The chevalier de la Morliere--Portrait of the duc de
Choiseul--The duc de Choiseul and the comtesse du Barry--
No reconciliation effected--Madame du Barry and the duc
d'Aiguillon--Madame du Barry and Louis XV

About this period I received a piece of attention, any thing
but gratifying if considered in a strictly honourable sense. The
contemptible chevalier de la Morliere, who detested me, and subsequently
pursued me with rage, presumed to dedicate to me some wretched
collection of his compositions, and I had the weakness to accept the
dedication; I had even the still greater folly to receive its author
at my house; this piece of condescension injured me greatly. Until that
period I had not, like madame de Pompadour, shown myself the protectress
and patroness of men of letters; and even my warmest friends could not
deny, that in stepping forwards as the encourager of literature, I had
made a very unfortunate choice in selecting the chevalier de la
Morliere as the first object of my patronage. But how could I have done
otherwise? The prince de Soubise, who found this man serviceable
upon many occasions, would have sacrificed any thing to promote his
advancement; and I have been assured, that had the marechal taken half
the pains on the day previous to the battle of Rasbach, we should not
have left it so disgracefully.

The king well knew the unfortunate chevalier for a man as destitute of
modesty as merit; when therefore he saw his book upon the mantel-piece
of my drawing-room, he said,

"So! you are the inspiring muse of the chevalier de la Morliere; I only
warn you, when the day comes for him to be hanged, not to ask me to
pardon him."

"Be assured," replied I, "that I will never deprive the Place de Greve
of one so formed to do honour to it."

In fact, the chevalier was within an ace of reaching it before his
friends anticipated; for, very shortly after this conversation, he
was guilty of the most detestable piece of knavery I ever heard of.
He learned that an unfortunate young man from the country, into whose
confidence he had wormed himself, was to receive 15,000 livres on his
father's account; he invited him to supper, and, by the aid of two
villains like himself, stripped him of his last sous. Not satisfied with
this, he wrote the father such an exaggerated account of his son's loss
and general bad habits, that the enraged and irritated parent procured
an order to confine his son at Saint Laz