The noted salon of the charming Princesse Bagration, wife of the Russian field-marshal, was open to the novelist early in his career. With her aristocratic ease and the distinction of her manners, she had been one of the most brilliant stars at Vienna where her salon, as at Paris, was one of the most popular. Among her intimate friends was Madame Hamelin whom she had known during her stay in Vienna. Notwithstanding Balzac's careless habits of dress, he was welcome in this salon, where the ladies enjoyed the stories which he told with such charm, and at which he was always the first to laugh, though told against himself. As has been mentioned the Princess Bagration passed at Paris for the model of Foedora. If M. Gabriel Ferry is correct, Balzac met the Duchesse de Castries in the salon of the Princess Bagration before their correspondence began, but never talked to her and did not suppose that he had attracted her attention. One of Balzac's acquaintances whom he met during his visit to Madame Hanska at Geneva was the Countess Bossi. He met her again at Milan in 1838, on his return from his journey to Corsica, but he was not favorably impressed with her, although he once deemed it wise to explain to his /Chatelaine/ his conduct relative to her. Madame Kisseleff was one of Madame Hanska's friends whom he probably met in Vienna; he dined at her home frequently and enjoyed her company, for she could talk to him of his /Louloup/. She was a friend of Madame Hamelin, and moved to Fontainebleu to be near her while the latter was living at /La Madeleine/. While living in Paris, Madame Kisseleff entertained Madame Hamelin and several other ladies together with Balzac; these dinners and his /visites de digestion/ caused him to see much of her for awhile, but as in many of his other friendships, his ardor cooled later, and he went to her home only when specially invited. In 1844, she left Paris to reside at Homburg where she built a house. The novelist took advantage of her friendship to send articles to Madame Hanska through the Russian ambassador. Balzac made /visites de politesse/ to the Princesse de Schonburg, an acquaintance of Madame Hanska's, but no more than were required by courtesy. It would have been convenient for him to have seen much of her, had he cared to, for she had placed her child in the same house with him on account of its vicinity to the orthopaedic hospital. One of Madame Hanska's friends whom Balzac liked was Madame Jaroslas Potocka, sister of the Countess Schouwaloff. She wrote some very pleasing letters to him, but he was too busy to answer them, so he sent her messages, or enclosed notes to her in his letters to his /Predilecta/.