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230 I heard that she left off powder, patches, and rouge, for a month when his third consort died, and he grew religious—whether out of grief or gratitude, I never heard; then she grew factious, for the sake of your own King, and thought to strew the way to the altar with straws* instead of flowers. I applaud her spirit in fighting for a crown."

"I marvel," interrupted De Joinville, "At such a sentiment from your Majesty."

"Poor child!" replied she, bursting into one of her abrupt but musical laughs, "where can you have lived, not to know we never care for what we have?—But to return to Mademoiselle; her pride unabated, though I heard that your uncle declared, that the shot she fired from the Bastile killed her husband. Pray did he say so?"

"Really, your Majesty," answered Madame de Mercœur, "seems too well acquainted with all our affairs to ask any questions of me."

"Especially such as you do not deem fitting to answer. Pitying Mademoiselle's seclusion, I did my best to entertain her, and, by way of news, told her that her former lover, the King of England, was talked of for Mademoiselle de