Part 18 (2/2)
”I have not the least wish to shock you, randfather--is too great to letthe damned, and he never attended confession at all”
[Theodore Agrippa, Baron d'Aubigne, lieutenant-general in the army of Henri IV He persevered in Calvinis--EDITOR'S NOTE]
”Eternity hides that secret from us,” replied Madame de Maintenon ”Each day I pray to God to havethe saved, I should never be at pains to do this”
”Bah, htforward people,” quoth the General ”The reverend Pere de la Chaise--one of the Jesuit oracles--gives the King absolution every year, and authorises hi's confessor--thorough priest as he is--pardons his intimacy with madame, here, how comes it that the other cleric won't tolerate ? On a point of such iht really to coreement, or else, as the Jesuits have such a tremendous reputation, the Marquise is entitled to side with them”
Hemmed in thus, Madame de Maintenon remarked ”that the morals of Jesuits and lax casuists had never been hers,” and she advised me to choose a confessor far reues
The next day she e priest to me, uninfluenced by anybody, and whose primitive simplicity caused hienuously went to confess oodness did not prevent hiance of loves, andit, flew into a passion I suppress the details of his disagreeable propositions Seated sideways in his confessional, he stamped on the floor, abusedI could not stand such scandalous behaviour for long; and, wearing hly deter holiday M de Vivonne soundly rated me for such cowardice, as he called it, while Madame de Maintenon offered me her curate-in-chief, or else the Abbe Gobelin
But, for the ti to confession, strengthened in such resolve by ood sense, and the attitude of the King's Jesuit confessor, who had a great reputation and knehat he was about
CHAPTER XLIII
The Comte de Guiche--His Violent Passion for Madaain--A Man's Heart--Cured of His Passion, He Takes a Wife
The Comte de Guiche, son of the Marechal de Grammont, was undoubtedly one of the handsorandeur and wealth of his fae and self-conceit, so that in his blind, frivolous presuht, who exceeded his own fascination was possibly the King, but nobody else
Perceiving the wonderful charm of Monsieur's first wife, he conceived so violent a passion for her that no counsel nor restraint could prevent hiths in obedience to this rash, this boundless passion
Henrietta of England, lected by her husband, and naturally of a ro Count to declare his love for her, either by singing pretty roether in the forantly dressed, he never failed to attend all the assemblies to which she lent lustre by her presence He followed her to Saint Germain, to Versailles, to Cha in the enjoy desirous of walking alongside her sedan-chair, without being recognised, he had a complete suitto be one of the duchess's pages, he was able to converse with Madauised hiipsy, and came to tell the Princess her fortune At first she did not recognise him, but when the secret was out, and all the ladies were in fits of laughter, a page ca De Guiche slipped out by a back staircase, and in order to facilitate his exit, one of the footht hold of the Prince as if he were one of his co a handkerchief over his face, nearly poked his eye out
The Count's indiscretions were retailed in due course to Monsieur by his favourites, and he was incensed beyond measure He co
Hereupon, M de Guiche received orders to travel for two or three years
War with the Turks had just been declared, and together with other officers, his friends, he set out for Candia and took part in the siege
All did him the justice to affirm that while there he behaved like a hero When the fortress had to capitulate, and Candia was lost to the Christians forever, our officers returned to France Mada Count rejoined his family Heable to approach her person, or say a single word to her
Soon afterwards, she gave birth to a daughter A few days later, certainher poison This dreadful event made such an i while he lost his gaiety, youth, good looks, and to a certain extent, his reason After yielding to violent despair, he was possessed with rash ideas of vengeance The Marechal de Grammont had to send him away to one of his estates, for the Count talked of attacking and of killing, without further ado, the Marquis d'Effiat, M de Remecourt, the Prince's intendant, named Morel, and even the Duc d'Orleans hiuilt in the matter of Mada crimes See the Letters of Charlotte, the Princess Palatine--EDITOR'S NOTE]
His intense agitation was succeeded by profound melancholy, stupor closely allied to insanity or death
One evening, the Comte de Guiche went to the Abbey Church of Saint Denis
He hid hie nave was closed, and all the attendants had left, he rushed forward and flung hith upon the to light of the la hence of so accomplished a woman, murdered in the flower of her youth He called her by na her once more of his deep and fervent love