A QVEEN'S ADVENTURE.

Te Aroha News, Volume I, Issue 37, 16 February 1884, Page 4

A QVEEN'S ADVENTURE.

One rainy evening towards the close of April, 1791, a ponderous old travellingcoach toiled wearily up the hill, the summit of which is crowned by the ancient town of Jbugne, on the road between Lonsles : Saulniers et Besancon, the capital of the provinoe of Franche-Comte. There were two women in the vehicle ; one tall, hand' some, and exceedingly elegant, occupied the seat facing the horses ; the other, who sat opposite to her, was a young person of sprightly countenance, whose simple costume and deferential manner at once announced her to be either a waiting-maid or a "dame de compagnie." From time to time, one or other of the two travellers would thrust her head out of the carriage window to urge on the po&tilion, or look back down the road, apparently to see whether any one were following. Notwithstanding the entreaties of the ladies, and his own best endeavours, Maitre Jacques, the postilion, failed miserably in his attempts to induce his two heavy Flemish horses even to get into a trot, let alone a gallop. The road was so bad, the rain so blinding, the ruts were so many, and the mud was so deep, that the best the poor beasts could do in response to their master's oaths and loud cracks of the whip was to givo an occasional jerk forward or a stumble, and then resume their wonted funereal pace. Heaven help us, Susanne ! The dreadful journey will nevei end ! We cannot possibly reach Besancon to-night, observed the lady who sat with her face to the horses ; " mon Dieu ! how I wish we were well over it and Madame is too nervous ! That gentleman on horseback we have seen at the three last stations, and who has followed us has frightened her. Believe me, lam sure he is no spy ! he is too nice-looking for that. lam persuaded he is only instigated by madame's charms, and has not recognised her. Oh !heis no more asans-cnlotte than I am !" "It matters very little n-hot you think about him; I have my fears, and my reasons for having them. Put your head out once more, and see if he is still in sight." Susanne did as she was bid, and presently, shutting down the window as quickly a* she could, to prevent the rain from pouring in, gave her mistress the re-assuring news that not only had the obnoxious stranger disappeared, but also that the gates at Jounge wei*e close at hand. " And, madame, through a break in the clouds, I saw the mountains of Switzerland ; so, you see, we are approaching the frontier. '' " That is well ; we will stop for supper, here, at the Lion dOr, and then hasten on to Besancon this veiy night," said her mistress. In a few minutes more the carriage rumbled through th<s narrow'streets of Jougne, and presently stopped under the " PorteCochre " of the Golden Lion. " Will the ladies get down?" said the jolly innkeeper, as he stood with the half-opened carriage door in one hand and his cap is the other,°boAving with extra civility to his two new guests, and delighted at the prospect of their being detained all night under his roof, for travellers had become very rare in these troubled times ; "will the ladies get down ? Supper will be ready at a moment's notice." " Certainly ; we want it at once, and let it be a good substantial meal, for, I can assure you, we are really hungry," answered the tall lady, as she jumped out; and, turning to the postilion, inquired if it were possible to reach Besancon before midnight. " Perfectly impossible, madame ; the roads are in a shocking state. We should only run the risk of a breakdown half-way." ' ' And that would be intolerable, Allons ! Susanne, get down, and bring in with you all the shawls, pillows, and rugs that you can find ; for since we must sleep here we may as well make ourselves at home." Susanne, loaded with rugs and satchels, followed her mistress into the house, and the two travellers, emerging from the shade of the hall, entered the brightly illuminated dining-room. A fire crackled cheerily on the hearth, and the large apartment, with its many little tables covered w ith snow-white cloths and shining glass, looked quite cosy. The ladies, taking off their wraps, seated themselves by the fire, and presently the landlady drew in front ot them a table, on which she placed two steaming bowls of excellent broth. The bright light of the fire threw its cheerful glare on the countenance of the tall lady, and showed her to possess such rare and stately beauty that the worthy lady, on returning to the kitchen, proclaimed t:> her sattelites that she had never before seen so queenly a personage. " C'est line veritable reine (She's a perfect queen). I warrant she's some fine court marchioness on her way to the frontier," said she ; " and poor soul ! I would be the last to prevent her flight !" The two travellers had scarcely tasted their first spoonful of soup, when the doors of the apartment were thrown open, and a " fonctionnaire " of the provisionary government, wearing his tri-coloured scarf, entered. Striding up to the table at which the ladies were seated, he drew from his pocket a letter, and, fixing his eyes with avid interest on the tall lady, made a mental comparison between her countenance and that of some one described in the document he held in his hand. "What is your name, citoyenne?" he asked suddenly, in a tone of authority. " May I first ask, sir, who it is I shall have the honour of answering when I do give my name?" returned the lady, who, although she had become exceedingly pale, retained her self-posses&ion in a remarkable manner ; for it was no joke for women of position to fall into the hands of " fonctionnaires " in those days. "I am the Mayor of Jougne." " In that case, M. le Maire, I am Madame dePryne." "Have you no papers about you — no passport !" " Mon Dieu ! yes— no ; that is, of course I have ; but in my trunk," answered the lady; "we are only going to Besancon. This is my maid Susanne ; we are travelling in France, and for that I had no idea passports were necessary, M. le Maire. " You said you had one in yow trunk. Very well, Madame de Pryne, allow me to ace this passport." "Willingly ! Call in your men, and let them bring my largest trunk, all my papers are in it." The order wap given, and the box was opened. "It is at the bottom of all," said Madame de Pryne, rising as if to search herself. " It is useless your troubling yourself, citoyenne. See ! Look at these grand trains ; they alone suffice to prove that you belong to the court, and intend emigrating to Switzerland," cried the Mayor, as he threw out of the box on to the table several magnificent robes of velvet, one of which was lined with ermine; "and here— here my suspicions are more than confirmed. Ah ! ah ! Madame de Pryne, you wear a crown, do you ?" exclaimed the Mayor, as he suddenly rose from his inspection of the box's contents, brandishing triumphantly in one hand a crown studded with large gems, and in the other a sceptre. "Ah! ah!" laughed he exultingly ; " madame, so you

