Page:A French Volunteer of the War of Independence.djvu/123

Rh The German Baron of whom he spoke so slightingly, was Baron Steuben, a great tactician, who was accompanied also by the Chevalier de Teman, a very distinguished officer. I have already named M. Duportail, M. Duplessis-Mauduit, and M. de la Rouarie. When the last-named presented himself before Congress, he was attended by his valet, a tall, handsome, and very brave man, named Lefevre. M. de la Rouarie at once received his commission as colonel, and, so simple and inexperienced were the members of the Committee, that they offered a similar commission to the valet on the strength of his good looks. He thanked Congress for the proffered honour, but begged leave to refuse it. Congress then consisted of thirteen members, one from each State of the Union, but men very different from us in their habits and ways. They took their seats in the Congress Hall, as we should enter a reading room in Paris, and the wisdom of their magnanimous resolutions was even surpassed by the simplicity of their manners.