinks herself quite ill, but she hopes to be

restored by her native air.

It is impossible not to be struck, every time one sees her, with the

perfect simplicity, truth and uprightness of her Majesty's character.

I have rarely seen a person more devoted to duty or more

self-consistent in all that she says and does. She is both kind and

cheerful, and, though not beautiful, she is perfectly graceful. The

tones of her voice are unfortunately nasal, but what she says is so

full of good sense and real kindness that it is a pleasure to listen

to her. The satisfaction she feels in speaking German is very natural,

and I feel this every time she does so. I wish, however, that she

indulged herself in this way more sparingly in the presence of English

people. In her own interest it would be better for her if she had more

of the Englishwoman in her; no one could have remained more

characteristically German than she has, and I fear that this sometimes

gives offence. How is a monarch to escape doing so nowadays? They are

made responsible for everything and are always threatened with

punishment merited or unmerited. The poor Queen has already a sad

experience of the bitterness of unpopularity and of calumny. She has

always faced attack with dignity and valour, and I am sure she has

courage enough to confront any danger.

This is St. Philip's day; the Lievens and Lady Cowper dined with us,

and Prince Esterhazy came in afterwards. I have noticed for some time

a certain sharpness in his manner to the Lievens which is unusual in

him. The pleasantries which he addresses to the Princess soon turn to

irony. I suspect that on her side she will not regret his departure.

She has never managed to subdue him; he slips through her fingers, and

his jests, always subtle and sometimes malicious, embarrass her and

put her out. They are constantly on their guard with one another, and

they make up for the resulting constraint by frequent interchanges of

pin pricks.

The Queen told me that Esterhazy, when lately at Windsor, spoke to her

of M. de Talleyrand with the greatest enthusiasm, saying that one of

his greatest pleasures was to listen to his conversation. He added,

that when he got home he often made a note of what he had heard from

M. de Talleyrand. It seems that Esterhazy keeps a journal in great

detail. He told the Queen so, and explained that this habit was of

such long standing that the journal already filled several large

volumes, which he was fond of re-reading. The Queen was surprised, not

unnaturally, to discover such a sedentary habit so consistently

maintained by one whose manners were so restless and whose ideas were

so often scattered.

Lord Palmerston since our return from France has never accepted an

invitation to dinner with us, and has never come to a single one of

our receptions. However, we invited him again to-night, and thought

that the presence of Lady Cowper might attract him, but he sent

excuses at the last moment.

_London, Friday, May 2, 1834._--Alva writes that he hears from his

nephew, the Marquis de Miraflorès the Spanish Minister in London, that

Lord Palmerston never ceases praising the brilliancy of his diplomatic

_début_ here. The marquis, being a fool, does not perceive the cause

of this eulogium, which is, of course, the treaty of quadruple

alliance proposed by him at Lord Palmerston's own instigation, the

results of which, though by no means apparent as yet, may be more

embarrassing than pleasing to its author and to France.

M. de Montrond writes to M. de Talleyrand to say that he has caused

his desire to come to London to be intimated to M. de Rigny, who,

before allowing him to go, desires him to make sure whether M. de

Talleyrand would like it. M. de Montrond is much annoyed at this

obstacle, but I am grateful to M. de Rigny for having raised it. As a

matter of fact, last year M. de Montrond professed to be charged with

a secret diplomatic mission, and was simply a nuisance. The bad temper

he felt and showed when he was not admitted to the secret concerns of

the Embassy often made him forget his manners, annoyed M. de

Talleyrand and was most unpleasant for everybody. For the last

eighteen months M. de Montrond has had the management of a thousand

Louis of the Foreign Affairs Secret Service money: I doubt if he ever

gives them back the change!

In London all the workmen are in rebellion; the tailors have stopped

work for want of hands. It is said that on the cards for Lady

Lansdowne's ball there was inscribed: "The gentlemen to appear in

their old coats." Now the laundries have caught the infection, and

soon we shall have to wash our own linen like the princesses in the

_Odyssey_.

_London, May 3, 1834._--M. de Talleyrand speaks with as much truth as

wit of the "dangerous benevolence" of Lord Holland. With the most

perfect geniality, the most equable temper, the gayest pleasantries,

and the most obliging manner in the world, his Lordship is always

ready to set light to the revolutionary train, and he feels the

greatest annoyance of which he is capable when he is unsuccessful.

Yesterday I dined with Sir Stratford Canning. His house is curious,

beautiful, admirably planned and full of souvenirs of Constantinople

and of Spain. He himself is full of courtesy and learning; his

conversation is witty, and if it were not for a certain contraction of

the lips which spoils an otherwise fine face, and for the oppressed

air of his wife, one could hardly understand the bad accounts of him

which one hears almost everywhere. This, at least, was the pretext on

which the Czar refused to receive him last winter as Ambassador at St.

Petersburg.

_London, May 4, 1834._--Koreff is a braggadocious creature with a vein

of indiscreet curiosity which I have sometimes noticed on the

Continent, and which here inspires me with the most profound mistrust.

His wit and his learning are lost among the bad features of his

character, which often make him quite impossible. He lives on gossip

of all kinds, public and private, and when he can get nothing else to

talk about he talks about medicine. Then he assumes the physician and

deifies his art. You hear of patients saved by him when all hope was

gone; of his marvellous discoveries, of magnetism, homeopathy true and

false, of things natural and supernatural, possible and impossible.

Everything serves to magnify his importance, to surround the poor

creature with an atmosphere of the marvellous, which covers his want

of real dignity.

We had him to dinner with Sir Henry Halford, and I don't think they

took to each other. What, indeed, could they have in common? Science

perhaps, if by science they both understood the same thing. Sir Henry

is a suave and polished person--measured, discreet, supple, and

deferential; a perfect courtier, a man of fortune, highly respected,

and a great practitioner. He has never sought to be anything to the

great but their doctor, and consequently, without seeking it, he has

found himself in all family and State secrets. Koreff, on the other

hand, poses as a man of letters and a statesman, and has thus made

persons in great places chary of having him as their doctor. This was

how he came to grief at Berlin; he will find it difficult to regain

his ground at Paris, and he won't, in my opinion, be a success in

London.

_A propos_ of gossip and indiscreet curiosity, I cannot forget a very

true reflection which the Duke of Wellington has just imparted to me

on the subject of Alava. "Whoever aims at being in everybody's

confidence," said his Grace, "must necessarily give his own confidence

to more than one person, and this he usually does at some one else's

expense." The Duke's honest commonsense is admirable. I had a long

talk with him to-day at dinner, and I should like to remember

everything he said. Truth and simplicity are becoming so rare that one

is anxious to gather up the crumbs.

The Duke of Wellington's memory is very sure. He never quotes

inexactly; he forgets nothing and never exaggerates; and if there is

something a trifle abrupt, a little dry and military in his

conversation, what he says is nevertheless attractive owing to its

naturalness, its fairness, and the perfect good manners with which he

says it. His manners are indeed excellent, and a woman has never to be

on her guard against a conversation taking an awkward turn. In this

respect he is much more reserved than Lord Grey, though in many ways

the latter's education is more elaborate and his intelligence more

cultivated than the Duke's.

The Duke of Wellington made a rather striking remark to me about the

English character, to the effect that no people have a greater hatred

of crimes of violence. In England a murder is discovered with the

greatest promptitude. Every one helps to discover the assassin; tracks

him out and denounces him, and is eager that justice should be done.

He assured me that the English soldier is the least cruel in the

world, and that once a battle is over he hardly ever commits deeds of

violence. He is a great robber, no doubt, but not a murderer.

The excessive and _naïve_ vanity of Lady Jersey, which amuses the

Duke, led us to talk of Madame de Staël, with whom he was well

acquainted, and whose absurd pretensions struck him as much as her wit

and eloquence dazzled him. Madame de Staël, who wished to appear to

his Grace in every character--even in the most feminine--observed one

day that what she liked most in the world to hear was a declaration of

love. She was so elderly and so ugly that the Duke could not help

replying, "Yes, when you can be sure that it is genuine."

Lady Londonderry, who is celebrated for her eccentricities, being near

her time, and certain she would have a son, has ordered a little

hussar costume--the uniform of her husband's regiment. When she was

ordering it she told the tailor that it was for a child six days old.

"Your ladyship means six years?" replied the tailor. "No, indeed,"

answered Lady Londonderry; "six days; it is for his baptism!"

In the last years of George IV. the Duke of Cumberland enjoyed a good

deal of his favour. Yet it was then that the King said, in reply to

the Duke of Wellington's inquiry why H.R.H. was so universally

unpopular: "It is because there are no lovers, no brothers and

sisters, no friends, whom the Duke of Cumberland would not set by the

ears if he came among them." It is said, however, that the Duke is no

fool, but so cross-grained that he spoils everything he touches.

The Queen's approaching departure for Germany is causing anxiety to

the King's best friends. It appears that his Majesty, who is the best

of men, is subject to occasional attacks of strange excitement, that

he takes extraordinary ideas into his head, and that his condition is

sometimes so abnormal that he threatens to lose his balance

altogether. The Queen, with her watchful kindness and her excellent

good sense, watches over him at these crises, cuts them short,

exercises a calming and moderating influence, and brings him back to a

proper frame of mind.

