Sometimes our _séjour_ was enlivened by visits from our own officers, or from some of those stationed in St Denis, La Vertu, and even from Paris: and occasionally more genial weather allowed F. to ride Cossack; but these rides were necessarily confined to the park. With the villagers we had become as much at home as Frenchmen could be. As for our _ménage_, it got on pretty well; and once we even ventured on giving a dinner to Wells and Ambrose, which went off pretty well; and once we went and passed a day with Sir A. Frazer at the Hotel du Nord. Again, one bitter cold black day, we visited the Abbey of St Denis, and went shivering through its vaults, and were shown the last home prepared by Napoleon for himself. The town was crowded with troops on their march northwards. Once or twice F. was able to ride to Paris; but it was hard work. Amongst other amusements in Stain, we had one not very agreeable, and which kept us in a continual state of excitement. Our men were continually setting fire to their quarters, particularly the chateau of Admiral Rosily. The villagers said this arose from their removing the ashes, and making their fires on the bare hearth, which thus became so hot as to set fire to the beams beneath. They therefore advised the men to leave the ashes and make their new fire on them. This they did; but Admiral Rosily wrote to tell me that no fires ought be lighted up-stairs in his house, as the chimneys were only intended as ventilators, and therefore begged us to confine the fires to the ground-floor. At the stables of the chateau, over which a detachment was lodged, a fire occurred, and continued smouldering in the beams for a fortnight, the centre remaining on fire when we thought it extinguished.