at whist with the Prince and Princess de Conde
and my father. His Majesty settled the points of the
game at 'le quart d'un sheling.' The rest of the party
played at billiards or ombre. The King was so civil as
to invite us to sleep there, instead of returning to
the inn at Aylesbury. When he invited us he said, 'Je
crains que vous serez tres-mal loges, mais on donne ce
qu'on peut.' Soon after eleven the King retired, when
we separated for the night. We were certainly 'tres-mal
loges.' In the morning when I got out of bed, I was
alarmed by the appearance of an old woman on the leads
before my window, who was hanging linen to dry. I was
forced to retreat hastily to bed, not to shock the old
lady's modesty. At ten the next morning we breakfasted,
and at eleven we took leave of the King (who always
went to Mass at that hour) and returned to London. We
saw the whole place before we came away; and they
certainly had shown great ingenuity in contriving to
lodge such a number of people in and about the
house--it was exactly like a small rising colony. We
were very much pleased with our expedition; and were
invited to return whenever we could make it convenient.

January 24th, 1833 {p.346}

I have at last made Lord Lansdowne fire a shot at the Chancellor
about this Bill. He has written him a letter, in which he has
embodied Stephen's objections and some of his own (as he says, for
I did not see the letter). The Chancellor will be very angry, for
he can't endure contradiction, and he has a prodigious contempt
for the Lord President, whom he calls 'Mother Elizabeth.' He
probably arrives at the sobriquet through Petty, Betty, and so on.

Dined with Talleyrand yesterday; Pozzo, who said little and
seemed low; Talleyrand _talked_ after dinner, said that Cardinal
Fleury was one of the greatest Ministers who ever governed
France, and that justice had never been done him; he had
maintained peace for twenty years, and acquired Lorraine for
France. He said this _a propos_ of the library he formed or left,
or whatever he did in that line, at Paris. He told me he goes
very often to the British Museum, and has lately made them a
present of a book.

January 26th, 1833 {p.347}

[Page Head: ABOLITION OF SLAVERY.]

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