At the present moment the King is very angry with Dom Pedro about the

last commercial decree, which was published in Portugal the very day

before the signature of the treaty of quadruple alliance in London.

His annoyance will probably not carry him so far as to refuse to

ratify the treaty, for with all his goodness the poor King is not very

"consistent," as they say here.

I am told that Lord Durham was so uplifted by the reception prepared

for him two years ago at St. Petersburg by the efforts of Madame de

Lieven, and by that which he obtained recently at Paris (thanks to M.

de Talleyrand's letters), that he doesn't think that a private

situation is any longer worthy of him. His plan, of which he makes no

secret, is to turn out Lord Grey, his father-in-law, and to put

himself in his place, or at least to get into the Cabinet, the result

of which would be the resignation of all the other members. He would,

perhaps, consent to be satisfied with the Viceroyalty of Ireland, or

as a last resort to take the Embassy at Paris; but if all these fail,

he declares that he will put himself openly at the head of the

Radicals and declare a war to the knife on all existing institutions.

I know that Pozzo is writing hymns in honour of the King of the

French, reminiscences of which occur in the speech he has just made on

the occasion of the Feast of St. Philip. He doesn't mind M. de Rigny,

for, as a matter of fact, it is the King who is now his own Minister

of Foreign Affairs. Above all, he seems much pleased to be rid of M.

de Broglie, whose passion for argument, scornful manners, and

exclusive devotion to Lord Granville did not smooth or sweeten his

relations with the rest of the diplomatic corps.

Pozzo, like many others, does not think that France has got through

her revolutionary troubles. He seems anxious about the future, and I

think this feeling is shared by all who are not blinded by

preposterous over-confidence.

_London, May 5, 1834._--I have just heard a piece of very sad news, my

excellent friend the Abbé Girollet is very ill. I shall soon have no

one left to love, no one in whose affection I can trust. The dear Abbé

was so happy at Rochecotte in his pretty house among his books, his

flowers, his poor, and his neighbours. It was a touching picture which

I had few opportunities of enjoying, and which I shall probably never

see again. It will remain to me as a dream cut short by my absence,

but pleasant to remember while life lasts, for it will be consecrated

to the purest and most faithful of God's servants, to the most

faithful of friends, to the most tolerant of men.

The Duchess of Kent gave a reception last night in honour of her

brother, Duke Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg. There was such a crowd that it

was like one of the Queen's drawing-rooms. The young Princess Victoria

struck me the moment I saw her as having grown a little and as being

paler and thinner. By this she is much improved, though still too

small for the fifteen years which she will complete in three weeks

time. The little queen that is to be has a fine complexion and

magnificent chestnut hair. In spite of her small stature she is well

made; she will have pretty shoulders and fine arms, her expression and

her manners are sweet and kindly, she speaks several languages

fluently, and it is said that she is being very carefully educated.

Her mother and the Baroness Lehzen, a German lady, take complete

charge of the Princess. The Duchess of Northumberland only fulfils her

functions as Governess on State occasions. I have heard the Duchess of

Kent reproached for surrounding her daughter so much with Germans that

her English accent is defective.

_London, May 6, 1834._--Last night I dined at Lord Sefton's; he was

just back from the House of Lords, where Lord Londonderry had been

renewing his attack of a few years ago, and accusing the Government of

being managed and duped by "that wily politician" M. de Talleyrand.

His expressions are as unalterable as his opinions, for they are the

very ones he used three years ago. On that occasion he was sharply

taken up by the Duke of Wellington, who, though belonging to the same

party as Lord Londonderry, made the rude speech of the latter the

occasion for a most flattering reference to M. de Talleyrand. It seems

that Lord Grey did the same yesterday. To him it came much easier, for

it was his own cause that he was defending; still I am obliged to him,

though I do not class what he did with the conduct of the Duke of

Wellington.

I went with Lady Sefton to the opera of _Othello_. It used to be my

favourite opera, but yesterday it did not impress me so favourably.

Rubini, with all the grace and expressiveness of his singing, lacks

the ringing force which made Garcia incomparable in the part of

Othello. The orchestra was meagre, and the concerted pieces were not

worked up enough. Mlle. Grisi acted and sang well; I thought her

better than Mme. Malibran, but she fell short of the sublime

simplicity and greatness of Mme. Pasta. There are more beautiful

voices than hers and more beautiful women than she, but Mme. Pasta and

no other is the true Tragic Muse, and no one can replace her in my

admiration or in my recollection. When she was making her _début_ at

Paris, Talma, who was still alive, was transported by her words, her

poses, and her gestures, and exclaimed: "That woman has discovered in

a day what I have been seeking for thirty years."

_London, May 8, 1834._--I have already spoken of the good action

performed three years ago by the Duke of Wellington in answering Lord

Londonderry's attack on M. de Talleyrand. He completed it the day

before yesterday by showing openly by repeated exclamations of _Hear!

Hear!_ how thoroughly he agreed with the high opinion which Lord Grey

expressed of M. de Talleyrand. Several people have been kind enough to

seize the opportunity of expressing their regard for M. de Talleyrand.

Prince de Lieven and Prince Esterhazy, at the King's levee yesterday,

both thanked Lord Grey for doing justice to their veteran colleague.

M. de Rigny writes confidentially to M. de Talleyrand that the

marriage of Princess Marie of Orléans to the second brother of the

King of Naples has been decided, and that the contract will be

prepared with Prince Butera, who has just arrived in Paris. The

admiral seems to think that certain questions of interest will delay

the conclusion of this affair. I should be sorry, for the Orléans

Princesses--pleasant, well-mannered, well-dowered great ladies as they

are, are none the less difficult to marry. There is about them a faint

aroma of usurpation which deters certain princely families from an

alliance with them. It is curious that King Louis-Philippe, who has

for his children the sort of affection which it is the fashion to call

bourgeois, is so stiff about helping the Princesses, his daughters,

out of their difficult position by the large dowries to which they are

entitled. Princess Marie would be better in Italy than anywhere else.

She has any amount of imagination and vivacity, but her deportment is

defective, and in spite of an education which should have assured her

principles, she has a freedom of manner and conversation which might

produce an idea (utterly mistaken as it would be) that they were not

very solid in their foundations.

Yesterday we carried out our plan, formed more than a year ago, of

visiting Eltham, a barn which once was a banqueting-hall of the Kings

of England. From the days of Henry III. down to the time of Cromwell,

they frequently occupied the palace of which this hall was a part. Its

proportions are fine, but it is no longer possible to judge of its

decoration. Several pieces of wall, the moat, now planted and watered

by a pretty brook, and a Gothic bridge covered with ivy and very

picturesque, show the former extent of the Royal manor.

Yesterday we dined with the Duchess of Kent. The strong scent of the

flowers with which her small and low rooms were crowded, made them

unwholesome without making them pleasant. Everything was stiff and

sombre at this party to which a few of the nobility and the more

important of the diplomatic corps were invited to meet the Royal

family. The Princes present were on far from good terms. The King was

cross with the Duchess of Kent. The Duke of Cumberland was absent for

the good reason that he wasn't invited, not having called on his

sister-in-law since his return from Berlin. Everything down to the

arrangement of the chairs, which made conversation impossible,

emphasised the weariness of the evening. The proceedings were

interminable, the room was very hot, our hostess was visibly ill at

ease. She is not uncivil, but has an unnatural sort of air, awkward

and pedantic at the same time. The Duke of Somerset took the most

sensible course and went to sleep, leaning against a pilaster,

immediately after dinner.

Everybody was disposed to criticise, and hardly concealed their desire

to do so. The Queen complained of the heat, and at dessert said to the

Duchess that if she had eaten enough it would be a mercy if she might

leave the table. The King said to his neighbours that the dinner was à

_l'entreprise_, and pretended not to understand a word of what Duke

Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg was saying. His Highness, who is the Duchess

of Kent's brother, is ugly, awkward, and embarrassed; he has made no

great impression here, especially not with the King, to whom he showed

no great anxiety to be introduced. His Majesty, on the other hand,

kept him waiting for a long time before receiving him, which made the

Duchess of Kent very cross.

Madame de Lieven pointed out to me the familiarity with which

Esterhazy addresses and treats the Royal Family. She professed to be

much scandalised, and said that the fact that he was a relation (to

which I referred) was no excuse at all. They are always rivals, and

this, they say, was very marked in the late reign. The Princesse de

Lieven by cultivating first Lady Hertford and then Lady Conyngham, and

by reason of her thinness, which kept the favourite from fearing her

as a rival, managed to get into the King's intimate circle, and thus

she contrived to get even with the Esterhazys, whose pleasant manners,

great position, and family connection, naturally brought them nearer

to the throne.

The absence of Lord Palmerston, who should have been asked to meet the

ambassadors, was much noticed. It is said that he is in the Duchess

of Kent's black books, and that when he bows to her at Drawing-rooms

she never says a word to him. It was a surprise, also, not to see the

Saxon Minister, a sort of family envoy for the Queen, for the Duchess

herself and, above all, for Duke Ferdinand, to whose person he is

officially attached.

