kept through life the title of the Vrai Chevalier. We shall meet him again in still closer proximity to the Regent, fifty long years hence.
During
the troubled reign of Louis xvi. the crown jewels including the Regent
were lodged in the Garde Meuble where upon stated days they were
exposed to public view. On the famous tenth of August, 1792, when Louis
was deprived of his crown he was also relieved from the burden of
looking after the Regent. It had at once become the National Diamond
and as such belonged to everybody, hence everybody had a right to see
it. In compliance with this popular notion the Regent was deposed from
its regal niche in the crown of France and was securely fastened in a steel clasp. A stout chain
was attached to the clasp and padlocked inside an iron window. Thus
secured from the too affectionate grip of its million owners the Regent
used to be passed out through the winÂdow and submitted to the
admiration of all who asked to see it. As a further security police-
