JET. 22.] AND SCANDINAVIA. 159 



where you dine for thirty-two skellings, or about two 

 shillings or forty-four skellings with claret. The 

 thirty-two was late]y raised from twenty-four. At 

 this society all the most fashionable men in Stock- 

 holm attend. Some of the first merchants subscribe, 

 but seldom or never go there. Those who go seem 

 to spend their whole time chiefly in billiards and 

 card-playing. The bulk of the company are officers. 

 Sometimes as many as sixty dine. They play very 

 well at billiards, almost always Carolina ; and a good 

 deal of gambling goes on at this as well as at cards, 

 the favourite games at which are Ombre and Dummy. 



When we first came to Stockholm the club was 

 not so well attended as afterwards, owing to families 

 being out of town, and no visiting taking place. 

 Indeed at best there is very little of it here, and none 

 for strangers, except among the foreign ministers, 

 your banker, or any other citizen to whom you have 

 an introduction, and who gives you one formal feed. 



The Swedes are a very polite people, the officers 

 particularly, at least as far as bowing and etiquette ; 

 but of real politeness we saw very little, owing to 

 their extreme rudeness to strangers. The Court's 

 fear of being thought dependent upon any foreign 

 power, descends to individuals ; and at the time we 

 were there every stranger complained. The only way 

 to avoid this state of coupee, is to cut all the diplo- 

 matic people ; for, with one exception (the Spanish 

 secretary, who had been here fourteen years), not a 

 soul among them is associated with. 



