Elizabeth Farnese, seeing at what rate the Congress of Cambrai
sped, lost all patience with it; and getting more and more
exasperations there, at length employed one Ripperda, a surprising
Dutch Black-Artist whom she now had for Minister, to pull the
floor from beneath it (so to speak), and send it home in that
manner. Which Ripperda did. An appropriate enough catastrophe,
comfortable to the reader; upon which perhaps he will not grudge
to read still another word?


CONGRESS OF CAMBRAI GETS THE FLOOR PULLED FROM UNDER IT.

Termagant Elizabeth had now one Ripperda for Minister;
a surprising Dutch adventurer, once secretary of some Dutch
embassy at Madrid; who, discerning how the land lay, had broken
loose from that subaltern career, had changed his religion,
insinuated himself into Elizabeth's royal favor; and was now "Duke
de Ripperda," and a diplomatic bull-dog of the first quality, full
of mighty schemes and hopes; in brief, a new Alberoni to the
Termagant Queen. This Ripperda had persuaded her (the third year
of our inane Congress now running out, to no purpose), That he, if
he were sent direct to Vienna, could reconcile the Kaiser to her
Majesty, and bring them to Treaty, independently of Congresses.
He was sent accordingly, in all privacy; had reported himself as
laboring there, with the best outlooks, for some while past;
when, still early in 1725, there occurred on the part of France,--
where Regent d'Orleans was now dead, and new politics bad come in
vogue,--that "sending back," of the poor little Spanish:
Infanta, ["5th April, 1725, quitted Paris" (Barbier,
Journal du Regne de Louis XV., i. 218).] and marrying