edom of speech, sometimes even scolding
her; and when Madame Bonaparte, who was extremely generous and always
gracious towards every one, made presents to her women, or chatted
familiarly with them, Carrat would reproach her. "Why give that?" he
would say, adding, "See how you do, Madame; you allow yourself to jest
with your domestics. Some day they will show you a want of respect."
But if he thus endeavored to restrain the generosity of his mistress
towards those around her, he did not hesitate to stimulate her generosity
towards himself; and whenever he took a fancy to anything, would simply
say, "You ought to give me that."

Bravery is not always the inseparable companion of wit, and Carrat gave
more than once proof of this. Being endowed with a kind of simple and
uncontrollable poltroonery, which never fails in comedies to excite the
laughter of the spectators, it was a great pleasure to Madame Bonaparte
to play on him such pranks as would bring out his singular want of
courage.

It should be stated, first of all, that one of the greatest pleasures of
Madame Bonaparte, at Malmaison, was to take walks on the road just
outside the walls of the park; and she always preferred this outside
road, in spite of the clouds of dust which were constantly rising there,
to the delightful walks inside the park. One day, accompanied by her
daughter Hortense, she told Carrat to follow her in her walk; and he was
delighted to be thus honored until he saw rise suddenly out of a ditch; a
great figure covered with a white sheet, in fact, a genuine ghost, such
as I have seen described in the translations of some old English
romances.

It is unnecessary to say, that the ghost was some one placed there by
order of these ladies, in order to frighten Carrat; and certainly the
comedy succeeded marvelously well, for as soon as Carrat perceived the
ghost, he was very much frightened, and clutching Madame Bonaparte, said
to her in a tremor, "Madame, Madame, do you see that ghost? It is the
spirit of the lady who died lately at Plombieres."--"Be quiet, Carrat,
you are a coward."--"Ah, but indeed it is her spirit which has come
back." As Carrat thus spoke, the man in the white sheet advanced toward
him, shaking it; and poor Carrat, overcome with terror, fell backwards in
a faint, and it required all the attentions which were bestowed upon him
to restore him to consciousness.

Another day, while the general was still in Egypt, and consequently