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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Baron Trigault’s Vengeance, by Emile Gaboriau
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Baron Trigault’s Vengeance
+       Volume 2 (of 2)
+
+Author: Emile Gaboriau
+
+Release Date: July 1, 2008 [EBook #547]
+Last Updated: September 24, 2016
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BARON TRIGAULT’S VENGEANCE ***
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+BARON TRIGAULT’S VENGEANCE
+
+by Emile Gaboriau
+
+
+
+A Sequel to “The Count’s Millions”
+
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+
+Vengeance! that is the first, the only thought, when a man finds himself
+victimized, when his honor and fortune, his present and future,
+are wrecked by a vile conspiracy! The torment he endures under such
+circumstances can only be alleviated by the prospect of inflicting them
+a hundredfold upon his persecutors. And nothing seems impossible at the
+first moment, when hatred surges in the brain, and the foam of anger
+rises to the lips; no obstacle seems insurmountable, or, rather,
+none are perceived. But later, when the faculties have regained their
+equilibrium, one can measure the distance which separates the dream from
+reality, the project from execution. And on setting to work, how many
+discouragements arise! The fever of revolt passes by, and the victim
+wavers. He still breathes bitter vengeance, but he does not act. He
+despairs, and asks himself what would be the good of it? And in this way
+the success of villainy is once more assured.
+
+Similar despondency attacked Pascal Ferailleur when he awoke for the
+first time in the abode where he had hidden himself under the name of
+Maumejan. A frightful slander had crushed him to the earth--he could
+kill his slanderer, but afterward--? How was he to reach and stifle the
+slander itself? As well try to hold a handful of water; as well try to
+stay with extended arms the progress of the poisonous breeze which wafts
+an epidemic on its wings. So the hope that had momentarily lightened
+his heart faded away again. Since he had received that fatal letter from
+Madame Leon the evening before, he believed that Marguerite was lost to
+him forever, and in this case, it was useless to struggle against fate.
+What would be the use of victory even if he conquered? Marguerite lost
+to him--what did the rest matter? Ah! if he had been alone in the world.
+But he had his mother to think of;--he belonged to this brave-hearted
+woman, who had saved him from suicide already. “I will not yield, then;
+I will struggle on for her sake,” he muttered, like a man who foresees
+the futility of his efforts.
+
+He rose, and had nearly finished dressing, when he heard a rap at his
+chamber door. “It is I, my son,” said Madame Ferailleur outside.
+
+Pascal hastened to admit her. “I have come for you because the woman you
+spoke about last evening is already here, and before employing her, I
+want your advice.”
+
+“Then the woman doesn’t please you, mother?”
+
+“I want you to see her.”
+
+On entering the little parlor with his mother, Pascal found himself in
+the presence of a portly, pale-faced woman, with thin lips and restless
+eyes, who bowed obsequiously. It was indeed Madame Vantrasson, the
+landlady of the model lodging-house, who was seeking employment for the
+three or four hours which were at her disposal in the morning, she said.
+It certainly was not for pleasure that she had decided to go out to
+service again; her dignity suffered terribly by this fall--but then
+the stomach has to be cared for. Tenants were not numerous at the model
+lodging-house, in spite of its seductive title; and those who slept
+there occasionally, almost invariably succeeded in stealing something.
+Nor did the grocery store pay; the few half-pence which were left
+there occasionally in exchange for a glass of liquor were pocketed by
+Vantrasson, who spent them at some neighboring establishment; for it is
+a well-known fact that the wine a man drinks in his own shop is always
+bitter in flavor. So, having no credit at the butcher’s or the baker’s,
+Madame Vantrasson was sometimes reduced to living for days together upon
+the contents of the shop--mouldy figs or dry raisins--which she washed
+down with torrents of ratafia, her only consolation here below.
+
+But this was not a satisfying diet, as she was forced to confess; so she
+decided to find some work, that would furnish her with food and a little
+money, which she vowed she would never allow her worthy husband to see.
+
+“What would you charge per month?” inquired Pascal.
+
+She seemed to reflect, and after a great deal of counting on her
+fingers, she finally declared that she would be content with breakfast
+and fifteen francs a month, on condition she was allowed to do the
+marketing. The first question of French cooks, on presenting themselves
+for a situation, is almost invariably, “Shall I do the marketing?”
+ which of course means, “Shall I have any opportunities for stealing?”
+ Everybody knows this, and nobody is astonished at it.
+
+“I shall do the marketing myself,” declared Madame Ferailleur, boldly.
+
+“Then I shall want thirty francs a month,” replied Madame Vantrasson,
+promptly.
+
+Pascal and his mother exchanged glances. They were both unfavorably
+impressed by this woman, and were equally determined to rid themselves
+of her, which it was easy enough to do. “Too dear!” said Madame
+Ferailleur; “I have never given over fifteen francs.”
+
+But Madame Vantrasson was not the woman to be easily discouraged,
+especially as she knew that if she failed to obtain this situation, she
+might have considerable difficulty in finding another one. She could
+only hope to obtain employment from strangers and newcomers, who were
+ignorant of the reputation of the model lodging-house. So in view of
+softening the hearts of Pascal and his mother, she began to relate the
+history of her life, skilfully mingling the false with the true, and
+representing herself as an unfortunate victim of circumstances, and the
+inhuman cruelty of relatives. For she belonged, like her husband, to
+a very respectable family, as the Maumejans might easily ascertain by
+inquiry. Vantrasson’s sister was the wife of a man named Greloux, who
+had once been a bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis, but who had now
+retired from business with a competency. “Why had this Greloux refused
+to save them from bankruptcy? Because one could never hope for a favor
+from relatives,” she groaned; “they are jealous if you succeed; and if
+you are unfortunate, they cast you off.”
+
+However, these doleful complaints, far from rendering Madame Vantrasson
+interesting, imparted a deceitful and most disagreeable expression to
+her countenance. “I told you that I could only give fifteen francs,”
+ interrupted Madame Ferailleur--“take it or leave it.”
+
+Madame Vantrasson protested. She expressed her willingness to deduct
+five francs from the sum she had named, but more--it was impossible!
+Would they haggle over ten francs to secure such a treasure as herself,
+an honest, settled woman, who was entirely devoted to her employers?
+“Besides, I have been a grand cook in my time,” she added, “and I have
+not lost all my skill. Monsieur and madame would be delighted with my
+cooking, for I have seen more than one fine gentleman smack his lips
+over my sauces when was in the employment of the Count de Chalusse.”
+
+Pascal and his mother could not repress a start on hearing this name;
+but it was in a tone of well-assumed indifference that Madame Ferailleur
+repeated, “M. de Chalusse?”
+
+“Yes, madame--a count--and so rich that he didn’t know how much he was
+worth. If he were still alive I shouldn’t be compelled to go out to
+service again. But he’s dead and he’s to be buried this very day.” And
+with an air of profound secrecy, she added: “On going yesterday to
+the Hotel de Chalusse to ask for a little help, I heard of the great
+misfortune. Vantrasson, my husband, accompanied me, and while we were
+talking with the concierge, a young woman passed through the hall, and
+he recognized her as a person who some time ago was--well--no better
+than she should be. Now, however, she’s a young lady as lofty as the
+clouds, and the deceased count has been passing her off as his daughter.
+Ah! this is a strange world.”
+
+Pascal had become whiter than the ceiling. His eyes blazed; and Madame
+Ferailleur trembled. “Very well,” she said, “I will give you twenty-five
+francs--but on condition you come without complaining if I sometimes
+require your services of an evening. On these occasions I will give you
+your dinner.” And taking five francs from her pocket she placed them in
+Madame Vantrasson’s hand, adding: “Here is your earnest money.”
+
+The other quickly pocketed the coin, not a little surprised by this
+sudden decision which she had scarcely hoped for, and which she by no
+means understood. Still she was so delighted with this denouement that
+she expressed her willingness to enter upon her duties at once; and to
+get rid of her Madame Ferailleur was obliged to send her out to purchase
+the necessary supplies for breakfast. Then, as soon as she was alone
+with her son, she turned to him and asked: “Well, Pascal?”
+
+But the wretched man seemed turned to stone, and seeing that he neither
+spoke nor moved, she continued in a severe tone: “Is this the way you
+keep your resolutions and your oaths! You express your intention
+of accomplishing a task which requires inexhaustible patience and
+dissimulation, and at the very first unforeseen circumstance your
+coolness deserts you, and you lose your head completely. If it had not
+been for me you would have betrayed yourself in that woman’s presence.
+You must renounce your revenge, and tamely submit to be conquered by the
+Marquis de Valorsay if your face is to be an open book in which any one
+may read your secret plans and thoughts.”
+
+Pascal shook his head dejectedly. “Didn’t you hear, mother?” he
+faltered.
+
+“Hear what?”
+
+“What that vile woman said? This young lady whom she spoke of, whom her
+husband recognized, can be none other than Marguerite.”
+
+“I am sure of it.”
+
+He recoiled in horror. “You are sure of it!” he repeated; “and you can
+tell me this unmoved--coldly, as if it were a natural, a possible thing.
+Didn’t you understand the shameful meaning of her insinuations? Didn’t
+you see her hypocritical smile and the malice gleaming in her eyes?” He
+pressed his hands to his burning brow, and groaned “And I did not crush
+the infamous wretch! I did not fell her to the ground!”
+
+Ah! if she had obeyed the impulse of her heart. Madame Ferailleur would
+have thrown her arms round her son’s neck, and have mingled her tears
+with his, but reason prevailed. The worthy woman’s heart was pervaded
+with that lofty sentiment of duty which sustains the humble heroines
+of the fireside, and lends them even more courage than the reckless
+adventurers whose names are recorded by history could boast of. She felt
+that Pascal must not be consoled, but spurred on to fresh efforts;
+and so mustering all her courage, she said: “Are you acquainted with
+Mademoiselle Marguerite’s past life? No. You only know that hers has
+been a life of great vicissitudes--and so it is not strange that she
+should be slandered.”
+
+“In that case, mother,” said Pascal, “you were wrong to interrupt Madame
+Vantrasson. She would probably have told us many things.”
+
+“I interrupted her, it is true, and sent her away--and you know why. But
+she is in our service now; and when you are calm, when you have regained
+your senses, nothing will prevent you from questioning her. It may be
+useful for you to know who this man Vantrasson is, and how and where he
+met Mademoiselle Marguerite.”
+
+Shame, sorrow, and rage, brought tears to Pascal’s eyes. “My God!” he
+exclaimed, “to be reduced to the unspeakable misery of hearing my mother
+doubt Marguerite!” He did not doubt her. HE could have listened to the
+most infamous accusations against her without feeling a single doubt.
+However, Madame Ferailleur had sufficient self-control to shrug her
+shoulders. “Ah, well! silence this slander,” she exclaimed. “I wish for
+nothing better; but don’t forget that we have ourselves to rehabilitate.
+To crush your enemies will be far more profitable to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite than vain threats and weak lamentations. It seemed to me that
+you had sworn to act, not to complain.”
+
+This ironical thrust touched Pascal’s sensitive mind to the quick; he
+rose at once to his feet, and coldly said, “That’s true. I thank you for
+having recalled me to myself.”
+
+She made no rejoinder, but mentally thanked God. She had read her son’s
+heart, and perceiving his hesitation and weakness she had supplied the
+stimulus he needed. Now she saw him as she wished to see him. Now he was
+ready to reproach himself for his lack of courage and his weakness in
+displaying his feelings. And as a test of his powers of endurance, he
+decided not to question Madame Vantrasson till four or five days had
+elapsed. If her suspicions had been aroused, this delay would suffice to
+dispel them.
+
+He said but little during breakfast; for he was now eager to commence
+the struggle. He longed to act, and yet he scarcely knew how to begin
+the campaign. First of all, he must study the enemy’s position--gain
+some knowledge of the men he had to deal with, find out exactly who the
+Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth were. Where could he
+obtain information respecting these two men? Should he be compelled to
+follow them and to gather up here and there such scraps of intelligence
+as came in his way? This method of proceeding would be slow and
+inconvenient in the extreme. He was revolving the subject in his mind
+when he suddenly remembered the man who, on the morning that followed
+the scene at Madame d’Argeles’s house, had come to him in the Rue d’Ulm
+to give him a proof of his confidence. He remembered that this strange
+man had said: “If you ever need a helping hand, come to me.” And at the
+recollection he made up his mind. “I am going to Baron Trigault’s,” he
+remarked to his mother; “if my presentiments don’t deceive me, he will
+be of service to us.”
+
+In less than half an hour he was on his way. He had dressed himself in
+the oldest clothes he possessed; and this, with the change he had made
+by cutting off his hair and beard, had so altered his appearance that
+it was necessary to look at him several times, and most attentively, to
+recognize him. The visiting cards which he carried in his pocket bore
+the inscription: “P. Maumejan, Business Agent, Route de la Revolte.” His
+knowledge of Parisian life had induced him to choose the same profession
+as M. Fortunat followed--a profession which opens almost every door.
+“I will enter the nearest cafe and ask for a directory,” he said to
+himself. “I shall certainly find Baron Trigault’s address in it.”
+
+The baron lived in the Rue de la Ville-l’Eveque. His mansion was one
+of the largest and most magnificent in the opulent district of the
+Madeleine, and its aspect was perfectly in keeping with its owner’s
+character as an expert financier, and a shrewd manufacturer, the
+possessor of valuable mines. The marvellous luxury so surprised Pascal,
+that he asked himself how the owner of this princely abode could find
+any pleasure at the gaming table of the Hotel d’Argeles. Five or six
+footmen were lounging about the courtyard when he entered it. He walked
+straight up to one of them, and with his hat in his hand, asked: “Baron
+Trigault, if you please?”
+
+If he had asked for the Grand Turk the valet would not have looked at
+him with greater astonishment. His surprise, indeed, seemed so profound
+that Pascal feared he had made some mistake and added: “Doesn’t he live
+here?”
+
+The servant laughed heartily. “This is certainly his house,” he replied,
+“and strange to say, by some fortunate chance, he’s here.”
+
+“I wish to speak with him on business.”
+
+The servant called one of his colleagues. “Eh! Florestan--is the baron
+receiving?”
+
+“The baroness hasn’t forbidden it.”
+
+This seemed to satisfy the footman; for, turning to Pascal he said: “In
+that case, you can follow me.”
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+
+The sumptuous interior of the Trigault mansion was on a par with its
+external magnificence. Even the entrance bespoke the lavish millionaire,
+eager to conquer difficulties, jealous of achieving the impossible, and
+never haggling when his fancies were concerned. The spacious hall, paved
+with costly mosaics, had been transformed into a conservatory full of
+flowers, which were renewed every morning. Rare plants climbed the walls
+up gilded trellis work, or hung from the ceiling in vases of rare old
+china, while from among the depths of verdure peered forth exquisite
+statues, the work of sculptors of renown. On a rustic bench sat a couple
+of tall footmen, as bright in their gorgeous liveries as gold coins
+fresh from the mint; still, despite their splendor, they were stretching
+and yawning to such a degree, that it seemed as if they would ultimately
+dislocate their jaws and arms.
+
+“Tell me,” inquired the servant who was escorting Pascal, “can any one
+speak to the baron?”
+
+“Why?”
+
+“This gentleman has something to say to him.”
+
+The two valets eyed the unknown visitor, plainly considering him to
+be one of those persons who have no existence for the menials of
+fashionable establishments, and finally burst into a hearty laugh. “Upon
+my word!” exclaimed the eldest, “he’s just in time. Announce him,
+and madame will be greatly obliged to you. She and monsieur have
+been quarrelling for a good half-hour. And, heavenly powers, isn’t he
+tantalizing!”
+
+The most intense curiosity gleamed in the eyes of Pascal’s conductor,
+and with an airy of secrecy, he asked: “What is the cause of the rumpus?
+That Fernand, no doubt--or some one else?”
+
+“No; this morning it’s about M. Van Klopen.”
+
+“Madame’s dressmaker?”
+
+“The same. Monsieur and madame were breakfasting together--a most
+unusual thing--when M. Van Klopen made his appearance. I thought to
+myself, when I admitted him: ‘Look out for storms!’ I scented one in
+the air, and in fact the dressmaker hadn’t been in the room five minutes
+before we heard the baron’s voice rising higher and higher. I said to
+myself: ‘Whew! the mantua-maker is presenting his bill!’ Madame cried
+and went on like mad; but, pshaw! when the master really begins, there’s
+no one like him. There isn’t a cab-driver in Paris who’s his equal for
+swearing.”
+
+“And M. Van Klopen?”
+
+“Oh, he’s used to such scenes! When gentlemen abuse him he does the same
+as dogs do when they come up out of the water; he just shakes his head
+and troubles himself no more about it. He has decidedly the best of the
+row. He has furnished the goods, and he’ll have to be paid sooner or
+later----”
+
+“What! hasn’t he been paid then?”
+
+“I don’t know; he’s still here.”
+
+A terrible crash of breaking china interrupted this edifying
+conversation. “There!” exclaimed one of the footmen, “that’s monsieur;
+he has smashed two or three hundred francs’ worth of dishes. He MUST be
+rich to pay such a price for his angry fits.”
+
+“Well,” observed the other, “if I were in monsieur’s place I should be
+angry too. Would you let your wife have her dresses fitted on by a man?
+I says that it’s indecent. I’m only a servant, but----”
+
+“Nonsense, it’s the fashion. Besides, monsieur does not care about that.
+A man who----”
+
+He stopped short; in fact, the others had motioned him to be silent.
+The baron was surrounded by exceptional servants, and the presence of a
+stranger acted as a restraint upon them. For this reason, one of them,
+after asking Pascal for his card, opened a door and ushered him into a
+small room, saying: “I will go and inform the baron. Please wait here.”
+
+“Here,” as he called it, was a sort of smoking-room hung with cashmere
+of fantastic design and gorgeous hues, and encircled by a low, cushioned
+divan, covered with the same material. A profusion of rare and costly
+objects was to be seen on all sides, armor, statuary, pictures,
+and richly ornamented weapons. But Pascal, already amazed by the
+conversation of the servants, did not think of examining these objects
+of virtu. Through a partially open doorway, directly opposite the one he
+had entered by, came the sound of loud voices in excited conversation.
+Baron Trigault, the baroness, and the famous Van Klopen were evidently
+in the adjoining room. It was a woman, the baroness, who was speaking,
+and the quivering of her clear and somewhat shrill voice betrayed
+a violent irritation, which was only restrained with the greatest
+difficulty. “It is hard for the wife of one of the richest men in Paris
+to see a bill for absolute necessities disputed in this style,” she was
+saying.
+
+A man’s voice, with a strong Teutonic accent, the voice of Van Klopen,
+the Hollander, caught up the refrain. “Yes, strict necessities, one can
+swear to that. And if, before flying into a passion, Monsieur le Baron
+had taken the trouble to glance over my little bill, he would have
+seen----”
+
+“No more! You bore me to death. Besides I haven’t time to listen to your
+nonsense; they are waiting for me to play a game of whist at the club.”
+
+This time it was the master of the house, Baron Trigault, who spoke, and
+Pascal recognized his voice instantly.
+
+“If monsieur would only allow me to read the items. It will take but a
+moment,” rejoined Van Klopen. And as if he had construed the oath
+that answered him as an exclamation of assent, he began: “In June, a
+Hungarian costume with jacket and sash, two train dresses with upper
+skirts and trimmings of lace, a Medicis polonaise, a jockey costume, a
+walking costume, a riding-habit, two morning-dresses, a Velleda costume,
+an evening dress.”
+
+“I was obliged to attend the races very frequently during the month of
+June,” remarked the baroness.
+
+But the illustrious adorner of female loveliness had already resumed his
+reading. “In July we have: two morning-jackets, one promenade costume,
+one sailor suit, one Watteau shepherdess costume, one ordinary
+bathing-suit, with material for parasol and shoes to match, one
+Pompadour bathing-suit, one dressing-gown, one close-fitting Medicis
+mantle, two opera cloaks----”
+
+“And I was certainly not the most elegantly attired of the ladies at
+Trouville, where I spent the month of July,” interrupted the baroness.
+
+“There are but few entries in the month of August,” continued
+Van Klopen. “We have: a morning-dress, a travelling-dress, with
+trimmings----” And he went on and on, gasping for breath, rattling off
+the ridiculous names which he gave to his “creations,” and interrupted
+every now and then by the blow of a clinched fist on the table, or by a
+savage oath.
+
+Pascal stood in the smoking-room, motionless with astonishment. He did
+not know what surprised him the most, Van Klopen’s impudence in daring
+to read such a bill, the foolishness of the woman who had ordered all
+these things, or the patience of the husband who was undoubtedly going
+to pay for them. At last, after what seemed an interminable enumeration,
+Van Klopen exclaimed: “And that’s all!”
+
+“Yes, that’s all,” repeated the baroness, like an echo.
+
+“That’s all!” exclaimed the baron--“that’s all! That is to say, in four
+months, at least seven hundred yards of silk, velvet, satin, and muslin,
+have been put on this woman’s back!”
+
+“The dresses of the present day require a great deal of material.
+Monsieur le Baron will understand that flounces, puffs, and ruches----”
+
+“Naturally! Total, twenty-seven thousand francs!”
+
+“Excuse me! Twenty-seven thousand nine hundred and thirty-three francs,
+ninety centimes.”
+
+“Call it twenty-eight thousand francs then. Ah, well, M. Van Klopen, if
+you are ever paid for this rubbish it won’t be by me.”
+
+If Van Klopen was expecting this denouement, Pascal wasn’t; in fact,
+he was so startled, that an exclamation escaped him which would have
+betrayed his presence under almost any other circumstances. What amazed
+him most was the baron’s perfect calmness, following, as it did, such
+a fit of furious passion, violent enough even to be heard in the
+vestibule. “Either he has extraordinary control over himself or this
+scene conceals some mystery,” thought Pascal.
+
+Meanwhile, the man-milliner continued to urge his claims--but the baron,
+instead of replying, only whistled; and wounded by this breach of good
+manners, Van Klopen at last exclaimed: “I have had dealings with all the
+distinguished men in Europe, and never before did one of them refuse to
+pay me for his wife’s toilettes.”
+
+“Very well--I don’t pay for them--there’s the difference. Do you suppose
+that I, Baron Trigault, that I’ve worked like a negro for twenty years
+merely for the purpose of aiding your charming and useful branch of
+industry? Gather up your papers, Mr. Ladies’ Tailor. There may
+be husbands who believe themselves responsible for their wives’
+follies--it’s quite possible there are--but I’m not made of that kind
+of stuff. I allow Madame Trigault eight thousand francs a month for
+her toilette--that is sufficient--and it is a matter for you and her to
+arrange together. What did I tell you last year when I paid a bill of
+forty thousand francs? That I would not be responsible for any more of
+my wife’s debts. And I not only said it, I formally notified you through
+my private secretary.”
+
+“I remember, indeed----”
+
+“Then why do you come to me with your bill? It is with my wife that you
+have opened an account. Apply to her, and leave me in peace.”
+
+“Madame promised me----”
+
+“Teach her to keep her promises.”
+
+“It costs a great deal to retain one’s position as a leader of fashion;
+and many of the most distinguished ladies are obliged to run into debt,”
+ urged Van Klopen.
+
+“That’s their business. But my wife is not a fine lady. She is simply
+Madame Trigault, a baroness, thanks to her husband’s gold and the
+condescension of a worthy German prince, who was in want of money. SHE
+is not a person of consequence--she has no rank to keep up.”
+
+The baroness must have attached immense importance to the satisfying of
+Van Klopen’s demands, for concealing the anger this humiliating scene
+undoubtedly caused her, she condescended to try and explain, and even to
+entreat. “I have been a little extravagant, perhaps,” she said; “but I
+will be more prudent in future. Pay, monsieur--pay just once more.”
+
+“No!”
+
+“If not for my sake, for your own.”
+
+“Not a farthing.”
+
+By the baron’s tone, Pascal realized that his wife would never shake
+his fixed determination. Such must also have been the opinion of the
+illustrious ruler of fashion, for he returned to the charge with an
+argument he had held in reserve. “If this is the case, I shall, to my
+great regret, be obliged to fail in the respect I owe to Monsieur le
+Baron, and to place this bill in the hands of a solicitor.”
+
+“Send him along--send him along.”
+
+“I cannot believe that monsieur wishes a law-suit.”
+
+“In that you are greatly mistaken. Nothing would please me better. It
+would at last give me an opportunity to say what I think about your
+dealings. Do you think that wives are to turn their husbands into
+machines for supplying money? You draw the bow-string too tightly, my
+dear fellow--it will break. I’ll proclaim on the house-top what others
+dare not say, and we’ll see if I don’t succeed in organizing a little
+crusade against you.” And animated by the sound of his own words,
+his anger came back to him, and in a louder and ever louder voice he
+continued: “Ah! you prate of the scandal that would be created by my
+resistance to your demands. That’s your system; but, with me, it won’t
+succeed. You threaten me with a law-suit; very good. I’ll take it upon
+myself to enlighten Paris, for I know your secrets, Mr. Dressmaker. I
+know the goings on in your establishment. It isn’t always to talk about
+dress that ladies stop at your place on returning from the Bois. You
+sell silks and satins no doubt; but you sell Madeira, and excellent
+cigarettes as well, and there are some who don’t walk very straight
+on leaving your establishment, but smell suspiciously of tobacco and
+absinthe. Oh, yes, let us go to law, by all means! I shall have an
+advocate who will know how to explain the parts your customers pay, and
+who will reveal how, with your assistance, they obtain money from other
+sources than their husband’s cash-box.”
+
+When M. Van Klopen was addressed in this style, he was not at all
+pleased. “And I!” he exclaimed, “I will tell people that Baron Trigault,
+after losing all his money at play, repays his creditors with curses.”
+
+The noise of an overturned chair told Pascal that the baron had sprung
+up in a furious passion “You may say what you like, you rascally fool!
+but not in my house,” he shouted. “Leave--leave, or I will ring----”
+
+“Monsieur----”
+
+“Leave, leave, I tell you, or I sha’n’t have the patience to wait for a
+servant!”
+
+He must have joined action to word, and have seized Van Klopen by
+the collar to thrust him into the hall, for Pascal heard a sound of
+scuffling, a series of oaths worthy of a coal-heaver, two or three
+frightened cries from the baroness, and several guttural exclamations
+in German. Then a door closed with such violence that the whole house
+shook, and a magnificent clock, fixed to the wall of the smoking-room,
+fell on to the floor.
+
+If Pascal had not heard this scene, he would have deemed it incredible.
+How could one suppose that a creditor would leave this princely mansion
+with his bill unpaid? But more and more clearly he understood that there
+must be some greater cause of difference between husband and wife than
+this bill of twenty-eight thousand francs. For what was this amount to
+a confirmed gambler who, without as much as a frown, gained or lost a
+fortune every evening of his life. Evidently there was some skeleton in
+this household--one of those terrible secrets which make a man and his
+wife enemies, and all the more bitter enemies as they are bound together
+by a chain which it is impossible to break. And undoubtedly, a good many
+of the insults which the baron had heaped upon Van Klopen must have been
+intended for the baroness. These thoughts darted through Pascal’s mind
+with the rapidity of lightning, and showed him the horrible position
+in which he was placed. The baron, who had been so favorably disposed
+toward him, and from whom he was expecting a great service, would
+undoubtedly hate him, undoubtedly become his enemy, when he learned
+that he had been a listener, although an involuntary one, to this
+conversation with Van Klopen. How did it happen that he had been placed
+in this dangerous position? What had become of the footman who had taken
+his card? These were questions which he was unable to answer. And what
+was he to do? If he could have retired noiselessly, if he could have
+reached the courtyard and have made his escape without being observed he
+would not have hesitated. But was this plan practicable? And would not
+his card betray him? Would it not be discovered sooner or later that he
+had been in the smoking-room while M. Van Klopen was in the dining-room?
+In any case, delicacy of feeling as well as his own interest forbade him
+to remain any longer a listener to the private conversation of the baron
+and his wife.
+
+He therefore noisily moved a chair, and coughed in that affected style
+which means in every country: “Take care--I’m here!” But he did not
+succeed in attracting attention. And yet the silence was profound; he
+could distinctly hear the creaking of the baron’s boots, as he paced
+to and fro, and the sound of fingers nervously beating a tattoo on the
+table. If he desired to avoid hearing the confidential conversation,
+which would no doubt ensue between the baron and his wife, there was
+but one course for him to pursue, and that was to reveal his presence at
+once. He was about to do so, when some one opened a door which must have
+led from the hall into the dining-room. He listened attentively, but
+only heard a few confused words, to which the baron replied: “Very well.
+That’s sufficient. I will see him in a moment.”
+
+Pascal breathed freely once more. “They have just given him my card,” he
+thought. “I can remain now; he will come here in a moment.”
+
+The baron must really have started to leave the room, for his wife
+exclaimed: “One word more: have you quite decided?”
+
+“Oh, fully!”
+
+“You are resolved to leave me exposed to the persecutions of my
+dressmaker?”
+
+“Van Klopen is too charming and polite to cause you the least worry.”
+
+“You will brave the disgrace of a law-suit?”
+
+“Nonsense! You know very well that he won’t bring any action against
+me--unfortunately. And, besides, pray tell me where the disgrace
+would be? I have a foolish wife--is that my fault? I oppose her absurd
+extravagance--haven’t I a right to do so? If all husbands were as
+courageous, we should soon close the establishments of these artful men,
+who minister to your vanity, and use you ladies as puppets, or living
+advertisements, to display the absurd fashions which enrich them.”
+
+The baron took two or three more steps forward, as if about to leave the
+room, but his wife interposed: “The Baroness Trigault, whose husband
+has an income of seven or eight hundred thousand francs a year, can’t go
+about clad like a simple woman of the middle classes.”
+
+“I should see nothing so very improper in that.”
+
+“Oh, I know. Only your ideas don’t coincide with mine. I shall never
+consent to make myself ridiculous among the ladies of my set--among my
+friends.”
+
+“It would indeed be a pity to arouse the disapproval of your friends.”
+
+This sneering remark certainly irritated the baroness, for it was with
+the greatest vehemence that she replied: “All my friends are ladies of
+the highest rank in society--noble ladies!”
+
+The baron no doubt shrugged his shoulders, for in a tone of crushing
+irony and scorn, he exclaimed: “Noble ladies! whom do you call
+noble ladies, pray? The brainless fools who only think of displaying
+themselves and making themselves notorious?--the senseless idiots who
+pique themselves on surpassing lewd women in audacity, extravagance, and
+effrontery, who fleece their husbands as cleverly as courtesans fleece
+their lovers? Noble ladies! who drink, and smoke, and carouse, who
+attend masked balls, and talk slang! Noble ladies! the idiots who long
+for the applause of the crowd, and consider notoriety to be desirable
+and flattering. A woman is only noble by her virtues--and the chief
+of all virtues, modesty, is entirely wanting in your illustrious
+friends----”
+
+“Monsieur,” interrupted the baroness, in a voice husky with anger, “you
+forget yourself--you----”
+
+But the baron was well under way. “If it is scandal that crowns one
+a great lady, you ARE one--and one of the greatest; for you are
+notorious--almost as notorious as Jenny Fancy. Can’t I learn from
+the newspapers all your sayings and gestures, your amusements, your
+occupations, and the toilettes you wear? It is impossible to read of a
+first performance at a theatre, or of a horse-race, without finding
+your name coupled with that of Jenny Fancy, or Cora Pearl, or Ninette
+Simplon. I should be a very strange husband indeed, if I wasn’t proud
+and delighted. Ah! you are a treasure to the reporters. On the day
+before yesterday the Baroness Trigault skated in the Bois. Yesterday she
+was driving in her pony-carriage. To-day she distinguished herself by
+her skill at pigeon-shooting. To-morrow she will display herself half
+nude in some tableaux vivants. On the day after to-morrow she will
+inaugurate a new style of hair-dressing, and take part in a comedy. It
+is always the Baroness Trigault who is the observed of all observers at
+Vincennes. The Baroness Trigault has lost five hundred louis in betting.
+The Baroness Trigault uses her lorgnette with charming impertinence.
+It is she who has declared it proper form to take a ‘drop’ on returning
+from the Bois. No one is so famed for ‘form,’ as the baroness--and
+silk merchants have bestowed her name upon a color. People rave of the
+Trigault blue--what glory! There are also costumes Trigault, for
+the witty, elegant baroness has a host of admirers who follow her
+everywhere, and loudly sing her praises. This is what I, a plain, honest
+man, read every day in the newspapers. The whole world not only knows
+how my wife dresses, but how she looks en dishabille, and how she
+is formed; folks are aware that she has an exquisite foot, a
+divinely-shaped leg, and a perfect hand. No one is ignorant of the fact
+that my wife’s shoulders are of dazzling whiteness, and that high on
+the left shoulder there is a most enticing little mole. I had the
+satisfaction of reading this particular last evening. It is charming,
+upon my word! and I am truly a fortunate man!”
+
+In the smoking-room, Pascal could hear the baroness angrily stamp her
+foot, as she exclaimed: “It is an outrageous insult--your journalists
+are most impertinent.”
+
+“Why? Do they ever trouble honest women?”
+
+“They wouldn’t trouble me if I had a husband who knew how to make them
+treat me with respect!”
+
+The baron laughed a strident, nervous laugh, which it was not pleasant
+to hear, and which revealed the fact that intense suffering was hidden
+beneath all this banter. “Would you like me to fight a duel then? After
+twenty years has the idea of ridding yourself of me occurred to you
+again? I can scarcely believe it. You know too well that you would
+receive none of my money, that I have guarded against that. Besides, you
+would be inconsolable if the newspapers ceased talking about you for a
+single day. Respect yourself, and you will be respected. The publicity
+you complain of is the last anchor which prevents society from drifting
+one knows not where. Those who would not listen to the warning voice of
+honor and conscience are restrained by the fear of a little paragraph
+which might disclose their shame. Now that a woman no longer has a
+conscience, the newspapers act in place of it. And I think it quite
+right, for it is our only hope of salvation.”
+
+By the stir in the adjoining room, Pascal felt sure that the baroness
+had stationed herself before the door to prevent her husband from
+leaving her. “Ah! well, monsieur,” she exclaimed, “I declare to you
+that I must have Van Klopen’s twenty-eight thousand francs before this
+evening. I will have them, too; I am resolved to have them, and you will
+give them to me.”
+
+“Oh!” thundered the baron, “you WILL have them--you will----” He paused,
+and then, after a moment’s reflection, he said: “Very well. So be it! I
+will give you this amount, but not just now. Still if, as you say, it is
+absolutely necessary that you should have it to-day, there is a means of
+procuring it. Pawn your diamonds for thirty thousand francs--I authorize
+you to do so; and I give you my word of honor that I will redeem them
+within a week. Say, will you do this?” And, as the baroness made no
+reply, he continued: “You don’t answer! shall I tell you why? It is
+because your diamonds were long since sold and replaced by imitation
+ones; it is because you are head over heels in debt; it is because you
+have stooped so low as to borrow your maid’s savings; it is because you
+already owe three thousand francs to one of my coachmen; it is because
+our steward lends you money at the rate of thirty or forty per cent.”
+
+“It is false!”
+
+The baron sneered. “You certainly must think me a much greater fool than
+I really am!” he replied. “I’m not often at home, it’s true--the sight
+of you exasperates me; but I know what’s going on. You believe me your
+dupe, but you are altogether mistaken. It is not twenty-seven thousand
+francs you owe Van Klopen, but fifty or sixty thousand. However, he is
+careful not to demand payment. If he brought me a bill this morning, it
+was only because you had begged him to do so, and because it had been
+agreed he should give you the money back if I paid him. In short, if you
+require twenty-eight thousand francs before to-night, it is because M.
+Fernand de Coralth has demanded that sum, and because you have promised
+to give it to him!”
+
+Leaning against the wall of the smoking-room, speechless and motionless,
+holding his breath, with his hands pressed upon his heart, as if to
+stop its throbbings, Pascal Ferailleur listened. He no longer thought
+of flying; he no longer thought of reproaching himself for his enforced
+indiscretion. He had lost all consciousness of his position. The name of
+the Viscount de Coralth, thus mentioned in the course of this frightful
+scene, came as a revelation to him. He now understood the meaning of the
+baron’s conduct. His visit to the Rue d’Ulm, and his promises of help
+were all explained. “My mother was right,” he thought; “the baron hates
+that miserable viscount mortally. He will do all in his power to assist
+me.”
+
+Meanwhile, the baroness energetically denied her husband’s charges. She
+swore that she did not know what he meant. What had M. de Coralth to
+do with all this? She commanded her husband to speak more plainly--to
+explain his odious insinuations.
+
+He allowed her to speak for a moment, and then suddenly, in a harsh,
+sarcastic voice, he interrupted her by saying: “Oh! enough! No more
+hypocrisy! Why do you try to defend yourself? What matters one crime
+more? I know only too well that what I say is true; and if you desire
+proofs, they shall be in your hands in less than half an hour. It is a
+long time since I was blind--full twenty years! Nothing concerning you
+has escaped my knowledge and observation since the cursed day when I
+discovered the depths of your disgrace and infamy--since the terrible
+evening when I heard you plan to murder me in cold blood. You had grown
+accustomed to freedom of action; while I, who had gone off with the
+first gold-seekers, was braving a thousand dangers in California, so as
+to win wealth and luxury for you more quickly. Fool that I was! No task
+seemed too hard or too distasteful when I thought of you--and I was
+always thinking of you. My mind was at peace--I had perfect faith in
+you. We had a daughter; and if a fear or a doubt entered my mind, I told
+myself that the sight of her cradle would drive all evil thoughts
+from your heart. The adultery of a childless wife may be forgiven or
+explained; but that of a mother, never! Fool! idiot! that I was! With
+what joyous pride, on my return after an absence of eighteen months, I
+showed you the treasures I had brought back with me! I had two hundred
+thousand francs! I said to you as I embraced you: ‘It is yours, my
+well-beloved, the source of all my happiness!’ But you did not care for
+me--I wearied you! You loved another! And while you were deceiving
+me with your caresses, you were, with fiendish skill, preparing a
+conspiracy which, if it had succeeded, would have resulted in my death!
+I should consider myself amply revenged if I could make you suffer for a
+single day all the torments that I endured for long months. For this was
+not all! You had not even the excuse, if excuse it be, of a powerful,
+all-absorbing passion. Convinced of your treachery, I resolved to
+ascertain everything, and I discovered that in my absence you had become
+a mother. Why didn’t I kill you? How did I have the courage to remain
+silent and conceal what I knew? Ah! it was because, by watching you, I
+hoped to discover the cursed bastard and your accomplice. It was because
+I dreamed of a vengeance as terrible as the offence. I said to myself
+that the day would come when, at any risk, you would try to see your
+child again, to embrace her, and provide for her future. Fool! fool
+that I was! You had already forgotten her! When you received news of my
+intended return, she was sent to some foundling asylum, or left to die
+upon some door-step. Have you ever thought of her? Have you ever asked
+what has become of her? ever asked yourself if she had needed bread
+while you have been living in almost regal luxury? ever asked yourself
+into what depths of vice she may have fallen?”
+
+“Always the same ridiculous accusation!” exclaimed the baroness.
+
+“Yes, always!”
+
+“You must know, however, that this story of a child is only a vile
+slander. I told you so when you spoke of it to me a dozen years
+afterward. I have repeated it a thousand times since.”
+
+The baron uttered a sigh that was very like a sob, and without paying
+any heed to his wife’s words, he continued: “If I consented to allow
+you to remain under my roof, it was only for the sake of our daughter.
+I trembled lest the scandal of a separation should fall upon her. But it
+was useless suffering on my part. She was as surely lost as you yourself
+were; and it was your work, too!”
+
+“What! you blame me for that?”
