and devotedly
attached to the King and Madame de Pompadour. Some people pretended
that she tried to captivate the King, and to supplant Madame:
nothing could be more false, or more ridiculously improbable.
Madame saw a great deal of these two ladies, who were extremely
attentive to her. She one day remarked to the Duc d'Ayen, that
M. de Choiseul was very fond of his sisters. "I know it, Madame,"
said he, "and many sisters are the better for that." "What do
you mean?" said she. "Why," said he, "as the Duc de Choiseul
loves his sister, it is thought fashionable to do the same; and
I know silly girls, whose brothers formerly cared nothing about
them, who are now most tenderly beloved. No sooner does their
little finger ache, than their brothers are running about to fetch
physicians from all corners of Paris. They flatter themselves
that somebody will say, in M. de Choiseul's drawing-room, "How
passionately M. de ---- loves his sister; he would certainly
die if he had the misfortune to lose her." Madame related this
to her brother, in my presence, adding, that she could not give
it in the Duke's comic manner. M. de Marigny said, "I have had
the start of them all, without making so much noise; and my dear
little sister knows that I loved her tenderly before Madame de
Grammont left her convent. The Duc d'Ayen, however, is not very
wrong; he has made the most of it in his lively manner, but it
is partly true." "I forgot," replied Madame, "that the Duke said,
'I want extremely to be in the fashion, but which sister shall
I take up? Madame de Caumont is a devil incarnate, Madame de
Villars drinks, Madame d'Armagnac is a bore, Madame de la Marck
is half mad.'" "These are fine family portraits, Duke," said
Madame. The Duc de Gontaut laughed, during the whole of this
conversation, immoderately. Madame repeated it, one day, when
she kept her bed. M. de G---- also began to talk of his sister,
Madame du Roure. I think, at least, that is the name he mentioned.
He was very gay, and had the art of creating gaiety. Somebody
said, he is an excellent piece of furniture for a favourite. He
makes her laugh, and asks for nothing either for himself or for
others; he cannot excite jealousy, and he meddles in nothing. He
was called the White Eunuch. Madame's illness increased so rapidly
that we were alarmed about her; but bleeding in the foot cured
her as if by a miracle. The King watched her with the greatest
solicitude; and I don't know whet