Dennis Wheatley - The Rising Storm

"You have guessed it in one," Roger replied with a grin. "To console you a little I will confess that I still have most of that five hundred, but I shall require at least a further thousand, and I would prefer it in bills of exchange to coin, as I am about to set out for Italy."

"And why, may I ask?"

"The matter concerns a lady, and one of the most beautiful I have ever met."

"I congratulate you," said Mr. Hailes dryly. "But in such a case I fear you must look elsewhere for your expenses."

"On the contrary. Indirectly, this is very much the King's business, so I consider myself fully entitled to ask you, as His Majesty's repre­sentative, to supply me with funds."

“May one enquire the lady's name?"

Roger lent forward and lowered his voice. " 'Tis Marie Antoinette."

Mr. Hailes did not blink an eyelid; he simply said: "Pray continue, I am all attention. "

Without further ado Roger launched out into an account of his recent experiences. Then, producing his report and the Queen's letter, he handed them over.

For a moment Mr. Hailes remained silent, but having stuffed the two packets away in his pockets, he remarked with his dry smile: "I think Mr. Pitt does well to employ you. Will a thousand ecus be enough ? You can have more if you wish."

"I thank you," Roger replied. "But I should be able to manage comfortably on that, as I have no intention of staying in Italy longer than I need; and I have reserve funds of my own which I could use in an emergency."

Mr. Hailes nodded. "That is settled then. Where shall I send the money?"

"Do you know a horse-dealer who is something less of a rogue than most?"

"His Grace recently bought a pair of greys for his new barouche from a man next the sign of the Three Flagons in the Rue Beauberg, and I thought their price not excessive."

"Then send it by one of the Embassy messengers to meet me there at three o'clock this afternoon. I have to buy a mount for my journey and may as well patronize His Grace's man as any other."

After a moment Mr. Hailes said: "I approve your decision to undertake this mission; but all the same 'tis a thousand pities that you should be leaving Paris just at a time when such momentous events are in the offing."

"I, too, regret it on that score," Roger agreed. "But tell me, what was the cause of the riot yesterday? You are the first person to whom I have spoken this morning, and I could obtain naught but obviously spurious accounts of it last night."

" 'Twas by far the most serious disturbance that has yet taken place in Paris, although from what I hear the riots which occurred in Marseilles some weeks back were of an even more extensive nature. Yet this was in all conscience bad enough; for a number of the troops as well as of the mob were killed in the affair, and 'tis said that the wounded who have been accommodated-at the Hotel Dieu total several hundred."

Roger looked at his companion in considerable surprise. " 'Twas then virtually a battle! But whence came the spark that ignited this powder magazine?"

"It seems that a certain Monsieur Reveillon, who is a manufacturer of paper in quite a large way, had been asked by his workmen for a rise in wages on account of the increased price of bread; and that he refused it to them. The story goes that he declared in public that fifteen sols a day was ample for any workman to live upon, and that incensed by this they met before his house on Monday night to burn his effigy. The appearance of some French and Swiss guards on the scene deterred them from any material outrage at the time, but they gathered again by midday yesterday in a most evil temper.

"The Faubourg St. Antoine, where Reveillon has hisv factory and also lives, contains the worst slums in the city; so his workmen were soon joined by riff-raff of all kinds and the mob was further swollen by bands of sympathizers marching from all quarters of it. In view of the disturbance the previous night detachments of troops had been posted at all the approaches to Reveillon's house, so the mob could not get at the object of their fury, but by early afternoon the streets round about had become blocked by a crowd of several thousand malcontents."

Mr. Hailes paused to sip his drink, then went on: "As you will be aware, the road to the Bois de Vincennes passes through that quarter. Yesterday it so happened that His Highness of Orleans was racing his horses against those of Monsieur le Comte d'Artois in the Bois, so many persons of rank and fashion were on their way thither. The sight of their handsome equipages inflamed the mob further; in spite of the efforts of additional bodies of troops that were now being hurried to the scene, many of the carriages were forced to turn back, and serious fighting broke out between the troops and the people.

"It continued for some hours and the military succeeded in main­taining a cordon round Reveillon's premises until about five o'clock. Then the Duchess d'Orleans drove up to one of the barriers they had formed, on her way back from the races. She asked permission for her carriage to pass, and apparently the officer did not feel that he could refuse such an important person. Immediately the barrier was opened the mob surged through with the carriage and a general melee ensued.

"Apparently the troops managed to prevent the rabble from getting into Reveillon's house and he escaped with the aid of his neighbours, but they forced their way into that next door, stripped it of its contents and burnt them in the street. Many of the rioters were shot down, but others got up on to the roofs and tearing the slates from them hurled these missiles at the troops below, severely injuring considerable num­bers. Eventually order was restored, but not before the whole garrison of Paris had been placed under arms, so you can judge the magnitude of the disturbance."

"What sort of a person is this Reveillon ?" Roger asked. "Is he in fact a bad employer?"

"On the contrary. And that is what makes the affair so mysterious. He is a good, honest man, who started life as a poor workman himself, and has risen to his present affluence solely by hard work and ability. Having known poverty in his early days he looks after the well-being of his workpeople far better than the average employer, and pays none of them less than twenty-four sols a day. Moreover, when trade was so bad last winter he kept them all on out of charity, although for some months his factory was standing idle. 'Tis that which makes it impossible to believe that he ever said that fifteen sols a day was enough for any labourer to live on."

"Have you any theory why he should have been singled out for such unwelcome attention?"

"Possibly it was because he is standing for election to the Tiers-Etat in opposition to a firebrand; and has brought the hatred of the rabble on himself as a result of his moderate opinions. But I cannot help believing that there is more behind it than that. The probability is that whatever he did say was seized upon and deliberately distorted with the view to provoking a riot."

Roger nodded. "Is there the least truth in the rumours running round last night that Reveillon is in some way in the service of the Queen?"

"Not an iota! 'Tis just another calumny against that poor woman. No opportunity is ever lost by her enemies to besmirch her with fresh mire."

"And what of His Highness of Orleans ? Do you regard it as no more than a coincidence that it should have been his wife who enabled the mob to penetrate the barrier the troops had erected?"

Mr. Hailes's eyes narrowed. "There is the further coincidence that the riot should have occurred on a day that His Highness was racing his horses at Vincennes; otherwise it would have been remarked upon as strange that his wife should be driving through the poorest quarter of the city. Moreover, the fact that bands of marchers came from so many different parts of it to join the original demonstrators definitely points to the whole affair having been organized beforehand. For a long time past His Highness has gone out of his way to gain popularity for himself at the expense of his Sovereigns, and one can hardly escape the conclusion that he is secretly working for the overthrow of his cousin the King. Yet there is little proof that is so, unless we regard his connection with the Freemasons as such."