The Duchess of Gloucester could not deny herself the pleasure of

ending a civil and apologetic phrase by a charitable remark on the

innate awkwardness of the Duchess of Kent, and the Princesse de Lieven

was bold enough to recall the fact that George IV. used to speak of

his sister-in-law as "the Swiss Governess." Whatever be the faults of

the Duchess of Kent, it must be admitted that her political conduct

shows much prudence. As she will, no doubt, be called upon to act as

Regent, this is not unimportant. No one knows what her political

opinions are, or to what party she leans. She invites them all, mixes

them well at her parties, and keeps everyone in a state of perfect

balance. Her obstinate conduct towards the Fitzclarences is

small-minded of her, and to explain it she affects a ridiculous

prudery. I know that in answer to the remonstrances of Lord Grey on

the subject, she said, stupidly enough: "But, my lord, you would not

have me expose my daughter to hear people talking of bastards and have

her asking me what it meant." "In that case, madam," replied Lord

Grey, "do not allow the Princess to read the history of the country

which she is destined to rule, for the first page will teach her that

William of Normandy was called the Bastard before he was called the

Conqueror." It is said that the Duchess was much annoyed with Lord

Grey.

_London, May 9, 1834._--M. de Talleyrand learns by telegraphic

despatch from Paris that a Secretary of Embassy coming from Spain

brings news that Don Carlos has left the Peninsula, and is embarking

for England, which he wishes to choose as arbitrator in his family

quarrel about the Crown. This seems very improbable, and before

believing it everybody is awaiting confirmation.

The curiosity and interest aroused by M. de Talleyrand in England are

as great as ever. As we were leaving our carriage at Kensington the

other day, we saw women being lifted up by their husbands in order to

see him better. Scheffer's portrait of him is now with Colnaghi, the

print-seller, for the purpose of being engraved. It attracts many

interested spectators, and the shops in front of which M. de

Talleyrand's carriage stops are immediately surrounded by a crowd. The

portrait at Colnaghi's is placed next to that of Mr. Pitt. "There is a

man who made great events," said someone, pointing to the latter, "he"

(indicating M. de Talleyrand) "was clever enough to foresee them and

profit by them."

M. de Talleyrand told me yesterday that when he got rid of his

priest's orders he felt an extraordinary desire to fight a duel. He

spent two whole months diligently looking for a quarrel, and fixed on

the Duc de Castries, who was both narrow-minded and hot-tempered, as

the man most likely to gratify him. They were both members of the Club

des Echecs, and one day when they were both there M. de Castries began

to read aloud a pamphlet against the minority of the nobility. M. de

Talleyrand thought he saw his chance, and requested M. de Castries to

stop reading what was personally offensive to him. M. de Castries

replied that at a club everybody might read or do what he pleased.

"Very well!" said M. de Talleyrand, and placing himself at a tric-trac

table near M. de Castries, he scattered the pieces lying on it with so

much noise as to drown entirely the voice of the reader. A quarrel

seemed inevitable, and M. de Talleyrand was delighted, but M. de

Castries only flushed and frowned, finished his reading, and left the

club without saying anything. Probably for him M. de Talleyrand could

not cease to be a priest.

_London, May 10, 1834._--Yesterday I read very hurriedly M. de

Lamennais' book the _Paroles d'un Croyant_; it is the Apocalypse

according to a Jacobin. It is, moreover, very tedious, which surprises

me, as M. de Lamennais is a man of much intelligence and undeniably

has talent. He has just reconciled himself with Rome, but this will

break the peace, for his sworn enmity to all temporal power must be

displeasing as much to the Pope as to any autocrat.

It was much whispered yesterday that the King of England was feeling

more keenly than usual the influence of the spring season, during

which every year his physical and mental equilibrium is markedly

disturbed. When one thinks of the family history of the House of

Brunswick one finds reason to be alarmed.

I never heard on the Continent of the malady known here as "Hay

Fever," which shows itself at the time when the hay is cut. At this

time many people, the Duke of Devonshire and Lady Grosvenor among the

number, suffer from fever, insomnia, and much nervous trouble. Those

who suffer from this disorder come back to town and avoid all meadows

and the scent of hay.

The King's physical malaise, however, is accompanied by a curious

mental agitation and a strange loquacity. If this unpleasant state of

matters is not ended by July, I am convinced that the Queen will

disregard his wishes, and will not go to Germany. She alone has any

salutary and moderating influence on him at such times.

I hear from Paris of the marriage of Elisabeth de Béranger to Charles

de Vogüé, one of my cousins, who is both well bred and well endowed.

She was much sought after, for, besides her birth and fortune, she has

both beauty and talent. I knew her well when she was a child--a

charming creature, with much vivacity and a strong will of her own--a

characteristic which has probably become more marked since her

mother's death, as she is an only child and worshipped by her father.

Another marriage is also announced--that of my niece _à la mode de

Bretagne_, the Princesse Biron, whose _fiancé_ is Colonel Lazareff, an

Armenian in the Russian service. He is said to be fabulously rich, and

to possess palaces in the East, and gems and treasures of all kinds. I

don't know what brought him to Dresden, where he made my niece's

acquaintance while she was staying with her sister, the Comtesse de

Hohenthal. She is said to be very much in love, but I confess that

this Armenian origin, this splendour in the manner of the Arabian

Nights, make me rather anxious. Sorcerers and swindlers often come

from unknown countries; their jewels often turn to coal-dust; they can

rarely face the light of day. In a word, I should have preferred for

my niece a man who was rather better born, rather less wealthy, and

rather less oriental.

_London, May 12, 1834._--The febrile and nervous condition of the King

of England becomes more and more marked; he really says the most

bizarre things. At the State Ball he said to Madame de Lieven that

people's minds had been rather unbalanced lately, and pointing to his

cousin, the Duke of Gloucester, he added: "Now, for instance, _he_

believes in the transmigration of souls, and he thinks that the souls

of Alexander the Great and Charles the First have passed into his."

The Princess replied rather flippantly: "The dear departed must be

much astonished to find themselves there!" The King looked at her with

an uncertain air and went on, "Fortunately he is not clever enough to

bring his head to the block;" which for His Majesty is really not so

bad.

What is more serious than these absurd speeches is that he sleeps ill,

has frequent fits of anger, and has a childish military mania. Thus he

goes to the barracks, gives the most preposterous orders without

consulting the officers, reduces the regiments to disorder, and makes

himself the laughing-stock of the troops. The Duke of Wellington and

the Duke of Gloucester, both Field Marshals, and Lord Hill, the

Commander-in-Chief, thought it their duty to make joint

representations in respectful but serious terms. They were very ill

received, Lord Hill being especially mishandled by his Majesty, who

frightened him very much. If the poor King's mind were to give way

they say it would certainly be on the subject of the army, for he

thinks he has great military talent, or about women, with whom he

thinks he is irresistible. They say that his only reason for hastening

the Queen's departure is his desire to be a bachelor for six weeks.

He has already taken time by the forelock in handing to the Queen all

the presents that she will find it necessary to give while on the

Continent. The Royal Family is very anxious; they would like to

prevent the King from exposing himself so much to the sun, from

drinking so much sherry, from seeing so many people. They want him, in

fact, to lead a more retired life till the present crisis, which is so

much worse than its predecessors, has quite passed off, but he is very

hard to manage.

Among his strangest remarks I must quote his inquiry addressed to

Prince Esterhazy, "whether people married in Greece?" "I ask," he

added, noticing that the Prince was rather astonished, "because, as of

course you know, there are no marriages in Russia."

The good Duke of Gloucester, who is much attached to the King, is

sincerely grieved. As to the Duke of Cumberland, he doesn't hesitate

to proclaim in the clubs that the King is mad, and that it is his

father's case over again. This is neither brotherly nor filial. Some

people are already beginning to consider who would get the Regency if

this sad state of matters should persist or become acute; it is still

rather a feverish condition than absolute insanity. The Duchess of

Kent doesn't count so long as the King lives and may have children.

The Princess Victoria, heiress-presumptive, is not of age, and the

question would therefore be between the Queen and the Duke of

Cumberland, both of whom are almost equally unfavourable to the

present Cabinet. Thus things will be allowed to go pretty far before

the existence of the evil is admitted. Yesterday Lord Grey was saying

with a great affectation of emphasis, that the King was never better

in his life.

When it became known here that Jerome Bonaparte intended to come, the

Court of Würtemberg was warned that it would be undesirable that he

should bring the Princess, his wife, along with him, as, in spite of

the near relationship, she could not be received. Jerome, therefore,

came alone, and in spite of the hint he had received he sought an

audience with the King which M. de Mendelsloh, the Würtemberg

minister, was foolish enough to request. The moment the King heard of

it, he said: "He may go to the Devil." He is so touchy about the

Bonapartes that he very nearly forbade the Duke of Sussex to come to

Court for having received Lucien, and took it very ill that the Lord

Chancellor exposed the Duke of Gloucester to the chance of meeting the

Prince de Canino at one of Lady Brougham's parties.

