have been sufficiently seen in the heterogeneous crowd styled the fashionable world, people, who stared at them at first, from the curiosity excited by the published programme of their claims to distinction, get accustomed to "the odd-looking man with the brown wig, and the star;" or the "ill-dressed one with a decoration in his button-hole;" or "the man with spectacles and a bald head, who looks so stupid," and think no more of them.

If, however, some Curtius of society magnanimously sacrifices himself for half an hour by throwing himself into the gulf of conversation with any of these exotic worthies, he takes a malicious pleasure in mystifying them; by nodding assent to the expression of their erroneous opinions, and dissenting, by a well-bred shrug or deprecating shake of the head, from those they had with more justice adopted, but which happen not to be in har

mony either with his prejudices or his love of

mischief.

The enlightened stranger now discovers, that the orator whose eloquence had excited admiration abroad is little esteemed at home, because he is viewed through the false prism of opposite politics: that the author whose works have been as enthusiastically commended as universally read in other countries, is undervalued in his own, because his hair curls; or because he dresses too much or too little in the fashion (either of which crimes furnish a sufficient cause for decrying him), or wears yellow gloves, or commits some other equally offensive error. In short, the reputations that, on the Continent, have been stamped by the approval of all the men of genius, which France, Germany, and Italy can boast, are depreciated in the land that gave birth to their possessors; and the truth of the old proverb, that "no

THE LESS DISTINGUISHED FOREIGNERS: 151

prophet is esteemed in his own country," is no where so perfectly or frequently verified as in England.

I have described the reception given to foreign lions in London: let me now state that given to strangers with less claims to

attention.

A foreigner arrives with letters of introduction; or, in other words, certificates of birth, parentage, and-not education. He delivers them at the houses to which they are addressed, and, in return, receives a soup-ticket, bon pour un jour.

"What a horrid bore to have this man thrown on our hands!" says Madame la maitresse de maison; "his aunt was so prévenante for us at Versailles, that we must be civil to him. What is to be done with him?"

"Ask him to dinner, to be sure," replies Monsieur le mari.

"But whom can one get to meet him?"

demands Madame, with an air of chagrin and

embarrassment; 66

people dislike so much

meeting foreigners, until they are, at least,

somewhat broken into our habits."

"Let me

see: oh, yes the Heberdens have been passing the winter at Paris; they, probably, know him; at all events, the gaieties of the Parisian season will furnish them with a subject in common. Yes, we'll engage the Heberdens."

"Here is a letter and a card from le Comte de Bellechasse," exclaims Lady Grandison. "How tiresome! what is to be done with him? His mother was so civil to us at Paris, that we must be attentive to him."

"Send him a ticket for our box at the

opera, mamma," says Lady Anna-Maria.

"And a card for our ball on Friday," lisps Lady Georgina.

THE EMBARRASSMENT HE EXCITES; 153

"But if, through not knowing London usages, he should become a fixture in the box?" soliloquises mamma.

"But even if he should, mamma, ours is,

"We have always plenty of spare room for a beau, you would add-n'est-ce pas, AnnaMaria? Well, there is one advantage in a double box," continues Lady Grandison, "it enables one to return civilities cheaply."

"Yes," answers Lady Georgina, "a double box at the opera is nearly as cheap a mode of returning civilities in London, as the sending tickets for the Chapelle is Royale, at Paris. Do you remember how we were inundated with them?"

The poor foreigner receives the invitations, the necessity of giving which has caused so much embarrassment to the hospitable donors. After a dinner at each of the houses, to the pro