The blow had been the more painful on account of its beingunexpected. It was some time before the marquise recoveredherself; but once recovered, she began to reflect upon theevents so heartlessly announced to her. She thereforereturned, at the risk even of losing her life in the way, tothat train of ideas which her relentless friend had forcedher to pursue. Treason, then - deep menaces, concealedunder the semblance of public interest - such wereColbert's maneuvers. A detestable delight at an approachingdownfall, untiring efforts to attain this object, means ofseduction no less wicked than the crime itself - such werethe weapons Marguerite employed. The crooked atoms ofDescartes triumphed; to the man without compassion wasunited a woman without heart. The marquise perceived, withsorrow rather than indignation, that the king was anaccomplice in the plot which betrayed the duplicity of LouisXIII. in his advanced age, and the avarice of Mazarin at aperiod of life when he had not had the opportunity ofgorging himself with French gold. The spirit of thuscourageous woman soon resumed its energy, no longeroverwhelmed by indulgence in compassionate lamentations. Themarquise was not one to weep when action was necessary, norto waste time in bewailing a misfortune as long as meansstill existed of relieving it. For some minutes she buriedher face in her cold fingers, and then, raising her head,rang for her attendants with a steady hand, and with agesture betraying a fixed determination of purpose. Herresolution was taken.

"Is everything prepared for my departure?" she inquired ofone of her female attendants who entered.

"Yes, madame; but it was not expected that your ladyshipwould leave for Belliere for the next few days."

"All my jewels and articles of value, then, are packed up?"

"Yes, madame; but hitherto we have been in the habit ofleaving them in Paris. Your ladyship does not generally takeyour jewels with you into the country."

"But they are all in order, you say?"

"Yes, in your ladyship's own room."

"The gold plate?"

"In the chest."

"And the silver plate?"

"In the great oak closet."

The marquise remained silent for a few moments, and thensaid calmly, "Let my goldsmith be sent for."

Her attendants quitted the room to execute the order. Themarquise, however, had entered her own room, and wasinspecting her casket of jewels with the greatest attention.Never, until now, had she bestowed such close attention uponriches in which women take so much pride; never, until now,had she looked at her jewels except for the purpose ofmaking a selection, according to their settings or theircolors. On this occasion, however, she admired the size ofthe rubies and the brilliancy of the diamonds; she grievedover every blemish and every defect; she thought the goldlight, and the stones wretched. The goldsmith, as heentered, found her thus occupied. "M. Faucheux " she said,"I believe you supplied me with my gold service?"

"I did, your ladyship."

"I do not now remember the amount of the account."

"Of the new service, madame, or of that which M. de Bellierepresented to you on your marriage? for I have furnishedboth."

"First of all, the new one."

"The covers, the goblets, and the dishes, with their covers,the eau-epergne, the ice-pails, the dishes for thepreserves, and the tea and coffee urns, cost your ladyshipsixty thousand francs."

"No more?"

"Your ladyship thought the account very high."

"Yes, yes; I remember, in fact, that it was dear; but it wasthe workmanship, I suppose?"

"Yes, madame; the designs, the chasings - all newpatterns."

"What proportion of the cost does the workmanship form? Donot hesitate to tell me."

"A third of its value, madame."

"There is the other service, the old one, that whichbelonged to my husband?"

"Yes, madame; there is less workmanship in that than in theother. Its intrinsic value does not exceed thirty thousandfrancs."

"Thirty thousand," murmured the marquise. "But, M. Faucheux,there is also the service which belonged to my mother; allthat massive plate which I did not wish to part with, onaccount of the associations connected with it."

"Ah! madame, that would indeed be an excellent resource forthose who, unlike your ladyship, might not be in a positionto keep their plate. In chasing that they worked in solidmetal. But that service is no longer in fashion. Its weightis its only advantage."

"That is all I care about. How much does it weigh?"

"Fifty thousand livres at the very least. I do not allude tothe enormous vases for the buffet, which alone weigh fivethousand livres, or ten thousand the pair."

"One hundred and thirty," murmured the marquise. "You arequite sure of your figures, M. Faucheux?"

"Positive, madame. Besides, there is no difficulty inweighing them."

"The amount is entered in my books."

"Your ladyship is extremely methodical, I am aware."

"Let us now turn to another subject," said Madame de,Belliere; and she opened one of her jewel-boxes.

"I recognize these emeralds," said M. Faucheux; "for it wasI who had the setting of them. They are the most beautifulin the whole court. No, I am mistaken; Madame de Chatillonhas the most beautiful set; she had them from Messieurs deGuise; but your set madame, comes next."

"What are they worth?"

"Mounted?"

"No; supposing I wished to sell them."

"I know very well who would buy them," exclaimed M.Faucheux.

"That is the very thing I ask. They could be sold, then?"

"All your jewels could be sold, madame. It is well knownthat you possess the most beautiful jewels in Paris. You arenot changeable in your tastes; when you make a purchase itis of the very best; and what you purchase you do not partwith."

