Western Europe Books

CHAPTER I. The ever-memorable oath of the States General, taken at the Tennis Court of Versailles, was followed by the royal sitting of the 23d of June. In this seance the King declared that the Orders must vote separately, and threatened, if further obstacles were met with, to himself act for the good of the people. The Queen looked on M. Necker's not accompanying the King as treachery or... more...

CHAPTER I. The Prince de Mont-Beliard.—He Agrees to the Propositions Made Him.—TheKing's Note.—Diplomacy of the Chancellor of England.—Letter from theMarquis de Montespan.—The Duchy in the Air.—The Domain of Navarre,Belonging to the Prince de Bouillon, Promised to the Marquise. There was but a small company this year at the Waters of Bourbonne,—to begin with, at any rate; for... more...

I Had you been in Paris late in the afternoon of Monday, August third, nineteen fourteen, you might have seen a slight man, whose reddish face was adorned with a thick white mustache, walk out of the German Embassy, which was situated on the Rue de Lille near the Boulevard St. Germain. Along the boulevard and across the Pont de la Concorde he walked in a manner calculated to attract attention. He... more...

The King Takes Luxembourg Because It Is His Will.—Devastation of theElectorate of Treves.—The Marquis de Louvois.—His Portrait.—TheMarvels Which He Worked.—The Le Tellier and the Mortemart.—The KingDestines De Mortemart to a Colbert.—How One Manages Not to Bow.—TheDragonades.—A Necessary Man.—Money Makes Fat.—Meudon.—The Horoscope. This journey to Flanders did not keep the King... more...

It has been my lot to have lived through the greater part of one of the most eventful centuries of England's history, and I have been thrown amongst most of the remarkable men of my day; whether soldiers, statesman, men of letters, theatrical people, or those whose birth and fortune—rather, perhaps, than their virtues or talents—have caused them to be conspicuous in society at home or abroad.... more...

CHAPTER I LAND AND PEOPLE Only in comparatively late years has the Iberian Continent been added to the happy hunting-grounds of the ordinary British and American tourist, and somewhat of a check arose after the outbreak of the war with America. To the other wonderful legends which gather round this romantic country, and are spread abroad, unabashed and uncontradicted, was added one more, to the effect... more...

CHAPTER I THE OUTBREAK OF WAR Unfair disparagement of the War Office during the war — Difficulties under which it suffered owing to pre-war misconduct of the Government — The army prepared, the Government and the country unprepared — My visit to German districts on the Belgian and Luxemburg frontiers in June 1914 — The German railway preparations — The plan of the Great General Staff... more...

CHAPTER I MOBILIZATION OF PUBLIC OPINION The Haupttelegraphenamt (the Chief Telegraph Office) in Berlin is the centre of the entire telegraph system of Germany. It is a large, brick building in the Franzoesischestrasse guarded, day and night, by soldiers. The sidewalks outside the building are barricaded. Without a pass no one can enter. Foreign correspondents in Berlin, when they had telegrams to send... more...

CHAPTER I. Foundation building is neither picturesque nor especially interesting, but it is indispensable. However fair the structure is to be, one must first lay the rough-hewn stones upon which it is to rest. It would be much pleasanter in this sketch to display at once the minarets and towers, and stained-glass windows; but that can only be done when one's castle is in Spain. Would we... more...

It is true that the late Madame was extremely unhappy; she confided too much in people who betrayed her: she was more to be pitied than blamed, being connected with very wicked persons, about whom I could give some particulars. Young, pretty and gay, she was surrounded by some of the greatest coquettes in the world, the mistresses of her bitterest foes, and who sought only to thrust her into some... more...