Thus we shall see Count Reinhart as First Secretary to the London Embassy; in a similar position at Naples; as Plenipotentiary Minister to the Hanseatic towns, Hamburg, Bremen, and Lübeck; head of the third division in the Department of Foreign Affairs; Plenipotentiary Minister at Florence; Foreign Minister; Plenipotentiary Minister in Switzerland; Consul-General at Milan; Plenipotentiary Minister for the area of Lower Saxony; Resident in the Turkish provinces beyond the Danube, and Chief Commissioner of commercial relations in Moldavia; Plenipotentiary Minister to the King of Westphalia; head of the chancery in the Department of Foreign Affairs; Plenipotentiary Minister to the Germanic Diet and to the free town of Frankfort; and, finally, Plenipotentiary Minister at Dresden. How many posts, how much work, and how many interests were thus confided to the care of one man! And this at a time when talent seemed likely to be the less appreciated, as war appeared to be the chief arbitrator in every difficulty.
You will not expect me, gentlemen, to give you any detailed account with dates of the works which Count Reinhart produced in the various posts which I have just enumerated; such an account would need a volume. I need only speak to you of the manner in which he fulfilled his official duties, whether he was Head of a Department, Minister, or Consul.
Count Reinhart had not at that time the advantage which he might have had a few years later of seeing excellent models for his imitation; but he was well aware what high and different capacities should distinguish the head of a department of Foreign Affairs. His delicate tact showed him that the habits of such a head should be simple, regular, and retiring; that, remote from the uproar of the world, he should live for business alone, and bring to it an impenetrable secrecy; that while always ready to give an answer concerning facts and men, he should have constantly present to his memory every treaty, know the dates of them, their history, have a correct knowledge of their strong points and their weaknesses, their antecedent and consequent circumstances; that he should know the names of the chief diplomatists and even their family relations; and that while using this knowledge, he should be careful not to disturb the penetrating self-esteem of the Minister, and that if he should ever induce that Minister to share his own opinions, his success should remain concealed. He knew that he could only shine by reflection elsewhere, but he was also aware that so pure and modest a life would naturally command every respect.
Count Reinhart's faculty of observation did not stop at that point. It had shown him how unusual is the combination of qualities necessary for a Minister of Foreign Affairs. Such a Minister must, in fact, be endowed with a kind of instinct which will give him prompt warning and prevent him from compromising himself before any discussion begins: he must be able to appear frank while remaining impenetrable; must be reserved and yet seem careless; must discriminate even in the nature of his amusements; his conversation must be simple, varied, attractive, always natural, and sometimes open. In a word, he must never cease for a single moment in the twenty-four hours of the day to be Minister of Foreign Affairs.
At the same time, unusual as these capacities are, they could hardly be adequate if loyalty did not give them that support which they almost always require. I am bound to mention the fact here in opposition to a prejudice generally current. Diplomacy is not a science of duplicity and trickery; if good faith is required anywhere, it is especially necessary in political transactions, for it alone can make them permanent and durable. Attempts have been made to identify reserve with duplicity; good faith will never authorise duplicity, but it may admit reserve, and reserve has the special faculty of increasing confidence.
Dominated by a sense of honour and of his country's interests, by the honour and interests of his Sovereign, by the love of liberty founded upon a respect for order and uniform justice, a Minister of Foreign Affairs, when he is equal to his task, occupies the highest position to which any lofty mind could aspire.
Much as is required of a competent Minister, how much more is required of a good Consul. The claims upon a Consul are infinitely varied and are of a totally different order from those which may affect the other officials of a Foreign Office. They require an amount of practical experience which can only be acquired by a special education. Within the area of their jurisdiction Consuls are required to perform for their compatriots the duties of judges, arbitrators, and mediators; often they are officers of the Civil State; they act as notaries, and sometimes as Admiralty officers; they watch and report upon sanitary affairs; their position enables them to give an accurate and complete idea of the state of trade, of navigation, and of manufactures in the country where they reside. Count Reinhart, who neglected nothing to secure the accuracy of that information with which it was his business to provide his Government, or the correctness of the decisions which as a political agent, as Consul and Admiralty officer, he was obliged to give, had made a profound study of international and shipping law. This study had induced him to think that a time would come when clever combinations would establish a general system of commerce and navigation in which the interests of every nation would be respected, and the basis of which would be so strong that not even war itself could alter the principle of it, though it might interrupt some of its results. He was also able to decide certainly and promptly all questions of interchange, arbitration, conversion of money, weights and measures, while no claims were ever raised in dispute of the information which he provided or of the judgments which he delivered. It is also true that the personal consideration which he enjoyed throughout his career gave much influence to his intervention in any matter which he conducted or in any dispute upon which he had to pronounce.
Wide as a man's knowledge may be and vast as his capacity, the complete diplomatist is but very rarely met with. Yet Count Reinhart might have attained this distinction if he had had one additional capacity. The clearness of his view and intelligence was admirable; he could write an excellent account of anything that he had seen or heard; his style was resourceful, easy, clever, and attractive. Of all the diplomatic correspondence of that age, the Emperor Napoleon, who had every right to be fastidious, showed a preference for the despatches of Count Reinhart; but admirably as he wrote, he could only express himself with difficulty. For action his intelligence required more time than conversation could provide, and for the easy reproduction of his mental speech he was obliged to work alone and unaided. Notwithstanding this real inconvenience, Count Reinhart always succeeded in performing his commissions thoroughly well. Whence did he derive the inspiration which enabled him to succeed?
The source of his power, gentlemen, was a real and profound belief which governed all his actions, the sense of duty. The strength of this belief is not often entirely realised. A life entirely devoted to duty is easily separated from ambition. Count Reinhart's life was given up to the duties which he had to perform, nor was there in him any trace of personal ambition or any claim to rapid promotion. The religion of duty to which Count Reinhart was faithful all his life, consists in perfect submission to the orders and instructions of superiors; in constant vigilance added to much perspicacity, which never leaves those superiors ignorant of what they ought to know; in a strict adherence to truth in every official report, whether agreeable or unpleasant; in an impenetrable discretion and a regularity of life which secure confidence and esteem; in decorum of outward conduct and in continual care to give the acts of his Government that colouring and that interpretation demanded by the interest of the affairs under his charge.
Though advancing age had warned Count Reinhart that it was time for rest, he would never have asked to be relieved, fearing that he might seem to show coldness in his pursuit of a career which had been life-long. The royal kindness, with its invariable attention, considered his necessities and gave this great servant of France a most honourable post, by calling him to the Chamber of Peers. Count Reinhart did not long enjoy this honour and died almost suddenly on December 5, 1837. He was twice married, and had a son by his first wife, who is now pursuing a political career. The best wish that we can offer the son is that he may resemble his father as nearly as possible.