Part 13 (1/2)
”_Septe, for we dined with the E in the 'Napoleonic Idea' as I sat at that table and saw raved with the Imperial 'N,' and are of the historical portraits of the Bonaparte Era that hung round the rooht conversation and chaff; and I find, as I see her oftener, that she has plenty of huo in arned to o in on either side of her She called to Will to coht I was very happy and in my element Oh! how the mind feels relieved and expanded in that at talks on Egypt with the Eht land are particularly brilliant, she having been there during the jubilant cere of the Suez Canal One year before the great calamities to her and her husband! She told me that just for a freak she walked several times in and out between the two pillars on the Piazzetta at Venice, that time, to brave Fate, who, it was said, punished those who dared to do this 'Then _les eveneht she say that life is an up and down existence She waved her hand up and down, very high and very low, as she said it, with a very weary sigh Her face is often very beautiful; those eyes drooping at the outer corners look particularly lovely as they are bent doards, and her white hair is arranged racefully
She is always in black
”Will has accepted the extension of his coreat pleasure; the chief charhbourhood of the Eh unique Not only is she so interesting, but now and then there are visitors at her house whose very names are sonorous memories The other day as we came into her presence she went up to Will and asked him to let Prince Murat, Ney (Prince de la Moscowa) and Massena (duc de Rivoli), see soade at their barracks When the inspection was over these three illustrious Names came to lunch with us, and I sat between Murat and Massena, with _le Brave des Braves_ opposite What's in a naht enie at her tea table and she sprinkled lad to know she likes me and she is very fond of Will One Sunday she and I and the Marquise de Gallifet were sitting together, and the E to the latter about 'The Roll Call,' pronouncing the nalish, but Madame, who looked somewhat stony and unsympathetic, could not pronounce the na out of it The E fun of her atteid expression At last the Eht to be said in the proper way; but, as she had just given me an enormous chocolate crea with this thing in hter as I made several attempts to say the unfortunate name So it was never pronounced, and Madaht ere both rather childish, which , if it is at all co fits which are very catching--except by Gallifets
”Talking of ca (and they say she rode like a Bedouin in the desert) I sent her into another fit which brought the tears to her eyes by saying I always forgot '_quel bout deBut she sent me into one ofher, in answer to her enquiry as to insuring pictures on sending theht only their total loss would be paid for, and what the artist considered an injury of a grave nature aht not be so considered by the insurance company 'And if,' she said, 'you have a portrait and a hole is h one of the eyes?' Here she slowly closed her left eye and looked at y, 'would you not get compensation?' The one-eyed portrait continued to look at e of expression gone, and I laughed so ain, but she wouldn't, for a long ti, particularly at the De Worms' at Henley Park, where a _chef_ at 500 a year has made that hospitable house very attractive; but there has been one shoot at Farnboro'hiunnery Suddenly he was seen on a shutter, screaht he ounded, but it turned out he was sure he had hit somebody else, which happily wasn't true People are shy of having him, after that, at their shoots, especially Baron de Worles, one day, bullet-proof against that excitable little southerner, as a member of the party at Henley Park”
After one of the Empress's dinners at Farnboro' Hill, a small dinner of intied, htly French way What easy, pleasant society it was! One adh all knew that the dead weight on the poor heart was there, so that others should not feel depressed Even with these kind semblances of cheeriness no one could be un sorrow in that woman's face
”_January 9th, 1895_--The anniversary of the Eain There was quite a little stir during the service in the church The catafalque, heaped up with flowers, was surrounded with scores of lighted tapers as it lay before the altar A young priest, in a laced _cotta_, went up to it to set a leaf or flower or so in its place, when instantly one of his lace sleeves blazed Al up the altar steps without the s out the fire Not another soul in that crowded place had seen anything That was like Will! We laid wreaths on the tombs in the crypt”
An entry in March of that year records good progress with ”The Dawn of Waterloo,” andthe Ehts, and their suites, who came to see the picture I found the Empress still more like her mother than when I first saw her, when she and the Crown Prince Frederick dined at the Goschens'--aand bearded Frederick toldbetter for his sons than that they should follow in his footsteps The E--that is exactly the word--and a few -rooet on to the studio, to save the light So out we sallied, walking two and two, a formidable procession, and ere nearly half an hour in the little court-martial hut They all had tea with us afterwards, quite filling the tiny drawing-room The E up intolittle woman I ever saw She had what I call the ”Victoria charm,” which all her sisters shared with her--absolutely unstudied, holy friendly At least it so appeared to ree in her that day But what a sorrow she had had to bear!
