sy till I hear from him.

I observed, in your letter to Gregg, that you press him to solicit
the payment of the arrears from Charles. I had mentioned it in mine
to you, as you will find in a few days. But you will not be
surprised at anything which that boy does; you must know not half an
hour before Fawkener said that he left Charles a loser (of) 5,000 to
General Smith at picquet, and (he) was then playing with him 100
pounds a game.

I go to-night with Mie Mie to the Opera in Lady Townshend's box, to
see this famous dance of Medea and Jason. The girl had not in her
head to go this year any more to the Opera, but Lady Townshend made
this party. It will be etouffante; Vestris, it is said, dances for
the last time.

The Emp(eror), I forgot to tell you, said that he had now in his
pay, and ready for service, 300,000 men and 40,000 horse. I have
heard before the same thing. He is attentive to the greatest detail;
he travels and lives in journeys, and at such places as Bruges and
Ghent, with the utmost temperance and simplicity. He refuses
audiences to no one individual, [so] that he is occupied with that
and his reviews from very early in the morning till it is dark. He
speaks French without the least accent whatsoever. He has a dark
complexion, bazane, but very lively eyes, and fine teeth, and a most
manly carriage, with great affability. We all went home to bed in
admiration of this Emperor.

He received a letter from Belgioso while the Duke of Gloucester
was there. I have no doubt but what passes at Brooks's makes part of
the despatch. He reads all our papers in English, so I asked Lord
Malden if he said anything of my jokes, and was mortified to find
that they had escaped his Imp[erial] Majesty's observations. But he
has read some of them, sans doute, so I may have the same vanity as
poor Dick Edgcumbe had, of thinking that the Emperor of
Constantinople had from the windows of his seraglio heard him play
upon the kettle drums.

I heard no more of an approaching Peace. Dr. Gemm assures me that
the French will make no overtures towards it, and that we must ask
it ourselves. The Emperor does not seem to be of opinion that we
shall subdue our Colonies, but thinks our cause a just one. He does
not seem favourable to the French, or to like his sister the French
Queen. He said one day, que la bongress(?) ma soeur aime la France;
that, if she does, deserves another reflection; his is not a just
one; elle aime les dames