void certain mishaps which occurred to him.

In 1854 he only enjoyed a salary of 1,800 francs. Through a peculiar
trait of his character he was unpopular with all his superiors, who let
him languish in the eternal and hopeless expectation of the clerk's
ideal, an increase of salary. Nevertheless he worked; but he did not know
how to make himself appreciated. He had too much self-respect, he
claimed. His self-respect consisted in never bowing to his superiors in a
low and servile manner, as did, according to him, certain of his
colleagues, whom he would not mention. He added that his frankness
embarrassed many people, for, like all the rest, he protested against
injustice and the favoritism shown to persons entirely foreign to the
bureaucracy. But his indignant voice never passed beyond the little cage
where he worked.

First as a government clerk, then as a Frenchman and finally as a man who
believed in order he would adhere to whatever government was established,
having an unbounded reverence for authority, except for that of his
chiefs.

Each time that he got the chance he would place himself where he could
see the emperor pass, in order to have the honor of taking his hat off to
him; and he would go away puffed up with pride at having bowed to the
head of the state.

From his habit of observing the sovereign he did as many others do; he
imitated the way he trimmed his beard or arranged his hair, the cut of
his clothes, his walk, his mannerisms. Indeed, how many men in each
country seemed to be the living images of the head of the government!
Perhaps he vaguely resembled Napoleon III., but his hair was black;
therefore he dyed it, and then the likeness was complete; and when he met
another gentleman in the street also imitating the imperial countenance
he was jealous and looked at him disdainfully. This need of imitation
soon became his hobby, and, having heard an usher at the Tuilleries
imitate the voice of the emperor, he also acquired the same intonations
and studied slowness.

He thus became so much like his model that they might easily have been
mistaken for each other, and certain high dignitaries were heard to
remark that they found it unseemly and even vulgar; the matter was
mentioned to the prime minister, who ordered that the employee should
appear before him. But at the sight of him he began to laugh and repeated
two or three times: "That's funny, really funny!" This was repeated, and
the following da