e was one of the
provisional government, and was at first by no means favourably disposed
towards the present king, who was, we believe, recommended to the
Roumanians by the Emperor Napoleon III. In later times, however, he
became one of his Majesty's most faithful advisers.

[Illustration: Constantin A. Rosetti]

M. Rosetti is about sixty-seven years of age, full of life and energy.
His career of hardship has somewhat bowed his physical frame, but it has
in no way interfered with his cheerful and kindly disposition. In
appearance he is an Italian, has very prominent but mild eyes, and a
most thoughtful, somewhat careworn countenance. He is _vif_, hot and
excitable, and not unfrequently lets his voice be heard if anything is
going wrong in public affairs, and something is very often going wrong
in Roumania. He speaks Roumanian, French, and German, and can write
English (of which he is fond of interjecting an expressive word now and
then when he is speaking in French) fairly well. Unfortunately for
scandal-mongers, of whom there are a good many in the capital and
elsewhere, M. Rosetti lives with great simplicity on the premises of the
'Romanul,' and upon, the profits of his paper and his salary; so they
are unable to charge him with peculation, which they would certainly do
if he gave them the slightest justification. He is a Radical, and an
uncompromising enemy of _coups d'etat_, and of despotism or
unconstitutional proceedings in any form, a man of unflinching honesty
and the leader of political thought in his country. In fact, he is a
patriot, and his countrymen know and appreciate the fact.

They usually couple his name with that of M. Bratiano, who is President
of the Council and Minister of Finance, and, so far as temperament is
concerned, the very opposite of his colleague. M. Bratiano is a quiet,
courteous gentleman, somewhat younger than M. Rosetti. His features are
regular and handsome, his beard and hair iron-grey, and his voice even
and melodious. He is full of pleasant humour, and has the bearing and
manner of an English gentleman; but although an excellent debater, he is
not a good linguist. In Roumania they say, 'Rosetti thinks and Bratiano
speaks,' but Bratiano thinks as well as speaks. So completely at one are
the two statesmen that many of the uninformed poorer classes who have
not seen them believe them to be one person, whom they call
'Bratiano-Rosetti,' and whilst we were in Bucarest we saw a caric