Produced by David Widger and Pat Castevens
THE WANDERING JEW
By Eugene Sue
BOOK III.
XXXVI. A Female Jesuit
XXXVII. The Plot
XXXVIII. Adrienne's Enemies
XXXIX. The Skirmish
XL. The Revolt
XLI. Treachery
XLII. The Snare
XLIII. A False Friend
XLIV. The Minister's Cabinet
XLV. The Visit
XLVI. Presentiments
XLVII. The Letter
XLVIII. The Confessional
XLIX. My Lord and Spoil-sport
L. Appearances
LI. The Convent
LII. The Influence of a Confessor
LIII. The Examination
CHAPTER XXXVI.
A FEMALE JESUIT.
During the preceding scenes which occurred in the Pompadour rotunda,occupied by Miss de Cardoville, other events took place in the residenceof the Princess Saint-Dizier. The elegance and sumptuousness of theformer dwelling presented a strong contrast to the gloomy interior of thelatter, the first floor of which was inhabited by the princess, for theplan of the ground floor rendered it only fit for giving parties; and,for a long time past, Madame de Saint-Dizier had renounced all worldlysplendors. The gravity of her domestics, all aged and dressed in black;the profound silence which reigned in her abode, where everything wasspoken, if it could be called speaking, in an undertone; and the almostmonastic regularity and order of this immense mansion, communicated toeverything around the princess a sad and chilling character. A man of theworld, who joined great courage to rare independence of spirit, speakingof the princess (to whom Adrienne de Cardoville went, according to herexpression, to fight a pitched battle), said of her as follows: "In orderto avoid having Madame de Saint-Dizier for an enemy, I, who am neitherbashful nor cowardly, have, for the first time in my life, been both anoodle and a coward." This man spoke sincerely. But Madame deSaint-Dizier had not all at once arrived at this high degree ofimportance.
Some words are necessary for the purpose of exhibiting distinctly somephases in the life of this dangerous and implacable woman who, by heraffiliation with the Order of Jesuits, had acquired an occult andformidable power. For there is something even more menacing than aJesuit: it is a Jesuits; and, when one has seen certain circles, itbecomes evident that there exist, unhappily, many of those affiliated,who, more or less, uniformly dress (for the lay members of the Order callthemselves "Jesuits of the short robe").
Madame de Saint-Dizier, once very beautiful, had been, during the lastyears of the Empire, and the early years of the Restoration, one of themost fashionable women of Paris, of a stirring, active, adventurous, andcommanding spirit, of cold heart, but lively imagination. She was greatlygiven to amorous adventures, not from tenderness of heart, but from apassion for intrigue, which she loved as men love play—for the sake ofthe emotions it excites. Unhappily, such had always been the blindness orthe carelessness of her husband, the Prince of Saint-Dizier (eldestbrother of the Count of Rennepont and Duke of Cardoville, father ofAdrienne), that during his life he had never said one word that couldmake it be thought that he suspected the actions of his wife. Attachingherself to Napoleon, to dig a mine under the feet of the Colossus, thatdesign at least afforded emotions sufficient to gratify the humor of themost insatiable. During some time, all went well. The princess wasbeautiful and spirited, dexterous and false, perfidious and s