Joseph Balsamo (27 page)
” Laughs ? He sometimes gives me rhymes himself, when my own inspiration fails.”
” You know how I serve you, and you treat me thus ?”
” I know that you are betraying me the Duchess de Grammont wishes to ruin me.”
” Madame, I declare to you she took me quite unawares.”
” You confess, then, that I was informed correctly ? “
” I am forced to confess it.”
” Why did you not tell me ? “
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“I came now for that purpose.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Upon my honor ‘
“I bet two to one against that pledge.”
” Behold me at your feet ? ” and he fell on his knees. ” I beg forgiveness.”
” You are in the position in which you ought to be.”
” Let us make peace, countess, in Heaven’s name ! “
” So are you afraid of a few bad verses ! You, a man a minister ! Yet you never reflect how many wretched hours such things make me spend I, a poor, weak woman ! “
” You are a queen.”
“A queen not presented at court.”
” I swear to you I have never done anything hurtful to your interests.”
” No ; but you have allowed others to do so. The matter however, is now, not the doing nothing against them, but the doing all in your power to forward them. Are you on my side ? Yes or no ? “
” Certainly, on your side.”
” Will you assist me ? Will you allow nothing to inter-pose to hinder my presentation ?”
” For myself, I promise everything.”
“No,” said the countess, stamping with her foot. ” Punic faith ; I will not accept that. There is a loophole in it to creep out at. You will be supposed to do nothing against me yourself, but the Duke de Choiseul will do all. Give me up the Choiseul party, bound hand and foot, or I will annihilate you destroy you ! Take care ; verses are not my only weapons.”
” Do not threaten me, madame,” said Sartines, thoughtfully ; ” there are difficulties about this presentation which yon cannot understand.”
” Obstacles have purposely been thrown in the way of it. You can remove them.”
” It would require a hundred persons to do sc.”
” You shall have a million.”
“The king will not give his consent.”
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” He shall give it.”
” And, when you have got it, how get a lady to present
you?”
” I am seeking for one now.”
” It is quite useless ; there is a league against you.”
” At Versailles ?”
” Yes. All the ladies have refused, in order to pay their court to the Duke de Choiseul, the Duchess de Grammont, the dauphiness, and the whole prudish party.”
” Do not fear. I have nearly obtained what I want.”
” Ha ! it was for that you sent your sister to Verdun ?”
” So you know that, do you ? ” said she, angrily.
” Oh, I have also my police, you know,” said Sartines, laughing.
” And your spies ? “
” And my spies.”
” In my apartments ?”
” In your apartments.”
” In my stable, or in my kitchen ? “
” In your antechamber, in your saloon, in your bedroom, under your pillow.”
” Now, as the first pledge of our peace,” said the countess, ” give me the names of those spies.”
” No, countess ; I should not wish to embroil you with your friends.”
“But name only the last who told you a secret.”
” What would you do ? “
“I would turn him out.”
” If you begin in that way, you will soon have to live in an empty house.”
” This is frightful ! “
” Yet perfectly true. Oh, you know we could not govern without spies. So excellent a politician as you must have discovered that long ago.”
Mme.
Dubarry leaned her elbow on a table, and seemed to reflect for some minutes, then she said : ” Yon are right. Let us say no more on the subject. What are to be the conditions of our treaty ? “
” Make them yourself. You are the conqueror.”
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‘ ‘ I am as magnanimous as Semiramis. Let me hear what you wish.”
” Well, then, you are never to speak to the king about petitions on the subject of wheat ; for, traitress ! you have promised your support to those petitions ‘
” Very well. Take away all the petitions with you ; they are in a box there ‘
“As a reward, here is a document drawn up by the peers of the kingdom respecting presentations and the right of sitting in the royal presence. “
“A document which you were charged to give his majesty ? “
“Yes.”
” But what will yon say to them ? “
” That I have given it. You will thus gain time ; and you are too clever in your tactics not to take advantage of it.”