Lord Durham dined with us yesterday for the first time, and I had my

first opportunity of a direct conversation with him. I watched the

movements of his face, which is praised highly, and with reason; but I

noticed that it does not improve when he is speaking, and his smile

suits him ill. His lips express bitterness more than anything else,

and all that comes from within seems to diminish his good looks. A

face may remain beautiful even when it ceases to express kindness, but

a laugh which is not genial impresses me most unfavourably.

Lord Durham passes for a wit. He is ambitious, irascible, a spoilt

child of fortune; the most susceptible and the vainest of men. For all

his pretensions to a nobility dating from the Saxons, while his

father-in-law, Lord Grey, is content to trace his descent back to the

Conquest, Lord Durham professes all the most Radical doctrines. This,

they say, is only a device to obtain power. Heaven grant that it may

not be his ruin.

_London, May 13, 1834._ Charles X. said to Madame de Gontaut on April

25: "Louise's education is finished. I should be glad if you would go

the day after to-morrow--the 27th." Mademoiselle who is much attached

to Madame de Gontaut was in despair.[15]

[15] The little Court of Charles X. was the scene of two

factions, one being the partisans of inertia, though not of

resignation; the other, being all in favour of action. Mme. de

Gontaut fell a victim to the former, a letter in which she

expressed disapproval of the situation to her daughter, Mme. de

Rohan, having been intercepted. The King, whom she accused of

weakness, reproached her violently, and after the interview she

finally left Prague and the Court.

The Duchesse de Gontaut behaved with great courage, and spent the 26th

in vain attempts to console Mademoiselle, whose new governess is said

to be, provisionally, the Vicomtesse d'Agoult. This is to replace a

clever woman by a Saint. All this happened before the Duchesse de

Berry arrived; she did not get back till May 7.

I hear that Jerome Bonaparte played the King as much as he could. At

the Opera he sits alone at the front of his box, and the gentlemen who

accompany him stand behind his chair.

I spent an hour or more yesterday with the Princess Sophia of England.

She is well read, a good talker and very animated, and yet on the plea

of bad health she lives a very retired life. She is said to possess in

a high degree the talent (if it can be so called) of mimicry in which

she resembles his late Majesty George IV. I am told that they used to

amuse each other very much and mutually drew each other out.

Yesterday, indeed, the conversation turned on Mme. d'Ompteda, a good

sort of woman, but, to say the least, eccentric, and the Princess was

pleased to repeat for my benefit a complaint which Mme. d'Ompteda had

made to her of someone at Court. It was the most comic imitation I

have ever seen, and I was so convulsed with laughter that I had to beg

the Princess's pardon. She did not appear, however, to be very much

shocked at my unconventional behaviour.

_London, May 14, 1834._--M. Dupin, the elder, has written to M. de

Talleyrand to announce his arrival, and signs himself "_votre

affectionné Dupin_." M. Dupin has often taken M. de Talleyrand's part,

and I believe to good purpose, but his letters did not use to be so

Royal in their terms.

It appears that the Quadruple Alliance Treaty has reached Lisbon and

has been approved. The ratification is expected at any moment in spite

of the violent anger of Dom Pedro, who is much incensed because

France, England, and Spain thought fit to give the title Infante to

Dom Miguel in spite of Dom Pedro's decree depriving him of it.

_London, May 15, 1834._--It is asserted that M. Dupin is coming to

London to show himself, wishing to accustom Europe to his greatness,

for it seems that he hopes next session to combine the Presidency of

the Council with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In a time like the

present it is no longer safe to describe the most extravagant ideas as

chimerical! This is not the first time that M. Dupin has aspired to

the portfolio of Foreign Affairs. Two years ago he tried to take it by

force, and when the King tried to make him see that he was perhaps not

quite fit for this department, M. Dupin had a violent fit of temper,

and taking one of his feet in both hands he showed the sole of his

shoe to the King, saying, "Ah! Ah! is it because I have nails in my

shoes that I am not considered fit to treat with _Monsieur Lord

Granville_!" The King, in spite of his habitual indulgence, grew so

angry at the increasing insolence of M. Dupin that he seized him by

the collar and, pressing his closed fist against his chest, forced him

out of the room. This I have from an eye-witness. They were soon

reconciled however, and met again on friendly terms. The Parisians

have thick skins.

The _Quotidienne_ at first praised M. de la Mennais's textbook, but

after some hesitation the Faubourg St.-Germain decided to dislike it.

They even asked M. de Chateaubriand to undertake a refutation, but he

replied that he admired every page and every line of it, and that if

he said anything publicly about it at all he would give it the praise

which it deserves. M. de Chateaubriand becomes, or affects to become,

more and more Republican, and is saying that any form of monarchy has

become impossible in France.

The Carlists are going to take part in the elections, and to send as

many Republicans to the Chamber as they can when they can't succeed

themselves. The words Republic and Republican are now current

everywhere and no one is shocked. People's ears have got used to them.

_London, May 16, 1834._--This is the most charming time at which to

see London. The squares are green and full of flowers; the vegetation

in the parks is extraordinarily rich; all the balconies of the houses

are packed with plants. All this, with the creepers which cover many

of the houses up to the second storey, makes such a pretty picture

that one is the less inclined to regret the sun, which would soon put

an end to all its freshness.

The same sort of reflection occurred to me yesterday morning at the

Queen's Drawing-room, where the brilliancy of these splendid English

complexions, the beautiful blonde hair falling in long ringlets on the

rosiest cheeks and the whitest necks in the world, almost prevented

one from lamenting the absence of expression and movement which

accompanies these beauties. It is the fashion to criticise

Englishwomen for their want of style. They walk badly, it is true, but

in repose their nonchalance is not ungraceful. They are usually well

made and less pinched in their toilettes than Frenchwomen. Their

proportions are finer and more developed. They sometimes dress without

much taste, but at least each pleases herself and there is a diversity

in their dresses which brings out each one very well. The bare

shoulders, the flat coiffures, and the long locks of the young girls

here, would be very unsuitable in France, where very young girls are

almost all small, dark and thin.

I am tempted to apply to Englishmen morally what I say of English

gardens and of the beauty of Englishwomen. Their conversation is cold,

reserved and unimaginative to a degree which, for a long time, is very

tedious. But this feeling gives way to one of real pleasure if one

takes the trouble to look for the good sense, the goodness, the

learning, and the cleverness which are concealed under the shyness and

embarrassment of their exterior. One has hardly ever any reason to

regret having encouraged their timidity, for they never become either

familiar or indiscreet, and they are so grateful to one for having

divined them and for coming to the rescue of their _mauvaise honte_

that this alone is a reward in itself. I only wish that they would not

expose those miserable orange blossoms to the thick fogs of their

atmosphere, that the women would not take the Paris _Journal des

Modes_ as a model of dress, and the men would not attempt the freer

and more animated style of conversation which is current on the

Continent. Detestable caricatures when they are copying others, the

English are admirable when they are themselves; they are well fitted

to their own territory, and they should be judged only on their own

ground. An Englishman on the Continent is so much out of his element

that he runs the risk of being taken either for an idiot or a coxcomb.

_London, May 17, 1834._--The Swedish Minister, M. de Bjoerstjerna, who

is always singing the praises of his sovereign even in the most

trifling matters, was boasting to M. de Talleyrand the other day of

the strength, the grace, and the youthfulness which King Charles-John

has retained at his advanced age. He was particularly enthusiastic

about the thickness of his Majesty's hair, which he asserted was all

"as black as jet." "That seems indeed wonderful," said M. de

Talleyrand, "but is it not possible that the King dyes his hair?" "No,

I assure you," replied the Swede. "Then it is indeed extraordinary,"

said M. de Talleyrand. "Yes, indeed," continued M. de Bjoerstjerna,

"the man who every morning pulls out the white hairs from his

Majesty's head must have sharp eyes." This is worthy of the popular

reputation of Sweden as the Gascony of the North.

Samuel Rogers the poet is, no doubt, a great wit; but he has a turn

for malice and even brutality. Someone once asked him why he never

opened his mouth except to speak evil of his neighbours. He replied,

"I have a very weak voice, and if I did not say malicious things I

should never be heard." He lives with Lady Holland, and amuses himself

by exacerbating her fears of illness and death. During the cholera

epidemic Lady Holland was a prey to indescribable terrors. She could

think of nothing but precautionary measures, and on one occasion was

describing to Rogers all that she had done. She numerated the remedies

she had placed in the next room--the baths, the apparatus for

fumigation, the blankets, the mustard plasters, the drugs of every

sort. "You have forgotten the only thing that would be of any use,"

observed Mr. Rogers. "And what is that?" "A coffin," replied the poet.

Lady Holland fainted.

Count Pahlen has returned from Paris. He saw the King privately one

evening, not having with him the uniform necessary for a formal

presentation. The King said he should like to see him at one of the

great balls at the Palace, and, the Count having excused himself on

the score of having no uniform, the King replied, "Never mind, come in

an evening coat _as a member of the opposition_!" As a matter of fact,

M. de Pahlen went to the ball, which was splendid in a material sense,

and found himself and a group of opposition deputies in plain clothes

among the Diplomatic Corps, and what is called the Court who were all

in uniform.

