“The Abbe Vermond, seeing the defeat of the party of the Duc de Choiseul, by whom he had been sent to the Court of Vienna on the recommendation of Brienne, began to tremble for his own security.  As soon as the Court had arrived at Choisy, and he was assured of the marriage having been consummated, he obtained, with the Queen’s consent, an audience of the King, for the purpose of soliciting his sanction to his continuing in his situation.  On submitting his suit to the King, His Majesty merely gave a shrug of the shoulders, and turned to converse with the Duc d’Aiguillon, who at that moment entered the room.  The Abbe stood stupefied, and the Queen, seeing the crestfallen humour of her tutor, laughed and cheered him by remarking, ’There is more meaning in the shrug of a King than in the embrace of a Minister.  The one always promises, but is seldom sincere; the other is generally sincere, but never promises.’  The Abbe, not knowing how to interpret the dumb answer, finding the King’s back turned and his conversation with D’Aiguillon continuing, was retiring with a shrug of his own shoulders to the Queen, when she exclaimed, good-humouredly, to Louis, laughing and pointing to the Abbe, ’Look! look! see how readily a Church dignitary can imitate the good Christian King, who is at the head of the Church.’  The King, seeing the Abbe still waiting, said, dryly, ‘Monsieur, you are confirmed in your situation,’ and then resumed his conversation with the Duke.

“This anecdote is a sufficient proof that louis XVI. had no prepossession in favour of the Abbe Vermond, and that it was merely not to wound the feelings of the Queen that he was tolerated.  The Queen herself was conscious of this, and used frequently to say to me how much she was indebted to the King for such deference to her private choice, in allowing Vermond to be her secretary, as she did not remember the King’s ever having held any communication with the Abbe during the whole time he was attached to the service, though the Abbe always expressed himself with the greatest respect towards the King.

“The decorum of Marie Antoinette would not allow her to endure those public exhibitions of the ceremony, of dressing herself which had been customary at Court.  This reserve was highly approved by His Majesty; and one of the first reforms she introduced, after the accession, was in the internal discipline of her own apartment.

“It was during one of the visits, apart from Court etiquette, to the toilet of the Queen, that the Duchesse de Chartres, afterwards Duchesse d’Orleans, introduced the famous Mademoiselle Bertin, who afterwards became so celebrated as the Queen’s milliner—­the first that was ever allowed to approach a royal palace; and it was months before Marie Antoinette had courage to receive her milliner in any other than the private apartment which, by the alteration Her Majesty had made in the arrangements of the household, she set apart for the purpose of dressing in comfort by herself and free from all intruders.