Identifier: centuryillustratv40n1newy (find matches)
Title: The century illustrated monthly magazine
Year: 1882 (1880s)
Authors:
Subjects: American literature
Publisher: New York : Century Co.
Contributing Library: Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection
Digitizing Sponsor: The Institute of Museum and Library Services through an Indiana State Library LSTA Grant

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de, and thesentimental Bergeries of Racan, who sighsat a distance over the fascinations of the digni-fied Marquise. Charmed with these Arcadianpictures, they try to reproduce the Strephonsand Florimels making love in pastoral fash-ion with pipe and lute. The versatile hostesshas a taste, too, for mythologic fetes, in whichthey drape themselves as antique gods and which was witty enough to have had the de-sired effect. This famous bel esprit played a very promi-nent part here. His role was to amuse, buthis small vanities strike one much more viv-idly, at this distance, than the wit which flashedout with the moment, or the vers de societeupon which his fame rests. He owed his socialsuccess to a rather high-flown love-letter whichhe evidently thought too good to be lost tothe world. He sent it to a friend, who had itprinted and circulated. What the lady thoughtof it does not appear, but it made the fortuneof the poet. If he were one of us, he wouldbe unbearable, said the Great Conde. But
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COURTYARD OF THE HOTEL RAMBOUILLET. goddesses. Her amiable and spirituelle daugh-ter Julie is an able assistant, and wins the lovealike of men and women. Malherbe has givento Mme. de Rambouillet the romantic nameof Arthenice, and forthwith the other membersof her coterie assume some nom de Farnasseby which they are familiarly known. Some-times they amuse their idle hours with practi-cal jokes and surprises which are more laugh-able than dignified. The manners of the timeare illustrated by a curious anecdote of Voi-ture. They were playing a game one day, inwhich he was condemned to pay a forfeit bysaying something to make them all laugh. Ifhe failed to do so at once, he was to be tossedin a counterpane as many minutes as he madethem wait. He evidently failed, and wrote toMile, de Bourbon an account of the affairVol. XL.—ii. his caprices were tolerated, and he was pettedand spoiled to the end. There is a warm human side to this dailyintercourse, with its sweet and gracious cour-tesies

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