Bleibtreu’s sketch representing General Reille as he came up the hill at Sedan to deliver Napoleon’s letter to the King was then mentioned, and some one remarked that from the way in which the general was taking off his cap, he looked as if he were going to shout Hurrah! The Chief said: “His demeanour was thoroughly dignified and correct. I spoke to him alone while the King was writing his reply. He urged that hard conditions should not be imposed upon a great army which had fought so bravely. I shrugged my shoulders. He then said rather than submit they would blow up the fortress. I said, ‘Well, do so--_faites sauter_!’ I asked him then if the Emperor could still depend upon the army and the officers. He said yes. And whether his instructions and orders still held good in Metz? Reille answered this question also in the affirmative, and, as we saw, he was right at the time.... If Napoleon had only made peace then I believe he would still be a respected ruler. But he is a silly fool! I said so sixteen years ago when no one would believe me. Stupid and sentimental. The King also thought for the moment that it would be peace, and wanted me to say what conditions we should propose. But I said to him ‘Your Majesty, we can hardly have got as far as that yet.’ Their Highnesses and Serene Highnesses then pressed so close to us that I had twice to beg the King to move further off. I should have preferred to tell them plainly, ‘Gentlemen, leave us alone; you have nothing to do here.’ The one thing which prevented me from being rude to them was that the brother of our Most Gracious was the ringleader and chief offender of the whole prying mob.” About 10 o’clock I went down to tea, and found Bismarck-Bohlen and Hatzfeldt still there. The Chief was in the _salon_ with the three Bavarian Plenipotentiaries. In about a quarter of an hour he opened one side of the door, bent his head forward with his friendliest look, and came in with a glass in his hand and took a seat at the table.