Prince Esterhazy came to say good-bye yesterday. He was visibly moved

on leaving M. de Talleyrand, who, on his side, was hardly less so. One

cannot part from anyone so old as M. de Talleyrand without a feeling

of anxiety, and when an old man says farewell he does so with a kind

of self-consciousness which is unmistakable.

Prince Esterhazy is generally popular here, and will be justly

regretted. Everybody wishes him very much to come back. The subtlety

of his wit does not affect the uprightness of his character. The

sureness of his manners is beyond praise, and in spite of a certain

informality in his bearing, and his ways of behaving, he never ceases

to be a great nobleman.

_London, May 18, 1834._--This week the King of England seems better.

The weather is not so hot, and his excitement has given place to a

kind of exhaustion. He has often been seen with tears in his eyes.

This, too, is a sign of want of balance, but it is less alarming than

the irritability of last week.

_Woburn Abbey, May 19, 1834._--This house is certainly one of the

finest, the most magnificent, and the greatest in England. The

exterior is without interest; the site is low and, I think, rather

damp. English people, however, hate to be seen, and, to secure

privacy, are quite willing to dispense with an extended view. It is

rare that a great house in England has any prospect but that of its

immediate surroundings, and you need not hope to amuse yourself by

watching the movements of the passers by, the travellers, the peasants

working in the fields, the villages or the surrounding country. Green

lawns, the flowers round about the house, and splendid trees which

block all the vistas--these are what they love and what you find

almost everywhere. Warwick and Windsor are the only exceptions that I

know at present.

The party at present at Woburn are almost the same as those I met on

my first visit. There are Lord and Lady Grey with their daughter Lady

Georgina, Lord and Lady Sefton, Mr. Ellice, Lord Ossulston, the Duke

and Duchess, three of their sons, one of their daughters, M. de

Talleyrand and I.

All these people are clever, well educated and well mannered, but, as

I observed before, English reserve is pushed further at Woburn than

anywhere else, and this in spite of the almost audacious freedom of

speech affected by the Duchess of Bedford, who is a striking contrast

to the silence and shyness of the Duke and the rest of the family.

Moreover, in the splendour, the magnificence, and the size of the

house, there is something which makes the company cold and stiff, and

Sunday, though it was not kept very strictly, and they made M. de

Talleyrand sit down to cards, is always rather more serious than any

other day in the week.

_Woburn Abbey, May 20, 1834._--Our party has been increased by the

arrival of the Lord Chancellor. He talked to me of the great

aristocrats of the country, and said that _previous to Reform_ the

Duke of Devonshire with his £440,000 sterling a year, his castles, and

his eight boroughs, was as powerful as the King himself. This

expression "_previous to Reform_" well expresses the blow which has

been struck at the ancient constitution. I made Lord Brougham admit as

much. He maintained that it was necessary, and though he began by

saying that he had only clipped wings which had become rather too

long, he ended by claiming that a _complete_ revolution had been

effected without bloodshed. "The great moment of our Revolution," he

added with evident satisfaction, "was in 1831, when we dissolved the

parliament which had dared to reject our Bill. The people is as

imperishable as the soil, and all changes must in the end work for

their benefit. An aristocracy which has lasted for five centuries has

lasted as long as it can last!" This was the point in his

conversation which chiefly struck me, the more so as he commenced with

a sort of hypocrisy which evaporated sooner than mine. He began by

sparing my aristocratic prejudices to some extent, and I returned the

compliment by sparing his passion for levelling. Five minutes more of

our _tête-à-tête_ and he would have got to 1640 and I to 1660.

_London, May 21, 1834._--They showed us a corner of the park at Woburn

which I had forgotten. It is called the Thornery, because of the

number of hawthorns which the enclosure contains. The blossom is very

charming just now, and there is a cottage in the middle which is quite

pretty.

Lord Holland told the Duke of Bedford that he should take us to

Ampthill, which belongs to him and which lies only seven miles from

Woburn. Lady Holland wanted us very much to see a fine portrait of

herself as a Virgin of the Sun which is there, and which is, in fact,

very pleasing; it must have been very like her.

The house at Ampthill is gloomy, damp, ill-furnished, and ill-kept--a

sad contrast with one of the most delightful parks you could see

anywhere. It is not, however, without some associations of interest.

Katherine of Aragon retired here after her divorce, but there is no

trace of the ancient castle which was on the mountains, and not at the

bottom of the valley like the present house. A Gothic cross is placed

on the site of the ancient building, and on the base are inscribed

some bad verses, which have not even the merit of being contemporary,

commemorating the cruelties of Henry VIII. Another of the curiosities

of the place is a number of trees so old that, in the time of

Cromwell, they were already past being used for shipbuilding. They

have quite lost their beauty, and will soon be like what in Touraine

are called "_truisses_."

Lord Sefton said yesterday in the presence of Lord Brougham that all

Queen Caroline's defenders had risen to the highest positions in the

State, and instanced Lord Grey, Lord Brougham, and others. On this, I

said to the Chancellor that I supposed he would now be ready to admit

that his cause was a very bad one. But he would not admit it, and

tried to convince us that if the Queen did have lovers, Bergami was

not among the number. He wished us to believe that he at least was

convinced of this, and in support of this assertion, which neither he

nor anyone else took seriously, he told us that during the last three

hours of the Queen's life, when she was quite delirious, she spoke

much of Prince Louis of Prussia, of Victorine Bergami's child, and of

several other people, but never once mentioned Bergami himself. I

thought that for a great lawyer, this style of proof was much too

negative and inconclusive.

_London, May 22, 1834._--On our return to town yesterday, we heard the

news of the Prince de Lieven's recall. This is a political event of

some importance; it is a very serious matter for London society. M. de

Lieven's excellent character, his cleverness and perfect manners won

him friendship and esteem everywhere, and Mme. de Lieven of all women

is the most feared, respected, sought after, and courted. Her

political importance, which was due to her wit and knowledge of the

world, went side by side with an authority in society which no one

dreamed of questioning. There were complaints sometimes of her

tyranny, of her exclusiveness, but she maintained in this way a useful

barrier between really good society and society of the second class.

Her house was the most select in London, and the one the _entrée_ to

which was the most valued. Her grand air, which was perhaps a trifle

stiff, was most appropriate on great occasions, and I can hardly

imagine a Drawing-room without her. Except Lord Palmerston, who has

brought it about by his obstinate arrogance, in the matter of Sir

Stratford Canning, I am sure that no one is glad at the departure of

M. and Madame de Lieven. M. de Bülow, however, is perhaps also rather

relieved to be freed from the surveillance of the Princesse. The part

he had to play before her was never a simple or an easy one.

M. de Lieven's appointment as Governor of the young Grand Duke may

flatter and console him, but it can hardly give her much pleasure, and

she will not care much for the frigidity and emptiness of St.

Petersburg after twenty-two years spent in England amid political

excitements of all kinds.

It would appear that the three Northern Courts, in opposition to the

Southern Quadruple Alliance are disposed to conclude a separate

engagement with Holland. Little is being said, but arms are being

sharpened in silence.

The Cortes is summoned for July 24. The telegraphic news from Spain,

which arrived the other day, only caused a flutter on 'Change and

evaporated pitiably enough. I hear from Paris that General Harispe has

been requested not to telegraph in future anything that is doubtful,

and that the President of the Council has been made to promise not to

spread news of this kind before it is confirmed.

Admiral Roussin has refused the Ministry of Marine. There was some

question of appointing Admiral Jacob. M. de Rigny left the Council

quite free to appoint him either Minister of Marine or Minister of

Foreign Affairs. The decision is not yet known.

_A propos_ of the departure of the Lievens, the Princesse tells me

that some weeks ago when Lord Heytesbury came back from St.

Petersburg, Lord Palmerston said to M. de Lieven that he intended to

appoint Sir Stratford Canning as Ambassador. The Prince de Lieven

wrote to his Government, and M. de Nesselrode replied in the name of

the Emperor that the violent temper and unaccommodating disposition,

and, indeed, the whole character of Sir Stratford, were personally

disagreeable to him and that he desired that someone else might be

sent--anyone but Sir Stratford. Lord Palmerston then explained his

reasons for wishing to overcome this opposition, and M. de Lieven

promised to lay them before the Emperor. The next day he sent a

courier with despatches to this effect to St. Petersburg, but the

courier had hardly embarked before the nomination of Sir Stratford

Canning as Ambassador at St. Petersburg appeared in the _London

Gazette_. This piece of discourtesy confirmed the Russian opposition

on the one hand, and the obstinacy of Lord Palmerston on the other.

The English Cabinet claimed to nominate whom it pleased to diplomatic

positions, and the Emperor Nicolas, without contesting its right to do

so, claimed an equal right on his part to receive only whom he

pleased. The breach widens, and the opposition of the two political

systems, coupled with the antagonism of individuals, makes one fear

that in the present complicated state of international politics peace

is neither well established nor likely to last for long.

