le quart d'heure de rabelais

On returning from Italy, Rabelais found himself in the south of France with no more money to continue his journey to Paris. He had dined well at an inn, and while waiting for his reckoning, he packed up some dust in small packets which he labelled, “Poison for the King,” “Poison for the Dauphin,” and so on. The innkeeper noticing these packets and their terrible inscriptions, informed the police, who took Rabelais to Paris free of charge to suffer the penalty of treason. When he was brought before the King, the monarch laughed heartily at the tale and let him go free.