The conversation round us turned upon the colonizing policy of the old Romans, with whom M. Novikoff found great fault, saying how foolish it was of them to punish as a crime any attempt on the part of the conquered tribes to regain their liberty. Such attempts, according to him, might be treated as acts of war, but not visited with the severity merited by treason. I could not help hinting to M. Novikoff that the policy which he so strongly condemned in the Romans was something uncommonly like, or even identical with, that of Russia in Poland. M. Novikoff became very much confused and changed the subject to that of the liberation of the serfs. In this connection he talked of M. Valouieff, the responsible minister, in terms of contempt, which quite took me by surprise. I ventured to ask whether M. Valouieff was not held to be a man of great talent. His answer was characteristic: “Mon Dieu, oui! puisque l’Empereur l’a voulu.” The chronicling of the small beer of parties is but poor stuff; and yet there was one party which to me meant very strong ale indeed, and so I am fain to write of it even after fifty years. One evening M. Jean Tolstoy sent out about thirty invitations for a very small gathering, myself among the number, to meet the Tsar, and listen to music. As the Emperor was expected, I of course retired into the background, deeming that he would only wish to speak to the _gros bonnets_; however, when M. Tolstoy led him into the room he gave a look round, and seeing me, to the amazement, not to say petrifaction, of the mighty, he came striding up to me, shook hands and began talking in Russian, saying that he heard that I was learning his language. I bowed—and he went on speaking. [Illustration: THE EMPEROR ALEXANDER II. AT CLOSE QUARTERS WITH A BEAR (_February, 1864_). _From a sketch by Zichy._]