to with pleasure--it will easily be
believed that the _reunions_ held in Madame's apartments must naturally
have proved very attractive. All who were young flocked there, and when
the king himself happens to be young, everybody at court is so too.
And so, the older ladies of the court, the strong-minded women of the
regency, or of the last reign, pouted and sulked at their ease; but
others only laughed at the fits of sulkiness in which these venerable
individuals indulged, who had carried the love of authority so far as
even to take command of bodies of soldiers in the wars of the Fronde,
in order, as Madame asserted, not to lose their influence over men
altogether. As eight o'clock struck her royal highness entered the great
drawing-room accompanied by her ladies in attendance, and found several
gentlemen belonging to the court already there, having been waiting for
some minutes. Among those who had arrived before the hour fixed for the
reception she looked round for one who, she thought, ought to have been
first in attendance, but he was not there. However, almost at the very
moment she completed her investigation, Monsieur was announced. Monsieur
looked splendid. All the precious stones and jewels of Cardinal Mazarin,
which of course that minister could not do otherwise than leave; all the
queen-mother's jewels as well as a few belonging to his wife--Monsieur
wore them all, and he was as dazzling as the rising sun. Behind him
followed De Guiche, with hesitating steps and an air of contrition
admirably assumed; De Guiche wore a costume of French-gray velvet,
embroidered with silver, and trimmed with blue ribbons: he wore also
Mechlin lace as rare and beautiful in its own way as the jewels of
Monsieur in theirs. The plume in his hat was red. Madame, too, wore
several colors, and preferred red for embroidery, gray for dress, and
blue for flowers. M. de Guiche, dressed as we have described, looked so
handsome that he excited every one's observation. An interesting pallor
of complexion, a languid expression of the eyes, his white hands seen
through the masses of lace that covered them, the melancholy expression
of his mouth--it was only necessary, indeed, to see M. de Guiche to
admit that few men at the court of France could hope to equal him. The
consequence was that Monsieur, who was pretentious enough to fancy he
could eclipse a star even, if a star had adorned itself in a similar
manner to himself, was, on the contrary