The picture was taken to the Club House, there to be shown for three days to the division before Sending-in Day The idea was Will's, but I got the thanks--undeserved, as I had been reluctant to brave the dust on the wet paint Croent to see it, froenerals down to the traditional last druain unkind in the placing of my picture, and a trip to Paris was all the more welcome as a diversion, for there I was able to seek consolation in the treat of a plunge into the best art in the ”City of Light” One interesting day in May found us at Malmaison, the country house of Napoleon and Josephine There is always soer tenanted which once echoed the talk, the laughter, the co sounds of voices that are long silent But _this_ house, of all houses! It was absolutely stripped of everything but Napoleon's billiard table, and the worm-eaten bookshelves in his little s we found in holes; that garden, once so much admired and enjoyed, choked with dusty nettles We went into every roouests'
bedroo-room where Napoleon took his hurried meals; the library where he studied; the billiard-rooalitter of gorgeous uniforms and radiant _toilettes_ One lends one's htly sounds outside--the clatter of horses' hoofs as the staff ride in and out of the courtyards with momentous despatches; the sharp words of co instant hearing We found our s The chapel, the coach-houses, the great iron gates were all there, but seen as in a dream
We were back at Aldershot on May 30th ”The Queen's Ball, at Buckinghahanistan's son, was the guest of the evening, as it is our policy just now to do hiOriental, bored to tears! The usual delightful medley of men of every nationality, civilised and semi-civilised, was there in full splendour, but the rush of that crowd for the supper-rooot jae boxes and sword hilts sticking into one's bare ar this tiht on my 'Dawn of Waterloo,' but that was an inadequate salve to reat review here in honour of the young Shahzada, who is being so highly honoured this season I don't think I ever saw such a large staff as surrounded that pallid princeling as he rode on to the field The whole thing was a long affair, and our bored visitor refreshed himself occasionally with consolatory snuff The whole of the cavalry finished up, as usual, with a charge 'stem on,' and as the foran to turn his horse round, possibly suspecting deep-laid treachery”
My husband and I were present when Cardinals Vaughan and Logue laid the foundation stone of Westminster Cathedral The luncheon that folloas enlivened by soue's, whose rich brogue rolled out some well-turned phrases
A week later ere at dinner at Farnborough Hill ”There was a large house-party, including Princes Victor and Louis Napoleon, the elder a taciturn, shy, dark ent officer of thirty-one, who is a colonel in the Russian cavalry, and is the hope and darling of the Bonapartists I call him Napoleon IV Victor went in with the E our seats the two brothers exchanged places, so that I sat on Victor's right I had an uphill task to talk with the studious, silent Victor, and found hbour much ht his name and his accent was so perfect and his idioms and turns of speech so irreproachable that I never questioned his being a Frenchman Aent in the liveliest lish, why I don't know This gave the E behind her toothpick and asked lish 'Yes, ood?' (chuckle)
'Really good, madame' 'Ah, that is well' (chuckle) I saw in Will's face I was being chaffed and guessed the truth Much laughter, especially from Louis He told Will, across the E of 'Scotland for Ever' in a shopin Moscow, and had presented it to thenow colonel of the Scots Greys, and that he little expected so soon to ht and sparkling, so unlike a purely English one How gratefully Will and I confor His Irish heart beats in harmony with it I didn't quite recover froht everything into line oncePrince Louis '_Felicissi a bewilderues I left aht on the Fox Hills to-day to which the two French princes went Will mounted Victor on steady 'Roly Poly,'
and sent H on 'Heart of Oak' to attend on His Ihout the day Louis was mounted by the Duke My General loves to honour a Napoleon, so, when he was riding ho to give the General the usual salute, he begged the Imperial Colonel to take the salute himself 'But, General, I am not even in uniform!' answered Louis 'One of your name, sir, is always in uniform,' was the ready reply So Louis took it On his way back to the Elass of iced claret cup on this grilling day, he looked atfor Miss S--'Right Wheel!'--the Scots Greys at manuvres I wonder if he has it in him to make a bid for the French Throne!
”_July 12th_--The Queen came down to-day, and there was a very fine display of the picked athletes of the arymnasium in the afternoon, before Her Majesty, who did not leave her carriage She looked pleased and in great good hu at the Pavilion as she did last year Will sat near her, and she kept nodding and s to him at intervals as he carried on a lively conversation with Princesses Louise and Beatrice
Her Majesty expanded into full contentiments of the Division, entered the room at the close of dinner in full blast They tell iment jealously adhered to its own key for its skirls, or whatever the right word is, and so in three different keys did the pibrochs bray, but this detail was not particularly noticeable in the general hurly-burly The Queen stood it well, though in that confined space it pipes on the mountain side or in the desert, where I have heard them and loved them
”_July 13th_--At a very fine review for the Queen, who brought her usual weather with her She looked well pleased, especially with the stirring light cavalry charge at the close, when Brabazon pulled up his line at full charging pace within about 12 yards (it seee Really, for a ht, as the dark otten all about 'Halt!' It was a treer on the part of this dashi+ng hussar That group of the Queen in her carriage, with the four white horses and scarlet coated servants; the Prince of Wales and the rest of the glittering Staff; Prince Victor Napoleon in civilian dress, his heavy face shaded by his tall black hat as he uneasily sat his excited horse; the other carriages resplendent in red and gold; the Eantes_, and the wave of dark hussars bursting in a cloud of dust al squadrons with sabres flung up and heads thrown back--what a sight to please me! I feel a physical sensation of refresh this perforht have flopped right into the Queen's lap I saw one of the squadron leaders give a little shi+ver when all was over On getting ho to the bearskins ofthe way the wind blew the hair back, as I had just seen it at the reviehile fresh in my mind, when a servant caot intodress with sleeves turned up for coolness I ran in, changed in half a ht being there also, and we had one of those 'shoppy' art talks which the duchess of Argyll likes
”_August 16th_--My 'At Home' day was enie, who brought a remedy for little Eileen's cold
It was a plaster, which she showed me how to use I cannot say how touched ere by this act, so thoughtful and kind--that poor childless ! She see for Eileen, indeed Mdlle d'Allonville has told me so”
The rest of the Aldershot Diary is filled with military activities up to the date of the expiration of my husband's time there, and his appointment to the command of the South Eastern District with Dover Castle as our home But between the two coh some parts of Italy I had not seen before, and a visit to the Villa Cyrnos at Cap Martin, whither the Empress had invited us
CHAPTER XX