an. The cardinal trusted him, and
therein found his advantage.

There are many stories related of him, and among them this. After a wild
youth, he had retired into a convent, there to expiate, at least for
some time, the follies of adolescence. On entering this holy place, the
poor penitent was unable to shut the door so close as to prevent the
passions he fled from entering with him. He was incessantly attacked by
them, and the superior, to whom he had confided this misfortune, wishing
as much as in him lay to free him from them, had advised him, in order
to conjure away the tempting demon, to have recourse to the bell rope,
and ring with all his might. At the denunciating sound, the monks would
be rendered aware that temptation was besieging a brother, and all the
community would go to prayers.

This advice appeared good to the future chancellor. He conjured the evil
spirit with abundance of prayers offered up by the monks. But the devil
does not suffer himself to be easily dispossessed from a place in which
he has fixed his garrison. In proportion as they redoubled the exorcisms
he redoubled the temptations; so that day and night the bell was ringing
full swing, announcing the extreme desire for mortification which the
penitent experienced.

The monks had no longer an instant of repose. By day they did nothing
but ascend and descend the steps which led to the chapel; at night,
in addition to complines and matins, they were further obliged to leap
twenty times out of their beds and prostrate themselves on the floor of
their cells.

It is not known whether it was the devil who gave way, or the monks who
grew tired; but within three months the penitent reappeared in the
world with the reputation of being the most terrible POSSESSED that ever
existed.

On leaving the convent he entered into the magistracy, became president
on the place of his uncle, embraced the cardinal's party, which did not
prove want of sagacity, became chancellor, served his Eminence with zeal
in his hatred against the queen-mother and his vengeance against Anne of
Austria, stimulated the judges in the affair of Calais, encouraged the
attempts of M. de Laffemas, chief gamekeeper of France; then, at length,
invested with the entire confidence of the cardinal--a confidence which
he had so well earned--he received the singular commission for the
execution of which he presented himself in the queen's apartments.

The queen was still standing when