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MEMOIRS, BIOGRAPHIES, Etc.
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RALPH HEATHCOTE. Letters of a Diplomatist During the Time of Napoleon, Giving an Account of the Dispute between the Emperor and the Elector of Hesse. By Countess Günther Gröben. With Numerous Illustrations. Demy 8vo (9 x 5¾ inches). 12s. 6d. net.
*** Ralph Heathcote, the son of an English father and an Alsatian mother, was for some time in the English diplomatic service as first secretary to Mr. Brook Taylor, minister at the Court of Hesse, and on one occasion found himself very near to making history. Napoleon became persuaded that Taylor was implicated in a plot to procure his assassination, and insisted on his dismissal from the Hessian Court. As Taylor refused to be dismissed, the incident at one time seemed likely to result to the Elector in the loss of his throne. Heathcote came into contact with a number of notable people, including the Miss Berrys, with whom he assures his mother he is not in love. On the whole, there is much interesting material for lovers of old letters and journals.
MEMOIRS OF THE COUNT DE CARTRIE. A record of the extraordinary events in the life of a French Royalist during the war in La Vendée, and of his flight to Southampton, where he followed the humble occupation of gardener. With an introduction by Frédéric Masson, Appendices and Notes by Pierre Amédée Pichot, and other hands, and numerous Illustrations, including a Photogravure Portrait of the Author. Demy 8vo. 12s. 6d. net.
Daily News.―"We have seldom met with a human document which has interested us so much."
Dundee Advertiser.―"The identification and publication of the Memoirs of Count de Cartrie are due to as smart a piece of literary detective work as has been reported for many years."
Liverpool Courier.―"Mr. Lane and his French coadjutors are entitled to the utmost credit for the pains which they have taken to reconstruct and publish in such complete form the recollections of an eyewitness of important events concerning which even now no little dubiety exists."
Athenæum.―"As a record of personal suffering and indomitable perseverance against opposing circumstances the narrative of De Cartrie's escape to the Eastern frontier, in the disguise of a master-gunner, could not easily be surpassed."
World.―"The book is very entertaining, and will be read with pleasure by all who delight in the byways of history."
WOMEN OF THE SECOND EMPIRE. Chronicles of the Court of Napoleon III. By Frédéric Loliée. With an introduction by Richard Whiteing and 53 full-page Illustrations, 3 in Photogravure. Demy 8vo. 21s. net.
Standard.―"M. Frédéric Loliée has written a remarkable book, vivid and pitiless in its description of the intrigue and dare-devil spirit which flourished unchecked at the French Court.…Mr. Richard Whiteing's introduction is written with restraint and dignity."
Mr. James Douglas in the Star.―"At a moment when most novels send you to sleep, let me whisper the name of a book which will amuse you in most melancholy mood. One of the freshest, gayest, and wittiest volumes of gossip and anecdote I have ever read."
Sunday Times.―"A delicious banquet of scandal, contributions to which have been secured by the artful device of persuading ladies not so much to make their own confessions as to talk about their friends.…The illustrations present us with a veritable galaxy of beauty."
Daily Telegraph.―"It is a really fascinating story, or series of stories, set forth in this volume.…Here are anecdotes innumerable of the brilliant women of the Second Empire, so that in reading the book we are not only dazzled by the beauty and gorgeousness of everything, but we are entertained by the record of things said and done, and through all we are conscious of the coming 'gloom and doom' so soon to overtake the Court. Few novels possess the fascination of this spirited work, and many readers will hope that the author will carry out his proposal of giving us a further series of memories of the 'Women of the Second Empire.'"
