e declared to the Duc d'Orleans
that they were very uneasy as to the troubles which might at this moment
be excited in Paris by malcontents, who would not scruple to make use of
his name to disturb the capital, and perhaps the kingdom; and he was
urged on these grounds to protract the time of his departure. The Duc
d'Orleans, unwilling in any way to afford plea or pretext for any
disturbance of public tranquillity, consented to delay his return."

X.

He at last left England, and on his return made several fruitless
attempts to be again employed in the navy. Whilst his mind was thus
wavering, he received the intelligence, through M. Bertrand de
Molleville, that the king had nominated him to the rank of admiral. The
Duc d'Orleans went to thank the minister, and added that, "He was
rejoiced at the honour the king conferred on him, as it would give him
an opportunity of communicating to the king his real sentiments, which
had been odiously calumniated. I am very unfortunate," continued he; "my
name has been involved in all the crimes imputed to me, and I have been
deemed guilty, because I disdained to justify myself; but time will show
whether my conduct belies my words."

The air of frankness and good faith, and the significant tone with which
the Duc d'Orleans uttered these words, struck the minister, who until
then had been greatly prejudiced against his innocence. He inquired if
his royal highness would consent to repeat these expressions to the
king, as they would rejoice his majesty, and he feared that they might
lose some of their force if repeated by himself. The duke eagerly
embraced the idea of seeing the king, if the king would receive him, and
expressed his intention of presenting himself at the chateau the next
day. The king, informed of this by his minister, awaited the prince, and
had a long and private conference with him.

A confidential document, written with the prince's own hand, and drawn
up in order to justify his memory in the eyes of his children and his
friends, informs us of what passed at this interview. "The
ultra-democrats," said the Duc d'Orleans, "deemed that I wished to make
France a republic; the ambitious, that I wished, by my popularity, to
force the king to resign the administration of the kingdom into my
hands; lastly, the virtuous and patriotic had the illusion of their own
virtue concerning me, for they deemed that I sacrificed myself entirely
to the public good. The one party d