The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-08-09

That same morning the cardinal vis- ited the jewellers, as he was disturbed about the matter of payment They informed him that they were quite sat ished, as they had received lettec from the Queen by courier, in which she engaged herself to pay 300, 900 francs in three months and the rest in six months.
 Jeanne knew well that she was play ing a desperate game. A chance word by eith CT the cardinal or the Queen al a meeting might expose her plot to both. But she was willing to play a desperate game for the great fortune that lay hidden away in her house; and she was daring enough to calculate that both Marie Antoinette and De Rohan would be zealous to avoid any refrence to the matter that had humil- , lated both equally.
 Her adventurous mind, set fercely on gaining her position in the world as q Valois abhorred the idea of flight. She would not face the thought of being known as a thief whom justice could not reach merely because she was too far away. Her quick wit showed her course far more desirable.
 She would compromise the Queen and the cardinal so that, when at last they discovered the forgeries and theft, they would not dare to speak-nay, wouli be forced to sustain her in her position and let her enjoy both her wealth and honor in peace.
 De Rohans boundless ambition and his faith in his powers of charming tha opposite sex offered her the means. Ths clever woman found it ludicrously easy to make the clever man believe that the Queen looked on his fine form and handsome face with more than royal favor. Nor was De Rohan much to blame for his credulity, for scandal credited Marie Antoinette with almost as many lovers as there were hand some young men at court.
 That there were many who sighed for the beautiful Austrian was true enough. Not a lady in all Versailles, dazzling though she might be, could claim to rival her royal mistress. De Coigny, Vaudreuil and many others had won their hearts on their sleeves for all to see, till even the good-natured King was forced to send them away from his court. Her latest vic- tims were two young heroes, Philip de Taverney who had returned with glory from his service in the American revolu- tion, and Count Georges de Charney, who had returned after famous deeds under his uncle, the great Admiral de Suffren. These two young men had not been at court many weeks before they fought a duel over a quarrel which neither would explain but which all the wicked world of Paris declared to be about the Queen.
 It was Philip whom Paris, and De Char ney among the rest, credited with having accompanied the Queen to the masked ball. Philip, on the other hand suspected De Charney of having been the favored lover; and each man was the more fiercely Jealous of the other since he considered his own passion hopeless.
 De Rohan, of course, knew all these stories Believing that he had supplanted his rivals, he was easily induced by the 1 Countess de la Motte to write letters to Marie Antoinette that would cost any man. no matter how powerful, his head. These letters he gave to Jeanne to deliver to the Queen; and Jeanne, of course, kept i them.
 With De Rohan thus self-delivered to her power 1t remained only to entangle Marie Antoinette in such a scandal that, l gullty or innocent. the Queen would be | forced to buy her silence She was too wise to dream of turing the Queen of France into any compromising situation, put she did not need to essay so difficult labor. Oliva was sufficient for her 1 plans.
 l The young woman had fallen thor oughly under the spell of Jeanne, and she agreed readily when the adventures proposed to her that she put on some hne gowns which she brought to her and pretend that she was the Queen at rem dezYous to be given at midnight at Yer sailles in the royal grounds
 1 Then Jeanne informed the Cardinal that his letters had found so much favor that the Queen would grant him a secret meet Ing So it happened that for three sue cessive nights the Prince-Cardinal met ner whom he thought to be the Queen, uttered his love to his sovereign ana swam in heavens of rapture.