assistance from the people of Provence, so as to harass M. de Savoie in
his passage of the Var. They refused money, militia, and provisions
bluntly, saying that it was no matter to them who came, and that M. de
Savoie could not torment them more than they were tormented already.

The important news of a deliverance so desired arrived at Marly on
Friday, the 26th of August, and overwhelmed all the Court with joy. A
scandalous fuss arose, however, out of this event. The first courier who
brought the intelligence of it, had been despatched by the commander of
the fleet, and had been conducted to the King by Pontchartrain, who had
the affairs of the navy under his control. The courier sent by Tesse,
who commanded the land forces, did not arrive until some hours after the
other. Chamillart, who received this second courier, was piqued to
excess that Pontchartrain had outstripped him with the news. He declared
that the news did not belong to the navy, and consequently Pontchartrain
had no right to carry it to the King. The public, strangely enough,
sided with Chamillart, and on every side Pontchartrain was treated as a
greedy usurper. Nobody had sufficient sense to reflect upon the anger
which a master would feel against a servant who, having the information
by which that master could be relieved from extreme anxiety, should yet
withhold the information for six or eight hours, on the ground that to
tell it was the duty of another servant!

The strangest thing is, that the King, who was the most interested, had
not the force to declare himself on either side, but kept silent. The
torrent was so impetuous that Pontchartrain had only to lower his head,
keep silent, and let the waters pass. Such was the weakness of the King
for his ministers. I recollect that, in 1702, the Duc de Villeroy
brought to Marly the important news of the battle of Luzzara. But,
because Chamillart was not there, he hid himself, left the King and the
Court in the utmost anxiety, and did not announce his news until long
after, when Chamillart, hearing of his arrival, hastened to join him and
present him to the King. The King was so far from being displeased, that
he made the Duc de Villeroy Lieutenant-General before dismissing him.

There is another odd thing that I must relate before quitting this
affair. Tesse, as I have said, was charged with the defence of Toulon by
land. It was a charge of no slight importance. He was in a country
where nothing was