city, who deals largely for him in the funds. He has, I think, £200,000 in the Portuguese, and never gave the slightest hint as to any chance of discomfiture in that market. Certainly he must be wide awake as to his own interests, and must be in a good position to feel the pulse of the administration. Does he see only one side of the question, or is he one of those men who like to be blind? Let me have a resumé of the letter you showed me. "Believe me yours most faithfully, COUNT D'ORSAY."

"Paris, May -, 1852.

"MY DEAR MADDEN,-You go to St. Germain by the half past twelve o'clock train from the Rue St. Lazare. You find a carriage at the station at St. Germain, which will take you for three francs to Chambourcy and back. "Go to the curate, Mr. Penon, and say you come from me. beadle, who will take you to the tomb.

Yours ever,

No. IV.

Send for the D'ORSAY."*

LETTERS FROM R. R. MADDEN TO COUNT D'ORSAY.

"(1841), Sloane Square.

"MY DEAR COUNT,—I suppose a man like your classical friend, who had made the grand tour, and had sojourned a long time especially in Southern Italy, finding himself alone in a sponging-house in London, might thus soliloquize: I have been all over Italy, traveled in vetturas, swum in gondolas, sailed in feluccas, rode on cuccias, performed divers pedestrian feats in Romagna and Liguria. I have seen St. Peter's, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Vesuvius; sauntered through the Vatican, made pilgrimages to lovers' tombs and the sites of poets' birth-places. I have wandered among ruins of shrines and temples, lost myself in gorgeous palaces and great Gothic wildernesses of cathedral churches. I have been dazzled with the glories of the rising and the setting sun on the Bay of Naples, the Lago Maggiore, the Gulf of Spezia, the sea of the Mediterranean. I have drunk in odors, without stint or measure, of sweet and fragrant flowers. I have been inebriated in orange groves with the perfumed air of those trellised walks, with the interwoven branches of the vine, and mingling rose-buds. I have lived in the sweet South, and felt some influences thereof in waking dreams and reveries, feeling as if my senses were overpowered with the ecstasy of their enjoyments, and my soul gave itself up to the illusions of this Italian life, as if it would never awaken to encounter its realities in a gloomy sponging-house in a narrow street in London, redolent with vapors of stale porter and English gin, with fumes of tobacco, with which the dingy red curtains are thoroughly saturated, presenting from every dirty window a boundless contiguity of shade afforded by the

*The above note, the last I received, was written to me while on a visit to Paris, in the latter part of May, 1852, a few weeks only before the death of poor D'Orsay: with it I received the key of the inner door of that tomb in which the remains of Lady Blessington were deposited.

surrounding brick walls, surmounted by chimney-pots in various degrees of dilapidation; a sombre sky, in which some demon has upset his inkstand, and a sanded floor, an utter stranger to the great moral influence of soap and water.' Yours, sincerely and truly,. R. R. MADDEN."

66

MY DEAR COUNT,-The announcement of your completion of a statuette of the Emperor of Russia gave me no pleasure. The tendencies of art toward hero-worship are rather too strong already.

"I would have been better pleased to have heard you had been devoting your fine talents to the representation of some living philosopher, if there be one alive, or some nobleman of nature of a literary turn, or some hero of humanity, if any such are left among us, than chiseling the poor innocent marble into the hard traits and facial angles of any great fighting fellow. It would be a small ambition to swell the throng of the hero-worshipers of our times, the idolaters of the war principle, the glorifiers of the work of Waterloo or Warsaw. Don't be angry, my dear count. Yours, R. R. M."

No. V.

WORKS OF ART OF COUNT D'ORSAY.

The three works of art which D'Orsay prided himself on most were the statuettes of the Emperor of Russia, Napoleon, and the Duke of Wellington, upon which the following critical observations, made at the time of their appearance, may be interesting:

COUNT D'ORSAY'S STATUETTE OF THE EMPEROR OF RUSSIA.

