eard of the change with trembling, but she could
do nothing: in October 1600, Jacqueline, then nine years old, took the
veil and the vows of poverty and obedience in the midst of a noble
company. She was far too excited to think about the religious ceremony
which had bound her for life to the cloister, and certainly nobody
else--unless her mother was present--thought about it either. Her very
name was changed too, and instead of 'Jacqueline' she became
'Angelique,' as 'Jeanne' became 'Agnes.'

As soon as the little girl was a professed nun, monsieur Marion and
monsieur Arnauld, who were not satisfied that the pope's consent already
obtained was really sufficient, began afresh to prepare a variety of
false papers, in order that when Angelique took possession of her abbey
no one should be able to turn her out of it. Seventy years before a law
had been passed declaring that no nun could be appointed abbess under
forty, and though this was constantly disregarded, the child's father
and grandfather felt that it was vain to ask the Pope to nominate a
child of nine to the post. So in the declaration her age was stated to
be seventeen; but even that Clement considered too young, and it
required all the influence that monsieur Marion could bring to bear to
induce him at last to give his consent. Permission was long in coming,
and in the midst of the negotiations the old abbess died suddenly, and
Angelique, now ten and a half, was 'Madame de Port Royal.'

* * * * *

When Angelique said good-bye to the nuns at Maubuisson, all of whom had
been fond of her, her mother took her to Port Royal, fearing in her
heart lest the customs of the convent might be as bad as in the one
ruled by madame d'Estrees. But she was consoled at finding the abbey far
too poor to indulge in all the expensive amusements of Maubuisson, and
that it contained only thirteen nuns, so that Angelique would not have
so many people to govern. It was thirty years since a sermon had been
preached within its walls, except on a few occasions when a novice had
taken the veil, and during the carnival, just before Lent, all the
inmates of the convent, the chaplain or confessor among them, acted
plays and had supper parties. Like the Maubuisson sisters, the nuns
always kept their long hair, and wore masks and gloves; but they were
only foolish, harmless young women following the fashion, except the
oldest of them all, whom madame Arnauld man