and in front of it there was a fountain. There
was a large square in the centre of the palace, and behind it an
extensive garden, which was well kept up and carefully attended to. One
side of the palace was occupied by the officers of the regiments
quartered in Luneville; the opposite side, by the soldiery; and the
remainder of the building was appropriated to the reception of old
retired officers who had been pensioned. It was in this beautiful
building, that my grandfather and grandmother were established for the
remainder of their lives. Except the Tuileries, I know of no palace in
France equal to that of Luneville. Here it was that, at seven years
old, I took up my quarters; and it is from that period that I have
always dated my existence.

I have described my grandfather and my residence, but now I must
introduce my grandmother; my dear, excellent, grandmother, whom I loved
so much when she was living, and whose memory I shall ever revere. In
person she was rather diminutive, but, although sixty years of age, she
still retained her figure, which was remarkably pretty, and she was as
straight as an arrow. Never had age pressed more lightly upon the human
frame; for, strange to say, her hair was black as jet, and fell down to
her knees. It was considered a great curiosity, and she was not a
little proud of it, for there was not a grey hair to be seen. Although
she had lost many of her teeth, her skin was not wrinkled, but had a
freshness most remarkable in a person so advanced in years. Her mind
was as young as her body; she was very witty and coquettish, and the
officers living in the palace were continually in her apartments,
preferring her company to that of younger women. Partial to children,
she would join in all our sports, and sit down to play "hunt the
slipper," with us and our young companions. But with all her vivacity,
she was a strictly moral and religious woman. She could be lenient to
indiscretion and carelessness, but any deviation from truth and honesty
on the part of my brother or myself, was certain to be visited with
severe punishment. She argued, that there could be no virtue, where
there was deceit, which she considered as the hot-bed from which every
vice would spring out spontaneously; that truth was the basis of all
that was good and noble, and that every other branch of education was,
comparatively speaking, of no importance, and, without truth, of no
value. She was right.