Note 431 — Chapter II

One might wish the authority for this anecdote better than it is, considering that it is contradicted by the whole tenor of Philip's life, in which self-command was a predominant trait. The story was originally derived from Aubéri (loc. cit.). The chronicler had it, as he tells us, from his father, to whom it was told by an intimate friend of the prince of Orange, who was present at the scene. Aubéri, though a dull writer, was, according to Voltaire's admission, well informed,—"écrivain médiocre, mais fort instruit."