Cardinal La Tremoille, who had been
confirmed in his possession by bulls from the Pope. Since then the abbey
had fallen into the power of the enemy. Upon this, Cardinal de Bouillon
caused himself to be elected Abbot by a minority of the monks and in
spite of the opposition of the others. It was curious to see this
dutiful son of Rome, who had declared in his letter to the King, that he
thought of nothing except the dignity of the King, and how he could best.
serve God and the Church, thus elect him self in spite of the bull of the
Pope, in spite of the orders of the King, and enjoy by force the revenues
of the abbey, protected solely by heretics!

But I have in the above recital alluded to the taking of Douai: this
reminds me that I have got to speak of our military movements, our
losses, and our victories, of this year. In Flanders and in Spain they
were of some importance, and had better, perhaps, have a chapter or more
to themselves.

CHAPTER LIII

The King, who had made numberless promotions, appointed this year the
same generals to the same armies. Villars was chosen for Flanders, as
before. Having, arrived at the very summit of favour, he thought he
might venture, for the first time in his life, to bring a few truths
before the King. He did nothing then but represent to the ministers,
nay, even to the King and Madame de Maintenon themselves, the wretched
state of our magazines and our garrisons; the utter absence of all
provision for the campaign, and the piteous condition of the troops and
their officers, without money and without pay. This was new language in
the mouth of Villars, who hitherto had owed all his success to the
smiling, rose-tinted account he had given of everything. It was the
frequency and the hardihood of his falsehoods in this respect that made
the King and Madame de Maintenon look upon him as their sole resource;
for he never said anything disagreeable, and never found difficulties
anywhere. Now that he had raised this fatal curtain, the aspect appeared
so hideous to them, that they found it easier to fly into a rage than to
reply. From that moment they began to regard Villars with other eyes.
Finding that he spoke now the language which everybody spoke, they began
to look upon him as the world had always looked upon him, to find him
ridiculous, silly, impudent, lying, insupportable; to reproach themselves
with having elevated him from nothing, so rapidly and so enormously;