ty, who were to
watch night and day, lest he might escape in the coach of an
acquaintance. On the following morning his Eminence sent to summon me an
hour before dawn, and I was surprised on my arrival to find him pacing
his chamber in his dressing-gown.

"'Rambure,' he said as I entered, 'I confess to you that I suspect some
conspiracy is on foot against the King, the state, and myself; and,
moreover, if I am not deceived, it is organizing at the Luxembourg with
the consent and connivance of the Duc d'Orleans; but as this is mere
suspicion, I am anxious, in order to see my way more clearly, to place
some confidential person as a sentinel near the palace to watch who goes
in and out.'

"After having hesitated for a time, I told his Eminence that I was
willing to undertake the adventure, and quite ready to obey
his commands.

"'I have faith in you, M. de Rambure,' said the Cardinal; 'I am
perfectly convinced of the affection which you bear, not only towards
the King and the state, but also towards myself; but I have determined
to desire M. de Rochefort to disguise himself as a cripple, and to take
up his position in front of the Luxembourg, where he must remain day and
night until he has discovered whether it were really the Fleming that
he saw.'

"Then, summoning a page who was waiting in the antechamber, his Eminence
sent for M. de Rochefort, who was not long in coming; and told him what
he proposed. Rochefort, who was always ready to comply with every wish
of the Cardinal, immediately declared his willingness to play the part
assigned to him; and a trusty person who had attended him to the
apartment of Monseigneur was instructed to procure without loss of time,
and with the greatest secrecy, a pair of crutches, a suit of rags, and
all the articles necessary to complete the metamorphosis.

"His Eminence having, on the return of the lackey, expressed his desire
to witness the effect of the disguise, M. de Rochefort retired to
another chamber, where, with the assistance of his servant, he exchanged
his velvet vest and satin haut-de-chausses for the foul garb of a
mendicant; this done, he smeared his face with dirt, and crouching down
in a corner, he requested me to announce to Monseigneur that he was
ready to receive him. His Eminence was astonished at his appearance, as
well as to see him act the character he had assumed as if he had studied
and practised it all his life. He told him to set forth, and that if he