After supping with the pages, whose meals were taken in a separate
chamber, I inquired of the old major-domo, who I found was to be my
oracle in the house, whether the Duke was likely to require my
attendance upon him during the course of the evening; and, learning
that I might absent myself in security, I told my old adviser that I
should go out into the streets of Paris, and take a stroll through the
city, which I had not seen since I left it with Lord Masterton, many
months before. The good old man gave me a great many sage and prudent
cautions as to my behaviour; but, at the same time, having a billet to
send to his nephew, one Jacques Marlot, a printer, who lived upon the
Key of the Goldsmiths, he did not at all oppose my expedition, but, on
the contrary, requested me to deliver the note as I went.
I willingly undertook the task, and sallied forth full of glad
thoughts, and well disposed to be pleased with everything that a great
city could present.
To tell the truth, my freedom from the irksome restraint and wearisome
application which my late studies demanded, made me feel very much
like a bird escaped from its cage, and I walked along through the
streets of Paris far happier than if I had been lord of one half of
the universe. That capital, nevertheless, was not, perhaps, one of the
best schools in which a boy, who, like myself, had run on far beyond
his years in the race of life, could complete his education. Always
the great emporium of vice and debauchery, Paris, in its present
state, offers but a faint picture of its former self. The licence of
every kind that then existed in the city, no tongue can tell, nor pen
can describe. Everything the most sacred had become a jest. Every
moral tie was broken, without shame or care; and never did liberty of
speech and action arrive at the consummation of a total demoralization
of the whole people, more completely than it had done, by this time,
in the French capital. It luckily happened, however, that, though
doubtless I might have found plenty to initiate me into all sorts of
mysteries which I had better not have known, I was too young for the
sort of instruction I might otherwise have received, and my nature was
too quick and vehement to take pleasure in vice without passion.
All that I found then to amuse me in the streets of Paris, was the
gaiety, the bustle, and the liveliness of the people, the witty
ribaldry of their songs and jests, their easily excited merriment, and
their extravagant grimaces. All this certainly pleased and interested
me; and I met with many a sight to attract my attention and arrest my
steps as I walked on to the Quai des Orfèvres. However, I at length
arrived there; and, having discovered the dwelling of Jacques Marlot,
I went in, and delivered his uncle's note.
He was a little, gay, joyful-looking man, not in the least resembling
the worthy major-domo, but with a face not unlike the busts of
Socrates, if we can conceive the countenance of the philosopher
covered over with a florid and somewhat wine-imbued skin, and lighted
up with two sparkling small black eyes, full of unquenchable fire and
malice.
At the time that I entered, he was busily engaged, though in total
solitude, in despatching the goodly form of a fat roasted capon, which
he took care to bathe in repeated draughts from a tankard of warm
wine, which stood in his chimney corner. He received me with the sort
of gay civility which his whole demeanour bespoke; and, opening his
uncle's note, grinned merrily at the contents; observing, that his
relation warned him to beware of printing anything against the Court,
as the Parliament and the generals were all racing against each other
to see which should make peace fastest.
"_Ma foi_," he added, "I will make my peace as they have made theirs,
with arms in my hand;" and, setting me down a cup, he insisted on my
staying to drink with him, which, after having once tasted his
potations, I felt very well inclined to do. It struck me, perhaps, as
a little extraordinary, that a poor printer, whose trade was not at
that time the most lucrative in Paris, should be able to afford rich
Burgundy, and to feed upon fat capon; but I soon found that, being of
a very unscrupulous nature, Master Jacques Marlot obtained large
prices for printing all those defamatory libels against Mazarin, the
Queen, and the whole Court, which then formed the amusement and the
reproach of the city. It was his rule never to inquire who the authors
were, provided they paid him largely. The more unceremonious the wit,
and biting the satire, the more it agreed with the tastes of the
printer himself; and many a noble, and, I believe I might add, many a
reverend pen, poured forth its gall from under the mantle of Jacques.
Marlot.
