elied upon
their own powers; for they knew of his attachment to the queen-mother.
At this singular epoch the double part played by many of the political
men of the day was well known to both parties; they were like cards in
the hands of gamblers,--the cleverest player won the game. During this
council the two brothers maintained the most impenetrable reserve. A
conversation which now took place between Catherine and certain of her
friends will explain the object of this council, held by the Guises in
the open air, in the hanging gardens, at break of day, as if they feared
to speak within the walls of the chateau de Blois.

The queen-mother, under pretence of examining the observatory then in
process of construction, walked in that direction accompanied by the two
Gondis, glancing with a suspicious and inquisitive eye at the group of
enemies who were still standing at the farther end of the terrace, and
from whom Chiverni now detached himself to join the queen-mother. She
was then at the corner of the terrace which looks down upon the Church
of Saint-Nicholas; there, at least, there could be no danger of the
slightest overhearing. The wall of the terrace is on a level with the
towers of the church, and the Guises invariably held their council
at the farther corner of the same terrace at the base of the great
unfinished keep or dungeon,--going and returning between the Perchoir
des Bretons and the gallery by the bridge which joined them to the
gardens. No one was within sight. Chiverni raised the hand of the
queen-mother to kiss it, and as he did so he slipped a little note from
his hand to hers, without being observed by the two Italians. Catherine
turned to the angle of the parapet and read as follows:--

You are powerful enough to hold the balance between the leaders
and to force them into a struggle as to who shall serve you; your
house is full of kings, and you have nothing to fear from the
Lorrains or the Bourbons provided you pit them one against the
other, for both are striving to snatch the crown from your
children. Be the mistress and not the servant of your counsellors;
support them, in turn, one against the other, or the kingdom will
go from bad to worse, and mighty wars may come of it.

L'Hopital.

The queen put the letter in the hollow of her corset, resolving to burn
it as soon as she was alone.

"When did you see him?" she asked Chiverni.

"On my way back from visiting the Connet