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Updated: May 25, 2025
"Is it possible?" cried the surintendant, clasping his hands. "The one was the most fortunate of men: the other the most unhappy and miserable of all living beings." "Does his mother not know this?" "Anne of Austria knows it all." "And the king?" "Knows absolutely nothing." "So much the better," said Fouquet.
The States will say that the imposts are too heavy, and that the surintendant has ruined them. The king will lay all the blame on M. Fouquet, and then " "And then?" said Colbert. "Oh! he will be disgraced. Is not that your opinion?" Colbert darted a glance at the duchesse, which plainly said: "If M. Fouquet be only disgraced, you will not be the cause of it."
No man more fully recognized the great change that was going on, or did more to help it forward, than Nicolas Fouquet, Vicomte de Vaux, and Marquis de Belleîle, but better known as the Surintendant. In the pleasant social annals of France, Fouquet is the type of splendor, and of sudden, hopeless ruin.
It was at the request of the Queen that the Cardinal made the trusty Procureur Surintendant des Finances, the first position in France after the throne and the prime-ministership. Pensions, and the promise of comfortable places, had collected about the Surintendant talent, fashion, and beauty. Some of the ablest men in the kingdom were in his employ.
This made him change his tone, and say, with terrified politeness, "If monsieur wishes to speak to M. le surintendant, he must go to the ante-chambers; these are the offices, where monseigneur never comes." "Oh! very well! Where are they?" replied D'Artagnan. "On the other side of the court," said the clerk, delighted to be free. D'Artagnan crossed the court, and fell in with a crowd of servants.
M. Fouquet," replied D'Artagnan to himself, "is a handsome man, very much beloved by the women, a generous man very much beloved by the poets; a man of wit, much execrated by pretenders. Well, now I am neither woman, poet, nor pretender: I neither love nor hate monsieur le surintendant.
"Where is your master's diocese?" "Monseigneur Rene is bishop of Vannes." "Who had him nominated?" "Why, monsieur le surintendant, our neighbor." "What! Monsieur Fouquet?" "To be sure he did." "Is Aramis on good terms with him, then?" "Monseigneur preached every Sunday at the house of monsieur le surintendant at Vaux; then they hunted together." "Ah!"
Now you know that the nomination of bishops rests with the king, I have the king, I am the stronger." Bazin smiled hypocritically. "Ah, but we have monsieur le surintendant," said he. "And you laugh at the king, then?" Bazin made no reply; his smile was sufficiently eloquent. "My supper," said D'Artagnan, "it is getting towards seven o'clock."
As D'Artagnan delighted, both from pleasure and system, in making people talk about things which interested him, he fenced in his best style with Master Bazin, but it was pure loss of time; beyond the tiresome and hyperbolical praises of monsieur le surintendant of the finances, Bazin, who, on his side, was on his guard, afforded nothing but platitudes to the curiosity of D'Artagnan, so that our musketeer, in a tolerably bad humor, desired to go to bed as soon as he had supped.
He recovered, and suddenly, "Monsieur," said he, "monsieur le surintendant has done what he had no right to do." "What do you mean by that?" replied D'Artagnan. "I mean that your note will you let me see your note, if you please?" "Very willingly; here it is."
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