. Gilles, Antoine, see to
Monsieur de Chatellerault. Basile, wine for Monsieur le Comte. Bestir
there!"

In a moment he was become the centre of a very turmoil of attention. My
lacqueys flitted about him buzzing and insistent as bees about a rose.
Would Monsieur taste of this capon a la casserole, or of this truffled
peacock? Would a slice of this juicy ham a l'anglaise tempt Monsieur
le Comte, or would he give himself the pain of trying this turkey aux
olives? Here was a salad whose secret Monsieur le Marquis's cook had
learnt in Italy, and here a vol-au-vent that was invented by Quelon
himself.

Basile urged his wines upon him, accompanied by a page who bore a silver
tray laden with beakers and Wagons. Would Monsieur le Comte take white
Armagnac or red Anjou? This was a Burgundy of which Monsieur le Marquis
thought highly, and this a delicate Lombardy wine that His Majesty had
oft commended. Or perhaps Monsieur de Chatellerault would prefer to
taste the last vintage of Bardelys?

And so they plagued him and bewildered him until his choice was made;
and even then a couple of them held themselves in readiness behind his
chair to forestall his slightest want. Indeed, had he been the very
King himself, no greater honour could we have shown him at the Hotel de
Bardelys.

But the restraint that his coming had brought with it hung still upon
the company, for Chatellerault was little loved, and his presence there
was much as that of the skull at an Egyptian banquet.

For of all these fair-weather friends that sat about my table--amongst
whom there were few that had not felt his power--I feared there might
be scarcely one would have the grace to dissemble his contempt of the
fallen favourite. That he was fallen, as much his words as what already
we had known, had told us.

Yet in my house I would strive that he should have no foretaste of that
coldness that to-morrow all Paris would be showing him, and to this
end I played the host with all the graciousness that role may bear, and
overwhelmed him with my cordiality, whilst to thaw all iciness from the
bearing of my other guests, I set the wines to flow more freely still.
My dignity would permit no less of me, else would it have seemed that
I rejoiced in a rival's downfall and took satisfaction from the
circumstance that his disfavour with the King was like to result in my
own further exaltation.

My efforts were not wasted. Slowly the mellowing influence of the grape