le Prince to Cardinal Mazarin?'
He whistled on without answering, but she persevered, with alternate
taunts and threats, till at last she extracted from him a letter to
the magistrates at the Hotel de Ville, telling them that she would
inform them of his intentions. Off, then, we went again, having with
us Madame de Nemours, who was in an agony about her husband, and
presently we were at the Hotel de Ville, where we were received by
the Prevot des Marchands, the echevins, and Marshal de l'Hopital,
Governor of Paris--all in the most intense anxiety. She was brought
into to great hall, but she would not sit down--giving them her
father's letter, and then desiring that the town-guard should take up
arms in all the quarters. This was already done. Then they were to
send the Prince 2000 men, and to put 400 men under her orders in the
Place Royale. To all this they agreed; but when she asked them to
give the Prince's troops a passage through the city, they demurred,
lest they should bring on themselves the horrors of war.
Again she commanded, she insisted, she raved, telling them that if
they let the Prince's army be destroyed those of M. de Turenne would
assuredly come in and sack the city for its rebellion.
Marshal l'Hopital said that but for Mademoiselle's friends, the royal
army would never have come thither at all, and Madame de Nemours
began to dispute with him, but Mademoiselle interfered, saying:
'Recollect, while you are discussing useless questions the Prince is
in the utmost danger;' and, as we heard the cries of the people and
beyond them the sharp rattle of musketry, she threatened them with
appealing to the people.
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