Free The Lemoine Affair by Marcel Proust Page B

Standish, whereas in fact she was the daughter of Escars, of the house
     of Pérusse, granddaughter of Brissac; she was one of the greatest ladies in the kingdom
     as well as one of the most beautiful, and had always lived in the choicest society,
     of which she was the supreme elixir. M. the Duc d’Orléans also did not know that H.
     Standish was the son of a Noailles, of the branch of the Marquis of Arpajon. M. d’Hinnisdal
     had to tell him this. So we had at this parvulo the very remarkable scandal of Prince
     Murat, on a folding chair, next to the King of England. The stir
that
created resounded far beyondSaint-Cloud. Those who had the good of the State at heart felt its foundations being
     undermined; the King, so unversed in the reckoning of births and precedence, but understanding
     the stain inflicted on his crown by the weakness of having destroyed the highest dignity
     of the kingdom, attacked Comte A. de La Rochefoucauld on this subject in conversation,
     who was better versed in this history than anyone and who, ordered to reply by his
     master, who was also his friend, was not afraid to do so in terms that were so clear
     and so distinct that he was heard by the entire salon, where however a lively game
     of lans-quenet was being noisily played. He declared that, though much attached to
     the greatness of his house, he did not believe that this attachment blinded him or
     made him conceal anything from anyone, when he found that he was—not to say more—as
     great a lord as Prince Murat; nonetheless he had always given precedence to the Duc
     de Gramont and would continue to do so. At which the king forbade Prince Murat under
     any circumstance from taking anything higher than the title of Highness, or crossing
     the throne room. The only one who could claim this right was Achille Murat, because
     he owns sovereign prerogatives in Mingrelia, which is a State bordering territories
     of the Czar. But he was as simple as he was brave, and his mother, so well-known for
     her writings, whose charming mind he had inherited, had quickly understood that the
     substantial reality of his situation among those Muscovites was less than in the more-than-princely
     house that was hers, since she was the daughter of the Duc de Rohan-Chabot.
    Prince J. Murat faltered a bit beneath the storm, just long enough to pass this unfortunate
     strait, but he wasn’t any more troubled than that, and we know that now, even to his
     cousins, lieutenant generals make no difficulty whatsoever, seeing no deep reason
     to do so, about addressing him as Your Highness and Sire, while the Parliament, when
     he goes to greet them, sends out its bailiffs with their staffs raised, an honor which
     Monsieur the Prince had so much trouble achieving, despite being a prince of the blood.
     Thus everything declines, everything is debased, everything decays as soon as it is
     born, in a State where the iron cautery isn’t applied right away to pretensions so
     that they cannot grow anew.
    The King of England was accompanied by Lord Derby who was enjoying here, as in his
     own country, much consideration. He did not have at first sight that air of grandeur
     and reverie that was so striking in B. Lytton, who has since died, or the singular
     and unforgettable face of Lord Dufferin. But people liked him perhaps even more, by
     virtue of a sort of kindliness that the French completely lack and by which they are
     won over. Louvois had wanted him almost despite himself close to the King because
     of his abilities and his profound knowledge of the affairs of France.
    The King of England avoided calling M. the Duc d’Orléans by that title when he talked
     to him, but wanted him to have an armchair, to which he did not lay claim, but took
     care to refuse. The princesses of the blood dined in a manner beyond their station
     by virtue of an indulgence that got talked about a lot but boreno other fruit. The dinner was served by Olivier, first steward of