ent for it back again, and kept it as a curiosity. He
could not overcome his surprise, and said that M. de St. Germain
must be worth millions, especially if he had also the secret of
making large diamonds out of a number of small ones. He neither
said that he had, nor that he had not; but he positively asserted
that he could make pearls grow, and give them the finest water.
The King paid him great attention, and so did Madame de Pompadour.
It was from her I learnt what I have just related. M. Quesnay
said, talking of the pearls, "They are produced by a disease
in the oyster. It is possible to know the cause of it; but, be
that as it may, he is not the less a quack, since he pretends
to have the _elixir vitoe_, and to have lived several centuries.
Our master is, however, infatuated by him, and sometimes talks
of him as if his descent were illustrious."

I have seen him frequently: he appeared to be about fifty; he was
neither fat nor thin; he had an acute, intelligent look, dressed
very simply, but in good taste; he wore very fine diamonds in his
rings, watch, and snuff-box. He came, one day, to visit Madame
de Pompadour, at a time when the Court was in full splendour, with
knee and shoe-buckles of diamonds so fine and brilliant that
Madame said she did not believe the King had any equal to them.
He went into the antechamber to take them off, and brought them to
be examined; they were compared with others in the room, and the
Duc de Gontaut, who was present, said they were both at least
eight thousand louis. He wore, at the same time, a snuff-box of
inestimable value, and ruby sleeve-buttons, which were perfectly
dazzling. Nobody could find out by what means this man became
so rich and so remarkable; but the King would not suffer him
to be spoken of with ridicule or contempt. He was said to be a
bastard son of the King of Portugal.

I learnt, from M. de Marigny, that the relations of the good
little Marechale (de Mirepoix) had been extremely severe upon her,
for what they called the baseness of her conduct, with regard to
Madame de Pompadour. They said she held the stones of the cherries
which Madame ate in her carriage, in her beautiful little hands,
and that she sate in the front of the carriage, while Madame
occupied the whole seat in the inside. The truth was, that, in
going to Crecy, on an insupportably hot day, they both wished to
sit alone, that they might be cooler; and as to the matter of
the cherries, the v