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"amiable persons they found there? He was the Patriarch of "Kings, that one" (in a certain sense, your Majesty!) "In his lifetime, a little too much good was said of him; but a great "deal too much ill after his death."

Ego. "A King of France, Sire, is always the Patriarch "of Clever People (Patriarche des gens d'esprit:" You do not much mean this, Monsieur? You merely grin it from the teeth outward?).

King. "That is the bad Number to draw: they aren't worth "a doit (ne valent pas le diable, these gens d'esprit) at Governing. "Better be Patriarch of the Greek Church, like my sister the

Empress of Russia! That brings her, and will bring, advan"tages. There's a religion for you; comprehending many Coun"tries and different Nations! As to our poor Lutherans, they 66 are so few, it is not worth while being their Patriarch."

Ego. "Nevertheless, Sire, if one join to them the Calvin"ists, and all the little bastard Sects, it would not be so bad "a post." (The King appeared to kindle at this; his eyes were full of animation. But it did not last when I said): "If the "Kaiser were Patriarch of the Catholics, that too wouldn't be "a bad place."

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King. "There, there: Europe divided into Three Patriarchates. I was wrong to begin; you see where that leads us: Messieurs, our dreams are not those of the just, as M. le "Regent used to say. If Louis XIV. were alive, he would "thank us."

'All these patriarchal ideas, possible and impossible to realise, 'made him, for an instant, look thoughtful, almost moody.

King. "Louis XIV., possessing more judgment than clever"ness (esprit), looked out more for the former quality than for the "latter. It was men of genius that he wanted, and found. It "could not be said that Corneille, Bossuet, Racine, and Condé were people of the clever sort (des hommes d'esprit)."

Ego. "On the whole, there is that in the Country which really deserves to be happy. It is asserted that your Majesty "has said, If one would have a fine dream, one must—”

King. "Yes, it is true,-be King of France."

Ego. "If Francis I. and Henri IV. had come into the world

3d-7th Sept. 1770.

"after your Majesty, they would have said, 'be King of "Prussia.""

King. "Tell me, pray, is there no citeable Writer left in "France?"

'This made me laugh; the King asked the reason. I told him, He reminded me of the Russe à Paris, that charming little piece of verse of M. de Voltaire's; and we remembered 'charming things out of it, which made us both laugh. He said,

King. "I have sometimes heard the Prince de Conti spoken "of: what sort of man is he?"

Ego. "He is a man composed of twenty or thirty men. He "is proud, he is affable," he is fiddle, he is diddle (in the seesaw epigrammatic way, for a page or more); and is not worth pen and ink from us, since the time old Marshal Traun got us rid of him,—home across the Rhine, full speed, with Croats sticking on his skirts.22

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'This portrait seemed to amuse the King. One had to 'captivate him by some piquant detail; without that, he would escape you, give you no time to speak. The success generally began by the first words, no matter how vague, of any con'versation; these he found means to make interesting; and what, generally, is mere talk about the weather, became at ' once sublime; and one never heard anything vulgar from him. He ennobled everything; and the examples of Greeks and Romans, or of modern Generals, soon dissipated everything of what, with others, would have remained trivial and commonplace.

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"Have you ever," said he, "seen such a rain as yesterday's? "Your orthodox Catholics will say, 'That comes of having a man without religion among us: what are we to do with this "cursed (maudit) King; a Protestant at lowest? For I really "think I brought you bad luck. Your soldiers would be saying, "Peace we have; and still is this devil of a man to trouble us!"

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Ego. "Certainly, if your Majesty was the cause, it is very "bad. Such a thing is only permitted to Jupiter, who has "always good reasons for everything; and it would have been 22 Suprà, iv. 159.

3d-7th Sept. 1770.

"in his fashion, after destroying the one set by fire, to set about "destroying the others by water. However, the fire is at an “end; and I did not expect to revert to it.”

King. "I ask your pardon for having plagued you so often "with that; I regret it for the sake of all mankind. But what a "fine Apprenticeship of War! I have committed errors enough "to teach you young people, all of you, to do better. Mon “Dieu, how I love your grenadiers! How well they defiled in 66 my presence! If the god Mars were raising a bodyguard "for himself, I should advise him to take them hand over head. "Do you know I was well pleased (bien content) with the Kaiser "last night at supper? Did you hear what he said to me about Liberty of the Press, and the Troubling of Consciences (la "gêne des consciences)? There will be bits of difference between "his worthy Ancestors and him, on some points!"

Ego. "I am persuaded, he will entertain no prejudices on "anything; and that your Majesty will be a great Book of In"struction to him."

