sed to flatter the people, for whom he
cherished a generous sentiment, by vulgar appeal to their ignoble
prejudices. He gratified his tastes where they did not come in
conflict with morality or justice, and thus preserved his
individuality and his friends, in the midst of the swelling tide of
popular commotion and conflicting opinions. Guizot affected in his
_dehors_ that severity and simplicity of style, which won for him the
_soubriquet_ of "the Puritan;" bestowed by the sarcasm of the
Parisians, to punish his egotism, his craving ambition and his love of
power. While Guizot was penetrating the mysteries of European
diplomacy, under the guidance of Princess Lieven, Lamartine's hotel,
in the _Rue de l'Universite_ was the _reunion_ of science, literature,
wit, elegance and grace. His country-seat near Paris was as elegantly
furnished and artistically arranged as his palace in the Faubourg St.
Germain; and his weekly receptions in Paris were as brilliant as they
were attractive by the intelligence of those who had the honor to
frequent them. The _elite_ of the old nobility, the descendants of the
notabilities of the Empire, the historical remnants of the Gironde and
the Jacobins, the versatility of French genius in every department,
and distinguished strangers from all parts of the world were his
guests; excluded were only the men of mere accidental position--the
mob in politics, literature and the arts.

But the time for Lamartine had not yet come, though the demoralization
of the government, and the sordid impulses given by it to the
national legislature were fast preparing that anarchy of passions
which no government has the power to render uniform, though it may
compress it. The ministry in the session of 1845 was defeated by the
coalition; but the defection of Emil de Girardin saved it once more
from destruction. Meanwhile Duchatel, the Minister of the Interior,
had found means, by a gigantic system of internal improvement, (by a
large number of concessions for new rail-ways and canals,) to obtain
from the same Chamber a ministerial majority, which toward the close
of the session amounted to nearly eighty members. Under such auspices
the new elections were ushered in, and the result was an overwhelming
majority for the administration. The government was not to be shaken
in the Chambers, but its popular ascendancy had sunk to zero. The
opposition from being parliamentary had become organic. The
opposition, seeing al