r eyes the
number of persons informed of their communications with us."

The police of M. de Laporte, intendant of the civil list, apprised him, as
early as the latter end of 1791, that a man belonging to the King's
offices who had set up as a pastrycook at the Palais Royal was about to
resume the duties of his situation, which had devolved upon him again on
the death of one who held it for life; that he was so furious a Jacobin
that he had dared to say it would be a good thing for France if the King's
days were shortened. His duty was confined to making the pastry; he was
closely watched by the head officers of the kitchen, who were devoted to
his Majesty; but it is so easy to introduce a subtle poison into made
dishes that it was determined the King and Queen should eat only plain
roast meat in future; that their bread should be brought to them by M.
Thierry de Ville-d'Avray, intendant of the smaller apartments, and that he
should likewise take upon himself to supply the wine. The King was fond
of pastry; I was directed to order some, as if for myself, sometimes of
one pastry-cook, and sometimes of another. The pounded sugar, too, was
kept in my room. The King, the Queen, and Madame Elisabeth ate together,
and nobody remained to wait on them. Each had a dumb waiter and a little
bell to call the servants when they were wanted. M. Thierry used himself
to bring me their Majesties' bread and wine, and I locked them up in a
private cupboard in the King's closet on the ground floor. As soon as the
King sat down to table I took in the pastry and bread. All was hidden
under the table lest it might be necessary to have the servants in. The
King thought it dangerous as well as distressing to show any apprehension
of attempts against his person, or any mistrust of his officers of the
kitchen. As he never drank a whole bottle of wine at his meals (the
Princesses drank nothing but water), he filled up that out of which he had
drunk about half from the bottle served up by the officers of his butlery.
I took it away after dinner. Although he never ate any other pastry than
that which I brought, he took care in the same manner that it should seem
that he had eaten of that served at table. The lady who succeeded me found
this duty all regulated, and she executed it in the same manner; the
public never was in possession of these particulars, nor of the
apprehensions which gave rise to them. At the end of three or four months