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I succeeded with my portrait of Mademoiselle Clairfait, and I heard the story which occupies the following pages. In the case of the preceding narratives, I have repeated what was related to me, as nearly as possible in the very words of my sitters. In the case of this third story, it is impossible for me to proceed upon the same plan.
We are not living under the Reign of Terror now, certainly; still there is nothing like being on the safe side. "'Nothing, I answer. 'Pray what is this ex-emigrant's name? "'Danville, replies the citoyenne Clairfait. 'She is going to appear in that fine scarf at her son's marriage. "'Marriage! I exclaim, perfectly thunderstruck. "'Yes, says she. 'What is there so amazing in that?
Mademoiselle Clairfait is the daughter of a silk-mercer, once established at Chalons-sur-Marne.
Mademoiselle Clairfait characteristically mixed up with the direct interest of her story, not only references to places and people which had no recognizable connection with it, but outbursts of passionate political declamation, on the extreme liberal side to say nothing of little tender apostrophes to her beloved friend, which sounded very prettily as she spoke them, but which would lose their effect altogether by being transferred to paper.
The business of a general is manoeuvring to menace masses by greater masses, to throw the weight of an army on a flank, to pierce a centre while the flanks were forced to stand and see it beaten; these were Frederick's lessons to his staff: and if Clairfait shall go on, with his perpetual hand to hand work, those sharp Frenchmen will soon learn his trade, and perhaps pay him back in his own coin.
"You will now have a good despatch to transmit to our friends in England. The Count Clairfait has shown himself worthy of his reputation. I understand that the enemy's force consisted chiefly of the household troops of France; if so, we have beaten the best soldiers of the kingdom, and the rest can give us but little trouble. You will remark upon these points; and now for Paris."
The duke had invited his own staff, and that of Clairfait, to his tent, in honour of the day, and I never spent a gayer evening.
"My admiration of the miniature on the bracelet seemed I suppose, by calling up some old associations to have a strangely soothing effect on Mademoiselle Clairfait." "Ah yes! only remind her of the original of that portrait, and you change her directly, whatever she may have been saying or doing the moment before.
One evolution of the morning, a discovery made by von Sohnspeer himself, in the deploying of cavalry, created a great sensation; and it was settled that it would have been of great use to Desaix and Clairfait in the Netherlands affair of some eight-and-twenty years ago, and was not equalled even by Seidlitz' cavalry in the affair with the Russians at Zorndorff.
It was at this time that the formidable invasion under the Duke of Brunswick, consisting of 138,000 men, of whom 66,000 were under the King of Prussia in person, and 50,000 were Austrians under Prince Hohenlohe and Marshal Clairfait, marched to France, and menaced Dumouriez, who occupied the defiles of Varennes, with very inferior forces.
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