were going over the frontier with tho crown jewels of France ? I know who you are i" " Who ?" said the lady, as palo as a sheet. "You are Marie Antoinette, sometime Queen of France." " Is tho Queen expected to pass this way mher-flight?" " Sho is— and you know that better than anyone. In the name of France and the law, I arrest you !" " Without any further proofs ?" *' Certainly — 1 do not require them." " Will you not at lca&t look at my passport ?"' " Bah ! a borrowed passport " said the Mayor in an impatient tone; "you had better give yourself up, madame, ithout any further trouble. Believe me, it will bo the best. " " Then, sir," said the lady, rising majestically from her seat, and assuming an imperial attitude — " lam the Queen." It would be difficult to imagine a more noble figure than that of the unfortunate lady, as she spoke these four woi'ds. Seeing that Susanne was impatiently about to intarrupt her, sho silenced her by an imperative gesture, and then reseated herself with much dignity in her chair. So queenly did she appear at this critical moment of her existence that, staunch .Republican as lie was, the Maire of Jougne forgot all about cgalite, bowed low beforo tho fallen sovereign, and retired 'at once to give the necessary orders for Her Majesty's detention, and to announce the news of her capture to his fellow-citizens. A few moments after his exit two gensd'armes w ere sent to mount guard at the doors of the salon, and the unfortunate queen, concluding a few words of conversation -u ith Susanne, threw herself on her knees and prayed earnestly for Divine assistance, in less than an hour the Mayor returned, accompanied by a dozen or so of members of the municipality. They found the queen calm, and oven cheerful. She acknowledged their deferential manner towards her with regal grace ; and when informed that the upper part of the hotel was placed at her service until further instructions were received from Paris, followed thorn thither, with so quick and even gay a stop that -cveral of them afterw ards remembered it as an unusual instance of self-command. When once the queen was safe, and a guard placed at her door, the Mayor of Jougne gave himself up to a transport of revolutionary joy. He had the ''Queen of France under lock and key." On him, betore three days were over, would be lixed the eyes of the world. His name would descend to posterity, and live for ever in the annals of his country. Having assembled his fellow " fonctionnairos " in the j salon of the inn, he made them a patriotic speech, in which he invoked the spirits of Brutus and of Cato, and ound up by pro- j posing " that the patriots of Jouone should form themselves into a battalion of true J Eepublicans, and placing Marie Antoinette of Austria in their centre, lead that arch traitie&s bcfoie the National Tribunal. ' Possessed, as they were, of her crown, ' sceptre, globe, and royal mantle, they could • parry these emblems of fallen despotism in their triumphal procession, and offer them as a holocaust on the altars of liberty."' An address to the National Assembly, stating their intention, and giving the most minute details of the queen's arrest, was forthwith written and signed by the entire conclave, and despatched immediately to the capital. To thi& letter Mas added a private one from the Queen herself, but so artfully scaled ; that, do what they could to read it, not one of them discovered a •word of its contents. Having dismissed the council, the Mayor I went once more to the Queen to inform her ' of what had been determined. Being a kind-hearted man, however, he spaied her the knowledge of the manner in ■which he proposed to conduct her back to Paris. While he was converging with Her Majesty, a gendarme hurriedly entered the chamber in a state of great excitement : "M. le Maire! M le Maire! we have arrested Polignac of Lamballe !" " Ah !" exclaimed the Queen, "it is that young man." "What young man?" inquired the Mayor. "A gentleman -who followed our coach, that is all," answered she, in some confusion, seeing that she had evidently committed an imprudence by this last observation. "Let him be brought up here immediately, 1 ' ordered the Mayor, and in a few moment* a tall and very handsome young man was dragged into the apartment by two guards. His clothes were dripping wet, he had lost his hat, and his soiled clook dragged on the ground behind him. "It is the same," whispered Susanne; "perhaps he may help us." " Please God," murmured the Queen. No sooner was this young gentleman disengaged from the hands of hi& captors than, throwing himself upon his knees, he raised her hand to his lips. " Pardon ms, madame. Had I but suspected it was the Queen of France to whom I presumed to raise my eyes, I would have died rather than have so far forgotten what was due to my sovereign, especially in her hour of trouble. lam a gentleman by birth, the Count de Moilettes. Unaware of your true rank, I followed your carriage, struck by your surpassing beauty and enslaved by its power, hoping through my persistence to be favoured with one glance of pity if not of love. Now that I recognise my error, as your Majesty's most humble servant and subject, my life is at your service, and i crave only your gracious pardon." "Oh, you have it, count. I grant it willingly, and only see in your conduct," answered the Queen, smiling, but with an evident meaning, for she fixed her keen eyss on the kneeling gentleman in a manner that forbad his answering ; " I see, sir, in your conduct only a proof of your desire (to serve an unfortunate woman and a fallen queen — " "It is well," broke in the Mayor ; " notwithstanding all appearances to the contrary, this young man evidently forms part of your cortege, madame. He is arrested, and shall share your apartments. The chamber at the end of the corridor, sir, is yours. You have, however, the right of free access to the Queen when she desires your presence. Mesdames, I wish you a very good night; ciloyen, boil soir!" and, bowing civilly, the Mayor withdrew. When the door was closed the count was about to withdraw also, but the Queen prevpnted his doing so, entreating him to remain and partake of her supper, which waa presently served. During this meal Her Majesty became exceedingly lively, and the merry laughter of the imprisoned sovereign and her new friend, being heard outside, led the guards to observe that Her Majesty was a singularly | fearless woman ; for in spite of the danger she was m, she laughed like a true daughter of Momus, and was having a fine time of it with the prince, who was evidently her lover." \ It is unnecessary to tell how the imprisoned Queen passed her time in her confinement at the Lion d'Or. We are compelled, however, to record that her inti macy with the count became so great that once the guard at the door, spying through the keyhole, actually saw him kiss her before retiring for the night.

