With that, and many compliments,
he quitted her, and passed into his own rooms with a very serious air,
and without stopping for anybody.

The news of this interview, and of what had taken place, soon spread
through the chamber. Scarcely had people begun to pity Madame de
Roquelaure, than some, by aversion for the grand imperial airs of this
poor mother,--the majority, seized by mirth at the idea of a creature,
well known to be very ugly and humpbacked, being carried off by such an
ugly gallant,--burst out laughing, even to tears, and with an uproar
completely scandalous. Madame de Maintenon abandoned herself to mirth,
like the rest, and corrected the others at last, by saying it was not
very charitable, in a tone that could impose upon no one.

Madame de Saint-Simon and I were at Paris. We knew with all Paris of
this affair, but were ignorant of the place of the marriage and the part
M. de Lorges had had in it, when the third day after the adventure I was
startled out of my sleep at five o'clock in the morning, and saw my
curtains and my windows open at the same time, and Madame de Saint-Simon
and her brother (M. de Lorges) before me. They related to me all that
had occurred, and then went away to consult with a skilful person what
course to adopt, leaving me to dress. I never saw a man so crestfallen
as M. de Lorges. He had confessed what he had done to a clever lawyer,
who had much frightened him. After quitting him, he had hastened to us
to make us go and see Pontchartrain. The most serious things are
sometimes accompanied with the most ridiculous. M. de Lorges upon
arriving knocked at the door of a little room which preceded the chamber
of Madame de Saint-Simon. My daughter was rather unwell. Madame de
Saint-Simon thought she was worse, and supposing it was I who had
knocked, ran and opened the door. At the sight of her brother she ran
back to her bed, to which he followed her, in order to relate his
disaster. She rang for the windows to be opened, in order that she might
see better. It so happened that she had taken the evening before a new
servant, a country girl of sixteen, who slept in the little room. M. de
Lorges, in a hurry to be off, told this girl to make haste in opening the
windows, and then to go away and close the door. At this, the simple
girl, all amazed, took her robe and her cotillon, and went upstairs to an
old chambermaid, awoke her, and with much hesitation told her what had
just happened, and