[Illustration:  Jacobites Drinking To The Pretender—­Painted by F. Willems—­1208]

In France we were afraid to show any public feeling upon the event.  We were too much in the hands of England; the Regent and Dubois too much the humble servants of the house of Hanover; Dubois especially, waiting, as he was, so anxiously for his cardinal’s hat.  He did not, as will be seen, have to wait much longer.

The new Pope had given, in writing, a promise to Dubois, that if elected to the chair of St. Peter he would make him cardinal.  Time had flown, and the promise was not yet fulfilled.  The impatience of Dubois increased with his hopes, and gave him no repose.  He was much bewildered when he learnt that, on the 16th of June, 1721, the Pope had elevated to the cardinalship; his brother, who for ten years had been Bishop of Terracine and Benedictine monk of Mount Cassini.  Dubois had expected that no promotion would be made in which he was not included.  But here was a promotion of a single person only.  He was furious; this fury did not last long, however; a month after, that is to say, on the 16th of July, the Pope made him cardinal with Dion Alexander Alboni, nephew of the deceased Pope, and brother of the Cardinal Camarlingue.

Dubois received the news and the compliment that followed with extreme joy, but managed to contain himself with some little decency, and to give all the honour of his nomination to M. le Duc d’Orleans, who, sooth to say, had had scarcely anything to do with it.  But he could not prevent himself from saying to everybody that what honoured him more than the Roman purple was the unanimous eagerness of all the European powers to procure him this distinction; to press the Pope to award it; to desire that his promotion would be hastened without waiting for their nominations.  He incessantly blew these reports about everywhere without ever being out of breath; but nobody was the dupe of them.

Shortly after this, that is, on the last day of July, the King, who had until then been in perfect health, woke with headache and pain in the throat; shivering followed, and towards afternoon, the pains in the head and throat being augmented, he went to bed.  I repaired the next day about twelve to inquire after him.  I found he had passed a bad night, and that within the last two hours he had grown worse.  I saw everywhere consternation.  I had the grandes entrees, therefore I went into his chamber.  I found it very empty.  M. le Duc d’Orleans, seated in the chimney corner, looked exceedingly downcast and solitary.  I approached him for a moment, then I went to the King’s bed.  At this moment Boulduc, one of the apothecaries, gave him something to take.  The Duchesse de la Ferme, who, through the Duchesse de Ventadour, her sister, had all the entrees as godmother to the King, was at the heels of Boulduc, and turning round to see who was approaching, saw me, and immediately said in a tone neither high nor low, “He is poisoned! he is poisoned!”