In effect M. du Maine, now the head of the cabal, who had all to gain and nothing to lose by the death of the Dauphin and Dauphine, from both of whom he had studiously held aloof, and who thoroughly disliked M. d’Orleans, did all in his power to circulate this odious report.  He communicated it to Madame de Maintenon, by whom it reached the King.  In a short time all the Court, down to the meanest valets, publicly cried vengeance upon M. d’Orleans, with an air of the most unbridled indignation and of perfect security.

M. d’Orleans, with respect to the two losses that afflicted the public, had an interest the most directly opposite to that of M. du Maine; he had everything to gain by the life of the Dauphin and Dauphine, and unless he had been a monster vomited forth from hell he could not have been guilty of the crime with which he was charged.  Nevertheless, the odious accusation flew from mouth to mouth, and took refuge in every breast.

Let us compare the interest M. d’Orleans had in the life of the Dauphin with the interest M. du Maine had in his death, and then look about for the poisoner.  But this is not all.  Let us remember how M. le Duc d’Orleans was treated by Monseigneur, and yet what genuine grief he displayed at the death of that prince.  What a contrast was this conduct with that of M. du Maine at another time, who, after leaving the King (Louis XIV.) at the point of death, delivered over to an ignorant peasant, imitated that peasant so naturally and so pleasantly, that bursts of laughter extended to the gallery, and scandalized the passers-by.  This is a celebrated and very characteristic fact, which will find its proper place if I live long enough to carry these memoirs up to the death of the King.

M. d’Orleans was, however, already in such bad odour, that people were ready to believe anything to his discredit.  They drank in this new report so rapidly, that on the 17th of February, as he went with Madame to give the holy water to the corpse of the Dauphine, the crowd of the people threw out all sorts of accusations against him, which both he and Madame very distinctly heard, without daring to show it, and were in trouble, embarrassment, and indignation, as may be imagined.  There was even ground for fearing worse from an excited and credulous populace when M. d’Orleans went alone to give the holy water to the corpse of the Dauphin.  For he had to endure on his passage atrocious insults from a populace which uttered aloud the most frightful observations, which pointed the finger at him with the coarsest epithets, and which believed it was doing him a favour in not falling upon him and tearing him to pieces!

Similar circumstances took place at the funeral procession.  The streets resounded more with cries of indignation against M. d’Orleans and abuse of him than with grief.  Silent precautions were not forgotten in Paris in order to check the public fury, the boiling over of which was feared at different moments.  The people recompensed themselves by gestures, cries, and other atrocities, vomited against M. d’Orleans.  Near the Palais Royal, before which the procession passed, the increase of shouts, of cries, of abuse, was so great, that for some minutes everything was to be feared.