At this moment the folding-doors were thrown open, and a negro announced, ” The king ! “
The two allies hastened to hide their mutual pledge of peace and good understanding, and turned to salute his majesty, Louis the fifteenth of that name.
CHAPTER XXIV.
KING LOUIS THE FIFTEENTH.
THE King entered with head erect, with a firm step, his eye full of life, and a smile on his lips. As the doors were opened, a double file of bowing heads was seen belonging to the courtiers who had been long waiting in the antechamber, and who were now more desirous of admittance than ever, since they could thus pay their court to two powers at once ; but the doors closed on them, for the king made a sign that no one should follow him. He found himself alone, therefore, with the countess and the minister of police for we need not reckon the waiting-maid or the little negro boy.
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” Good morning, countess,” said the king, kissing
Mme.
Dubarry’s hand. “Ha ! fresh as any rose, I see. Good morning, Sartines. Is this your cabinet, where you write your despatches ? Heavens ! what heaps of papers ! Hide them hide them ! Ha ! what a beautiful fountain, countess.”
And, with the versatile curiosity of one always in search of something to amuse him, he fixed his eyes on a large china ornament which had been brought in since the evening before and placed in a corner of the countess’s bedroom.
” Sire,” replied the countess, ” it is a Chinese fountain : by turning this cock, the water comes out, and makes these birds sing and these fishes swim ; then the doors of the pagoda open, and there comes out a procession of mandarins.”
” Very pretty ! very pretty, indeed !”
At this moment the little negro walked across tho room, dressed in the fantastic fashion in which, at this period, they dressed their Osmans and Othellos. He wore a little turban, ornamented with a lofty plume of feathers, on one side of his head, a vest embroidered with gold, which permitted his ebony arms to be seen, and slashed breeches of white brocaded satin ; round his waist was a scarf of various bright colors, which connected the breeches with a richly embroidered jacket, and a dagger, ornamented with precious stones, was stuck in the scarf bound around his waist.
” Peste ! ” cried the king, ” how splendid Zamore is to-day!”
The negro stopped to admire himself before a mirror.
” Sire, he has a favor to ask of your majesty.”
” Madame,” replied the king, with a courtly smile, “I am afraid Zamore is very ambitious.”
” How so, sire ? “
” Because he has already been granted the greatest favor he can desire.”
” What is that ? “
” The same that has been granted me.”
“I do not understand you, sir.”
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” Yon have made him your slave.”
” Oh, how charming, sire ! ” cried the countess.
The minister of police bowed in assent, and bit his lip to prevent himself from smiling.
” But,” asked the king, ” what can Zamore desire?”
” The reward of his long and numerous services ‘
” Yes ; he is twelve years old.”
” His long and numerous future services.”
” Oh, very well.”
” Yes, indeed, sire ; past services have been rewarded long enough ; it is now time to begin and reward future ones. There would not then be so much ingratitude.”
” Ha ! not a bad idea,” said the king. “What do you think of it, Sartines ? “
” That it would benefit all devoted servants of your majesty, sire ; therefore, I support it.”
” Well, countess, what does Zamore want ?”
” Sire, you know my little country seat of Lu demies ? “
” I have merely heard it spoken of.”
” It is your own fault ; I have invited you to it a hundred times.”
“You know the etiquette, dear countess unless on a journey the king can only sleep in a royal chateau.”
” And for that very reason I wish you to make Luciennes a royal chateau, and Zamore its governor.”
” But, countess, that would be a burlesque.”
” I love burlesques, sire.”
” The governors of the other castles would all exclaim, and this time with reason.”
” Let them exclaim ; they have often done so without reason Kneel down, Zamore.”
The little fellow knelt.
” For what is he kneeling ? ” asked the king.
“For the reward you are going to give him for bearing my train, and putting all the prudes of the court in a rage.”
” He is really a hideous creature,” said the king, bursting into a fit of laughter.
” Eise, Zamore,” said the countess ; ” you are appointed governor of Lucieiines.”
20G JOSEPH BALSAMO.
“But, indeed, madame “
” I shall send Zamore all the writings necessary for his governorship. And now, sire, you may come to Luciennes, yon have one more royal chateau from this day.”
