On Bötticher’s name coming up after the diplomatists, the Prince placed him even below Caprivi, and concluded as follows: “Moreover, he is under petticoat government.” Of Marschall he said: “He writes bad French, even in official documents, speaking for instance in a recent communication to Italy of ‘_l’empereur et l’empereuse_.’” _May 4th._--At lunch we were joined by Baroness Merck and a professor from Giessen, who plied the Prince with all sorts of questions, and whom we shall here entitle Herr Y. In the course of this inquisition we ascertained, among other things, that “Dutken Sommer” (in Hesekiel’s book), whom I had hitherto taken to be a countrywoman, is in reality of the masculine gender, and the son of the Pastor at Reinfeld. The Prince said he was blind, and somewhat of a simpleton, while the Princess described him as musical. Y. hastily jotted that and other facts down in his pocket book while discussing his cutlet and omelette. Phelps, Chicago, and the Prince’s opinion of these “World Fairs” once more. The Chief then spoke of Prince and Princess Reuss at Vienna, and of the position she took up towards the notorious rescript. (“The Uriah Letters.”) She said: “My husband is a (public) servant. I am not.” Somebody brought up Ahlwardt’s name, and the Prince said: “He too has one merit. He brings a change into the commonplace tediousness of the Reichstag.” He observed with regard to the good reception accorded to the Emperor by the Swiss: “They do nothing gratis. We shall be made to pay for it with a higher customs duty.” The professor informed us that he was a vegetarian, and that it was an illness which had converted him. I mentioned the approaching advent of the editor of the _Kladderadatsch_ and his friend Jacobsen, praising both of them highly. After a glance at his pocket book, Y. inquired about the attitude of France in 1866, mentioning Moustier. The Prince corrected his pronunciation of the name, and then went on to say: “Once in the course of conversation he reminded me in a threatening way of Jena. I said to him, ‘If you talk to me of Jena I will talk to you of Leipzig.’ I might also have mentioned Waterloo. Moustier then complained to Manteuffel, and he reported the matter to the King, who, however, said that I had acted rightly.” Coming in the further course of the conversation to speak of the policy which was at that time pursued by the Italians, he said: “La Marmora was a scoundrel, and was paid by France, but Govone was a respectable man.” He gave his reasons for both opinions in detail. The Prince then added, having perhaps noticed the eavesdropping publicist: “I would not have said that to Sybel if I had had any idea that he would publish it--a remark which applies to other matters mentioned to other good people, such as my worthy friend Blum, whose statements are very indiscreet and mostly false.”