The Marquess de Montespan kneeled
beside his fair lady, and a couple of domestics at a respectful distance
from the noble pair, whilst the solemn pealing of the organ intermingled
with the low murmurings of human voices, and the sweet, full-toned
responses of the choir, aided and attested the devotion of those who now
attended vespers in the church of St. Genevieve. The sacred service was
nearly concluded, when the attention of the congregation was painfully
diverted from the solemn duty in which they were engaged, by thrilling
shrieks proceeding from one of the side aisles, and an uncommon stir and
tumult about the dark oratory of the Montespans, to which, therefore, a
crowd was presently attracted. Alas! for the brevity and vanity of human
life! The marquess, who had but so short a time since entered the church
in manly prime, health, and strength, and in the full flush of happiness
and hope, now suddenly, ay, even as he knelt beside his beautiful wife,
and even as their spirits mingled in the same acts of devotion, the
marquess now, struck by the angel of death, laid cold, senseless, and
motionless, in the arms of his servants, who were vainly endeavouring to
recall that vital spark which was totally extinct. Victorine, the young
and lovely marchioness, thus suddenly and awfully reduced to widowhood,
had fallen into such violent hysterics, as to render the task of
supporting her almost dangerous to a noble youth who had voluntarily
undertaken it.
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