132 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS. 



I had summoned the Frenchmen in the city to meet 

 me, and informed them that I was about to commence 

 my negotiations, adding, " You will come and see 

 me again to-morrow. I will tell you what has been 

 done." They cheered me very heartily, and several 

 of them shook hands with me on the stairs. I had 

 with me General Yaillant, who was to have taken the 

 command in the event of an attack upon Eome, and to 

 have succeeded General Oudinot if we did not get on 

 together. The next day I was going, after a confer- 

 ence with the Triumvirs, to keep the appointment I 

 had made with the French residents, when a man 

 came rushing up to me with his hair flying in the 

 wind and exclaiming : " M. de Lesseps, I am in time, 

 as you have not started. Yesterday, when you came 

 down from the room where you had got the French- 

 men together, three men came close up to you. You 

 of course thought that they were your compatriots, 

 and one of them put out his hand. You took it, and 

 then turned round. Well, the man who shook hands 

 with you will do so again to-day, and then the one 

 beside him, who was watching your movements, will 

 cut your throat, as was done with Bossi." Eossi had 

 received a letter from a lady to whom the man who 

 warned me had written, informing her of the plot. 

 The letter was found in his pocket. There was no 

 absolute necessity for me to go to the Embassy, as I 

 could inform my compatriots by proxy of what had 

 been done, but I first made my informant swear that 



