has,--that Peace is just at hand; one right struggle more, and
Peace must come! And on the part of Britannic George and him,
repeated attempts were made,--one in the end of this Year
1759;--but one and all of them proved futile, and, unless for
accidental reasons, need not be mentioned here. Many men, in all
nations, long for Peace; but there are Three Women at the top of
the world who do not; their wrath, various in quality, is great in
quantity, and disasters do the reverse of appeasing it.

The French people, as is natural, are weary of a War which yields
them mere losses and disgraces; "War carried on for Austrian whims,
which likewise seem to be impracticable!" think they. And their
Bernis himself, Minister of Foreign Affairs, who began this sad
French-Austrian Adventure, has already been remonstrating with
Kaunitz, and grumbling anxiously, "Could not the Swedes, or
somebody, be got to mediate? Such a War is too ruinous!" Hearing
which, the Pompadour is shocked at the favorite creature of her
hands; hastens to dismiss him ("Be Cardinal then, you ingrate of a
Bernis; disappear under that Red Hat!")--and appoints, in his
stead, one Choiseul (known hitherto as STAINVILLE, Comte de
Stainville, French Excellency at Vienna, but now made Duke on this
promotion), Duc de Choiseul; [Minister of Foreign Affairs, "11th
November, 1758" (Barbier, iv. 294).] who is a Lorrainer, or Semi-
Austrian, by very birth; and probably much fitter for the place.
A swift, impetuous kind of man, this Choiseul, who is still rather
young than otherwise; plenty of proud spirit in him, of shifts,
talent of the reckless sort; who proved very notable in France for
the next twenty years.

French trade being ruined withal, money is running dreadfully low: