I longed the more to be at home because my very dear brother, now convalescent, was preparing everything for his journey to the Hague.  He had an interview with M. de Poligny, and convinced him that it was hopeless to endeavour to gain Annora’s consent to the match with his son, and perhaps the good gentleman was not sorry to withdraw with honour; and thus the suit waited till the Parliament should be at leisure to attend to private affairs.

My mother was greatly disappointed, above all when my brother, in his gentle but authoritative manner, requested her to withdraw her opposition to my sister’s marriage with Darpent, explaining that the had consented, as knowing what his father’s feeling would have been towards so good a man.  She wept, and said that it certainly would not have been so bad in England, but under the nose of all her friends—­bah! and she was sure that Solivet would kill the fellow rather than see canaille admitted into the family.  However, if the wedding took place at the Hague, where no one would hear of it, and Annora chose to come back and live en bourgeoise, and not injure the establishment of the Marquis de Nidemerle, she would not withhold her blessing.  So Annora was to go with Eustace, who indeed had not intended to leave her behind him, never being sure what coercion might be put on her.

In the meantime it was not possible for any peaceful person, especially one in my brother’s state of health, to leave Paris.  The city was between two armies, if not three.  On the one side was that of the Princes, on the other that of M. le Marechal de Turenne, with the Court in its rear, and at one time the Duke of Lorraine advanced, and though he took no one’s part, he felled the roads with horrible marauders trained in the Thirty Year’s War.  The two armies of Conde and Turenne skirmished in the suburbs, and it may be imagined what contradictory reports were always tearing us to pieces.  Meantime Paris was strong enough to keep out either army, and that was the one thing that the municipality and the Paliarment were resolved to do.  They let single officers of the Prince’s army, himself, the Duke of Beaufort, Nemours, the Court d’Aubepine, and the rest, come in and out, but they were absolutely determined not to be garrisoned by forces in direct rebellion to the King.  They would not stand a siege on their behalf, endure their military license, and then the horrors of an assault.  The Duke of Orleans professed to be of the same mind, but he was a mere nonentity, and merely acted as a drag on his daughter, who was altogether devoted to the Prince of Conde.  Cardinal de Retz vainly tried to persuade him to take the manly part of mediation, that would have been possible to him, at the head of the magistracy and municipality of Paris.