There is, in short, both at Versailles and Paris, a prodigious
mixture of magnificence and negligence with every kind of elegance except
that of cleanliness, and what we call tidiness."
Franklin next appeared at the Court of Versailles upon the momentous
occasion of the ratification of the alliance signed in 1778 by France and
America. Dressed in a black velvet suit with ruffles of snowy white,
white silk stockings and silver buckles, the emissary of the United
States appeared in a gorgeous coach at the portals of Versailles. It is
related that the chamberlain hesitated a moment to admit him, for he was
without the wig and sword Court etiquette demanded, "but it was only for
a moment; and all the Court were captivated at the democratic effrontery
of his conduct." Franklin and the four envoys that accompanied him were
conducted to the dressing-room of Louis XVI, who, without ceremony,
assured them of his friendship for the new-born country they represented.
In the evening the Americans were invited to watch the play of the royal
family at the gaming-table, and Dr. Franklin, so Madame Campan relates,
"was honored by the particular notice of the Queen, who courteously
desired him to stand near to her, and as often as the game did not
require her immediate attention, she took occasion to speak to him in
very obliging terms."
The _New York Journal_, under date of July 6, 1778, recounted another
picturesque detail of this presentation of the American envoys at
Versailles.
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