e Bluecher, I have seen five or six times. I
saw him on his entrance into London, all covered with dust, and in a very
ordinary kind of vehicle. On the day after I saw him several times in his
carriage, drawn about wherever he wished by the _mob_. He is John's
greatest favorite, and they have almost pulled the brave general and his
companion, Count Platoff, to pieces out of pure affection. Platoff had
his coat actually torn off him and divided into a thousand pieces as
_relics_ by the good people--their kindness knows no bounds, and, I
think, in all the battles which they have fought, they never have run so
much risk of losing their limbs as in encountering their friends in
England.

"Bluecher is a veteran-looking soldier, a very fine head, monstrous
mustaches. His head is bald, like papa's, his hair gray, and he wears
powder. Understanding that he was to be at Covent Garden Theatre, I went,
as the best place to see him, and I was not disappointed. He was in the
Prince's box, and I had a good view of him during the whole
entertainment, being directly before him for three or four hours. A few
nights since I also went to the theatre to see Platoff, the _hetman_
(chief) of the Cossacks. He has also a very fine countenance, a high and
broad forehead, dark complexion, and dark hair. He is tall and well-made,
as I think the Cossacks are generally. He was very much applauded by a
crowded house, the most part collected to see him."

The following letter is from Washington Allston written in Bristol, on
July 5, 1814:--

MY DEAR SIR,--I received your last on Saturday and should have answered
your first letter but for two reasons.

First, that I had nothing to say; which, I think, metaphysicians allow to
be the most natural as well as the most powerful cause of silence.

Second, that, if I had had anything to say, the daily expectation which I
entertained of seeing you allowed no confidence in the hope that you
would hear what I had to say should I have said it.

I thank you for your solicitude, and can assure you that both Mrs.
Allston and myself are in every respect better than when we left London.
Mr. King received me, as I wished, with undiminished kindness, and was
greatly pleased with the pictures. He has not, however, seen the large
one, which, to my agreeable surprise, I have been solicited from various
quarters to exhibit, and that, too, without my having given the least
intimation of such a design. I have taken Mer