Her son-in-law,
the Count, continued to form one of her household, though separated
from his wife, the Lady Harriet. Though not received in general
society, the Countess surrounded herself with celebrities of all
nations; and it was at her house that Louis Napoleon was a cherished
guest in his years of exile, and from whence he proceeded to head the
government of France. Here Bulwer came as perhaps her most intimate
friend; here Thackeray was made most welcome, and Lord John Russell
and Lord Palmerston, Canning and Castlereagh were frequent guests.
Dickens,--then a dandy like unto D'Orsay, who seemed to be his
model,--"Rejected Addresses" Smith, the banker-poet Rogers, Kemble,
Wilkie, and Dr. Parr engaged in sparkling converse with their hostess,
who sat in a deep arm-chair while Tom Moore was privileged to perch
himself on a footstool at her feet; and by all these men she was
held in unqualified respect. Her income became impaired and unequal to
the expense of entertaining. She resorted to literature to add to her
resources. She was engaged by Heath, the engraver, to edit a certain
class of annuals popular in those days. For some years her income from
"The Keepsake" and "The Book of Beauty" exceeded one thousand pounds a
year. Her novels, too, were a source of some profit. For "Strathern"
she received about three thousand dollars. These romances were weak in
character and plot, but were fair pictures of society portrayed with
much piquancy.
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