draw down upon the possessor this
persecution unto death. The most sacred ties were severed by the
cruellest mistrust. The husband trembled at his wife, the father at his
son, the sister at the brother. The dishes remained untouched, and the
wine at the dinner, which a friend put before his friends; and there
where formerly jest and mirth had reigned supreme, savage glances were
now spying about for the masked murderer. Fathers of families were
observed buying provisions in remote districts with uneasy looks and
movements, and preparing them themselves in the first dirty cook-shop
they came to, since they feared diabolical treachery in their own
homes. And yet even the greatest and most well-considered precautions
were in many cases of no avail.

In order to put a stop to this iniquitous state of things, which
continued to gain ground and grow greater day by day, the king
appointed a special court of justice for the exclusive purpose of
inquiring into and punishing these secret crimes. This was the
so-called _Chambre Ardente_, which held its sittings not far from the
Bastille, its acting president being La Regnie.[8] For a considerable
period all his efforts, however zealously they were prosecuted,
remained fruitless; it was reserved for the crafty Desgrais to discover
the most secret haunts of the criminals. In the Faubourg St. Germain
there lived an old woman called Voisin, who made a regular business of
fortune-telling and raising departed spirits; and with the help of her
confederates Le Sage and Le Vigoureux, she managed to excite fear and
astonishment in the minds of persons who could not be called exactly
either weak or credulous. But she did more than this. A pupil of Exili,
like La Croix, she, like him, concocted the same subtle poison that
killed and left no trace behind it; and so she helped in this way
profligate sons to get early possession of their inheritance, and
depraved wives to another and younger husband. Desgrais wormed his way
into her secret; she confessed all; the _Chambre Ardente_ condemned her
to be burned alive, and the sentence was executed in the Place Greve.

Amongst her effects was found a list of all the persons who had availed
themselves of her assistance; and hence it was that not only did
execution follow upon execution, but grave suspicion fell even upon
persons of high position. Thus it was believed that Cardinal Bonzy had
obtained from La Voisin the means of bringing to an untimely