He might long
have enjoyed the preference thus obtained, but for an act of the
greatest imprudence of which a lover could be guilty. He was so
indiscreet as to invite several of his most intimate friends to
sup with himself and Mademoiselle Mesnard. Amongst the number
was Caron de Beaumarchais, a man possessed of the grace of a
prince and the generous profusion of a highwayman. Caron de
Beaumarchais attracted the fancy of the fickle mademoiselle
Mesnard, a mutual understanding was soon established between
them, and in a snug little cottage surrounded by beautiful grounds
in the environs of Pere la Chaise, the enamored lovers frequently
met to exchange their soft vows.
Happily the deity who presided over the honor of the duke was
carefully watching their proceedings. This guardian angel was no
other than madame Duverger, his former mistress, who, unable to
bear the desertion of her noble admirer, had vowed, in the first
burst of rage and disappointment, to have revenge sooner or later
upon her triumphant rival. With this view she spied out all the
proceedings of mademoiselle Mesnard, whose stolen interviews
and infidelity she was not long in detecting; she even contrived
to win over a
, by whose connivance she was
enabled to obtain possession of several letters containing
irrefragable proofs of guilt, and these she immediately forwarded
to the duc de Chaulnes.
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