King. "How adroitly he disapproved, without appearing to "mean anything, the ridiculous Vienna Censorship; and the "too great fondness of his Mother (without naming her) for "certain things which only make hypocrites. By the bye, she "must detest you, that High Lady?"

Ego. "Well, then, not at all. She has sometimes lectured "me about my strayings, but very maternally: she is sorry for "me, and quite sure that I shall return to the right path. She "said to some time me, 'I don't know how you do, you are ago, "the intimate friend of Father Griffet; the Bishop of Neustadt "has always spoken well of you; likewise the Archbishop of "Malines; and the Cardinal" (name not known to me, dignity and red hat sufficiently visible) "loves you much.""

'Why cannot I remember the hundred luminous things which 'escaped the King in this conversation! It lasted till the trumpet at Headquarters announced dinner. The King went to take 'his place; and I think it was on this occasion that, some one having asked why M. de Loudon had not come yet, he said, "That is not his custom: formerly he often arrived before me.

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"Please let him take this place next me; I would rather have "him at my side than opposite."

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That is very pretty. And a better authority gives it, The King said to Loudon himself, on Loudon's entering, “Mettez-vous auprès de moi, M. de Loudon ; j'aime mieux vous avoir à côté de "moi vis-à-vis." He was very que He was very kind to Loudon; constantly 'called him "M. le Feldmaréchal'' (delicate hint of what should have been, but was not for seven years yet); and, at parting, gave him' (as he did to Lacy also) 'two superb horses, magni'ficently equipped.'23

'Another day,' continues Prince de Ligne, 'the Manoeuvres being over in good time, there was a Concert at the Kaiser's. "Notwithstanding the King's taste for music, he was pleased to 'give me the preference; and came where I was, to enchant me with the magic of his conversation, and the brilliant traits, gay ' and bold, which characterise him. He asked me to name the general and particular Officers who were present, and to tell ' him those who had served under Marshal Traun: "For, enfin," he said, "as I think I have told you already, he is my Master; ❝he corrected me in the Schooling I was at."

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Ego. "Your Majesty was very ungrateful, then; you never paid him his lessons. If it was as your Majesty says, you "should, at least, have allowed him to beat you; and I do not "remember that you ever did."

King. "I did not get beaten, because I did not fight."

Ego. "It is in this manner that the greatest Generals have "often conducted their wars against each other. One has only "to look at the two Campaigns of M. de Montecuculi and M. de Turenne, in the Valley of the Rench" (Strasburg Country, 1674 and 1675, two celebrated Campaigns, Turenne killed by a cannon-shot in the last).

King. "Between Traun and the former there is not much "difference; but what a difference, bon Dieu, between the latter " and me!"

'I named to him the Count d'Althan, who had been Adju'tant-General, and the Count de Pellegrini. He asked me twice

23 Pezzl, Vie de Loudon, ii. 29.

3d-7th Sept. 1770.

'which was which, from the distance we were at; and said, He was so short-sighted I must excuse him.

Ego. "Nevertheless, Sire, in the War your sight was good "enough; and, if I remember right, it reached very far!" King. "It was not I; it was my glass."

Ego. "Ha, I should have liked to find that glass;—but I "fear it would have suited my eyes as little as Scanderbeg's "sword my arm."

'I forget how the conversation changed; but I know it grew 6 so free that, seeing somebody coming to join in it, the King 'warned him to take care; that it wasn't safe to converse with a man doomed by the theologians to Everlasting Fire. I felt as if he somewhat overdid this of his "being doomed,” and that 'he boasted too much of it. Not to hint at the dishonesty of these free-thinking gentlemen (messieurs les esprits forts), who very often are thoroughly afraid of the Devil, it is, at least, bad 6 taste to make display of such things: and it was with the people ' of bad taste whom he has had about him, such as a Jordan, a D'Argens, Maupertuis, La Beaumelle, La Mettrie, Abbé de Prades, and some dull sceptics of his own Academy, that he 'had acquired the habit of mocking at Religion; and of talking (de parler) Dogma, Spinozism, Court of Rome, and the like. In the end, I didn't always answer when he touched upon it. 'I now seized a moment's interval, while he was using his hand'kerchief, to speak to him about some business, in connexion 'with the Circle of Westphalia, and a little Comté Immédiat (County holding direct of the Reich) which I have there. The

King answered me: "I, for my part, will do anything you "wish; but what thinks the other Director, my comrade, the "Elector of Cologne, about it?"

Ego. "I was not aware, Sire, that you were an Ecclesiastical "Elector."

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King. "I am so; at least on my Protestant account." Ego. "That is not to our account's advantage! Those good people of mine believe your Majesty to be their protector."

I

'He continued asking me the names of persons he saw. 'was telling him those of a number of young Princes who had 'lately entered the Service, and some of whom gave hopes.