FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50  
51   52   53   54   >>  
ken back to the Abbey of Notre Dame, the prelate wrote to M. Bontems, that is to say, to the real father, and poor Opportune was taken to Moret, a convent of Benedictines, in the forest of Fontainebleau. There they took the course of lavishing care, and kindness, and attentions on her. But as her destiny, written in her cradle, was an irrevocable sentence, she was finally made to take the veil, which suited her admirably, and which she wears with an infinite despair. I disguised myself one day as a lady suitor who sought a lodging in the house. I established myself there for a week, under the name of the Comtesse de Clagny, and I saw, with my own eyes, a King's daughter reduced to singing matins. Her air of nobility and dignity struck me with admiration and moved me to tears. I thought of her four sisters, dead at such an early age, and deplored the cruelty of Fate, which had spared her in her childhood to kill her slowly and by degrees. I would have accosted her in the gardens, and insinuated myself into her confidence, but the danger of these interviews, both for her and me, restrained what had been an ill-judged kindness. We should both have gone too far, and the monarch would have been able to think that I was opposing him out of revenge, and to give him pain. This consideration came and crushed all my projects of compassion and kindness. There are situations in life where we are condemned to see evil done in all liberty, without being able to call for succour or complain. CHAPTER XLIV. The Aristocratic Republic of Genoa Offends the King.--Its Punishment.--Reception of the Doge at Paris and Versailles. M. de Louvois--by nature, as I have said, hard and despotic--was quite satisfied to gain the same reputation for the King, in order to cover his own violence and rigour beneath the authority of the monarch. The King, I admit, did not like to be contradicted or opposed. He became irritated if one was unfortunate enough to do so; but I know from long experience that he readily accepted a good excuse, and by inclination liked neither to punish nor blame. The Marquis de Louvois was unceasingly occupied in exciting him against one Power and then another, and his policy was to keep the prince in constant alarm of distrust in order to perpetuate wars and dissensions. This order of things pleased that minister, who dreaded intervals of calm and peace, when the King came to examine expenses and
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39   40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50  
51   52   53   54   >>  



Top keywords:

kindness

 
monarch
 

Louvois

 

despotic

 

satisfied

 
nature
 
Versailles
 
reputation
 

authority

 

beneath


rigour

 
violence
 

Reception

 
liberty
 

condemned

 
prelate
 

compassion

 

situations

 

Republic

 

Aristocratic


Offends

 
succour
 

complain

 
CHAPTER
 

Punishment

 

contradicted

 
prince
 
constant
 

distrust

 

policy


exciting

 

occupied

 
perpetuate
 

examine

 

expenses

 
intervals
 

dreaded

 

dissensions

 

things

 
pleased

minister

 

unceasingly

 

Marquis

 

unfortunate

 

opposed

 

irritated

 
experience
 

punish

 
inclination
 

excuse