so I heard blessings invoked upon the First
Consul and Madame Bonaparte. There was not yet the shadow of that strict
etiquette which it was necessary afterwards to observe at Saint-Cloud, at
the Tuileries, and in all the palaces in which the Emperor held his
court. The consular court was as yet distinguished by a simple elegance,
equally removed from republican rudeness and the luxuriousness of the
Empire. Talleyrand was, at this period, one of those who came most
frequently to Malmaison. He sometimes dined there, but arrived generally
in the evening between eight and nine o'clock, and returned at one, two,
and sometimes three in the morning.

All were admitted at Madame Bonaparte's on a footing of equality, which
was most gratifying. There came familiarly Murat, Duroc, Berthier, and
all those who have since figured as great dignitaries, and some even as
sovereigns, in the annals of the empire.

The family of General Bonaparte were assiduous in their attentions; but
it was known among us that they had no love for Madame Bonaparte, of
which fact I had many proofs. Mademoiselle Hortense never left her
mother, and they were devotedly attached to each other.

Besides men distinguished by their posts under the government or in the
army, there gathered others also who were not less distinguished by
personal merit, or the position which their birth had given them before
the Revolution. It was a veritable panorama, in which we saw the persons
themselves pass before our eyes. The scene itself, even exclusive of the
gayety which always attended the dinings of Eugene, had its attractions.
Among those whom we saw most frequently were Volney, Denon, Lemercier,
the Prince of Poix, de Laigle, Charles Baudin, General Beurnonville,
Isabey, and a number of others, celebrated in science, literature, and
art; in short, the greater part of those who composed the society of
Madame de Montesson.

Madame Bonaparte and Mademoiselle Hortense often took excursions on
horseback into the country. On these occasions her most constant escorts
were the Prince de Poix and M. de Laigle. One day, as this party was
reentering the court-yard at Malmaison, the horse which Hortense rode
became frightened, and dashed off. She was an accomplished rider, and
very active, so she attempted to spring off on the grass by the roadside;
but the band which fastened the end of her riding-skirt under her foot
prevented her freeing herself quickly, and she was thrown,