knew that he guessed and that she need not tell him. God had already
done that for her.

Pierre, the old Duc's devoted valet, dressed him as quickly as he
could. M. le Duc insisted on having his _habit de ceremonie,_ the rich
suit of black velvet with the priceless lace and diamond buttons,
which he had worn when they laid le Roi Soleil to his eternal rest.

He put on his orders and buckled on his sword. The gorgeous clothes,
which had suited him so well in the prime of his manhood, hung
somewhat loosely on his attenuated frame, but he looked a grand and
imposing figure, with his white hair tied behind with a great black
bow, and the fine jabot of beautiful point d'Angleterre falling in a
soft cascade below his chin.

Then holding himself as upright as he could, he sat in his invalid
chair, and four flunkeys in full livery carried him to the deathbed of
his son.

All the house was astir by now. Torches burned in great sockets in
the vast hall and along the massive oak stairway, and hundreds of
candles flickered ghostlike in the vast apartments of the princely
mansion.

The numerous servants were arrayed on the landing, all dressed in the
rich livery of the ducal house.

The death of an heir of the Marnys is an event that history makes a
note of.