When he had finished, the King’s eyes rested upon him for some moments with an expression of derision. The “little abbé” had never before seemed so repulsive to him. Eugene certainly was far from being a paragon of beauty. His complexion was dark, he was small in stature, and his nose was comparatively large. His upper lip was so short that his mouth remained constantly open, disclosing the front teeth. The redeeming feature was his eyes which, intelligent and fiery, gazed intently at the King as though they would read his fate from his lips.
“You are disobedient, abbé,” said the King in a cutting voice; “you oppose my will.”
“Not your will, Your Majesty,” answered Eugene, “but only an office for which I have no inclination.”
“But you are not fit for a soldier,” said the King, measuring him from head to foot with an almost disdainful look. “You will never be able to bear the hardships of the service. As I happen to know, your father had destined you for the priesthood. Take back your petition.”
“All my ancestors have followed the profession of arms,” answered Eugene; “it is the most honorable one for a prince, it is——”
“Silence with your arguments,” interrupted the King; “I am in no mood to listen to them. You know my wish. I will suffer no contradiction. A prince of Savoy-Carignan should——” Here the King cleared his throat and could not at once find the right expression for what he wished to say.
PRINCE EUGENE
before King Louis the Fourteenth
“Should,” Eugene took up the unfinished remark, “should at least have the liberty of deciding his own future and of choosing his profession.”
“The little abbé is excited,” said the King in a disdainful tone. Then he continued, “It shall be as I have commanded. Your Reverence must enter into holy orders very shortly.”