At this
near sight of the King--for he found himself directly opposite the door
by which their Majesties entered--Mr. Calvert felt a shock of surprise.
Surrounded by all the pomp and circumstance of a most imposing
ceremonial and seen across the vast Salle des Menus, Louis XVI. had
appeared to the young American kingly enough. But this large, awkward,
good-natured-looking man who now made his way quietly and with a
shambling gait into the brilliant room, crowded with the most splendid
courtiers of Europe, had no trace of majesty about him, unless it was a
certain look of benignity and kindliness that shone in the light-blue
eyes. His dress of unexpected simplicity and the unaffected style of his
whole deportment were unlocked for by Calvert. Indeed, but for the
splendid decorations he wore and the humility of his courtiers, the
young gentleman would have found it hard to believe himself in such
exalted company, and thought privately that General Washington or Mr.
Jefferson or many another great American whom he had known had a more
commanding presence and a more noble countenance than this descendant of
kings.
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