_London, May 23, 1834._--I believe the Cabinet is embarrassed by M. de

Lieven's departure, and that Lord Grey is personally very sorry. Lord

Brougham also seems to feel how regrettable it all is. I have long

letters on the subject from them both, which are very interesting and

which I shall carefully preserve.

M. de la Fayette is dead. Though he had all his life never given M. de

Talleyrand cause to like him, his death has not been indifferent to

the Prince. At eighty-four and upwards it must seem that all one's

contemporaries are one's friends.

_London, May 24, 1834._--Lord Grey has just paid me a long and very

friendly visit. He was much grieved at the departure of the Lievens,

but was at pains to refute the opinion that the rudeness of Lord

Palmerston was the cause. I could see that he was most anxious that

the germs of controversy between M. de Talleyrand and Lord Palmerston

should not develop. He could not have shown more personal goodwill to

us than he did.

We dined at Richmond with the poor Princesse de Lieven, who is really

much to be pitied. I fear that things are really much worse for her

than they seem. I think that she flatters herself that she will be

able to keep up with things both by reason of the confidence of the

Emperor and the friendship of M. de Nesselrode, as also through the

favour enjoyed by her brother, General de Benckendorff. I fear,

however, that she will soon lose touch with the map of Europe, or that

she will only be able to look at it through some very small spy-hole,

which would certainly be for her a living death. Her hopes and her

regrets are all expressed with naturalness and vivacity, and she

seemed to me even nicer than usual, for she was keeping nothing back,

and was quite simple and unconstrained. Such communicativeness in

persons usually reserved always produces a specially striking

impression.

The abominable article about her in the _Times_, which is really a

disgrace to the country, made her weep at first. She confessed that

she was deeply hurt to think that these were the farewell words

addressed to her by the people of a country which she was leaving with

so much regret. But she soon felt that nothing could be more

despicable or more generally despised. In the end she recovered her

equanimity so completely that she described in her best manner (which

is very good indeed) a ridiculous scene in which the Marquis de

Miraflorès played a prominent part. This little creature, whom I have

always considered an insupportable idiot, but whose face pleased Mme.

de Lieven as it certainly did not please me, came and sat beside her

at a Ball at Almacks. The Princess having asked him whether he were

not struck with the beauty of the English girls, he replied with a

sentimental air, a voice full of emotion, and a long and significant

look, that he did not like women too young, and preferred those who

had ceased to be so and whom people called _passée_.

The Duchess of Kent has a really remarkable talent for giving offence

whenever it is possible to do so. To-day is her daughter's birthday,

and she was to have taken her for the first time on this occasion to

Windsor, where there was to be a family party in honour of the

occasion. Owing to the death of the little Belgian Prince, who was

less than a year old, and whom neither his aunt nor his cousin had

ever even seen, the Duchess decided not to grace this mild festivity

with her presence. Nothing could have annoyed the King more.

_London, May 25, 1834._--King Leopold seems disposed to call his

nephews to the succession to the Belgian Throne. Does this mean that

he has ceased to count on direct descendants? They are annoyed about

it at the Tuileries, but I fancy that no one minds very much anywhere

else, as the new kingdom and the new dynasty are not taken very

seriously as yet.

The exhibition of pictures at Somerset House is very mediocre, even

worse than last year's. The sculpture is worse still. The English

excel in the arts of imitation, but are behind everybody in those

which require imagination. This is one of the most conspicuous results

of the absence of sun. Surrounded as they are by masterpieces from the

Continent British artists produce nothing which can be compared with

these! All colour is lost in the fog which envelops them.

_London, May 26, 1834._--Lord Grey's Ministry is on the verge of

breaking up, owing to the resignations of Mr. Stanley and Sir James

Graham, which are threatened if he makes further concessions to the

Irish Catholics at the expense of the Anglican Church. If he refuses

these concessions in order to keep Mr. Stanley, whose parliamentary

talents are of the first order, the Cabinet will probably find

themselves in a minority in the House of Commons, and the fall of the

whole Ministry will be the result. This, at least, is what was being

said and believed yesterday, and Lord Grey's careworn face at Lord

Durham's dinner-party, and some remarks which Lady Tankerville, with

_naïve_ silliness, let fall, gave ample confirmation to the rumour.

The question will be settled to-morrow (Tuesday the 27th) on the

occasion of Mr. Ward's motion.

Madame de Lieven has not concealed from me her hope that, if the

Cabinet changes, either wholly or in part, and if Lord Palmerston is

among those who go out, there may be a chance of her staying here. She

flatters herself that the first act of the new Foreign Secretary would

be to ask the Russian Government that M. de Lieven might not be

removed. In these circumstances, she added, she would count on the

influence of M. de Talleyrand with the new Minister, whoever he might

be, to persuade him to take this step.

_London, May 27, 1834._--It is a curious thing that Marshal Ney's son,

who is in London, should wish to be presented at the Court of England

who abandoned his father when they might have saved him. It is also

curious that he should wish to get himself presented by M. de

Talleyrand, who was Minister when the Marshal was arrested and tried,

and that his presentation should take place on the same day as that of

M. Dupin, who was his father's defender, and that all this should

happen in the presence, as it were, of the Duke of Wellington who,

without departing in the least from the terms of the capitulation of

Paris, might have protected the prisoner, but did not think fit to do

so. The young Prince de la Morkowa doubtless failed to make these

reflections, but M. de Talleyrand knew very well that others would

make them for him, that they would be unpleasant for everyone

concerned, and by no means least for the young man himself. He,

therefore, declined to make the presentation on the ground that the

interval between his receiving the request and the date of the

presentation was too short to fulfil the necessary formalities.

Yesterday, at seven o'clock in the evening, I received an interesting

note from a confidential friend of the Prime Minister: "Nothing has

changed since yesterday, and there is no improvement in the situation.

We shall spend to-night in trying to keep the question open, that is

to say, to keep it from being regarded as a Cabinet question, and to

leave everyone free to vote as he likes. The Lord Chancellor is trying

hard to secure the adoption of this expedient, but Lord Grey, who is

evidently anxious to resign, may very likely wreck the plan."

_London, May 27, 1834._--After much agitation and uncertainty Lord

Grey has decided to let Mr. Stanley and Sir James Graham leave the

Ministry; their example will probably be followed by the Duke of

Richmond and Lord Ripon. Lord Grey remains, taking the side of Mr.

Ward's motion. For a moment his better instincts suggested that he

should resign, but Mr. Ellice, under whose influence he is at present,

pushed him in the other direction, and the Chancellor was urgent with

the King, who begged Lord Grey to remain.

Yesterday Ministers were singing the King's praises with tears in

their eyes. The poor King, in spite of his scruples of conscience, has

supported Reform, so the Lord Chancellor says he is a great King and

joyfully adds, with that verbose intoxication which is so

characteristic of him, that yesterday was the second great day in the

annals of the beneficent English Revolution. This strange,

undignified, unconventional Chancellor dined with us yesterday. He is

dirty, cynical and coarse, drunk both with wine and with words, vulgar

in his talk and ill-bred in his habits. He came to dine with us

yesterday in a morning coat, ate with his fingers, tapped me on the

shoulder and conversed most foully. Without his extraordinary gifts of

memory, learning, eloquence and activity no one would be more anxious

to have done with him than Lord Grey. I do not know any two characters

more diametrically opposed. Lord Brougham who was wonderful in the

House of Commons is a constant source of scandal in the Lords where he

turns everything upside down. He, the Chancellor, is often called to

order! He is always embarrassing Lord Grey by his eccentricities; in

short he is wholly out of his element, and I believe that he would be

only too glad to bury the whole Peerage with his own hands.

Yesterday we had M. Dupin at dinner to meet him, another of the

coarser products of the age. He is loud and sententious as becomes a

public prosecutor, and he has a heavy plebeian vanity which is always

in evidence. The first thing he said to the Chancellor, who remembered

meeting him some years before, was, "Oh yes, when we were both at the

bar."

Lord Althorp, in the House of Commons yesterday, asked that Mr. Ward's

motion might be adjourned in order that the Government might have time

to fill the gaps left by the resignation of several members of the

Cabinet. This was agreed to.

No one can understand what inspires the Duchess of Kent's continued

ill-feeling against the Queen. In spite of the Duchess's refusal to

take the Princess Victoria to Windsor, the Queen wished to go to

Kensington to see her the day before yesterday evening. The Duchess

of Kent refused, on some trifling pretext, to receive Her Majesty, who

was much hurt. Nobody can understand what motive there can be for such

conduct. Lord Grey yesterday attributed it to Sir John Conroy, the

Duchess's Gentleman-in-Waiting, who is said to be very ambitious, very

narrow-minded, and very powerful with the Duchess. He thinks that if

the Duchess became Regent he will be called upon to fill a great

position, which he is even now anticipating. He imagines that he has

been insulted in some way or other by the Court of St. James's, and

his revenge is to sow discord in the Royal family. I heard of the

latest scene at Kensington from Dr. Küper, the Queen's German

Chaplain, who, on leaving Her Majesty yesterday morning, came to tell

me how unhappy the good woman is about it. Lord Grey, to whom I was

talking about it at dinner, told me that King Leopold, when he left

England, had told him that he was very sorry to leave his sister under

such a bad influence as that of Sir John Conroy, but that, as the

Princess Victoria was fifteen and would be of age at eighteen, the

Duchess would either not be Regent at all or would be so only for a

very short time.

