pleasure of catching some little fish with the line.

When he was ambassador at Petersburg, Paul I. had treated him with
the greatest indignity. He and I were playing at backgammon in the
drawing room at Morfontaine, when one of my friends came in and
informed us of the sudden death of that Sovereign. M. de C.
immediately began making the most official lamentations possible on
this event. "Although I had reason to complain of him," said he, "I
shall always acknowledge the excellent qualities of this prince,
and I cannot help regretting his loss." He thought rightly that the
death of Paul was a fortunate event for Austria, and for Europe, but
he had in his conversation, a court mourning, that was really quite
intolerable. It is to be hoped, that the progress of time will rid
the world of the courtier spirit, the most insipid of all others, to
say nothing more.

Bonaparte was extremely alarmed at the death of Paul, and it is
said, that on that occasion he uttered the first--Ah, my God! that
was ever heard to proceed from his lips. He had no reason, however,
to disturb himself; for the French were then more disposed to endure
tyranny than the Russians.

I was invited to general Berthier's one day, when the first consul
was to be of the party; and as I knew that he expressed himself very
unfavourably about me, it struck me that he might perhaps accost me
with some of those rude expressions, which he often took pleasure in
addressing to females, even to those who paid their court to him; I
wrote down therefore as they occured to me, before I went to the
entertainment, a variety of tart and piquant replies which I might
make to what I supposed he might say to me. I did not wish to be