My decoration represented various dens surrounded with a piece of water, in the middle of which was seen a luminous dolphin. Several monsters attacked it, in vomiting flames; but Apollo, who was its protector, hurled his thunder at them from above, and a large quantity of fireworks compleated their destruction, as well as that of their residence. The scene then instantly changed, and became the brilliant palace of the sun, where the dolphin re-appeared, in all its splendor, by means of a magnificent illumination, which lasted all night.
Scarce had the Dauphin recovered from his disorder, before the parliament and the bishops engaged a-new the attention of the court and the city. It was the peace that gave sufficient leisure to attend to these disputes. In time of war, they would have had other objects to engage their attention than bills of confession. The court would have despised such an affair; and the parliament would not have allowed it to be mentioned.
The obstinacy of the parliament, and the stubbornness of the curates in refusing the sacraments, increased the King’s melancholy. I endeavoured to multiply the amusements of his private parties, in order to remove that state of languor which business had brought upon him. I detained him with me at night as late as I possibly could, and did not let him retire, till I had dissipated the clouds of his mind, by every method that I thought would produce the effect. Music was a great assistant to me; Rameaux was very useful to me in this respect. The King had a taste for light airs, and this musician excelled in this kind of composition, Jelliot executed still better than Rameaux composed. He was unrivalled in giving life to expression, and grace to sound. I may venture to say, that this performer, by the gaiety that he spread over the King’s mind, was often the mediator of the most important affairs of Europe.
We know that all our resolutions spring from the actual disposition of the soul. A monarch that refuses every thing when his mind is seized with a certain melancholy, grants every thing when this vapour is dissipated.
This disposition, the usual effect of secondary causes, and which derives its origin from an harmonious sound, a wink, and most frequently from the temperature of the air, does not always pursue the rule of justice. It is unhappy for the people to be governed by mortals subject to a machine susceptible of every kind of impression. It would be for the good of mankind if they were governed by angels. I often repeated, that Lewis XV. was extremely affected by these religious disputes. I often heard him say, he would prefer being at war with princes rather than with Theologians, because with those the treaty of peace terminates the quarrel; whereas with these even the spirit of reconciliation contributes to encrease it.
Marshal Saxe formerly said to me, that if he were to have gained an advantage over the Tartars, he would have given them quarter; but that if he had conquered an army of Theologians, he would have exterminated them without mercy.
A man of wit, and a great politician, was of opinion, that the universities should be shut up, and their theses forbidden upon pain of death. He shewed me a manuscript work, whereby he pretended to prove that all the wars, and all the crimes that had been committed in Europe since the establishment of christianity, derived their origin from religious disputes.
This is easy to believe, he added, if we consider that the spirit of contention, which springs from dogmas, spreads itself through every class, and that it is this general spirit that forms the genius of nations.
The war relating to the Constitution still continuing, plenipotentiaries were appointed: these were commissaries, who were to decide, whether the curates had a right to let the King’s subjects die without communing. The Bishops said, this was the business of a council; but the parliament were of opinion, that the Bull Unigenitus was in subordination to the police of the state. These commissaries assembled very regularly; but they took care to come to no determination.
The Prince of Conti, who was always in a passion when this affair was mentioned before him, said, it should be decided by a court martial.