The Project Gutenberg EBook of Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 8, No. 50, December,
1861, by Various

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Title: Atlantic Monthly, Vol. 8, No. 50, December, 1861

Author: Various

Release Date: March 9, 2004 [EBook #11524]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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THE ATLANTIC MONTHLY.

A MAGAZINE OF LITERATURE, ART, AND POLITICS.

VOL. VIII--DECEMBER, 1861.--NO. L.

THE HOME OF LAFAYETTE.

After General Lafayette's visit to the United States, in 1824, every
American who went to France went with a firm conviction that he had
a right to take as much as he chose of the old gentleman's time and
hospitality, at his own estimate of their value. Fortunately, the number
of travellers was not great in those days, although a week seldom passed
without bringing two or three new faces to the Rue d'Anjou or La Grange.
It was well both for the purse and the patience of the kind-hearted old
man that ocean steamers were still a doubtful problem, and first-class
packets rarely over five hundred tons.

It could hardly be expected that a boy of sixteen should have more
discretion than his elders; and following the universal example of my
countrymen, the first use that I made of a Parisian cabriolet was to
drive to No. 6, Rue d'Anjou. The _porte cochere_ was open, and the
porter in his lodge,--a brisk little Frenchman, somewhat past middle
age, with just bows enough to prove his nationality, and very expressive
gestures, which I understood much better than I did his words; for they
said, or seemed to say,--"The General is out, and I will take charge
of your letter and card." There was nothing else for me to do, and
so, handing over my credentials, I gave the rest of the morning to
sightseeing, and, being a novice at it and alone, soon got tired and
returned to my hotel.

I don't know how that hotel would look to me now; but to my untrained
eyes of that day it looked wonderfully fine. I liked the name,--the
Petit Hotel Montmorenci,--for I knew enough of French history to know
that Montmorenci had always been a