LORD BEACONSFIELD AND THE TWO CHEERY STONES.
The Paris Figaro tells an amusing story from Berlin anent the Congress, and argues from it the success of its deliberations. It appears that Prince Bismarck gave a State dinner to the plenipotentiaries. His Highness has the reputation of being what they call here a bon viveur. At desert the Marquis of Salisbury suddenly remarked to the Prince,' Your Highness, will suffer from indigestion; you hare just swallowed a cherry stove.' 'My Lord, you are mistaken.' The blood of the Cecils mounted to the brow of the Lord of Hatfield at this apparent flat contradiction of the Imperial Chancellor, and the guests began to look aghast. wljen the' Earl of;Beaconsfiold interposed' with that suaviter in modo which the noble Earl knows so well how to employ.. 'Permit me,' said his Lordship,? '< you may be both right and both wrong. Addressing the Prince he said: ' Your
Highness is far too great a man to take notice whether you swallowed one very, very small cherry-stone.' ' Two,' in- ; sisted Lord Salisbury. •Or two,' gently> added Lord Beaconsfield. 'My noble; colleague is too far-seeing a man to be mistaken in his eye-sight. Will your; Highness permit me to be arbitrator on the spot?' 'With pleasure,' said the Prince. 'Will you pass me your plate !'; said Lord Beaconsfield. The plate was placed,before hi 9 Lordship by a gorge-ously-attired lackey, and amidst the profound silence of the Court assembly the Prime Minister of England upset the debris of the Prince's dessert on the table-cloth, and commenced arranging the cherry-stones in rows; and against eaoh cherry-stone his- Lordship placed a stalk, aud then deliberately commenced counting the stalks—one, two, three, and so on, up to fifty-five, and there stopped. ' Your Highness,' said Lord Beaconsfield, 'there, are two stones missing.' The Prince rose and with a voice trembling •with, emotion, said to Lord Salisbury, •My Lord you are right,' and then, approaching Lord Beaconsfield threw himself on his neck exclaiming, 'My Lord you are the most wonderful man in Europe.'—London Sporting Times.
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Thames Star, Volume IX, Issue 3065, 11 December 1878, Page 1
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341LORD BEACONSFIELD AND THE TWO CHEERY STONES. Thames Star, Volume IX, Issue 3065, 11 December 1878, Page 1
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