The stories people tell of the Prince are awful; but one is not obliged to believe them if one does not want to. There was such an amusing _soirée_ at the Duke de Morny's in honor of the Duchess's birthday. They gave a play called "Monsieur Choufleuri restera chez lui le.......," which the Duke wrote himself, and for which Offenbach composed the music inspired by the Duke, who vowed that he "really did make the most of it." But, his conscience pricking him, he added, "At least some!" which I think was nearer the truth. It was a great success, whether by the Duke de Morny or by Offenbach, and was the funniest thing I ever saw. Every one was roaring with laughter, and when the delighted audience called for "l'auteur," the Duke came out leading Offenbach, each waving his hand toward the other, as if success belonged to him alone, and went off bowing their thanks together. Apropos of the Duke de Morny, he said of himself: "I am a very complicated person. _Je suis le fils d'une reine, frère d'un Empereur et gendre d'un Empereur, et tous sont illégitimes_." It does sound queer! But he really is the son of Queen Hortense (his father being Count Flahaut); he is in this way an illegitimate brother of Napoleon III., and his wife is the daughter of the Emperor Nicholas of Russia. There you have a complicated case. My young sister-in-law has just married Count Hatzfeldt, of the German Embassy (second secretary). He is very good-looking without being handsome, and belongs to one of the most distinguished families in Germany. Countess Mercy-Argenteau appeared, comet-like, in Paris, and although she is a very beautiful woman, full of musical talent, and calls herself _une femme politique_, she is not a success. The gentlemen say she lacks charm. At any rate, none of the _élégantes_ are jealous of her, which speaks for itself. She is not as beautiful as Madame de Gallifet, nor as _élégante_ as Countess Pourtales, nor as clever as Princess Metternich. Madame Musard, a beautiful American, has a friendship (_en tout déshonneur_) with a foreign royalty who made her a present of some-- what he thought valueless--shares of a petroleum company in America. These shares turned into gold in her hands.