+
+“Whom ought I to blame, then? Who took her to balls, and theatres and
+races--to every place where a young girl ought NOT to be taken? Who
+initiated her into what you call high life? and who used her as a
+discreet and easy chaperon? Who married her to a wretch who is a
+disgrace to the title he bears, and who has completed the work of
+demoralization you began? And what is your daughter to-day? Her
+extravagance has made her notorious even among the shameless women who
+pretend to be leaders of society. She is scarcely twenty-two, and there
+is not a single prejudice left for her to brave! Her husband is the
+companion of actresses and courtesans; her own companions are no
+better--and in less than two years the million of francs which
+I bestowed on her as a dowry has been squandered, recklessly
+squandered--for there isn’t a penny of it left. And, at this very hour,
+my daughter and my son-in-law are plotting to extort money from me. On
+the day before yesterday--listen carefully to this--my son-in-law came
+to ask me for a hundred thousand francs, and when I refused them, he
+threatened if I did not give them to him that he would publish some
+letters written by my daughter--by his wife--to some low scoundrel.
+I was horrified and gave him what he asked. But that same evening I
+learned that the husband and wife, my daughter and my son-in-law, had
+concocted this vile conspiracy together. Yes, I have positive proofs
+of it. Leaving here, and not wishing to return home that day, he
+telegraphed the good news to his wife. But in his delight he made a
+mistake in the address, and the telegram was brought here. I opened it,
+and read: ‘Papa has fallen into the trap, my darling. I beat my drum,
+and he surrendered at once.’ Yes, that is what he dared to write, and
+sign with his own name, and then send to his wife--my daughter!”
+
+Pascal was absolutely terrified. He wondered if he were not the victim
+of some absurd nightmare--if his senses were not playing him false.
+He had little conception of the terrible dramas which are constantly
+enacted in these superb mansions, so admired and envied by the passing
+crowd. He thought that the baroness would be crushed--that she would
+fall on her knees before her husband. What a mistake! The tone of
+her voice told him that, instead of yielding, she was only bent on
+retaliation.
+
+“Does your son-in-law do anything worse than you?” she exclaimed. “How
+dare you censure him--you who drag your name through all the gambling
+dens of Europe?”
+
+“Wretch!” interrupted the baron, “wretch!” But quickly mastering
+himself, he remarked: “Yes, it’s true that I gamble. People say, ‘That
+great Baron Trigault is never without cards in his hands!’ But you know
+very well that I really hold gambling in horror--that I loathe it. But
+when I play, I sometimes forget--for I must forget. I tried drink, but
+it wouldn’t drown thought, so I had recourse to cards; and when the
+stakes are large, and my fortune is imperilled, I sometimes lose
+consciousness of my misery!”
+
+The baroness gave vent to a cold, sneering laugh, and, in a tone of
+mocking commiseration, she said: “Poor baron! It is no doubt in the hope
+of forgetting your sorrows that you spend all your time--when you are
+not gambling--with a woman named Lia d’Argeles. She’s rather pretty. I
+have seen her several times in the Bois----”
+
+“Be silent!” exclaimed the baron, “be silent! Don’t insult an
+unfortunate woman who is a thousand times better than yourself.” And,
+feeling that he could endure no more--that he could no longer restrain
+his passion, he cried: “Out of my sight! Go! or I sha’n’t be responsible
+for my acts!”
+
+Pascal heard a chair move, the floor creak, and a moment afterward a
+lady passed quickly through the smoking-room. How was it that she did
+not perceive him? No doubt, because she was greatly agitated, in spite
+of her bravado. And, besides, he was standing a little back in the
+shade. But he saw her, and his brain reeled. “Good Lord! what a
+likeness!” he murmured.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+
+It was as if he had seen an apparition, and he was vainly striving to
+drive away a terrible, mysterious fear, when a heavy footfall made
+the floor of the dining-room creak anew. The noise restored him to
+consciousness of his position. “It is the baron!” he thought; “he is
+coming this way! If he finds me here I am lost; he will never consent to
+help me. A man would never forgive another man for hearing what I have
+just heard.”
+
+Why should he not try to make his escape? The card, bearing the name
+of Maumejan, would be no proof of his visit. He could see the baron
+somewhere else some other day--elsewhere than at his own house, so that
+he need not fear the recognition of the servants. These thoughts flashed
+through his mind, and he was about to fly, when a harsh cry held him
+spell-bound. Baron Trigault was standing on the threshold. His emotion,
+as is almost always the case with corpulent people, was evinced by a
+frightful distortion of his features. His face was transformed, his
+lips had become perfectly white, and his eyes seemed to be starting from
+their sockets. “How came you here?” he asked, in a husky voice.
+
+“Your servants ushered me into this room.”
+
+“Who are you?”
+
+“What! monsieur, don’t you recognize me?” rejoined Pascal, who in his
+agitation forgot that the baron had seen him only twice before. He
+forgot the absence of his beard, his almost ragged clothing, and all the
+precautions he had taken to render recognition impossible.
+
+“I have never met any person named Maumejan,” said the baron.
+
+“Ah! monsieur, that’s not my name. Have you forgotten the innocent man
+who was caught in that infamous snare set for him by the Viscount de
+Coralth?”
+
+“Yes, yes,” replied the baron, “I remember you now.” And then
+recollecting the terrible scene that had just taken place in the
+adjoining room: “How long have you been here?” he asked.
+
+Should Pascal tell a falsehood, or confess the truth? He hesitated, but
+his hesitation lasted scarcely the tenth part of a second. “I have been
+here about half an hour,” he replied.
+
+The baron’s livid cheeks suddenly became purple, his eyes glittered, and
+it seemed by his threatening gesture as if he were strongly tempted to
+murder this man, who had discovered the terrible, disgraceful secrets
+of his domestic life. But it was a mere flash of energy. The terrible
+ordeal which he had just passed through had exhausted him mentally and
+physically, and it was in a faltering voice that he resumed: “Then you
+have not lost a word--a word of what was said in the other room?”
+
+“Not a word.”
+
+The baron sank on to the divan. “So the knowledge of my disgrace is
+no longer confined to myself!” he exclaimed. “A stranger’s eye has
+penetrated the depths of misery I have fallen into! The secret of my
+wretchedness and shame is mine no longer!”
+
+“Oh, monsieur, monsieur!” interrupted Pascal. “Before I recross the
+threshold of your home, all shall have been forgotten. I swear it by all
+that is most sacred!”
+
+He had raised his hand as if to take a solemn oath, when the baron
+caught hold of it, and, pressing it with sorrowful gratitude, exclaimed:
+“I believe you! You are a man of honor--I only needed to see your home
+to be convinced of that. You will not laugh at my misfortunes or my
+misery!” He must have been suffering frightfully, for big tears rolled
+slowly down his cheeks. “What have I done, my God! that I should be
+so cruelly punished?” he continued. “I have always been generous and
+charitable, and ready to help all who applied to me. I am utterly alone!
+I have a wife and a daughter--but they hate me. They long for my death,
+which would give them possession of my wealth. What torture! For months
+together I dared not eat a morsel of food, either in my own house, or
+in the house of my son-in-law. I feared poison; and I never partook of a
+dish until I had seen my daughter or my wife do so. To prevent a crime,
+I was obliged to resort to the strangest expedients. I made a will, and
+left my property in such a way that if I die, my family will not receive
+one penny. So, they now have an interest in prolonging my life.” As he
+spoke he sprang up with an almost frenzied air, and, seizing Pascal by
+the arm, again continued. “Nor is this all! This woman--my wife--you
+know--you have heard the extent of her shame and degradation. Ah, well!
+I--love her!”
+
+Pascal recoiled with an exclamation of mingled horror and consternation.
+
+“This amazes you, eh?” rejoined the baron. “It is indeed
+incomprehensible, monstrous--but it is the truth. It is to gratify her
+desire for luxury that I have toiled to amass millions. If I purchased
+a title, which is absurd and ridiculous, it was only because I wished
+to satisfy her vanity. Do what she may, I can only see in her the chaste
+and beautiful wife of our early married life. It is cowardly, absurd,
+ridiculous--I realize it; but my love is stronger than my reason or my
+will. I love her madly, passionately; I cannot tear her from my heart!”
+
+So speaking, he sank sobbing on to the divan again. Was this, indeed,
+the frivolous and jovial Baron Trigault whom Pascal had seen at Madame
+d’Argeles’s house--the man of self-satisfied mien and superb assurance,
+the good-natured cynic, the frequenter of gambling-dens? Alas, yes! But
+the baron whom the world knew was only a comedian; this was the real
+man.
+
+After a little while he succeeded in controlling his emotion, and in a
+comparatively calm voice he exclaimed: “But it is useless to distract
+one’s mind with an incurable evil. Let us speak of yourself, M.
+Ferailleur. To what do I owe the honor of this visit?”
+
+“To your own kind offer, monsieur, and the hope that you will help me in
+refuting this slander, and wreaking vengeance upon those who have ruined
+me.”
+
+“Oh! yes, I will help you in that to the full extent of my power,”
+ exclaimed the baron. But experience reminded him that confidential
+disclosures ought not to be made with the doors open, so he rose, shut
+them, and returning to Pascal, said: “Explain in what way I can be of
+service to you, monsieur.”
+
+It was not without many misgivings that Pascal had presented himself
+at the baron’s house, but after what he had heard he felt no further
+hesitation; he could speak with perfect freedom. “It is quite
+unnecessary for me to tell you, Monsieur le Baron,” he began, “that the
+cards which made me win were inserted in the pack by M. de Coralth--that
+is proven beyond question, and whatever the consequences may be, I shall
+have my revenge. But before striking him, I wish to reach the man whose
+instrument he was.”
+
+“What! you suppose----”
+
+“I don’t suppose--I am sure that M. de Coralth acted in obedience to the
+instructions of some other scoundrel whose courage does not equal his
+meanness.”
+
+“Perhaps so! I think he would shrink from nothing in the way of
+rascality. But who could have employed him in this vile work of
+dishonoring an honest man?”
+
+“The Marquis de Valorsay.”
+
+On hearing this name, the baron bounded to his feet. “Impossible!” he
+exclaimed; “absolutely impossible! M. de Valorsay is incapable of the
+villainy you ascribe to him. What do I say?--he is even above suspicion.
+I have known him for years, and I have never met a more loyal, more
+honorable, or more courageous man. He is one of my few trusted friends;
+we see each other almost every day. I am expecting a visit from him even
+now.”
+
+“Still it was he who incited M. de Coralth to do the deed.”
+
+“But why? What could have been his object?”
+
+“To win a young girl whom I love. She--loved me, and he saw that I
+was an obstacle. He put me out of the way more surely than if he had
+murdered me. If I died, she might mourn for me--dishonored, she would
+spurn me----”
+
+“Is Valorsay so madly in love with the girl, then?”
+
+“I think he cares but very little for her.”
+
+“Then why----”
+
+“She is the heiress of several millions.”
+
+It was evident that this explanation did not shake Baron Trigault’s
+faith in his friend. “But the marquis has an income of a hundred
+and fifty or two hundred thousand francs,” said he; “that is an
+all-sufficient justification. With his fortune and his name, he is in a
+position to choose his wife from among all the heiresses of France. Why
+should he address his attentions in particular to the woman you love?
+Ah! if he were poor--if his fortune were impaired--if he felt the need
+of regilding his escutcheon, like my son-in-law----”
+
+He paused; there was a rap at the door. The baron called out: “Come
+in,” and a valet appeared, and informed his master that the Marquis de
+Valorsay wished to speak with him.
+
+It was the enemy! Pascal’s features were distorted with rage; but he did
+not stir--he did not utter a word. “Ask the marquis into the next room,”
+ said the baron. “I will join him there at once.” Then as the servant
+retired, the baron turned to Pascal and said: “Well, M. Ferailleur, do
+you divine my intentions?”
+
+“I think so, monsieur. You probably intend me to hear the conversation
+you are going to have with M. de Valorsay.”
+
+“Exactly. I shall leave the door open, and you can listen.”
+
+This word, “listen,” was uttered without bitterness, or even reproach;
+and yet Pascal could not help blushing and hanging his head. “I wish to
+prove to you that your suspicions are without foundation,” pursued
+the baron. “Rest assured that I shall prove this conclusively. I will
+conduct the conversation in the form of a cross-examination, and after
+the marquis’s departure, you will be obliged to confess that you were
+wrong.”
+
+“Or you, that I am right?”
+
+“So be it. Any one is liable to be mistaken, and I am not obstinate.”
+
+He was about to leave the room, when Pascal detained him. “I scarcely
+know how to testify my gratitude even now, monsieur, and yet--if I
+dared--if I did not fear to abuse your kindness, I should ask one more
+favor.”
+
+“Speak, Monsieur Ferailleur.”
+
+“It is this, I do not know the Marquis de Valorsay; and if, instead of
+leaving the door wide open, you would partially close it, I should hear
+as distinctly, and I could also see him.”
+
+“Agreed,” replied the baron. And, opening the door, he passed into the
+dining-room, with his right hand cordially extended, and saying, in his
+most genial tones: “Excuse me, my dear friend, for keeping you waiting.
+I received your letter this morning, and I was expecting you, but some
+unexpected business required my attention just now. Are you quite well?”
+
+As the baron entered the room, the marquis had stepped quickly forward
+to meet him. Either he was inspired with fresh hope, or else he
+had wonderful powers of self-control, for never had he looked more
+calm--never had his face evinced haughtier indifference, more complete
+satisfaction with himself, and greater contempt for others. He was
+dressed with even more than usual care, and in perfect taste as well;
+moreover, his valet had surpassed himself in dressing his hair--for one
+would have sworn that his locks were still luxuriant. If he experienced
+any secret anxiety, it only showed itself in a slightly increased
+stiffness of his right leg--the limb broken in hunting. “I ought rather
+to inquire concerning your own health,” he remarked. “You seem greatly
+disturbed; your cravat is untied.” And, pointing to the broken china
+scattered about the floor, he added: “On seeing this, I asked myself if
+an accident had not happened.”
+
+“The baroness was taken suddenly ill at the breakfast table. Her
+fainting fit startled me a little. But it was a mere trifle. She has
+quite recovered already, and you may rely upon her applauding your
+victory at Vincennes to-day. She has I don’t know how many hundred louis
+staked upon your horses.”
+
+The marquis’s countenance assumed an expression of cordial regret. “I am
+very sorry, upon my word!” he exclaimed. “But I sha’n’t take part in the
+races at Vincennes. I have withdrawn my horses. And, in future, I shall
+have nothing to do with racing.”
+
+“Nonsense!”
+
+“It is the truth, however. I have been led to this determination by the
+infamous slander which has been circulated respecting me.”
+
+This answer was a mere trifle, but it somewhat shook Baron Trigault’s
+confidence. “You have been slandered!” he muttered.
+
+“Abominably. Last Sunday the best horse in my stables, Domingo, came in
+third. He was the favorite in the ring. You can understand the rest. I
+have been accused of manoeuvering to have my own horse beaten. People
+have declared that it was my interest he should be beaten, and that I
+had an understanding with my jockey to that effect. This is an every-day
+occurrence, I know very well; but, as regards myself, it is none the
+less an infamous lie!”
+
+“Who has dared to circulate such a report?”
+
+“Oh, how can I tell? It is a fact, however, that the story has been
+circulated everywhere, but in such a cautious manner that there is no
+way of calling the authors to account. They have even gone so far as to
+say that this piece of knavery brought me in an enormous sum, and that I
+used Rochecotte’s, Kervaulieu’s, and Coralth’s names in betting against
+my own horse.”
+
+The baron’s agitation was so great that M. de Valorsay observed it,
+though he did not understand the cause. Living in the same society with
+the Baroness Trigault, and knowing her story, he thought that Coralth’s
+name might, perhaps, have irritated the baron. “And so,” he quickly
+continued, “don’t be surprised if, during the coming week, you see the
+sale of my horses announced.”
+
+“What! you are going to sell----”
+
+“All my horses--yes, baron. I have nineteen; and it will be very strange
+if I don’t get eight or ten thousand louis for the lot. Domingo alone is
+worth more than forty thousand francs.”
+
+To talk of selling--of realizing something you possess--rings ominously
+in people’s ears. The person who talks of selling proclaims his need
+of money--and often his approaching ruin. “It will save you at least a
+hundred and fifty or sixty thousand francs a year,” observed the baron.
+
+“Double it and you won’t come up to the mark. Ah! my dear baron, you
+have yet to learn that there is nothing so ruinous as a racing stable.
+It’s worse than gambling; and women, in comparison, are a real economy.
+Ninette costs me less than Domingo, with his jockey, his trainer, and
+his grooms. My manager declares that the twenty-three thousand francs I
+won last year, cost me at least fifty thousand.”
+
+Was he boasting, or was he speaking the truth? The baron was engaged in
+a rapid calculation. “What does Valorsay spend a year?” he was saying
+to himself. “Let us say two hundred and fifty thousand francs for his
+stable; forty thousand francs for Ninette Simplon; eighty thousand
+for his household expenses, and at least thirty thousand for personal
+matters, travelling, and play. All this amounts to something like four
+hundred and thirty thousand francs a year. Does his income equal that
+sum? Certainly not. Then he must have been living on the principal--he
+is ruined.”
+
+Meanwhile the marquis gayly continued: “You see, I’m going to make a
+change in my mode of life. Ah! it surprises you! But one must make an
+end of it, sooner or later. I begin to find a bachelor life not so very
+pleasant after all; there is rheumatism in prospect, and my digestion is
+becoming impaired--in short, I feel that it is time for marriage, baron;
+and--I am about to marry.”
+
+“You!”
+
+“Yes, I. What, haven’t you heard of it, yet? It has been talked of at
+the club for three days or more.”
+
+“No, this is the first intimation I have received of it. It is true,
+however, that I have not been to the club for three days. I have made a
+wager with Kami-Bey, you know--that rich Turk--and as our sittings are
+eight or ten hours long, we play in his apartments at the Grand Hotel.
+And so you are to be married,” the baron continued, after a slight
+pause. “Ah, well! I know one person who won’t be pleased.”
+
+“Who, pray?”
+
+“Ninette Simplon.”
+
+M. de Valorsay laughed heartily. “As if that would make any difference
+to me!” he exclaimed. And then in a most confidential manner he resumed:
+“She will soon be consoled. Ninette Simplon is a shrewd girl--a girl
+whom I have always suspected of having an account book in place of a
+heart. I know she has at least three hundred thousand francs safely
+invested; her furniture and diamonds are worth as much more. Why should
+she regret me? Add to this that I have promised her fifty thousand
+francs to dry her tears with on my wedding-day, and you will understand
+that she really longs to see me married.”
+
+“I understand,” replied the baron; “Ninette Simplon won’t trouble you.
+But I can’t understand why you should talk of economy on the eve of a
+marriage which will no doubt double your fortune; for I’m sure you won’t
+surrender your liberty without good and substantial reasons.”
+
+“You are mistaken.”
+
+“How mistaken?”
+
+“Well, I won’t hesitate to confess to you, my dear baron, that the girl
+I am about to marry hasn’t a penny of her own. My future wife has no
+dowry save her black eyes--but they are certainly superb ones.”
+
+This assertion seemed to disprove Pascal’s statements. “Can it really be
+you who are talking in this strain?” cried the baron. “You, a practical,
+worldly man, give way to such a burst of sentiment?”
+
+“Well, yes.”
+
+The baron opened his eyes in astonishment. “Ah! then you adore your
+future bride!”
+
+“Adore only feebly expresses my feelings.”
+
+“I must be dreaming.”
+
+Valorsay shrugged his shoulders with the air of a man who has made up
+his mind to accept the banter of his friends; and in a tone of mingled
+sentimentality and irony, he said: “I know that it’s absurd, and that
+I shall be the laughing-stock of my acquaintances. Still it doesn’t
+matter; I have never been coward enough to hide my feelings. I’m in
+love, my dear baron, as madly in love as a young collegian--sufficiently
+in love to watch my lady’s house at night even when I have no possible
+hope of seeing her. I thought myself blase, I boasted of being
+invulnerable. Well, one fine morning I woke up with the heart of a youth
+of twenty beating in my breast--a heart which trembled at the slightest
+glance from the girl I love, and sent purple flushes to my face.
+Naturally I tried to reason with myself. I was ashamed of my weakness;
+but the more clearly I showed myself my folly, the more obstinate my
+heart became. And perhaps my folly is not such a great one after all.
+Such perfect beauty united with such modesty, grace, and nobility
+of soul, such passion, candor and talent, cannot be met twice in a
+lifetime. I intend to leave Paris. We shall first of all go to Italy,
+my wife and I. After a while we shall return and install ourselves at
+Valorsay, like two turtle-doves. Upon my word, my imagination paints a
+charming picture of the calm and happy life we shall lead there! I don’t
+deserve such good fortune. I must have been born under a lucky star!”
+
+Had he been less engrossed in his narrative, he would have heard the
+sound of a stifled oath in the adjoining room; and had he been less
+absorbed in the part he was playing, he would have observed a cloud on
+his companion’s brow. The baron was a keen observer, and he had detected
+a false ring in this apparently vehement outburst of passion. “I
+understand it now, my dear marquis,” said he; “you have met the
+descendant of some illustrious but impoverished family.”
+
+“You are wrong. My future bride has no other name than her Christian
+name of Marguerite.”
+
+“It is a regular romance then!”
+
+“You are quite right; it is a romance. Were you acquainted with the
+Count de Chalusse, who died a few days ago?”
+
+“No; but I have often heard him spoken of.”
+
+“Well, it is his daughter whom I am about to marry--his illegitimate
+daughter.”
+
+The baron started. “Excuse me,” said he; “M. de Chalusse was immensely
+rich, and he was a bachelor. How does it happen then that his daughter,
+even though she be his illegitimate child, should find herself
+penniless?”
+
+“A mere chance--a fatality. M. de Chalusse died very suddenly; he had no
+time to make a will or to acknowledge his daughter.”
+
+“But why had he not taken some precautions?”
+
+“A formal recognition of his daughter was attended by too many
+difficulties, and even dangers. Mademoiselle Marguerite had been
+abandoned by her mother when only five or six months old; it is only a
+few years since M. de Chalusse, after a thousand vain attempts, at last
+succeeded in finding her.”
+
+It was no longer on Pascal’s account, but on his own, that Baron
+Trigault listened with breathless attention. “How very strange,” he
+exclaimed, in default of something better to say. “How very strange!”
+
+“Isn’t it? It is as good as a novel.”
+
+“Would it be--indiscreet----”
+
+“To inquire? Certainly not. The count told me the whole story, without
+entering into particulars--you understand. When he was quite young, M.
+de Chalusse became enamoured of a charming young lady, whose husband had
+gone to tempt fortune in America. Being an honest woman, she resisted
+the count’s advances for awhile--a very little while; but in less than
+a year after her husband’s departure, she gave birth to a pretty little
+daughter, Mademoiselle Marguerite. But then why had the husband gone to
+America?”
+
+“Yes,” faltered the baron; “why--why, indeed?”
+
+“Everything was progressing finely, when M. de Chalusse was in his turn
+obliged to start for Germany, having been informed that a sister of his,
+who had fled from the paternal roof with nobody knows who, had been seen
+there. He had been absent some four months or so, when one morning the
+post brought him a letter from his pretty mistress, who wrote: ‘We are
+lost! My husband is at Marseilles: he will be here to-morrow. Never
+attempt to see me again. Fear everything from him. Farewell.’ On
+receiving this letter, M. de Chalusse flung himself into a postchaise,
+and returned to Paris. He was determined, absolutely determined, to
+have his daughter. But he arrived too late. On hearing of her husband’s
+return, the young wife had lost her head. She had but one thought--to
+conceal her fault, at any cost; and one night, being completely
+disguised, she left her child on a doorstep in the vicinity of the
+central markets----”
+
+The marquis suddenly paused in his story to exclaim: “Why, what is the
+matter with you, my dear baron? What is the matter? Are you ill? Shall I
+ring?”
+
+The baron was as pale as if the last drop of blood had been drawn from
+his veins, and there were dark purple circles about his eyes. Still,
+on being questioned, he managed to answer in a choked voice, but not
+without a terrible effort: “Nothing! It is nothing. A mere trifle! It
+will be over in a moment. It IS over!” Still his limbs trembled so
+much that he could not stand, and he sank on to a chair, murmuring: “I
+entreat you, marquis--continue. It is very interesting--very interesting
+indeed.”
+
+M. de Valorsay resumed his narrative. “The husband was incontestably an
+artless fellow: but he was also, it appears, a man of remarkable energy
+and determination. Having somehow ascertained that his wife had given
+birth to a child in his absence, he moved heaven and earth not only to
+discover the child, but its father also. He had sworn to kill them both;
+and he was a man to keep his vow unmoved by a thought of the guillotine.
+And if you require a proof of his strength of character, here it is:
+He said nothing to his wife on the subject, he did not utter a single
+reproach; he treated her exactly as he had done before his absence.
+But he watched her, or employed others to watch her, both day and night,
+convinced that she would finally commit some act of imprudence which
+would give him the clue he wanted. Fortunately, she was very shrewd. She
+soon discovered that her husband knew everything, and she warned M. de
+Chalusse, thus saving his life.”
+
+It is not at all remarkable that the Marquis de Valorsay should have
+failed to see any connection between his narrative and the baron’s
+agitation. What possible connection could there be between opulent Baron
+Trigault and the poor devil who went to seek his fortune in America?
+What imaginable connection could there be between the confirmed gambler,
+who was Kami-Bey’s companion, Lia d’Argeles’s friend, and the husband
+who for ten long years had pursued the man who, by seducing his wife,
+had robbed him of all the happiness of life? Another point that would
+have dispelled any suspicions on the marquis’s part was that he had
+found the baron greatly agitated on arriving, and that he now seemed to
+be gradually regaining his composure. So he continued his story in his
+customary light, mocking tone. It is the perfection of good taste and
+high breeding--“proper form,” indeed, not to be astonished or moved
+by anything, in fact to sneer at everything, and hold one’s self quite
+above the emotions which disturb the minds of plebeians.
+
+Thus the marquis continued: “I am necessarily compelled to omit many
+particulars, my dear baron. The count was not very explicit when he
+reached this part of his story; but, in spite of his reticence, I
+learned that he had been tricked in his turn, that certain papers had
+been stolen from him, and that he had been defrauded in many ways by his
+inamorata. I also know that M. de Chalusse’s whole life was haunted by
+the thought of the husband he had wronged. He felt a presentiment that
+he would die by this man’s hand. He saw danger on every side. If he went
+out alone in the evening, which was an exceedingly rare occurrence, he
+turned the street corners with infinite caution; it seemed to him that
+he could always see the gleam of a poniard or a pistol in the shade.
+I should never have believed in this constant terror on the part of a
+really brave man, if he had not confessed it to me with his own lips.
+Ten or twelve years passed before he dared to make the slightest
+attempt to find his daughter, so much did he fear to arouse his enemy’s
+attention. It was not until he had discovered that the husband had
+become discouraged and had discontinued his search, that the count began
+his. It was a long and arduous one, but at last it succeeded, thanks to
+the assistance of a clever scoundrel named Fortunat.”
+
+The baron with difficulty repressed a movement of eager curiosity, and
+remarked: “What a peculiar name!”
+
+“And his first name is Isidore. Ah! he’s a smooth-tongued scoundrel, a
+rascal of the most dangerous kind, who richly deserves to be in jail.
+How it is that he is allowed to prosecute his dishonorable calling I
+can’t understand; but it is none the less true that he does follow it,
+and without the slightest attempt at concealment, at an office he has on
+the Place de la Bourse.”
+
+This name and address were engraved upon the baron’s memory, never to be
+effaced.
+
+“However,” resumed M. de Valorsay, “the poor count was fated to have no
+peace. The husband had scarcely ceased to torment him, he had scarcely
+begun to breathe freely, when the wife attacked him in her turn. She
+must have been one of those vile and despicable women who make a man
+hate the entire sex. Pretending that the count had turned her from
+the path of duty, and destroyed her life and happiness, she lost no
+opportunity of tormenting him. She would not allow M. de Chalusse to
+keep the child with him, nor would she consent to his adopting the girl.
+She declared it an act of imprudence, which would surely set her husband
+upon the track, sooner or later. And when the count announced his
+intention of legally adopting the child, in spite of her protests, she
+declared that, rather than allow it, she would confess everything to her
+husband.”
+
+“The count was a patient man,” sneered the baron.
+
+“Not so patient as you may suppose. His submission was due to some
+secret cause which he never confided to me. There must have been
+some great crime under all this. In any case, the poor count found it
+impossible to escape this terrible woman. He took refuge at Cannes; but
+she followed him. He travelled through Italy, for I don’t know how many
+months under an assumed name, but all in vain. He was at last compelled
+to conceal his daughter in some provincial convent. During the last few
+months of his life he obtained peace--that is to say, he bought it. This
+lady’s husband must either be very poor or exceedingly stingy; and as
+she was exceedingly fond of luxury, M. de Chalusse effected a compromise
+by giving her a large sum monthly, and also by paying her dress-maker’s
+bills.”
+
+The baron sprang to his feet with a passionate exclamation. “The vile
+wretch!” he said.
+
+But he quickly reseated himself, and the exclamation astonished M. de
+Valorsay so little that he quietly concluded by saying: “And this is
+the reason, baron, why my beloved Marguerite, the future Marquise de
+Valorsay, has no dowry.”
+
+The baron cast a look of positive anguish at the door of the
+smoking-room. He had heard a slight movement there; and he trembled with
+fear lest Pascal, maddened with anger and jealousy, should rush in and
+throw himself upon the marquis. Plainly enough, this perilous situation
+could not last much longer. The baron’s own powers of self-control and
+dissimulation were almost exhausted, and so postponing until another
+time the many questions he still wished to ask M. de Valorsay, he
+made haste to check these confidential disclosures. “Upon my word,”
+ he exclaimed, with a forced laugh, “I was expecting something quite
+different. This affair begins like a genuine romance, and ends, as
+everything ends nowadays, in money!”
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+
+As a millionaire and a gambler, Baron Trigault enjoyed all sorts of
+privileges. He assumed the right to be brutal, ill-bred, cynical and
+bold; to be one of those persons who declare that folks must take them
+as they find them. But his rudeness now was so thoroughly offensive
+that under any other circumstances the marquis would have resented it.
+However, he had special reasons for preserving his temper, so he decided
+to laugh.
+
+“Yes, these stories always end in the same way, baron,” said he. “You
+haven’t touched a card this morning, and I know your hands are itching.
+Excuse me for making you waste precious time, as you say; but what you
+have just heard was only a necessary preface.”
+
+“Only a preface?”
+
+“Yes; but don’t be discouraged. I have arrived at the object of my visit
+now.”
+
+As Baron Trigault was supposed to enjoy an income of at least eight
+hundred thousand francs a year, he received in the course of a
+twelvemonth at least a million applications for money or help, and for
+this reason he had not an equal for detecting a coming appeal. “Good
+heavens!” he thought, “Valorsay is going to ask me for money.” In fact,
+he felt certain that the marquis’s pretended carelessness concealed real
+embarrassment, and that it was difficult for him to find the words he
+wanted.
+
+“So I am about to marry,” M. de Valorsay resumed--“I wish to break off
+my former life, to turn over a new leaf. And now the wedding gifts,
+the two fetes that I propose giving, the repairs at Valorsay, and the
+honeymoon with my wife--all these things will cost a nice little sum.”
+
+“A nice little sum, indeed!”
+
+“Ah, well! as I’m not going to wed an heiress, I fear I shall run a
+trifle short. The matter was worrying me a little, when I thought of
+you. I said to myself: ‘The baron, who always has money at his disposal,
+will no doubt let me have the use of five thousand louis for a year.’”
+
+The baron’s eyes were fixed upon his companion’s face. “Zounds!” he
+exclaimed in a half-grieved, half-petulant tone; “I haven’t the amount!”
+
+It was not disappointment that showed itself on the marquis’s face; it
+was absolute despair, quickly concealed.
+
+But the baron had detected it; and he realized his applicant’s urgent
+need. He felt certain that M. de Valorsay was financially ruined--and
+yet, as it did not suit his plans to refuse, he hastily added: “When I
+say I haven’t that amount, I mean that I haven’t got it on hand just at
+this moment. But I shall have it within forty-eight hours; and if you
+are at home at this time on the day after to-morrow, I will send you one
+of my agents, who will arrange the matter with you.”
+
+A moment before, the marquis had allowed his consternation to show
+itself; but this time he knew how to conceal the joy that filled his
+soul. So it was in the most indifferent manner, as if the affair were
+one of trivial importance, that he thanked the baron for being so
+obliging. Plainly enough, he now longed to make his escape, and indeed,
+after rattling off a few commonplace remarks, he rose to his feet and
+took his leave, exclaiming: “Till the day after to-morrow, then!”
+
+The baron sank into an arm-chair, completely overcome. A martyr to a
+passion that was stronger than reason itself, the victim of a fatal love
+which he had not been able to drive from his heart, Baron Trigault had
+passed many terrible hours, but never had he been so completely crushed
+as at this moment when chance revealed the secret which he had vainly
+pursued for years. The old wounds in his heart opened afresh, and his
+sufferings were poignant beyond description. All his efforts to
+save this woman whom he at once loved and hated from the depths of
+degradation, had proved unavailing. “And she has extorted money from the
+Count de Chalusse,” he thought; “she sold him the right to adopt their
+own daughter.” And so strange are the workings of the human heart, that
+this circumstance, trivial in comparison with many others, drove the
+unfortunate baron almost frantic with rage. What did it avail him that
+he had become one of the richest men in Paris? He allowed his wife eight
+thousand francs a month, almost one hundred thousand francs a year,
+merely for her dresses and fancies. Not a quarter-day passed, but what
+he paid her debts to a large amount, and in spite of all this, she had
+sunk so low as to extort money from a man who had once loved her. “What
+can she do with it all?” muttered the baron, overcome with sorrow and
+indignation. “How can she succeed in spending the income of several
+millions?”
+
+A name, the name of Ferdinand de Coralth, rose to his lips; but he did
+not pronounce it. He saw Pascal emerging from the smoking-room; and
+though he had forgotten the young advocate’s very existence, his
+appearance now restored him to a consciousness of reality. “Ah, well!
+M. Ferailleur?” he said, like a man suddenly aroused from some terrible
+nightmare. Pascal tried to make some reply, but he was unable to do
+so--such a flood of incoherent thoughts was seething and foaming in
+his brain. “Did you hear, M. de Valorsay?” continued the baron. “Now
+we know, beyond the possibility of doubt, who Mademoiselle Marguerite’s
+mother is. What is to be done? What would you do in my place?”
+
+“Ah, monsieur! how can I tell?”
+
+“Wouldn’t your first thought be of vengeance! It is mine. But upon whom
+can I wreak my vengeance? Upon the Count de Chalusse? He is dead.
+Upon my wife? Yes, I might do so; but I lack the courage--Mademoiselle
+Marguerite remains.”
+
+“But she is innocent, monsieur; she has never wronged you.”
+
+The baron did not seem to hear this exclamation. “And to make
+Mademoiselle Marguerite’s life one long misery,” said he, “I need only
+favor her marriage with the marquis. Ah, he would make her cruelly
+expiate the crime of her birth.”
+
+“But you won’t do so!” cried Pascal, in a transport, “it would be
+shameful; I won’t allow it. Never, I swear before high Heaven! never,
+while I live, shall Valorsay marry Marguerite. He may perhaps vanquish
+me in the coming struggle; he may lead her to the threshold of the
+church, but there he will find me--armed--and I will have justice--human
+justice in default of legal satisfaction. And, afterward, the law may
+take its course!”
+
+The baron looked at him with deep emotion. “Ah, you know what it is to
+love!” he exclaimed; and in a hollow voice, he added: “and thus it was
+that I loved Marguerite’s mother.”
+
+The breakfast-table had not been cleared, and a large decanter of water
+was still standing on it. The baron poured out two large glasses, which
+he drained with feverish avidity, and then he began to walk aimlessly
+about the room.
+
+Pascal held his peace. It seemed to him that his own destiny was being
+decided in this man’s mind, that his whole future depended upon the
+determination he arrived at. A prisoner awaiting the verdict of the jury
+could not have suffered more intense anxiety. At last, when a minute,
+which seemed a century, had elapsed, the baron paused. “Now as before,
+M. Ferailleur,” he said, roughly, “I’m for you and with you. Give me
+your hand--that’s right. Honest people ought to protect and assist one
+another when scoundrels assail them. We will reinstate you in public
+esteem, monsieur. We will unmask Coralth, and we will crush Valorsay
+if we find that he is really the instigator of the infamous plot that
+ruined you.”
+
+“What, monsieur! Can you doubt it after your conversation with him?”
+
+The baron shook his head. “I’ve no doubt but what Valorsay is ruined
+financially,” said he. “I am certain that my hundred thousand francs
+will be lost forever if I lend them to him. I would be willing to swear
+that he bet against his own horse and prevented the animal from winning,
+as he is accused of doing.”
+
+“You must see, then--”
+
+“Excuse me--all this does NOT explain the great discrepancy between your
+allegations and his story. You assure me that he cares nothing whatever
+for Mademoiselle Marguerite; he pretends that he adores her.”
+
+“Yes, monsieur, yes--the scoundrel dared to say so. Ah! if I had not
+been deterred by a fear of losing my revenge!”
+
+“I understand; but allow me to conclude. According to you, Mademoiselle
+Marguerite possesses several millions. According to him, she hasn’t a
+penny of her own. Which is right? I believe he is. His desire to borrow
+a hundred thousand francs of me proves it; and, besides, he wouldn’t
+have come this morning to tell me a falsehood, which would be discovered
+to-morrow. Still, if he is telling the truth, it is impossible to
+explain the foul conspiracy you have suffered by.”
+
+This objection had previously presented itself to Pascal’s mind, and
+he had found an explanation which seemed to him a plausible one. “M. de
+Chalusse was not dead,” said he, “when M. de Coralth and M. de Valorsay
+decided on this plan of ridding themselves of me. Consequently,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was still an heiress.”
+
+“That’s true; but the very day after the commission of the crime, the
+accomplices must have discovered that it could do them no good; so, why
+have they still persisted in their scheme?”
+
+Pascal tried to find a satisfactory answer, but failed.
+
+“There must be some iniquitous mystery in this affair, which neither you
+nor I suspect,” remarked the baron.
+
+“That is exactly what my mother told me.”
+
+“Ah! that’s Madame Ferailleur’s opinion? Then it is a good one. Come,
+let us reason a little. Mademoiselle Marguerite loved you, you say?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“And she has suddenly broken off the engagement?”
+
+“She wrote to me that the Count de Chalusse extorted from her a promise
+on his death-bed, that she would marry the Marquis de Valorsay.”
+
+The baron sprang to his feet. “Stop,” he cried--“stop! We now have a
+clue to the truth, perhaps. Ah! so Mademoiselle Marguerite has written
+to you that M. de Chalusse commanded her to marry the marquis! Then the
+count must have been fully restored to consciousness before he breathed
+his last. On the other hand, Valorsay pretends that Mademoiselle
+Marguerite is left without resources, simply because the count died
+too suddenly to be able to write or to sign a couple of lines. Can you
+reconcile these two versions of the affair, M. Ferailleur? Certainly
+not. Then which version is false? We must ascertain that point. When
+shall you see Mademoiselle Marguerite again?”
+
+“She has requested me NEVER to try to see her again.”
+
+“Very well! She must be disobeyed. You must discover some way of seeing
+her without anyone’s knowledge. She is undoubtedly watched, so don’t
+write on any account.” He reflected for a moment, and then added: “We
+shall, perhaps, become morally certain of Valorsay’s and Coralth’s
+guilt, but there’s a wide difference between this and the establishment
+of their guilt by material proofs. Two scoundrels who league to ruin an
+honest man don’t sign a contract to that effect before a notary. Proofs!
+Ah! where shall we find them? We must gain an intimate knowledge of
+Valorsay’s private life. The best plan would be to find some man devoted
+to our interests who would watch him, and insinuate himself into his
+confidence.”
