Explanatory Notes
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Apparatus Notes
Headnotes
CHAPTER 17 A Royal Banquet
[begin page 194]
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CHAPTER 17
 A Royal Banquet

Madame, seeing me pacific and unresentful, no doubt judged that I was deceived by her excuseemendation textual note; for her fright dissolved away, and she was soon so importunate to have me give an exhibition and kill somebody, that the thing grew to be embarrassingemendation. However, to my relief she was presently interrupted by the call to prayers. I will say this much for the nobility: that, tyrannical, murderous, rapacious, and morally rotten as they were, they were deeply and enthusiastically religious. Nothing could divert them from the regular and faithful performance of the pieties enjoined by the Churchemendation. More than once I had seen a noble who had gotten his enemy at a disadvantage, stop to pray before cutting his throat; more than once I had seen a noble, after ambushing and dispatching his enemy, retire to the nearest wayside shrine and humbly give thanks, without even waiting to rob the body. There was to bealteration in the MS nothing finer oralteration in the MS sweeter in the life of evenalteration in the MS Benvenuto Cellini, that rough-hewn saint, ten centuries later. All the nobles of Britain, with their families, attended divine service morning and night daily, in their private chapels, and evenalteration in the MS the worst of them had family worship five or six times a day besides. The credit of this belonged entirely to the Church. Although I was no friend to that Catholic Churchemendation, I was obligedalteration in the MS to admit this. And often, in spite of me, I found myself saying, “What would this country be without the Church?”

[begin page 195]

After prayers wealteration in the MS had dinner in a great banqueting hall which was lighted by hundreds of grease-jetsemendation, and everything was as fine and lavish and rudely splendid as might become the royal degree of the hosts.alteration in the MS At the head of the hall, on a dais, was the table of the king, queen, and their son, Prince Uwaine. Stretching down the hall from

“after prayers we had dinner.”
this, was the general table, on the floor. At this, abovealteration in the MS the salt, sat the visiting nobles and the grown members of their families, of both sexes,—the resident courtemendation, in effect,—sixty-one personsalteration in the MS; below the salt sat minor officersalteration in the MS of the household, withalteration in the MS their principal subordinates: altogether a hundred and eighteen persons sitting, and aboutalteration in the MS as many liveried servants standing behind their chairsalteration in the MS or serving in one [begin page 196] capacity or another. It was a very fine show. In a gallery a band, with cymbals, horns, harps and other horrors, opened the proceedings with what seemed to be the crude first-draft or original agony of the wail known to later centuries as “In the Sweet By and Byemendation.”explanatory note It was new, and ought to have been rehearsed a little more. For some reason or other the queen had the composer hanged, after dinner.

“original agony.”

After this music the priest who stood behind the royal table saidalteration in the MS a noble long grace in ostensible Latin.alteration in the MS Thenemendation the battalion of waiters brokealteration in the MS away from their posts, and darted, rushed, flew, fetched and carried, and the mighty feeding began: no words anywhere, but absorbingalteration in the MS attention to business. The rows of chops opened and shut in vast unison, and the sound of it was like to the muffled burr of subterranean machineryalteration in the MS emendation. The havoc continued an hour and a half, andalteration in the MS unimaginable was the destruction of substantials. Of the chief feature [begin page 197] of the feast—the huge wild boar that lay stretched out so portly and imposing at the start—nothing was left but the semblance of a hoop-skirt; and he was but the type and symbol of what had happened to all the otheremendation dishes.

