I was put au courant with all this by the chatter of the ladies in
the coach. I did no know them, and in the dark they hardly knew who
was there. Men with flambeaux ran by the side of the carriage, and
now and then the glare fell across a smiling face, glanced on a satin
dress, or gleamed back from some jewels; and then we had a long halt
in the court of the Tuileries, while Mademoiselle went to the Queen-
Regent to be inspected. We waited a long time, and I heard a great
deal of gossip before we were again set in motion, and when once off
we soon found ourselves in the court of the Hotel de Choisy, where we
mounted the stairs in the rear of Mademoiselle, pausing on the way
through the anteroom, in order to give a final adjustment to her
head-dress before a large mirror, the Prince of Wales standing
obediently beside her, waiting to hand her into the room, so that the
two black, white, and carnation figures were reflected side by side,
which was, I verily believe, the true reason of her stopping there,
for Queen Henrietta's handiwork was too skilful to require
retouching. Prince Rupert was close by, to act as interpreter, his
tall, powerful figure towering above them both, and his dark eyes
looking as if his thoughts were far off, yet keeping in control the
young Prince's great inclination to grimace and otherwise make game
of Mademoiselle's magnificent affectations and condescensions.
I was rather at a loss, for the grand salon was one sea of feathers,
bright satins and velvets, and curled heads, and though I tried to
come in with Mademoiselle's suite I did not properly belong to it,
and my own party were entirely lost to me.
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