+
+Pascal interrupted the baron with an eager gesture. Hope glittered in
+his eyes. “Yes!” he exclaimed, “yes; it is necessary that M. de Valorsay
+should be watched by a man of quick perception--a man clever enough
+to make himself useful to the marquis, and capable of rendering him an
+important service in case of need. I will be the man, monsieur, if you
+will allow me. The thought occurred to me just now while I was listening
+to you. You promised to send some one to Valorsay’s house with money.
+I entreat you to allow me to take the place of the man you intended to
+send. The marquis doesn’t know me, and I am sufficiently sure of myself
+to promise you that I will not betray my identity. I will present myself
+as your agent; he will give me his confidence. I shall take him money or
+fair promises, I shall be well received, and I have a plan----”
+
+He was interrupted by a rap at the door. The next moment a footman
+entered, and informed his master that a messenger wished to speak to him
+on urgent business. “Let him come in,” said the baron.
+
+It was Job, Madame Lia d’Argeles’s confidential servant, who entered
+the room. He bowed respectfully, and, with an air of profound mystery
+exclaimed: “I have been looking for the baron everywhere. I was ordered
+by madame not to return without him.”
+
+“Very well,” said M. Trigault. “I will go with you at once.”
+
+
+
+
+V.
+
+
+How was it that a clever man like M. Fortunat made such a blunder as
+to choose a Sunday, and a racing Sunday too, to call on M. Wilkie. His
+anxiety might explain the mistake, but it did not justify it. He felt
+certain, that under any other circumstances he would not have been
+dismissed so cavalierly. He would at least have been allowed to develop
+his proposals, and then who knows what might have happened?
+
+But the races had interfered with his plans. M. Wilkie had been
+compelled to attend to Pompier de Nanterre, that famous steeplechaser,
+of which he owned one-third part, and he had, moreover, to give orders
+to the jockey, whose lord and master he was to an equal extent. These
+were sacred duties, since Wilkie’s share in a race-horse constituted
+his only claim to a footing in fashionable society. But it was a strong
+claim--a claim that justified the display of whips and spurs that
+decorated his apartments in the Rue du Helder, and allowed him to aspire
+to the character of a sporting man. Wilkie really imagined that folks
+were waiting for him at Vincennes; and that the fete would not be
+complete without his presence.
+
+Still, when he presented himself inside the enclosure, a cigar in his
+mouth, and his racing card dangling from his button-hole, he was obliged
+to confess that his entrance did not create much of a sensation. An
+astonishing bit of news had imparted unusual excitement to the ring.
+People were eagerly discussing the Marquis de Valorsay’s sudden
+determination to pay forfeit and withdraw his horses from the contest;
+and the best informed declared that in the betting-rooms the evening
+before he had openly announced his intention of selling his racing
+stable. If the marquis had hoped that by adopting this course he would
+silence the suspicions which had been aroused, he was doomed to grievous
+disappointment. The rumor that he had secretly bet against his own
+horse, Domingo, on the previous Sunday, and that he had given orders not
+to let the animal win the race, was steadily gaining credence.
+
+Large sums had been staked on Domingo’s success. He had been the
+favorite in the betting ring and the losers were by no means pleased.
+Some declared that they had seen the jockey hold Domingo back; and they
+insisted that it was necessary to make an example, and disqualify both
+the marquis and his jockey. Still one weighty circumstance pleaded in
+M. de Valorsay’s favor--his fortune, or, at least, the fortune he was
+supposed to possess. “Why should such a rich man stoop to cheat?” asked
+his defenders. “To put money into one’s pocket in this way is even worse
+than to cheat at cards! Besides, it’s impossible! Valorsay is above such
+contemptible charges. He is a perfect gentleman.”
+
+“Perhaps so,” replied the skeptical bystanders. “But people said exactly
+the same of Croisenois, of the Duc de H., and Baron P., who were finally
+convicted of the same rascality that Valorsay is accused of.”
+
+“It’s an infamous slander! If he had been inclined to cheat, he could
+have easily diverted suspicion. He would have let Domingo come in
+second, not third!”
+
+“If he were not guilty, and afraid of detection, he wouldn’t pay forfeit
+to-day nor sell his horses.”
+
+“He only retires from the turf because he’s going to marry----”
+
+“Nonsense! That’s no reason whatever.”
+
+Like all gamblers, the frequenters of the turf are distrustful and
+inclined to be quarrelsome. No one is above their suspicions when they
+lose nor above their wrath when they are duped. And this Domingo affair
+united all the losers against Valorsay; they formed a little battalion
+of enemies who were no doubt powerless for the time being, but who were
+ready to take a startling revenge whenever a good opportunity presented
+itself. Naturally enough, M. Wilkie sided with the marquis, whom he had
+heard his friend, M. de Coralth, speak of on several occasions. “Accuse
+the dear marquis!” he exclaimed. “It’s contemptible, outrageous. Why,
+only last evening he said to me, ‘My good friend, Domingo’s defeat cost
+me two thousand louis!’” M. de Valorsay had said nothing of the kind,
+for the very good reason that he did not even know Wilkie by sight;
+still, no one paid much heed to the assertion, whereat Wilkie felt
+vexed, and resolved to turn his attention to his jockey.
+
+The latter was a lazy, worthless fellow, who had been dismissed from
+every stable he had previously served in, and who swindled and robbed
+the young gentlemen who employed him without either limit or shame.
+Although he made them pay him a very high salary--something like eight
+thousand francs a year--on the plea that it was most repugnant to his
+feelings to act as a groom, trainer, and jockey at the same time, he
+regularly every month presented them with fabulous bills from the grain
+merchant, the veterinary surgeon, and the harness-maker. In addition, he
+regularly sold Pompier’s oats in order to obtain liquor, and in fact the
+poor animal was so nearly starved that he could scarcely stand on his
+legs. The jockey ascribed the horse’s extreme thinness to a system of
+rigorous training; and the owners did not question the statement in the
+least. He had made them believe, and they in turn had made many others
+believe, that Pompier de Nanterre would certainly win such and such a
+race; and, trusting in this fallacious promise, they risked their money
+on the poor animal--and lost it.
+
+In point of fact, this jockey would have been the happiest mortal in the
+world if such things as steeple-chases had never existed. In the first
+place, he judged, with no little reason, that it was dangerous to leap
+hurdles on such an animal as Pompier; and, secondly, nothing irritated
+him so much as to be obliged to promenade with his three employers in
+turn. But how could he refuse, since he knew that if these young men
+hired him, it was chiefly, or only in view of, displaying themselves
+in his company. It afforded them untold satisfaction to walk to and fro
+along the course in front of the grand stand, with their jockey in his
+orange jacket with green sleeves. They were firmly convinced that he
+reflected enormous credit upon them, and their hearts swelled with joy
+at the thought of the envy they no doubt inspired. This conviction gave
+rise indeed to terrible quarrels, in which each of the three owners was
+wont to accuse the others of monopolizing the jockey.
+
+On this occasion, M. Wilkie--being fortunate enough to arrive the
+first--immediately repaired to Pompier de Nanterre’s stall. Never had
+circumstances been more favorable for a display of the animal’s speed.
+The day was magnificent; the stands were crowded, and thousands of eager
+spectators were pushing and jostling one another beyond the ropes which
+limited the course. M. Wilkie seemed to be everywhere; he showed himself
+in a dozen different places at once, always followed by his jockey, whom
+he ordered about in a loud voice, with many excited gesticulations. And
+how great his delight was when, as he passed through the crowd, he heard
+people exclaim: “That gentleman has a racing stable. His horses are
+going to compete!” What bliss thrilled his heart when he overheard the
+admiring exclamation of some worthy shopkeeper who was greatly impressed
+by the gay silk jacket and the top-boots!
+
+But, unfortunately, this happiness could not last forever. His partners
+arrived, and claimed the jockey in their turn. So M. Wilkie left the
+course and strolled about among the carriages, until at last he found
+an equipage which was occupied by the young ladies who had accepted
+his invitation to supper the evening before, and who were now making a
+profuse display of the very yellowest hair they possessed. This afforded
+him another opportunity of attracting public attention, and to giving
+proofs of his “form,” for he had not filled the box of his carriage with
+champagne for nothing. At last the decisive moment came, and he made
+himself conspicuous by shouting. “Now! Now! Here he is! Look! Bravo,
+Pompier! One hundred on Pompier!”
+
+But, alas! poor Pompier de Nanterre fell exhausted before half the
+distance was accomplished; and that evening Wilkie described his defeat,
+with a profusion of technical terms that inspired the uninitiated with
+the deepest awe. “What a disaster, my friends,” he exclaimed. “Pompier
+de Nanterre, an incomparable steeplechaser, to break down in such a
+fashion! And beaten by whom? My Mustapha, an outsider, without any
+record whatever! The ring was intensely excited--and I was simply
+crazed.”
+
+However, his defeat did not affect him very deeply. It was forgotten at
+thought of the inheritance which his friend Coralth had spoken to him
+about. And to-morrow M. de Coralth would tell him the secret. He had
+only twenty hours longer to wait! “To-morrow! to-morrow!” he said to
+himself again and again, with a thrill of mingled joy and impatience.
+And what bright visions of future glory haunted him! He saw himself the
+possessor of a magnificent stud, of sufficient wealth to gratify every
+fancy; he would splash mud upon all the passers-by, and especially upon
+his former acquaintances, as he dashed past them in his superb equipage;
+the best tailor should invent astonishing garments for him; he would
+make himself conspicuous at all the first performances in a stage-box,
+with the most notorious women in Paris; his fetes would be described in
+the papers; he would be the continual subject of comment; he would be
+credited with splendid, perfect “form.”
+
+It is true that M. de Coralth had promised him all this, without a word
+of explanation; but what did that matter? Should he doubt his friend’s
+word? Never! The viscount was not merely his model, but his oracle as
+well. By the way in which he spoke of him, it might have been supposed
+that they had been friends from their childhood, or, at least, that they
+had known each other for years. Such was not the case, however. Their
+acquaintance dated only seven or eight months back, and their first
+meeting had apparently been the result of chance; though it is needless
+to say, perhaps, that this chance had been carefully prepared by M. de
+Coralth. Having discovered Madame Lia d’Argeles’s secret, the viscount
+watched Wilkie, ascertained where he spent his evenings, contrived a way
+of introducing himself into his society, and on their third meeting was
+skilful enough to render him a service--in other words, to lend him
+some money. From that moment the conquest was assured; for M. de Coralth
+possessed in an eminent degree all the attributes that were likely to
+dazzle and charm the gifted owner of Pompier de Nanterre. First of
+all, there was his title, then his impudent assurance and his apparent
+wealth, and last, but by no means least, his numerous and fashionable
+acquaintances. He was not long in discovering his advantage, and in
+profiting by it. And without giving M. Wilkie an inkling of the truth,
+he succeeded in obtaining from him as accurate a knowledge of his past
+career as the young fellow himself possessed.
+
+M. Wilkie did not know much concerning his origin or his early life; and
+his history, so far as he was acquainted with it, could be told in a
+few words. His earliest recollection was of the ocean. He was sure,
+perfectly sure, that he had made a very long sea voyage when only a
+little child, and he looked upon America as his birthplace. The French
+language was certainly not the first he had learned, for he still
+remembered a limited number of English phrases. The English word
+“father” was among those that lingered in his memory; and now, after
+a lapse of twenty years, he pronounced it without the least foreign
+accent. But while he remembered the word perfectly well, no recollection
+remained to him of the person he had called by that name. His first
+sensations were those of hunger, weariness, and cold. He recollected,
+and very distinctly too, how on one long winter night, a woman had
+dragged him after her through the streets of Paris, in an icy rain. He
+could still see himself as he wandered on, crying with weariness, and
+begging for something to eat. And then the poor woman who held him by
+the hand lifted him in her arms and carried him on--on, until her own
+strength failed, and she was obliged to set him on the ground again. A
+vague portrait of this woman, who was most probably his mother, still
+lingered in his memory. According to his description, she was extremely
+handsome, tall, and very fair. He had been particularly impressed with
+the pale tint and profusion of her beautiful hair.
+
+Their poverty had not lasted long. He remembered being installed with
+his mother in a very handsome suite of rooms. A man, who was still
+young, and whom he called “Monsieur Jacques,” came every day, and
+brought him sweetmeats and playthings. He thought he must have been
+about four years old at that time. However, he had enjoyed this
+comfortable state of things scarcely a month, when one morning a
+stranger presented himself. The visitor held a long conference with his
+mother, or, at least, with the person whom he called by that name. He
+did not understand what they were talking about, but he was none the
+less very uneasy. The result of the interview must have justified his
+instinctive fear, for his mother took him on her lap, and embraced him
+with convulsive tenderness. She sobbed violently, and repeated again
+and again in a faltering voice: “Poor child! my beloved Wilkie! I
+shall never kiss you again--never, never! ‘Alas! It must be so! Give me
+courage, my God!”
+
+Those were the exact words; Wilkie was sure on that point. It seemed to
+him he could still hear that despairing farewell. For it was indeed a
+farewell. The stranger took him in his arms and carried him away, in
+spite of his cries and struggles to escape. This person to whose care he
+was confined was the master of a small boarding-school, and his wife
+was the kindest and most patient of women. However, this did not prevent
+Wilkie from crying and begging for his mother at first; but gradually he
+forgot her. He was not unhappy, for he was petted and indulged more than
+any of the other pupils, and he spent most of his time playing on the
+terrace or wandering about the garden. But this charming life could not
+last for ever. According to his calculation, he was just ten years
+old when, one Sunday, toward the end of October, a grave-looking,
+red-whiskered gentleman, clad in solemn black with a white necktie,
+presented himself at the school, and declared that he had been
+instructed by Wilkie’s relatives to place him in a college to continue
+his education.
+
+Young Wilkie’s lamentations were long and loud; but they did not prevent
+M. Patterson--for that was the gentleman’s name--from taking him to the
+college of Louis-the-Great, where he was entered as a boarder. As he
+did not study, and as he was only endowed with a small amount of
+intelligence, he learned scarcely anything during the years he remained
+there. Every Sunday and every fete day, M. Patterson made his appearance
+at ten o’clock precisely, took Wilkie for a walk in Paris or the
+environs, gave him his breakfast and dinner at some of the best
+restaurants, bought everything he expressed a desire to have, and at
+nine o’clock precisely took him back to the college again. During the
+holidays M. Patterson kept the boy with him, refusing him nothing in the
+way of pleasure, granting all his wishes, but never losing sight of him
+for a moment. And if Wilkie complained of this constant watchfulness,
+M. Patterson always replied, “I must obey orders;” and this answer
+invariably put an end to the discussion.
+
+So things went on until it became time for Wilkie to take his degree.
+He presented himself for examination; and, of course, he failed.
+Fortunately, however, M. Patterson was not at a loss for an expedient.
+He placed his charge in a private school; and the following year, at a
+cost of five thousand francs, he beguiled a poor devil into running the
+risk of three years’ imprisonment, by assuming M. Wilkie’s name, and
+passing the examination in his place. In possession of the precious
+diploma which opens the door of every career, M. Wilkie now hoped that
+his pockets would be filled, and that he would then be set at liberty.
+But the hope was vain! M. Patterson placed him in the hands of an old
+tutor who had been engaged to travel with him through Europe; and as
+this tutor held the purse-strings, Wilkie was obliged to follow him
+through Germany, England, and Italy.
+
+When he returned to Paris he was just twenty years old, and the very
+next day M. Patterson conducted him to the suite of rooms which he
+still occupied in the Rue du Helder. “You are now in your own home, M.
+Wilkie,” said M. Patterson in his most impressive manner. “You are now
+old enough to be responsible for your own actions, and I hope you will
+conduct yourself like an honest man. From this moment you are your own
+master. Those who gave you your education desire you to study law. If I
+were in your place, I should obey them. If you wish to be somebody, and
+to acquire a fortune, work, for you have no property, nor anything
+to expect from any one. The allowance which is granted you, a far too
+liberal one in my opinion, may be cut off at any moment. I don’t think
+it right to conceal this fact from you. But at all events until then.
+I am instructed to pay you five thousand francs quarterly. Here is the
+amount for the first quarter, and in three months’ time I shall send you
+a similar amount. I say ‘shall SEND,’ because my business compels me
+to return to England, and take up my abode there. Here is my London
+address; and if any serious trouble befalls you, write to me. Now, my
+duty being fulfilled, farewell.”
+
+“Go to the devil, you old preacher!” growled Wilkie, as he saw the door
+close on the retreating figure of M. Patterson, who had acted as his
+guardian for ten years. None of M. Patterson’s wise advice lingered
+in the young fellow’s mind. To use a familiar expression, “It went in
+through one ear and came out through the other.” Only two facts had made
+an impression upon him: that he was to be his own master henceforth, and
+that he had a fortune at his command. There it lay upon the table, five
+thousand francs in glittering gold.
+
+If M. Wilkie had taken the trouble to attentively examine the rooms
+which had suddenly become his own, he would perhaps have recognized the
+fact that a loving hand had prepared them for his reception. Countless
+details revealed the delicate taste of a woman, and the thoughtful
+tenderness of a mother. None of those little superfluities which delight
+a young man had been forgotten. There was a box of choice cigars upon
+the table, and a jar of tobacco on the mantel-shelf. But Wilkie did not
+take time to discover this. He hastily slipped five hundred francs into
+his pocket, locked the rest of his money in a drawer, and went out with
+as lofty an air as if all Paris belonged to him, or as if he had enough
+money to purchase it.
+
+He had resolved to give a fete in honor of his deliverance, and so he
+hurried off in search of some of his old college chums. He found two of
+them; and, although it was very wounding to his self-love, M. Wilkie was
+obliged to confess to them that this was his first taste of liberty,
+and that he scarcely knew what to do with himself. Of course his friends
+assured him that they could quickly make him acquainted with the only
+life that it was worth while living; and, to prove it, they accepted
+the invitation to dinner which he immediately offered them. It was a
+remarkable repast. Other acquaintances dropped in, the wine flowed in
+rivers; and after dinner they danced. And at day-break, having served
+his apprenticeship at baccarat, M. Wilkie found himself without a penny
+in his pocket, and face to face with a bill of four hundred francs, for
+which amount he was obliged to go to his rooms, under the escort of one
+of the waiters. This first experiment ought to have disgusted him, or at
+least have made him reflect. But no. He felt quite in his element in the
+society of dissipated young men and enamelled women. He swore that he
+would win a place in their midst, and an influential place too. But
+it was easier to form this plan than to carry it into execution, as he
+discovered when, at the end of the month, he counted his money to see
+what remained of the five thousand francs that had been given him for
+his quarterly allowance. He had just three hundred francs left.
+
+Twenty thousand francs a year is what one chooses to make it--wealth or
+poverty. Twenty thousand francs a year represents about sixty francs a
+day; but what are sixty francs to a high liver, who breakfasts and dines
+at the best restaurants, whose clothes are designed by an illustrious
+tailor, who declines to make a pair of trousers for less than a hundred
+francs? What are three louis a day to a man who hires a box for first
+performances at the opera, to a man who gambles and gives expensive
+suppers, to a man who drives out with yellow-haired demoiselles, and
+who owns a race-horse? Measuring his purse and his ambition, M. Wilkie
+discovered that he should never succeed in making both ends meet. “How
+do other people manage?” he wondered. A puzzling question! Every evening
+a thousand gorgeously apparelled gentlemen, with a cigar in their mouth
+and a flower in their button-hole, may be seen promenading between the
+Chaussee d’Antin and the Faubourg Montmartre. Everybody knows them,
+and they know everybody, but how they exist is a problem which it
+is impossible to solve. How do they live, and what do they live on?
+Everybody knows that they have no property; they do nothing, and yet
+they are reckless in their expenditures, and rail at work and jeer at
+economy. What source do they derive their money from? What vile business
+are they engaged in?
+
+However, M. Wilkie did not devote much time to solving this question.
+“My relatives must wish me to starve,” he said to himself. “Not I--I’m
+not that sort of a person, as I’ll soon let them know.” And thereupon
+he wrote to M. Patterson. By return of post that gentleman sent him a
+cheque for one thousand francs--a mere drop in the bucket. M. Wilkie
+felt indignant and so he wrote again. This time he was obliged to wait
+for a reply. Still at last it came. M. Patterson sent him two thousand
+francs, and an interminable epistle full of reproaches. The interesting
+young man threw the letter into the fire, and went out to hire a
+carriage by the month and a servant.
+
+From that day forward, his life was spent in demanding money and waiting
+for it. He employed in quick succession every pretext that could soften
+the hearts of obdurate relatives, or find the way to the most closely
+guarded cash-box. He was ill--he had contracted a debt of honor--he had
+imprudently lent money to an unscrupulous friend--he was about to be
+arrested for debt. And in accordance with the favorable or unfavorable
+character of the replies his manner became humble or impertinent, so
+that his friends soon learned to judge very accurately of the condition
+of his purse by the way he wore his mustaches. He became wise with
+experience, however; and on adding all the sums he had received
+together, he decided that his family must be very rich to allow him so
+much money. And this thought made him anxious to fathom the mystery of
+his birth and his infancy. He finally persuaded himself that he was the
+son of a great English nobleman--a member of the House of Lords, who was
+twenty times a millionaire. And he more than half believed it when he
+told his creditors that his lordship, his father, would some day or
+other come to Paris and pay all his debts. Unfortunately it was not
+M. Wilkie’s noble father that arrived, but a letter from M. Patterson,
+which was couched as follows:
+
+
+“MY DEAR SIR, a considerable sum was placed in my hands to meet your
+unexpected requirements; and in compliance with your repeated appeals,
+I have remitted the entire amount to you. Not a penny remains in my
+possession--so that my instructions have been fulfilled. Spare yourself
+the trouble of making any fresh demands; they will meet with no reply.
+In future you will not receive a penny above your allowance, which in my
+opinion is already too large a one for a young man of your age.”
+
+
+This letter proved a terrible blow to Wilkie. What should he do? He felt
+that M. Patterson would not revoke his decision; and indeed he wrote him
+several imploring letters, in vain. Yet never had his need of money been
+so urgent. His creditors were becoming uneasy; bills actually rained in
+upon his concierge; his next quarterly allowance was not due for some
+time to come, and it was only through the pawnbroker that he could
+obtain money for his more pressing requirements. He had begun to
+consider himself ruined. He saw himself reduced to dismissing his
+carriage, to selling his third share of Pompier de Nanterre and losing
+the esteem of all his witty friends.
+
+He was in the depths of despair, when one morning his servant woke
+him up with the announcement that the Viscount de Coralth was in the
+sitting-room and wished to speak with him on very important business. It
+was not usually an easy task to entice M. Wilkie from his bed, but the
+name his servant mentioned seemed to have a prodigious effect upon
+him. He bounded on to the floor, and as he hastily dressed himself, he
+muttered: “The viscount here, at this hour! It’s astonishing! What if
+he’s going to fight a duel and wishes me to be his second? That would be
+a piece of grand good luck and no mistake. It would assure my position
+at once. Certainly something must have happened!”
+
+This last remark was by no means a proof of any remarkable perspicuity
+on M. Wilkie’s part. As M. de Coralth never went to bed until two or
+three o’clock in the morning, he was by no means an early riser,
+and only some very powerful reason could explain the presence of his
+blue-lined brougham in the street before nine o’clock A.M. And the
+influence that had made him rise betimes in the present case had indeed
+been extremely powerful. Although the brilliant viscount had discovered
+Madame d’Argeles’s secret, several months previously, he had so far
+disclosed it to no one. It was certainly not from any delicacy of
+feeling that he had held his peace; but only because it had not been for
+his interest to speak. Now, however, the sudden death of the Count de
+Chalusse changed the situation. He heard of the catastrophe at his club
+on the evening after the count’s death, and his emotion was so great
+that he actually declined to take part in a game of baccarat that was
+just beginning. “The devil!” he exclaimed. “Let me think a moment.
+Madame d’Argeles is the heiress of all these millions--will she come
+forward and claim them? From what I know of her, I am inclined to think
+that she won’t. Will she ever go to Wilkie and confess that she, Lia
+d’Argeles, is a Chalusse, and that he is her illegitimate son? Never!
+She would rather relinquish her millions, both for herself and for
+him, than take such a step. She is so ridiculously antiquated in her
+notions.” And then he began to study what advantages he might derive
+from his knowledge of the situation.
+
+M. de Coralth, like all persons whose present is more or less uncertain,
+had great misgivings concerning his future. Just now he was cunning
+enough to find a means of procuring the thirty or forty thousand francs
+a year that were indispensable to his comfort; but he had not a farthing
+laid by, and the vein of silver he was now working might fail him at any
+moment. The slightest indiscretion, the least blunder, might hurl him
+from his splendor into the mire. The perspiration started out on his
+forehead when he thought of his peril. He passionately longed for a more
+assured position--for a little capital that would insure him his bread
+until the end of his days, and rid him of the grim phantom of poverty
+forever. And it was this desire which inspired him with the same plan
+that M. Fortunat had formed. “Why shouldn’t I inform Wilkie?” he said to
+himself. “If I present him with a fortune, the simpleton ought certainly
+to give me some reward.” But to carry this plan into execution it would
+be necessary to brave Madame d’Argeles’s anger; and that was attended by
+no little danger. If he knew something about her, she on her side knew
+everything connected with his past life. She had only to speak to
+ruin him forever. Still, after weighing all the advantages and all the
+dangers, he decided to act, convinced that Madame d’Argeles might
+be kept ignorant of his treason, providing he only played his cards
+skilfully. And his matutinal visit to M. Wilkie was caused by a fear
+that he might not be the only person knowing the truth, and that some
+one else might forestall him.
+
+“You here, at sunrise, my friend!” exclaimed Wilkie, as he entered the
+room where the viscount was seated. “What has happened?”
+
+“To me?--nothing,” replied the viscount. “It was solely on your account
+that I deviated from my usual habits.”
+
+“What is it? You frighten me.”
+
+“Oh! don’t be alarmed. I have only some good news to communicate,” and
+in a careless tone which cleverly concealed his anxiety, the viscount
+added: “I have come, my dear Wilkie, to ask you what you would be
+willing to give the man who put you in possession of a fortune of
+several millions?”
+
+M. Wilkie’s face turned from white to purple at least three times in ten
+seconds; and it was in a strangely altered voice that he replied: “Ah!
+that’s good--very good--excellent!” He tried his best to laugh, but
+he was completely overcome; and, in fact, he had cherished so many
+extravagant hopes that nothing seemed impossible to him.
+
+“Never in all my life have I spoken more seriously,” insisted the
+viscount.
+
+His companion at first made no reply. It was easy to divine the conflict
+that was raging in his mind, between the hope that the news was true
+and the fear of being made the victim of a practical joke. “Come, my
+friend,” he said at last, “do you want to poke fun at me? That wouldn’t
+be polite. A debtor is always sacred, and I owe you twenty-five louis.
+This is scarcely the time to talk of millions. My relatives have cut off
+my supplies; and my creditors are overwhelming me with their bills----”
+
+But M. de Coralth checked him, saying gravely: “Upon my honor, I am not
+jesting. What would you give a man who--”
+
+“I would give him half of the fortune he gave me.”
+
+“That’s too much!”
+
+“No, no!”
+
+He was in earnest, certainly. What wouldn’t a man promise in all
+sincerity of soul to a fellow mortal who gave him money when he had
+none--when he needed it urgently and must have it to save himself from
+ruin?
+
+At such a moment no commission, however large, seems exorbitant. It is
+afterward, when the day of settlement comes, that people begin to find
+fault with the rate of interest.
+
+“If I tell you that one-half is too much, it is because such is really
+the case. And I am the best judge of the matter, since I am the man who
+can put you in possession of this enormous fortune.”
+
+M. Wilkie started back in speechless amazement.
+
+“This astonishes you!” said the viscount; “and why, pray? Is it because
+I ask for a commission?”
+
+“Oh! not at all!”
+
+“It is not perhaps a very gentlemanly proceeding, but it is a sensible
+one. Business is business. In the afternoon, when I am in a restaurant,
+at the club, or in a lady’s boudoir, I am merely the viscount and the
+grand seigneur. All money questions sicken me. I am careless, liberal,
+and obliging to a fault. But in the morning I am simply Coralth, a man
+of the middle classes who doesn’t pay his bills without examining them,
+and who watches his money, because he doesn’t wish to be ruined and end
+his brilliant career as a common soldier in some foreign legion.”
+
+M. Wilkie did not allow him to continue. He believed, and his joy was
+wild--delirious. “Enough, enough!” he interrupted. “A difficulty between
+us! Never! I am yours without reserve! Do you understand me? How much
+must you have? Do you wish for it all?”
+
+But the viscount was unmoved. “It is not fitting that I should fix upon
+the indemnity which is due to me. I will consult a man of business; and
+I will decide upon this point on the day after to-morrow, when I shall
+explain everything to you.”
+
+“On the day after to-morrow! You won’t leave me in suspense for
+forty-eight hours?”
+
+“It is unavoidable. I have still some important information to procure.
+I lost no time in coming to you, so that I might put you on your guard.
+If any scoundrel comes to you with proposals, be extremely careful.
+Some agents, when they obtain a hold on an estate, leave nothing for the
+rightful owner. So don’t treat with any one.”
+
+“Oh, no! You may rest assured I won’t.”
+
+“I should be quieter in mind if I had your promise in writing.”
+
+Without a word, Wilkie darted to a table, and wrote a short contract by
+which he bound himself to give M. Ferdinand de Coralth one-half of the
+inheritance which the aforesaid Coralth might prove him to be entitled
+to. The viscount read the document, placed it in his pocket, and then
+said, as he took up his hat:
+
+“Very well. I will see you again on Monday.”
+
+But M. Wilkie’s doubts were beginning to return. “Monday, so be it!”
+ said he; “but swear that you are not deceiving me.”
+
+“What, do you still doubt me?”
+
+M. Wilkie reflected for a moment; and suddenly a brilliant inspiration
+darted through his brain. “If you are speaking the truth, I shall soon
+be rich,” said he. “But, in the meantime, life is hard. I haven’t a
+penny, and it isn’t a pleasant situation. I have a horse entered for the
+race to-morrow, Pompier de Nanterre. You know the animal very well. The
+chances are enormously in his favor. So, if it wouldn’t inconvenience
+you to lend me fifty louis.”
+
+“Certainly,” interrupted the viscount, cordially. “Certainly; with the
+greatest pleasure.”
+
+And drawing a beautiful little notebook from his pocket he took from it
+not one, but two bank-notes of a thousand francs, and handed them to M.
+Wilkie, saying: “Monsieur believes me now, does he not?”
+
+As will be readily believed, it was not for his own pleasure that M. de
+Coralth postponed his confidential disclosures for a couple of days. He
+knew Wilkie perfectly well, and felt that it was dangerous to let
+him roam about Paris with half of an important secret. Postponement
+generally furnishes fate with weapons against oneself. But it was
+impossible for the viscount to act otherwise. He had not seen the
+Marquis de Valorsay since the Count de Chalusse’s death and he dared not
+conclude the contract with Wilkie before he had conferred with him,
+for he was completely in the marquis’s power. At the least suspicion of
+treason, M. de Valorsay would close his hand, and he, Coralth, would
+be crushed like an egg-shell. It was to the house of his formidable
+associate that he repaired on leaving M. Wilkie; and in a single breath
+he told the marquis all that he knew, and the plans that he had formed.
+
+M. de Valorsay’s astonishment must have been intense when he heard that
+Lia d’Argeles was a Chalusse, but he knew how to maintain his composure.
+He listened quietly, and when the viscount had completed his story, he
+asked: “Why did you wait so long before telling me all this?”
+
+“I didn’t see how it could interest you in the least.”
+
+The marquis looked at him keenly, and then calmly said: “In other words,
+you were waiting to see whether it would be most advantageous to you to
+be with me or against me.”
+
+“How can you think----”
+
+“I don’t think, I’m sure of it. As long as I was strong support for you,
+you were devoted to me. But now I am tottering, and you are ready to
+betray me.”
+
+“Excuse me! The step I am about to take----”
+
+“What, haven’t you taken it already?” interrupted the marquis, quickly.
+And shrugging his shoulders, he added: “Observe that I don’t reproach
+you in the least. Only remember this: we survive or we perish together.”
+
+By the angry gleam in M. de Coralth’s eyes, the marquis must have
+realized that his companion was disposed to rebel; still this knowledge
+did not seem to disquiet him, for it was in the same icy tone that he
+continued: “Besides, your plans, far from conflicting with mine, will
+be of service to me. Yes, Madame d’Argeles must lay claim to the count’s
+estate. If she hesitates, her son will compel her to urge her claims,
+will he not?”
+
+“Oh, you may rest assured of that.”
+
+“And when he becomes rich, will you be able to retain your influence
+over him?”
+
+“Rich or poor, I can mould him like wax.”
+
+“Very good. Marguerite was escaping me, but I shall soon have her in
+my power. I have a plan. The Fondeges think they can outwit me, but
+we shall soon see about that.” The viscount was watching his companion
+stealthily; as the latter perceived, and so in a tone of brusque
+cordiality, he resumed: “Excuse me for not keeping you to breakfast,
+but I must go out immediately--Baron Trigault is waiting for me at his
+house. Let us part friends--au revoir--and, above all, keep me well
+posted about matters in general.”
+
+M. de Coralth’s temper was already somewhat ruffled when he entered
+Valorsay’s house; and he was in a furious passion when he left it.
+“So we are to survive or perish together,” he growled. “Thanks for the
+preference you display for my society. Is it my fault that the fool
+has squandered his fortune? I fancy I’ve had enough of his threats and
+airs.”
+
+Still his wrath was not so violent as to make him forget his own
+interests. He at once went to inquire if the agreement which M. Wilkie
+had just signed would be binding. The lawyer whom he consulted replied
+that, at all events, a reasonable compensation would most probably be
+granted by the courts, in case of any difficulty; and he suggested
+a little plan which was a chef d’oeuvre in its way, at the same time
+advising his client to strike the iron while it was hot.
+
+It was not yet noon, and the viscount determined to act upon the
+suggestion at once; he now bitterly regretted the delay he had
+specified. “I must find Wilkie at once,” he said to himself. But he did
+not succeed in meeting him until the evening, when he found him at the
+Cafe Riche--and in what a condition too! The two bottles of wine which
+the young fool had drank at dinner had gone to his head, and he was
+enumerating, in a loud voice, the desires he meant to gratify as soon
+as he came into possession of his millions. “What a brute!” thought the
+enraged viscount. “If I leave him to himself, no one knows what foolish
+thing he may do or say. I must remain with him until he becomes sober
+again.”
+
+So he followed him to the theatre, and thence to Brebant’s, where he was
+sitting feeling terribly bored, when M. Wilkie conceived the unfortunate
+idea of inviting Victor Chupin to come up and take some refreshment. The
+scene which followed greatly alarmed the viscount. Who could this young
+man be? He did not remember having ever seen him before, and yet the
+young scamp was evidently well acquainted with his past life, for he had
+cast the name of Paul in his face, as a deadly insult. Surely this was
+enough to make the viscount shudder! How did it happen that this young
+man had been just on the spot ready to pick up Wilkie’s hat? Was it mere
+chance? Certainly not. He could not believe it. Then why was the
+fellow there? Evidently to watch somebody. And whom? Why,
+him--Coralth--undoubtedly.
+
+In going through life as he had done, a man makes enemies at every step;
+and he had an imposing number of foes, whom he only held in check by
+his unbounded impudence and his renown as a duellist. Thus it was not
+strange if some one had set a snare for him; it was rather a miracle
+that he had not fallen into one before. The dangers that threatened him
+were so formidable that he was almost tempted to relinquish his attack
+on Madame d’Argeles. Was it prudent to incur the risk of making this
+woman an enemy? All Sunday he hesitated. It would be very easy to get
+out of the scrape. He could concoct some story for Wilkie’s benefit,
+and that would be the end of it. But on the other hand, there was the
+prospect of netting at least five hundred thousand francs--a fortune--a
+competency, and the idea was too tempting to be relinquished.
+
+So on Monday morning, at about ten o’clock, he presented himself at
+Wilkie’s house, looking pale with anxiety, and far more solemn in manner
+than usual. “Let us say but little, and that to the point,” he remarked
+on entering. “The secret I am about to reveal to you will make you rich;
+but it might ruin me if it were known that you obtained this information
+through me. You will therefore swear, upon your honor as a gentleman,
+never to betray me, under any circumstances, or for any reason.”
+
+M. Wilkie extended his hand and solemnly exclaimed: “I swear!”
+
+“Very well, then. Now my mind is at rest. It is scarcely necessary for
+me to add that if you break your faith you are a dead man. You know me.
+You know how I handle a sword; and don’t forget it.” His manner was so
+threatening that Wilkie shuddered. “You will certainly be questioned,”
+ continued M. de Coralth; “but you must reply that you received the
+information through one of Mr. Patterson’s friends. Now let us sign our
+formal contract in lieu of the temporary one you gave me the other day.”
+
+It is needless to say that Wilkie signed it eagerly. Not so the
+viscount; he read the document through carefully, before appending his
+signature, and then exclaimed: “The estate that belongs to you is that
+of the Count de Chalusse, your uncle. He leaves, I am informed, at least
+eight or ten millions of property.”
+
+By M. Wilkie’s excited gestures, by the glitter in his eyes, it might
+have been supposed that this wonderful good fortune was too much for
+him, and that he was going mad. “I knew that I belonged to a noble
+family,” he began. “The Count de Chalusse my uncle! I shall have a
+coronet on the corner of my visiting cards.”
+
+But with a gesture M. de Coralth silenced him. “Wait a little before
+you rejoice,” said he. “Yes, your mother is the sister of the Count
+de Chalusse, and it is through her that you are an heir to the estate.
+But--don’t grieve too much--there are similar misfortunes in many of our
+most distinguished families--circumstances--the obstinacy of parents--a
+love more powerful than reason----” The viscount paused, certainly he
+had no prejudices; but at the moment of telling this interesting young
+man who his mother really was, he hesitated.
+
+“Go on,” insisted M. Wilkie.
+
+“Well--when your mother was a young girl, about twenty, she fled from
+her paternal home with a man she loved. Forsaken afterward, she found
+herself in the depths of poverty. She was obliged to live. You
+were starving. So she changed her name, and now she is known as Lia
+d’Argeles.”
+
+M. Wilkie sprang to his feet. “Lia d’Argeles!” he exclaimed. Then, with
+a burst of laughter, he added: “Nevertheless, I think it a piece of
+grand good luck!”
+
+
+
+
+VI.
+
+
+“This man carries away your secret; you are lost.” A sinister voice
+whispered these words in Madame Lia d’Argeles’s heart when M. Isidore
+Fortunat, after being rudely dismissed, closed the door of her
+drawing-room behind him. This man had addressed her by the ancient and
+illustrious name of Chalusse which she had not heard for twenty years,
+and which she had forbidden her own lips to pronounce. This man knew
+that she, Lia d’Argeles, was really a Durtal de Chalusse.
+
+This frightful certainty overwhelmed her. It is true this man Fortunat
+had declared that his visit was entirely disinterested. He had pretended
+that his regard for the Chalusse family, and the compassion aroused in
+his heart by the unfortunate plight of Mademoiselle Marguerite, were
+the only motives that has influenced him in taking this step. However,
+Madame d’Argeles’s experience in life had left her but limited faith
+in apparent or pretended disinterestedness. This is a practical age;
+chivalrous sentiments are expensive--as she had learned conclusively.
+“If the man came here,” she murmured, “it was only because he thought
+he might derive some benefit from the prosecution of my claim to my
+poor brother’s estate. In refusing to listen to his entreaties, I have
+deprived him of this expected profit and so I have made him my enemy.
+Ah! I was foolish to send him away like that! I ought to have pretended
+to listen--I ought to have bound him by all sorts of promises.”
