"VIII. A prince has no treasure more precious than his prime
minister.

"IX. A prince should not put faith in what people say against his
prime minister, nor listen to any such slanders.

"X. A prince should reveal to his prime minister all that is said
against him, even though he has been bound to keep it secret.

"XI. A prince should prefer not only the well-being of the State,
but also his prime minister, to all his relations."


Such were the commandments of the god of France, less astonishing in
themselves than the terrible naivete which made him bequeath them to
posterity, as if posterity also must believe in him.

While he dictated his instructions, reading them from a small piece of
paper, written with his own hand, a deep melancholy seemed to possess him
more and more at each word; and when he had ended, he fell back in his
chair, his arms crossed, and his head sunk on his breast.

Father Joseph, dropping his pen, arose and was inquiring whether he were
ill, when he heard issue from the depths of his chest these mournful and
memorable words:

"What utter weariness! what endless trouble! If the ambitious man could
see me, he would flee to a desert. What is my power? A miserable
reflection of the royal power; and what labors to fix upon my star that