, and ruined him by a continual traffic, and
by bargains, of which he was the dupe, whilst they persuaded him they
were greatly in his favor. They persuaded him to take upon the Brenta, a
Palazzo, at twice the rent it was worth, and divided the surplus with the
proprietor. The apartments were inlaid with mosaic, and ornamented with
columns and pilasters, in the taste of the country. M. de Montaigu, had
all these superbly masked by fir wainscoting, for no other reason than
because at Paris apartments were thus fitted up. It was for a similar
reason that he only, of all the ambassadors who were at Venice, took from
his pages their swords, and from his footmen their canes. Such was the
man, who, perhaps from the same motive took a dislike to me on account of
my serving him faithfully.

I patiently endured his disdain, his brutality, and ill-treatment, as
long as, perceiving them accompanied by ill-humor, I thought they had in
them no portion of hatred; but the moment I saw the design formed of
depriving me of the honor I merited by my faithful services, I resolved
to resign my employment. The first mark I received of his ill will was
relative to a dinner he was to give to the Duke of Modena and his family,
who were at Venice, and at which he signified to me I should not be
present. I answered, piqued, but not angry, that having the honor daily
to dine at his table, if the Duke of Modena, when he came, required I
should not appear at it, my duty as well as the dignity of his excellency
would not suffer me to consent to such a request. "How;" said he
passionately, "my secretary, who is not a gentleman, pretends to dine
with a sovereign when my gentlemen do not!" "Yes, sir," replied I, "the
post with which your excellency has honored me, as long as I discharge
the functions of it, so far ennobles me that my rank is superior to that
of your gentlemen or of the persons calling themselves such; and I am
admitted where they cannot appear. You cannot but know that on the day
on which you shall make your public entry, I am called to the ceremony by
etiquette; and by an immemorial custom, to follow you in a dress of
ceremony, and afterwards to dine with you at the palace of St. Mark; and
I know not why a man who has a right and is to eat in public with the
doge and the senate of Venice should not eat in private with the Duke of
Modena." Though this argument was unanswerable, it did not convince the
ambassador; but we had n