+
+She suddenly paused. It occurred to her that M. Fortunat could not have
+gone very far; so that, if she sent for him to come back, she might
+perhaps be able to repair her blunder. Without losing a second, she
+rushed downstairs, and ordered her concierge and a servant to run after
+the gentleman who had just left the house, and ask him to return; to
+tell him that she had reflected, and wished to speak to him again. They
+rushed out in pursuit, and she remained in the courtyard, her heart
+heavy with anxiety. Too late! About a quarter of an hour afterward
+her emissaries returned. They had made all possible haste in contrary
+directions, but they had seen no one in the street who at all resembled
+the person they were looking for. They had questioned the shopkeepers,
+but no one had seen him pass. “It doesn’t matter,” faltered Madame
+d’Argeles, in a tone that belied her words. And, anxious to escape
+the evident curiosity of her servants, she hastened back to the little
+boudoir where she usually spent her mornings.
+
+M. Fortunat had left his card--that is to say, his address--and it
+would have been an easy matter to send a servant to his house. She was
+strongly tempted to do so; but she ultimately decided that it would
+be better to wait--that an hour more or less would make but little
+difference. She had sent her trusty servant, Job, for Baron Trigault; he
+would probably return with the baron at any moment; and the baron would
+advise her. He would know at once what was the best course for her to
+pursue. And so she waited for his coming in breathless anxiety; and the
+more she reflected, the more imminent her peril seemed, for she realized
+that M. Fortunat must be a very dangerous and cunning man. He had set a
+trap for her, and she had allowed herself to be caught. Perhaps he had
+only suspected the truth when he presented himself at the house. He had
+suddenly announced the death of the Count de Chalusse; she had betrayed
+herself; and any doubts he might have entertained were dispelled. “If I
+had only had sufficient presence of mind to deny it,” she murmured.
+“If I had only been courageous enough to reply that I knew absolutely
+nothing about the person he spoke of. Ah! then he would have gone away
+convinced that he was mistaken.”
+
+But would the smooth-spoken visitor have declared that he knew
+everything, if he had not really penetrated the mystery of her life? It
+was scarcely probable. He had implored her to accept the property, if
+not for her own sake at least for the sake of another. And when she
+asked him whom he meant he had answered, “Mademoiselle Marguerite,”
+ but he was undoubtedly thinking of Wilkie. So this man, this Isidore
+Fortunat, knew that she had a son. Perhaps he was even acquainted with
+him personally. In his anger he would very likely hasten to Wilkie’s
+rooms and tell him everything. This thought filled the wretched woman’s
+heart with despair. What! Had she not yet expiated her fault? Must she
+suffer again?
+
+For the first time a terrible doubt came over her. What she had formerly
+regarded as a most sublime effort of maternal love, was, perhaps, even a
+greater crime than the first she had committed. She had given her honor
+as the price of her son’s happiness and prosperity. Had she a right to
+do so? Did not the money she had lavished upon him contain every germ of
+corruption, misfortune, and shame? How terrible Wilkie’s grief and rage
+would be if he chanced to hear the truth!
+
+Alas! he would certainly pay no heed to the extenuating circumstances;
+he would close his ears to all attempts at justification. He would be
+pitiless. He would have naught but hatred and scorn to bestow upon
+a mother who had fallen from the highest rank in society down to
+everlasting infamy. She fancied she heard him saying in an indignant
+voice, “It would have been better to have allowed me to die of
+starvation than to have given me bread purchased at such a price! Why
+have you dishonored me by your ill-gotten wealth? Fallen, you might have
+raised yourself by honest toil. You ought to have made me a laborer, and
+not a spoiled idler, incapable of earning an honest livelihood. As the
+son of a poor, betrayed, and deserted woman, with whom I could have
+shared my scanty earnings, I might have looked the world proudly in the
+face. But where can the son of Lia d’Argeles hide his disgrace after
+playing the gentleman for twenty years with Lia d’Argeles’s money?” Yes,
+Wilkie would certainly say this if he ever learned the truth; and he
+would learn it--she felt sure of it. How could she hope to keep a
+secret which was known to Baron Trigault, M. Patterson, the Viscount de
+Coralth, and M. Fortunat--four persons! She had confidence in the first
+two; she believed she had a hold on the third, but the fourth--Fortunat!
+
+The hours went by; and still Job did not return. What was the meaning
+of this delay? Had he failed to find the baron? At last the sound of
+carriage-wheels in the courtyard made her start. “That’s Job!” she said
+to herself. “He brings the baron.”
+
+Alas! no. Job returned alone. And yet the honest fellow had spared
+neither pains nor horseflesh. He had visited every place where there was
+the least probability of finding the baron, and he was everywhere told
+that Baron Trigault had not been seen for several days. “In that case,
+you ought to have gone to his house. Perhaps he is there,” remarked
+Madame d’Argeles.
+
+“Madame knows that the baron is never at home. I did go there, however,
+but in vain.”
+
+This chanced to be one of three consecutive days which Baron Trigault
+had spent with Kami-Bey, the Turkish ambassador. It had been agreed
+between them that they should play until one or the other had lost five
+hundred thousand francs; and, in order to prevent any waste of “precious
+time,” as the baron was wont to remark, they neither of them stirred
+from the Grand Hotel, where Kami-Bey had a suite of rooms. They ate and
+slept there. By some strange chance, Madame d’Argeles had not heard of
+this duel with bank-notes, although nothing else was talked of at the
+clubs; indeed, the Figaro had already published a minute description of
+the apartment where the contest was going on; and every evening it
+gave the results. According to the latest accounts, the baron had the
+advantage; he had won about two hundred and eighty thousand francs.
+
+“I only returned to inform madame that I had so far been unsuccessful,”
+ said Job. “But I will recommence the search at once.”
+
+“That is unnecessary,” replied Madame d’Argeles. “The baron will
+undoubtedly drop in this evening, after dinner, as usual.”
+
+She said this, and tried her best to believe it; but in her secret heart
+she felt that she could no longer depend upon the baron’s assistance. “I
+wounded him this morning,” she thought. “He went away more angry than I
+had ever seen him before. He is incensed with me; and who knows how long
+it will be before he comes again?”
+
+Still she waited, with feverish anxiety, listening breathlessly to every
+sound in the street, and trembling each time she heard or fancied
+she heard a carriage stop at the door. However, at two o’clock in the
+morning the baron had not made his appearance. “It is too late--he won’t
+come!” she murmured.
+
+But now her sufferings were less intolerable, for excess of wretchedness
+had deadened her sensibility. Utter prostration paralyzed her energies
+and benumbed her mind. Ruin seemed so inevitable that she no longer
+thought of avoiding it; she awaited it with that blind resignation
+displayed by Spanish women, who, when they hear the roll of thunder,
+fall upon their knees, convinced that lightning is about to strike their
+defenceless heads. She tottered to her room, flung herself on the bed,
+and instantly fell asleep. Yes, she slept the heavy, leaden slumber
+which always follows a great mental crisis, and which falls like God’s
+blessing upon a tortured mind. On waking up, her first act was to ring
+for her maid, in order to send a message to Job, to go out again in
+search of the baron. But the faithful servant had divined his mistress’s
+wishes, and had already started off of his own accord. It was past
+mid-day when he returned, but his face was radiant; and it was in a
+triumphant voice that he announced: “Monsieur le Baron Trigault.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles sprang up, and greeted the baron with a joyful
+exclamation. “Ah! how kind of you to come!” she exclaimed. “You are most
+welcome. If you knew how anxiously I have been waiting for you!” He made
+no reply. “If you knew,” continued Madame d’Argeles, “if you only knew.”
+ But she paused, for in spite of her own agitation, she was suddenly
+struck by the peculiar expression on her visitor’s face. He was standing
+silent and motionless in the centre of the room, and his eyes were fixed
+upon her with a strange, persistent stare in which she could read
+all the contradictory feelings which were battling for mastery in his
+mind--anger, hatred, pity, and forgiveness. Madame d’Argeles shuddered.
+So her cup of sorrow was not yet full. A new misfortune was about to
+fall upon her. She had hoped that the baron would be able to alleviate
+her wretchedness, but it seemed as if he were fated to increase it. “Why
+do you look at me like that?” she asked, anxiously. “What have I done?”
+
+“You, my poor Lia--nothing!”
+
+“Then--what is it? Oh, my God! you frighten me.”
+
+“What is it? Well, I am going to tell you,” he said, as he stepped
+forward and took her hand in his own. “You know that I have been
+infamously duped and deceived, that the happiness of my life has been
+destroyed by a scoundrel who tempted the wife I so fondly loved to
+forget her duty, and trample her honor under foot. You have heard my
+vows of vengeance if I ever succeeded in discovering him. Ah, well, Lia,
+I have discovered him. The man who stole my share of earthly happiness
+was the Count de Chalusse, your brother.”
+
+With a sudden gesture Madame d’Argeles freed her hand from the baron’s
+grasp, and recoiled as terrified as if she had seen a spectre rise up
+before her. Then with her hands extended as if to ward off the horrible
+apparition, she exclaimed: “O, my God!”
+
+A bitter smile curved the baron’s lips. “What do you fear?” he asked.
+“Isn’t your brother dead? He has defrauded me alike of happiness and
+vengeance!”
+
+If her son’s life had depended on a single word, Madame d’Argeles could
+not have uttered it. She knew what mental agony had urged the baron to
+a sort of moral suicide, and led him to contract the vice in which he
+wasted his life and squandered, or, at least risk, his millions.
+
+“Nor is this all,” he continued. “Listen. As I have often told you, I
+was sure that my wife became a mother in my absence. I sought the
+child for years, hoping that through the offspring I might discover the
+father. Ah, well! I’ve found what I sought, at last. The child is now
+a beautiful young girl. She lives at the Hotel de Chalusse as your
+brother’s daughter. She is known as Mademoiselle Marguerite.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles listened, leaning against the wall for support, and
+trembling like a leaf. Her reason was shaken by so many repeated blows,
+and her son, her brother, Marguerite, Pascal Ferailleur, Coralth,
+Valorsay--all those whom she loved or feared, or hated--rose like
+spectres before her troubled brain. The horror of the truth exceeded her
+most frightful apprehensions. The strangeness of the reality surpassed
+every flight of fancy. And, moreover, the baron’s calmness increased her
+stupor. She so often had heard him give vent to his rage and despair in
+terrible threats, that she could not believe he would be thus resigned.
+But was his calmness real? Was it not a mask, would not his fury
+suddenly break forth?
+
+However, he continued, “It is thus that destiny makes us its sport--it
+is thus that it laughs at our plans. Do you remember, Lia, the day when
+I met you wandering through the streets of Paris--with your child in
+your arms--pale and half dead with fatigue, faint for want of food,
+homeless and penniless? You saw no refuge but in death, as you have
+since told me. How could I imagine when I rescued you that I was saving
+my greatest enemy’s sister from suicide--the sister of the man whom I
+was vainly pursuing? And yet this might not be the end, if I chose
+to have it otherwise. The count is dead, but I can still return him
+disgrace for disgrace. He dishonored me. What prevents me from casting
+ineffaceable opprobrium upon the great name of Chalusse, of which he
+was so proud? He seduced my wife. To-day I can tell all Paris what his
+sister has been and what she is to-day.”
+
+Ah! it was this--yes, it was this that Madame d’Argeles had dreaded. She
+fell upon her knees, and, with clasped hands she entreated: “Pity!--oh!
+have pity--forgive me! Have mercy! Have I not always been a faithful
+and devoted friend to you? Think of the past you have just invoked! Who
+helped you then to bear your intolerable sufferings? Don’t you remember
+the day when you, yourself, had determined to die by your own hand?
+There was a woman who persuaded you to abandon the thought of suicide.
+It was I!”
+
+He looked at her for a moment with a softer expression, tears came to
+his eyes, and rolled down his cheeks. Then suddenly he raised her, and
+placed her in an arm-chair, exclaiming: “Ah! you know very well that I
+shall not do what I said. Don’t you know me better than that? Are you
+not sure of my affection, are you not aware that you are sacred in my
+eyes?” He was evidently striving hard to master his emotion. “Besides,”
+ he added, “I had already pardoned before coming here. It was foolish on
+my part, perhaps, and for nothing in the world would I confess it to my
+acquaintances, but it is none the less true. I shall have my revenge in
+a certain fashion, however. I need only hold my peace, and the daughter
+of M. de Chalusse and Madame Trigault would become a lost woman. Is this
+not so? Very well, I shall offer her my assistance. It may, or may not,
+be another absurd and ridiculous fancy added to the many I have been
+guilty of. But no matter. I have promised. And why, indeed, should this
+poor girl be held responsible for the sins of her parents? I--I declare
+myself on her side against the world!”
+
+Madame d’Argeles rose, her face radiant with joy and hope. “Then perhaps
+we are saved!” she exclaimed. “Ah! I knew when I sent for you that I
+should not appeal to your heart in vain!”
+
+She took hold of his hand as if to raise it to her lips; but he gently
+withdrew it, and inquired, with an air of astonishment: “What do you
+mean?”
+
+“That I have been cruelly punished for not wishing you to assist that
+unfortunate man who was dishonored here the other evening.”
+
+“Pascal Ferailleur?”
+
+“Yes, he is innocent. The Viscount de Coralth is a scoundrel. It was he
+who slipped the cards which made M. Ferailleur win, into the pack, and
+he did it at the Marquis de Valorsay’s instigation.”
+
+The baron looked at Madame d’Argeles with pro-found amazement. “What!”
+ said he; “you knew this and you allowed it? You were cruel enough to
+remain silent when that innocent man entreated you to testify on his
+behalf! You allowed this atrocious crime to be executed under your own
+roof, and under your very eyes?”
+
+“I was then ignorant of Mademoiselle Marguerite’s existence. I did not
+know that the young man was beloved by my brother’s daughter--I did not
+know--”
+
+The baron interrupted her, and exclaimed, indignantly: “Ah! what does
+that matter? It was none the less an abominable action.”
+
+She hung her head, and in a scarcely audible voice replied: “I was not
+free. I submitted to a will that was stronger than my own. If you had
+heard M. de Coralth’s threats you would not censure me so severely.
+He has discovered my secret; he knows Wilkie--I am in his power. Don’t
+frown--I make no attempt to excuse myself--I am only explaining the
+position in which I was placed. My peril is imminent; I have only
+confidence in you--you alone can aid me; listen!”
+
+Thereupon she hastily explained M. de Coralth’s position respecting
+herself, what she had been able to ascertain concerning the Marquis de
+Valorsay’s plans, the alarming visit she had received from M. Fortunat,
+his advice and insinuations, the dangers she apprehended, and her firm
+determination to deliver Mademoiselle Marguerite from the machinations
+of her enemies. Madame d’Argeles’s disclosures formed, as it were, a
+sequel to the confidential revelations of Pascal Ferailleur, and the
+involuntary confession of the Marquis de Valorsay; and the baron could
+no longer doubt the existence of the shameful intrigue which had been
+planned in view of obtaining possession of the count’s millions. And
+if he did not, at first, understand the motives, he at least began to
+discern what means had been employed. He now understood why Valorsay
+persisted in his plan of marrying Mademoiselle Marguerite, even without
+a fortune. “The wretch knows through Coralth that Madame d’Argeles is
+a Chalusse,” he said to himself; “and when Mademoiselle Marguerite has
+become his wife, he intends to oblige Madame d’Argeles to accept her
+brother’s estate and share it with him.”
+
+At that same moment Madame d’Argeles finished her narrative. “And now,
+what shall I do?” she added.
+
+The baron was stroking his chin, as was his usual habit when his mind
+was deeply exercised. “The first thing to be done,” he replied, “is to
+show Coralth in his real colors, and prove M. Ferailleur’s innocence.
+It will probably cost me a hundred thousand francs to do so, but I shall
+not grudge the money. I should probably spend as much or even more in
+play next summer; and the amount had better be spent in a good cause
+than in swelling the dividends of my friend Blanc, at Baden.”
+
+“But M. de Coralth will speak out as soon as he finds that I have
+revealed his shameful past.”
+
+“Let him speak.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles shuddered. “Then the name of Chalusse will be
+disgraced,” said she; “and Wilkie will know who his mother is.”
+
+“No.”
+
+“But----”
+
+“Ah! allow me to finish, my dear friend. I have my plan, and it is
+as plain as daylight. This evening you will write to your London
+correspondent. Request M. Patterson to summon your son to England, under
+any pretext whatever; let him pretend that he wishes to give him some
+money, for instance. He will go there, of course, and then we will keep
+him there. Coralth certainly won’t run after him, and we shall have
+nothing more to fear on that score.”
+
+“Great heavens!” murmured Madame d’Argeles, “why did this idea never
+occur to me?”
+
+The baron had now completely recovered his composure. “As regards
+yourself,” said he, “the plan you ought to adopt is still more simple.
+What is your furniture worth? About a hundred thousand francs, isn’t it?
+Very well, then. You will sign me notes, dated some time back, to the
+amount of a hundred thousand francs. On the day these notes fall due,
+on Monday, for instance, they will be presented for payment. You will
+refuse to pay them. A writ will be served, and an attachment placed
+upon your furniture; but you will offer no resistance. I don’t know if I
+explain my meaning very clearly.”
+
+“Oh, very clearly!”
+
+“So your property is seized. You make no opposition, and next week we
+shall have flaming posters on all the walls, telling Paris that the
+furniture, wardrobe, cashmeres, laces, and diamonds of Madame Lia
+d’Argeles will be sold without reserve, at public auction, in the Rue
+Drouot, with the view of satisfying the claims of her creditors. You
+can imagine the sensation this announcement will create. I can see your
+friends and the frequenters of your drawing-room meeting one another in
+the street, and saying: ‘Ah, well! what’s this about poor d’Argeles?’
+‘Pshaw!--no doubt it’s a voluntary sale.’ ‘Not at all; she’s really
+ruined. Everything is mortgaged above its value.’ ‘Indeed, I’m very
+sorry to hear it. She was a good creature.’ ‘Oh, excellent; a deal of
+amusement could be found at her house,--only between you and me----’
+‘Well?’ ‘Well, she was no longer young.’ ‘That’s true. However, I
+shall attend the sale, and I think I shall bid.’ And, in fact, your
+acquaintances won’t fail to repair to the Hotel Drouot, and maybe your
+most intimate friends will yield to their generous impulses sufficiently
+to offer twenty sous for one of the dainty trifles on your etageres.”
+
+Overcome with shame, Madame d’Argeles hung her head. She had never
+before so keenly felt the disgrace of her situation. She had never
+so clearly realized what a deep abyss she had fallen into. And
+this crushing humiliation came from whom? From the only friend she
+possessed--from the man who was her only hope, Baron Trigault.
+
+And what made it all the more frightful was, that he did not seem to be
+in the least degree conscious of the cruelty of his words. Indeed,
+he continued, in a tone of bitter irony: “Of course, you will have
+an exhibition before the sale, and you will see all the dolls that
+hairdressers, milliners and fools call great ladies, come running to
+the show. They will come to see how a notorious woman lives, and to
+ascertain if there are any good bargains to be had. This is the
+right form. These great ladies would be delighted to display diamonds
+purchased at the sale of a woman of the demi monde. Oh! don’t fear--your
+exhibition will be visited by my wife and daughter, by the Viscountess
+de Bois d’Ardon, by Madame de Rochecote, her five daughters, and a great
+many more. Then the papers will take up the refrain; they will give an
+account of your financial difficulties, and tell the public what you
+paid for your pictures.”
+
+It was with a sort of terror-stricken curiosity that Madame d’Argeles
+watched the baron. It had been many years since she had seen him in such
+a frame of mind--since she had heard him talk in such a cynical fashion.
+“I am ready to follow your advice,” said she, “but afterward?”
+
+“What, don’t you understand the object I have in view? Afterward you
+will disappear. I know five or six journalists; and it would be very
+strange if I could not convince one of them that you had died upon an
+hospital pallet. It will furnish the subject of a touching, and what
+is better, a moral article. The papers will say, ‘Another star has
+disappeared. This is the miserable end of all the poor wretches whose
+passing luxury scandalizes honest women.’”
+
+“And what will become of me?”
+
+“A respected woman, Lia. You will go to England, install yourself in
+some pretty cottage near London, and create a new identity for yourself.
+The proceeds of your sale will supply your wants and Wilkie’s for more
+than a year. Before that time has elapsed you will have succeeded in
+accumulating the necessary proofs of your identity, and then you can
+assert your claims and take possession of your brother’s estate.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles sprang to her feet. “Never never!” she exclaimed,
+vehemently.
+
+The baron evidently thought he must have misunderstood her. “What!” he
+stammered; “you will relinquish the millions that are legally yours, to
+the government?”
+
+“Yes--I am resolved--it must be so.”
+
+“Will you sacrifice your son’s future in this style?”
+
+“No, it isn’t in my power to do that; but Wilkie will do so, later, on,
+I’m sure of it.”
+
+“But this is simply folly.”
+
+A feverish agitation had now succeeded Madame d’Argeles’s torpor; there
+was an expression of scorn and anger on her rigid features, and her
+eyes, usually so dull and lifeless, fairly blazed. “It is not folly,”
+ she exclaimed, “but vengeance!” And as the astonished baron opened his
+lips to question her: “Let me finish,” she said imperiously, “and then
+you shall judge me. I have told you with perfect frankness everything
+concerning my past life, save this--this--that I am married, Monsieur
+le Baron, legally married. I am bound by a chain that nothing can break,
+and my husband is a scoundrel. You would be frightened if you knew half
+the extent of his villainy. Oh! do not shake your head. I ought not to
+be suspected of exaggeration when I speak in this style of a man whom I
+once loved so devotedly. For I loved him, alas!--even to madness--loved
+him so much that I forgot self, family, honor, and all the most sacred
+duties. I loved him so madly that I was willing to follow him, while his
+hands were still wet with my brother’s blood. Ah! chastisement could not
+fail to come, and it was terrible, like the sin. This man for whom I had
+abandoned everything--whom I had made my idol--do you know what he said
+to me the third day after my flight from home? ‘You must be more stupid
+than an owl to have forgotten to take your jewels.’ Yes, those were the
+very words he said to me, with a furious air. And then I could measure
+the depths of the abyss into which I had plunged. This man, with whom I
+had been so infatuated, did not love me at all, he had never loved me.
+It had only been cold calculation on his part. He had devoted months to
+the task of winning my heart, just as he would have devoted them to
+some business transaction. He only saw in me the fortune that I was
+to inherit. Oh! he didn’t conceal it from me. ‘If your parents are not
+monsters,’ he was always saying, ‘they will finally become reconciled to
+our marriage. They will give you a handsome fortune and we will divide
+it. I will give you back your liberty, and then we can each of us be
+happy in our own way.’ It was for this reason that he wished to marry
+me. I consented on account of my unborn child. My father and mother had
+died, and he hoped to prevail upon me to claim my share of the paternal
+fortune. As for claiming it himself, he dared not. He was a coward, and
+he was afraid of my brother. But I took a solemn oath that he should
+never have a farthing of the wealth he coveted, and neither threats nor
+BLOWS could compel me to assert my claim. God only knows how much I had
+suffered from his brutality when I at last succeeded in making my escape
+with Wilkie. He has sought us everywhere for fifteen years, but he has
+not yet succeeded in finding a trace of us. Still he has not ceased to
+watch my brother. I am sure of that, my presentiments never deceive me.
+So, if I followed your advice--if I claimed possession of my brother’s
+fortune--my husband would instantly appear with our marriage contract in
+his hands, and demand everything. Shall I enrich him? No, never, never!
+I would rather die of want! I would rather see Wilkie die of starvation
+before my very eyes!”
+
+Madame d’Argeles spoke in that tone of concentrated rage which betrays
+years of repressed passion and unflinching resolution. One could
+scarcely hope to modify her views even by the wisest and most practical
+advice. The baron did not even think of attempting to do so. He had
+known Madame d’Argeles for years; he had seen so many proofs of her
+invincible energy and determination. She possessed the distinguishing
+characteristic of her family in a remarkable degree--that proverbial
+Chalusse obstinacy which Madame Vantrasson had alluded to in her
+conversation with M. Fortunat.
+
+She was silent for a moment, and then, in a firm tone she said: “Still,
+I will follow your advice in part, baron. This evening I will write
+to M. Patterson and request him to send for Wilkie. In less than a
+fortnight I shall have sold my furniture and disappeared. I shall remain
+poor. My fortune is not so large as people suppose. No matter. My son is
+a man; he must learn to earn his own living.”
+
+“My banking account is always at your disposal, Lia.”
+
+“Thanks, my friend, thanks a thousand times; but it will not be
+necessary for me to accept your kind offer. When Wilkie was a child I
+did not refuse. But now I would dig the ground with my own hands,
+rather than give him a louis that came from you. You think me full of
+contradictions! Perhaps I am. It is certain that I am no longer what I
+was yesterday. This trouble has torn away the bandage that covered my
+eyes. I can see my conduct clearly now, and I condemn it. I sinned for
+my son’s sake, more than for my own. But I might have rehabilitated
+myself through him, and now he will perhaps be dishonored through me.”
+ Her breathing came short and hard, and it was in a choked voice that she
+continued: “Wilkie shall work for me and for himself. If he is strong,
+he will save us. If he is weak--ah, well! we shall perish. But there
+has been cowardice and shame enough! It shall never be said that I
+sacrificed the honor of a noble name and the happiness of my brother’s
+child to my son. I see what my duty is, and I shall do it.”
+
+The baron nodded approvingly. “That’s no doubt right,” said he. “Only
+allow me to tell you that all is not lost yet. The code has a weapon for
+every just cause. Perhaps there will be a way for you to obtain and hold
+your fortune independent of your husband.”
+
+“Alas! I made inquiries on the subject years ago, and I was told that
+it would be impossible. Still, you might investigate the matter. I have
+confidence in you. I know that you would not advise me rashly;--but
+don’t delay. The worst misfortune would be less intolerable than this
+suspense.”
+
+“I will lose no time. M. Ferailleur is a very clever lawyer, I am told.
+I will consult him.”
+
+“And what shall I do about this man Fortunat, who called upon me?”
+
+The baron reflected for a moment. “The safest thing would be to take no
+action whatever at present,” he replied. “If he has any evil designs, a
+visit or a letter from you would only hasten them.”
+
+By the way Madame d’Argeles shook her head, it was easy to see that she
+had very little hope. “All this will end badly,” she murmured.
+
+The baron shared her opinion, but he did not think it wise or kind to
+discourage her. “Nonsense!” he said lightly, “luck is going to change;
+it is always changing.”
+
+Then as he heard the clock strike, he sprang from his arm-chair in
+dismay. “Two o’clock,” he exclaimed, “and Kami-Bey is waiting for me.
+I certainly haven’t been wasting time here, but I ought to have been at
+the Grand Hotel at noon. Kami is quite capable of suspecting a man of
+any knavery. These Turks are strange creatures. It’s true that I am
+now a winner to the tune of two hundred and eighty thousand francs.”
+ He settled his hat firmly on his head, and opening the door, he added:
+“Good-by, my dear madame, I will soon see you again, and in the meantime
+don’t deviate in the least from your usual habits. Our success depends,
+in a great measure, upon the fancied security of our enemies!”
+
+Madame d’Argeles considered this advice so sensible that half an hour
+later she went out for her daily drive in the Bois, little suspecting
+that M. Fortunat’s spy, Victor Chupin, was dogging her carriage. It was
+most imprudent on her part to have gone to Wilkie’s house on her return.
+She incurred such a risk of awakening suspicion by wandering about
+near her son’s home that she seldom allowed herself that pleasure, but
+sometimes her anxiety overpowered her reason. So, on this occasion, she
+ordered the coachman to stop near the Rue du Helder, and she reached the
+street just in time to betray her secret to Victor Chupin, and receive a
+foul insult from M. Wilkie. The latter’s cruel words stabbed her to the
+heart, and yet she tried to construe them as mere proofs of her son’s
+honesty of feeling--as proof of his scorn for the depraved creatures
+who haunt the boulevards each evening. But though her energy was
+indomitable, her physical strength was not equal to her will. On
+returning home, she felt so ill that she was obliged to go to bed. She
+shivered with cold, and yet the blood that flowed in her veins seemed to
+her like molten lead. The physician who was summoned declared that her
+illness was a mere trifle, but prescribed rest and quiet. And as he was
+a very discerning man, he added, not without a malicious smile, that any
+excess is injurious--excess of pleasure as well as any other. As it
+was Sunday, Madame d’Argeles was able to obey the physician, and so she
+closed her doors against every one, the baron excepted. Still, fearing
+that this seclusion might seem a little strange, she ordered her
+concierge to tell any visitors that she had gone into the country,
+and would not return until her usual reception-day. She would then be
+compelled to open her doors as usual. For what would the habitues of the
+house, who had played there every Monday for years, say if they found
+the doors closed? She was less her own mistress than an actress--she had
+no right to weep or suffer in solitude.
+
+So, at about seven o’clock on Monday evening, although still grievously
+suffering both in mind and body, she arranged herself to receive her
+guests. From among all her dresses, she chose the same dark robe she had
+worn on the night when Pascal Ferailleur was ruined at her house; and
+as she was even paler than usual, she tried to conceal the fact by a
+prodigal use of rouge. At ten o’clock, when the first arrivals entered
+the brilliantly lighted rooms, they found her seated as usual on the
+sofa, near the fire, with the same eternal, unchangeable smile upon her
+lips. There were at least forty persons in the room, and the gambling
+had become quite animated when the baron entered. Madame d’Argeles read
+in his eyes that he was the bearer of good news. “Everything is going
+on well,” he whispered, as he shook hands with her. “I have seen M.
+Ferailleur--I wouldn’t give ten sous for Valorsay’s and Coralth’s
+chances.”
+
+This intelligence revived Madame d’Argeles’s drooping spirits, and she
+received M. de Coralth with perfect composure when he came to pay his
+respects to her soon afterward. For he had the impudence to come, in
+order to dispel any suspicions that might have been aroused anent his
+complicity in the card-cheating affair. The hostess’s calmness amazed
+him. Was she still ignorant of her brother’s death and the complications
+arising from it, or was she only acting a part? He was so anxious and
+undecided, that instead of mingling with the groups of talkers, he
+at once took a seat at the card-table, whence he could watch the poor
+woman’s every movement.
+
+Both rooms were full, and almost everybody was engaged in play, when,
+shortly after midnight, a servant entered the room, whispered a few
+words in his mistress’s ear, and handed her a card. She took it, glanced
+at it, and uttered so harsh, so terrible, so heart-broken a cry, that
+several of the guests sprang to their feet. “What is it? What is it?”
+ they asked. She tried to reply, but could not. Her lips parted, she
+opened her mouth, but no sound came forth. She turned ghastly white
+under her rouge, and a wild, unnatural light gleamed in her eyes. One
+curious guest, without a thought of harm, tried to take the card, which
+she still held in her clinched hand; but she repulsed him with such an
+imperious gesture that he recoiled in terror. “What is it? What is the
+matter with her?” was the astonished query on every side.
+
+At last, with a terrible effort, she managed to reply, “Nothing.” And
+then, after clinging for a moment to the mantel-shelf, in order to
+steady herself, she tottered out of the room.
+
+
+
+
+VII.
+
+
+It was not enough to tell M. Wilkie the secret of his birth. He must
+be taught how to utilize the knowledge. The Viscount de Coralth
+devoted himself to this task, and burdened Wilkie with such a host of
+injunctions, that it was quite evident he had but a poor opinion of his
+pupil’s sagacity. “That woman d’Argeles,” he thought, “is as sharp as
+steel. She will deceive this young idiot completely, if I don’t warn
+him.”
+
+So he did warn him; and Wilkie was instructed exactly what to do and
+say, how to answer any questions, and what position to take up according
+to circumstances. Moreover, he was especially enjoined to distrust
+tears, and not to let himself be put out of countenance by haughty airs.
+The Viscount spent at least an hour in giving explanations and advice,
+to the great disgust of M. Wilkie, who, feeling that he was being
+treated like a child, somewhat testily declared that he was no fool, and
+that he knew how to take care of himself as well as any one else. Still,
+this did not prevent M. de Coralth from persisting in his instructions
+until he was persuaded that he had prepared his pupil for all possible
+emergencies. He then rose to depart. “That’s all, I think,” he remarked,
+with a shade of uneasiness. “I’ve traced the plan--you must execute it,
+and keep cool, or the game’s lost.”
+
+His companion rose proudly. “If it fails, it won’t be from any fault of
+mine,” he answered with unmistakable petulance.
+
+“Lose no time.”
+
+“There’s no danger of that.”
+
+“And understand, that whatever happens, my name is not to be mentioned.”
+
+“Yes, yes.”
+
+“If there should be any new revelations, I will inform you.”
+
+“At the club?”
+
+“Yes, but don’t be uneasy; the affair is as good as concluded.”
+
+“I hope so, indeed.”
+
+Wilkie gave a sigh of relief as he saw his visitor depart. He wished to
+be alone, so as to brood over the delights that the future had in store
+for him. He was no longer to be limited to a paltry allowance of twenty
+thousand francs! No more debts, no more ungratified longings. He would
+have millions at his disposal! He seemed to see them, to hold them, to
+feel them gliding in golden waves between his fingers! What horses he
+would have! what carriages! what mistresses! And a gleam of envy that
+he had detected in M. de Coralth’s eyes put the finishing touch to his
+bliss. To be envied by this brilliant viscount, his model and his ideal,
+what happiness it was!
+
+The reputation that Madame d’Argeles bore had at first cast a shadow
+over his joy; but this shadow had soon vanished. He was troubled by no
+foolish prejudices, and personally he cared little or nothing for his
+mother’s reputation. The prejudices of society must, of course, be
+considered. But nonsense! society has no prejudices nowadays when
+millionaires are concerned, and asks no questions respecting their
+parents. Society only requires passports of the indigent. Besides, no
+matter what Madame d’Argeles might have done, she was none the less a
+Chalusse, the descendant of one of the most aristocratic families in
+France.
+
+Such were Wilkie’s meditations while he was engaged in dressing himself
+with more than usual care. He had been quite shocked by the suggestion
+that Madame d’Argeles might try to deny him, and he wished to appear
+before her in the most advantageous light. His toilette was consequently
+a lengthy operation. However, shortly after twelve o’clock he was ready.
+He cast a last admiring glance at himself in the mirror, twirled his
+mustaches, and departed on his mission. He even went on foot, which was
+a concession to what he considered M. de Coralth’s absurd ideas. The
+aspect of the Hotel d’Argeles, in the Rue de Berry, impressed him
+favorably, but, at the same time, it somewhat disturbed his superb
+assurance. “Everything is very stylish here,” he muttered.
+
+A couple of servants--the concierge and Job--were standing at the door
+engaged in conversation. M. Wilkie approached them, and in his most
+imposing manner, but not without a slight tremble in his voice,
+requested to see Madame d’Argeles. “Madame is in the country,” replied
+the concierge; “she will not return before this evening. If monsieur
+will leave his card.”
+ “Oh! that’s quite unnecessary. I shall be passing again.”
+
+This, too, was in obedience to the instructions of M. de Coralth, who
+had advised him not to send in his name, but to gain admission into
+Madame d’Argeles’s presence as speedily as possible, without giving her
+time to prepare herself for the interview; and Wilkie had ultimately
+decided that these precautions might not prove as superfluous as he had
+at first supposed. But this first mishap annoyed him extremely. What
+should he do? how should he kill time till the evening? A cab was
+passing. He hired it for a drive to the Bois, whence he returned to the
+boulevards, played a game of billiards with one of the co-proprietors
+of Pompier de Nanterre, and finally dined at the Cafe Riche, devoting as
+much time as possible to the operation. He was finishing his coffee when
+the clock struck eight. He caught up his hat, drew on his gloves, and
+hastened to the Hotel d’Argeles again.
+
+“Madame has not yet returned,” said the concierge, who knew that his
+mistress had only just risen from her bed, “but I don’t think it will be
+long. And if monsieur wishes--”
+
+“No,” replied M. Wilkie brusquely, and he was going off in a furious
+passion, when, on crossing the street, he chanced to turn his head and
+notice that the reception rooms were brilliantly lighted up. “Ah! I
+think that a very shabby trick!” grumbled the intelligent youth. “They
+won’t succeed in playing that game on me again. Why, she’s there now!”
+
+It occurred to him that Madame d’Argeles had perhaps described him to
+her servants, and had given them strict orders not to admit him.
+“I’ll find out if that is the case, even if I have to wait here until
+to-morrow morning,” he thought, angrily. However, he had not been on
+guard very long, when he saw a brougham stop in front of the mansion,
+whereupon the gate opened, as if by enchantment. The vehicle entered the
+courtyard, deposited its occupants, and drove away. A second carriage
+soon appeared, then a third, and then five or six in quick succession.
+“And does she think I’ll wear out my shoe-leather here, while everybody
+else is allowed to enter?” he grumbled. “Never!--I’ve an idea.” And,
+without giving himself time for further deliberation, he returned to his
+rooms, arrayed himself in evening-dress, and sent for his carriage. “You
+will drive to No.--in the Rue de Berry,” he said. “There is a soiree
+there, and you can drive directly into the courtyard.” The coachman
+obeyed, and M. Wilkie realized that his idea was really an excellent
+one.
+
+As soon as he alighted, the doors were thrown open, and he ascended
+a handsome staircase, heavily carpeted, and adorned with flowers. Two
+liveried footmen were standing at the door of the drawing-room, and one
+of them advanced to relieve Wilkie of his overcoat, but his services
+were declined. “I don’t wish to go in,” said the young man roughly.
+“I wish to speak with Madame d’Argeles in private. She is expecting
+me--inform her. Here is my card.”
+
+The servant was hesitating, when Job, suspecting some mystery perhaps,
+approached. “Take in the gentleman’s card,” he said, with an air of
+authority; and, opening the door of a small room on the left-hand side
+of the staircase, he invited Wilkie to enter, saying, “If monsieur will
+be kind enough to take a seat, I will summon madame at once.”
+
+M. Wilkie sank into an arm-chair, considerably overcome. The air of
+luxury that pervaded the entire establishment, the liveried servants,
+the lights and flowers, all impressed him much more deeply than he would
+have been willing to confess. And in spite of his affected arrogance,
+he felt that the superb assurance which was the dominant trait in his
+character was deserting him. In his breast, moreover, in the place where
+physiologists locate the heart, he felt certain extraordinary movements
+which strongly resembled palpitations. For the first time it occurred
+to him that this woman, whose peace he had come to destroy, was not only
+the heiress of the Count de Chalusse’s millions, but also his mother,
+that is to say, the good fairy whose protection had followed him
+everywhere since he entered the world. The thought that he was about to
+commit an atrocious act entered his mind, but he drove it away. It was
+too late now to draw back, or even to reflect.
+
+Suddenly a door opposite the one by which he had entered opened, and
+Madame d’Argeles appeared on the threshold. She was no longer the woman
+whose anguish and terror had alarmed her guests. During the brief moment
+of respite which fate had granted her, she had summoned all her energy
+and courage, and had mastered her despair. She felt that her salvation
+depended upon her calmness, and she had succeeded in appearing calm,
+haughty, and disdainful--as impassive as if she had been a statue. “Was
+it you, sir, who sent me this card?” she inquired.
+
+Greatly disconcerted, M. Wilkie could only bow and stammer out an almost
+unintelligible answer. “Excuse me! I am much grieved, upon my word! I
+disturb you, perhaps----”
+
+“You are Monsieur Wilkie!” interrupted Madame d’Argeles, in a tone of
+mingled irony and disdain.
+
+“Yes,” he replied, drawling out the name affectedly, “I am M. Wilkie.”
+
+“Did you desire to speak with me?” inquired Madame d’Argeles, dryly.
+
+“In fact--yes. I should like----”
+
+“Very well. I will listen to you, although your visit is most
+inopportune, for I have eighty guests or more in my drawing-room. Still,
+speak!”
+
+It was very easy to say “speak,” but unfortunately for M. Wilkie he
+could not articulate a syllable. His tongue was as stiff, and as dry, as
+if it had been paralyzed. He nervously passed and repassed his fingers
+between his neck and his collar, but although this gave full play to his
+cravat, his words did not leave his throat any more readily. For he had
+imagined that Madame d’Argeles would be like other women he had known,
+but not at all. He found her to be an extremely proud and awe-inspiring
+creature, who, to use his own vocabulary, SQUELCHED him completely. “I
+wished to say to you,” he repeated, “I wished to say to you----” But
+the words he was seeking would not come; and, so at last, angry with
+himself, he exclaimed: “Ah! you know as well as I, why I have come. Do
+you dare to pretend that you don’t know?”
