one most likely to go straight to the hearts of the
Americans, as, in this case, the visit paid would bring to the United
States the very head of the French nation and the President of a great
Republic, the sister Republic.

But the visit over, I have no doubt that Jonathan would resume his
business habits, forget all about it, and only remember a little
excitement and a good time.

Let me, however, advise any royalty, English or other, to wait a little
before visiting America. For a long time there will be no originality,
no novelty even, about the presence of a real Prince in the United
States, and the Americans are particularly fond of novelties. They want
a constant change in the programme.

CHAPTER XXIX

SHOULD YOUNG GIRLS READ NOVELS?

A lady, an intimate friend of the late Alphonse Karr, was one day on a
visit to the famous French author, and noticing in his library the
statuettes of the Venus of Milo and a few other classical beauties, she
said to him: 'I am afraid you are wrong to feast your eyes on those
exquisite faces and perfect forms, because they very seldom exist in
real life, and they can only make you feel disappointed and spoil your
mind. When you go to a ballroom, I imagine that there are few women, if
any, that you are not inclined to criticise.'

For the same reason I will answer a lady correspondent, who asks me
whether she should encourage or even allow her daughters to read novels:
No, young people should not read novels. Instead of infusing into their
minds sensible ideas about the stern realities of life, they portray
disinterestedness that is overdone, beauty that is rarely seen outside
of museums, devotion that has been very uncommon since the days of the
Crusaders, love that has been unheard of since the death of Orpheus and
Eurydice, pluck that died with Bayard and Bertrand du Guesclin; and I am
not sure that, loathsome as they are to me, I would not recommend the
novels of the realistic school rather than those of the romantic school
to young people of both sexes; for if the former make you feel fairly
disgusted with humanity, they do not, like the latter, fill the minds of
youth with illusions that are destined to be blown to the four winds of
the earth by the realities of life. In fact, I know some novels which
young people might read, and also some which they ought to read; but I
believe I could count them all on the fingers of my two hands. Let young
people study life f