Chapter XVIII

Marshal Vaillant -- The beginning of our acquaintance -- His
stories of the swashbucklers of the First Empire, and the beaux
of the Restauration -- Rabelaisian, but clever -- Marshal
Vaillant neither a swashbuckler nor a beau; hated both -- Never
cherished the slightest illusions about the efficiency of the
French army -- Acknowledged himself unable to effect the desired
and necessary reforms -- To do that, a minister of war must
become a fixture -- Why he stayed -- Careful of the public
moneys, and of the Emperor's also -- Napoleon III.'s lavishness
-- An instance of it -- Vaillant never dazzled by the grandeur of
court entertainments -- Not dazzled by anything -- His hatred of
wind-bags -- Prince de Canino -- Matutinal interviews -- Prince
de Canino sends his seconds -- Vaillant declines the meeting, and
gives his reason -- Vaillant abrupt at the best of times -- A
freezing reception -- A comic interview -- Attempts to shirk
military duty -- Tricks -- Mistakes -- A story in point -- More
tricks -- Sham ailments: how the marshal dealt with them -- When
the marshal was not in an amiable mood -- Another interview --
Vaillant's tactics -- "D----d annoying to be wrong" -- The
marshal fond of science -- A very interesting scientific
phenomenon himself -- Science under the later Bourbons --
Suspicion of the soldiers of the Empire -- The priesthood and the
police -- The most godless republic preferable to a continuance
of their regime -- The marshal's dog, Brusca -- Her dislike to
civilians -- Brusca's chastity -- Vaillant's objection to
insufficiently prepaid letters -- His habit of missing the train,
notwithstanding his precautions -- His objection to fuss and
public honours 351