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91 - Story of Old France by H. A. Guerber · Story of Old France

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  Speaker 1: Section ninety of the Story of Old France. This is
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  Speaker 1: a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
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  Speaker 1: For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
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  Speaker 1: Recording by Marc Desanzo. The Story of Old France by H. A. Gerber,
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  Speaker 1: Section ninety the Age of Louis the fourteenth. Because so
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  Speaker 1: many great men lived in France during this long reign,
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  Speaker 1: the Age of Louis the fourteenth is as famous in
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  Speaker 1: France as is the Age of Pericles in Greek history,
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  Speaker 1: or the Age of Augustus in Roman annals, or the
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  Speaker 1: Age of Elizabeth in England. You have already heard of
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  Speaker 1: the great generals Turenne, Conde, Luxembourg, Catenas and Villar, of
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  Speaker 1: the great admirals Duquesne, Touville and Jean Bards, of the
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  Speaker 1: ministers Colbert and Louvois, of the engineer Vaubant, and of
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  Speaker 1: some famous architects, painters, sculptors and landscape gardeners. You will
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  Speaker 1: now doubtless be interested in hearing something about the orators
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  Speaker 1: and writers of so brilliant an epoch. Conea, for instance,
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  Speaker 1: was a tragic poet who wrote plays so fine that
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  Speaker 1: they are now French classics and are still given by
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  Speaker 1: the most prominent actors. Racine, his friend and rival, worked
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  Speaker 1: in the same field, and it was he, as we
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  Speaker 1: have seen, who supplied Madame de Matineau with suitable plays
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  Speaker 1: for her girls. Moliere, on the other hand, was the
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  Speaker 1: first great French comedian. In spite of his genius, Moliere
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  Speaker 1: was scorned by the courtiers because his father was only
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  Speaker 1: a small tradesman, and even the palace servants, imitating their betters,
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  Speaker 1: were rude to him. But the King, who enjoyed Moliere's plays,
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  Speaker 1: put an end to this state of affairs by inviting
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  Speaker 1: the poet to breakfast. One morning, while they were seated
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  Speaker 1: alone together, the King gave orders to admit the courtiers, and,
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  Speaker 1: seeing their surprise, quietly said, gentlemen, please excuse me, but
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  Speaker 1: I am giving Moliere his breakfast because I hear that
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  Speaker 1: my lackeys consider it beneath them to associate with him.
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  Speaker 1: Needless to state, the king's footmen never again had a
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  Speaker 1: chance to offer Moliere a dinner, for the nobles all
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  Speaker 1: vied with one another in inviting him to their tables.
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  Speaker 1: The author of many immortal comedies which ridicule the follies
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  Speaker 1: of his day and the vices and weaknesses of his time.
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  Speaker 1: Moliere was also a talented actor, and was on the
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  Speaker 1: stage when overtaken by his last illness. The gentle, absent
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  Speaker 1: minded fable writer La Fontaine delighted everybody in those days
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  Speaker 1: with his witty tales of animals and people, which have
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  Speaker 1: since supplied the French with a great number of good
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  Speaker 1: proverbs and apt quotations. Another member of the literary circles
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  Speaker 1: of the time was Boileau, who wrote satires, a poem
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  Speaker 1: on the artiverseification, and some flattering odes about Louis the fourteenth.
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  Speaker 1: When he brought the latter to the king for his approval,
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  Speaker 1: even Louis the fourteenth must have deemed them a trifle fulsome,
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  Speaker 1: for he once said, I should praise you more had
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  Speaker 1: you praised me less. Still, although a born courtier, the
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  Speaker 1: witty Boileaux could tell the truth with tact when he
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  Speaker 1: chose to do so. For instance, when the king once
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  Speaker 1: wrote some verses and asked his opinion of them, Boileau
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  Speaker 1: promptly said, there is nothing impossible, to your majesty. You
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  Speaker 1: wished to make some bad verses, and you succeeded admirably.