"The peculiar merits of the accomplished and versatile artist are displayed to great advantage in the dignified air, carriage, and soldierlike attitude of the emperor, and the strong resemblance to the original, despite the smallness of the scale and the difficulties of the material. Great skill is manifested in concealing the disproportion so manifest in the living figure-the excessive length of the lower extremity in relation to the trunk. The bright color of the bronze, approaching to the fine, faintly-obscured golden hues of the old Florentine bronze castings, adds not a little to the effect of this admirable statuette."

COUNT D'ORSAY'S EQUESTRIAN STATUETTE OF NAPOLEON.

"The taste of Count D'Orsay has long been recognized in the most polished circles of English society. In dress he has led the fashion, while as an artist he has evidenced a degree of talent very seldom met with in an amateur. Of late he has surprised the world by a further manifestation of talent. He has become a sculptor, and, by a series of brilliant statuettes of wellknown characters, has given still another proof of the diversity of his genius. The statuette of Wellington was illustrated some time since; we are now en

abled, by his kind permission, to engrave the companion work of art-the statuette of Napoleon-from a sketch furnished by Count D'Orsay himself. It has been drawn upon the wood by Gilbert, and engraved by Mr. W. G. Mason. The original is now at the birth-place of the conqueror. The Prince Demidoff having presented to the town of Ajaccio this statuette of Napoleon, it has been placed in the grand salle of the Hotel de Ville. The following account of the ceremony observed on the occasion is quoted from The Journal de la Corse' of the 14th of September: The equestrian statuette of the emperor, by the Count D'Orsay, completes the small Napoleon Museum, which we owe to the munificence of Cardinal Fesch, which excites the admiration of all foreigners.'"

COUNT D'ORSAY'S EQUESTRIAN STATUETTE OF HIS GRACE THE Duke of WelLINGTON.

"It seems as if the veritable war-horse of Job's exclamation stood before us, 'pawing the earth with his foot, and snuffing the battle afar off.' But still he obtrudes not himself into the subject-matter of the testimonial, except as an effective foil, impressing more strongly the ideas to be conveyed by the whole. Cool, reflecting, and observant, the duke sits like a general who perceives the game already in his hand; but how much more sagacious calmness does the action of his restive horse convey, by the comparison of very opposite characters thus forced upon the attention of the spectator. Neither must it escape observation how much the depressed head and arching neck of the animal assist in producing that classic unity of effect which is produced in a grouped scene where a pyramidal outline has been successfully preserved. In features and form the duke is represented as he was a quarter of a century ago. The costume, also, is adapted to the time to which the statuette refers, and which may naturally be presumed to be the year of Waterloo. The two greatest generals of the day had not previously been actually opposed in personal command; and as Napoleon's statuette, it is to be hoped, will always accompany our present subject, it is but right and proper, therefore, that these rival heroes should be represented as they contemporaneously appeared on that occasion, especially as, in future history, they will ever be mutually suggestive of each other's career. The costume chosen strongly indicates the simplicity and truth of exalted genius. No blanket-like toga or stirrupless lower limbs detract from the dignity or the feeling of what ought to be the appointments and dress of an English field-marshal on active service; and we defy all comparison, for real classical effect, with all or any of the many sculptured absurdities in Greek or Roman attire which a wretchedly snobbish taste has succeeded in erecting in some of the finest situations in the metropolis. We admire exceedingly the character of the friezed cocked hat of the rank Count D'Orsay has chosen for his Wellington."+

"One of the last of the late lamented Count D'Orsay's studies was a statThe Pictorial Times. + Ibid.

uette of the duke on horseback, the first copy of which, in bronze, was carefully retouched and polished by the artist. The work is remarkable for its mingled grace and sprightliness. The duke, sitting firmly back in his saddle, is reining in a pawing charger, charmingly modeled, and a peculiar effect is obtained by the rider dividing the reins, and stretching that on the left side completely back over the thigh. The portrait is good, particularly that of the full face, and very carefully finished, and the costume is a characteristically closely-fitting military undress, with hanging cavalry sabre. Altogether, indeed, the statuette forms a most agreeable memorial, not only of the duke, but, in some degree, of the gifted artist."+

No. VI.

DEDICATORY LETTER OF SIR E. B. LYTTON TO COUNT ALFRED

D'ORSAY.

