what had happened during the past few
days. On the whole, Merey takes a not unfavourable view of the
situation, and believes that, unless something unforeseen crops up, we
should succeed within a reasonable time in arranging matters
satisfactorily.

"At six o'clock I went to pay my visit to General Hoffmann; he gave me
some interesting details as to the mentality of the Russian delegates,
and the nature of the armistice he had so fortunately concluded. I had
the impression that the General combined expert knowledge and energy
with a good deal of calm and ability, but also not a little Prussian
brutality, whereby he had succeeded in persuading the Russians,
despite opposition at first, to agree to very favourable terms of
truce. A little later, as arranged, Prince Leopold of Bavaria came in,
and I had some talk with him on matters of no importance.

"We then went to dinner, all together, including the whole staff of
nearly 100 persons. The dinner presented one of the most remarkable
pictures ever seen. The Prince of Bavaria presided. Next to the Prince
sat the leader of the Russian delegation, a Jew called Joffe,
recently liberated from Siberia; then came the generals and the other
delegates. Apart from this Joffe, the most striking personality in the
delegation is the brother-in-law of the Russian Foreign Minister,
Trotski, a man named Kameneff, who, likewise liberated from prison
during the Revolution, now plays a prominent part. The third delegate
is Madame Bizenko, a woman with a comprehensive past. Her husband is a
minor official; she herself took an early part in the revolutionary
movement. Twelve years ago she murdered General Sacharow, the governor
of some Russian city, who had been condemned to death by the
Socialists for his energy. She appeared before the general with a
petition, holding a revolver under her petticoat. When the general
began to read she fired four bullets into his body, killing him on the
spot. She was sent to Siberia, where she lived for twelve years, at
first in solitary confinement, afterwards under somewhat easier
conditions; she also owes her freedom to the Revolution. This
remarkable woman learned French and German in Siberia well enough to
read them, though she cannot speak them, not knowing how the words
should be pronounced. She is the type of the educated Russian
proletariat. Extremely quiet and reserved, with a curious determined
set of the mouth, and eyes that flare up passionat