+
+She looked at him with admirably feigned astonishment, glanced
+despairingly at the ceiling, shrugged her shoulders, and replied: “Most
+certainly I don’t know--unless indeed it be a wager.”
+
+“A wager!” M. Wilkie wondered if he were not the victim of some
+practical joke, and if there were not a crowd of listeners hidden
+somewhere, who, after enjoying his discomfiture, would suddenly make
+their appearance, holding their sides. This fear restored his presence
+of mind. “Well, then,” he replied, huskily, “this is my reason. I know
+nothing respecting my parents. This morning, a man with whom you are
+well acquainted, assured me that I was--your son. I was completely
+stunned at first, but after a while I recovered sufficiently to call
+here, and found that you had gone out.”
+
+He was interrupted by a nervous laugh from Madame d’Argeles. For she was
+heroic enough to laugh, although death was in her heart, and although
+the nails of her clinched hands were embedded deep in her quivering
+flesh. “And you believed him, monsieur?” she exclaimed. “Really, this is
+too absurd! I--your mother! Why, look at me----”
+
+He was doing nothing else, he was watching her with all the powers of
+penetration he possessed. Madame d’Argeles’s laugh had an unnatural
+ring that awakened his suspicions. All Coralth’s recommendations buzzed
+confusedly in his ears, and he judged that the moment had come “to do
+the sentimental,” as he would have expressed it. So he lowered his head,
+and in an aggrieved tone, exclaimed: “Ah! you think it very amusing, I
+don’t. Do you realize how wretched it makes one to live as utterly alone
+as a leper, without a soul to love or care for you? Other young men have
+a mother, sisters, relatives. I have no one! Ah! if---- But I only have
+friends while my money lasts.” He wiped his eyes, dry as they were, with
+his handkerchief, and in a still more pathetic tone, resumed: “Not that
+I want for anything; I receive a very handsome allowance. But when my
+relatives have given me the wherewithal to keep me from starving, they
+imagine their duty is fulfilled. I think this very hard. I didn’t come
+into the world at my own request, did I? I didn’t ask to be born. If
+I was such an annoyance to them when I came into existence, why didn’t
+they throw me into the river? Then they would have been well rid of me,
+and I should be out of my misery!”
+
+He stopped short, struck dumb with amazement, for Madame d’Argeles had
+thrown herself on her knees at his feet. “Have mercy!” she faltered;
+“Wilkie; my son, forgive me!” Alas! the unfortunate woman had failed in
+playing a part which was too difficult for a mother’s heart. “You have
+suffered cruelly, my son,” she continued; “but I--I--Ah! you can’t
+conceive the frightful agony it costs a mother to separate from her
+child! But you were not deserted, Wilkie; don’t say that. Have you not
+felt my love in the air around you? YOU forgotten? Know, then, that for
+years and years I have seen you every day, and that all my thoughts and
+all my hopes are centered in you alone! Wilkie!”
+
+She dragged herself toward him with her hands clasped in an agony of
+supplication, while he recoiled, frightened by this outburst of
+passion, and utterly amazed by his easily won victory. The poor woman
+misunderstood this movement. “Great God!” she exclaimed, “he spurns me;
+he loathes me. Ah! I knew it would be so. Oh! why did you come? What
+infamous wretch sent you here? Name him, Wilkie! Do you understand, now,
+why I concealed myself from you? I dreaded the day when I should blush
+before you, before my own son. And yet it was for your sake. Death would
+have been a rest, a welcome release for me. But your breath was ebbing
+away, your poor little arms no longer had strength to clasp me round the
+neck. And then I cried: ‘Perish my soul and body, if only my child can
+be saved!’ I believed such a sacrifice permissible in a mother. I am
+punished for it as if it were a crime. I thought you would be happy, my
+Wilkie. I said to myself that you, my pride and joy, would move freely
+and proudly far above me and my shame. I accepted ignominy, so that your
+honor might be preserved intact. I knew the horrors of abject poverty,
+and I wished to save my son from it. I would have licked up the very
+mire in your pathway to save you from a stain. I renounced all hope for
+myself, and I consecrated all that was noble and generous in my nature
+to you. Oh! I will discover the vile coward who sent you here, who
+betrayed my secret. I will discover him and I will have my revenge! You
+were never to know this, Wilkie. In parting from you, I took a solemn
+oath never to see you again, and to die without the supreme consolation
+of feeling your lips upon my forehead.”
+
+She could not continue; sobs choked her utterance. And for more than a
+minute the silence was so profound that one could hear the sound of low
+conversation in the hall outside, the exclamations of the players as
+they greeted each unexpected turn of luck, and occasionally a cry of
+“Banco!” or “I stake one hundred louis!” Standing silent and motionless
+near the window, Wilkie gazed with consternation at Madame d’Argeles,
+his mother, who was crouching in the middle of the room with her face
+hidden in her hands, and sobbing as if her heart would break. He would
+willingly have given his third share in Pompier de Nanterre to have
+made his escape. The strangeness of the scene appalled him. It was
+not emotion that he felt, but an instinctive fear mingled with
+commiseration. And he was not only ill at ease, but he was angry
+with himself for what he secretly styled his weakness. “Women are
+incomprehensible,” he thought. “It would be so easy to explain things
+quietly and properly, but they must always cry and have a sort of
+melodrama.”
+
+Suddenly the sound of footsteps near the door roused him from his
+stupor. He shuddered at the thought that some one might come in. He
+hated the very idea of ridicule. So summoning all his courage he went
+toward Madame d’Argeles, and, raising her from the floor, he exclaimed:
+“Don’t cry so. You grieve me, upon my word! Pray get up. Some one is
+coming. Do you hear me? Some one is coming.” Thereupon, as she offered
+no resistance, he half led, half carried her to an arm-chair, into
+which she sank heavily. “Now she is going to faint!” thought Wilkie,
+in despair. What should he do? Call for help? He dared not. However,
+necessity inspired him. He knelt at Madame d’Argeles’s feet, and gently
+said: “Come, come, be reasonable! Why do you give way like this? I don’t
+reproach you!”
+
+Slowly, with an air of humility which was indescribably touching,
+she took her hands from her face, and for the first time raised her
+tear-stained eyes to her son’s. “Wilkie,” she murmured.
+
+“Madame!”
+
+She heaved a deep sigh, and in a half-stifled voice:
+
+“MADAME!” she repeated. “Will you not call me mother?”
+
+“Yes, of course--certainly. But--only you know it will take me some time
+to acquire the habit. I shall do so, of course; but I shall have to get
+used to it, you know.”
+
+“True, very true!--but tell me it is not mere pity that leads you to
+make this promise? If you should hate me--if you should curse me--how
+should I bear it! Ah! when a woman reaches the years of understanding
+one should never cease repeating to her: ‘Take care! Your son will be
+twenty some day, and you will have to meet his searching gaze. You
+will have to render an account of your honor to him!’ My God! If women
+thought of this, they would never sin. To be reduced to such a state of
+abject misery that one dares not lift one’s head before one’s own son!
+Alas! Wilkie, I know only too well that you cannot help despising me.”
+
+“No, indeed. Not at all! What an idea!”
+
+“Tell me that you forgive me!”
+
+“I do, upon my word I do.”
+
+Poor woman, her face brightened. She so longed to believe him! And her
+son was beside her, so near that she felt his breath upon her cheek. It
+was he indeed. Had they ever been separated? She almost doubted it, she
+had lived so near him in thought. It was with a sort of ecstasy that she
+looked at him. There was a world of entreaty in her eyes; they seemed
+to be begging a caress; she raised her quivering lips to his, but he did
+not observe it. For a long time she hesitated, fearing he might spurn
+her; but at last, yielding to a supreme impulse, she threw her arms
+around his neck, drew him toward her, and pressed him to her heart in
+a close embrace. “My son! my son!” she repeated; “to have you with me
+again, after all these years!”
+
+Unfortunately, no whirlwind of passion was capable of carrying M. Wilkie
+beyond himself. His emotion was now spent and his mind had regained
+its usual indifference. He flattered himself that he was a man of
+mettle--and he remained as cold as ice beneath his mother’s kisses.
+Indeed, he barely tolerated them; and if he did allow her to embrace
+him, it was only because he did not know how to refuse. “Will she never
+have done?” he thought. “This is a pretty state of things! I must be
+very attractive. How Costard and Serpillon would laugh if they saw
+me now.” Costard and Serpillon were his intimate friends, the
+co-proprietors of the famous steeplechaser.
+
+In her rapture, however, Madame d’Argeles did not observe the peculiar
+expression on her son’s face. She had compelled him to take a chair
+opposite her, and, with nervous volubility, she continued: “If I don’t
+deny myself the happiness of embracing you again, it is because I have
+not broken the vow I took never to make myself known to you. When I
+entered this room, I was firmly resolved to convince you, no matter how,
+that you had been deceived. God knows that it was not my fault if I did
+not succeed. There are some sacrifices that are above human strength.”
+
+M. Wilkie deigned to smile. “Oh! yes, I saw your little game,” he said,
+with a knowing air. “But I had been well posted, and besides, it is not
+very easy to fool me.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles did not even hear him. “Perhaps destiny is weary of
+afflicting us,” she continued; “perhaps a new life is about to begin.
+Through you, Wilkie. I can again be happy. I, who for years have lived
+without even hope. But will you have courage to forget?”
+
+“What?”
+
+She hung her head, and in an almost inaudible voice replied, “The past,
+Wilkie.”
+
+But with an air of the greatest indifference, he snapped his fingers,
+and exclaimed: “Nonsense! What is past is past. Such things are soon
+forgotten. Paris has known many such cases. You are my mother; I care
+very little for public opinion. I begin by pleasing myself, and I
+consult other people afterward; and when they are dissatisfied, I tell
+them to mind their own business.”
+
+The poor woman listened to these words with a joy bordering on rapture.
+One might have supposed that the strangeness of her son’s expressions
+would have surprised her--have enlightened her in regard to his true
+character--but no. She only saw and understood one thing--that he had no
+intention of casting her off, but was indeed ready to devote himself to
+her. “My God!” she faltered, “is this really true? Will you allow me
+to remain with you? Oh, don’t reply rashly! Consider well, before you
+promise to make such a sacrifice. Think how much sorrow and pain it will
+cost you.”
+
+“I have considered. It is decided--mother.”
+
+She sprang up, wild with hope and enthusiasm. “Then we are saved!”
+ she cried. “Blessed be he who betrayed my secret! And I doubted your
+courage, my Wilkie! At last I can escape from this hell! This very night
+we will fly from this house, without one backward glance. I will never
+set foot in these rooms again--the detested gamblers who are sitting
+here shall never see me again. From this moment Lia d’Argeles is dead.”
+
+M. Wilkie positively felt like a man who had just fallen from the
+clouds. “What, fly?” he stammered. “Where shall we go, then?”
+
+“To a country where we are unknown, Wilkie--to a land where you will not
+have to blush for your mother.”
+
+“But--”
+
+“Trust yourself to me, my son. I know a pleasant village near London
+where we can find a refuge. My connections in England are such that you
+need not fear the obstacles one generally meets with among foreigners.
+M. Patterson, who manages a large manufacturing establishment, will, I
+know, be happy to be of service to us--but we shall not be indebted to
+any one for long, now that you have resolved to work.”
+
+On hearing these words, M. Wilkie sprang up in dismay. “Excuse me,”
+ he said, “I don’t understand you. You propose to set me to work in M.
+Patterson’s factory? Well, to tell the truth, that doesn’t suit me at
+all.”
+
+It was impossible to mistake M. Wilkie’s manner, his tone, or gesture.
+They revealed him in his true character. Madame d’Argeles saw her
+terrible mistake at once. The bandage fell from her eyes. She had taken
+her dreams for realities, and the desires of her own heart for those of
+her son. She rose, trembling with sorrow and with indignation. “Wilkie!”
+ she exclaimed, “Wilkie, wretched boy! what did you dare to hope?”
+
+And, without giving him time to reply, she continued: “Then it was only
+idle curiosity that brought you here. You wished to know the source
+of the money which you spend like water. Very well, you may see
+for yourself. This is a gambling house; one of those establishments
+frequented by distinguished personages, which the police ignore, or
+which they cannot suppress. The hubbub you hear is made by the players.
+Men are ruined here. Some poor wretches have blown their brains out on
+leaving the house; others have parted with the last vestige of honor
+here. And the business pays me well. One louis out of every hundred that
+change hands falls to my share. This is the source of your wealth, my
+son.”
+
+This anger, which succeeded such deep grief--this outburst of disdain,
+following such abject humility--considerably astonished M. Wilkie.
+“Allow me to ask----” he began.
+
+But he was not allowed a hearing. “Fool!” continued Madame d’Argeles,
+“did nothing warn you that in coming here you would deprive yourself
+forever of the income you received? Did no inward voice tell you that
+all would be changed when you compelled me, Lia d’Argeles, to say,
+‘Well, yes, it is true; you are my son?’ So long as you did not know
+who and what I was, I had a mother’s right to watch over you. I could
+help you without disgracing you, without despising you. But now that you
+know me, and know what I am, I can do nothing more for you--nothing! I
+would rather let you starve than succor you, for I would rather see you
+dead than dishonored by my money.”
+
+“But--”
+
+“What! would you still consent to receive the allowance I have made you,
+even if I consented to continue it?”
+
+Had a viper raised its head in M. Wilkie’s path he would not have
+recoiled more quickly. “Never!” he exclaimed. “Ah, no! What do you take
+me for?”
+
+This repugnance was sincere; there could be no doubt of that, and it
+seemed to give Madame d’Argeles a ray of hope. “I have misjudged him,”
+ she thought. “Poor Wilkie! Evil advice has led him astray; but he is not
+bad at heart. In that case, my poor child,” she said aloud, “you must
+see that a new life is about to commence for you. What do you intend to
+do? How will you gain a livelihood? People must have food, and clothes,
+and a roof to shelter them. These things cost money. And where will
+you obtain it--you who rebel at the very word work? Ah! if I had only
+listened to M. Patterson. He was not blind like myself. He was always
+telling me that I was spoiling you, and ruining your future by giving
+you so much money. Do you know that you have spent more than fifty
+thousand francs during the past two years? How have you squandered them?
+Have you been to the law-school a dozen times? No. But you can be seen
+at the races, at the opera, in the fashionable restaurants, and at every
+place of amusement where a young man can squander money. And who are
+your associates? Dissipated and heartless idlers, grooms, gamblers, and
+abandoned women.”
+
+A sneer from M. Wilkie interrupted her. To think that any one should
+dare to attack his friends, his tastes, and his pleasures. Such a thing
+was not to be tolerated. “This is astonishing--astonishing, upon my
+word!” said he. “You moralizing! that’s really too good! I should like a
+few minutes to laugh; it is too ridiculous!”
+
+Was he really conscious of the cruelty of his ironical words? The blow
+was so terrible that Madame d’Argeles staggered beneath it. She was
+prepared for anything and everything except this insult from her son.
+Still, she accepted it without rebellion, although it was in a tone of
+heart-broken anguish that she replied: “Perhaps I have no right to tell
+you the truth. I hope the future will prove that I am wrong. However,
+you are without resources, and you have no profession. Pray Heaven that
+you may never know what it is to be hungry and to have no bread.”
+
+For some time already the ingenious young man had shown unmistakable
+signs of impatience. This gloomy prediction irritated him beyond
+endurance.
+
+“All this is empty talk,” he interrupted. “I don’t mean to work, for
+it’s not at all in my line. Still, I don’t expect to want for anything!
+That’s plain enough, I hope.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles did not wince. “What do you mean to do then?” she
+asked, coldly. “I don’t understand you.”
+
+He shrugged his shoulders impatiently. “Are we to keep up this farce for
+ever?” he petulantly exclaimed. “It doesn’t take with me. You know what
+I mean as well as I do. Why do you talk to me about dying of starvation?
+What about the fortune?”
+
+“What fortune?”
+
+“Eh? why, my uncle’s, of course! Your brother’s, the Count de Chalusse.”
+
+Now M. Wilkie’s visit, manner, assurance, wheedling, and contradictions
+were all explained. That maternal confidence which is so strong in the
+hearts of mothers vanished from Madame d’Argeles’s for ever. The depths
+of selfishness and cunning she discerned in Wilkie’s mind appalled her.
+She now understood why he had declared himself ready to brave public
+opinion--why he had proved willing to accept his share of the past
+ignominy. It was not his mother’s, but the Count de Chalusse’s estate
+that he claimed. “Ah! so you’ve heard of that,” she said, in a tone
+of bitter irony. And then, remembering M. Isidore Fortunat, she asked:
+“Some one has sold you this valuable secret. How much have you promised
+to pay him in case of success?”
+
+Although Wilkie prided himself on being very clever, he did not pretend
+to be a diplomatist, and, indeed, he was greatly disconcerted by this
+question; still, recovering himself, he replied: “It doesn’t matter how
+I obtained the information--whether I paid for it, or whether it cost
+me nothing--but I know that you are a Chalusse, and that you are
+the heiress of the count’s property, which is valued at eight or ten
+millions of francs. Do you deny it?”
+
+Madame d’Argeles sadly shook her head. “I deny nothing,” she replied,
+“but I am about to tell you something which will destroy all your plans
+and extinguish your hopes. I am resolved, understand, and my resolution
+is irrevocable, never to assert my rights. To receive this fortune, I
+should be obliged to confess that Lia d’Argeles is a Chalusse--and that
+is a confession which no consideration whatever will wring from me.”
+
+She imagined that this declaration would silence and discomfit Wilkie,
+but she was mistaken. If he had been obliged to depend upon himself he
+would perhaps have been conquered by it; but he was armed with weapons
+which had been furnished by the cunning viscount. So he shrugged his
+shoulders, and coolly replied: “In that case we should remain poor, and
+the government would take possession of our millions. One moment. I
+have something to say in this matter. You may renounce your claim, but I
+shall not renounce mine. I am your son, and I shall claim the property.”
+
+“Even if I entreated you on my knees not to do so?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles’s eyes flashed. “Very well. I will show you that this
+estate can never be yours. By what right will you lay claim to it?
+Because you are my son? But I will deny that you are. I will declare
+upon oath that you are nothing to me, and that I don’t even know you.”
+
+But even this did not daunt Wilkie. He drew from his pocket a scrap
+of paper, and flourishing it triumphantly, he exclaimed: “It would
+be extremely cruel on your part to deny me, but I foresaw such a
+contingency, and here is my answer, copied from the civil code: ‘Article
+341. Inquiry as to maternity allowed, etc., etc.’”
+
+What the exact bearing of Wilkie’s threat might be Madame d’Argeles did
+not know. But she felt that this Article 341 would no doubt destroy her
+last hope; for the person who had chosen this weapon from the code to
+place it in Wilkie’s hand must have chosen it carefully. She understood
+the situation perfectly. With her experience of life, she could not fail
+to understand the despicable part Wilkie was playing. And though it was
+not her son who had conceived this odious plot, it was more than enough
+to know that he had consented to carry it into execution. Should she try
+to persuade Wilkie to abandon this shameful scheme? She might have done
+so if she had not been so horrified by the utter want of principle which
+she had discovered in his character. But, under the circumstances, she
+realized that any effort in this direction would prove unavailing. So
+it was purely from a sense of duty and to prevent her conscience from
+reproaching her that she exclaimed: “So you will apply to the courts in
+order to constrain me to acknowledge you as my son?”
+
+“If you are not reasonable----”
+
+“That is to say, you care nothing for the scandal that will be created
+by such a course. In order to prove yourself a member of the Chalusse
+family you will begin by disgracing the name and dragging it through the
+mire.”
+
+Wilkie had no wish to prolong this discussion. So much talk about an
+affair, which, in his opinion, at least, was an extremely simple one,
+seemed to him utterly ridiculous, and irritated him beyond endurance.
+“It strikes me this is much ado about nothing,” he remarked. “One would
+suppose, to hear you talk, that you were the greatest criminal in the
+world. Goodness is all very well in its way, but there is such a thing
+as having too much of it! Break loose from this life to-morrow, assume
+your rightful name, install yourself at the Hotel de Chalusse, and in
+a week from now no one will remember that you were once known as Lia
+d’Argeles. I wager one hundred louis on it. Why, if people attempted to
+rake up the past life of their acquaintances, they should have far too
+much to do. Folks do not trouble themselves as to whether a person has
+done this or that; the essential thing is to have plenty of money. And
+if any fool speaks slightingly of you, you can reply: ‘I have an income
+of five hundred thousand francs,’ and he’ll say no more.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles listened, speechless with horror and disgust. Was it
+really her son who was speaking in this style, and to her of all people
+in the world? M. Wilkie misunderstood her silence. He had an excellent
+opinion of himself, but he was rather surprised at the effect of his
+eloquence. “Besides, I’m tired of vegetating, and having only one name,”
+ he continued. “I want to be on the move. Even with the small allowance
+I’ve had, I have gained a very good position in society; and if I had
+plenty of money I should be the most stylish man in Paris. The count’s
+estate belongs to me, and so I must have it--in fact, I will have it.
+So believe me when I tell you that it will be much better for you if you
+acknowledge me without any fuss! Now, will you do so? No? Once, twice,
+three times? Is it still no? Very well then; to-morrow, then, you may
+expect an official notice. I wish you good-evening.”
+
+He bowed; he was really going, for his hand was already on the
+door-knob. But Madame d’Argeles detained him with a gesture. “One word
+more,” she said, in a voice hoarse with emotion.
+
+He scarcely deigned to come back, and he made no attempt to conceal his
+impatience. “Well, what is it?” he asked, hastily.
+
+“I wish to give you a bit of parting advice. The court will undoubtedly
+decide in your favor; I shall be placed in possession of my brother’s
+estate; but neither you nor I will have the disposal of these millions.”
+
+“Why?”
+
+“Because, though this fortune belongs to me, the control of it belongs
+to your father.”
+
+M. Wilkie was thunderstruck. “To my father?” he exclaimed. “Impossible!”
+
+“It is so, however; and you would not have been ignorant of the fact, if
+your greed for money had not made you forget to question me. You believe
+yourself an illegitimate child. Wilkie, you are mistaken. You are my
+legitimate child. I am a married woman----”
+
+“Bah!”
+
+“And my husband--your father--is not dead. If he is not here now,
+threatening our safety, it is because I have succeeded in eluding him.
+He lost all trace of us eighteen years ago. Since then he has been
+constantly striving to discover us, but in vain. He is still watching,
+you may be sure of that; and as soon as there is any talk of a law-suit
+respecting the Chalusse property, you will see him appear, armed with
+his rights. He is the head of the family--your master and mine. Ah! this
+seems to disturb you. You will find him full of insatiable greed for
+wealth, a greed which has been whetted by twenty years’ waiting. You may
+yet see the day when you will regret the paltry twenty thousand francs a
+year formerly given you by your poor mother.”
+
+Wilkie’s face was whiter than his shirt. “You are deceiving me,” he
+stammered.
+
+“To-morrow I will show you my marriage certificate.”
+
+“Why not this evening?”
+
+“Because it is locked up in a room which is now full of people.”
+
+“And what was my father’s name?”
+
+“Arthur Gordon--he is an American.”
+
+“Then my name is Wilkie Gordon?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“And---is my father rich?” he inquired.
+
+“No.”
+
+“What does he do?”
+
+“Everything that a man can do when he has a taste for luxury and a
+horror for work.”
+
+This reply was so explicit in its brevity, and implied so many terrible
+accusations, that Wilkie was dismayed. “The devil!” he exclaimed, “and
+where does he live!”
+
+“He lives at Baden or Homburg in the summer; in Paris or at Monaco in
+the winter.”
+
+“Oh! oh! oh!” ejaculated Wilkie, in three different tones. He knew
+what he had to expect from such a father as that. Anger now followed
+stupor--one of those terrible, white rages which stir the bile and not
+the blood. He saw his hopes and his cherished visions fade. Luxury and
+notoriety, high-stepping horses, yellow-haired mistresses, all vanished.
+He pictured himself reduced to a mere pittance, and held in check and
+domineered over by a brutal father. “Ah! I understand your game,” he
+hissed through his set teeth. “If you would only quietly assert your
+rights, everything could be arranged privately, and I should have time
+to put the property out of my father’s reach before he could claim it.
+Instead of doing that--as you hate me--you compel me to make the affair
+public, so that my father will hear of it and defraud me of everything.
+But you won’t play this trick on me. You are going to write at once, and
+make known your claim to your brother’s estate.”
+
+“No.”
+
+“Ah! you won’t? You refuse----” He approached threateningly, and
+caught hold of her arm. “Take care!” he vociferated; “take care! Do not
+infuriate me beyond endurance----”
+
+As cold and rigid as marble, Madame d’Argeles faced him with the
+undaunted glance of a martyr whose spirit no violence can subdue. “You
+will obtain nothing from me,” she said, firmly; “nothing, nothing,
+nothing!”
+
+Maddened with rage and disappointment, M. Wilkie dared to lift his hand
+as if about to strike her. But at this moment the door was flung open,
+and a man sprang upon him. It was Baron Trigault.
+
+Like the other guests, the baron had seen the terrible effect produced
+upon Madame d’Argeles by a simple visiting card. But he had this
+advantage over the others: he thought he could divine and explain the
+reason of this sudden, seemingly incomprehensible terror. “The poor
+woman has been betrayed,” he thought; “her son is here!” Still, while
+the other players crowded around their hostess, he did not leave the
+card-table. He was sitting opposite M. de Coralth, and he had seen the
+dashing viscount start and change color. His suspicions were instantly
+aroused, and he wished to verify them. He therefore pretended to be more
+than ever absorbed in the cards, and swore lustily at the deserters who
+had broken up the game. “Come back, gentleman, come back,” he cried,
+angrily. “We are wasting precious time. While you have been trifling
+there, I might have gained--or lost--a hundred louis.”
+
+He was nevertheless greatly alarmed, and the prolonged absence of Madame
+d’Argeles increased his fears each moment. At the end of an hour he
+could restrain himself no longer. So taking advantage of a heavy loss,
+he rose from the table, swearing that the beastly turmoil of a few
+moments before had changed the luck. Then passing into the adjoining
+drawing-room, he managed to make his escape unobserved. “Where is
+madame?” he inquired of the first servant he met.
+
+“In the little sitting-room.”
+
+“Alone?”
+
+“No; a young gentleman is with her.”
+
+The baron no longer doubted the correctness of his conjectures, and his
+disquietude increased. Quickly, and as if he had been in his own house,
+he hastened to the door of the little sitting-room and listened. At that
+moment rage was imparting a truly frightful intonation to M. Wilkie’s
+voice. The baron really felt alarmed. He stooped, applied his eye to the
+keyhole, and seeing M. Wilkie with his hand uplifted, he burst open the
+door and went in. He arrived only just in time to fell Wilkie to
+the floor, and save Madame d’Argeles from that most terrible of
+humiliations: the degradation of being struck by her own son. “Ah, you
+rascal!” cried the worthy baron, transported with indignation, “you
+beggarly rascal! you brigand! Is this the way you treat an unfortunate
+woman who has sacrificed herself for you--your mother? You try to strike
+your mother, when you ought to kiss her very footprints!”
+
+As livid as if his blood had been suddenly turned to gall--with
+quivering lips and eyes starting from their sockets--M. Wilkie rose,
+with difficulty, to his feet, at the same time rubbing his left elbow
+which had struck against the corner of a piece of furniture, in his
+fall. “Scoundrel! You brutal scoundrel!” he growled, ferociously. And
+then, retreating a step: “Who gave you permission to come in here?” he
+added. “Who are you? By what right do you meddle with my affairs?”
+
+“By the right that every honest man possesses to chastise a cowardly
+rascal.”
+
+M. Wilkie shook his fist at the baron. “You are a coward yourself,” he
+retorted. “You had better learn who you are talking to! You must mend
+your manners a little, you old----”
+
+The word he uttered was so vile that no man could fail to resent it,
+much less the baron, who was already frantic with passion. His faced
+turned as purple as if he were stricken with apoplexy, and such furious
+rage gleamed in his eyes that Madame d’Argeles was frightened. She
+feared she should see her son butchered before her very eyes, and
+she extended her arms as if to protect him. “Jacques,” she said
+beseechingly, “Jacques!”
+
+This was the name which was indelibly impressed upon Wilkie’s
+memory--the name he had heard when he was but a child. Jacques--that
+was the name of the man who had brought him cakes and toys in the
+comfortable rooms where he had remained only a few days. He understood,
+or at least he thought he understood, everything. “Ah, ha!” he
+exclaimed, with a laugh that was at once both ferocious and idiotic.
+“This is very fine--monsieur is the lover. He has the say here--he--”
+
+He did not have time to finish his sentence, for quick as thought
+the baron caught him by the collar, lifted him from the ground with
+irresistible strength, and flung him on his knees at Madame d’Argeles’s
+feet, exclaiming: “Ask her pardon, you vile wretch! Ask her pardon,
+or----” “Or” meant the baron’s clinched fist descending like a
+sledge-hammer on M. Wilkie’s head.
+
+The worthy youth was frightened--so terribly frightened that his teeth
+chattered. “Pardon!” he faltered.
+
+“Louder--speak up better than that. Your mother must answer you!”
+
+Alas! the poor woman could no longer hear. She had endured so much
+during the past hour that her strength was exhausted, and she had fallen
+back in her arm-chair in a deep swoon. The baron waited for a moment,
+and seeing that her eyes remained obstinately closed, he exclaimed:
+“This is your work, wretch!”
+
+And lifting him again, as easily as if he had been a child, he set him
+on his feet, saying in a calmer tone, but in one that admitted of no
+reply: “Arrange your clothes and go.”
+
+This advice was not unnecessary. Baron Trigault had a powerful hand;
+and M. Wilkie’s attire was decidedly the worse for the encounter. He
+had lost his cravat, his shirt-front was crumpled and torn, and his
+waistcoat--one of those that open to the waist and are fastened by a
+single button--hung down in the most dejected manner. He obeyed the
+baron’s order without a word, but not without considerable difficulty,
+for his hands trembled like a leaf. When he had finished, the baron
+exclaimed: “Now be off; and never set foot here again--understand
+me--never set foot here again, never!”
+
+M. Wilkie made no reply until he reached the door leading into the hall.
+But when he had opened it, he suddenly regained his powers of speech.
+“I’m not afraid of you,” he cried, with frantic violence. “You have
+taken advantage of your superior strength--you are a coward. But this
+shall not end here. No!--you shall answer for it. I shall find your
+address, and to-morrow you will receive a visit from my friends M.
+Costard and M. Serpillon. I am the insulted party--and I choose swords!”
+
+A frightful oath from the baron somewhat hastened M. Wilkie’s exit. He
+went out into the hall, and holding the door open, in a way that would
+enable him to close it at the shortest notice, he shouted back, so as to
+be heard by all the servants: “Yes; I will have satisfaction. I will not
+stand such treatment. Is it any fault of mine that Madame d’Argeles is a
+Chalusse, and that she wishes to defraud me of my fortune. To-morrow, I
+call you all to witness, there will be a lawyer here. You don’t frighten
+me. Here is my card!” And actually, before he closed the door, he threw
+one of his cards into the middle of the room.
+
+The baron did not trouble himself to pick it up; his attention was
+devoted to Madame d’Argeles. She was lying back in her arm-chair, white,
+motionless and rigid, to all appearance dead. What should the baron
+do? He did not wish to call the servants; they had heard too much
+already--but he had almost decided to do so, when his eyes fell upon a
+tiny aquarium, in a corner of the room. He dipped his handkerchief in
+it; and alternately bathed Madame d’Argeles’s temples and chafed her
+hands. It was not long before the cold water revived her. She trembled,
+a convulsive shudder shook her from head to foot, and at last she opened
+her eyes, murmuring: “Wilkie!”
+
+“I have sent him away,” replied the baron.
+
+Poor woman! with returning life came the consciousness of the terrible
+reality. “He is my son!” she moaned, “my son, my Wilkie!” Then with a
+despairing gesture she pressed her hands to her forehead as if to calm
+its throbbings. “And I believed that my sin was expiated,” she pursued.
+“I thought I had been sufficiently punished. Fool that I was! This is my
+chastisement, Jacques. Ah! women like me have no right to be mothers!”
+
+A burning tear coursed down the baron’s cheek; but he concealed his
+emotion as well as he could, and said, in a tone of assumed gayety:
+“Nonsense! Wilkie is young--he will mend his ways! We were all
+ridiculous when we were twenty. We have all caused our mothers many
+anxious nights. Time will set everything to rights, and put some ballast
+in this young madcap’s brains. Besides, your friend Patterson doesn’t
+seem to me quite free from blame. In knowledge of books, he may have
+been unequalled; but as a guardian for youth, he must have been the
+worst of fools. After keeping your son on a short allowance for years,
+he suddenly gorges him with oats--or I should say, money--lets him
+loose; and then seems surprised because the boy is guilty of acts of
+folly. It would be a miracle if he were not. So take courage, and hope
+for the best, my dear Lia.”
+
+She shook her head despondingly. “Do you suppose that my heart hasn’t
+pleaded for him?” she said. “I am his mother; I can never cease to love
+him, whatever he may do. Even now I am ready to give a drop of blood for
+each tear I can save him. But I am not blind; I have read his nature.
+Wilkie has no heart.”
+
+“Ah! my dear friend, how do you know what shameful advice he may have
+received before coming to you?”
+
+Madame d’Argeles half rose, and said, in an agitated voice: “What! you
+try to make me believe that? ‘Advice!’ Then he must have found a man
+who said to him: ‘Go to the house of this unfortunate woman who gave you
+birth, and order her to publish her dishonor and yours. If she refuses,
+insult and beat her! ‘You know, even better than I, baron, that this
+is impossible. In the vilest natures, and when every other honorable
+feeling has been lost, love for one’s mother survives. Even convicts
+deprive themselves of their wine, and sell their rations, in order to
+send a trifle now and then to their mothers--while he----”
+
+She paused, not because she shrunk from what she was about to say, but
+because she was exhausted and out of breath. She rested for a moment,
+and then resumed in a calmer tone: “Besides, the person who sent him
+here had counselled coolness and prudence. I discovered this at once.
+It was only toward the close of the interview, and after an unexpected
+revelation from me, that he lost all control over himself. The thought
+that he would lose my brother’s millions crazed him. Oh! that fatal and
+accursed money! Wilkie’s adviser wished him to employ legal means to
+obtain an acknowledgment of his parentage; and he had copied from the
+Code a clause which is applicable to this case. By this one circumstance
+I am convinced that his adviser is a man of experience in such
+matters--in other words, the business agent----”
+
+“What business agent?” inquired the baron.
+
+“The person who called here the other day, M. Isidore Fortunat. Ah! why
+didn’t I not bribe him to hold his peace?”
+
+The baron had entirely forgotten the existence of Victor Chupin’s
+honorable employer. “You are mistaken, Lia,” he replied. “M. Fortunat
+has had no hand in this.”
+
+“Then who could have betrayed my secret?”
+
+“Why, your former ally, the rascal for whose sake you allowed Pascal
+Ferailleur to be sacrificed--the Viscount de Coralth!”
+
+The bare supposition of such treachery on the viscount’s part brought a
+flush of indignant anger to Madame d’Argeles’s cheek. “Ah! if I thought
+that!” she exclaimed. And then, remembering what reasons the baron had
+for hating M. de Coralth, she murmured: “No! Your animosity misleads
+you--he wouldn’t dare!”
+
+The baron read her thoughts. “So you are persuaded that it is personal
+vengeance that I am pursuing?” said he. “You think that fear of ridicule
+and public odium prevents me from striking M. de Coralth in my own name,
+and that I am endeavoring to find some other excuse to crush him. This
+might have been so once; but it is not the case now. When I promised
+M. Ferailleur to do all in my power to save the young girl he loves,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, my wife’s daughter, I renounced all thought of
+self, all my former plans. And why should you doubt Coralth’s treachery?
+You, yourself, promised me to unmask HIM. If he has betrayed YOU, my
+poor Lia, he has only been a little in advance of you.”
+
+She hung her head and made no reply. She had forgotten this.
+
+“Besides,” continued the baron, “you ought to know that when I make such
+a statement I have some better foundation for it than mere conjecture.
+It was to some purpose that I watched M. de Coralth during your absence.
+When the servant handed you that card he turned extremely pale. Why?
+Because he knew whose card it was. After you left the room his hands
+trembled like leaves, and his mind was no longer occupied with the game.
+He--who is usually such a cautious player--risked his money recklessly.
+When the cards came to him he did still worse; and though luck favored
+him, he made the strangest blunders, and lost. His agitation and
+preoccupation were so marked as to attract attention; and one
+acquaintance laughingly inquired if he were ill, while another jestingly
+remarked that he had dined and wined a little too much. The traitor
+was evidently on coals of fire. I could see the perspiration on his
+forehead, and each time the door opened or shut, he changed color, as if
+he expected to see you and Wilkie enter. A dozen times I surprised him
+listening eagerly, as if by dint of attention, or by the magnetic force
+of his will, he hoped to hear what you and your son were saying. With a
+single word I could have wrung a confession from him.”
+
+This explanation was so plausible that Madame d’Argeles felt half
+convinced. “Ah! if you had only spoken that word!” she murmured. The
+baron smiled a crafty and malicious smile, which would have chilled
+M. de Coralth’s very blood if he had chanced to see it. “I am not so
+stupid!” he replied. “We mustn’t frighten the fish till we are quite
+ready. Our net is the Chalusse estate, and Coralth and Valorsay will
+enter it of their own accord. It is not my plan, but M. Ferailleur’s.
+There’s a man for you! and if Mademoiselle Marguerite is worthy of him
+they will make a noble pair. Without suspecting it, your son has perhaps
+rendered us an important service this evening--”
+
+“Alas!” faltered Madame d’Argeles, “I am none the less ruined--the name
+of Chalusse is none the less dishonored!”
+
+She wanted to return to the drawing-room; but she was compelled to
+relinquish this idea. The expression of her face betrayed too plainly
+the terrible ordeal she had passed through. The servants had heard
+M. Wilkie’s parting words; and news of this sort flies about with
+the rapidity of lightning. That very night, indeed, it was currently
+reported at the clubs that there would be no more card-playing at the
+d’Argeles establishment, as that lady was a Chalusse, and consequently
+the aunt of the beautiful young girl whom M. and Madame de Fondege had
+taken under their protection.
+
+
+
+
+VIII.
+
+
+Unusual strength of character, unbounded confidence in one’s own energy,
+with thorough contempt of danger, and an invincible determination to
+triumph or perish, are all required of the person who, like Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, intrusts herself to the care of strangers--worse yet, to the
+care of actual enemies. It is no small matter to place yourself in the
+power of smooth-tongued hypocrites and impostors, who are anxious for
+your ruin, and whom you know to be capable of anything. And the task is
+a mighty one--to brave unknown dangers, perilous seductions, perfidious
+counsels, and perhaps even violence, at the same time retaining a calm
+eye and smiling lips. Yet such was the heroism that Marguerite, although
+scarcely twenty, displayed when she left the Hotel de Chalusse to accept
+the hospitality of the Fondege family. And, to crown all, she took
+Madame Leon with her--Madame Leon, whom she knew to be the Marquis de
+Valorsay’s spy.
+
+But, brave as she was, when the moment of departure came her heart
+almost failed her. There was despair in the parting glance she cast upon
+the princely mansion and the familiar faces of the servants. And there
+was no one to encourage or sustain her. Ah, yes! standing at a window
+on the second floor, with his forehead pressed close against the pane of
+glass, she saw the only friend she had in the world--the old magistrate
+who had defended, encouraged, and sustained her--the man who had
+promised her his assistance and advice, and prophesied ultimate success.
