the Court.  The King sent to inquire after him, but it was more for appearance’ sake than from sympathy, for I have already remarked that the King did not like him.  The brilliancy of his campaigns, and the difficulty of replacing him, caused all the disquietude.  Becoming worse, M. de Luxembourg received the sacraments, showed some religion and firmness, and died on the morning of the 4th of January, 1695, the fifth day of his illness, much regretted by many people, but personally esteemed by none, and loved by very few.

Not one of the Dukes M. de Luxembourg had attacked went to see him during his illness.  I neither went nor sent, although at Versailles; and I must admit that I felt my deliverance from such an enemy.

Here, perhaps, I may as well relate the result of the trial in which we were engaged, and which, after the death of M. de Luxembourg, was continued by his son.  It was not judged until the following year.  I have shown that by our implicating the Duc de Gesvres, the Chief President had been declared incapable of trying the case.  The rage he conceived against us cannot be expressed, and, great actor that he was, he could not hide it.  All his endeavour afterwards was to do what he could against us; the rest of the mask fell, and the deformity of the judge appeared in the man, stripped of all disguise.

We immediately signified to M. de Luxembourg that he must choose between the letters patent of 1581 and those of 1662.  If he abandoned the first the case fell through; in repudiating the last he renounced the certainty of being duke and peer after us; and ran the risk of being reduced to an inferior title previously granted to him.  The position was a delicate one; he was affrighted; but after much consultation he resolved to run all risks and maintain his pretensions.  It thus simply became a question of his right to the title of Duc de Piney, with the privilege attached to it as a creation of 1581.

In the spring of 1696 the case was at last brought on, before the Assembly of all the Chambers.  Myself and the other Dukes seated ourselves in court to hear the proceedings.  The trial commenced.  All the facts and particulars of the cause were brought forward.  Our advocates spoke, and then few doubted but that we should gain the victory.  M. de Luxembourg’s advocate, Dumont, was next heard.  He was very audacious, and spoke so insolently of us, saying, in Scripture phraseology, that we honoured the King with our lips, whilst our hearts were far from him, that I could not contain myself.  I was seated between the Duc de la Rochefoucauld and the Duc d’Estrees.  I stood up, crying out against the imposture of this knave, and calling for justice on him.  M. de la Rochefoucauld pulled me back, made me keep silent, and I plunged down into my seat more from anger against him than against the advocate.  My movement excited a murmur.  We might on the instant have had justice against Dumont, but the opportunity had passed for us to ask for it, and the President de Maisons made a slight excuse for him.  We complained, however, afterwards to the King, who expressed his surprise that Dumont had not been stopped in the midst of his speech.