(4) An imitation. Signature: "Larmessin, 1661." Finally, we must
mention a full-length portrait, which seems inspired by the foregoing.
The Superintendent is standing, wearing a long robe; he holds in his
right hand a small bag, in his left a paper. A raised curtain displays,
on the right, a country scene, with a torrent, a rock and a fortified
château. In the sky, Renown puts a trumpet to her mouth. In her left
hand she holds another trumpet with a bannerette on which is written:
"Quo non ascendet?" Inscription:
A quel degré d'honneur ne peut-il pas monter
S'il s'élève tousjours par son propre courage?
Son nom et sa vertu lui donnent l'advantage
De pouvoir tout prétendre et de tout mériter.
[23] A summary of the inventory at Saint-Mandé: MS. of the Bibliothèque
Nat. Manusc. Suppl, fr. 10958, cited by M. Edm. Bonnaffé, _Les Amateurs
de l'ancienne France_.--Le Surintendant Foucquet, librairie de l'Art,
1882.
[24] Loc. cit., pp. 61 _et seq._
[25] Description of the city of Paris, 1713, p. 60.
[26] _Mémoire des Académiciens_, Vol. I, p. 21. Bonnaffé, loc. cit., p.
15.
[27] Preface to _Œdipe, Collect. des grands écrivains,_ Vol. VI, p. 103.
[28] With great pomp.
[29] The original edition has _plainte._
[30] Œuvres complètes de La Fontaine, published by Ch. Marty Laveaux,
Vol. III (1866), p. 26 _et seq._
[31] The inventory of the 26th February, 1666 (Bonnaffé, loc. cit., p.
61), classes them as follows: "Two antique mausoleums representing a
king and queen of Egypt, 800 livres."
[32] At least, this is the hypothesis propounded by M. Bonnaffe. It is
founded on the fact that an anonymous document of 1648, published in
_Les Collectionneurs de l'ancienne France_ (Aubry, ed. 1873), mentions
le sieur Chamblon, of Marseilles, as a professor "of Egyptian idols to
enclose mummies." But it seems as if the anonymous document referred
not to sarcophagi of marble or basalt, but rather to those boxes of
painted and gilt pasteboard, with human faces, which abound in the
necropolises of ancient Egypt. The port of Marseilles must at that time
have received a fairly large number of such. We must remember that the
mummy was in those days considered as a remedy, and was widely sold by
druggists.
[33] Cf. Mlle, de Scudéry, _Clélie._ "Méléandre (Lebrun) had caused
to be built, on a small, somewhat uneven plot of ground, two small
pyramids in imitation of those which are near Memphis."
[34] See note, p. 10.**
[35] Description of the city of Paris, by Germain Brice, ed. of 1698,
Vol. I, p. 124 _et seg._
[36] _Recueil d'antiquités dans les Gaules,_ by La Sauvagère, Paris,
1770, p. 329 _et seq._
[37] D.5.D. 7^8.
[38] In this story, I have followed M. Bonnaffé. Loc. cit., p. 57.
[39] Inventory and valuation of the books found at Saint-Mandé on the
30th July, 1665. Biblio. Nat. MSS., p. 9438. The whole was valued at
38,544 livres.
[40] _Conseils de la Sagesse,_ p. x.
[41] Lines presented to Monseigneur le procureur général Foucquet,
Superintendent of Finance, at the opening of the tragedy of _Œdipe,_
1659.
[42] One of the earliest French theatres. It was founded by the
Confrères de la Passion in 1548.
[43] Cf. _La Vie de Corneille,_ by Fontenelle.
[44] _Histoire de la Vie et des Ouvrages de La Fontaine,_ by Mathieu
Marais, 1811, p. 125.
[45] _Ouvrages de prose et de poésie des sieurs de Mancroix et La
Fontaine,_ Vol. I, p. 99.
[46] There are two blank spaces in the 1685 edition. I have filled them
with the two names in brackets. For the first I have put the name of
Foucquet, which is given in the _Œuvres diverses_ (Vol. I, p. 19). To
fill the second space I have followed the suggestion of Mathieu Marais.
Walkenaer puts Pellisson, which is not admissible.
[47] Edit Marty-Laveaux, VOL V, pp. 15-17.
[48] No one can answer for the correctness of the text of these two
poems. Chardon de La Rochette published them from memory in 1811
(_Histoire de la Vie et des Ouvrages de La Fontaine,_ by Mathieu
Marais, p. 125). He had possessed the receipts for both in Pellisson's
own hand-writing, but had not kept it, because, he said, he did not
think "that it was worth it." This sagacious Hellenist set little store
by a Pellisson autograph, in comparison with the Palatine MS. of the
Anthologia. And he was right. But it is odd that he should have known
the verses by heart, and that, having neglected to preserve them in his
desk, he should have retained them in his memory.
[49] Promettre est un, et tenir promesse est un autre.
[50] _Mémoires de Choisy,_ coll. Petitot, p. 211.
[51] _Ibid.,_ loc. cit., p. 230.
[52] Bussy, II, p. 50.
[53] "Jamais surintendant ne trouva de cruelle."
[54] Bussy, II, p. 50.
[55] Letter of the 25th May, 1658.