+
+“Shall I be a coward?” she thought; “shall I be unworthy of Pascal?” And
+she resolutely entered the carriage, mentally exclaiming: “The die is
+cast!”
+
+The General insisted that she should take a place beside Madame de
+Fondege on the back seat; while he found a place next to Madame Leon on
+the seat facing them. The drive was a silent and tedious one. The night
+was coming on; it was a time when all Paris was on the move, and
+the carriage was delayed at each street corner by a crowd of passing
+vehicles. The conversation was solely kept alive by the exertions of
+Madame de Fondege, whose shrill voice rose above the rumble of the
+wheels, as she chronicled the virtues of the late Count de Chalusse, and
+congratulated Mademoiselle Marguerite on the wisdom of her decision. Her
+remarks were of a commonplace description, and yet each word she uttered
+evinced intense satisfaction, almost delight, as if she had won some
+unexpected victory. Occasionally, the General leaned from the carriage
+window to see if the vehicle laden with Mademoiselle Marguerite’s trunks
+was following them, but he said nothing.
+
+At last they reached his residence in the Rue Pigalle. He alighted
+first, offered his hand successively to his wife, Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, and Madame Leon, and motioned the coachman to drive away.
+
+But the man did not stir. “Pardon--excuse me, monsieur,” he said, “but
+my employers bade--requested me----”
+
+“What?”
+
+“To ask you--you know, for the fare--thirty-five francs--not counting
+the little gratuity.”
+
+“Very well!--I will pay you to-morrow.”
+
+“Excuse me, monsieur; but if it is all the same to you, would you do so
+this evening? My employer said that the bill had been standing a long
+time already.”
+
+“What, scoundrel!”
+
+But Madame de Fondege, who was on the point of entering the house,
+suddenly stepped back, and drawing out her pocketbook, exclaimed:
+“That’s enough! Here are thirty-five francs.”
+
+The man went to his carriage lamp to count the money, and seeing that he
+had the exact amount--“And my gratuity?” he asked.
+
+“I give none to insolent people,” replied the General.
+
+“You should take a cab if you haven’t money enough to pay for coaches,”
+ replied the driver with an oath. “I’ll be even with you yet.”
+
+Marguerite heard no more, for Madame de Fondege caught her by the arm
+and hurried her up the staircase, saying: “Quick! we must make haste.
+Your baggage is here already, and we must see if the rooms I intended
+for you--for you and your companion--suit you.”
+
+When Marguerite reached the second floor, Madame de Fondege hunted
+in her pocket for her latch-key. Not finding it, she rang. A tall
+man-servant of impudent appearance and arrayed in a glaring livery
+opened the door, carrying an old battered iron candlestick, in which
+a tiny scrap of candle was glaring and flickering. “What!” exclaimed
+Madame de Fondege, “the reception-room not lighted yet? This is
+scandalous! What have you been doing in my absence? Come, make haste.
+Light the lamp. Tell the cook that I have some guests to dine with me.
+Call my maid. See that M. Gustave’s room is in order. Go down and see if
+the General doesn’t need your assistance about the baggage.”
+
+Finding it difficult to choose between so many contradictory orders, the
+servant did not choose at all. He placed his rusty candlestick on one
+of the side-tables in the reception-room, and gravely, without saying
+a single word, went out into the passage leading to the kitchen.
+“Evariste!” cried Madame de Fondege, crimson with anger, “Evariste, you
+insolent fellow!”
+
+As he deigned no reply, she rushed out in pursuit of him. And soon the
+sound of a violent altercation arose; the servant lavishing insults upon
+his mistress, and she unable to find any response, save, “I dismiss you;
+you are an insolent scamp--I dismiss you.”
+
+Madame Leon, who was standing near Mademoiselle Marguerite in the
+reception-room, seemed greatly amused. “This is a strange household,”
+ said she. “A fine beginning, upon my word.”
+
+But the worthy housekeeper was the last person on earth to whom
+Mademoiselle Marguerite wished to reveal her thoughts. “Hush, Leon,” she
+replied. “We are the cause of all this disturbance, and I am very sorry
+for it.”
+
+The retort that rose to the housekeeper’s lips was checked by the return
+of Madame de Fondege, followed by a servant-girl with a turn-up nose, a
+pert manner, and who carried a lighted candle in her hand.
+
+“How can I apologize, madame,” began Mademoiselle Marguerite, “for all
+the trouble I am giving you?”
+
+“Ah! my dear child, I’ve never been so happy. Come, come, and see your
+room.” And while they crossed several scantily-furnished apartments,
+Madame de Fondege continued: “It is I who ought to apologize to you. I
+fear you will pine for the splendors of the Hotel de Chalusse. We
+are not millionaires like your poor father. We have only a modest
+competence, no more. But here we are!”
+
+The maid had opened a door, and Mademoiselle Marguerite entered a
+good-sized room lighted by two windows, hung with soiled wall paper, and
+adorned with chintz curtains, from which the sun had extracted most of
+the coloring. Everything was in disorder here, and in fact, the whole
+room was extremely dirty. The bed was not made, the washstand was dirty,
+some woollen stockings were hanging over the side of the rumpled bed,
+and on the mantel-shelf stood an ancient clock, an empty beer bottle,
+and some glasses. On the floor, on the furniture, in the corners,
+everywhere in fact, stumps of cigars were scattered in profusion, as if
+they had positively rained down.
+
+“What!” gasped Madame de Fondege, “you haven’t put this room in order,
+Justine?”
+
+“Indeed, madame, I haven’t had time.”
+
+“But it’s more than a month since M. Gustave slept here?”
+
+“I know it; but madame must remember that I have been very much hurried
+this last month, having to do all the washing and ironing since the
+laundress----”
+
+“That’s sufficient,” interrupted Madame de Fondege. And turning to
+Marguerite, she said: “You will, I am sure, excuse this disorder, my
+dear child. By this time to-morrow the room shall be transformed into
+one of those dainty nests of muslin and flowers which young girls
+delight in.”
+
+Connected with this apartment, which was known to the household as the
+lieutenant’s room, there was a much smaller chamber lighted only by a
+single window, and originally intended for a dressing-room. It had two
+doors, one of them communicating with Marguerite’s room, and the
+other with the passage; and it was now offered to Madame Leon, who
+on comparing these quarters with the spacious suite of rooms she had
+occupied at the Hotel de Chalusse, had considerable difficulty in
+repressing a grimace. Still she did not hesitate nor even murmur. M. de
+Valorsay’s orders bound her to Marguerite, and she deemed it fortunate
+that she was allowed to follow her. And whether the marquis succeeded or
+not, he had promised her a sufficiently liberal reward to compensate
+for all personal discomfort. So, in the sweetest of voices, and with
+a feigned humility of manner, she declared this little room to be even
+much too good for a poor widow whose misfortunes had compelled her to
+abdicate her position in society.
+
+The attentions which M. and Madame de Fondege showed her contributed not
+a little to her resignation. Without knowing exactly what the General
+and his wife expected from Mademoiselle Marguerite, she was shrewd
+enough to divine that they hoped to gain some important advantage.
+Now her “dear child” had declared her to be a trusted friend, who was
+indispensable to her existence and comfort. “So these people will pay
+assiduous court to me,” she thought. And being quite ready to play
+a double part as the spy of the Marquis de Valorsay, and the Fondege
+family, and quite willing to espouse the latter’s cause should that
+prove to be the more remunerative course, she saw a long series of
+polite attentions and gifts before her.
+
+That very evening her prophecies were realized; and she received a proof
+of consideration which positively delighted her. It was decided that
+she should take her meals at the family table, a thing which had never
+happened at the Hotel de Chalusse. Mademoiselle Marguerite raised a few
+objections, which Madame Leon answered with a venomous look, but Madame
+de Fondege insisted upon the arrangement, not understanding, she said,
+graciously, why they need deprive themselves of the society of such an
+agreeable and distinguished person. Madame Leon in no wise doubted but
+this favor was due to her merit alone, but Mademoiselle Marguerite, who
+was more discerning, saw that their hostess was really furious at the
+idea, but was compelled to submit to it by the imperious necessity of
+preventing Madame Leon from coming in contact with the servants, who
+might make some decidedly compromising disclosures. For there were
+evidently many little mysteries and make-shifts to be concealed in this
+household. For instance, while the servants were carrying the luggage
+upstairs, Marguerite discovered Madame de Fondege and her maid in
+close consultation, whispering with that volubility which betrays an
+unexpected and pressing perplexity. What were they talking about? She
+listened without any compunctions of conscience, and the words “a pair
+of sheets,” repeated again and again, furnished her with abundant food
+for reflection. “Is it possible,” she thought, “that they have no sheets
+to give us?”
+
+It did not take her long to discover the maid’s opinion of the
+establishment in which she served; for while she brandished her broom
+and duster, this girl, exasperated undoubtedly by the increase of work
+she saw in store for her, growled and cursed the old barrack where one
+was worked to death, where one never had enough to eat, and where the
+wages were always in arrears. Mademoiselle Marguerite was doing her
+best to aid the maid, who was greatly surprised to find this handsome,
+queenly young lady so obliging, when Evariste, the same who had received
+warning an hour before, made his appearance, and announced in an
+insolent tone that “Madame la Comtesse was served.”
+
+For Madame de Fondege exacted this title. She had improvised it, as
+her husband had improvised his title of General, and without much more
+difficulty. By a search in the family archives she had discovered--so
+she declared to her intimate friends--that she was the descendant of a
+noble family, and that one of her ancestors had held a most important
+position at the court of Francis I. or of Louis XII. Indeed, she
+sometimes confounded them. However, people who had not known her father,
+the wood merchant, saw nothing impossible in the statements.
+
+Evariste was dressed as a butler should be dressed when he announces
+dinner to a person of rank. In the daytime when he discharged the duties
+of footman, he was gorgeous in gold lace; but in the evening, he arrayed
+himself in severe black, such as is appropriate to the butler of an
+aristocratic household. Immediately after his announcement everybody
+repaired to the sumptuous dining-room which, with its huge side-boards,
+loaded with silver and rare china, looked not unlike a museum. Such was
+the display, indeed, that when Mademoiselle Marguerite took a seat at
+the table, between the General and his wife, and opposite Madame Leon,
+she asked herself if she had not been the victim of that dangerous
+optical delusion known as prejudice. She noticed that the supply of
+knives and forks was rather scanty; but many economical housewives keep
+most of their silver under lock and key; besides the china was very
+handsome and marked with the General’s monogram, surmounted by his
+wife’s coronet.
+
+However, the dinner was badly cooked and poorly served. One might have
+supposed it to be a scullery maid’s first attempt. Still the General
+devoured it with delight. He partook ravenously of every dish, a flush
+rose to his cheeks, and an expression of profound satisfaction was
+visible upon his countenance. “From this,” thought Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, “I must infer that he usually goes hungry, and that this
+seems a positive feast to him.” In fact, he seemed bubbling over with
+contentment. He twirled his mustaches a la Victor Emmanuel, and rolled
+his “r,” as he said, “Sacr-r-r-r-r-e bleu!” even more ferociously than
+usual. It was only by a powerful effort that he restrained himself from
+indulging in various witticisms which would have been most unseemly in
+the presence of a poor girl who had just lost her father and all her
+hopes of fortune. But he did forget himself so much as to say that the
+drive to the cemetery had whetted his appetite, and to address his wife
+as Madame Range-a-bord, a title which had been bestowed upon her by a
+sailor brother.
+
+Crimson with anger to the very roots of her coarse, sandy hair--amazed
+to see her husband deport himself in this style, and almost suffocated
+by the necessity of restraining her wrath, Madame de Fondege was heroic
+enough to smile, though her eyes flashed ominously. But the General was
+not at all dismayed. On the contrary, he cared so little for his wife’s
+displeasure that, when the dessert was served, he turned to the servant,
+and, with a wink that Mademoiselle Marguerite noticed, “Evariste,” he
+ordered, “go to the wine-cellar, and bring me a bottle of old Bordeaux.”
+
+The valet, who had just received a week’s notice, was only too glad of
+an opportunity for revenge. So with a malicious smile, and in a drawling
+tone, he replied: “Then monsieur must give me the money. Monsieur knows
+very well that neither the grocer nor the wine-merchant will trust him
+any longer.”
+
+M. de Fondege rose from the table, looking very pale; but before he had
+time to utter a word, his wife came to the rescue. “You know, my dear,
+that I don’t trust the key of my cellar to this lad. Evariste, call
+Justine.”
+
+The pert-looking chambermaid appeared, and her mistress told her where
+she would find the key of the famous cellar. About a quarter of an hour
+afterward, one of those bottles which grocers and wine-merchants prepare
+for the benefit of credulous customers was brought in--a bottle duly
+covered with dust and mould to give it a venerable appearance, and
+festooned with cobwebs, such as the urchins of Paris collect and sell at
+from fifteen sous to two francs a pound, according to quality. But the
+Bordeaux did not restore the General’s equanimity. He was silent and
+subdued; and his relief was evident when, after the coffee had been
+served, his wife exclaimed: “We won’t keep you from your club, my dear.
+I want a chat with our dear child.”
+
+Since she dismissed the General so unceremoniously, Madame de Fondege
+evidently wished for a tete-a-tete with Mademoiselle Marguerite. At
+least Madame Leon thought so, or feigned to think so, and addressing the
+young girl, she said: “I shall be obliged to leave you for a couple of
+hours, my dear young lady. My relatives would never forgive me if I did
+not inform them of my change of residence.”
+
+This was the first time since she had been engaged by the Count de
+Chalusse, that the estimable “companion” had ever made any direct
+allusion to her relatives, and what is more, to relatives residing in
+Paris. She had previously only spoken of them in general terms, giving
+people to understand that her relatives had not been unfortunate like
+herself--that they still retained their exalted rank, though she had
+fallen, and that she found it difficult to decline the favors they
+longed to heap upon her.
+
+However, Mademoiselle Marguerite evinced no surprise. “Go at once and
+inform your relatives, my dear Leon,” she said, without a shade of
+sarcasm in her manner. “I hope they won’t be offended by your devotion
+to me.” But in her secret heart, she thought: “This hypocrite is going
+to report to the Marquis de Valorsay, and these relatives of hers will
+furnish her with excuses for future visits to him.”
+
+The General went off, the servants began to clear the table, and
+Mademoiselle Marguerite followed her hostess to the drawing-room. It was
+a lofty and spacious apartment, lighted by three windows, and even more
+sumptuous in its appointments than the dining-room. Furniture, carpets,
+and hangings, were all in rather poor taste, perhaps, but costly, very
+costly. As the evening was a cold one, Madame de Fondege ordered the
+fire to be lighted. She seated herself on a sofa near the mantelpiece,
+and when Mademoiselle Marguerite had taken a chair opposite her, she
+began, “Now, my dear child, let us have a quiet talk.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite expected some important communication, so that
+she was not a little surprised when Madame de Fondege resumed: “Have you
+thought about your mourning?”
+
+“About my mourning, madame?”
+
+“Yes. I mean, have you decided what dresses you will purchase? It is
+an important matter, my dear--more important than you suppose. They are
+making costumes entirely of crepe now, puffed and plaited, and extremely
+stylish. I saw one that would suit you well. You may think that a
+costume for deep mourning made with puffs would be a trifle LOUD, but
+that depends upon tastes. The Duchess de Veljo wore one only eleven days
+after her husband’s death; and she allowed some of her hair, which is
+superb, to fall over her shoulders, a la pleureuse, and the effect was
+extremely touching.” Was Madame de Fondege speaking sincerely? There
+could be no doubt of it. Her features, which had been distorted with
+anger when the General took it into his head to order the bottle of
+Bordeaux, had regained their usual placidity of expression, and had even
+brightened a little. “I am entirely at your service, my dear, if you
+wish any shopping done,” she continued. “And if you are not quite
+pleased with your dressmaker, I will take you to mine, who works like an
+angel. But how absurd I am. You will of course employ Van Klopen. I go
+to him occasionally myself, but only on great occasions. Between you and
+me, I think him a trifle too high in his charges.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite could scarcely repress a smile. “I must confess,
+madame, that from my infancy I have been in the habit of making almost
+all my dresses myself.”
+
+The General’s wife raised her eyes to Heaven in real or feigned
+astonishment. “Yourself!” she repeated four or five times, as if to make
+sure that she had heard aright. “Yourself! That is incomprehensible!
+You, the daughter of a man who possessed an income of five or six
+hundred thousand francs a year! Still I know that poor M. de Chalusse,
+though unquestionably a very worthy and excellent man, was peculiar in
+some of his ideas.”
+
+“Excuse me, madame. What I did, I did for my own pleasure.”
+
+But this assertion exceeded Madame de Fondege’s powers of comprehension.
+“Impossible!” she murmured, “impossible! But, my poor child, what did
+you do for fashions--for patterns?”
+
+The immense importance she attached to the matter was so manifest that
+Marguerite could not refrain from smiling. “I was probably not a very
+close follower of the fashions,” she replied. “The dress that I am
+wearing now----.”
+
+“Is very pretty, my child, and it becomes you extremely; that’s the
+truth. Only, to be frank, I must confess that this style is no longer
+worn--no--not at all. You must have your new dresses made in quite a
+different way.”
+
+“But I already have more dresses than I need, madame.”
+
+“What! black dresses?”
+
+“I seldom wear anything but black.”
+
+Evidently her hostess had never heard anything like this before. “Oh!
+all right,” said she, “these dresses will doubtless do very well for
+your first months of mourning--but afterward? Do you suppose, my poor
+dear, that I’m going to allow you to shut yourself up as you did at the
+Hotel de Chalusse? Good heavens! how dull it must have been for you,
+alone in that big house, without society or friends.”
+
+A tear fell from Marguerite’s long lashes. “I was very happy there,
+madame,” she murmured.
+
+“You think so; but you will change your mind. When one has never tasted
+real pleasure, one cannot realize how gloomy one’s life really is. No
+doubt, you were very unhappy alone with M. de Chalusse.”
+
+“Oh! madame----”
+
+“Tut! tut! my dear, I know what I am talking about. Wait until you have
+been introduced into society before you boast of the charms of solitude.
+Poor dear! I doubt if you have ever attended a ball in your whole life.
+No! I was sure of it, and you are twenty! Fortunately, I am here. I will
+take your mother’s place, and we will make up for lost time! Beautiful
+as you are, my child--for you are divinely beautiful--you will reign as
+a queen wherever you appear. Doesn’t that thought make that cold little
+heart of yours throb more quickly? Ah! fetes and music, wonderful
+toilettes and the flashing of diamonds, the admiration of gentlemen,
+the envy of rivals, the consciousness of one’s own beauty, are these
+delights not enough to fill any woman’s life? It is intoxication,
+perhaps, but an intoxication which is happiness.”
+
+Was she sincere, or did she hope to dazzle this lonely girl, and then
+rule her through the tastes she might succeed in giving her? As is not
+unfrequently the case with callous natures, Madame de Fondege was a
+compound of frankness and cunning. What she was saying now she really
+meant; and as it was to her interest to say it, she urged her opinions
+boldly and even eloquently. Twenty-four hours earlier, proud and
+truthful Marguerite would have silenced her at once. She would have told
+her that such pleasures could never have any charm for her, and that she
+felt only scorn and disgust for such worthless aims and sordid desires.
+But having resolved to appear a dupe, she concealed her real feelings
+under an air of surprise, and was astonished and even ashamed to find
+that she could dissemble so well.
+
+“Besides,” continued Madame de Fondege, “a marriageable young girl
+should never shut herself up like a nun. She will never find a husband
+if she remains at home--and she must marry. Indeed, marriage is a
+sensible woman’s only object in life, since it is her emancipation.”
+
+Was Madame de Fondege going to plead her son’s cause? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite almost believed it--but the lady was too shrewd for that. She
+took good care not to mention as much as Lieutenant Gustave’s name.
+
+“The season will certainly be unusually brilliant,” she said, “and
+it will begin very early. On the fifth of November, the Countess de
+Commarin will give a superb fete; all Paris will be there. On the
+seventh, there will be a ball at the house of the Viscountess de Bois
+d’Ardon. On the eleventh, there will be a concert, followed by a ball,
+at the superb mansion of the Baroness Trigault--you know--the wife of
+that strange man who spends all his time in playing cards.”
+
+“This is the first time I ever heard the name mentioned.”
+
+“Really! and you have been living in Paris for years. It seems
+incomprehensible. You must know then, my dear little ignoramus, that the
+Baroness Trigault is one of the most distinguished ladies in Paris, and
+certainly the best dressed. I am sure her bill at Van Klopen’s is not
+less than a hundred thousand francs a year--and that is saying enough,
+is it not?” And with genuine pride, she added: “The baroness is my
+friend. I will introduce you to her.”
+
+Having once started on this theme, Madame de Fondege was not easily
+silenced. It was evidently her ambition to be considered a woman of the
+world, and to be acquainted with all the leaders of fashionable society;
+and, in fact, if one listened to her conversation for an hour one could
+learn all the gossip of the day. Though she was unable to interest
+herself in this tittle-tattle, Marguerite was pretending to listen to it
+with profound attention when the drawing-room door suddenly opened and
+Evariste appeared with an impudent smile on his face. “Madame Landoire,
+the milliner, is here, and desires to speak with Madame la Comtesse,” he
+said.
+
+On hearing this name, Madame de Fondege started as if she had been
+stung by a viper. “Let her wait,” she said quickly. “I will see her in a
+moment.”
+
+The order was useless, for the visitor was already on the threshold.
+She was a tall, dark-haired, ill-mannered woman. “Ah! I’ve found you
+at last,” she said, rudely, “and I’m not sorry. This is the fourth time
+I’ve come here with my bill.”
+
+Madame de Fondege pointed to Mademoiselle Marguerite, and exclaimed:
+“Wait, at least, until I am alone before you speak to me on business.”
+
+Madame Landoire shrugged her shoulders. “As if you were ever alone,” she
+growled. “I wish to put an end to this.”
+
+“Step into my room then, and we will put an end to it, and at once.”
+
+This opportunity to escape from Madame de Fondege must not be allowed
+to pass; so Marguerite asked permission to withdraw, declaring, what was
+really the truth, that she felt completely tired out. After receiving
+a maternal kiss from her hostess, accompanied by a “sleep well, my dear
+child,” she retired to her own room. Thanks to Madame Leon’s absence,
+she found herself alone, and, drawing a blotting-pad from one of her
+trunks, she hastily wrote a note to M. Isidore Fortunat, telling him
+that she would call upon him on the following Tuesday. “I must be very
+awkward,” she thought, “if to-morrow, on going to mass, I can’t find
+an opportunity to throw this note into a letter-box without being
+observed.”
+
+It was fortunate that she had lost no time, for her writing-case was
+scarcely in its place again before Madame Leon entered, evidently out of
+sorts. “Well,” asked Marguerite, “did you see your friends?”
+
+“Don’t speak of it, my dear young lady; they were all of them away from
+home--they had gone to the play.”
+
+“Ah?”
+
+“So I shall go again early to-morrow morning; you must realize how
+important it is.”
+
+“Yes, I understand.”
+
+But Madame Leon, who was usually so loquacious, did not seem to be in a
+talkative mood that evening, and, after kissing her dear young lady, she
+went into her own room.
+
+“She did not succeed in finding the Marquis de Valorsay,” thought
+Marguerite, “and being in doubt as to the part she is to play, she feels
+furious.”
+
+The young girl tried to sum up the impressions of the evening, and to
+decide upon a plan of conduct, but she felt sad and very weary. She said
+to herself that rest would be more beneficial than anything else, and
+that her mind would be clearer on the morrow; so after a fervent prayer
+in which Pascal Ferailleur’s name was mentioned several times, she
+prepared for bed. But before she fell asleep she was able to collect
+another bit of evidence. The sheets on her bed were new.
+
+If Marguerite had been born in the Hotel de Chalusse, if she had known a
+father’s and a mother’s tender care from her infancy, if she had always
+been protected by a large fortune from the stern realities of life,
+there would have been no hope for her now that she was left poor and
+alone--for how can a girl avoid dangers she is ignorant of? But from her
+earliest childhood Marguerite had studied the difficult science of real
+life under the best of teachers--misfortune. Cast upon her own resources
+at the age of thirteen, she had learned to look upon everybody and
+everything with distrust; and by relying only on herself, she had become
+strangely cautious and clear-sighted. She knew how to watch and how
+to listen, how to deliberate and how to act. Two men, the Marquis de
+Valorsay and M. de Fondege’s son, coveted her hand; and one of the two,
+the marquis, so she believed, was capable of any crime. Still she felt
+no fears. She had been in danger once before when she was little more
+than a child, when the brother of her employer insulted her with his
+attentions, but she had escaped unharmed.
+
+Deceit was certainly most repugnant to her truth-loving nature; but it
+was the only weapon of defence she possessed. And so on the following
+day she carefully studied the abode of her entertainers. And certainly
+the study was instructive. The General’s household was truly Parisian
+in character; or, at least, it was what a Parisian household inevitably
+becomes when its inmates fall a prey to the constantly increasing
+passion for luxury and display, to the furore for aping the habits and
+expenditure of millionaires, and to the noble and elevated desire of
+humiliating and outshining their neighbors. Ease, health, and comfort
+had been unscrupulously sacrificed to show. The dining-room was
+magnificent, the drawing-room superb; but these were the only
+comfortably furnished apartments in the establishment. The other rooms
+were bare and desolate. It is true that Madame de Fondege had a handsome
+wardrobe with glass doors in her own room, but this was an article
+which the friend of the fashionable Baroness Trigault could not possibly
+dispense with. On the other hand, her bed had no curtains.
+
+The aspect of the place fittingly explained the habits and manners of
+the inmates. What sinister fears must have haunted them! for how could
+this extreme destitution in one part of the establishment be reconciled
+with the luxury noticeable in the other, except by the fact that a
+desperate struggle to keep up appearances was constantly going on? And
+this constant anxiety made out-door noise, excitement, and gayety a
+necessity of their existence, and caused them to welcome anything that
+took them from the home where they had barely sufficient to deceive
+society, and not enough to impose upon their creditors. “And they keep
+three servants,” thought Mademoiselle Marguerite--“three enemies who
+spend their time in ridiculing them, and torturing their vanity.”
+
+Thus, on the very first day after her arrival, she realized the real
+situation of the General and his wife. They were certainly on the
+verge of ruin when Mademoiselle Marguerite accepted their hospitality.
+Everything went to prove this: the coachman’s insolent demand, the
+servants’ impudence, the grocer’s refusal to furnish a single bottle of
+wine on credit, the milliner’s persistence, and, lastly, the new
+sheets on the visitors’ beds. “Yes,” thought Mademoiselle Marguerite to
+herself, “the Fondeges were ruined when I came here. They would never
+have sunk so low if they had not been utterly destitute of resources.
+So, if they rise again, if money and credit come back again, then the
+old magistrate is right--they have obtained possession of the Chalusse
+millions!”
+
+
+
+
+IX
+
+
+On this side, at least, Mademoiselle Marguerite had no very wide field
+of investigation to explore. Her common sense told her that her task
+would merely consist in carefully watching the behavior of the General
+and his wife, in noting their expenditure, and so on. It was a matter
+of close attention, and of infinitesimal trifles. Nor was she much
+encouraged by her first success. It was, perhaps, important; and yet
+it might be nothing. For she felt that the real difficulties would not
+begin until she became morally certain that the General had stolen the
+millions that were missing from the count’s escritoire. Even then it
+would remain for her to discover how he had obtained possession of
+this money. And when she had succeeded in doing this, would her task be
+ended? Certainly not. She must obtain sufficient evidence to give her
+the right of accusing the General openly, and in the face of every one.
+She must have material and indisputable proofs before she could say: “A
+robbery has been committed. I was accused of it. I was innocent. Here is
+the culprit!”
+
+What a long journey must be made before this goal was reached! No
+matter! Now that she had a positive and fixed point of departure, she
+felt that she possessed enough energy to sustain her in her endeavors
+for years, if need be. What troubled her most was that she could not
+logically explain the conduct of her enemies from the time M. de Fondege
+had asked her hand for his son up to the present moment. And first, why
+had they been so audacious or so imprudent as to bring her to their own
+home if they had really stolen one of those immense amounts that are
+sure to betray their possessors? “They are mad,” she thought, “or else
+they must deem me blind, deaf, and more stupid than mortal ever was!”
+ Secondly, why should they be so anxious to marry her to their son,
+Lieutenant Gustave? This also was a puzzling question. However, she was
+fully decided on one point: the suspicions of the Fondege family must
+not be aroused. If they were on their guard, it would be the easiest
+thing in the world for them to pay their debts quietly, and increase
+their expenditure so imperceptibly that she would not be able to prove a
+sudden acquisition of wealth.
+
+But the events of the next few days dispelled these apprehensions. That
+very afternoon, although it was Sunday, it became evident that a
+shower of gold had fallen on the General’s abode. The door-bell rang
+incessantly for several hours, and an interminable procession of
+tradesmen entered. It looked very much as if M. de Fondege had called a
+meeting of his creditors. They came in haughty and arrogant, with their
+hats upon their heads, and surly of speech, like people who have made
+up their minds to accept their loss, but who intend to pay themselves in
+rudeness. They were ushered into the drawing-room where the General was
+holding his levee; they remained there from five to ten minutes,
+and then, bowing low with hat in hand, they retired with radiant
+countenances, and an obsequious smile on their lips. So they had been
+paid. And as if to prove to Mademoiselle Marguerite that her suspicions
+were correct, she chanced to be present when the livery stable-keeper
+presented his bill.
+
+Madame de Fondege received him very haughtily. “Ah! here you are!”
+ she exclaimed, rudely, as soon as he appeared. “So you are the man who
+teaches his drivers to insult his customers? That is an excellent way to
+gain patronage. What! I hire a one-horse carriage from you by the month,
+and because I happen to wish for a two-horse vehicle for a single day,
+you make me pay the difference. You should demand payment in advance if
+you are so suspicious.”
+
+The stable-keeper, who had a bill for nearly four thousand francs in
+his pocket, stood listening with the air of a man who is meditating some
+crushing reply; but she did not give him time to deliver it. “When
+I have cause to complain of the people I employ, I dismiss them and
+replace them by others. Insolence is one of those things that I never
+forgive. Give me your bill.”
+
+The man, in whose face doubt, fear, and hope had succeeded each other in
+swift succession, thereupon drew an interminable bill from his pocket.
+And when he saw the bank-notes, when he saw the bill paid without
+dispute or even examination, he was seized with a wondering respect, and
+his voice became sweeter than honey. They say the payment of a bad debt
+delights a merchant a thousand times more than the settlement of fifty
+good ones. The truth of this assertion became apparent in the present
+case. Mademoiselle Marguerite thought the man was going to beg “Madame
+la Comtesse to do him the favor to withhold a portion of the small
+amount.” For the Parisian tradesman is so constituted that very
+frequently it is not necessary to pay him money, but only to show it.
+
+However, this creditor’s abnegation did not extend so far; still he did
+entreat Madame la Comtesse not to leave him on account of a blunder--for
+it was a blunder--he swore it on his children’s heads. His coachman was
+only a fool and a drunkard, who had misunderstood him entirely, and whom
+he should ignominiously dismiss on returning to his establishment.
+But “Madame la Comtesse” was inflexible. She sent the man about his
+business, saying, “I never place myself in a position to be treated with
+disrespect a second time.”
+
+This probably accounted for the fact that Evariste, the footman, who had
+been so wanting in respect the previous evening, had been sent away that
+very morning. Mademoiselle Marguerite did not see him again. Dinner was
+served by a new servant, who had been sent by an Employment Office, and
+engaged without a question, no doubt because Evariste’s livery fitted
+him like a glove. Had the cook also been replaced? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite thought so, though she had no means of convincing herself on
+this point. It was certain, however, that the Sunday dinner was utterly
+unlike that of the evening before. Quality had replaced quantity, and
+care, profusion. It was not necessary to send to the cellar for a bottle
+of Chateau-Laroze; it made its appearance at the proper moment, warmed
+to the precise degree of temperature, and seemed quite to the taste of
+excellent Madame Leon.
+
+In twenty-four hours the Fondege family had been raised to such
+affluence that they must have asked themselves if it were possible they
+had ever known the agonies of that life of false appearances and sham
+luxury which is a thousand times worse than an existence of abject
+poverty. “Is it possible that I am deceived?” Marguerite said to
+herself, on retiring to her room that evening. For it surprised her that
+a keen-sighted person like Madame Leon should not have remarked this
+revolution; but the worthy companion merely declared the General and his
+wife to be charming people, and did not cease to congratulate her dear
+young lady upon having accepted their hospitality. “I feel quite at home
+here,” said she; “and though my room is a trifle small, I shall have
+nothing to wish for when it has been refurnished.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite spent a restless and uncomfortable night. In
+spite of her reason, in spite of the convincing proofs she had seen, the
+most disturbing doubts returned. Might she not have judged the situation
+with a prejudiced mind? Had the Fondeges really been as reduced in
+circumstances as she supposed? Like every one who has been unfortunate,
+she feared illusions, and was extremely distrustful of everything
+that seemed to favor her hopes and wishes. The only thing that
+really encouraged her was the thought that she could consult the old
+magistrate, and that M. de Chalusse’s former agent might succeed in
+finding Pascal Ferailleur. M. Fortunat must have received her letter
+by this time: he would undoubtedly expect her on Tuesday, and it only
+remained for her to invent some excuse which would give her a couple of
+hours’ liberty without awakening suspicion.
+
+She rose early the next morning, and had almost completed her toilette,
+when she heard some one in the passage outside rapping at the door of
+Madame Leon’s room. “Who’s there?” inquired that worthy lady.
+
+It was Justine, Madame de Fondege’s maid, who answered in a pert voice,
+“Here is a letter, madame, which has just been sent up by the concierge.
+It is addressed to Madame Leon. That is your name, is it not?”
+
+Marguerite staggered as if she had received a heavy blow. “My God! a
+letter from the Marquis de Valorsay!” she thought.
+
+It was evident that the estimable lady was expecting this missive by
+the eagerness with which she sprang out of bed and opened the door.
+And Marguerite heard her say to the servant in her sweetest voice: “A
+thousand thanks, my child! Ah! this is a great relief, I have heard from
+my brother-in-law at last. I recognize his hand-writing.” And then the
+door closed again.
+
+Standing silent and motionless in the middle of her room, Marguerite
+listened with that feverish anxiety that excites the perceptive
+faculties to the utmost degree. An inward voice, stronger than reason,
+told her that this letter threatened her happiness, her future, perhaps
+her life! But how could she convince herself of the truth of this
+presentiment? If she had followed her first impulse, she would have
+rushed into Madame Leon’s room and have snatched the letter from her
+hands. But if she did this, she would betray herself, and prove that she
+was not the dupe they supposed her to be, and this supposition on the
+part of her enemies constituted her only chance of salvation.
+
+If she could only watch Madame Leon as she read the letter, and gain
+some information from the expression of her face; but this seemed
+impossible, for the keyhole was blocked up by the key, which had been
+left in the lock on the other side. Suddenly a crack in the partition
+attracted her attention, and finding that it extended through the wall,
+she realized she might watch what was passing in the adjoining room. So
+she approached the spot on tiptoe, and, with bated breath, stooped and
+looked in.
+
+In her impatience to learn the contents of her letter, Madame Leon
+had not gone back to bed. She had broken the seal, and was reading the
+missive, standing barefooted in her night-dress, directly opposite the
+little crevice. She read line after line, and word after word, and
+her knitted brows and compressed lips suggested deep concentration of
+thought mingled with discontent. At last she shrugged her shoulders,
+muttered a few inaudible words, and laid the open letter upon the
+rickety chest of drawers, which, with two chairs and a bed, constituted
+the entire furniture of her apartment.
+
+“My God!” exclaimed Marguerite, with bated breath, “if she would only
+forget it!”
+
+But she did not forget it. She began to dress, and when she had finished
+she read the letter again, and then placed it carefully in one of the
+drawers, which she locked, putting the key in her pocket.
+
+“I shall never know, then,” thought Marguerite; “no, I shall never know.
+But I must know--and I will!” she added vehemently.
+
+From that moment a firm determination to obtain that letter took
+possession of her mind; and so deeply was she occupied in seeking for
+some means to surmount the difficulties which stood in her way that she
+did not say a dozen words during breakfast. “I must be a fool if I can’t
+find some way of gaining possession of that letter,” she said to herself
+again and again. “I’m sure I could find in it the explanation of the
+abominable intrigue which Pascal and I are the victims of.”
+
+Happily, her preoccupation was not remarked. Each person present was too
+deeply engrossed in his or her own concerns to notice the behavior of
+the others. Madame Leon’s mind was occupied with the news she had just
+received; and, besides, her attention was considerably attracted by some
+partridges garnished with truffles, and a bottle of Chateau-Laroze.
+For she was rather fond of good living, the dear lady, as she confessed
+herself, adding that no one is perfect. The General talked of nothing
+but a certain pair of horses which he was to look at that afternoon, and
+which he thought of buying--being quite disgusted with job-masters, so
+he declared. Besides, he expected to get the animals at a bargain, as
+they were the property of a young gentleman who had been led to commit
+certain misdemeanors by his love of gambling and his passion for a
+notorious woman who was addicted with an insatiable desire for jewelry.
+
+As for Madame de Fondege, her head seemed to have been completely turned
+by the prospect of the approaching fete at the Countess de Commarin’s.
+She had only a fortnight left to make her preparations. All the evening
+before, through part of the night, and ever since she had been awake
+that morning, she had been racking her brain to arrive at an effective
+combination of colors and materials. And at the cost of a terrible
+headache, she had at last conceived one of those toilettes which are
+sure to make a sensation, and which the newspaper reporters will mention
+as noticeable for its “chic.” “Picture to yourself,” she said, all
+ablaze with enthusiasm, “picture to yourself a robe of tea-flower silk,
+trimmed with bands of heavy holland-tinted satin, thickly embroidered
+with flowers. A wide flounce of Valenciennes at the bottom of the skirt.
+Over this, I shall wear a tunic of pearl-gray crepe, edged with a fringe
+of the various shades in the dress, and forming a panier behind.”
+
+But how much trouble, time and labor must be expended before such an
+elaborate chef-d’oeuvre could be completed! How many conferences with
+the dressmaker, with the florist, and the embroiderer! How many doubts,
+how many inevitable mistakes! Ah! there was not a moment to lose! Madame
+de Fondege, who was dressed to go out, and who had already sent for a
+carriage, insisted that Mademoiselle Marguerite should accompany her.
+And certainly, the General’s wife deemed the proposal a seductive one.
+It is a very fashionable amusement to run from one shop to another,
+even when one cannot, or will not, buy. It is a custom, which some
+noble ladies have imported from America, to the despair of the poor
+shopkeepers. And thus every fine afternoon, the swell shops are filled
+to overflowing with richly-attired dames and damsels, who ask to see all
+the new goods. It is far more amusing than remaining at home. And when
+they return to dinner in the evening, after inspecting hundreds of yards
+of silk and satin, they are very well pleased with themselves, for they
+have not lost the day. Nor do the shrewdest always return from these
+expeditions empty-handed. A dozen gloves or a piece of lace can be
+hidden so easily in the folds of a mantle!
+
+And yet, to Madame de Fondege’s great surprise, Marguerite declined the
+invitation. “I have so many things to put in order,” she added, feeling
+that an excuse was indispensable.
+
+But Madame Leon, who had not the same reasons as her dear child
+for wishing to remain at home, kindly offered her services. She was
+acquainted with several of the best shops, she declared, particularly
+with the establishment of a dealer in laces, in the Rue de Mulhouse, and
+thanks to an introduction from her, Madame de Fondege could not fail to
+conclude a very advantageous bargain there. “Very well,” replied Madame
+de Fondege, “I will take you with me, then; but make haste and dress
+while I put on my bonnet.”
+
+They left the breakfast-room at the same time, closely followed by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, who was disturbed by a hope which she scarcely
+dared confess to herself. With her forehead resting against the wall,
+and her eye peering through the tiny crack, she watched her governess
+change her dress, throw a shawl over her shoulders, put on her best
+bonnet, and, after a glance at the looking-glass, rush from the room,
+exclaiming: “Here I am, my dear countess. I’m ready.”
