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Bilibin was a man of thirty-five, a bachelor, and of the same

circle as Prince Andrew. They had known each other previously in

Petersburg, but had become more intimate when Prince Andrew was

in Vienna with Kutuzov. Just as Prince Andrew was a young man who

gave promise of rising high in the military profession, so to an

even greater extent Bilibin gave promise of rising in his

diplomatic career. He was still a young man but no longer a young

diplomat, as he had entered the service at the age of sixteen,

had been in Paris and Copenhagen, and now held a rather important

post in Vienna. Both the foreign minister and our ambassador in

Vienna knew him and valued him. He was not one of those many

diplomats who are esteemed because they have certain negative

qualities, avoid doing certain things, and speak French. He was

one of those, who, liking work, knew how to do it, and despite

his indolence would sometimes spend a whole night at his writing

table.