Ill

THE CONFERENCE

27

His seat in the room in the President's house, wherethe regular meetings of the Council of Four were held(as distinguished from their private and unattendedconferences in a smaller chamber below r ), was on asquare brocaded chair in the middle of the semicirclefacing the fire-place, with Signor Orlando on his left,the President next by the fire-place, and the PrimeMinister opposite on the other side of the fire-placeon his right. He carried no papers and no portfolio,and was unattended by any personal secretary, thoughseveral French ministers and officials appropriateto the particular matter in hand would be presentround him. His walk, his hand, and his voice werenot lacking in vigour, but he bore nevertheless,especially after the attempt upon him, the aspectof a very old man conserving his strength for im-portant occasions. He spoke seldom, leaving theinitial statement of the French case to his ministersor officials; he closed his eyes often and sat backin his chair with an impassive face of parchment,his grey gloved hands clasped in front of him. Ashort sentence, decisive or cynical, was generallysufficient, a question, an unqualified abandonmentof his ministers, whose face would not be saved, ora display of obstinacy reinforced by a few wordsin a piquantly delivered English . 1 But speech and

1 He alone amongst the Four could speak and understand both lan-guages, Orlando knowing only French and the Prime Minister and Presidentonly English ; and it is of historical importance that Orlando and thePresident had no direct means of communication.