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  Speaker 1: The most famous letter writer of the times was Madame
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  Speaker 1: de Savigner, who conveyed all the news of the court
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  Speaker 1: to her married daughter in able and sprightly letters that
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  Speaker 1: are admired by all who read them. La Brulliere, another
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  Speaker 1: famous writer of this reign, is now mostly known for
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  Speaker 1: his wise maxims, which are as familiar in France as
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  Speaker 1: Poor Richard's are in the United States. Among the great
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  Speaker 1: orators and preachers who had the opportunity not only to
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  Speaker 1: lecture to the King and court, but also to instruct
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  Speaker 1: the royal children were Bousuays, who wrote a history of
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  Speaker 1: the world, Feinellon, author of a French version of the
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  Speaker 1: classic Tale of Telemachus, and Fleurie, compiler of a church history.
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  Speaker 1: During Lent, or when some great person died, magnificent sermons
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  Speaker 1: or funeral orations were delivered by famous preachers, some of
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  Speaker 1: whom it is said, did not hesitate to tell even
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  Speaker 1: the king that he should do his duty. We know
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  Speaker 1: that occasionally this preaching had a salutary effect. For Louis
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  Speaker 1: the fourteenth once remarked to one of them, father, I
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  Speaker 1: have heard many great orators, and I have been well
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  Speaker 1: pleased with them, But every time I have heard you,
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  Speaker 1: I have been displeased with myself. The king, whom every
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  Speaker 1: one still envied and flattered, was really a sad and
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  Speaker 1: discontented old man, and his reign, which had begun so glorious,
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  Speaker 1: was slowly drawing to a dreary end. Madame de Matinant,
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  Speaker 1: in one of her letters, clearly intimates that the positions
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  Speaker 1: of king and courtier had their drawbacks, by writing, save
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  Speaker 1: those who fill the highest stations, I know of none
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  Speaker 1: more unfortunate than those who envy them. The king's sadness
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  Speaker 1: in old age was due to his many cares, and
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  Speaker 1: also to family losses. For his son, the Dauphin died
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  Speaker 1: in seventeen eleven, and one year later, the second Dauphin,
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  Speaker 1: Louis grandson, was carried off with his wife and eldest
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  Speaker 1: boy by smallpox, a disease then causing great ravages everywhere.
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  Speaker 1: Louis's heir and successor was therefore his second great grandson,
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  Speaker 1: who was only five years old when his great grandfather's
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  Speaker 1: long reign finally came to an end, after begging his
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  Speaker 1: courtier's pardon for the bad example he had given. Them,
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  Speaker 1: and imploring them to be loyal to his successor. Louis
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  Speaker 1: the fourteen spoke a few memorable words to his child air, saying,
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  Speaker 1: try to keep the peace with your neighbors. I have
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  Speaker 1: been too fond of war. Do not imitate me in that,
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  Speaker 1: nor in my too great expenditure. Somewhat later he fell
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  Speaker 1: into deep slumber, and Madame de matinand thinking he would
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  Speaker 1: never be conscious again, left the palace and took refuge
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  Speaker 1: in Saint Cyr, where she was to end her days.
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  Speaker 1: But presently Louis opened his eyes again for the last time, and,
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  Speaker 1: seeing a page in tears, gently inquired, why do you weep?
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  Speaker 1: Did you then imagine I was a mortal? A few
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  Speaker 1: minutes later, the great monarch's reign was over. With Louis
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  Speaker 1: the fourteenth, it may be said, ended also the days
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  Speaker 1: of the glorious Old France, whose story you have read.
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  Speaker 1: Little did he dream of the great changes which were
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  Speaker 1: to take place in the next hundred years, although they
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  Speaker 1: were in part due to cause as he himself had
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  Speaker 1: set in motion, and which were to make the story
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  Speaker 1: of modern France of thrilling interest. End of Section ninety.
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  Speaker 1: End of the Story of Old France by H. A.
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  Speaker 1: Gerber