"Sir," he had said to Louis XVI., before placing himself in the surgeon's hands, "in a fortnight I shall be at your Majesty's feet or with your august father." He had succumbed.

M.Turgot spoke to M.de Maurepas of the Duke of St.Germain.

"Propose him to the king," said the minister, adding his favorite phrase "one can but try." In the case of government, trials are often a dangerous thing.

M.de St.
Germain, born in the Jura in 1707, and entered first of all amongst the Jesuits, had afterwards devoted himself to the career of arms: he had served the Elector Palatine, Maria Theresa, and the Elector of Bavaria; enrolled finally by Marshal Saxe, he had distinguished himself under his orders; as lieutenant-general during the Seven Years' War, he had brought up his divisionn at Rosbach more quickly than his colleagues had theirs, he had fled less far than the others before the enemy; but his character was difficult, suspicious, exacting; he was always seeing everywhere plots concocted to ruin him.

"I am persecuted to the death," he would say.