I spoke this morning to an English butler who had made one of the party.
This worthy man evidently was of opinion that the end of the world is near at hand, when a butler, and a most respectable person, is treated in this manner.

"Pray, sir, may I ask," he said, with bitter scorn, "whether her Majesty is still on the throne in England ?" I replied, "I believed that she was." "Then," he went on, "has this Count Bismarck, as they call him, driven the British nobles out of the House of Lords?
Nothing which this feller does would surprise me now." Butler, Charge d'Affaires, and the other _cives_, are, I understand, to make another start, as soon as the "feller" condescends to answer a letter which has been forwarded to him, asking him to fix a day for their departure.
We are daily anticipating an attack on the Southern side of the city.
The Prussians are close into the forts on their line from Meudon to Choisy-le-Roi.

Two days ago it was supposed that they were dragging their siege guns to batteries which they had prepared for them, notwithstanding our fire, which until now we proudly imagined had rendered it impossible for them to put a spade to the ground.

Our generals believe, I know not with what truth, that the Prussians have only got twenty-six siege guns.

If they are on the plateau of Meudon, and if they carry, as is asserted, nine kilometres, a large portion of the city on the left bank of the Seine will be under fire.