With the pastries and so-on, the heavy drinking began—and the talk. Gallonalteration in the MS after gallon of wine and mead disappeared, and everybody got comfortable, then happy, then sparklingly joyous—both sexes,—and by and byemendation pretty noisy. Men told anecdotes that were terrific to hear, but nobody blushed; and when the nub was sprung, the assemblage let go with a horse-laugh that shook the fortress. Ladies answered back with historiettes that would almost have made Queen Margaret of Navarreexplanatory note or even the great Elizabeth of England hide behind a handkerchief, but nobody hid here, but only laughed—howled, you may say. In prettyalteration in the MS much all of these dreadful stories, ecclesiastics were the hardyalteration in the MS heroes,alteration in the MS but that didn’t worry the chaplainalteration in the MS any, he had his laugh with the rest; more than that, upon invitation he roared out a song which was of as daring a sortemendation alteration in the MS as any that was sung that night.

By midnight everybody was fagged out, and sore with laughing; and as a rule, drunk: some weepingly, some affectionately, some hilariously, some quarrelsomely, some dead and under the table. Of the ladies, the worst spectacle was a lovely young duchess, whose wedding-eve this was; and indeed she was a spectacle, sure enough: just as she was, she could have sat in advancealteration in the MS for the portrait of the young daughter of the Regentemendation d’Orleansexplanatory note, atalteration in the MS the famous dinner whence she was carried, foul-mouthed, intoxicatedemendation and helpless, to her bed, in the lost and lamented days of the Ancient Regimealteration in the MS.

Suddenly, even while the priest was lifting his hands, and allalteration in the MS conscious heads were bowed in reverent expectation of the coming blessing, there appearedemendation under the arch of the far-off door at the bottom of the hall, an old and bent and white-haired lady, leaning upon a crutch-stick; and she lifted the stick and pointed it toward the queen and cried out—

“The wrath and curse of God fall upon you, woman without pity, who have slain mine innocent grandchild and made desolate this old heart that had nor chick nor friend nor stay nor comfort in all this world but him!”

Everybody crossed himself in a grisly fright, for a curse was an [begin page 198] awful thing to those people; but the queen rose up majestic, with the death-light in her eye, and flung back this ruthlessalteration in the MS command:

“Lay hands on her! to the stake with her!”

The guards left their posts to obey. It was a shame; it was a cruel thing to see. What could be done? Sandy gave me a look: I knew she had another inspiration. I said—

“Do what you choose.”alteration in the MS

She was up and facing toward the queen in a moment. She indicated me, and said:

“Madame, he saith this may not be. Recal the commandment, or he will dissolve the castle and it shall vanish away like the instable fabric of a dream!”

Confound it,alteration in the MS what a crazy contract to pledge a person to! What if the queen—

But my consternation subsided there, and my panic passed off; for the queen, allalteration in the MS in a collapse, made no show of resistance, but gave a countermanding sign and sunk into her seat. When she reached it she was sober. So were many of the others. The assemblage rose, whiffed ceremony to the winds, and rushed for the door like a mob; overturning chairs, smashing crockery, tugging, struggling, shouldering, crowding—anything to get out before I should change my mind and puff the castle into the measurelessemendation dim vacancies of space. Well, well, well, they were a superstitious lot. It is all a body can do to conceive of it.

The poor queen was so scared and humbled that she was even afraid to hang the composer without first consulting me. I was very sorry for her—indeed any one would have been, for she was really suffering; so I was willing to do anything that was reasonable, and had no desire to carry things to wanton extremities. I therefore considered the matteralteration in the MS thoughtfully, and ended by having the musicians ordered into our presence to play that Sweet By and Byemendation again, which they did. Then I saw that she was right, and gave her permission to hang the whole band. This little relaxation of sternness had a good effect upon the queen. A statesman gains little by the arbitrary exercisealteration in the MS of iron-clad authority upon all occasions that offer, for this wounds the just pride of his subordinates, and thus tends to undermine his strength. A little concession, now and then, where it can do no harm, is the wiser policy.alteration in the MS

[begin page 199]

Now that the queen was at ease in her mind once more, and measurably happy, her wine naturally began to assert itself again, and it got a little the start of her. I mean it set her music going—her silver bell of a tongue. Dear me, she was a master talker. It would not become mealteration in the MS to suggest that it was pretty late, and that I was a tired man and very sleepy. I wished I had gone off to bed when I had the chance. Now I must stick it out; there was no other way. So she tinkled along and along, in the otherwise profound and ghostly hush of the sleeping castle, until by and byemendation there came, as if from deep down under us, a far-away sound, as of a muffled shriek—with an expression of agonyalteration in the MS about it that made my flesh crawl. The queen stopped, and her eyes lighted with pleasure; she tilted her graceful head as a bird does when it listens. The sound bored its way up through the stillness again.

