e prevengo
Que si tu no te explicas,
Yo no te entiendo.

"Las dudas de un amante
No han de saberse,
Que al decirlas se sabe.
Que desmerecen.
No--en el silencio
No son pensamientos
D'el mas aprecio."[14]

The song closed in a burst of plaudits, as general and marked as if they
had been given to a _prima donna_ in a theater, and she received them as
if she was in a theatre.

"You should be presented to Madame de Fontenai," was my guide's
suggestion. "She is our reigning _celebrite_ at present, as Madame
Roland is our _publicite_. You see we are nice in our distinctions.--I
shall probably to-night show you another, a very handsome creature
indeed, without half the talents of either, but with more admirers than
both; who has obtained the title of our _felicite_."

"I shall be delighted to be made known to her, but give me the _carte du
pays_. Who or what is she?"

"The daughter of Cabarus, the Spanish ambassador here some years ago.
She is now a widow, rich, giving the most _recherche_ suppers, followed
by all the world, and, as she declares, _persecuted_ by M. Tallien; who,
as perseverance is nine-tenths of success in every thing, will probably
succeed in making her Madame Tallien."

I had now the honor of being presented, and was received with very
flattering attention. This I probably owed to the Jew, who seemed to
have the key to every one's smiles, as he had to most of their
escrutoires. She was certainly a person of most distinguished
appearance. Not handsome, so far as beauty depends on feature; for she
had the olive tinge of her country, Spain, and she had the _not_ Spanish
"petit nez retrousse." She required distance for fascination. But her
figure was fine, and never was any costume more studied to exhibit it in
all its graces. Accustomed as I had become to foreign life, I must
acknowledge that I was a little surprised at the unhesitatingly
_classical_ development of her form;--arms naked to the shoulder, or
clasped only with golden serpents; a robe _a la Diane_, and succinct as
ever huntress wore; silver sandals, a jeweled cestus, and a tunic of
white satin deeply embroidered with gold, depending simply to the knee!
But when she placed me on the sofa beside her, and entered into
conversation, every thing was forgotten but her incomparable elegance of
manner. She had singular brilliancy of eye; it almost spoke, it
perpetually flashed, and it filled up the pauses when