s, who had formed the
project of murdering the King, have inflicted several wounds
on a garde-du-corps, who overheard them in a dark corridor; he
is carried to the hospital; and as he has described the colour
of these men's coats, the Police are in quest of them in all
directions, and some people, dressed in clothes of that colour,
are already arrested." I saw Madame with M. de Gontaut, and I
hastened home. She found her door besieged by a multitude of
people, and was alarmed: when she got in, she found the Comte
de Noailles. "What is all this, Count?" said she. He said he was
come expressly to speak to her, and they retired to her closet
together. The conference was not long. I had remained in the
drawing-room, with Madame's equerry, the Chevalier de Sosent,
Gourbillon, her _valet de chambre_, and some strangers. A great
many details were related; but, the wounds being little more
than scratches, and the garde-du-corps having let fall some
contradictions, it was thought that he was an impostor, who had
invented all this story to bring himself into favour. Before the
night was over, this was proved to be the fact, and, I believe,
from his own confession. The King came, that evening, to see
Madame de Pompadour; he spoke of this occurrence with great _sang
froid_, and said, "The gentleman who wanted to kill me was a
wicked madman; this is a low scoundrel."

When he spoke of Damiens, which was only while his trial lasted,
he never called him anything but _that gentleman_.

I have heard it said that he proposed having him shut up in a
dungeon for life; but that the horrible nature of the crime made
the judges insist upon his suffering all the tortures inflicted
upon like occasions. Great numbers, many of them women, had a
barbarous curiosity to witness the execution; amongst others,
Madame de P----, a very beautiful woman, and the wife of a Farmer
General. She hired two places at a window for twelve louis, and
played a game of cards in the room whilst waiting for the execution
to begin. On this being told to the King, he covered his eyes
with his hands and exclaimed, "_Fi, la Vilaine!_" I have been
told that she, and others, thought to pay their court in this
way, and signalise their attachment to the King's person.

Two things were related to me by M. Duclos at the time of the
attempt on the King's life.

The first, relative to the Comte de Sponheim, who was the Duc
de Deux-Ponts, and next in succession to the Palat