“What is it?” I said.

“It is truly a stubborn soul, and endureth long. It is many hours, now.”

“Endureth what?”alteration in the MS

“The rack. Come—yealteration in the MS shall see a blithe sight. An he yield not his secret now, ye shall see him torn asunder.”alteration in the MS

What a silky smooth hellion she was; and so composed and serene, when the cords all down my legs were hurting, in sympathy with that man’s pain. Conducted by mailed guards bearing flaring torches, we tramped along echoing corridors, and down stone stairways dank and dripping, and smelling of mould and ages of imprisoned night—a chill, uncanny journey and a long one, and not madealteration in the MS the shorter or the cheerier by the sorceress’s talk, which was about this sufferer and his crime. He had been accused, by an anonymous informer, of having killed a stag in the royal preserve. Irejected substantive said—

“Anonymous testimony isn’t just the right thing, your Highnessalteration in the MS. It were fairer to confront the accused with the accuser.”

“I had not thought of that, it being of butrejected substantive small consequence. But an I would, I could not, for that the accuser came masked, by night, and told the forester, and straightway gatrejected substantive him hence again, and so the forester knoweth him not.”

“Then is this Unknown the only person who saw the stag killed?”

“Marry, no manalteration in the MS saw the killing, but this Unknown saw this hardy wretch near to the spot where the stag lay, and came with right loyal zeal and betrayed him to the forester.”

[begin page 200]

“Soalteration in the MS the Unknown was near the dead stag, too? Isn’t it just possible that he did the killing himself? His loyal zeal—in a mask—looks just a shade suspicious. But what is your Highness’salteration in the MS idea for racking theemendation prisoner? Where is the profit?emendation rejected substantive

“i caught a picture that will not go from me.”

“He will not confess, else; and then were his soul lost. For his crime, his life is forfeitrejected substantive by the law—and of a surety will I see that he payeth it!—but it were peril to my own soul to let him die unconfessed and unabsolved. Nay, I were a fool to fling me into hell for his accommodation.”

“But, your Highnessalteration in the MS, suppose he has nothing to confess?”

“As to that, we shall see, anon.alteration in the MS An I rack him to death and he confess not, it will peradventure show that he had indeed naught to [begin page 201] confess—ye will grant that that is sooth? Then shall I not be damned for an unconfessed man that had naught to confess—wherefore, I shall be safe.”

It was the stubborn unreasoning of the time. It was useless to argue with her. Arguments have no chance against petrified training; they wear it as little as the waves wear a cliff. And her training was everybody’s. The brightest intellect in the land would not havealteration in the MS been able to see that her position was defective.

Asalteration in the MS we entered the rack-cell I caught a picture that will not go from me; I wish it would. A nakedrejected substantive textual note young giant of thirty or thereabouts, lay stretched upon the frame, on his back, with his wristsalteration in the MS and ancles tied to ropes which led over windlasses at either end. There was no color in him; his features were contorted and set, and sweat-drops stood upon his forehead. A priest bentalteration in the MS over him on each side; the executioner stood by; guards were on duty; smoking torches stood in sockets along the walls; in a corner crouched a poor young creature, her face drawn with anguish, a half-wild and hunted look in her eyes, and in her lap lay a little child asleep. Just as we stepped across the threshold, the executioner gave his machine a slight turn,alteration in the MS which wrung a cry from both the prisoner and the woman; but I shouted, and the executioner releasedemendation the strain without waiting to see who spoke. I could not let this horror go on; it would have killed me to see it. I asked the queen to let me clear the place and speak to the prisoner privately; and when she was going to object, I spoke in a low voice and said I did not want to make a scene before her servants, but I must have my way; for I was King Arthur’s representative, and was speaking in his name. She saw she had to yield. I asked her to endorse me to these people, and then leave me. It was not pleasant for her, but she took the pill; and even went further than I was meaning to require. I only wanted the backing of her ownalteration in the MS authority; but she said—

“Ye will do in all things as this lord shall command. It is Thealteration in the MS Boss.”