The sixth and last day of her captivity at length arrived. The answer from the National Assembly reached Jougne towards noon, and the Queen was at breakfast with the Count and Susanne when the Mayor entered her presence, followed by the whole municipality and several guards. The good Mayor was Hushed with excitement, and in his hand he held the as yet unopened document. Arranging all his colleagues according to their various official grades in a semicircle around him, he addressed the Queen, who rose to hear him with a stately air. " Marie Antoinette of Austria, we have this morning received the following answer from the Government of Paris, and hasten to communicate to you its contents." Here the worthy magistrate broke the seal, and read — " Citizen Marie. — Marie Antoinette is still in Paris, and has novcr left it. Let Mademoiselle- Sainval, of the Theatre Francais, pass on Avithout hindrance to Besancon, where she has au engagement." Had the earth oponed at his feet, the Mayor of Jongno could not have looked more dumbfounded. "So you have played us a trick, have you, Mademoisello Sainval?" ho said furiously. "My dear M. le Maire, allow me to remark," answered the quondam Queen, "that it is you who have played me a trick. Had you but examined my passport, as I told you, you would have found that, although I have been Queen of Tyre, Sidonea, Greece, Jerusalem, Rome, and Mesopotamia, I have never, up to the present time, laid claim to the throne of France, even for a single night. You, however, have forced me to play a part which does not belong to me for six successive days and nights, and an irksome role it has proved. I Confess, now, that it is not my fault, if you mistook the crown and sceptre of Mesopotamia for that of Gaul. But, since I am free to proceed to Besancon, perhaps you will order my carriage to the door, for, as soon as I have finished breakfast, I intend to be oil". Bonjour, messieurs," she added, bowing to the mortilied council us she withdrew . Suddenly recollecting- herself, she cried out, " Eh, may the count come too?" " To the devil, if he likes," answered the Mayor snappishly, as he slammed the door. Mademoiselle Sainval turned gracefully to the count, and said, as a sweet smile illumined her charming face, "And you, my dear count, when you have done justice to that omelette, perhaps you will give me jour arm, and lead me clown to the coach ? Oh, how I wish that the poor Queen had indeed left Paris whilst I was enacting her part ; which 1 did in the hope that these people, believing the paste to be a roal diamond, would let the true jewel pass ! Poor, poor Queen ' Allons, Susanne, let us go. Count, you have served me as sovereign of France, will you not still continue to be my squire or tragedy-queen ?" The count, bowing low, raised the fair actress's hands to his lips. Then, leaning on his arm, and followed by her faithful maid, Mademoisille Sainval swept dow n the staircase to the carriage, in ■\\hich the count took his seat opposite Susanne.