_London, May 29, 1834._--Princess Victoria as yet only appears at the

two Drawing-Rooms which celebrate the respective birthdays of the King

and Queen. I thought at yesterday's (which, by the way, lasted more

than three hours, and at which more than eighteen hundred people

passed the Presence) that this young Princess had made great progress

in the last three months. Her manners are perfect, and she will one

day be agreeable enough to be almost pretty. Like all Royalties, she

will have acquired the art of standing for a long time without fatigue

or impatience. Yesterday we all collapsed in turn, except the wife of

the new Greek Minister, whose religion accustoms her to remain

standing for long periods. She stood the ordeal very well, being

further supported by curiosity and by the novelty of her surroundings.

She is astonished at everything, asks the strangest questions, and

makes naïve observations and mistakes. Thus, seeing the Lord

Chancellor pass in his State robes and full-bottomed wig, and

carrying the embroidered purse containing the Great Seal, she took him

for a bishop carrying the Gospels, an error which, in the case of Lord

Brougham, was particularly comic.

Yesterday the Princesse de Lieven, for the first time, appeared in the

Russian national dress which has just been adopted at St. Petersburg

for State occasions. This costume is so noble, so rich, and so

graceful that it suits any woman, or rather it suits no woman ill. The

Princess's dress was particularly well planned and showed her off

well, as the veil concealed the thinness of her neck.

Nothing else was talked of yesterday at Court and elsewhere but the

resignation of four members of the Ministry, which deprives it of much

of its moral force. This is particularly so in the case of Mr. Stanley

because of his great talents, and in the case of the Duke of Richmond

because of his great position. The Conservatives are much pleased,

their ranks being increased and those of their adversaries, if not

numerically diminished, at least very ill-filled. Lord Mulgrave, Lord

Ebrington, Mr. Abercromby, and Mr. Spring Rice are spoken of for the

Cabinet, but nothing is settled yet.

At the big Diplomatic dinner for the birthday, which took place at the

house of the Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmerston had for the first time

invited ladies, and sat between the Princesse de Lieven and myself. He

was chilly on the right and breezy on the left, and obviously ill at

ease, though his embarrassment was not at all increased by the fact

that he was not in his drawing-room ready to receive the ladies as

they arrived, but came in afterwards without making the slightest

excuse.

M. Dupin is being very well treated here by all that is brilliant and

exalted in society, and likes it so much that he is quite out of

conceit with Paris. He considers that the Court at the Tuileries is

wanting in dignity, that the women are not well enough dressed there,

that the company is too much mixed, and that King Louis-Philippe is

not _Royal_ enough! What with dinners and drawing-rooms, receptions

at Court, routs, concerts, the Opera, races, &c., M. Dupin is

launched on a course of dissipation which will make a grotesque dandy

of him; and the result, if I am not mistaken, will astonish Paris.

Madame de Lieven is fond of talking about the late King George IV. She

tells me that he hated common people so much that he never showed the

least civility to M. Decazes, whom he saw only on one occasion--when

he presented his credentials. As to Madame Decazes, as he held no

drawing-room while she was in London, he avoided receiving her at all,

and he could not be persuaded to grant her a private audience or to

ask her to Carlton House. He behaved with almost equal incivility to

the Princesse de Polignac, the obscurity of whose English origin was

an offence to him. As to Madame Falk, the reason why she never saw the

late King is even more curious. Madame Falk's exuberant Flemish charms

are so well developed that they alarmed Lady Conyngham as being likely

to be too much to the King's liking, and she always succeeded in

preventing her from being received.

M. Dupin was so much struck by the magnificent apparel of the ladies

of the English Court that he made a remark to me on the subject, which

is really amusing. "The Queen of the French should lay down a rule

about Court dress; this would impose on the _bourgeois vanity_, which

in our country is always wishing to show itself at Court, the tax of

an expensive dress."

_London, May 30, 1834._--The Portuguese ratifications of the treaty of

Quadruple Alliance have come in at last. They are however inexact and

incomplete. The whole preamble of the Treaty is passed over in

silence. It is difficult to believe that this is not due rather to

malignity than inadvertence. The Attorney General was summoned to the

Foreign Office to discover some device which would make the exchange

possible. Nothing could be found to which there was not some

objection, but Lord Palmerston was inclined to carry out the exchange

leaving the preamble on one side. This would deprive the Treaty of its

moral force--perhaps the only kind of force which it possesses. The

decision on this point will not be reached until this morning.

I have often heard it said that there is no one more astute than a

madman; something I have just heard makes me think that this is true.

Replying to the congratulations of the Bishops on the occasion of his

birthday, the King assured them with tears in his eyes that as he felt

himself an old man and near the time when he must render up his soul

to God, he did not wish to charge his soul with the guilt of wronging

the Church and would support with all his strength the rights and

privileges of the Anglican Clergy. This remark was made the very day

that His Majesty pressed Lord Grey to remain and to allow Mr. Stanley

to resign.

Last night the rearrangement of the Ministry was not completed. What

seems to me certain is that no one wants Lord Durham. They say he is

in an indescribable state of fury. Lady Durham, whom he has treated

with great cruelty as he does every time he is angry with Lord Grey,

fainted yesterday while dining with her mother, and her husband did

not even turn his head to look at her.

The Marquis of Lansdowne who has quite lately spoken in Parliament in

favour of the Church, may very well also retire from the Cabinet. It

depends on what happens next Monday in the House of Commons. When she

heard this, Lady Holland went in all haste to Lord Brougham's to tell

him that she should consider Lord Lansdowne's resignation a great

misfortune which should be avoided at all costs. The Chancellor who

has no liking for Lord Lansdowne's moderation replied that for his

part he thought it would be a very good thing and that he would do all

he could to bring it about. Thereupon Lady Holland got angry and

enumerating the merits of her friend asked Lord Brougham if he had

considered all that Lord Lansdowne represented. "Oh yes," was the

answer, "I know that he represents all the old women in England."

_London, May 31, 1834._--The English Ministry is rearranged, but none

of its characteristics are any more distinct than they were before.

By means of declarations and reservations it has been found possible

to proceed with the exchange of ratifications with Portugal.

I think that this week's work is a poor performance indeed and that

its results in the future will be no better.

_London, June 1, 1834._--Yesterday I met the Ministers who were

leaving office and those who were coming in. The former seemed to me

happier than the latter and I think they had reason.

Lady Cowper in spite of her subtle and delicate wit is both nonchalant

and naïve. This makes her say things which are startling in their

excessive frankness. Thus she said to Madame de Lieven yesterday

morning, "I assure you that Lord Palmerston regards you as an old and

pleasant acquaintance whom he is very sorry to lose, that he is quite

aware of all your husband's excellent qualities, and that he knows

that Russia could not be more worthily represented than by him. But

you see that that is the very reason why England must profit by your

departure." Madame de Lieven was no less struck by the sincerity of

the avowal than annoyed by its implication.

Lady Cowper rather thoughtlessly also showed her a letter from Madame

de Flahaut in which, after expressing some polite regret at the recall

of M. de Lieven, she lamented the choice which had been made of a

_chargé d'affaires_. He was, she said, a venomous and wicked little

wasp, fiercely Russian in sentiment, a savage enemy of Poland, and to

sum all up in one word a cousin german of Madame de Dino, which she

added is very much against the interest of England whose one object

must be to keep Russia and France apart.

For the rest it is said that Pozzo is delighted that my cousin Medem

is leaving Paris. He has always praised him and treated him well, but

perhaps Paul's direct and intimate relations with M. de Nesselrode had

begun to embarrass Pozzo. I don't believe it however.

Yesterday, while dining with Lord Holland, M. Dupin showed rather too

much of the legislator. Poor Lord Melbourne, especially, who was half

absent and half asleep, was bored with a long dissertation on divorce

which was all the more out of place as his wife, who had for long been

a source of great trouble to him, has just died insane and under

restraint. Lord Holland, who makes friends easily with all those whom

he does not wish to hang for their political opinions, told me that he

disliked M. Dupin very much, and that he had all the bad points of

Lord Brougham with none of his extraordinary ability and versatility.

_A propos_ of the Chancellor I hear bad accounts of his character. For

instance it was Lord Holland who forced the Duke of Bedford's hand and

so got him into Parliament. For four years thereafter Lord Brougham

never set foot in Lord Holland's house. When he did call he did so for

no apparent reason, without embarrassment and without excuses. The

Chancellor's leading gift is his ready memory and presence of mind

which enable him to have at hand at a moment's notice all the facts

and arguments relevant to the subject of his speech. Thus Mr. Allen

says of him that he has always a legion of devils of all colours ready

to obey him, and that of these he is himself the chief. Lord Holland

says that no scruple can stop him. Lady Sefton told me in confidence

the other day that as a friend he was neither sincere nor faithful.

