When once the personal relation was firmly established, every difficulty disappeared.

But to maintain that relation uninterruptedly in a smooth and even course a particular care was necessary: the bearings had to be most assiduously oiled.

Nor was Disraeli in any doubt as to the nature of the lubricant.

"You have heard me called a flatterer," he said to Matthew Arnold, "and it is true.

Everyone likes flattery, and when you come to royalty you should lay it on with a trowel." He practiced what he preached.