It was certainly a good word to conjure with: you could see it by the squirming of these rats. The queen’s guards fell into line, and she and they marched away, with their torch-bearers, and woke the echoes of the cavernous tunnels with the measured beat of their retreating footfalls.alteration in the MS I had thealteration in the MS prisoner taken from the rack and placed upon his bed, and medicaments applied to his hurts, and wine given him to drink. The woman crept near and looked on, eagerly, lovingly, but [begin page 202] timorously,—like one who fears a repulse; indeed, she tried to furtivelyrejected substantive touch the man’s forehead, and jumped back, the picture of fright, when I turned unconsciously toward her. It was pitiful to see.

“Lord,” I said, “stroke him, lass, if you want to. Do anything you’rerejected substantive a mind to; don’t mind me.”

Why, her eyes were as grateful as an animal’s, when you do it a kindness that it understands. The baby was out of her wayalteration in the MS and she had her cheek against the man’s in a minute, and her hands fondling his hair, and her happy tears running down. The man revived, and caressed his wife with his eyes, which was all he could do. I judged I might clear the den, now, and I did; cleared it of all but the family and myself. Then I said—

“Now my friend, tell me your side of this matter; I know the other side.”

The man moved his head in sign of refusal. But thealteration in the MS woman looked pleased—as it seemed to me—pleasedalteration in the MS with my suggestion. I went on:

“You know of me?”

“Yes. All do, in Arthur’s realms.”

“If my reputation has come to you right and straight, you should not be afraid to speak.”

The woman broke in, eagerly:

“Ah, fair my lord, do thou persuade him! Thou canst an thou wilt. Ah, he sufferethrejected substantive so; and it is for me—for me! Andemendation how can I bear it? I would I might see him die—a sweet, swift death; oh, my Hugo, I cannot bearalteration in the MS this one!”

And she fell to sobbing, and grovelingalteration in the MS about my feet, and still imploring. Imploring what? The man’s death? I could not quite get the bearings of the thing. But Hugo interrupted her and said—

“Peace! Ye wit not what ye ask. Shall I starve whom I love, to win a gentle death? I wend thou knewest me better.”

“Well,” I said, “I can’t quite make this out. It is a puzzle. Now—”

“Ah, dear my lord, analteration in the MS ye will but persuade him! Consideralteration in the MS how these his tortures wound me!emendation Oh, and he will not speak!—whenasrejected substantive, the healing, the solace that lie in a blessed swift death—”

“What are you maundering about? He’s going out from here a free man and whole—he’semendation not going to die.”

The man’s white face lit up, and the woman flung herself at me in a most surprising explosion of joy, and cried out—

[begin page 203]

“He is saved!—for it is the king’s word by the mouth of the king’s servant—Arthur, the king whose word is gold!”

“Well, then, you do believealteration in the MS I can be trusted, after all. Why didn’t you before?”

“Who doubted? Not I, indeed; and not she.”

“Well, why wouldn’t you tell me your story, then?”

“Ye had made no promise; else had it been otherwise.”

“I see, I see. . . . And yet, I believe I don’t quite see, after all. You stood the torture and refused to confess; which shows plain enough to even the dullest understanding that you had nothing to confess—”

I emendation, my lord? How so? It was I that killed the deer!”

