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grow old’ — ‘In spite of all the stories so often repeated of her having lovers at 80, we see by her
‘letters to St. Evremond, that she perfectly knew how to grow old’ — she gave her portrait to Lady
Sandwich (daughter of John Wilmot the too celebrated Earl of Rochester) which at the death of Lady Stuart
‘became the property of Horace Walpole Earl of Orford, and is now in the collection at Strawberry Hill.’ page 235.
page 187. Reference to Schlegel, Cours de Littérature Dramatique, his well remarked on Shakespeare’s tome ii.
comic characters page 377. ‘Les personnages dont il a dessiné les Traits avec detail sont, sous beaucoup
‘de rapports, des individus d’une nature très-particulière, mais ils ont cependant
‘une significat[io]n plus étendue, et l’on peut tirer des theories universelles de leurs
‘qualités prépondérantes’ [‘Characters whose traits he sketched in detail are, in many ways, individuals of a very peculiar nature, but at the same time they have a broader significance, and universal theories can be drawn from their dominant qualities’] —
page 191 ‘Schlegel alone seems penetrated with a just admiration of his genius. after
an analytical view of his varied perfection as a dramatic writer, and candid and some-times a
too far-fetched apology for his faults, he thus sums up his titles to immortality’. . . . . . . vide
Schlegel tome ii. page 408.
page 216 ‘However various the paths to distinction, honour, and fame, and however various the
‘decisions of men in their choice; it will invariably be found, that success attends only those
‘whose character happens to suit the age in which they appear, and the circumstances and situation
‘in which they are called into action. No abilities, however distinguished, without this adventitious
‘aid ever rose above their natural level, or even attained the success they deserved. Individual
‘happiness yet more surely depends on the same causes. In the lottery of human life we are
‘sometimes tempted to think that if the tickets were distributed, as the Duc de Mazarin is said to have
‘drawn lots for the services of the different members of his household, lucky changes might
‘often be made which would benefit and relieve both parties. Thus Louis the 16th
‘would probably have been honourably distinguished as a college preceptor, and his unfortunate queen as
‘an amiable and fascinating individual, in the best society of her capital; Charles the First might have
‘served as the model of a well-educated English gentleman of his day; and Queen Anne as an
‘appropriate wife to a country Tory clergyman’.
page 246. Speaking of the often-told tale of the brilliant days of Louis 14 ‘Madame de Sevigné has adorned it with all the
‘graces of her inimitable pen, and has often drawn from it reflections the more excellent, from being
‘generally suggested as much by the heart as the understanding. St. Simon has entered into its details
‘with a caustic truth, rare from the mind of a devoted courtier; and Dangeau has recorded
‘the trifling incidents of every day, which often present much more to the mind of the reader than ever entered
‘the head of their historian.’
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Speaking of Madame de Maintenon page 251. ‘Of all persons, she must have felt the most,
‘that courts confer not that happiness which they prevent those accustomed to them from finding elsewhere.’
page 271. Reference to Chetwode’s General History of the stage.
page 282. ______ ‘Select tracts relating to the civil wars in England in the reign of King Charles the first
Collected by Baron Maseres, and published in 1815.
page 323. See on the character and works of Swift Edinburgh Review. No. [Number] 53. page 44 where it
is asserted truly according to Miss Berry ‘that, whatever merits Swift might have as a writer, he
‘was despicable as a politician, and hateful as a man’. —
at 3 20/.. sent off my letter to ‘the honorable Lady Stuart Whitehall’ enclosed in the small packet with an
almanac de Gotha directed the same as the letter, and sent at the same time my note to ‘the Lady Stuart de
Rothesay’ — then for 1/2 hour before and afterwards till 6 read from 234 to 330 Miss Berry’s book, and wrote the whole
of this journal of today — at 6 Letter from Antoine Clavet enclosing a sort of memorial to be presented to
Directeur general des Travaux publics de Paris, and a letter to Monsieur Alphonse de Gisors, architecte —
Dinner at 6 10/.. — Read the paper — came to my room at 8 5/.. — asleep — coffee at 9 20/.. — from 9 1/2 to 10 5/.. wrote
rough draft of from 16 to 24 April last inclusive — Monsieur de Hagemann came at 10 5/.. and staid till 11 40/.. —
he had dined at the Embassy — Lord Stuart de Rothesay seems low about things — both he and Lady Stuart de Rothesay much occupied
about leaving the embassy — Long talk about politics — Lord Stuart thinks there will eventually be war, and so we all
seem to agree — hazy sort of day — came to my room at 12 at which hour Fahrenheit 36 1/2° and raining
as it has been for some time —
Tuesday 28
7 1/2
12 25/..
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Fahrenheit 38° at 8 a.m. and fine morning — out at 8 35/.., walked an hour in the Tuileries gardens terrasse d’eau
then bought almanacks for Lady Gordon at my little papetier’s rue St. Honoré corner rue Richepanse and 20 minutes
there while he did them up — home at 10 1/2 — breakfast — dressed — at my desk at 11 3/4 — doing a very little Italian
Madame Galvani from 12 1/2 to 1 50/.. 6th lesson — my aunt with me and off at 2 10/.. — en passant put into the petite poste Antoine Clavet’s letter to Monsieur Alphonse de Gisors, and sent George up en
passant to desire Madame Decante to make out my bill, and called at Giroux’s, and bought le petit
architecte de Paris, a pretty box of monumens decoupés de Paris, for my aunt to give
on new year’s day to Madame de Hagemann’s little girl Albinia aetatis [age of] 7 — then to the collège de France — waited 10 minutes —
Cuvier Lecture 7 from 3 5/.. to 4 1/4 — then drove to the Embassy — Lady Stuart de Rothesay out — then to Daldringen’s —
said he had promised me the carriage 3 weeks ago, and I had desired to have it done or undone a fortnight ago —
the only punitive I could think of was not to pay him so soon as I intended — ordered 4 lb. plum pudding
to be sent to Madame Galvani to arrive chez elle at 5 p.m. precisely on new year’s day, and home at 5 10/.. —
During Cuvier’s lecture my aunt took my watch to Perrelet’s — it has stopt twice since I had it home
about a fortnight ago — did a little at my Travelling accounts — dinner at 6 10/.. — read the paper — came to my room at 8 5/.. — asleep —
coffee — at 9 40/.. — wrote out rough draft of page 25 April to 2 May last, inclusive — fine rather mild morning till about one, then
rain from then to about 3 1/2 — aferwards fine and air rather frosty — Fahrenheit 38° now at 11 1/2 at which hour came to my room, and fine moonlight
night —
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