"What could these emeralds be sold for, then?"

"A hundred and thirty thousand francs."

The marquise wrote down upon her tablets the amount whichthe jeweler mentioned. "The ruby necklace?" she said.

"Are they balas-rubies, madame?"

"Here they are."

"They are beautiful - magnificent. I did not know that yourladyship had these stones."

"What is their value?"

"Two hundred thousand francs. The center one is alone wortha hundred thousand."

"I thought so," said the marquise. "As for diamonds, I havethem in numbers; rings, necklaces, sprigs, earrings, clasps.Tell me their value, M. Faucheux."

The jeweler took his magnifying-glass and scales, weighedand inspected them, and silently made his calculations."These stones," he said, "must have cost your ladyship anincome of forty thousand francs."

"You value them at eight hundred thousand francs?"

"Nearly so."

"It is about what I imagined - -but the settings are notincluded?"

"No, madame; but if I were called upon to sell or to buy, Ishould be satisfied with the gold of the settings alone asmy profit upon the transaction. I should make a goodtwenty-five thousand francs."

"An agreeable sum."

"Very much so, madame."

"Will you accept that profit, then, on condition ofconverting the jewels into money?"

"But you do not intend to sell your diamonds, I suppose,madame?" exclaimed the bewildered jeweler.

"Silence, M. Faucheux, do not disturb yourself about that;give me an answer simply. You are an honorable man, withwhom my family has dealt for thirty years; you knew myfather and mother, whom your own father and mother served. Iaddress you as a friend; will you accept the gold of thesettings in return for a sum of ready money to be placed inmy hands?"

"Eight hundred thousand francs! it is enormous."

"I know it."

"Impossible to find."

"Not so."

"But reflect, madame, upon the effect which will be producedby the sale of your jewels."

"No one need know it. You can get sets of false jewels madefor me, similar to the real. Do not answer a word; I insistupon it. Sell them separately, sell the stones only."

"In that way it is easy. Monsieur is looking out for somesets of jewels as well as single stones for Madame'stoilette. There will be a competition for them. I can easilydispose of six hundred thousand francs' worth to Monsieur. Iam certain yours are the most beautiful."

"When can you do so?"

"In less than three days' time."

"Very well, the remainder you will dispose of among privateindividuals. For the present, make me out a contract ofsale, payment to be made in four days."

"I entreat you to reflect, madame; for if you force thesale, you will lose a hundred thousand francs."

"If necessary, I will lose two hundred; I wish everything tobe settled this evening. Do you accept?"

"I do, your ladyship. I will not conceal from you that Ishall make fifty thousand francs by the transaction."

"So much the better for you. In what way shall I have themoney?"

"Either in gold, or in bills of the bank of Lyons, payableat M. Colbert's."

"I agree," said the marquise, eagerly; "return home andbring the sum in question in notes, as soon as possible."

"Yes, madame, but for Heaven's sake - - "

"Not a word, M. Faucheux. By the by, I was forgetting thesilver plate. What is the value of that which I have?"

"Fifty thousand francs, madame."

"That makes a million," said the marquise to herself. "M.Faucheux, you will take away with you both the gold andsilver plate. I can assign, as a pretext, that I wish itremodelled on patterns more in accordance with my own taste.Melt it down, and return me its value in money, at once."

"It shall be done, your ladyship."

"You will be good enough to place the money in a chest, anddirect one of your clerks to accompany the chest, andwithout my servants seeing him; and order him to wait for mein a carriage."

"In Madame de Faucheux's carriage?" said the jeweler.

"If you will allow it, and I will call for it at yourhouse."

"Certainly, your ladyship."

"I will direct some of my servants to convey the plate toyour house." The marquise rung. "Let the small van be placedat M. Faucheux's disposal," she said. The jeweler bowed andleft the house, directing that the van should follow himclosely, saying aloud that the marquise was about to haveher plate melted down in order to have other platemanufactured of a more modern style. Three hours afterwardsshe went to M. Faucheux's house and received from him eighthundred thousand francs in gold inclosed in a chest, whichone of the clerks could hardly carry towards MadameFaucheux's carriage - for Madame Faucheux kept hercarriage. As the daughter of a president of accounts, shehad brought a marriage portion of thirty thousand crowns toher husband, who was syndic of the goldsmiths. These thirtythousand crowns had become very fruitful during twentyyears. The jeweler, though a millionaire, was a modest man.He had purchased a substantial carriage, built in 1648, tenyears after the king's birth. This carriage, or rather houseupon wheels, excited the admiration of the whole quarter inwhich he resided - it was covered with allegoricalpaintings, and clouds scattered over with stars. Themarquise entered this somewhat extraordinary vehicle,sitting opposite the clerk, who endeavored to put his kneesout of the way, afraid even of touching the marquise'sdress. It was the clerk, too, who told the coachman, who wasvery proud of having a marquise to drive, to take the roadto Saint-Mande.