for wanting to rob us of so charming a treasure.  But has she any right to act in this way?  Do you think her capable of contributing to your pleasure or your happiness?  This young Queen of Portugal, under the guise of good-humour, hides a violent and irascible temperament.  I believe her to be thoroughly selfish; suppose that she neglects and despises you, after having profited by your company to while away the tedium of her journey?  Take my word for it, madame, you had better stay here with us; for there is no real society but in France, no wit but in our great world, no real happiness but in Paris.  Draw up another petition as quickly as possible, and send it to me.  I will present it myself, and to tell you this is tantamount to a promise that your plea shall succeed.”

Mademoiselle d’Aubigne, all flushed with emotion, assured me of her gratitude with the ingenuous eloquence peculiar to herself.  We embraced as two friends of the Albret set should do, and three days later, the King received a new petition, not signed with the name of Scarron, but with that of D’Aubigne.

The pension of two thousand francs, granted three years before her death by the Queen-mother, was renewed.  Madame Scarron had the honour of making her courtesy to the King, who thought her handsome, but grave in demeanour, and in a loud, clear voice, he said to her, “Madame, I kept you waiting; I was jealous of your friends.”

The Queen of Portugal knew that I had deprived her of her secretary, fellow-gossip, reader, Spanish teacher, stewardess, confidante, and lady-in-waiting.  She wrote to me complaining about this, and on taking leave of the King to go and reign in Portugal, she said, with rather a forced air of raillery: 

“I shall hate you as long as I live, and if ever you do me the honour of paying me a visit some day at Lisbon, I’ll have you burned for your pains.”

Then she wanted to embrace me, as if we were equals, but this I deprecated as much from aversion as from respect.

CHAPTER XIX.

La Fontaine.—­Boileau.—­Moliere.—­Corneille.—­Louis XIV.’s Opinion of Each of Them.

The King’s studies with his preceptor, Perefixe, had been of only a superficial sort, as, in accordance with the express order of the Queen-mother, this prelate had been mainly concerned about the health of his pupil, the Queen being, above all, desirous that he should have a good constitution.  “The rest comes easily enough, if a prince have but nobility of soul and a sense of duty,” as the Queen often used to say.  Her words came true.

I came across several Spanish and Italian books in the library of the little apartments.  The “Pastor Fido,” “Aminta,” and the “Gerusalemme " seemed to me, at first, to be the favourite works.  Then came Voiture’s letters, the writings of Malherbe and De Balzac, the Fables of La Fontaine, the Satires of Boileau, and the delightful comedies of Moliere.  Corneille’s tragedies had been read, but not often.