The Prince’s intendant was taken, and there was an attempt to arrest the whole Bouillon family, but the Duke and his brother, M. de Turenne, were warned in time and escaped.  As to the Duchess and her children, their adventures were so curious that I must pause to tell their story.  A guard was sent to her house under arms to keep her there.  There were four little boys, and their attendants, on seeing the guards, let them straight out through the midst of them, as if they were visitors, the servants saying:  ’You must go away.  Messieurs les petits Princes cannot play to-day.  They are made prisoners.’  They were taken to the house of Marshal de Guesbriant, where they were dressed as girls, and thus carried off to Bellechasse, whence they were sent to Blois.

There the little Chevalier of seven years old (Emmanuel Theodore was his name, and he is now a Cardinal) fell ill, and could not go on with his brothers when they were sent southwards, but was left with a lady named Flechine.  By and by, when the Court came to Guienne, Madame de Flechine was afraid of being compromised if she was found to have a son of the Duke of Bouillon in the house.  She recollected that there was in a very thick wood in the park a very thick bush, forming a bower or vault, concealed by thorns and briers.  There she placed the little boy with his servant Defargues, giving them some bread, wine, water, a pie, a cushion, and an umbrella in case of rain, and she went out herself very night to meet Defargues and bring him fresh provisions.  His Eminence has once told me all about it, and how dreadfully frightened he was a thunderstorm in the valet’s absence, and when a glow-worm shone out afterwards the poor child thought it was lightning remaining on the ground, and screamed out to Defargues not to come in past it.  He says Defargues was a most excellent and pious soul, and taught him more of his religion than ever he had known before.  Afterwards Madame de Flechine moved them to a little tower in the park, where they found a book of the lives of the saints, and Defargues taught his little master to make wicker baskets.  They walked out on the summer nights, and enjoyed themselves very much.

As to poor Madame de Bouillon, her baby was born on that very day of the arrest.  Her sister-in-law and her eldest daughter remained with her, and Madame Carnavalet; the captain of the guards had to watch over them all.  He was of course a gentleman whom they already knew, and he lived with them as a guest.  As soon as Madame de Bouillon had recovered, they began to play at a sort of hide-and-seek, daring him to find them in the hiding-places they devised, till at last he was not at all alarmed at missing them.  Then M. de Boutteville and her daughter escaped through a cellar-window, and they would have got safely off, if the daughter had not caught the smallbox.  Her mother, who was already on the way to Boxdeaux, came back to nurse her, and was taken by the bedside, and shut up in the Bastille.