o74i Ten Years of my Life. 



card for Count Brazier de St. Simon, the German minister in 



Rome, irom Baron S , one ol his triends, who had been 



once in the legation of the count, with whom he imagined he 

 was on excellent terms. • 



When the count received this card, he said to his secretary 

 of legation, * Heaven knows what person that teliow has thrust 

 on me ! I shall not take any notice of her ;' and it was with 

 some difficulty that he was prevailed on to call on me, which 

 he did only after three days, as I had forgotten to put on my 

 card my lodging in Rome. It was tound out, however, by an 

 old Italian factotum of the ambassador, who was a most inter- 

 esting, original person. 



.. When he called, his first question before taking a seat was, 

 * How did you become acquainted with that fellow, princess ?' 

 When I told him that I had never seen ' that fellow ^^ his face 

 became friendlier ; he sat down, and I succeeded in winning the 

 good graces of his Excellency in a most uncommon degree, 

 which favour was further increased when we by chance came 

 to speak about animal magnetism and similar subjects, which 

 were his hobby-horse, and on his discovering that I was not 

 only greatly interested in that matter but had had some practi- 

 cal experience. 



Count Brazier de St. Simon w^as a little dried-up old man, 

 with a few grey hairs and projecting cheek bones, but very 

 quick, small, grey eyes. His clothes hung about him as ii on 

 a scarecrow, and were always the same ; I believe he had not 

 more than one suit, and that was a rather singular one lor an 

 old ambassador. It vvas made of some thick English woollen 

 stuff — for the count ielt always cold — grey with red lines, term- 

 ing large squares. Notwithstanding this dress he looked not 

 vulgar, but like a man ot distinction, like an old diplomast. 

 He v/as past seventy, though he would not acknowledge his 

 age, and when the census was taken he put himselt down ten 

 years younger than he really was. 



He was very stingy, and about that many anecdotes were 

 circulated. In his position he could not evade giving now and 

 then a dinner ; but his dinners were dreaded on account oi 



1 As the Count was a rather queer old man, I believed him prejudiced 

 against the Baron, with whom I became acquainted much later ; but I am 

 sorry to say that I ought to have lollowed the warning of the old minister, 

 for I found out that he was perfectly correct in his estimation ot the Baron, 



