o me that he was as tall
as that. Is not Murat of my own height?"

"No, sire, he is higher than you!"

"You mean he is taller than I," said Napoleon, shrugging his shoulders.
"Height of stature is of no consequence. Frederick II. was much smaller
than his grand-nephew, and yet he was the greatest of Prussia's kings.
We will afterward pay him a visit at Sans-souci. Until then, adieu,
gentlemen. Come, Duroc, conduct me to the rooms of the Emperor
Alexander!"

He greeted the marshals with a quick nod, and then followed Duroc into
the long suite of halls and brilliant rooms which, only a year ago, had
been newly decorated and furnished with royal magnificence for the
reception of the czar.

"These kings and princes 'by the grace of God' live here very
pleasantly," muttered Napoleon in an undertone; "they know better how to
build and furnish their residences than to preserve them to their
children. Well, I am a good architect, and have come to reconstruct the
royal palace of Prussia. Do you think, Duroc, those ingrates will thank
me for it?"

"They will see that the lion must have his share," said Duroc, "and they
will, doubtless, be thankful if any thing is left to them. Sire, here we
are in the czar's bedroom! The steward told me every thing was arranged
in it precisely the same as in the days when the Russian emperor was
here. Nobody has slept in this bed since."

"I must sleep in it," said Napoleon, quickly, "and I believe I shall
sleep in the royal Prussian palace, and in the bed of the Russian
emperor, as comfortably as I did in the Tuileries and in the bed of
Louis XVI."

He threw his small three-cornered hat with a contemptuous gesture on the
bed, which was surmounted by a velvet canopy, embroidered with gold, and
then, his arms crossed behind him, commenced slowly pacing the room.
Duroc dared not disturb him, and turned toward the paintings and
engravings hanging on the walls. The emperor walked a long while gravely
and musingly; his brow grew more clouded, and he pressed his lips more
firmly together. Suddenly he paused before Duroc, and, being alone,
spoke to him no longer in the tone of a master, but with the
unreservedness of a friend.

"Legitimacy is a terrible power, Duroc," said he, hastily; "it is what I
cannot vanquish with all my cannon. Sovereigns and princes know it full
well, and that is the reason of their obstinacy. They oppose their
ancestors to my victorious eagles, and when, by virtue of