Louis." [Footnote:
Beauchesne "Louis XVII," vol. 1., p. 143.]
Not to be able to show one's self near the window without being
showered with insults! Yes, and even into the very middle of her
room they followed her. Even when sitting far away from the window,
she could not help hearing the loud cries which were thundered out
on the pavement below, as the hucksters offered to the laughing
crowd the infamous pamphlet, written with a poisoned pen, and
entitled "The Life of Marie Antoinette."
At times her anger mastered her, her eyes flashed, her figure was
straightened up, and the suffering martyr was transformed for an
instant into the proud, commanding queen.
"I will not bear it!" she cried, walking up and down with great
strides, "I will speak to them; they shall not insult me without
hearing my justification. Yes, I will go down to these people, who
call me a foreigner. I will say to them, 'Frenchmen, people have had
the want of feeling to tell you that I do not love France, I, the
mother of a dauphin, I--'" [Footnote: The queen's own words.-See
Campan, "Memoires," vol. II. ]
But her voice choked in her tears, and she fled to the extreme end
of the room, fell sobbing on her knees, and held both her hands to
her ears, in order not to hear the dreadful insults which came up
from below and through her windows.
Pages:
451
452
453
454
455
456
457
458
459
460
461
462
463
464
465
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
473
474
475