joyed his friend's delight by anticipation. At
the expiration of four months, he received this long-expected
letter. It would be utterly impossible to describe his surprise
on reading the following words. 'Heaven, my dear Marquis, never
granted me the happiness of becoming a father, and, in the midst
of abundant wealth and honours, the grief of having no heirs,
and seeing an illustrious race end in my person, has shed the
greatest bitterness over my whole existence. I see, with extreme
regret, that you have been imposed upon by a young adventurer,
who has taken advantage of the knowledge he had, by some means,
obtained, of our old friendship. But your Excellency must not
be the sufferer. The Count of Moncade is, most assuredly, the
person whom you wished to serve; he is bound to repay what your
generous friendship hastened to advance, in order to procure
him a happiness which he would have felt most deeply. I hope,
therefore, Marquis, that your Excellency will have no hesitation
in accepting the remittance contained in this letter, of three
thousand louis of France, of the disbursal of which you sent
me an account.'"

The manner in which the Comte de St. Germain spoke, in the characters
of the young adventurer, his mistress, and the Ambassador, made
his audience weep and laugh by turns. The story is true in every
particular, and the adventurer surpasses Gusman d'Alfarache in
address, according to the report of some persons present. Madame
de Pompadour thought of having a play written, founded on this
story; and the Count sent it to her in writing, from which I
transcribed it.

M. Duclos came to the Doctor's, and harangued with his usual
warmth. I heard him saying to two or three persons, "People are
unjust to great men, Ministers and Princes; nothing, for instance,
is more common than to undervalue their intellect. I astonished
one of these little gentlemen of the corps of the _infallibles_,
by telling him that I could prove that there had been more men
of ability in the house of Bourbon, for the last hundred years,
than in any other family." "You prove that?" said somebody,
sneeringly. "Yes," said Duclos; "and I will tell you how. The
great Conde, you will allow, was no fool; and the Duchesse de
Longueville is cited as one of the wittiest women that ever lived.
The Regent was a man who had few equals, in every kind of talent
and acquirement. The Prince de Conti, who was elected King of
Poland, was celebrated for h