Sagan, November 21, 1849.—A letter from Paris dated the 14th says: "An amnesty has been proclaimed by the President to seven hundred and fifty very undesirable people: this bid for popularity may cost the author of it dear, for these people will return in a state of exasperation and will have to be made targets of some day or other.[ [204] Underneath all the leanings to imperialism, which seem to be spreading, there is one question which is very undecided, at any rate where I am concerned: this is the future action of General Changarnier,[ [205] for though he is on excellent terms at present with the president, I doubt if he will adhere to him in a time of transition, and such a time would then become an inevitable crisis."
Sagan, December 2, 1849.—The tall Theresa Elssler, who for several years has been the mistress of Prince Adalbert of Prussia, is to become his wife under the title of Frau von Fischbach, a title derived from the estate which the old Prince William holds in the Silesian mountains. There the late Princess William was laid in the odour of sanctity, and it is somewhat shocking that this name of all others should be conferred upon a quondam theatre dancer.[ [206] At Sans Souci this marriage has caused considerable displeasure, but with the habitual weakness which is there characteristic, consent has been given.
Another scandal is about to appear at Berlin of more import. This is the probable acquittal of Waldeck whose trial has been attracting the general attention for a long time.[ [207] They have been so entirely foolish as to choose as President of the assizes a weak-minded magistrate, the father of a barricade hero, who shows the most brazen-faced and clumsy partiality for Waldeck. The jury are constantly receiving anonymous letters, and their verdict will be given under stress of intimidation. It is deplorable, for the consequences might be very serious.
Sagan, December 6, 1849.—The ovation given to the ruffian Waldeck after his acquittal seems to have been scandalous enough to necessitate military interference. I have no details as yet, but the post will doubtless bring them to-day. I am of the opinion that we are about to enter a period of outbreaks, and this opinion is strengthened by the fact that the Poles are beginning their processions again, and whenever they appear, one may be sure that there is a snake in the grass, to use a vulgar expression.
I have just finished reading the life of Madame de Krüdener. She was quite a peculiar character, but the story of her life is somewhat tiresome and my own conclusion is that Madame de Krüdener, who was always deluded by her own vanity, was frivolous for that reason during her youth; that vanity afterwards led her to literature and finally to missionary work; but vanity has an honesty of its own, and precisely for that reason can display prodigious credulity. As a mystic Madame de Krüdener has not the loftiness of Saint Theresa or the quiet grace of Madame Guyon; her would-be clever letters are heavy, and when she tries to soar aloft the leaden structure of her wings is obvious. There must have been some force of attraction in her speeches and addresses, for without some special gift she could never have produced results which contain a certain amount of humbug and on many occasions some reality.
Sagan, December 10, 1849.—I was very sorry to read the day before yesterday in the newspapers the announcement of the death of Queen Adelaide of England. The news carried me back to that pleasant time when I had the honour of seeing her, and was treated by her with a kindness which I shall never forget. She was a noble woman who bore herself with grand and simple dignity in positions that were difficult for several reasons.
There is some small excitement at Sans Souci, on account of the concentration of the Austrian forces upon the Saxon frontier. It would seem that General Gerlach, who at this moment has considerable influence with the King of Prussia, has been sent to Dresden to bring matters to a conclusion. If these troops are only intended to clear Saxony of the Reds in case of necessity, who are more audacious there than anywhere else, this intervention would be regarded as equivalent to Russia's action in the Grand Duchy of Baden, and nothing would be said; but certain would-be clever people wish to regard the movement as a veiled threat against the Diet of Erfurt.[ [208] In this case it is probable that it will not pass without comment.
Sagan, December 12, 1849.—I have read the speech delivered at the admission of the Duc de Noailles to the French Academy.[ [209] It is written in very fine language with real loftiness of style and thought, and is marked by a correctness and purity worthy of the best epochs of taste and literature: the ideas are noble and both prudent and dignified; some passages especially please me, notably those concerning Pascal and Voltaire, with a clever transition, bringing the subject back to M. de Chateaubriand. However, the speech has one defect in my opinion, that it places its subject upon too high a pedestal, and that if it does not exaggerate his talent it certainly gives too high an estimate of his character. The Duc de Noailles with very correct taste touched but lightly on the Mémoires d'outre-tombe, for this gloomy legacy reveals the writer's barrenness of heart, excessive vanity and acrimonious character, while his talent often disappears beneath the exaggerations and bad taste for which clumsy imitators of this school are often blamed. However, all eulogies before the Academy are prone to exaggerate the merits of their subjects; as they are condemned to draw a portrait without shadows, the truth of their colouring suffers in consequence, and the real features are often obscured. These faults are due rather to the accepted style of oration than to the orator, and for them he cannot be blamed. Yesterday I began the sixth volume of the Mémoires d'outre-tombe. This contains a sketch of Napoleon's history with which M. de Chateaubriand padded his own Mémoires in reference to himself; the whole is written with a view to effect, but with no great feeling for truth. I was greatly struck to find a passing eulogy upon M. Caulaincourt in spite of the Duc d'Enghien; in other respects the same malevolence towards the human race is obvious, and the same hatred for M. de Talleyrand.
Sagan, December 14, 1849.—I hear from Paris that Madame de Lieven sometimes lays aside her Deffant bonnet in favour of a toque of black velvet with white feathers, which is the last word of fashion. She goes into society and is seen everywhere; she has even procured an introduction to Madame de Circourt where the ultra-Catholic society meets; she is trying to find recruits there for her salon, and is especially anxious to attract M. de Montalembert.
To judge by an article in the Friend of Religion, our dear Bishop of Orléans[ [210] has gained another triumph at Notre Dame, a triumph for the faith by which he is inspired and for the friendship of which he is the object. I expect a hymn of praise from my good Pauline on this subject.