will be there. This Count was the
brother of the Dauphine, and this mention of him was deservedly thought
impertinent. The King said, wittily enough, "Lambert and Moliere will be
there." She scarcely ever spoke of the Cardinal de Bernis after his
dismissal from the Court.

He was extremely ridiculous, but he was a good sort of man. Madame, the
Infanta, died a little time before, and, by the way, of such a
complication of putrid and malignant diseases, that the Capuchins who
bore the body, and the men who committed it to the grave, were overcome
by the effluvia. Her papers appeared no less impure in the eyes of the
King. He discovered that the Abbe de Bernis had been intriguing with
her, and that they had deceived him, and had obtained the Cardinal's hat
by making use of his name. The King was so indignant that he was very
near refusing him the barrette. He did grant it--but just as he would
have thrown a bone to a dog. The Abbe had always the air of a protege
when he was in the company of Madame de Pompadour. She had known him in
positive distress. The Due de Choiseul was very differently situated;
his birth, his air, his manners, gave him claims to consideration, and he
far exceeded every other man in the art of ingratiating himself with
Madame de Pompadour. She looked upon him as one of the most illustrious
nobles of the Court, as the most able Minister, and the most agreeable
man. M. de Choiseul had a sister and a wife, whom he had introduced to
her, and who sedulously cultivated her favourable sentiments towards him.
From the time he was Minister, she saw only with his eyes; he had the
talent of amusing her, and his manners to women, generally, were
extremely agreeable.

Two persons--the Lieutenant of Police and the Postmaster-General--were
very much in Madame de Pompadour's confidence; the latter, however,
became less necessary to her from the time that the King communicated to
M. de Choiseul the secret of the post-office, that is to say, the system
of opening letters and extracting matter from them: this had never been
imparted to M. d'Argenson, in spite of the high favour he enjoyed. I have
heard that M. de Choiseul abused the confidence reposed in him, and
related to his friends the ludicrous stories, and the love affairs,
contained in the letters which were broken open. The plan they pursued,
as I have heard, was very simple. Six or seven clerks of the post-office
picked out the letters they we