+
+And a few moments afterward they left the house together.
+
+As the outer door closed after them, Marguerite’s brain whirled. If she
+were not deceived, Madame Leon had left the key of the drawers in the
+pocket of the dress she had just taken off. So it was with a wildly
+throbbing heart that she opened the communicating door and entered her
+“companion’s” room. She hastily approached the bed on which the dress
+was lying, and, with a trembling hand, she began to search for the
+pocket. Fortune favored her! The key was there. The letter was within
+her reach. But she was about to do a deed against which her whole nature
+revolted. To steal a key, to force an article of furniture open, and
+violate the secret of a private correspondence, these were actions so
+repugnant to her sense of honor, and her pride, that for some time she
+stood irresolute. At last the instinct of self-preservation overpowered
+her scruples. Was not her honor, and Pascal’s honor also, at stake--as
+well as their mutual love and happiness? “It would be folly to
+hesitate.” she murmured. And with a firm hand she placed the key in the
+lock.
+
+The latter was out of order and the drawer was only opened with
+difficulty. But there, on some clothes which Madame Leon had not yet
+found time to arrange, Marguerite saw the letter. She eagerly snatched
+it up, unfolded it, and read: “Dear Madame Leon--” “Dear me,” she
+muttered, “here is the name in full. This is an indiscretion which will
+render denial difficult.” And she resumed her perusal: “Your letter,
+which I have just received, confirms what my servants had already
+told me: that twice during my absence--on Saturday evening and Sunday
+morning--you called at my house to see me.” So Mademoiselle Marguerite’s
+penetration had served her well. All this talk about anxious relatives
+had only been an excuse invented by Madame Leon to enable her to absent
+herself whenever occasion required. “I regret,” continued the letter,
+“that you did not find me at home, for I have instructions of the
+greatest importance to give you. We are approaching the decisive moment.
+I have formed a plan which will completely, and forever, efface all
+remembrance of that cursed P. F., in case any one condescended to think
+of him after the disgrace we fastened upon him the other evening at the
+house of Madame d’Argeles.” P. F.--these initials of course meant
+Pascal Ferailleur. Then he was innocent, and she held an undeniable,
+irrefutable proof of his innocence in her hands. How coolly and
+impudently Valorsay confessed his atrocious crime! “A bold stroke is in
+contemplation which, if no unfortunate and well-nigh impossible accident
+occur, will throw the girl into my arms.” Marguerite shuddered. “The
+girl” referred to her, of course. “Thanks to the assistance of one of my
+friends,” added the letter “I can place this proud damsel in a perilous,
+terribly perilous position, from which she cannot possibly extricate
+herself unaided. But, just as she gives herself up for lost, I shall
+interpose. I shall save her; and it will be strange if gratitude does
+not work the necessary miracle in my favor. The plan is certain to
+succeed. Still, it will be all the better if the physician who attended
+M. de C---- in his last moments, and whom you spoke to me about (Dr.
+Jodon, if I remember rightly), will consent to lend us a helping hand.
+What kind of a man is he? If he is accessible to the seductive influence
+of a few thousand francs, I shall consider the business as good as
+concluded. Your conduct up to the present time has been a chef-d’oeuvre,
+for which you shall be amply compensated. You have cause to know that
+I am not ungrateful. Let the F’s continue their intrigues, and even
+pretend to favor them. I am not afraid of these people. I understand
+their game perfectly, and know why they wish my little one to marry
+their son. But when they become troublesome, I shall crush them like
+glass. In spite of these explanations, which I have just given you for
+your guidance, it is very necessary that I should see you. I shall look
+for you on Tuesday afternoon, between three and four o’clock. Above all,
+don’t fail to bring me the desired information respecting Dr. Jodon. I
+am, my dear madame, devotedly yours--V.” Below ran a postscript which
+read as follows: “When you come on Tuesday bring this letter with you.
+We will burn it together. Don’t imagine that I distrust you--but there
+is nothing so dangerous as letters.”
+
+For some time Marguerite stood, stunned and appalled by the Marquis de
+Valorsay’s audacity, and by the language of this letter, which was at
+once so obscure and so clear, every line of it threatening her future.
+The reality surpassed her worst apprehensions, but realizing the gravity
+of the situation, she shook off the torpor stealing over her. She felt
+that every second was precious, and that she must act, and act at once.
+But what should she do? Simply return the letter to its place, and
+continue to act the role of a dupe, as if nothing had happened? No; that
+must not be. It would be madness not to seize this flagrant proof of
+the Marquis de Valorsay’s infamy. But on the other hand, if she kept
+the letter, Madame Leon would immediately discover its loss, and an
+explanation would be unavoidable. M. de Valorsay would be worsted, but
+not annihilated, and the plans which made the physician’s intervention
+a necessity would never be revealed. She thought of hastening to her
+friend the old magistrate; but he lived a long way off, and time was
+pressing. Besides she might not find him at home. Then she thought of
+going to a notary, to a judge. She would show them the letter, and they
+could take a copy of it. But no--this would do no good--the marquis
+could still deny it. She was becoming desperate, and was accusing
+herself of stupidity, when a sudden inspiration illumined her mind,
+turning night into day, as it were. “Oh, Pascal, we are saved!” she
+exclaimed. And without pausing to deliberate any longer, she threw a
+mantle over her shoulders, hastily tied on her bonnet, and hurried from
+the house, without saying a word to any one.
+
+Unfortunately she was not acquainted with this part of Paris, and on
+reaching the Rue Pigalle she was at a loss for her way. Unwilling to
+waste any more time, she hastily entered a grocer’s shop at the corner
+of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette, and anxiously
+inquired: “Do you know any photographer in this neighborhood, monsieur?”
+
+Her agitation made this question seem so singular that the grocer
+looked at her closely for a moment, as if to make sure that she was not
+jesting. “You have only to go down the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette,” he
+replied, “and on the left-hand side, at the foot of the hill, you will
+find the photographer Carjat.”
+
+“Thank you.”
+
+The grocer stepped to the door to watch her. “That girl’s certainly
+light-headed,” he thought.
+
+Her demeanor was really so extraordinary that it attracted the attention
+of the passers-by. She saw this, and slackening her pace, tried
+to become more composed. At the spot the grocer had indicated, she
+perceived several show frames filled with photographs hanging on either
+side of a broad, open gateway, above which ran the name, “E. Carjat.”
+ She went in, and seeing a man standing at the door of an elegant
+pavilion on the right-hand side of a large courtyard, she approached
+him, and asked for his employer.
+
+“He is here,” replied the man. “Does madame come for a photograph?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Then will madame be so kind as to pass in. She will not be obliged to
+wait long. There are only four or five persons before her.”
+
+Four or five persons! How long would she be obliged to wait?--half an
+hour--two hours? She had not the slightest idea. But she DID know that
+she had not a second to lose, that Madame Leon might return at any
+moment, and find the letter missing; and, to crown all, she remembered
+now that she had not even locked the drawer again. “I cannot wait,” she
+said, imperiously. “I must speak to M. Carjat at once.”
+
+“But----”
+
+“At once, I tell you. Go and tell him that he must come.”
+
+Her tone was so commanding, and there was so much authority in her
+glance, that the servant hesitated no longer. He ushered her into a
+little sitting-room, and said, “If madame will take a seat, I will call
+monsieur.”
+
+She sank on to a chair, for her limbs were failing her. She was
+beginning to realize the strangeness of the step she had taken--to fear
+the result it might lead to--and to be astonished at her own boldness.
+But she had no time to prepare what she wished to say, for a man of
+five-and-thirty, wearing a mustache and imperial, and clad in a velvet
+coat, entered the room, and bowing with an air of surprise, exclaimed:
+“You desire to speak with me, madame?”
+
+“I have a great favor to ask of you, monsieur.”
+
+“Of me?”
+
+She drew M. de Valorsay’s letter from her pocket, and, showing it to
+the photographer, she said, “I have come to you, monsieur, to ask you
+to photograph this letter--but at once--before me--and quickly--very
+quickly. The honor of two persons is imperilled by each moment I lose
+here.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite’s embarrassment was extreme. Her cheeks were
+crimson, and she trembled like a leaf. Still her attitude was proud,
+generous enthusiasm glowed in her dark eyes, and her tone of voice
+revealed the serenity of a lofty soul ready to dare anything for a just
+and noble cause. This striking contrast--this struggle between girlish
+timidity and a lover’s virgil energy, endowed her with a strange and
+powerful charm, which the photographer made no attempt to resist.
+Unusual as was the request, he did not hesitate. “I am ready to do what
+you desire, madame,” he replied, bowing again.
+
+“Oh! monsieur, how can I ever thank you?”
+
+He did not stop to listen to her thanks. Not wishing to return to the
+reception-room, where five or six clients were impatiently awaiting
+their turn, he called one of his subordinates, and ordered him to bring
+the necessary apparatus at once. While he was speaking, Mademoiselle
+Marguerite paused; but, as soon as his instructions were concluded, she
+remarked: “Perhaps you are too hasty, sir. You have not allowed me to
+explain; and perhaps what I desire is impossible. I came on the impulse
+of the moment, without any knowledge on the subject. Before you set to
+work, I must know if what you can do will answer my purpose.”
+
+“Speak, madame.”
+
+“Will the copy you obtain be precisely like the original in every
+particular?”
+
+“In every particular.”
+
+“The writing will be the same--exactly the same?”
+
+“Absolutely the same.”
+
+“So like, that if one of your photographs should be presented to the
+person who wrote this letter----”
+
+“He could no more deny his handwriting than he could if some one handed
+him the letter itself.”
+
+“And the operation will leave no trace on the original?”
+
+“None.”
+
+A smile of triumph played upon Mademoiselle Marguerite’s lips. It was as
+she had thought; the defensive plan which she had suddenly conceived was
+a good one. “One more question, sir,” she resumed. “I am only a poor,
+ignorant girl: excuse me, and give me the benefit of your knowledge.
+This letter will be returned to its author to-morrow, and he will burn
+it. But afterward, in case of any difficulty--in case of a law-suit--or
+in case it should be necessary for me to prove certain things which one
+might establish by means of this letter, would one of your photographs
+be admitted as evidence?”
+
+The photographer did not answer for a moment. Now he understood
+Mademoiselle Marguerite’s motive, and the importance she attached to a
+facsimile. But this imparted an unexpected gravity to the service he was
+called upon to perform. He therefore wished some time for reflection,
+and he scrutinized Mademoiselle Marguerite as if he were trying to read
+her very soul. Was it possible that this young girl, with such a pure
+and noble brow, and with such frank, honest eyes, could be meditating
+any cowardly, dishonorable act? No, he could not believe it. In whom,
+or in what, could he trust if such a countenance deceived him? “My
+facsimile would certainly be admitted as evidence,” he replied at last;
+“and this would not be the first time that the decision of a court has
+depended on proofs which have been photographed by me.”
+
+Meanwhile, his assistant had returned, bringing the necessary apparatus
+with him. When all was ready, the photographer asked her, “Will you give
+me the letter, madame?”
+
+She hesitated for a second--only for a second. The man’s honest, kindly
+face told her that he would not betray her, that he would rather give
+her assistance. So she handed him the Marquis de Valorsay’s letter,
+saying, with melancholy dignity, “It is my happiness and my future that
+I place in your hands--and I have no fears.”
+
+He read her thoughts, and understood that she either dared not ask for a
+pledge of secrecy, or else that she thought it unnecessary. He took pity
+on her, and his last doubt fled. “I shall read this letter, madame,”
+ said he, “but I am the only person who will read it. I give you my word
+on that! No one but myself will see the proofs.”
+
+Greatly moved, she offered him her hand, and simply said, “Thanks; I am
+more than repaid.”
+
+To obtain an absolutely perfect facsimile of a letter is a delicate
+and sometimes lengthy operation. However, at the end of about twenty
+minutes, the photographer possessed two negatives that promised him
+perfect proofs. He looked at them with a satisfied air; and then
+returning the letter to Mademoiselle Marguerite, he said, “In less than
+three days the facsimiles will be ready, madame; and if you will tell me
+to what address I ought to send them----”
+
+She trembled on hearing these words, and quickly answered, “Don’t send
+them, sir--keep them carefully. Great heavens! all would be lost if it
+came to the knowledge of any one. I will send for them, or come myself.”
+ And, feeling the extent of her obligation, she added, “But I will not go
+without introducing myself--I am Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse.”
+ And, thereupon, she went off, leaving the photographer surprised at the
+adventure and dazzled by his strange visitor’s beauty.
+
+Rather more than an hour had elapsed since Marguerite left M. de
+Fondege’s house. “How time flies!” she murmured, quickening her pace
+as much as she could without exciting remark--“how time flies!” But,
+hurried as she was, she stopped and spent five minutes at a shop in the
+Rue Notre Dame de Lorette where she purchased some black ribbon and a
+few other trifles. How else could she explain and justify her absence,
+if the servants, who had probably discovered she had gone out, chanced
+to speak of it?
+
+But her heart throbbed as if it would burst as she ascended the
+General’s staircase, and anxiety checked her breathing as she rang the
+bell. “What if Madame de Fondege and Madame Leon had returned, and
+the abstraction of the letter been discovered!” Fortunately, Madame de
+Fondege required more than an hour to purchase the materials for the
+elaborate toilette she had dreamt of. The ladies were still out, and
+Mademoiselle Marguerite found everything in the same condition as she
+had left it. She carefully placed the letter in the drawer again, locked
+it, and put the key in the pocket of Madame Leon’s dress. Then she
+breathed freely once more; and, for the first time in six days, she felt
+something very like joy in her heart. Now she had no fear of the Marquis
+de Valorsay. She had him in her power. He would destroy his letter the
+next day, and think that he was annihilating all proofs of his infamy.
+Not so. At the decisive moment, at the very moment of his triumph,
+she would produce the photograph of this letter, and crush him. And
+she--only a young girl--had outwitted this consummate scoundrel! “I
+have not been unworthy of Pascal,” she said to herself, with a flash of
+pride.
+
+However, her nature was not one of those weak ones which are become
+intoxicated by the first symptom of success, and then relax in their
+efforts. When her excitement had abated a little, she was inclined to
+disparage rather than to exaggerate the advantage she had gained. What
+she desired was a complete, startling, incontestable victory. It was
+not enough to prove Valorsay’s GUILT--she was resolved to penetrate his
+designs, to discover why he pursued her so desperately. And, though she
+felt that she possessed a formidable weapon of defence, she could
+not drive away her gloomy forebodings when she thought of the threats
+contained in the marquis’s letter. “Thanks to the assistance of one
+of my friends,” he wrote, “I can place this proud girl in a perilous,
+terribly perilous, position, from which she cannot possibly extricate
+herself unaided.”
+
+These words persistently lingered in Mademoiselle Marguerite’s mind.
+What was the danger hanging over her? whence would it come? and in what
+form? What abominable machination might she not expect from the villain
+who had deliberately dishonored Pascal? How would he attack her? Would
+he strive to ruin her reputation, or did he intend to forcibly abduct
+her? Would he attempt to decoy her into a trap where she would be
+subjected to the insults of the vilest wretches? A thousand frightful
+memories of the time when she was an apprentice drove her nearly
+frantic. “I will never go out unarmed,” she thought, “and woe to the man
+who raises his hand against me!”
+
+The vagueness of the threat increased her fears. No one is courageous
+enough to confront an unknown, mysterious, and always imminent danger
+without sometimes faltering. Nor was this all. The marquis was not
+her only enemy. She had the Fondege family to dread--these dangerous
+hypocrites, who had taken her to their home so that they might ruin
+her the more surely. M. de Valorsay wrote that he had no fears of the
+Fondeges--that he understood their little game. What was their little
+game? No doubt they were resolved that she should become their son’s
+wife, even if they were obliged to use force to win her consent. At this
+thought a sudden terror seized her soul, so full of peace and hope an
+instant before. When she was attacked, would she have time to produce
+and use the facsimile of Valorsay’s letter? “I must reveal my secret to
+a friend--to a trusty friend--who will avenge me!” she muttered.
+
+Fortunately she had a friend in whom she could safely confide--the old
+magistrate who had given her such proofs of sympathy. She felt that she
+needed the advice of a riper experience than her own, and the thought of
+consulting him at once occurred to her. She was alone; she had no spy to
+fear; and it would be folly not to profit by the few moments of liberty
+that remained. So she drew her writing-case from her trunk, and, after
+barricading her door to prevent a surprise, she wrote her friend an
+account of the events which had taken place since their last interview.
+She told him everything with rare precision and accuracy of detail,
+sending him a copy of Valorsay’s letter, and informing him that, in case
+any misfortune befell her, he could obtain the facsimiles from Carjat.
+She finished her letter, but did not seal it. “If anything should happen
+before I have an opportunity to post it, I will add a postscript,” she
+said to herself.
+
+She had made all possible haste, fearing that Madame de Fondege and
+Madame Leon might return at any moment. But this was truly a chimerical
+apprehension. It was nearly six o’clock when the two shoppers made their
+appearance, wearied with the labors of the day, but in fine spirits.
+Besides purchasing every requisite for that wonderful costume of hers,
+the General’s wife had found some laces of rare beauty, which she had
+secured for the mere trifle of four thousand francs. “It was one of
+those opportunities one ought always to profit by,” she said, as she
+displayed her purchase. “Besides, it is the same with lace as with
+diamonds, you should purchase them when you can--then you have them.
+It isn’t an outlay--it’s an investment.” Subtle reasoning that has cost
+many a husband dear!
+
+On her side, Madame Leon proudly showed her dear young lady a very
+pretty present which Madame de Fondege had given her. “So money is no
+longer lacking in this household,” thought Mademoiselle Marguerite, all
+the more confirmed in her suspicions.
+
+The General came in a little later, accompanied by a friend, and
+Marguerite soon discovered that the worthy man had spent the day as
+profitably as his wife. He too was quite tired out; and he had reason to
+be fatigued. First, he had purchased the horses belonging to the ruined
+spendthrift, and he had paid five thousand francs for them, a mere
+trifle for such animals. Less than an hour after the purchase he had
+refused almost double that amount from a celebrated connoisseur in
+horse-flesh, M. de Breulh-Faverlay. This excellent speculation had put
+him in such good humor that he had been unable to resist the temptation
+of purchasing a beautiful saddle-horse, which they let him have for a
+hundred louis. He had not been foolish, for he was sure that he could
+sell the animal again at an advance of a thousand francs whenever he
+wished to do so. “So,” remarked his friend, “if you bought such a horse
+every day, you would make three hundred and sixty-five thousand francs a
+year.”
+
+Was this only a jest--one of those witticisms which people who boast
+of wonderful bargains must expect to parry, or had the remark a more
+serious meaning? Marguerite could not determine. One thing is certain,
+the General did not lose his temper, but gayly continued his account of
+the way in which he had spent his time. Having purchased the horses, his
+next task was to find a carriage, and he had heard of a barouche which
+a Russian prince had ordered but didn’t take, so that the builder was
+willing to sell it at less than cost price; and to recoup this worthy
+man, the General had purchased a brougham as well. He had, moreover,
+hired stabling in the Rue Pigalle, only a few steps from the house, and
+he expected a coachman and a groom the following morning.
+
+“And all this will cost us less than the miserable vehicle we have been
+hiring by the year,” observed Madame de Fondege, gravely. “Oh, I know
+what I say. I’ve counted the cost. What with gratuities and extras, it
+costs us now fully a thousand francs a month, and three horses and a
+coachman won’t cost you more. And what a difference! I shall no longer
+be obliged to blush for the skinny horses the stable-keeper sends me,
+nor to endure the insolence of his men. The first outlay frightened me
+a little; but that is made now, and I am delighted. We will save it in
+something else.”
+
+“In laces, no doubt,” thought Mademoiselle Marguerite. She was intensely
+exasperated, and on regaining her chamber she said to herself, for the
+tenth time, “What do they take me for? Do they think me an idiot to
+flaunt the millions they have stolen from my father--that they have
+stolen from me--before my eyes in this fashion? A common thief would
+take care not to excite suspicion by a foolish expenditure of the fruits
+of his knavery, but they--they have lost their senses.”
+
+Madame Leon was already in bed, and when Mademoiselle Marguerite was
+satisfied that she was asleep, she took her letter from her trunk, and
+added this post-script: “P. S.--It is impossible to retain the shadow of
+a doubt, M. and Madame de Fondege have spent certainly twenty thousand
+francs to-day. This audacity must arise from a conviction that no proofs
+of the crime they have committed exist. Still they continue to talk
+to me about their son, Lieutenant Gustave. He will be presented to me
+to-morrow. To-morrow, also, between three and four, I shall be at
+the house of a man who can perhaps discover Pascal’s hiding-place for
+me,--the house of M. Isidore Fortunat. I hope to make my escape easily
+enough, for at that same hour, Madame Leon has an appointment with the
+Marquis de Valorsay.”
+
+
+
+
+X.
+
+
+The old legend of Achilles’s heel will be eternally true. A man may be
+humble or powerful, feeble or strong, but there are none of us without
+some weak spot in our armor, a spot vulnerable beyond all others, a
+certain place where wounds prove most dangerous and painful. M. Isidore
+Fortunat’s weak place was his cash-box. To attack him there was to
+endanger his life--to wound him at a point where all his sensibility
+centred. For it was in this cash-box and not in his breast that his
+heart really throbbed. His safe made him happy or dejected. Happy when
+it was filled to overflowing by some brilliant operation, and dejected
+when he saw it become empty as some imprudent transaction failed.
+
+This then explains his frenzy on that ill-fated Sunday, when, after
+being brutally dismissed by M. Wilkie, he returned to his rooms in the
+company of his clerk, Victor Chupin. This explains, too, the intensity
+of the hatred he now felt for the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount
+de Coralth. The former, the marquis, had defrauded him of forty thousand
+francs in glittering gold. The other, the viscount, had suddenly sprung
+up out of the ground, and carried off from under his very nose that
+magnificent prize, the Chalusse inheritance, which he had considered as
+good as won. And he had not only been defrauded and swindled--such
+were his own expressions--but he had been tricked, deceived, duped, and
+outwitted, and by whom? By people who did not make it their profession
+to be shrewd, like he did himself. Just fancy, his business was to
+outwit others, and a couple of mere amateurs had outgeneraled him. He
+had not only suffered in pocket, he had been humiliated as well, and so
+he indulged in threats of such terrible import.
+
+However, at the very moment when he was dreaming of wreaking vengeance
+on the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth, his housekeeper,
+austere Madame Dodelin, handed him Mademoiselle Marguerite’s letter.
+He read it with intense astonishment, rubbing his eyes as if to assure
+himself that he were really awake. “Tuesday,” he repeated, “the day
+after to-morrow--at your house--between three and four o’clock--I must
+speak with you.”
+
+His manner was so strange, and his usually impassive face so disturbed
+by conflicting feelings, that Madame Dodelin’s curiosity overcame her
+prudence, and she remained standing in front of him with open mouth,
+staring with all her eyes and listening with all her ears. He perceived
+this, and angrily exclaimed: “What are you doing here? You are watching
+me, I do believe. Get back to your kitchen, or----”
+
+She fled in alarm, and he then entered his private office. His heart
+was leaping with joy, and he laughed wickedly at the hope of a speedy
+revenge. “She’s on the scent,” he muttered; “and she has luck in
+her favor. She has chanced to apply to me on the very day that I had
+resolved to defend and rehabilitate her lover, the honest fool who
+allowed himself to be dishonored by those unscrupulous blackguards. Just
+as I was thinking of going in search of her, she comes to me. As I was
+about to write to her, she writes to me. Who can deny the existence
+of Providence after this?” Like many other people, M. Fortunat piously
+believed in Providence when things went to his liking, but it is sad to
+add that in the contrary case he denied its existence. “If she has any
+courage,” he resumed, “and she seems to have plenty of it, Valorsay
+and Coralth will be in a tight place soon. And if it takes ten thousand
+francs to put them there, and if neither Mademoiselle Marguerite nor M.
+Ferailleur has the amount--ah, well! I’ll advance--well, at least
+five thousand--without charging them any commission. I’ll even pay the
+expenses out of my own pocket, if necessary. Ah, my fine fellows, you’ve
+laughed too soon. In a week’s time we’ll see who laughs last.”
+
+He paused, for Victor Chupin, who had lingered behind to pay the driver,
+had just entered the room. “You gave me twenty francs, m’sieur,” he
+remarked to his employer. “I paid the driver four francs and five sous,
+here’s the change.”
+
+“Keep it yourself, Victor,” said M. Fortunat.
+
+What! keep fifteen francs and fifteen sous? Under any other
+circumstances such unusual generosity would have drawn a grimace of
+satisfaction from young Chupin. But to-day he did not even smile; he
+slipped the money carelessly into his pocket, and scarcely deigned to
+say “thanks,” in the coldest possible tone.
+
+Absorbed in thought, M. Fortunat did not remark this little
+circumstance. “We have them, Victor,” he resumed. “I told you that
+Valorsay and Coralth should pay me for their treason. Vengeance is near.
+Read this letter.” Victor read it slowly, and as soon as he had finished
+his employer ejaculated, “Well?”
+
+But Chupin was not a person to give advice lightly. “Excuse me,
+m’sieur,” said he, “but in order to answer you, I must have some
+knowledge of the affair. I only know what you’ve told me--which is
+little enough--and what I’ve guessed. In fact, I know nothing at all.”
+
+M. Fortunat reflected for a moment. “You are right, Victor,” he said, at
+last. “So far the explanation I gave you was all that was necessary; but
+now that I expect more important services from you, I ought to tell
+you the whole truth, or at least all I know about the affair. This will
+prove my great confidence in you.” Whereupon, he acquainted Chupin with
+everything he knew concerning the history of M. de Chalusse, the Marquis
+de Valorsay, and Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+
+However, if he expected these disclosures to elevate him in his
+subordinate’s estimation he was greatly mistaken. Chupin had sufficient
+experience and common sense to read his master’s character and discern
+his motives. He saw plainly enough that this honest impulse on M.
+Fortunat’s part came from disappointed avarice and wounded vanity, and
+that the agent would have allowed the Marquis de Valorsay to carry out
+his infamous scheme without any compunctions of conscience, providing
+he, himself, had not been injured by it. Still, the young fellow did
+not allow his real feelings to appear on his face. First, it was not
+his business to tell M. Fortunat his opinion of him; and in the second
+place, he did not deem it an opportune moment for a declaration of his
+sentiments. So, when his employer paused, he exclaimed: “Well, we must
+outwit these scoundrels--for I’ll join you, m’sieur; and I flatter
+myself that I can be very useful to you. Do you want the particulars of
+the viscount’s past life? If so, I can furnish them. I know the brigand.
+He’s married, as I told you before, and I’ll find his wife for you in a
+few days. I don’t know exactly where she lives, but she keeps a tobacco
+store, somewhere, and that’s enough. She’ll tell you how much he’s a
+viscount. Ha! ha! Viscount just as much as I am--and no more. I can tell
+you the scrapes he has been in.”
+
+“No doubt; but the most important thing is to know how he’s living now,
+and on what!”
+
+“Not by honest work, I can tell you. But give me a little time, and
+I’ll find out for sure. As soon as I can go home, change my clothes,
+and disguise myself, I’ll start after him; and may I be hung, if I don’t
+return with a complete report before Tuesday.”
+
+A smile of satisfaction appeared on M. Fortunat’s face. “Good, Victor!”
+ he said, approvingly, “very good! I see that you will serve me with your
+usual zeal and intelligence. Rest assured that you will be rewarded as
+you have never been rewarded before. As long as you are engaged in this
+affair, you shall have ten francs a day; and I’ll pay your board, your
+cab-hire, and all your expenses.”
+
+This was a most liberal offer, and yet, far from seeming delighted,
+Chupin gravely shook his head. “You know how I value money, m’sieur,” he
+began.
+
+“Too much, Victor, my boy, too much----”
+
+“Excuse me, it’s because I have responsibilities, m’sieur. You know my
+establishment”--he spoke this word with a grandiloquent air--“you have
+seen my good mother--my expenses are heavy----”
+
+“In short, you don’t think I offer you enough?”
+
+“On the contrary, sir--but you don’t allow me to finish. I love money,
+don’t I? But no matter, I don’t want to be paid for this business. I
+don’t want either my board or my expenses, not a penny--nothing. I’ll
+serve you, but for my own sake, for my own pleasure--gratis.”
+
+M. Fortunat could not restrain an exclamation of astonishment. Chupin,
+who was as eager for gain as an old usurer--Chupin, as grasping as
+avarice itself, refuse money! This was something which he had never seen
+before, and which he would no doubt never see again.
+
+Victor had become very much excited; his usually pale cheeks were
+crimson, and in a harsh voice, he continued: “It’s a fancy of
+mine--that’s all. I have eight hundred francs hidden in my room, the
+fruit of years of work. I’ll spend the last penny of it if need be; and
+if I can see Coralth in the mire, I shall say, ‘My money has been well
+expended.’ I’d rather see that day dawn than be the possessor of a
+hundred thousand francs. If a horrible vision haunted you every night,
+and prevented you from sleeping, wouldn’t you give something to get rid
+of it? Very well! that brigand’s my nightmare. There must be an end to
+it.”
+
+M. de Coralth, who was a man of wide experience, would certainly have
+felt alarmed if he had seen his unknown enemy at the present moment, for
+Victor’s eyes, usually a pale and undecided blue, were glittering like
+steel, and his hands were clinched most threateningly. “For he was the
+cause of all my trouble,” he continued, gloomily. “I’ve told you, sir,
+that I was guilty of an infamous deed once upon a time. If it hadn’t
+been for a miracle I should have killed a man--the king of men.
+Ah, well! if Monsieur Andre had broken his back by falling from a
+fifth-floor window, my Coralth would be the Duc de Champdoce to-day. And
+shall he be allowed to ride about in his carriage, and deceive and ruin
+honest people? No--there are too many such villains at large for public
+safety. Wait a little, Coralth--I owe you something, and I always pay
+my debts. When M. Andre saved me, though I richly deserved to have
+my throat cut, he made no conditions. He only said, ‘If you are not
+irredeemably bad you will be honest after this.’ And he said these words
+as he was lying there as pale as death with his shoulder broken, and
+his body mangled from his fall. Great heavens! I felt smaller
+than--than nothing before him. But I swore that I would do honor to
+his teachings--and when evil thoughts enter my mind, and when I feel a
+thirst for liquor, I say to myself, ‘Wait a bit, and--and M. Andre will
+take a glass with you.’ And that quenches my thirst instantly. I have
+his portrait at home, and every night, before going to bed, I tell him
+the history of the day--and sometimes I fancy that he smiles at me. All
+this is very absurd, perhaps, but I’m not ashamed of it. M. Andre and
+my good mother, they are my supports, my crutches, and with them I’m not
+afraid of making a false step.” Schebel, the German philosopher, who has
+written a treatise on Volition, in four volumes, was no greater a man
+than Chupin. “So you may keep your money, sir,” he resumed. “I’m an
+honest fellow, and honest men ought to ask no reward for the performance
+of a duty. Coralth mustn’t be allowed to triumph over the innocent chap
+he ruined. What did you call him? Ferailleur? It’s an odd name. Never
+mind--we’ll get him out of this scrape; he shall marry his sweetheart
+after all; and I’ll dance at the wedding.”
+
+As he finished speaking he laughed a shrill, dangerous laugh, which
+revealed his sharp teeth--but such invincible determination was apparent
+on his face, that M. Fortunat felt no misgivings. He was sure that this
+volunteer would be of more service than the highest-priced hireling. “So
+I can count on you, Victor?” he inquired.
+
+“As upon yourself.”
+
+“And you hope to have some positive information by Tuesday?”
+
+“Before then, I hope, if nothing goes amiss.”
+
+“Very well; I will devote my attention to Ferailleur then. As to
+Valorsay’s affairs, I am better acquainted with them than he is himself.
+We must be prepared to enter upon the campaign when Mademoiselle
+Marguerite comes, and we will act in accordance with her instructions.”
+
+Chupin had already caught up his hat; but just as he was leaving the
+room, he paused abruptly. “How stupid!” he exclaimed. “I had forgotten
+the principal thing. Where does Coralth live?”
+
+“Unfortunately, I don’t know.”
+
+According to his habit when things did not go to his liking, Chupin
+began to scratch his head furiously. “That’s bad,” growled he.
+“Viscounts of his stamp don’t parade their addresses in the directory.
+Still, I shall find him.” However, although he expressed this conviction
+he went off decidedly out of temper.
+
+“I shall lose the entire evening hunting up the rascal’s address,” he
+grumbled, as he hastened homeward. “And whom shall I ask for it?--Madame
+d’Argeles’s concierge? Would he know it--M. Wilkie’s servant? That
+would be dangerous.” He thought of roaming sound about M. de Valorsay’s
+residence, and of bribing one of the valets; but while crossing the
+boulevard, the sight of Brebant’s Restaurant put a new idea into his
+head. “I have it!” he muttered; “my man’s caught!” And he darted into
+the nearest cafe where he ordered some beer and writing materials.
+
+Under other circumstances, he would have hesitated to employ so
+hazardous an expedient as the one he was about to resort to, but the
+character of his adversaries justified any course; besides, time was
+passing, and he had no choice of resources. As soon as the waiter served
+him, he drained his glass of beer to give himself an inspiration, and
+then, in his finest hand, he wrote:
+
+     “MY DEAR VISCOUNT--Here’s the amount--one hundred francs--that I
+     lost to you last evening at piquet.  When shall I have my revenge?
+     Your friend,
+                                              “VALORSAY.”
+
+When he had finished this letter he read it over three or four
+times, asking himself if this were the style of composition that very
+fashionable folks employ in repaying their debts. To tell the truth, he
+doubted it. In the rough draft which he penned at first, he had written
+bezique, but in the copy he wrote piquet, which he deemed a more
+aristocratic game. “However,” said he, “no one will examine it closely!”
+
+Then, as soon as the ink was dry, he folded the letter and slipped it
+into an envelope with a hundred franc-note which he drew from an old
+pocketbook. He next addressed the envelope as follows: “Monsieur le
+Vicomte de Coralth, En Ville,” and having completed his preparations, he
+paid his score, and hastened to Brebant’s. Two waiters were standing at
+the doorway, and, showing them the letter, he politely asked: “Do you
+happen to know this name? A gentleman dropped this letter on leaving
+your place last evening. I ran after him to return it; but I couldn’t
+overtake him.”
+
+The waiters examined the address. “Coralth!” they replied. “We scarcely
+know him. He isn’t a regular customer, but he comes here occasionally.”
+
+“And where does he live?”
+
+“Why do you wish to know?”
+
+“So as to take him this letter, to be sure!”
+
+The waiters shrugged their shoulders. “Let the letter go; it is not
+worth while to trouble yourself.”
+
+Chupin had foreseen this objection, and was prepared for it. “But
+there’s money in the letter,” he remonstrated. And opening the envelope,
+he showed the bank-note which he had taken from his own pocket-book.
+
+This changed the matter entirely. “That is quite a different thing,”
+ remarked one of the waiters. “If you find money, you are, of course,
+responsible for it. But just leave it here at the desk, and the next
+time the viscount comes in, the cashier will give it to him.”
+
+A cold chill crept over Chupin at the thought of losing his bank-note in
+this way. “Ah! I don’t fancy that idea!” he exclaimed. “Leave it here?
+Never in life! Who’d get the reward? A viscount is always generous;
+it is quite likely he would give me twenty francs as a reward for my
+honesty. And that’s why I want his address.”
+
+The argument was of a nature to touch the waiters; they thought the
+young man quite right; but they did not know M. de Coralth’s address,
+and they saw no way of procuring it. “Unless perhaps the porter knows,”
+ observed one of them.
+
+The porter, on being called, remembered that he had once been sent to
+M. de Coralth’s house for an overcoat. “I’ve forgotten his number,” he
+declared; “but he lives in the Rue d’Anjou, near the corner of the Rue
+de la Ville l’Eveque.”
+
+This direction was not remarkable for its precision, but it was more
+than sufficient for a pure-blooded Parisian like Victor Chupin. “Many
+thanks for your kindness,” he said to the porter. “A blind man, perhaps,
+might not be able to go straight to M. de Coralth’s house from your
+directions, but I have eyes and a tongue as well. And, believe me, if
+there’s any reward, you shall see that I know how to repay a good turn.”
+
+“And if you don’t find the viscount,” added the waiters, “bring the
+money here, and it will be returned to him.”
+
+“Naturally!” replied Chupin. And he strode hurriedly away. “Return!”
+ he muttered; “not I! I thought for a moment they had their hands on my
+precious bank-note.”
+
+But he had already recovered from his fright, and as he turned his steps
+homeward he congratulated himself on the success of his stratagem.
+“For my viscount is caught,” he said to himself. “The Rue d’Anjou Saint
+Honore hasn’t a hundred numbers in it, and even if I’m compelled to go
+from door to door, my task will soon be accomplished.”
+
+On reaching home he found his mother engaged in knitting, as usual. This
+was the only avocation that her almost complete blindness allowed her
+to pursue; and she followed it constantly. “Ah! here you are, Toto,”
+ she exclaimed, joyously. “I didn’t expect you so soon. Don’t you scent a
+savory smell? As you must be greatly tired after being up all night, I’m
+making you a stew.”
+
+As customary when he returned, Chupin embraced the good woman with
+the respectful tenderness which had so surprised M. Fortunat. “You are
+always kind,” said he, “but, unfortunately, I can’t remain to dine with
+you.”
+
+“But you promised me.”
+
+“That’s true, mamma; but business, you see--business.”
+
+The worthy woman shook her head. “Always business!” she exclaimed.
+
+“Yes--when a fellow hasn’t ten thousand francs a year.”
+
+“You have become a worker, Toto, and that makes me very happy; but you
+are too eager for money, and that frightens me.”
+
+“That’s to say, you fear I shall do something dishonest. Ah! mother! do
+you think I can forget you and Monsieur Andre?”
+
+His mother said no more, and he entered the tiny nook which he so
+pompously styled his chamber, and quickly changed the clothes he was
+wearing (his Sunday toggery) for an old pair of checked trousers, a
+black blouse, and a glazed cap. And when he had finished, and given a
+peculiar turn to his hair, no one would have recognized him. In place of
+M. Fortunat’s respectable clerk, there appeared one of those vagabonds
+who hang about cafes and theatres from six in the evening till midnight,
+and spend the rest of their time playing cards in the low drinking dens
+near the barrieres. It was the old Chupin come to life once more--Toto
+Chupin as he had appeared before his conversion. And as he took a
+last look in the little glass hanging over the table, he was himself
+astonished at the transformation. “Ah!” he muttered, “I was a sorry
+looking devil in those days.”
+
+Although he had cautiously avoided making any noise in dressing, his
+mother, with the wonderfully acute hearing of the blind, had followed
+each of his movements as surely as if she had been standing near
+watching him. “You have changed your clothes, Toto,” she remarked.
+
+“Yes, mother.”
+
+“But why have you put on your blouse, my son?”
+
+Although accustomed to his mother’s remarkable quickness of perception,
+he was amazed. Still he did not think of denying it. She would only have
+to extend her hand to prove that he was telling a falsehood. The blind
+woman’s usually placid face had become stern. “So it is necessary to
+disguise yourself,” she said, gravely.
+
+“But, mother----”
+
+“Hush, my son! When a man doesn’t wish to be recognized, he’s evidently
+doing something he’s ashamed of. Ever since your employer came here, you
+have been concealing something from me. Take care, Toto! Since I heard
+that man’s voice, I’m sure that he is quite as capable of urging you to
+commit a crime as others were in days gone by.”
+
+The blind woman was preaching to a convert; for during the past three
+days, M. Fortunat had shown himself in such a light that Chupin had
+secretly resolved to change his employer. “I promise you I’ll leave him,
+mother,” he declared, “so you may be quite easy in mind.”