My promptitude in catching his _bons mots_, my readiness in replying
to them, my English accent, and my insular notions, as he called them,
all seemed to please and to amuse the printer much; and after having,
with a rueful glance, divided the last drop in the flagon equally
between himself and me, he invited me cordially to come back and see
him again in a few days at the same hour, which I did not fail to do
more than once; and many a merry laugh have we had together at the
follies and the vices of persons of every rank, class, and condition
in the state. Indeed, there was such a strange mixture of the cynic,
the stoic, and the epicurean, in the whole life and conduct of Jacques
Marlot, that I could not help looking upon him as a great philosopher.
Whether any one, who by chance may read these pages, will coincide in
my opinion, I cannot tell; but every one shall have an opportunity of
judging; for this casual acquaintance, formed under such very
common-place circumstances, went on into after years, and followed me
through many a strange scene to distant parts of the land. Those
scenes, however, will, themselves, require too long detail for me to
pause upon our less interesting interviews; though the conversation of
Jacques Marlot would, at the time I speak of, have formed no bad
jest-book for the Fronde; and on that very night I heard more _bons
mots_ and anecdotes in half an hour than had met my ear for many a day
before.
On my return home, I found a neat small room, not far from the
apartments of the good major-domo, prepared as my lodging; and by the
time I had half undressed myself, in order to go to bed, I was
surprised to see the door open, and Monsieur de Villardin himself
enter the room. As his brow was somewhat grave and stern, I imagined
that he had come to chide me for my absence during the evening; and I
instantly began to feel a spirit of rebellion at the very thought,
partly engendered by my old habits of independence, partly by the
sense of having in a degree recovered it anew. To my good young lord,
whom I had lately left, I had been bound by ties of affection and
gratitude, which would have made me do anything to please him, and
which caused me to submit to his orders or to his rebuke with patience
and good-will. Such, however, was not the case in regard to Monsieur
de Villardin, at least as yet; and I determined to show him that,
though I was perfectly willing to give him every sort of attendance
when he required it, yet that I looked upon the rest of my time as at
my own disposal. I resolved to let him know also, that, though the
fortunes of my family had been for some time at a low ebb, I had as
gentle blood in my veins as he had; and, in short, I was prepared to
be as saucy and impertinent, I doubt not, as any wild, ungovernable,
and hot-headed boy could be, when, to my surprise, he began upon quite
a different topic, without taking the slightest notice of my late
absence.
Setting down the taper that he carried, he threw himself into a large
chair that stood by the fire, and bidding me put on my vest again, as
he had a good deal to say to me, he continued, "Well, my page, we have
begun together, this morning, as well as I could wish, and I find that
the character I have received with you does you no more than justice:
I doubt not that every hour will increase my regard for you; and I
shall take care that you have every opportunity of distinguishing
yourself that you could desire through life."
This discourse, so different from that I had expected, was certainly
very pleasing to me; but at the same time I had learned too much of
the world not to understand that it was a prelude to something else,
which perhaps might not be so gratifying; and, consequently, I
answered with the words which mean less than any others in the world,
"Your lordship is very good."
"Nevertheless," proceeded Monsieur de Villardin, "it is but right that
we should clearly understand upon what terms we are to go on together.
Now," he continued, assuming a frank and easy air,--which when you see
men do you may be perfectly sure that they are cheating themselves,
and are trying to cheat you also,--"now, I am not in the least a
suspicious man; far from it; by nature I am quite the contrary;
nevertheless, I think it but right that every master of a large
household like this should be thoroughly acquainted with all that
takes place in his dwelling. Of course you will have a great many
opportunities of observing what passes in my family, and I must
require of you to be frank and free with me on all such subjects."
I did not like the matter at all, for I understood very well what he
meant; and I was sure that, although he felt some difficulty in
explaining himself at first, he would not be long before he found an
opportunity of doing so completely. However, I thought my usual
straightforward way was the best, and I answered, "I am always frank
and free, my lord. I say what I think to everybody, and of everybody."
"So I have heard, so I have heard," said the Duke; "and I must desire
that you do so, particularly towards me, remembering that I look upon
a person who would see his master wronged as fully more culpable than
the person who wrongs him."
