, and two or three other persons of the
suite, an invitation to dine with him; and the Emperor's carriages were
sent for these illustrious guests at the appointed hour, and they were
conveyed to the chateau. His Majesty descended to the foot of the
staircase to receive the prince; but this was the limit of his deference,
for not once during dinner did he give Prince Ferdinand, who was a king
at Madrid, the title of your majesty, nor even that of highness; nor did
he accompany him on his departure any farther than the first door of the
saloon; and he afterwards informed him, by a message, that he would have
no other rank than that of Prince of the Asturias until the arrival of
his father, King Charles. Orders were given at the same time to place on
duty at the house of the princes, the Bayonnaise guard of honor, with the
Imperial Guard in addition to a detachment of picked police.

On the 27th of April the Empress arrived from Bordeaux at seven o'clock
in the evening, having made no stay at Bayonne, where her arrival excited
little enthusiasm, as they were perhaps displeased that she did not stop
there. His Majesty received her with much tenderness, and showed much
solicitude as to the fatigue she must have experienced, since the roads
were so rough, and badly washed by the rains. In the evening the town
and chateau were illuminated.

Three days after, on the 30th, the King and Queen of Spain arrived at
Bayonne; and it is impossible to describe the homage which the Emperor
paid them. The Duke Charles de Plaisance went as far as Irun, and the
Prince de Neuchatel even to the banks of the Bidassoa, in order to pay
marked respect to their Catholic Majesties on the part of their powerful
friend; and the king and queen appeared to appreciate highly these marks
of consideration. A detachment of picked troops, superbly uniformed,
awaited them on the frontier, and served as their escort; the garrison of
Bayonne was put under arms, all the buildings of the port were decorated,
all the bells rang, and the batteries of both the citadel and the port
saluted with great salvos. The Prince of the Asturias and his brother,
hearing of the arrival of the king and queen, had left Bayonne in order
to meet their parents, when they encountered, a short distance from the
town, two or three grenadiers who had just left Vittoria, and related to
them the following occurrence:

When their Spanish Majesties entered Vittoria, they found that a
deta