“You did? Oh, dear,alteration in the MS this is the most mixed-up business that ever—”emendation

“Dear lord, I begged him on my knees to confess, but—”

You did emendation! It gets thicker and thicker. What did you want him to do that, for?”

“Sith it would bring him a quick death and save him all this cruel pain.”

“Well—yes, there is reason in that. But he didn’t want the quick death.”

“He? Why, of a surety he did.”

“Well, then, why in the world didn’t he confess?”

“Ah, sweet sir, and leave myemendation wife and chick without bread and shelter?”

“Oh, heart of gold,alteration in the MS nowalteration in the MS I see it! The bitter law takes the convicted man’s estateexplanatory note and beggars his widow and his orphans. They could torture you to death, but without conviction or confession they could not rob your wife and baby. You stood by them like a man; and youemendation true wife and true woman that you arealteration in the MS—you would have bought him release from torture at cost to yourselfemendation of slow starvation and death,—well, it humbles a body to think what your sex can do when it comes to self-sacrifice. I’ll book you both for my colony; you’ll like it there: it’s a Factoryalteration in the MS where I’m going to turn groping and grubbing automata into men.”

Editorial Emendations CHAPTER 17 A Royal Banquet
  excuse (A)  ●  excuses (MS) 
  embarrassing (A)  ●  embarrasing (MS) 
  Church (A)  ●  church (MS) 
  Church (A)  ●  church (MS) 
  grease-jets (A)  ●  candles (MS) 
  court (I-C)  ●  Court (MS) 
  By and By (I-C)  ●  Bye and Bye (MS) 
  Then (A)  ●  He was the private chaplain, and the royal family were devoted to him, could not do too much for him; though1 they tried. That is, they married him to a comely young girl, one of the chambermaids, who enriched him with a ready-made family of royal origin, natives of the castle—a pleasant way of providing for the private chaplains of noble families which was to retain its popularity in England2 for eleven or twelve3 centuries yet—barring an interval between the abolition of Catholic priest-marriages and the invention and erection of the Protestant Established Church. After grace, (MS) 
  subterranean machinery (A)  ●  machinery under ground (MS) 
  all the other (A)  ●  all other (MS) 
  by and by (I-C)  ●  bye and bye (MS) 
  of as daring a sort (A)  ●  as revolting (MS) 
  Regent (A)  ●  regent (MS) 
  intoxicated (A)  ●  drunk (MS) 
  appeared (A)  ●  suddenly appeared (MS) 
  measureless (A)  ●  measurless (MS) 
  By and By (I-C)  ●  Bye and Bye (MS) 
  by and by (I-C)  ●  bye and bye (MS) 
  the (A)  ●  this (MS) 
  Where is the profit? (A)  ●  not in  (MS) 
  released (A)  ●  relaxed (MS) 
  And (A)  ●  & (MS) 
  me! (A)  ●  me. (MS) 
  he’s (A)  ●  he’s  (MS) 
  I  (A)  ●  I (MS) 
  ever—” (A)  ●  ever—  (MS) 
  You did  (A)  ●  You did (MS) 
  my (A)  ●  not in  (MS) 
  you— (A)  ●  you, (MS) 
  to yourself (A)  ●  not in  (MS) 
Rejected Substantives CHAPTER 17 A Royal Banquet
  preserve (MS)  ●  preserves (A,E) 
  of but (MS)  ●  but of (A,E) 
  gat (MS)  ●  got (A,E) 
  Where is the profit? (A)  ●  not in  (MS,E) 
  forfeit (MS)  ●  forfeited (A,E) 
  naked (MS)  ●  native (A,E) 
  to furtively (MS,E)  ●  furtively to (A) 
  you’re (MS,A)  ●  you’ve (E) 
  suffereth (MS,A)  ●  suffered (E) 
  whenas (MS)  ●  whereas (A,E) 
Alterations in the Manuscript CHAPTER 17 A Royal Banquet
 to be] interlined.
 or] interlined above canceled ‘and’.
 even] interlined.
 even] interlined.
 obliged] written over wiped-out ‘bou’.
 we] written over wiped-out ‘we’.
 hosts.] followed by canceled ‘There were sixty guests and as many liveried waiters.’; ‘and’ follows a canceled comma.
 above the salt,] interlined.
 the resident . . . persons;] interlined.
 minor officers] interlined following canceled ‘the great officers’.
 with] interlined above canceled ‘and’.
 about] interlined.
 chairs or . . . or another.] originally ‘chairs.’; ‘or . . . or another.’ interlined; two periods inadvertently left standing.
 said] written over wiped-out ‘sad’.
 