"My lord," I replied, seeing that we must come to the point at last,
"I certainly never will see you wronged without endeavouring to right
you; and if I cannot do it in my own person, I shall hold myself bound
to tell you, in order that you may do it. I am sure your lordship does
not wish me to become a spy upon anybody, nor would it have any effect
if you did; for I would not remain in the house of any one half an
hour who was to require such a thing of me."
It is wonderful how many things people will do, from the very name of
which they would shrink with shame if put into plain terms; and though
I am perfectly convinced that Monsieur de Villardin,--from some of
those vague and visionary doubts which haunt the minds of suspicious
men, the spectres of a diseased imagination,--would have liked me to
watch all the events of any importance that took place in his house,
and make him a full report thereof, yet he immediately testified great
disgust at the very name of a spy, and replied, "Far from me be such a
thought for a moment, as to propose to you, young man, anything mean
or dishonourable. I know you are of gentle blood, and have served well
in a noble cause; and therefore, though I hold you bound by your duty,
as you are also by the promise you have just made, to give me instant
information if you see any one attempt to wrong me in any way, yet, of
course, I do not desire you to become a spy upon those around you."
I saw evidently that he caught at the promise I had made, and, to tell
the truth, I was sorry that I had made it. Not that I did not consider
myself bound by the station I held in his family to do exactly as I
had said; but I was a little afraid that my good lord might construe
my words rather more liberally than I had intended them to be
understood. As they were spoken, however, there was no help for it;
and though I repeated over again,--to make the engagement as clear and
definite as possible,--that I would never see him wronged without
endeavouring to right him, or without giving him an opportunity of
doing so himself, still I was afraid he might be inclined to exact,
under that promise, more than I should be inclined to concede. I found
indeed, afterwards, that he himself very well understood, that there
was another way of making it a point of honour with me to do as he
desired, which was by loading me with benefits, and bestowing on me
that confidence which would have rendered it an act of the greatest
ingratitude on my part to conceal from him any attempt to injure him.
Satisfied with the promise I had made, and determined with regard to
the course he would pursue towards me, he dropped that part of the
conversation there; but made me give him a long history of my family
and my adventures; told me that he had been well acquainted with Lord
Wilmerton, my mother's father, some fifteen years before; and ended by
giving me an assurance, which he nobly accomplished, that thenceforth
he would treat me more as his son than as his attendant. He then took
up the light and quitted the chamber, leaving me to meditate over the
future, which, notwithstanding the promises he had made, and which I
fully believed he would keep, still presented some clouds and shadows
that I certainly could have wished away.
After this conversation, I was almost continually with Monsieur de
Villardin, especially as, in all those exercises in which noblemen of
that day held themselves bound to have their pages well instructed, I
was already as skilful as necessary, and, consequently, had scarcely
any other occupation than that of attending upon the Duke. In the
pages' room matters soon assumed the state into which I could have
wished them to fall. Master Gaspard de Belleville, the eldest of my
three companions, submitted to necessity with a somewhat bad grace;
and the two younger, as soon as they had become reconciled to me as
their new comrade, and accustomed to my manners and accent, sought
shelter under my protection from the tyranny of their former despot.
The old major-domo ere long acquired a great affection for me; and as
I was quite willing, from the novelty of the thing, to be petted as
much as any one pleased, he made quite a favourite of me, providing me
with all those little comforts and luxuries which the chief domestic
of a great house has always at his disposal.
Monsieur de Villardin himself was, as Lord Langleigh had said, a man
who let no moment slip past him unmarked by some event; and, with a
spirit of restless activity,--not unlike what was my own at that
time,--he took part in everything that was going on. By day he was
either busy in the intrigues of his faction, or in the field with his
troops; and even at night he was very often as busy in beating up the
enemy's quarters, or in stirring up the Parisians to some new
absurdity. In all his expeditions I formed one of his attendants: I
had constant employment,--and both at home and abroad was as happy as
I could wish.