"MY DEAR COUNT D'ORSAY,-When the parentage of Godolphin was still unconfessed and unknown, you were pleased to encourage his first struggles with the world. Now, will you permit the father he has just discovered to reintroduce him to your notice? I am sorry to say, however, that my unfilial offspring, having been so long disowned, is not sufficiently grateful for being acknowledged at last he says that he belongs to a very numerous family, and, wishing to be distinguished from his brothers, desires not only to reclaim your acquaintance, but to borrow your name. Nothing less will content his ambition than the most public opportunity in his power of parading his obligations to the most accomplished gentleman of our time. Will you, then, allow him to make his new appearance in the world under your wing, and thus suffer the son, as well as the father, to attest the kindness of your heart, and to boast the honor of your friendship?

"Believe me, my dear Count D'Orsay, with the sincerest regard, yours very faithfully and truly, E. L. B."

No. VII.

MEMORANDUM OF LADY BLESSINGTON RESPECTING THE EXPECTED APPOINTMENT OF COUNT D'ORSAY.

In 1841, an effort was made to have Count D'Orsay appointed to the office of secretary of the French embassy in London. All the influence of Lady Blessington was brought to bear on those persons with whom the appointment rested, especially on the Count St. Aulaire, the French embassador at the court of St. James's. In opposition to these views, it was believed by

* Mr. Walesby, of 5 Waterloo Place, London, has published Count D'Orsay's smaller and last equestrian statuette of the Duke of Wellington, in bronze. The statuette is sixteen inches in height, on a black marble pedestal, eighteen inches in height by twenty in width at the base, surrounding the edges of which are reposing lions, and a richly foliated wreath in bronze. + Morning Chronicle, December 23d, 1852.

Lady Blessington that parties had represented to the British sovereign the Count D'Orsay in so unfavorable a light, that her majesty had rayé the count's name when a list of invitations to a ball had been presented to her.

Among the papers of Lady Blessington, there is a memorandum of hers, embodying the objections which had been raised to the proposed appointment, and her views in relation to them.

"With regard to the inventions relative to our count, there is not even a shadow of truth in them. Alfred never was presented here at court, and never would, though I, as well as his other friends, urged it; his motive (for declining) being, never having left his name at any of the French embassadors of Louis Philippe (not even at Count Sebastiani's, a connection of his own), or at Marshal Soult's, also nearly connected wirh his family, he could not ask to be presented at court by the French embassador, and did not think it right to be presented by any one else. Prince Ernest he never knew, and consequently could not be presented by him; and the etiquette of not having been engaged to meet the queen unless previously presented at court is too well known to admit of any mistake. The Countess the daughter of Nesselrode, could not be invited to a ball given by the Beauforts because she had not previously been presented at court. I enter into these details merely to show the utter falsehoods which have been listened to against Alfred. Now, with regard to his creditors, his embarrassments have been greatly exaggerated; and when the sale of the northern estates in Ireland shall have been effected, which must be within a year, he will be released from all his difficulties. In the mean time, he has arranged matters by getting time from his creditors. So that all the fuss made by the nomination being only sought as a protection from them, falls to the ground. There has been much hypocritical prudery in the affair. When the Duc de D- fled London, and was lodged in a sponging-house, my old friend, the Duc de Laval Montmorency, paid the debt, 100,000 francs, and released him. He then, after this public exposure of his embarrassment, got himself named as attaché here to protect himself; and Lord Aberdeen, then, as now, at the Foreign Office, when appealed to on the subject, said he would do all in his power to save him from annoyance. I mention all these facts to show how ill Alfred has been treated. If the appointment in London is still deemed impracticable, why should not they offer him the secretaryship at Madrid, which is vacant?

“Alfred intrusted the affair (of the appointment) to M———— and W————. He received positive assurances from both that he would receive an appointment in the French embassy here, and that it was only necessary, as a mere matter of etiquette, that St. Aulaire was to ask for his nomination to have it granted. The assurances were so positive that he could not doubt them, and he accordingly acted on them. The highest eulogies on Alfred's abilities, and power of rendering service to the French government, were voluntarily pronounced to St. Aulaire by Lord B, the Duke of B, and other persons of distinction. M. St. Aulaire, not satisfied with these honorable testimonies,