The allowance made by his Majesty for the yearly expenses of his dress
was twenty thousand francs; and the year of, the coronation he became
very angry because that sum had been exceeded. It was never without
trepidation that the various accounts of household expenses were
presented to him; and he invariably retrenched and cut down, and
recommended all sort of reforms. I remember after asking for some one a
place of three thousand francs, which he granted me, I heard him exclaim,
"Three thousand francs! but do you understand that this is the revenue
of one of my communes? When I was sub-lieutenant I did not spend as much
as that." This expression recurred incessantly in his conversations with
those with whom he was familiar; and "when I had the honor of being sub-
lieutenant" was often on his lips, and always in illustration of
comparisons or exhortations to economy.

While on the subject of accounts, I recall a circumstance which should
have a place in my memoirs, since it concerns me personally, and moreover
gives an idea of the manner in which his Majesty understood economy. He
set out with the idea, which was, I think, often very correct, that in
private expenses as in public ones, even granting the honesty of agents
(which the Emperor was always, I admit, very slow to do), the same things
could have been done with much less money. Thus, when he required
retrenchment, it was not in the number of objects of expense, but only in
the prices charged for these articles by the furnishers; and I will
elsewhere cite some examples of the effect which this idea produced on
the conduct of his Majesty towards the accounting agents of his
government. Now I am relating only private matters. One day when
investigating various accounts, the Emperor complained much of the
expenses of the stables, and cut off a considerable sum; and the grand
equerry, in order to put into effect the required economy, found it
necessary to deprive several persons in the household of their carriages,