This state of things, however, could not, of course, last for ever;
and had no other circumstance occurred to interrupt its duration, the
gradual recovery of Monsieur de Villardin from the madness of the
Fronde would ultimately have put an end to it; but an incident soon
happened, to which I shall now turn, and which eventually occasioned
my departure from Paris rather faster than I approved of. The first
treaty of peace which had been signed was indignantly rejected, as we
have seen, by the Parliament, the populace, and the generals; and the
deputies were again sent back to treat at Ruel. During their
conferences, as an armistice had been refused, Monsieur de Villardin
and others took care to amuse Mazarin by frequent excursions, which
sometimes were pushed to the gates of St. Germain. Mazarin, always
timid, made concessions in proportion to his alarm; but, at the same
time, as he loved not the sort of arms with which the Parisian
generals fought him, he took care to combat them with weapons
peculiarly his own. Three fresh armies, as I have said, were directing
their course towards Paris in support of the Parliament. In regard to
the one promised from Normandy, the Cardinal tampered with the
general, the Duke de Longueville, and delayed its march. In regard to
the other, commanded by Turenne, knowing the chief to be
incorruptible, Mazarin corrupted the men. The whole army was literally
bought; and when its general was about to begin his advance upon the
capital, he was at once abandoned by his troops. The third, consisting
of Spaniards, the Cardinal well knew would not march without the
others; and having thus placed himself on more equal terms with the
Parisian leaders, he took advantage of the consternation which these
events produced to press the treaty of peace, which was soon after
concluded and ratified by all parties, but the populace, and one or
two of the leaders who had too great a love of faction, in the
abstract, to yield to any measure calculated to put it down. Thus,
then, the war was brought to an end; but still so turbulent and
disorganized was the state of Paris, that the Court dared not set foot
within its walls; and, while the people were committing every sort of
excess, and the most scandalous libels upon Mazarin and the royal
family were every day published, the Parliament, in order to signalise
their zeal for their new allies, the Court, proceeded against the
authors and printers with the most tyrannical severity.
Of course my good friend Jacques Marlot could not escape, and I one
day found old Jerome Laborde, the major-domo, in great affliction on
account of his nephew, who had been arrested that morning for the
publication of the famous attack upon the Queen, called "La Custode."
It so happened that, by my master's permission, I passed the two
following days at St. Maur, with Lord Masterton, who was kindness
itself towards me; and on the third morning I was sent by the Duke,
immediately after my return, to gain some intelligence in the Faubourg
St. Germain. As I came back, I saw an immense crowd advancing rapidly
towards the Place de Grève, and crying "Honte! honte! Aux Mazarins!
aux Mazarins!" Running my eye a little forward, I soon perceived that
the cause of the tumult originated in the procession of the criminal
lieutenant and his archers towards the place of execution, whither
they were carrying some condemned criminal to make his last public
appearance in the most disagreeable manner. As it was evident that the
principal personage on the scene was in favour with the public, I
hastened forward to obtain a glance, when, to my horror and
astonishment, I beheld the jovial face of my poor acquaintance,
Jacques Marlot, still as jovial as ever, notwithstanding his
endeavours to assume a sober and sedate demeanour under the very grave
circumstances in which he was placed.
Every sort of mad enterprise was then as common as a hedge sparrow,
and some evil demon put it in my head to rescue the unhappy printer
from the hands of Monsieur le Bourreau.
Amongst the mob were a great number of printers' devils, booksellers'
boys, and other shopmen; and speaking a word or two to those who
seemed the most zealous, our plan was quickly arranged, and spread
like wild-fire amongst the people. The crowd was every minute
increasing; their cries and execrations were gaining new strength at
each vociferation; and I saw Grani, the criminal lieutenant, turn his
head more than once to scan the aspect of the very unwelcome train
which now accompanied him. He soon, however, reached the gibbet in the
Place de Grève, and poor Marlot turned,--with a face out of which even
his rueful situation could not banish entirely habitual fun,--to
pronounce, as usual, his last oration:--"My friends, my friends," he
cried, "take warning! See what comes of a Mazarinade!"
The name acted as a watchword, and the moment it was pronounced, a
well-directed volley of stones was let fly at the criminal lieutenant
and his archers, who were not prepared for that sort of attack. One of
the men was knocked down; the rest were thrown into confusion; and,
taking advantage of the moment, we pushed on and charged the
panic-struck officers of justice.[2] Some of the guards were felled to
the earth; some of them fled as fast as their legs would carry them.
