and supplies during my residence at Hamburg to the extent of nearly 100,000,000, by which his treasury and army had profited in moments of difficulty!  M. de Champagny added that the Emperor did not wish to receive me.  He asked what answer he should bear to his Majesty.  I still remained silent, and the Minister again urged me to give an answer.  “Well, then,” said I, “tell him he may go to the devil.”  The Minister naturally wished to obtain some variation from this laconic answer, but I would give no other; and I afterwards learned from Duroc that M. de Champagny was compelled to communicate it to Napoleon.  “Well,” asked the latter, “have you seen Bourrienne?”—­“Yes, Sire.”—­“Did you tell him I wished him to pay 6,000,000 into your chest?”—­“Yes, Sire.”—­“And what did he say?”—­“Sire, I dare not inform your Majesty.”—­“What did he say?  I insist upon knowing.”—­“Since you insist on my telling you, Sire, M. de Bourrienne said your Majesty might go to the devil.”—­“Ah! ah! did he really say so?” The Emperor then retired to the recess of a window, where he remained alone for seven or eight minutes, biting his nails; in the fashion of Berthier, and doubtless giving free scope to his projects of vengeance.  He then turned to the Minister and spoke to him of quite another subject:  Bonaparte had so nursed himself in the idea of making me pay the 6,000,000 that every time he passed the Office for Foreign Affairs he said to those who accompanied hint; “Bourrienne must pay for that after all.”

—­[This demand of money from Bourrienne is explained in Erreurs (tome ii, p. 228) by the son of Davoust.  Bourrienne had been suspected by Napoleon of making large sums at Hamburg by allowing breaches of the Continental system.  In one letter to Davoust Napoleon speaks of an “immense fortune,” and in another, that Bourrienne is reported to have gained seven or eight millions at Hamburg in giving licences or making arbitrary seizures.]—­

Though I was not admitted to the honour of sharing the splendour of the Imperial Court; yet I had the satisfaction of finding that; in spite of my disgrace, those of my old friends who were worth anything evinced the same regard for me as heretofore.  I often saw Duroc; who snatched some moments from his more serious occupations to come and chat with me respecting all that had occurred since my secession from Bonaparte’s cabinet.  I shall not attempt to give a verbatim account of my conversations with Duroc, as I have only my memory to guide me; but I believe I shall not depart from the truth in describing them as follows: