He smiled and wept by turns as he told all this; and declared that, much as he was elated at the possession of a sum which made him a rich man for life (though it was only equal to 42 sterling), the kindness of the Duchess gratified him still more.
"He then made us sit down while he read us two new poems; both charming, and full of grace and naivete; and one very affecting, being an address to the King, alluding, to the death of his son.
"As he read, his wife stood by, and fearing that we did not comprehend the language, she made a remark to that effect, to which he answered impatiently, 'Nonsense! don't you see they are in tears ?' This was unanswerable; we were allowed to hear the poem to the end, and I certainly never listened to anything more feelingly and energetically delivered.
"We had much conversation, for he was anxious to detain us; and in the course of it, he told me that he had been by some accused of vanity.
'Oh!' he exclaimed, 'what would you have?
I am a child of nature, and cannot conceal my feelings; the only difference between me and a man of refinement is, that he knows how to conceal his vanity and exaltation at success, while I let everybody see my emotions.' "His wife drew me aside, and asked my opinion as to how much money it would cost to pay Jasmin's expenses, if he undertook a journey to England.

'However,' she added, 'I dare say he need be at no charge, for of course your Queen has read that article in his favour, and knows his merit.

She probably will send for him, pay all the expenses of his journey, and give him great fetes in London!" Miss Costello, knowing the difficulty of obtaining Royal recognition of literary merit in England, unless it appears in forma pauperis, advised the barber-poet to wait till he was sent for--a very good advice, for then it would be never! She concludes her recollections with this remark: "I left the happy pair, promising to let them know the effect that the translation of Jasmin's poetry produced in the Royal mind.

Indeed, their earnest simplicity was really entertaining." A contributor to the Westminster Review{5} also gave a very favourable notice of Jasmin and his poetry, which, he said, was less known in England than it deserved to be; nor was it well known in France since he wrote in a patois.

Yet he had been well received by some of the most illustrious men in the capital, where unaided genius, to be successful, must be genius indeed; and there the Gascon bard had acquired for himself a fame of which any man might well be proud.
The reviewer said that the Gascon patois was peculiarly expressive and heart-touching, and in the South it was held in universal honour.
Jasmin, he continued, is what Burns was to the Scottish peasantry; only he received his honours in his lifetime.