He was then sixty-four years old, but his skin was as fresh and clear as
a child's, his deep blue eyes young. He stammered a little, and nervous
twitches frequently shot over his face; but there was a sublime nobility
about him.
To prolong the conversation, I offered to accompany him to the Windsor
Hotel, where he was staying, and we walked the distance. As I really had
intended to go over to England at about that time, Mill proposed my
crossing with him. I refused, being afraid of abusing his kindness, but
was invited to visit him frequently when I was in England, which I did
not fail to do. A few days afterwards I was in London.
XVII.
My French acquaintances all said the same thing, when I told them I
wanted to go over to England: "What on earth do you want there?" Though
only a few hours' journey from England, they had never felt the least
curiosity to see the country. "And London! It was said to be a very dull
city; it was certainly not worth putting one's self out to go there." Or
else it was: "If you are going to London, be careful! London is full of
thieves and rascals; look well to your pockets!"
Only a few days later, the Parisians were shaken out of their calm,
without, however, being shaken out of their self-satisfaction. The Duc
de Grammont's speech on the 6th of July, which amounted to the statement
that France was not going to stand any Hohenzollern on the throne of
Spain, made the people fancy themselves deeply offended by the King of
Prussia, and a current of martial exasperation ran through the irritable
and misled people, who for four years had felt themselves humiliated by
Prussia's strong position.
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