Latin.] followed by a passage which was revised in the MS then canceled in a later stage. See emendations for the text of the deleted passage, in which the position of each of the following revisions is indicated by a superior number.

1.   him; though] the semicolon and ‘though’ written over a wiped-out semicolon and ‘thou’.
2.   which . . . England] interlined following canceled ‘in England’.
3.   or twelve] interlined.
 broke] written over wiped-out ‘began’.
 absorbing] follows canceled ‘str’.
 was like . . . burr of subterranean machinery.] the MS reads ‘was like . . . burr of machinery under ground.’ which was squeezed in to replace canceled ‘was like to the sound of pulling a many arctics out of the mud.’, which in turn follows canceled ‘was as the sound of an army that marches through sticky clay’; ‘the’ of ‘as the’ is written over ‘of’; emended.
 and a half, and] interlined following a canceled comma and canceled ‘and’.
 Gallon] follows canceled ‘Skin after skin’.
 In pretty] originally ‘Pretty’; ‘In’ interlined; the ‘P’ not reduced to ‘p’.
 hardy] interlined below ‘awful’ which was interlined then canceled.
 heroes,] followed by canceled ‘and court ladies the heroines,’.
 chaplain] followed by a canceled comma.
 of as daring a sort] the MS reads ‘as revolting’; ‘revolting’ interlined following canceled ‘obscene’ which is interlined above canceled ‘foul’; emended.
 in advance] interlined.
 at] written over wiped-out ‘when’.
 Ancient Regime] originally ‘ancient regime’; the ‘a’ and ‘r’ underlined three times.
 and all] follows canceled ‘in’.
 ruthless] interlined above canceled ‘pitiless’.
 choose.”] followed by canceled ‘I was Arthur’s minister, and chief guest here;’.
 Confound it,] interlined above canceled ‘Oh, dear me,’.
 queen, all . . . gave] ‘all . . . gave’ interlined following canceled ‘gave’; the comma following ‘queen’ added.
 matter] followed by a canceled comma.
 the arbitrary exercise] originally ‘arbitrary exercises’; ‘the’ interlined; the final ‘s’ of ‘exercises’ canceled; ‘and unvarying’ interlined then canceled following ‘arbitrary’.
 policy.] followed by canceled ‘Well, certainly the queen was a hard lot, and incurable. Now that she was feeling happy again, she must straightway go to plotting, for plotting was her meat and bread. She wanted me to pool enchantments with her and destroy Arthur and his Round Table, and then we would occupy his throne and “rule jointly.” Think of the cool devilishness of the idea. I called her attention to the fact that I was already ruling jointly, and asked her where’.
 It . . . me] interlined above canceled ‘I did not wish’.
 of agony] interlined.
 “Endureth what?”] squeezed in.
 ye] interlined above canceled ‘and he’.
 torn asunder.”] follows canceled ‘drawn asu’.
 and not made] follows canceled ‘—and reached the place at’; ‘at’ possibly ‘ab’.
 Highness] follows canceled ‘Maje’.
  no man] written over wiped-out ‘none’.
 “So] follows canceled ‘ “It was too much loyal zeal by half, maybe.’
 Highness’s] interlined above canceled ‘majesty’s’.
 Highness] originally ‘highness’; the ‘h’ underlined three times.
 see, anon.] originally ‘see.’; the comma added and ‘anon’ interlined.
 would not have] follows canceled ‘would not have’.
 As] follows canceled ‘Just’; ‘A’ written over ‘a’.
 wrists] follows canceled ‘hands and feet’.
 bent] written over wiped-out ‘le’.
 turn,] followed by canceled ‘but got a’.
 own] interlined.
 The] originally ‘the’; ‘T’ written over ‘t’.
