I would not be Fouquier-Tinville to the former nor butcher
to the latter; but my affection then has reached its limit. Even when I
find something worthy of admiration, my inclination is toward the small.
I prefer the Boboli Gardens to those of Versailles, and Venetian or
Florentine history to that of India.
Great states, great captains, great kings, great gods, leave me cold.
They are all for peoples who dwell on vast plains which are crossed by
mighty rivers, for the Egyptians, for the Chinese, for the Hindus, for
the Germans, for the French.
We Europeans who are of the region of the Pyrenees and the Alps, love
small states, small rivers, and small gods, whom we may address
familiarly.
Salaverria is also mistaken when he says that I am afraid of change. I
am not afraid. My nature is to change. I am predisposed to develop, to
move from here to there, to reverse my literary and political views if
my feelings or my ideas alter. I avoid no reading except that which is
dull; I shall never retreat from any performance except a vapid one, nor
am I a partisan either of austerity or of consistency. Moreover, I am
not a little dissatisfied with myself, and I would give a great deal to
have the pleasure of turning completely about, if only to prove to
myself that I am capable of a shift of attitude which is sincere.
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