Part 59 (1/2)
”You hear, Conan went up to hilance
”Monsieur de Coes,” he said, ”pardon me; we both are servants of the queen, are we not? It is my turn to be of use to her; do not envy es bowed and left
”Coot oneD'Artagnan, ”what is to be done? for you hear that, instead of beco calnan, ”the people want to see the king and they must see him”
”What! must see him! Where--on the balcony?”
”Not at all,in his bed”
”Oh, your ht”
The queen becahtful and ser
”Without doubt,” she o and announce to the people through the grating that they are going to be satisfied and that in five , but they shall see his that they will keep silence, so as not to awaken him”
”But not every one; a deputation of two or four people”
”Every one, madame”
”But reflect, they will keep us here till daybreak”
”It shall take but a quarter of an hour, I answer for everything, reat child, who only wants huentle and timid as la king approached his mother and said, ”Why do as these people ask?”
”It must be so, my son,” said Anne of Austria
”But if they say, 'it ?”
The queen renan, ”will your majesty permit me to ask you a question?”
Louis XIV turned around, astonished that any one should dare to address him But the queen pressed the child's hand
”Yes, sir” he said
”Does yourin the park of Fontainebleau, or in the palace courts at Versailles, ever to have seen the sky grow suddenly dark and heard the sound of thunder?”
”Yes, certainly”
”Well, then, this noise of thunder, however , has said, 'go in, sire You must do so'”
”Certainly, sir; but they tell me that the noise of thunder is the voice of God”
”Well then, sire,” continued D'Artagnan, ”listen to the noise of the people; you will perceive that it resembles that of thunder”
In truth at that ht breeze; then all at once it ceased
”Hold, sire,” said D'Artagnan, ”they have just told the people that you are asleep; you see, you still are king”
The queen looked with surprise at this strange e made him the equal of the bravest, and as, by his fine and quick intelligence, the equal of the most astute
Laporte entered
”Well, Laporte?” asked the queen
”Madanan's prediction has been accomplished; they are calm, as if by enchantment The doors are about to be opened and in five minutes they will be here”
”Laporte,” said the queen, ”suppose you put one of your sons in the king's place; wethe time”
”If your majesty desires it,” said Laporte, ”my sons, like myself, are at the queen's service”
”Not at all,” said D'Artagnan; ”should one of them know his majesty and discover but a substitute, all would be lost”
”You are right, sir, always right,” said Anne of Austria ”Laporte, place the king in bed”
Laporte placed the king, dressed as he was, in the bed and then covered him as far as the shoulders with the sheet The queen bent over him and kissed his brow
”Pretend to sleep, Louis,” said she
”Yes,” said the king, ”but I do not wish to be touched by any of those ive you le man has the audacity, his life shall pay for it”
”And nohat is to be done?” asked the queen, ”for I hear theain recommend silence Madame, wait at the door, whilst I shall be at the head of the king's bed, ready to die for hi near the hangings, whilst D'Artagnan glided behind the curtains
Then the heavy and collected steps of a multitude of ings and put her finger on her lips
On seeing the queen, the entlest that crowd a moment's hesitation, which looked like shame They had expected resistance, they had expected to be thwarted, to have to force the gates, to overturn the guards The gates had opened of theuard at his bed-head but his mother The foremost of theentlemen,” said Laporte, ”since the queen desires you so to do”