He then threw aside the axe, and cried out that he was incapable of finishing the bloody office.

The sheriff obliged him to renew the attempt; and at two blows more the head was severed from the body.
Thus perished, in the thirty-sixth year of his age, a nobleman who, in less turbulent times, was well qualified to be an ornament of the court, even to be serviceable to his country.

The favor of his prince, the caresses of faction, and the allurements of popularity, seduced him into enterprises which exceeded his capacity.

The good will of the people still followed him in every fortune.

Even after his execution, their fond credulity flattered them with hopes of seeing him once more at their head.