 footfalls.] ‘falls.’ interlined in pencil above canceled ‘steps.’
 had the] ‘the’ originally ‘them’; ‘m’ wiped out.
 way] followed by canceled ‘in a minut’.
 But the] originally ‘The’; ‘But’ interlined; the ‘T’ of ‘The’ not reduced to ‘t’.
 pleased . . . pleased with my suggestion.] interlined without a caret above canceled ‘disturbed, and apprehensive.’
 bear] written over wiped-out ‘bear’.
 and groveling] follows canceled ‘and cling’.
 lord, an] ‘lord,’ followed by canceled ‘all the king’s power is in your hands.’; ‘an’ written over wiped-out ‘An’.
 Consider] follows canceled ‘Bethink you’.
 believe] followed by canceled ‘in’.
 dear,] originally ‘dear me,’; ‘me,’ canceled and the comma after ‘dear’ added in pencil.
 heart of gold,] interlined above canceled ‘great, good heart,’.
 now] originallynow; the underline canceled.
 true wife . . . you are] interlined.
 Factory] interlined above canceled ‘place’.
Textual Notes CHAPTER 17 A Royal Banquet
 excuse] Plural in the manuscript, but Morgan le Fay offers only one excuse; presumably Mark Twain made the change.
 naked] The manuscript reading is required by sense. The first American edition’s “native” is a memorial error.
Explanatory Notes CHAPTER 17 A Royal Banquet
 “In the Sweet By and By”] “Sweet By-and-By” was composed in 1868 by Joseph P. Webster to lyrics by Sanford F. Bennett. In an 1879 notebook entry Clemens remarked that this immensely popular song, although “sweet & pretty . . . at first,” had become so overfamiliar that he had “learned to loathe” it ( N&J2 , p. 240).
 Queen Margaret of Navarre] Marguérite d’Angoulême, sister of Francis I of France and wife of the titular king of Navarre, was noted both as a patron of artists and scholars and as an author. Her most celebrated work, the Heptameron, is a collection of tales modeled after Boccaccio’s Decameron. In the first chapter of Life on the Mississippi, Mark Twain associated the book with “lax court morals and the absurd chivalry business,” and observed that though in addition to the Heptameron she wrote “some religious books,—the first survives, the others are forgotten, wit and indelicacy being sometimes better literature-preservers than holiness.”
 daughter of the Regent d’Orleans] Saint-Simon tells a story of a scandalous supper at which the duchesse de Berry and her father, Philippe duc d’Orléans, nephew of Louis XIV and regent of France from 1715 to 1723, “got so drunk, that . . . the numerous company there assembled, knew not what to do.” The duchess, he continued, “could not be sobered, so that it became necessary to carry her, drunk as she was, to Versailles.” Next to this account, in his copy of Saint-Simon’s Memoirs, Clemens wrote, “She was only about 14 years old, I think” (2:148).
 convicted man’s estate] The law of escheat propter delictum tenentis, which required the forfeiture of a convicted felon’s property to his feudal lord or, later, to the crown, was not abolished in England until the passage of the Felony Act in 1870. The attitude of the English toward poaching, and their harsh game laws reflecting the tradition of class privilege, were an object of Clemens’ criticism over many years. In 1872 he saved a copy of The Anti-Game Law Circular, a lengthy tract urging the abolition of archaic and discriminatory hunting regulations (MTP); and in 1897 he could still complain, “Game laws remain Poaching the highest crime then—& now” (Notebook 41, TS p. 30, MTP).