” Is there any way of refusing her anything, Sartines ? “
” There may be a way, sire ‘ replied Sartines, ” but it has not yet been discovered.”
“And if it should be found out, sire, there is one thing certain it is Monsieur de Sartines who will be the discoverer.”
” How can you think so, madame ? ” asked Sartines, trembling.
” Sire, only imagine that I have requested a favor of Monsieur de Sartines for three months past, and it is not yet granted.”
” And what is it ? ” asked the king.
“Oh, he knows very well ! “
” I I swear to you, madame “
” Does it fall under the duties of his office ?”
“Yes; either in his or those of his successor.”
“Madame,” cried Sartines, ” you really make me un-easy.”
” What is the request ? ” again inquired the king.
” To find me a sorcerer.”
Sartines breathed more freely.
” To burn him ? ” said the king. ” It is rather too hot, countess ; wait till the winter.”
“No, sir ; I wish to present him with a golden wand.”
” Then the sorcerer foretold you some misfortune which has not befallen you.”
” On the contrary, sire, he predicted a piece of good fortune which has come to pass. “
” Let us hear it, then, countess,” said the king, throwing himself back in an armchair, like one who was not quite sure whether the tale would tire him or amuse him, but who must run the chance.
” With all my heart ; but if I tell the tale, you must contribute the half of the sorcerer’s reward.”
” The whole, if you like.”
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“Royally said. Now, listen.”
“I am all attention.”
” There was once “
” It begins like a fairy tale.”
” It is one, sire.”
” Delightful ! I love enchanters.”
” There was once a poor young girl, who, at the time my story commences, had neither page, nor carriage, nor negro, nor parrot, nor monkey “
” Nor king ‘ added Louis.
“Oh, sire!”
” And what did your poor young girl do ? “
” She trotted about through the streets of Paris like any other common mortal, only she always went very quick ; for it was said she was pretty, and she was afraid of meeting some rude man.”
” The young girl was a Lucretia, eh ? “
” Oh, your majesty knows there have been no Lucretias since the year I don’t know what of the foundation of Rome. “
” Oh, heavens ! countess, are yon going to become learned ? “
” No ; if I were learned, I should have given you a wrong date ; now, I gave jo none.”
” True,” said the king ; ” go on.”
“The young girl one day was trotting along, as usual, when all at once, while crossing the Tuileries, she discovered that a man was following her.”
” Oh, the deuce ! Then she stopped, I presume ? “
” Ah, sire, what a bad opinion you have of women ! It is easy to see you have only associated with marchionesses and duchesses.”
” And princesses , eh ? “
” I am too polite to contradict your majesty ; but what frightened the young girl was, that a fog came on which became every moment denser.”
” Sartines, do you know what causes fogs ? “
The minister, thus taken unawares, started.
” Ma foi ! no, sire.”
208 JOSEPH BALSAMO.
” Nor I. Well, go on, dear conutess.”
“She ran as fast as she could, passed through the gate, and found herself in the square which bears your majesty’s name when she found the unknown, from whom she thought she had escaped, face to face with her. She uttered a cry “
” Was he so very ugly, then ? “
“No, sire; he was a handsome young man of six-or- eight-and-twenty, of a dark complexion, with large, speaking eyes, and a pleasing voice.”
“And the heroine was afraid ? Peste ! how easily she was frightened ! “
” She was not quite so much so when she looked at him ; still, it was not a pleasant situation in that dense fog. So, clasping her hands, she said : ‘ I implore you, sir, not to do me any harm.’ The unknown shook his head, smiled, and replied : ‘ Heaven is my witness, I have no evil intentions toward you.’ ‘ What, then, do you want ? ‘ I asked. ‘ To obtain a promise from you.’ ‘ What can I promise you, sir ? ‘ ‘ Promise to grant me the first favor I shall
ask when ‘ ‘ When ? ‘ repeated the young girl likewise.
‘ When you are queen.’”
” And what did the young girl do ? ” said the king.