said she.

"A gift?" repeated Fouquet.

"Yes," said the king, replying pointedly to the superintendent of
finances, "yes, at the point of death, monsieur le cardinal makes me a
donation of all his wealth."

"Forty millions," cried the queen. "Oh, my son! this is very noble on
the part of his eminence, and will silence all malicious rumors; forty
millions scraped together slowly, coming back all in one heap to the
treasury! It is the act of a faithful subject and a good Christian." And
having once more cast her eyes over the act, she restored it to Louis
XIV., whom the announcement of the sum greatly agitated. Fouquet had
taken some steps backwards and remained silent. The king looked at him,
and held the paper out to him, in turn. The superintendent only bestowed
a haughty look of a second upon it; then bowing,--"Yes, sire," said he,
"a donation, I see."

"You must reply to it, my son," said Anne of Austria; "you must reply to
it, and immediately."

"But how, madame?"

"By a visit to the cardinal."

"Why, it is but an hour since I left his eminence," said the king.

"Write, then, sire."

"Write!" said the young king, with evident repugnance.

"Well!" replied Anne of Austria, "it seems to me, my son, that a man who
has just made such a present has a good right to expect to be thanked
for it with some degree of promptitude." Then turning towards Fouquet:
"Is not that likewise your opinion, monsieur?"

"That the present is worth the trouble? Yes madame," said Fouquet, with
a lofty air that did not escape the king.

"Accept, then, and thank him," insisted Anne of Austria.

"What says M. Fouquet?" asked Louis XIV.

"Does your majesty wish to know my opinion?"

"Yes."

"Thank him, sire----"

"Ah!" said the queen.

"But do not accept," continued Fouquet.

"And why not?" asked the queen.

"You have yourself said why, madame," replied Fouquet; "because kings
cannot and ought not to receive presents from their subjects."

The king remained silent between these two contrary opinions.

"But forty millions!" said Anne of Austria, in the same tone as that in
which, at a later period, poor Marie Antoinette replied, "You will tell
me as much!"

"I know," said Fouquet, laughing, "forty millions makes a good round
sum,--such a sum as could almost tempt a royal conscience."

"But monsieur," said Anne of Austria, "instead of persuading the king
not to receive this present, recall to his majesty's mind, you,