Lady Grey says outright that he is a monster and it is in this way

that every one talks who is intimate with him or belongs to the same

party.

_Hylands, June 2, 1834._--The Republicans are annoyed with M. de la

Fayette for choosing as his burying-place the aristocratic cemetery of

Picpus. They are also angry because there were so many priests at the

mortuary chapel to receive the body. A hogshead of earth from the

United States was placed in the grave. _A propos_ of M. de Lafayette,

I have several times heard M. de Talleyrand tell how he went to his

house with the Marquis de Castellane, another member of the

Constituant Assembly, early on October 7, 1789, to propose some

arrangements for the safety of Louis XVI., who had been taken to the

Tuileries the night before. They found Lafayette, after the terrible

two days which had passed, calmly having his hair done!

Here at Hylands we are with M. Labouchere, an old and kind friend. The

place is very cheerful, and distinguished for its wonderful flowers

and vegetables. M. Labouchere, who is a cosmopolitan sort of person,

has collected about him many souvenirs of travel, but Holland is the

most conspicuous; and he takes most pains with his flower-beds, on

which he spends a great deal of money.

_Hylands, June 3, 1834._--A note from Lord Sefton, written yesterday

from the House of Lords before the end of the sitting, the result of

which we do not yet know, informs me that the Commission of Inquiry on

the Church of Ireland, which Lord Althorp has proposed, will not

satisfy the demands of Mr. Ward and his party. Mr. Stanley and Sir

James Graham scoff at the Commission, and intend to move the previous

question. Sir Robert Peel holds back; Lord Grey is very low, and the

King is quite ready either to support him or to send for another

Minister. Pressed by the difficulties of the situation, he has neither

principles nor affections, and in this he shares what I believe to be

the position common to all Kings.

_London, June 4, 1834._--It seems that Dom Miguel is _hors de combat_,

and is on the point of giving in and quitting the Peninsula. I gather

that the signatories of the Quadruple Alliance attribute his

submission to the news of the signing of their treaty. If this be so,

the moral effect is all the more satisfactory, as the material result

would probably not have been great.

In the English Parliament Mr. Ward declined to be satisfied with the

Commission of Inquiry. Lord Althorp moved the previous question,

supported by Mr. Stanley--who made an admirable speech on the

inviolability of Church property--and by all the Tories. The previous

question was adopted by a large majority. It cannot be pleasant for

the Ministry that this vote is due only to their enemies, for whom it

is a triumph, and to the four Ministers who have resigned. The real

opinion of the Cabinet, the different combinations which have divided

it and ruled its actions--all this is so confused and complicated that

it is difficult to understand what really is the idea which governs

its jerky and inconsequent mode of progression.

In the Commons Lord Palmerston has denounced the principle upheld by

Lord Lansdowne in the Upper House, where every one was surprised to

see a known Socinian[16] like him speak in favour of the clergy. In

this matter all is contradictory. Lord Grey has wavered hesitatingly

among all the combatants, not exalting one party, not urging on the

others. He is shouldered, jostled, and pushed about by everybody, and

he emerges in a battered condition from the _mêlée_. If in his

friends' eyes he is still a decent, honest sort of person, in the eyes

of the public he is now only a feeble old man--an exhausted Minister.

[16] A follower of Socinus, who disbelieved in the Trinity and in

the Divinity of Christ.

Lady Holland usually does everything that other people avoid. She went

to a window in Downing Street to observe the Members of Parliament who

went to Lord Althorp's meeting two days ago in order that she might

speculate with more accuracy about each. Her speculations are rarely

charitable. She thinks that she palliates her inconceivable egotism by

flaunting it without shame; she exploits other people without mercy

for her own benefit, and treats them well or ill according to

calculations more or less personal. She never allows any one else's

convenience to stand in her way. The most one can do is to credit her

with a few good qualities, and even these are based on some interested

motive. When her caprices and her _exigence_ has worn out the patience

of her friends, she tries to regain their favour by the most abject

condescension. She abuses the false position she holds in

society--with which well-bred people are careful not to reproach

her--in order to conquer and oppress them. The position she has is, it

must be admitted, the best proof of her ability. In her time she has

done the most unheard-of things, and she has been forgiven everything.

For instance, she gave out that her eldest daughter was dead in order

not to be forced to surrender her to her first husband, and when she

had ceased to care for this child she brought her back to life again,

and to prove that she was not buried she had the grave opened, and the

skeleton of a goat was found in the coffin. This is going a little too

far! However, she is a social despot in her own numerous circle. The

reason of this is, perhaps, that she does not try to force herself on

any one, and that she may be said rather to rise superior to prejudice

than to struggle against it. M. de Talleyrand keeps her very well in

hand, and is becoming the avenger of all her acquaintance. Every one

is delighted when Lady Holland is a little mishandled, and no one

comes to her assistance, Lord Holland and Mr. Allen as little as any

one.

Lady Aldborough came one day to Lady Lyndhurst and asked her to be so

kind as to find out from her husband, who was then Chancellor, what

steps she should take in an important case. Lady Lyndhurst refused, in

the rude and vulgar manner which is characteristic of her, to

undertake to obtain the required information, adding that she never

interfered in such tedious matters. "Very true, my Lady," answered

Lady Aldborough, "I quite forgot that you are not in the civil line."

Lady Aldborough is witty, and what she says is brilliant, even when

she speaks French. She is often a trifle too bold and free-spoken.

Thus, when she heard how the Princesse de Léon had been burned to

death, and when some one said that the Prince had been more of a

brother to his wife than a husband, Lady Aldborough exclaimed, "What!

Virgin as well as Martyr! Ah! that is too much."

The condition of the English Cabinet is very curious. Sir Robert Peel

said in the House that he couldn't understand it at all; and this

being so, every one else's ignorance may well be excused. What is

clear to everybody is that if no member of the Cabinet is absolutely

destroyed they are all wounded, some say mortally. That they are

enervated is evident. I am sorry for it for Lord Grey's sake, for I am

really attached to him; in the rest I have not the slightest interest.

Lord Palmerston will not restore their credit. M. de Talleyrand may

say what he likes. He may have a gift for the despatch of business;

he may speak and write French well; but he is a rude and presumptuous

person, his behaviour is arrogant, and his character not upright. Each

day some new and more or less clear proof of his duplicity comes to

light. For instance, how is it that, while Lord Grey is arguing loudly

against King Leopold's plan for choosing himself a successor, and

while Lord Palmerston seems to be of the same mind, the latter is

writing privately to Lord Granville in support of the King's idea?

This constantly embarrasses the Ambassadors in their relations with

him, and above all puts M. de Talleyrand in a very painful position.

_London, June 5, 1834._--The Duc d'Orléans writes to me, without any

prompting on my part and without any obvious motive, a letter of which

the point seems to lie in the following phrase, which appears to be

intended to show that he does not approve of the conduct of his

father's ministers: "I consider there is already a reassuring sign in

this disposition to limit party quarrels to an electoral college and

to wage war by manifesto alone. May this tendency in time eliminate

the system of brute force, which I regret to see nowadays in all

parties, and which is the favourite argument not only of the

opposition but also of those in power!" I think there is good sense

and good feeling in this reflection.

If the Duc d'Orléans had good counsellors I should have confidence in

his future. He is intelligent, brave, graceful, well-educated, and

energetic. These are excellent gifts in a Prince, and, matured by age,

they might make him a good king. But those about him, both men and

women, are so commonplace and small-minded! Since the death of Madame

de Vaudémont there is no one of any distinction or nobility of mind or

character.

Lady Granville has given a ball in Paris in honour of the birthday of

the King of England. She had the gallery filled with orange-trees, and

the company waltzed round them. Lamps were placed behind the flowers,

so that there was very little light in the room. Nothing could be more

favourable to private conversation. Eight thieves dressed to

perfection came in through the garden, but such a large number of

unknown men attracted attention, and notice was taken of it too soon.

They saw that they had been observed, and made good their escape.

Their intention seems to have been to snatch the women's diamonds when

they had gone into the garden, which was to be illuminated.

_London, June 6, 1834._--The English Cabinet, so feebly reorganised,

does not hold its head very high; all the honours are with the

seceding Ministers. Lord Grey is under no illusions, and is by no

means proud of the great majority of last Monday; for, as one of his

friends said to me: "This majority is not the result of affection for

Ministers; it is due merely to fear that the Tories will come in and

dissolve Parliament." Nothing, I think, can be truer. For the rest,

the Cabinet already feels the need of strengthening. They say that

Lord Radnor, a friend of the Chancellor's and a Radical big gun, will

be made Lord Privy Seal.

It seems certain that Dom Miguel and Don Carlos are really leaving the

Peninsula, the one for England, the other for Holland.

The Prince de la Moskowa having persisted in his desire to be

presented, was presented yesterday, along with the Prince d'Eckmühl.

Their desire was so strong that they tried to get Mr. Ellice to

present them in the absence of M. de Talleyrand, as if that were

possible, apart from its being objectionable! Really, young Frenchmen

have no idea how to behave, and Mr. Ellice, whose gentility is of

recent growth, had lent himself to this pretty scheme!