1823-1824] , Soirees at Geneva 153 



reasons that my soirees are more agreeable, because the 

 conversation being general, the women take a part. Besides 

 my poor little gentle Marcette, who does very well to give 

 tea to a dozen people, would be ramfuzled to give to forty. 

 Mrs Marcet 1 is inclined, I think, to manage me, and I do not 

 feel inclined to resist because she likes me and flatters me. 

 I intended this year to save giving a large party by admitting 

 by little and little into the Thursday evenings all to whom 

 I owe any civility. Accordingly I began with Sis's sacred 

 societe de dimanche, and took Mme de Candolle to begin. 

 Mrs Marcet, who observe is self-invited, said to me the 

 other day, " Oh, I hope you mean to ask Mme de Candolle 

 again, she enjoyed it so much." " Indeed, I do not know, 

 I have a great many to ask ; it is not so easy to me to give 

 every week large parties, I have no men-servants. It is only 

 as many as the maid can serve tea to that it is convenient 

 to have." " But you may always hire a man here, it is so 

 easy ; they are always to be had for 3 francs." The dialogue 

 ceased, but thought I to myself I shall say no more but 

 certainly take my own way. Our parties are not at all 

 the more agreeable for having Mrs Marcet; she adds very 

 little to society and very often interrupts conversation by 

 creating a double one, in which she speaks so loud as to 

 finish by annihilating a better one. There is, however, a 

 perfect naturalness in her and good sense that makes me 

 like her company, even though she sometimes tires me by 

 bad taste, and sometimes putting an importance which rich 

 people are apt to do in their own little affairs, so as to make 

 the prime part of the conversation. 



We have a good deal of musick this winter, and I enjoy 

 it very much; every other Monday we go to an amateur 

 concert where the musick is really very pretty, our sub- 

 scription 30 florins (a florin is something less than 6d.), for 



1 Mrs Marcet was the daughter of a Swiss merchant settled in 

 London. Her husband was a Genevese by birth, who had been a 

 London physician, but lived at Geneva after his retirement from 

 practice. She was the author of excellent Uttle books on scientific 

 subjects, which had a vast circulation. Her Conversations on 

 Political Economy was her best-known work, and was warmly praised 

 by the leading economists. 