The criminal lieutenant was beaten severely, and glad to escape with
his life; Jacques Marlot was in an instant set at liberty, amidst the
shouts and gratulations of the populace.
----------
[Footnote 2: The Cardinal de Retz mentions in his Memoirs, that two
criminals were rescued, and seems to imply that they were saved from
the gallows together. Joly, whose work forms a running commentary upon
that of De Retz, shows that the Cardinal spoke of Jacques Marlot, the
printer, as one of these culprits, and mentions his crime,--though the
punishment of death for writing, or rather for printing, a libel, may
seem a little severe. It must be acknowledged, indeed, that "La
Custode," a copy of which exists in the British Museum, is a most
dirty and scurrilous attack upon the Queen; but still the tyranny of
the whole proceeding against this unhappy man seemed to justify the
hatred which the people conceived, about this time, towards the great
body of Parisian lawyers.]
----------
Feeling that I had perhaps done a foolish thing, and--from a knowledge
of the delicate situation in which the Duke stood with the Court--more
apprehensive of the consequences to him than to myself, I made as much
haste as I could to get away quietly, without even staying to
congratulate the printer on his deliverance. As we had completely put
the archers to flight, and had quite satisfied them with their airing
in the Place de Grève for one day, no one opposed me on my way home,
and I found Monsieur de Villardin in the hall ready to go out on
horseback, accompanied by the page I have mentioned under the name of
Gaspard de Belleville. I had generally found it a good plan throughout
my little life, whenever I had committed a fault which I was conscious
might affect some other persons, to make them acquainted with it
immediately, that they might be upon their guard against the
consequences; and, following this rule, I at once went up to Monsieur
de Villardin, and informed him that I believed I had done a very
foolish thing.
"It is half repaired by acknowledging it so frankly," replied the
Duke; "but what is it, my boy, that we may do the best to remedy it?"
Without farther circumlocution I informed him of the facts, which
seemed to startle him a good deal.
"This is unpleasant, indeed," he replied; "but, in truth, I cannot
find in my heart to be angry with you; for I doubt not I should have
done just the same: and what the master would do, he cannot well blame
in the page. We will hope, however, that you have not been recognised.
Nevertheless," he added, in a low tone, "have what clothes you may
need packed up, and be ready to set out at a minute's notice; for in
these times no one can tell one moment what they may have to do the
next."
I followed my lord's orders to the letter; and as soon as he had gone
out, cast everything that I had that was well worth carrying, into two
large saddle-bags. In this occupation I proceeded most zealously, not
having the slightest inclination to act as substitute for Jacques
Marlot in the elevated station which the criminal judge of the
Tournelle Court had destined him to fill that very morning. The
thoughts of such a consummation to my enterprises disgusted me
considerably, as, of all deaths under the sun, I had the greatest
objection to that of hanging; and the idea thereof occupied me so
completely, that it was not till I had finished the preparation of my
saddle-bags, that I bethought me how much interested the old
major-domo might feel in the mutual adventures which his nephew and
myself had gone through that morning. As soon as the idea crossed my
mind, however, I took my way to the old man's apartments; and, as he
had heard of his nephew's condemnation, but not of his deliverance, I
found him in a state of great agitation and distress.
"Cheer up, cheer up, Monsieur Jerome Laborde," I said, as soon as I
had obtained admission; "cheer up, things are not so bad as you
suppose."
The old man shook his head, but I went on and told him that I had
heard from certain authority that his nephew had been delivered by the
hands of the people. He was at first incredulous, and although I could
have given him stronger proof than mere hearsay, that what I asserted
was correct, I did not think it necessary or right to make any one
acquainted with the share I had borne in the rescue, except my lord
and master: I added, however, so many assurances, that the old man at
length began to have some faith in my statement, and went out himself
to ascertain the facts. I did not see him afterwards till night; but I
was very well assured that he must soon receive satisfactory
confirmation of the good tidings which I had brought him.