len minds supposed to be rather rapidly swallowing France; but,
his morning's chocolate could not so much as get into the throat of
Monseigneur, without the aid of four strong men besides the Cook.

Yes. It took four men, all four a-blaze with gorgeous decoration,
and the Chief of them unable to exist with fewer than two gold
watches in his pocket, emulative of the noble and chaste fashion set
by Monseigneur, to conduct the happy chocolate to Monseigneur's
lips. One lacquey carried the chocolate-pot into the sacred pres-
ence; a second, milled and frothed the chocolate with the little in-
strument he bore for that function; a third, presented the favoured
napkin; a fourth (he of the two gold watches), poured the choco-
late out. It was impossible for Monseigneur to dispense with one
of these attendants on the chocolate and hold his high place under
the admiring Heavens. Deep would have been the blot upon his
escutcheon if his chocolate had been ignobly waited on by only
three men; he must have died of two.

Monseigneur had been out at a little supper last night, where
the Comedy and the Grand Opera were charmingly represented.
Monseigneur was out at a little supper most nights, with fascinat-
ing company. So polite and so impressible was Monseigneur, that
the Comedy and the Grand Opera had far more influence with him
in the tiresome articles of state affairs and state secrets, than the
needs of all France. A happy circumstance for France, as the like
always is for all countries similarly favoured!--always was for
England (by way of example), in the regretted days of the merry
Stuart who sold it.

Monseigneur had one truly noble idea of general public busi-
ness, which was, to let everything go on in its own way; of particu-
lar public business, Monseigneur had the other truly noble idea
that it must all go his way--tend to his own power and pocket. Of
his pleasures, general and particular, Monseigneur had the other
truly noble idea, that the world was made for them. The text of
his order (altered from the original by only a pronoun, which is not
much) ran: 'The earth and the fulness thereof are mine, saith
Monseigneur.'

Yet, Monseigneur had slowly found that vulgar embarrassments
crept into his affairs, both private and public; and he had, as to

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