When Count Markof left Sweden, he carried with him an actress of the French theatre at Stockholm, Madame Hus, an Alsatian by birth, but who had quitted her country twelve years before the Revolution, and could, therefore, never be included among emigrants.  She had continued as a mistress with this nobleman, is the mother of several children by him, and an agreeable companion to him, who has never been married.  As I have often said, Talleyrand is much obliged to any foreign diplomatic agent who allows him to be the indirect provider or procurer of his mistresses.  After in vain tempting Count Markof with new objects, he introduced to the acquaintance of Madame Hus some of his female emissaries.  Their manoeuvres, their insinuations, and even their presents were all thrown away.  The lady remained the faithful friend, and therefore refused with indignation to degrade herself into a spy on her lover.  Our Minister then first discovered that, not only was Madame Hus an emigrant, but had been a great benefactress and constant companion of emigrants at St. Petersburg, and, of course, deserved to be watched, if not punished.  Count Markof is reported to have said to Talleyrand on this grave subject, in the presence of two other foreign Ambassadors: 

“Apropos! what shall I do to prevent my poor Madame Hus from being shot as an emigrant, and my poor children from becoming prematurely orphans?”

“Monsieur,” said our diplomatic oracle, “she should have petitioned the First Consul for a permission to return, to France before she entered it; but out of regard for you, if she is prudent, she will not, I daresay, be troubled by our Government.”

“I should be sorry if she was not,” replied the Count, with a significant look; and here this grand affair ended, to the great entertainment of those foreign agents who dared to smile or to laugh.

LETTER XXV.

Paris, October, 1805.

My Lord:—­The Legion of Honour, though only proclaimed upon Bonaparte’s assumption of the Imperial rank, dates from the first year of his consulate.  To prepare the public mind for a progressive elevation of himself, and for consequential distinctions among all classes of his subjects, he distributed among the military, arms of honour, to which were attached precedence and privileges granted by him, and, therefore, liable to cease with his power or life.  The number of these arms increased in proportion to the approach of the period fixed for the change of his title and the erection of his throne.  When he judged them numerous enough to support his changes, he made all these wearers of arms of honour knights.  Never before were so many chevaliers created en masse; they amounted to no less than twenty-two thousand four hundred, distributed in the different corps of different armies, but principally in the army of England.  To these were afterwards joined five thousand nine hundred civil functionaries, men of letters, artists, etc.  To remove, however, all ideas of equality, even among the members of the Legion of Honour, they were divided into four classes—­grand officers, commanders, officers, and simple legionaries.