ce was thus inevitably exposed. This, as we spoke in English, she
immediately translated for the benefit of the company, adding "Ce
Monsieur Anglois dit cela, et c'est bien vrai il a raison," and then she
laughed and seemed to enjoy the catalogue of stupid books which might be
anticipated.

I must confess the party was a little formidable; in England I should
have said formal, but there is something in French manners wholly
foreign to any application of the word formal, and really after
exchanging a few remarks I was glad to be introduced to her son[52] and
daughter,[53] with both of whom I was much pleased. They are clever and
agreeable. She is not above eighteen or twenty, and if her complexion
was good would be very pretty. She was not shy, beginning conversation
in a trice upon interesting subjects. She compared the English and
French character, in which she (and I presume it was a maternal opinion)
would not allow an atom of merit to the latter. On finding that I was a
clergyman she immediately began upon Religion, talked of Hodgson,[54]
Andrews, Wilberforce,[55] and then in questioning me about the
Methodists (about whom she seemed to have heard much and entertained
confused notions) we slid into mysticism, which carried us, of course,
into the third vol. of "Allemagne"; she spoke in raptures of the mystic
school, said she was quite one in heart--"Cela se peut," thought I; but
somehow or other "Je ne le crois pas," for I have heard some little
anecdotes of her mother, in which, whatever may be her theoretical views
of mysticism, her practical opinions are rather more lax than Fenelon's.
Much against my will I took my leave, willing to hope that Mme. S. spoke
the truth when she said how glad she should be to see me if I visited
Paris during the winter; she is off to Switzerland in a few days. The
French say we have spoilt her--in fact, she occupies little of the
public attention in Paris.

The next event most interesting was our visit to the Corps Legislatif,
or House of Commons. We went to a certain door, to which we were refused
admittance, and told it was too full or too late. But said I, "Nous
sommes Anglois"; in an instant a man came up and placed us in an inner
gallery in the body of the house. The House is something like the Royal
Institution--of course larger and beautifully fitted up. Considering it
as the Royal Institution for your better comprehension, the President
sits on a tribunal throne in a recess