Notwithstanding the Marquis’s eloquence, the Abbé Baudeau did not start for Poland, as the negotiations fell through. By a second letter the Prince-Bishop, under the influence of his niece, declined for her the honour of entering the house of Lorraine.[109] The unsuccessful result of the negotiations undertaken by Madame de Pailly had vexed her much; she feared the displeasure of the Comtesse de Brionne, and still more that of her aunt, the Princesse de Ligne-Luxembourg,[110] whom she had special reasons for wishing to please. The Princess, formerly lady-in-waiting to the late Queen of Spain, had, by virtue of that office, been given by the King an apartment in the palace of the Tuileries. She received a limited but carefully-chosen circle, of which Madame de Pailly would have been proud to form part, though the society was a very dull one. The old Princess, according to her contemporaries, had the most hideous fifty-year-old face that had ever been seen, a fat, shiny countenance, without any rouge, lividly pale, and adorned with a chin three stories deep. The Duchesse de Tallard used to say “that she was like a dripping tallow-candle.” But she was obliging and kind, and soon consoled herself for the failure of the projected marriage. She confided to the negotiating lady that she had another scheme in view. This time she had turned her thoughts to Prince Charles de Ligne, nephew of her late husband. In point of fortune the young Prince’s position was far superior to that of the Duc d’Elbœuf, and if his family occupied in France a less elevated rank than that of the house of Lorraine--which was a reigning family--on the score of nobility it was inferior to none. Madame de Pailly, delighted at the confidence the Princess reposed in her, thanked her for it as for a favour, and set to work, resolved to profit by the experience she had acquired and avoid another failure. She began by making the Abbé Baudeau and the Marquis write to the Prince-Bishop that nothing could be concluded in his absence, and that among the crowd of suitors, which every day increased, it was impossible he could discern at a distance what would be the best match for his niece. Then she cleverly tried to discover what was the influence which had been brought to bear on the young Princess that disposed her so strongly in favour of the Prince de Salm. She learned that he had gained over to his cause one of the lady residents in the Convent, whom Hélène frequently went to see.[111] Once fully acquainted with all the details of the situation, she drew up her batteries accordingly, and won over to her side three of Hélène’s best friends: the young Duchesse de Choiseul and Mesdemoiselles de Conflans. She got mutual friends to urge them quietly to influence the young Princess, and then patiently awaited the arrival of the Bishop, which could not long be delayed.