The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-07-29

| singed his wings when he dropped aud died.
Madame was at loss how to dispose of her
daughter, and M. Lenormand de Turneheim
| again came in as deus &c mdchind. He had
nephew, NJ Lenormand d'Etoilles sous-fer-
mier-general, wealthy, amiable, just made for
Mademoiselle. They were married January,
1889, the lady being in her fifteenth (or was 1t
her eighteenth p year. Ah, but she
was happy now Had her own salon, where
she could gather some notables about her, aud
play and sing her country house, her carriage;
moved in good society, and, to crown all,
within year little daughter was added to
| the family group.
Yet to be only Madame Lenormand d 'Etoiles
was this sufficient result of so much love-
Illness, such wit and patient culturel Madame
could hardly think so. She had cherished
that saying of maman. The king often came
70 hunt in the forest of Senart, in the neigh
borhood of which was her country house;
might she not possibly fascinate him She
addressed herself TesOlutely TO the trial.
Sometimes she drove her phDton through
the all6es, sometimes she mounted on
horseback and rode into the thickest
parts of the forest or showed herself foremost
in the chase. She caught the eye of the king,
ard received passing notice; but no more.
The king-Louis the ll-beloved-was at
this time under the sway of the Duchesse de
ChateaurouX, who would brook no rival. 1t
was hard to bear-but at length the duchess
died, and majesty needed consolation. At
grand hunt Madame d'Etoilles appeared hab-
tied as Diana, and, approaching the king
made as though she would despatch shaft at
the royal heart His majesty gallantly stopped
to deprecate the wrath of the goddess, was
charmed with the esprit of her reply-and
on his return could think of nothing but
the fair huntress. He begged an interview.
M. d'Etoilles was oOmplaisant. Mon oncle,
the good NJ. Lenormapd de Turneheim, lent
his house for the meeting. The king was
more pleased than before. The husband re-
tired to post in the country. A judicial
separation was obtained in order to satisfy
the pious scruples of majesty, and in the
early months of l745 Madame d'Etoiles--
d'Etoilles no longer-was created Marquise de
Pompadour, and formally presented to the
queen and the royal princes and princesses.
She had at last scaled the height-could she
maintain her footing there Her intellect
was too penetrating, her mind too passion
less for her to conceal from herself that
the task was more difficult than that she had
achieved. But she addressed herself to it with
rare skill, and was rewarded with entire sue
cess. For nineteen years she was the virtual
ruler of France. Despite of open enmity and
secret intrigue, of growing years and failing
health and fading beauty; Of the exertions Of
the royal family and the eXeorations of the
people, she maintained to the day of her death
her ascendancy over the mind Of the king
though she had long lost her hold on his pas
sion. Once only was her reign seriously i'm
perllled. When Damiens made his mad at
tempt upon the life of Louis, the king, terribly
frightened at his wound, made over the exer.
else OF the regal authority to the Dauphin,
one of whose first acts was to order the Mar
quise to withdraw from Versailles. But the
wound proved slight; the king quickly re-
covered; the minister who had advised the
measure was dlsgraced; and the Pompadour
was in greater favor than ever.
The system by which the Pompadour
sWayed her sovereign was simple. Louis XIV
was indolent, sensual, egotistical; indifferent
to the suLerings OF his people, unlike bis pre-
decessors, indifferent even to glory; believing
that France was created only for him,
yet averse to the consideration of public
affairs, man wholly given up to
selfindulgence. The Marquise saw that
her part WAS to provide for him con-
slant amusement, qualification. 1t was a hard
and wearisome employment, bat she made
the best of it. The reign of the Pompadour was
period of rampant vice, but over what might
have been merely base and iguoble she threw
an outer garb Of refinement.
Never did the French court wear such an
air of voluptuous yet elegant gaiety as during
the nineteen years of her reign. Louis Law
lshed houses and land upon the Marquise, but
they were insufficient to meet her expenses;
and it was not till she was able to make almost
unlimited calls upon the national ex-
found free scope. Of her houses, Choissy,
''seat of soft delight" was that to which the
king most loved to resort without the trappings
OF royalty. Here, surrounded with every ap-
pliance of luxury, she gathered about her the
preudest Of the mobiles, statesmen and soldiers,
the most brilliant of the men Of letters aud
artists, and the fairest of the ladies OF France.
Here wits talked their brightest women looked
and dressed their best. The sweetest voices
and ablest musicians charmed the ear with
their melodies; the choicest flowers loaded the
air with their perfumes; the walls were graced
with pictures and culpture. The Marquise
had lost none OF her delight in theatrical
amusements, and at Choissy she repeatedly
improvised a little opera or comedy,
or advertisement. These pleased the king SO
well that she had theatre constructed, Gabriel
the court architect furnishing the design, and
Boucher painting the decorations. The actors
were personages of rank-marshals, dukes,
countesses, or one or other OF the lions of the
hour. Sometimes the Marquise herself per-
formed. Occasionally the king, who was
proud OF his voice-Which Madame assured
him was divine-would delight his courtiers
by taking part in petit concert or joining the
Marquise and Geliotte in trio. The Due de
la Valliere was director Of the theatre; the
Abbe dc Lagarde prompter. At the represen-
tation of VOltaires 'L'Enfant Prodigue,' Mar
shal Sake played Euphemon, the Due de
Colgny Lise, and the POmpadOuT Marthe. The
play, we may we'll believe, was grand sue
cess, the king being foremost to applaud.
fIeces by CrebillOn and Rousseau were as
splendidly supported.
All this elegant trihing we have come to see
was serious work on the part Of the Marquse,
| a welcome means of Kidding himself OF the