[56] Letter of 18th January, 1660.
[57] Loret, Muse historique, letter of the 28th of December, 1652.
[58] In 1661 (?) _Papiers de Foucquet_ (F. Baluze), Vol. I, pp. 31-32.
[59] Maurepas Collection. Vol. II, p. 271.
[60] Letter of the 11th November, 1661.
[61] Gourville, in _Monmerqué,_ Vol. II, p. 342.
[62] _Mémoires de l'abbé de Choisy,_ p. 579.
[63] _Mémoires de Brienne,_ Vol. II, p. 52.
[64] _Mémoires de Choisy,_ p. 581. Chéruel, _Mémoires sur Nicolas
Foucquet,_ Vol. II, p. 97.
[65] _Mémoires de Choisy,_ p. 249.
[66] _Mémoires de Choisy,_ p. 249.
[67] _Choisy,_ p. 586. "I learnt these details," said Choisy, "from
Perrault, to whom Colbert related them more than once."
[68] _Ibid.,_ p. 586. Cf. also Guy Patin, letter to Falconnet, 2nd
September, 1661.
[69] _Histoire d'Henriette d'Angleterre,_ by Mme de Lafayette. Paris,
Charavay frères, 1882, p. 53.
[70] See Part II for the story of this entertainment.
[71] Cf. _Mémoires sur Nicolas Foucquet,_ by Chéruel, Vol. II, pp.
179-180.
[72] _Mémoires de Brienne,_ Vol. II, p. 153.
[73] La Fontaine, letter to his wife, Ed. Marty-Laveaux, Vol. III, p.
311 _et seq._
[74] This letter was published for the first time in _Les Causeries
d'un curieux,_ VOL II, p. 518.
[75] _Dictionnaire Antique._ Article on Hesnault.
[76] Letter of the 10th of September, 1661.
[77] Letter of the 2nd October, 1661.
[78] Second Speech to the King, in _Les Œuvres diverses,_ p. 109.
[79] Cf. _Mélanges,_ by Vigneul de Marville.
[80] Such is the title of the original edition, printed in italics,
without date or address, on three quarto pages.
[81] "The Anqueil is a little river which flows near Vaux." (Note by La
Fontaine.)
[82] Variant:
La Cabale est contente, Oronte est malheureux.
[83] Variant:
Du grand, du grand Henri qu'il contemple la vie.
(Original edition.)
[84] Edition quoted, Vol. V, pp. 43-46. One contemporary copy,
preserved in the Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal, contains a text altered by
one of Foucquet's enemies.
Instead of the two lines:
Voilà le précipice où l'ont enfin jeté
Les attraits enchanteurs de la prospérité,
we read in this copy:
Il se hait de tant vivre après un tel malheur,
Et, s'il espère encor, ce n'est qu'en sa douleur,
C'est là le seul plaisir qui flatte son courage,
Car des autres plaisirs on lui défend l'usage.
Voilà, voilà l'effet de cette ambition
Qui fait de ses pareils l'unique passion.
[85] Edition cited: Vol. V, pp. 46-49. Published for the first time by
La Fontaine in his collection _Poésies chrétinnes et diverses,_ 1671,
Vol. Ill, p. 34.
[86] La Fontaine, Letter to Monsieur Foucquet. Edition cited: Vol. Ill,
pp. 307-308. This letter was published for the first time in 1729.
[87] Cf. Le procès de Foucquet, a speech pronounced at the opening of
Conférence des Avocats, Monday, 27th November, 1882, by Léon Deroy,
advocate in the Court of Appeal. Paris, Alcan Lévy, 1882.
[88] Recueil des arrêtés de G. de Lamoignon, Paris, 1781. _Vie de M.
le premier président,_ by Girard, p. 14. (The fleur-de-Iys was very
largely employed in the decoration of the walls, floors, ceiling, etc.,
of the Parliaments, etc.--Ed.)
[89] Journal d'Olivier d'Ormesson, Vol. II, p. 26.
[90] _Recueil des arrêtés,_ already cited.
[91] Madame de Sévigné, letter of the 27th November, 1664.
[92] _Ibid.,_ letter of the 2nd December.
[93] "The Duc de Sully, the son-in-law of the Chancellor, Séguier, had,
in 1652, yielded the crossing of the bridge of Mantes to the Spanish
Army." (Note by M. Chéruel.)
[94] _Journal d'Olivier d'Ormesson,_ Vol. II, p. 263. Letter from Mme.
de Sévigné, 9th December.
[95] _Journal d'Olivier d'Ormesson,_ VOL II, p. 282. Letter from Mme. de
Sévigné, 9th December.
[96] _Ibid.,_ Vol. II, p. 283.
[97] _Ibid.,_ Vol. II, p. 286.
[98] The Comte de Vaux, Foucquet's eldest son, having obtained his
father's MSS. from Pignerol, published extracts entitled: _Conseils de
la Sagesse_ ou _Recueil des Maximes de Salomon._ Paris, 1683, 2 vols.
[99] The Duc de Lauzun, said to have married La Grande Mademoiselle,
Mlle, de Montpensier, cousin of Louis XIV. (Trans.)
[100] Delort, _Détention des Philosophes,_ Vol. I, p. 53.