When Victor reached the palace, the Pater encountered him, who said he would go in too. It was fortunate; for without this guide he would hardly have found his path through a labyrinth of apartments into the altered cabinet of the patient. And with him went as a pewit through all the rooms the apprehension of seeing on the face of the Princess an indictment against the encased _Billet-doux_; but not so much as an initial letter or the _rubrum_ of a sentence was seen upon her face, as he came before her, and his thunder-cloud had passed aside. At least his was repelled by one which hung over the Princess herself; that is to say, she was ill, but not merely in the eyes; and a second message which was sent to fetch him had just missed him. She received him in bed,--not on account of her sickness, but of her station; for with ladies of some rank the bed is the residence,--the moss-bank,--the high-altar,--the royal palace,--in short, the princely chair and seat. Like the philosopher Descartes, the Abbot Galiani, and old Shandy, they can think and work best in this hothouse. Although she lay in bed, nevertheless she was, as we said, not well, but was attacked with pain in head and eyes. She had therefore to-day sent away all her domestics, except a chambermaid who loved her very much, and the fly on the wall who plagued her, and our Doctor who omitted one of the two things. I should have been glad to reckon in a sedentary court-dame in a picture-cabinet that stood open; but she sat so dumb and motionless, that Victor swore she was either a knee-piece, or--a German lady,--or both. It spared the scalded eyes of the Princess quite as much pain as it gave well eyes pleasure, that the green light-screen, and the green satin tapestry, and the green satin curtains in the sick-cabinet conspired to shed an undulating _blue_ clare-obscure. A single wax taper stood on a candlestick, which was enchased by all the seasons, that is, in sculpture,--upon which custom of the great not to enjoy nature except in counters, in _effigie_ and copy-paper, never _in naturâ_ itself, I can here state neither my opinion nor its reasons, because it would require a whole EXTRA-LEAF