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THE WANDERING JEW - V3
THE WANDERING JEW - V3 EUGENE SUE BOOK III.
XXXVI. A Female Jesuit
XXXVII. The Plot
XXXVIII. Adrienne's Enemies
XXXIX. The Skirmish
XL. The Revolt
XLI. Treachery
XLII. The Snare
XLIII. A False Friend
XLIV. The Minister's Cabinet
XLV. The Visit
XLVI. Presentiments
XLVII. The Letter
XLVIII. The Confessional
XLIX. My Lord and Spoil-sport
L. Appearances
LI. The Convent
LII. The Influence of a Confessor
LIII. The Examination
CHAPTER XXXVI.
A FEMALE JESUIT.
During the preceding scenes which occurred in the Pompadour rotunda
occupied by Miss de Cardoville other events took place in the residence
of the Princess Saint-Dizier. The elegance and sumptuousness of the
former dwelling presented a strong contrast to the gloomy interior of the
latter the first floor of which was inhabited by the princess for the
plan of the ground floor rendered it only fit for giving parties; and
for a long time past Madame de Saint-Dizier had renounced all worldly
splendors. The gravity of her domestics all aged and dressed in black;
the profound silence which reigned in her abode where everything was
spoken if it could be called speaking in an undertone; and the almost
monastic regularity and order of this immense mansion communicated to
everything around the princess a sad and chilling character. A man of
the world who joined great courage to rare independence of spirit
speaking of the princess (to whom Adrienne de Cardoville went according
to her expression to fight a pitched battle) said of her as follows:
"In order to avoid having Madame de Saint-Dizier for an enemy I who am
neither bashful nor cowardly have for the first time in my life been
both a noodle and a coward." This man spoke sincerely. But Madame de
Saint-Dizier had not all at once arrived at this high degree of
importance.
Some words are necessary for the purpose of exhibiting distinctly some
phases in the life of this dangerous and implacable woman who by her
affiliation with the Order of Jesuits had acquired an occult and
formidable power. For there is something even more menacing than a
Jesuit: it is a Jesuits; and when one has seen certain circles it
becomes evident that there exist unhappily many of those affiliated
who more or less uniformly dress (for the lay members of the Order call
themselves "Jesuits of the short robe").
Madame de Saint-Dizier once very beautiful had been during the last
years of the Empire and the early years of the Restoration one of the
most fashionable women of Paris of a stirring active adventurous and
commanding spirit of cold heart but lively imagination. She was
greatly given to amorous adventures not from tenderness of heart but
from a passion for intrigue which she loved as men love play--for the
sake of the emotions it excites. Unhappily such had always been the
blindness or the carelessness of her husband the Prince of Saint-Dizier
(eldest brother of the Count of Rennepont and Duke of Cardoville father
of Adrienne) that during his life he had never said one word that could
make it be thought that he suspected the actions of his wife. Attaching
herself to Napoleon to dig a mine under the feet of the Colossus that
design at least afforded emotions sufficient to gratify the humor of the
most insatiable. During some time all went well. The princess was
beautiful and spirited dexterous and false perfidious and seductive.
She was surrounded by fanatical adorers upon whom she played off a kind
of ferocious coquetry to induce them to run their heads into grave
conspiracies. They hoped to resuscitate the Fonder party and carried on
a very active secret correspondence with some influential personages
abroad well known for their hatred against the emperor and France.
Hence arose her first epistolary relations with the Marquis d'Aigrigny
then colonel in the Russian service and aide-de-camp to General Moreau.
But one day all these petty intrigues were discovered. Many knights of
Madame de Saint-Dizier were sent to Vincennes; but the emperor who might
have punished her terribly contented himself with exiling the princess
to one of her estates near Dunkirk.
Upon the Restoration the persecutions which Madame de Saint-Dizier had
suffered for the Good Cause were entered to her credit and she acquired
even then very considerable influence in spite of the lightness of her
behavior. The Marquis d'Aigrigny having entered the military service of
France remained there. He was handsome and of fashionable manners and
address. He had corresponded and conspired with the princess without
knowing her; and these circumstances necessarily led to a close
connection between them.
Excessive self-love a taste for exciting pleasures aspirations of
hatred pride and lordliness a species of evil sympathy the perfidious
attraction of which brings together perverse natures without mingling
them had made of the princess and the Marquis accomplices rather than
lovers. This connection based upon selfish and bitter feelings and
upon the support which two characters of this dangerous temper could lend
to each other against a world in which their spirit of intrigue of
gallantry and of contempt had made them many enemies this connection
endured till the moment when after his duel with General Simon the
Marquis entered a religious house without any one understanding the
cause of his unexpected and sudden resolution.
The princess having not yet heard the hour of her conversion strike
continued to whirl round the vortex of the world with a greedy jealous
and hateful ardor for she saw that the last years of her beauty were
dying out.
An estimate of the character of this woman may be formed from the
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