y to you?"

"Listen, sire; these are King Charles's own words--"

"Oh, impossible!"

"Listen. 'And if that miserly, beggarly Italian,' said he--"

"My lord cardinal!"

"That is the sense, if not the words. Eh! Good heavens! I wish him no
ill on that account; one is biased by his passions. He said to you: 'If
that vile Italian refuses the million we ask of him, sire,--if we are
forced, for want of money, to renounce diplomacy, well, then, we will
ask him to grant us five hundred gentlemen.'"

The king started, for the cardinal was only mistaken in the number.

"Is not that it, sire?" cried the minister, with a triumphant accent.
"And then he added some fine words: he said, 'I have friends on the
other side of the channel, and these friends only want a leader and a
banner. When they see me, when they behold the banner of France, they
will rally around me, for they will comprehend that I have your support.
The colors of the French uniform will be worth as much to me as the
million M. de Mazarin refuses us,'--for he was pretty well assured
I should refuse him that million.--'I shall conquer with these five
hundred gentlemen, sire, and all the honor will be yours.' Now, that is
what he said, or to that purpose, was it not?--turning those plain words
into brilliant metaphors and pompous images, for they are fine talkers
in that family! The father talked even on the scaffold."

The perspiration of shame stood on the brow of Louis. He felt that it
was inconsistent with his dignity to hear his brother thus insulted, but
he did not yet know how to act with him to whom every one yielded, even
his mother. At last he made an effort.

"But," said he, "my lord cardinal, it is not five hundred men, it is
only two hundred."

"Well, but you see I guessed what he wanted."

"I never denied that you had a penetrating eye, and that was why I
thought you would not refuse my brother Charles a thing so simple and so
easy to grant him as what I ask of you in his name, my lord cardinal, or
rather in my own."

"Sire," said Mazarin, "I have studied policy thirty years; first, under
the auspices of M. le Cardinal Richelieu; and then alone. This policy
has not always been over-honest, it must be allowed, but it has never
been unskillful. Now that which is proposed to your majesty is dishonest
and unskillful at the same time."

"Dishonest, monsieur!"

"Sire, you entered into a treaty with Cromwell."

"Yes, and in that very treaty Cr