+
+“Very well; but now, at this moment, where are you going?”
+
+There was only one way of completely reassuring the good woman, and that
+was to tell her all. Chupin did so with absolute frankness. “Ah, well!”
+ she said, when the narrative was finished. “You see now how easy it is
+to lead you astray! How could you be induced to play the part of a spy,
+when you know so well what it leads to? It’s only God’s protecting care
+that has saved you again from an act which you would have reproached
+yourself for all your life. Your employer’s intentions are good now; but
+they WERE criminal when he ordered you to follow Madame d’Argeles. Poor
+woman! She had sacrificed herself for her son, she had concealed herself
+from him, and you were working to betray her. Poor creature! how she
+must have suffered, and how much I pity her! To be what she is, and to
+see herself denounced by her own son! I, who am only a poor plebeian,
+should die of shame under such circumstances.”
+
+Chupin blew his nose so loudly that the window-panes rattled; this was
+his way of repressing his emotion whenever it threatened to overcome
+him. “You speak like the good mother that you are,” he exclaimed at
+last, “and I’m prouder of you than if you were the handsomest and
+richest lady in Paris, for you’re certainly the most honest and
+virtuous; and I should be a thorough scoundrel if I caused you a
+moment’s sorrow. And if ever I set my foot in such a mess again, I hope
+some one will cut it off. But for this once----”
+
+“For this once, you may go, Toto; I give my consent.”
+
+He went off with a lighter heart; and on reaching the Rue d’Anjou he
+immediately began his investigations. They were not successful at first.
+At every house where he made inquiries nobody had any knowledge of the
+Viscount de Coralth. He had visited half the buildings in the street,
+when he reached one of the handsomest houses, in front of which stood
+a cart laden with plants and flowers. An old man, who seemed to be the
+concierge, and a valet in a red waistcoat, were removing the plants from
+the vehicle and arranging them in a line under the porte cochere. As
+soon as the cart was emptied, it drove away, whereupon Chupin stepped
+forward, and addressing the concierge, asked: “Does the Viscount de
+Coralth live here?”
+
+“Yes. What do you want with him?”
+
+Having foreseen this question, Chupin had prepared a reply. “I certainly
+don’t come to call on him,” he answered. “My reason for inquiring is
+this: just now, as I passed near the Madeleine, a very elegant lady
+called me, and said: ‘M. de Coralth lives in the Rue d’Anjou, but
+I’ve forgotten the number. I can’t go about from door to door making
+inquiries, so if you’ll go there and ascertain his address for me, I’ll
+give you five francs for yourself,’ so my money’s made.”
+
+Profiting by his old Parisian experience, Chupin had chosen such a
+clever excuse that both his listeners heartily laughed. “Well, Father
+Moulinet,” cried the servant in the red waistcoat, “what do you say
+to that? Are there any elegant ladies who give five francs for YOUR
+address?”
+
+“Is there any lady who’s likely to send such flowers as these to YOU?”
+ was the response.
+
+Chupin was about to retire with a bow, when the concierge stopped him.
+“You accomplish your errands so well that perhaps you’d be willing to
+take these flower-pots up to the second floor, if we gave you a glass of
+wine!”
+
+No proposal could have suited Chupin better. Although he was prone to
+exaggerate his own powers and the fecundity of his resources, he had not
+flattered himself with the hope that he should succeed in crossing
+the threshold of M. de Coralth’s rooms. For, without any great mental
+effort, he had realized that the servant arrayed in the red waistcoat
+was in the viscount’s employ, and these flowers were to be carried to
+his apartments. However any signs of satisfaction would have seemed
+singular under the circumstances, and so he sulkily replied: “A glass of
+wine! you had better say two.”
+
+“Well, I’ll say a whole bottleful, my boy, if that suits you any
+better,” replied the servant, with the charming good-nature so often
+displayed by people who are giving other folk’s property away.
+
+“Then I’m at your service!” exclaimed Chupin. And, loading himself
+with a host of flower-pots as skilfully as if he had been accustomed to
+handling them all his life, he added: “Now, lead the way.”
+
+The valet and the concierge preceded him with empty hands, of course;
+and, on reaching the second floor, they opened a door, and said: “This
+is the place. Come in.”
+
+Chupin had expected to find that M. de Coralth’s apartments were
+handsomer than his own in the Faubourg Saint Denis; but he had scarcely
+imagined such luxury as pervaded this establishment. The chandeliers
+seemed marvels in his eyes; and the sumptuous chairs and couches
+eclipsed M. Fortunat’s wonderful sofa completely. “So he no longer
+amuses himself with petty rascalities,” thought Chupin, as he surveyed
+the rooms. “Monsieur’s working on a grand scale now. Decidedly this
+mustn’t be allowed to continue.”
+
+Thereupon he busied himself placing the flowers in the numerous
+jardinieres scattered about the rooms, as well as in a tiny
+conservatory, cleverly contrived on the balcony, and adjoining a little
+apartment with silk hangings, that was used as a smoking-room. Under the
+surveillance of the concierge and the valet he was allowed to visit the
+whole apartments. He admired the drawing-room, filled to overflowing
+with costly trifles; the dining-room, furnished in old oak; the
+luxurious bed-room with its bed mounted upon a platform, as if it were a
+throne, and the library filled with richly bound volumes. Everything was
+beautiful, sumptuous and magnificent, and Chupin admired, though he did
+not envy, this luxury. He said to himself that, if ever he became rich,
+his establishment should be quite different. He would have preferred
+rather more simplicity, a trifle less satin, velvet, hangings, mirrors
+and gilding. Still this did not prevent him from going into ecstasies
+over each room he entered; and he expressed his admiration so artlessly
+that the valet, feeling as much flattered as if he were the owner of the
+place, took a sort of pride in exhibiting everything.
+
+He showed Chupin the target which the viscount practised at with
+pistols for an hour every morning; for Monsieur le Vicomte was a capital
+marksman, and could lodge eight balls out of ten in the neck of a bottle
+at a distance of twenty paces. He also displayed his master’s swords;
+for Monsieur le Vicomte handled side arms as adroitly as pistols. He
+took a lesson every day from one of the best fencing-masters in Paris;
+and his duels had always terminated fortunately. He also showed the
+viscount’s blue velvet dressing-gown, his fur-trimmed slippers, and even
+his elaborately embroidered night-shirts. But it was the dressing-room
+that most astonished and stupefied Chupin. He stood gazing in
+open-mouthed wonder at the immense white marble table, with its water
+spigots and its basins, its sponges and boxes, its pots and vials and
+cups; and he counted the brushes by the dozen--brushes hard and soft,
+brushes for the hair, for the beard, for the hands, and the application
+of cosmetic to the mustaches and eyebrows. Never had he seen in one
+collection such a variety of steel and silver instruments, knives,
+pincers, scissors, and files. “One might think oneself in a
+chiropodist’s, or a dentist’s establishment,” remarked Chupin to the
+servant. “Does your master use all these every day?”
+
+“Certainly, or rather twice a day--morning and evening--at his
+toilette.”
+
+Chupin expressed his feelings with a grimace and an exclamation of
+mocking wonder. “Ah, well! he must have a clean skin,” he said.
+
+His listeners laughed heartily; and the concierge, after exchanging a
+significant glance with the valet, said sotto voce, “Zounds! it’s his
+business to be a handsome fellow!” The mystery was solved.
+
+While Chupin changed the contents of the jardinieres, and remained
+upstairs in the intervals between the nine or ten journeys he made
+to the porte-cochere for more flowers, he listened attentively to the
+conversation between the concierge and the valet, and heard snatches
+of sentences that enlightened him wonderfully. Moreover, whenever a
+question arose as to placing a plant in one place rather than another,
+the valet stated as a conclusive argument that the baroness liked it in
+such or such a place, or that she would be better pleased with this or
+that arrangement, or that he must comply with the instructions she had
+given him. Chupin was therefore obliged to conclude that the flowers
+had been sent here by a baroness who possessed certain rights in the
+establishment. But who was she?
+
+He was manoeuvering cleverly in the hope of ascertaining this point,
+when a carriage was heard driving into the courtyard below. “Monsieur
+must have returned!” exclaimed the valet, darting to the window.
+
+Chupin also ran to look out, and saw a very elegant blue-lined brougham,
+drawn by a superb horse, but he did not perceive the viscount. In point
+of fact, M. de Coralth was already climbing the stairs, four at a time,
+and, a moment later, he entered the room, angrily exclaiming, “Florent,
+what does this mean? Why have you left all the doors open?”
+
+Florent was the servant in the red waistcoat. He slightly shrugged his
+shoulders like a servant who knows too many of his master’s secrets to
+have anything to fear, and in the calmest possible tone replied, “If
+the doors are open, it is only because the baroness has just sent some
+flowers. On Sunday, too, what a funny idea! And I have been treating
+Father Moulinet and this worthy fellow” (pointing to Chupin) “to a glass
+of wine, to acknowledge their kindness in assisting me.”
+
+Fearing recognition, Chupin hid his face as much as possible; but M.
+de Coralth did not pay the slightest attention to him. There was a dark
+frown on his handsome, usually smiling countenance, and his hair was in
+great disorder. Evidently enough, something had greatly annoyed him. “I
+am going out again,” he remarked to his valet, “but first of all I must
+write two letters which you must deliver immediately.”
+
+He passed into the drawing-room as he spoke, and Florent scarcely waited
+till the door was closed before uttering an oath. “May the devil
+take him!” he exclaimed. “Here he sets me on the go again. It is five
+o’clock, too, and I have an appointment in half an hour.”
+
+A sudden hope quickened the throbbings of Chupin’s heart. He touched the
+valet’s arm, and in his most persuasive tone remarked: “I’ve nothing
+to do, and as your wine was so good, I’ll do your errands for you, if
+you’ll pay me for the wear and tear of shoe-leather.”
+
+Chupin’s appearance must have inspired confidence, for the servant
+replied:--“Well--I don’t refuse--but we’ll see.”
+
+The viscount did not spend much time in writing; he speedily reappeared
+holding two letters which he flung upon the table, saying: “One of these
+is for the baroness. You must deliver it into HER hands or into the
+hands of her maid--there will be no answer. You will afterward take the
+other to the person it is addressed to, and you must wait for an answer
+which you will place on my writing-table--and make haste.” So saying,
+the viscount went off as he had entered--on the run--and a moment later,
+his brougham was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+
+Florent was crimson with rage. “There,” said he, addressing Chupin
+rather than the concierge, “what did I tell you? A letter to be placed
+in madame’s own hands or in the hands of her maid, and to be concealed
+from the baron, who is on the watch, of course. Naturally no one can
+execute that commission but myself.”
+
+“That’s true!” replied Chupin; “but how about the other?”
+
+The valet had not yet examined the second letter. He now took it from
+the table, and glanced at the address. “Ah,” said he, “I can confide
+this one to you, my good fellow, and it’s very fortunate, for it is
+to be taken to a place on the other side of the river. Upon my word!
+masters are strange creatures! You manage your work so as to have a
+little leisure, and the moment you think yourself free, pouf!--they
+send you anywhere in creation without even asking if it suits your
+convenience. If it hadn’t been for you, I should have missed a dinner
+with some very charming ladies. But, above all, don’t loiter on the way.
+I don’t mind paying your omnibus fare if you like. And you heard him say
+there would be an answer. You can give it to Moulinet, and in exchange,
+he’ll give you fifteen sous for your trouble, and six sous for your
+omnibus fare. Besides, if you can extract anything from the party the
+letter’s intended for, you are quite welcome to it.”
+
+“Agreed, sir! Grant me time enough to give an answer to the lady who is
+waiting at the Madeleine, and I’m on my way. Give me the letter.”
+
+“Here it is,” said the valet, handing it to Chupin. But as the latter
+glanced at the address he turned deadly pale, and his eyes almost
+started from their sockets. For this is what he read: “Madame Paul.
+Dealer in Tobacco. Quai de la Seine.” Great as was his self-control, his
+emotion was too evident to escape notice. “What’s the matter with you?”
+ asked the concierge and the valet in the same breath. “What has happened
+to you?”
+
+A powerful effort of will restored this young fellow’s coolness, and
+ready in an instant with an excuse for his blunder, he replied, “I have
+changed my mind. What! you’d only give me fifteen sous to measure such a
+distance as that! Why, it isn’t a walk--it’s a journey!”
+
+His explanation was accepted without demur. His listeners thought he
+was only taking advantage of the need they had of his services--as
+was perfectly natural under the circumstances. “What! So you are
+dissatisfied!” cried the valet. “Very well! you shall have thirty
+sous--but be off!”
+
+“So I will, at once,” replied Chupin. And, imitating the whistle of a
+locomotive with wonderful perfection, he darted away at a pace which
+augured a speedy return.
+
+However, when he was some twenty yards from the house he stopped short,
+glanced around him, and espying a dark corner slipped into it. “That
+fool in the red waistcoat will be coming out to take the letter to that
+famous baroness,” he thought. “I’m here, and I’ll watch him and see
+where he goes. I should like to find out the name of the kind and
+charitable lady who watches over his brigand of a master with such
+tender care.”
+
+The day and the hour were in his favor. Night was coming on, hastened by
+a thick fog; the street lamps were not yet lighted, and as it was Sunday
+most of the shops were closed. It grew dark so rapidly that Chupin was
+scarcely able to recognize Florent when he at last emerged from the
+house. It is true that he looked altogether unlike the servant in
+the red waist-coat. As he had the key to the wardrobe containing
+his master’s clothes, he did not hesitate to use them whenever an
+opportunity offered. On this occasion he had appropriated a pair of
+those delicately tinted trousers which were M. de Coralth’s specialty,
+with a handsome overcoat, a trifle too small for him, and a very elegant
+hat.
+
+“Fine doings, indeed!” growled Chupin as he started in pursuit. “My
+servants sha’n’t serve me in that way if I ever have any.”
+
+But he paused in his soliloquy, and prudently hid himself under a
+neighboring gateway. The gorgeous Florent was ringing at the door of one
+of the most magnificent mansions in the Rue de la Ville l’Eveque. The
+door was opened, and he went in. “Ah! ah!” thought Chupin, “he hadn’t
+far to go. The viscount and the baroness are shrewd. When you have
+flowers to send to anybody it’s convenient to be neighbors!”
+
+He glanced round, and seeing an old man smoking his pipe on the
+threshold of a shop, he approached him and asked politely “Can you tell
+me whom that big house belongs to?”
+
+“To Baron Trigault,” replied the man, without releasing his hold on his
+pipe.
+
+“Thank you, monsieur,” replied Chupin, gravely. “I inquired, because
+I think of buying a house.” And repeating the name of Trigault several
+times to impress it upon his memory he darted off on his errand.
+
+It might be supposed that his unexpected success had delighted him,
+but, on the contrary, it rendered him even more exacting. The letter
+he carried burned his pocket like a red-hot iron. “Madame Paul,” he
+muttered, “that must be the rascal’s wife. First, Paul is his Christian
+name; secondly, I’ve been told that his wife keeps a tobacco shop--so
+the case is plain. But the strangest thing about it is that this husband
+and wife should write to each other, when I fancied them at dagger’s
+ends.” Chupin would have given a pint of his own blood to know the
+contents of the missive. The idea of opening it occurred to him, and it
+must be confessed that it was not a feeling of delicacy that prevented
+him. He was deterred by a large seal which had been carefully affixed,
+and which would plainly furnish evidence if the letter were tampered
+with. Thus Chupin was punished for Florent’s faults, for this seal
+was the viscount’s’ invariable precaution against his servant’s prying
+curiosity. So our enterprising youth could only read and re-read the
+superscription and smell the paper, which was strongly scented with
+verbena. He fancied that there was some mysterious connection between
+this letter intended for M. de Coralth’s wife and the missive sent
+to the baroness. And why should it not be so? Had they not both been
+written under the influence of anger? Still he failed to perceive any
+possible connection between the rich baroness and the poor tobacco
+dealer, and his cogitations only made him more perplexed than ever.
+However, his efforts to solve the mystery did not interfere with the
+free use of his limbs, and he soon found himself on the Quai de la
+Seine. “Here I am,” he muttered. “I’ve come more quickly than an
+omnibus.”
+
+The Quai de la Seine is a broad road, connecting the Rue de Flandres
+with the canal de l’Ourcq. On the left-hand side it is bordered with
+miserable shanties interspersed with some tiny shops, and several huge
+coal depots. On the right-hand side--that next to the canal--there are
+also a few provision stores. In the daytime there is no noisier nor
+livelier place than this same Quai; but nothing could be more gloomy
+at night-time when the shops are closed, when the few gas-lamps only
+increase the grimness of the shadows, and when the only sound that
+breaks the silence is the rippling of the water as its smooth surface is
+ruffled by some boatman propelling his skiff through the canal.
+
+“The Viscount must certainly have made a mistake,” thought Chupin;
+“there is no such shop on the Quai.” He was wrong, however; for after
+passing the Rue de Soissons he espied the red lantern of a tobacco-shop,
+glimmering through the fog.
+
+
+
+
+XI.
+
+
+Having almost reached the goal, Chupin slackened his pace. He approached
+the shop very cautiously and peered inside, deeming it prudent to
+reconnoitre a little before he went in. And certainly there was nothing
+to prevent a prolonged scrutiny. The night was very dark, the quay
+deserted. No one was to be seen; not a sound broke the stillness. The
+darkness, the surroundings, and the silence were sinister enough to make
+even Chupin shudder, though he was usually as thoroughly at home in the
+loneliest and most dangerous by-ways of Paris as an honest man of
+the middle classes would be in the different apartments of his modest
+household. “That scoundrel’s wife must have less than a hundred thousand
+a year if she takes up her abode here!” thought Chupin.
+
+And, in fact, nothing could be more repulsive than the tenement in which
+Madame Paul had installed herself. It was but one story high, and built
+of clay, and it had fallen to ruin to such an extent that it had been
+found necessary to prop it up with timber, and to nail some old boards
+over the yawning fissures in the walls. “If I lived here, I certainly
+shouldn’t feel quite at ease on a windy day,” continued Chupin, sotto
+voce.
+
+The shop itself was of a fair size, but most wretched in its
+appointments, and disgustingly dirty. The floor was covered with that
+black and glutinous coal-dust which forms the soil of the Quai de la
+Seine. An auctioneer would have sold the entire stock and fixtures for
+a few shillings. Four stone jars, and a couple of pairs of scales, a
+few odd tumblers, filled with pipes and packets of cigarettes, some
+wine-glasses, and three or four labelled bottles, five or six boxes of
+cigars, and as many packages of musty tobacco, constituted the entire
+stock in trade.
+
+As Chupin compared this vile den with the viscount’s luxurious abode,
+his blood fairly boiled in his veins. “He ought to be shot for this, if
+for nothing else,” he muttered through his set teeth. “To let his wife
+die of starvation here!” For it was M. de Coralth’s wife who kept this
+shop. Chupin, who had seen her years before, recognized her now as she
+sat behind her counter, although she was cruelly changed. “That’s her,”
+ he murmured. “That’s certainly Mademoiselle Flavie.”
+
+He had used her maiden name in speaking of her. Poor woman! She was
+undoubtedly still young--but sorrow, regret, and privations, days
+spent in hard work to earn a miserable subsistence, and nights spent in
+weeping, had made her old, haggard, and wrinkled before her time. Of
+her once remarkable beauty naught remained but her hair, which was still
+magnificent, though it was in wild disorder, and looked as if it had not
+been touched by a comb for weeks; and her big black eyes, which gleamed
+with the phosphorescent and destructive brilliancy of fever. Everything
+about her person bespoke terrible reverses, borne without dignity. Even
+if she had struggled at first, it was easy to see that she struggled
+no longer. Her attire--her torn and soiled silk dress, and her dirty
+cap--revealed thorough indolence, and that morbid indifference which at
+times follows great misfortunes with weak natures.
+
+“Such is life,” thought Chupin, philosophically. “Here’s a girl who was
+brought up like a queen and allowed to have her own way in everything!
+If any one had predicted this in those days, how she would have sneered!
+I can see her now as she looked that day when I met her driving her gray
+ponies. If people didn’t clear the road it was so much the worse for
+them! In those times Paris was like some great shop where she could
+select whatever she chose. She said: ‘I want this,’ and she got it. She
+saw a handsome young fellow and wanted him for her husband; her father,
+who could refuse her nothing, consented, and now behold the result!”
+
+He had lingered longer at the window than he had meant to do, perhaps
+because he could see that the young woman was talking with some person
+in a back room, the door of which stood open. Chupin tried to find out
+who this person was, but he did not succeed; and he was about to go in
+when suddenly he saw Madame Paul rise from her seat and say a few words
+with an air of displeasure. And this time her eyes, instead of turning
+to the open door, were fixed on a part of the shop directly opposite
+her. “Is there some one there as well, then?” Chupin wondered.
+
+He changed his post of observation, and, by standing on tiptoe, he
+succeeded in distinguishing a puny little boy, some three or four years
+old, and clad in rags, who was playing with the remnants of a toy-horse.
+The sight of this child increased Chupin’s indignation. “So there’s a
+child?” he growled. “The rascal not only deserts his wife, but he leaves
+his child to starve! We may as well make a note of that: and when we
+settle up our accounts, he shall pay dearly for his villainy.” With this
+threat he brusquely entered the shop.
+
+“What do you wish, sir?” asked the woman.
+
+“Nothing; I bring you a letter, madame.”
+
+“A letter for me! You must be mistaken.”
+
+“Excuse me; aren’t you Madame Paul?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Then this is for you.” And he handed her the missive which Florent had
+confided to his care.
+
+Madame Paul took hold of it with some hesitation, eying the messenger
+suspiciously meanwhile; but, on seeing the handwriting, she uttered
+a cry of surprise. And, turning toward the open door, she called, “M.
+Mouchon! M. Mouchon! It’s from him--it’s from my husband; from Paul.
+Come, come!”
+
+A bald-headed, corpulent man, who looked some fifty years of age, now
+timidly emerged from the room behind the shop with a cap in his hand.
+“Ah, well! my dear child,” he said, in an oily voice, “what was I
+telling you just now? Everything comes to those who know how to wait.”
+
+However she had already broken the seal, and she was now reading the
+letter eagerly, clapping her hands with delight as she finished its
+perusal. “He consents!” she exclaimed. “He’s frightened--he begs me to
+wait a little--look--read!”
+
+But M. Mouchon could not read without his spectacles, and he lost at
+least two minutes in searching his pockets before he found them. And
+when they were adjusted, the light was so dim that it took him at least
+three minutes more to decipher the missive. Chupin had spent this
+time in scrutinizing--in appraising the man, as it were. “What is this
+venerable gentleman doing here?” he thought. “He’s a middle class man,
+that’s evident from his linen. He’s married--there’s a wedding-ring
+on his finger; he has a daughter, for the ends of his necktie are
+embroidered. He lives in the neighborhood, for, well dressed as he is,
+he wears a cap. But what was he doing there in that back room in the
+dark?”
+
+Meanwhile M. Mouchon had finished reading the letter. “What did I tell
+you?” he said complacently.
+
+“Yes, you were right!” answered Madame Paul as she took up the letter
+and read it again with her eyes sparkling with joy. “And now what shall
+I do?” she asked. “Wait, shall I not?”
+
+“No, no!” exclaimed the elderly gentleman, in evident dismay. “You must
+strike the iron while it’s hot.”
+
+“But he promises me----”
+
+“To promise and to keep one’s promises are two different things.”
+
+“He wants a reply.”
+
+“Tell him----” But he stopped short, calling her attention with a
+gesture to the messenger, whose eyes were glittering with intense
+curiosity.
+
+She understood. So filling a glass with some liquor, she placed it
+before Chupin, and offered him a cigar, saying: “Take a seat--here’s
+something to keep you from feeling impatient while you wait here.”
+ Thereupon she followed the old gentleman into the adjoining room, and
+closed the door.
+
+Even if Chupin had not possessed the precocious penetration he owed to
+his life of adventure, the young woman and the old gentleman had said
+enough to enable him to form a correct estimate of the situation. He was
+certain now that he knew the contents of the letter as perfectly as if
+he had read it. M. de Coralth’s anger, and his order to make haste, were
+both explained. Moreover, Chupin distinctly saw what connection there
+was between the letter to the baroness and the letter to Madame Paul. He
+understood that one was the natural consequence of the other. Deserted
+by her husband, Madame Paul had at last become weary of poverty and
+privations. She had instituted a search for her husband, and, having
+found him, she had written to him in this style: “I consent to abstain
+from interfering with you, but only on conditions that you provide means
+of subsistence for me, your lawfully wedded wife, and for your child. If
+you refuse, I shall urge my claims, and ruin you. The scandal won’t be
+of much use to me, it’s true, but at least I shall no longer be obliged
+to endure the torture of knowing that you are surrounded by every luxury
+while I am dying of starvation.”
+
+Yes, she had evidently written that. It might not be the precise text;
+but no doubt it was the purport of her letter. On receiving it, Coralth
+had become alarmed. He knew only too well that if his wife made herself
+known and revealed his past, it would be all over with him. But he had
+no money. Charming young men like the Viscount de Coralth never have
+any money on hand. So, in this emergency, the dashing young fellow had
+written to his wife imploring her to have patience, and to the baroness,
+entreating, or rather commanding her to advance him a certain sum at
+once.
+
+This was no doubt the case, and yet there was one circumstance which
+puzzled Chupin exceedingly. In former years, he had heard it asserted
+that Mademoiselle Flavie was the very personification of pride, and that
+she adored her husband even to madness. Had this great love vanished?
+Had poverty and sorrow broken her spirit to such a degree that she was
+willing to stoop to such shameful concessions! If she were acquainted
+with her husband’s present life, how did it happen that she did not
+prefer starvation, or the alms-house and a pauper’s grave to his
+assistance? Chupin could understand how, in a moment of passion,
+she might be driven to denounce her husband in the presence of his
+fashionable acquaintances, how she might be impelled to ruin him so as
+to avenge herself; but he could not possibly understand how she could
+consent to profit by the ignominy of the man she loved. “The plan
+isn’t hers,” said Chupin to himself, after a moment’s reflection. “It’s
+probably the work of that stout old gentleman.”
+
+There was a means of verifying his suspicions, for on returning into the
+adjoining room, Madame Paul had not taken her son with her. He was still
+sitting on the muddy floor of the shop, playing with his dilapidated
+horse. Chupin called him. “Come here, my little fellow,” said he.
+
+The child rose, and timidly approached, his eyes dilating with distrust
+and astonishment. The poor boy’s repulsive uncleanliness was a terrible
+charge against the mother. Did she no longer love her own offspring? The
+untidiness of sorrow and poverty has its bounds. A long time must have
+passed since the child’s face and hands had been washed, and his soiled
+clothes were literally falling to rags. Still, he was a handsome little
+fellow, and seemed fairly intelligent, in spite of his bashfulness.
+He was very light-haired, and in features he was extremely like M. de
+Coralth. Chupin took him on his knees, and, after looking to see if the
+door communicating with the inner room were securely closed, he asked:
+“What’s your name, little chap?”
+
+“Paul.”
+
+“Do you know your father?”
+
+“No.”
+
+“Doesn’t your mother ever talk to you about him?”
+
+“Oh, yes!”
+
+“And what does she say?”
+
+“That he’s rich--very rich.”
+
+“And what else?”
+
+The child did not reply; perhaps his mother had forbidden him to
+say anything on the subject--perhaps that instinct which precedes
+intelligence, just as the dawn precedes daylight, warned him to be
+prudent with a stranger. “Doesn’t your papa ever come to see you?”
+ insisted Chupin.
+
+“Never.”
+
+“Why?”
+
+“Mamma is very poor.”
+
+“And wouldn’t you like to go and see him?”
+
+“I don’t know. But he’ll come some day, and take us away with him to a
+large house. We shall be all right, then; and he will give us a deal of
+money and pretty dresses, and I shall have plenty of toys.”
+
+Satisfied on this point, Chupin, pushed his investigations farther.
+“And do you know this old gentleman who is with your mamma in the other
+room?”
+
+“Oh, yes!--that’s Mouchon.”
+
+“And who’s Mouchon?”
+
+“He’s the gentleman who owns that beautiful garden at the corner of the
+Rue Riquet, where there are such splendid grapes. I’m going with him to
+get some.”
+
+“Does he often come to see you?”
+
+“Every evening. He always has goodies in his pocket for mamma and me.”
+
+“Why does he sit in that back room without any light?”
+
+“Oh, he says that the customers mustn’t see him.”
+
+It would have been an abominable act to continue this examination, and
+make this child the innocent accuser of his own mother. Chupin felt
+conscience-smitten even now. So he kissed the cleanest spot he could
+find on the boy’s face, and set him on the floor again, saying, “Go and
+play.”
+
+The child had revealed his mother’s character with cruel precision. What
+had she told him about his father? That he was rich, and that, in case
+he returned, he would give them plenty of money and fine clothes. The
+woman’s nature stood revealed in all its deformity. Chupin had good
+cause to feel proud of his discernment--all his suppositions had
+been confirmed. He had read Mouchon’s character at a glance. He had
+recognized him as one of those wily evil-minded men who employ their
+leisure to the profit of their depravity--one of those patient,
+cold-blooded hypocrites who make poverty their purveyor, and whose
+passion is prodigal only in advice. “So he’s paying his court to Madame
+Paul,” thought Chupin. “Isn’t it shameful? The old villain! he might at
+least give her enough to eat!”
+
+So far his preoccupation had made him forget his wine and his cigar. He
+emptied the glass at a single draught, but it proved far more difficult
+to light the cigar. “Zounds! this is a non-combustible,” he growled.
+“When I arrive at smoking ten sous cigars, I sha’n’t come here to buy
+them.”
+
+However, with the help of several matches and a great deal of drawing,
+he had almost succeeded, when the door opened, and Madame Paul
+reappeared with a letter in her hand. She seemed greatly agitated; her
+anxiety was unmistakable. “I can’t decide,” she was saying to Mouchon,
+whose figure Chupin could only dimly distinguish in the darkness. “No,
+I can’t. If I send this letter, I must forever renounce all hope of my
+husband’s return. Whatever happens, he will never forgive me.”
+
+“He can’t treat you worse than he does now, at all events,” replied the
+old gentleman. “Besides, a gloved cat has never caught a mouse yet.”
+
+“He’ll hate me.”
+
+“The man who wants his dog to love him, beats it; and, besides, when the
+wine is drawn, one must drink it.”
+
+This singular logic seemed to decide her. She handed the letter to
+Chupin, and drawing a franc from her pocket she offered it to him. “This
+is for your trouble,” she said.
+
+He involuntarily held out his hand to take the money, but quickly
+withdrew it, exclaiming: “No, thank you; keep it. I’ve been paid
+already.” And, thereupon, he left the shop.
+
+Chupin’s mother--his poor good mother, as he called her--would certainly
+have felt proud and delighted at her son’s disinterestedness. That
+very morning, he had refused the ten francs a day that M. Fortunat had
+offered him, and this evening he declined the twenty sous proffered him
+by Madame Paul. This was apparently a trifle, and yet in reality it was
+something marvellous, unprecedented, on the part of this poor lad, who,
+having neither trade nor profession, was obliged to earn his daily bread
+through the medium of those chance opportunities which the lower classes
+of Paris are continually seeking. As he returned to the Rue de Flandres,
+he muttered: “Take twenty sous from that poor creature, who hasn’t had
+enough to satisfy her hunger for heaven knows how long! That would be
+altogether unworthy of a man.”
+
+It is only just to say that money had never given him a feeling of
+satisfaction at all comparable with that which he now experienced.
+He was impressed, too, with a sense of vastly-increased importance on
+thinking that all the faculties, and all the energy he had once employed
+in the service of evil, were now consecrated to the service of good. By
+becoming the instrument of Pascal Ferailleur’s salvation he would, in
+some measure, atone for the crime he had committed years before.
+
+Chupin’s mind was so busily occupied with these thoughts that he reached
+the Rue d’Anjou and M. de Coralth’s house almost before he was aware of
+it. To his great surprise, the concierge and his wife were not alone.
+Florent was there, taking coffee with them. The valet had divested
+himself of his borrowed finery, and had donned his red waistcoat again.
+He seemed to be in a savage humor; and his anger was not at all strange
+under the circumstances. There was but a step from M. de Coralth’s house
+to the baroness’s residence, but fatalities may attend even a step! The
+baroness, on receiving the letter from her maid, had sent a message to
+Florent requesting him to wait, as she desired to speak with him! and
+she had been so inconsiderate as to keep him waiting for more than an
+hour, so that he had missed his appointment with the charming ladies he
+had spoken of. In his despair he had returned home to seek consolation
+in the society of his friend the concierge. “Have you the answer?” he
+asked.
+
+“Yes, here it is,” replied Chupin, and Florent had just slipped the
+letter into his pocket, and was engaged in counting out the thirty
+sous which he had promised his messenger, when the familiar cry, “Open,
+please,” was heard outside.
+
+M. de Coralth had returned. He sprang to the ground as soon as the
+carriage entered the courtyard, and on perceiving his servant, he
+exclaimed: “Have you executed my commissions?”
+
+“They have been executed, monsieur.”
+
+“Did you see the baroness?”
+
+“She made me wait two hours to tell me that the viscount need not be
+worried in the least; that she would certainly be able to comply with
+his request to-morrow.”
+
+M. de Coralth seemed to breathe more freely. “And the other party?” he
+inquired.
+
+“Gave me this for monsieur.”
+
+The viscount seized the missive, with an eager hand, tore it open, read
+it at one glance, and flew into such a paroxysm of passion that he
+quite forgot those around him, and began to tear the letter, and utter
+a string of oaths which would have astonished a cab-driver. But suddenly
+realizing his imprudence, he mastered his rage, and exclaimed, with a
+forced laugh: “Ah! these women! they are enough to drive one mad!” And
+deeming this a sufficient explanation, he added, addressing Florent.
+“Come and undress me; I must be up early to-morrow morning.”
+
+This remark was not lost upon Chupin, and at seven o’clock the next
+morning he mounted guard at M. de Coralth’s door. All through the day he
+followed the viscount about, first to the Marquis de Valorsay’s, then
+to the office of a business agent, then to M. Wilkie’s, then, in the
+afternoon, to Baroness Trigault’s, and finally, in the evening, to
+the house of Madame d’Argeles. Here, by making himself useful to the
+servants, by his zeal in opening and shutting the doors of the carriages
+that left the house, he succeeded in gathering some information
+concerning the frightful scene which had taken place between the mother
+and the son. He perceived M. Wilkie leave the house with his clothes in
+disorder, and subsequently he saw the viscount emerge. He followed
+him, first to the house of the Marquis de Valorsay, and afterward to M.
+Wilkie’s rooms, where he remained till nearly daybreak.
+
+Thus, when Chupin presented himself in M. Fortunat’s office at two
+o’clock on the Tuesday afternoon, he felt that he held every possible
+clue to the shameful intrigue which would ruin the viscount as soon as
+it was made public.
+
+M. Fortunat knew that his agent was shrewd, but he had not done justice
+to his abilities; and it was, indeed, with something very like envy that
+he listened to Chupin’s clear and circumstantial report. “I have not
+been as successful,” he remarked, when Chupin’s story was ended. But he
+had not time to explain how or why, for just as he was about to do so,
+Madame Dodelin appeared, and announced that the young lady he expected
+was there. “Let her come in!” exclaimed M. Fortunat, eagerly--“let her
+come in!”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had not been compelled to resort to any
+subterfuge to make her escape from Madame de Fondege’s house. The
+General had decamped early in the morning to try his horses and his
+carriages, announcing, moreover, that he would breakfast at the club.
+And as soon as her breakfast was concluded, Madame de Fondege had
+hurried off to her dressmaker’s, warning the household that she would
+not return before dinner-time. A little while later, Madame Leon had
+suddenly remembered that her noble relative would certainly be expecting
+a visit from her, and so she dressed herself in haste, and went off,
+first to Dr. Jodon’s and thence to the Marquis de Valorsay’s.
+
+Thus, Mademoiselle Marguerite had been able to make her escape without
+attracting any one’s attention, and she would be able to remain away as
+many hours as she chose, since the servants would not know how long she
+had been absent even if they saw her when she returned. An empty cab was
+passing as she left the house, so she hailed it and got in. The step she
+was about to take cost her a terrible effort. It was a difficult task
+for her, a girl naturally so reserved, to confide in a stranger, and
+open to him her maidenly heart, filled with love for Pascal Ferailleur!
+Still, she was much calmer than she had been on the previous evening,
+when she called on the photographer for a facsimile of M. de Valorsay’s
+letter. Several circumstances combined to reassure her. M. Fortunat
+knew her already, since he was the agent whom the Count de Chalusse
+had employed to carry on the investigations which had resulted in her
+discovery at the foundling asylum. A vague presentiment told her that
+this man was better acquainted with her past life than she was herself,
+and that he could, if he chose, tell her her mother’s name--the name of
+the woman whom the count so dreaded, and who had so pitilessly deserted
+her. However, her heart beat more quickly, and she felt that she was
+turning pale when, at Madame Dodelin’s invitation, she at last entered
+M. Fortunat’s private office. She took in the room and its occupants
+with a single glance. The handsome appointments of the office surprised
+her, for she had expected to see a den. The agent’s polite manner and
+rather elegant appearance disconcerted her, for she had expected to
+meet a coarse and illiterate boor; and finally, Victor Chupin, who was
+standing twisting his cap near the fireplace, attired in a blouse and
+a pair of ragged trousers, fairly alarmed her. Still, no sign of her
+agitation was perceptible on her countenance. Not a muscle of her
+beautiful, proud face moved--her glance remained clear and haughty, and
+she exclaimed in a ringing voice: “I am the late Count de Chalusse’s
+ward, Mademoiselle Marguerite. You have received my letter, I suppose?”
+
+M. Fortunat bowed with all the grace of manner he was wont to display in
+the circles where he went wife-hunting, and with a somewhat pretentious
+gesture he advanced an arm-chair, and asked his visitor to sit down.
+“Your letter reached me, mademoiselle,” he replied, “and I was expecting
+you--flattered and honored beyond expression by your confidence. My
+door, indeed, was closed to any one but you.”
+
+Marguerite took the proffered seat, and there was a moment’s silence.
+M. Fortunat found it difficult to believe that this beautiful, imposing
+young girl could be the poor little apprentice whom he had seen in
+the book-bindery, years before, clad in a coarse serge frock, with
+dishevelled hair covered with scraps of paper. In the meantime,
+Marguerite was regretting the necessity of confiding in this man, for
+the more she looked at him, the more she was convinced that he was
+not an honest, straightforward person; and she would infinitely have
+preferred a cynical scoundrel to this plausible and polite gentleman,
+whom she strongly suspected of being a hypocrite. She remained silent,
+waiting for M. Fortunat to dismiss the young man in the blouse, whose
+presence she could not explain, and who stood in a sort of mute ecstasy,
+staring at her with eyes expressive of the most intense surprise and
+the liveliest admiration. But weary at last of this fruitless delay, she
+exclaimed: “I have come, monsieur, to confer with you respecting certain
+matters which require the most profound secrecy.”
+
+Chupin understood her, for he blushed to the tips of his ears, and
+started as if to leave the room. But his employer detained him with a
+gesture.
+
+“Remain, Victor,” he said kindly, and, turning to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, he added: “You have no indiscretion to fear from this worthy
+fellow, mademoiselle. He knows everything, and he has already been
+actively at work--and with the best result--on your behalf.”
+
+“I don’t understand you, sir,” replied the girl.
+
+M. Fortunat smiled sweetly. “I have already taken your business in hand,
+mademoiselle,” said he. “An hour after the receipt of your letter I
+began the campaign.”
+
+“But I had not told you----”
+
+“What you wished of me--that’s true. But I allowed myself to
+suspect----”
+
+“Ah!”
+
+“I fancied I might conclude that you wished the help of my experience
+and poor ability in clearing an innocent man who has been vilely
+slandered, M. Pascal Ferailleur.”
+
+Marguerite sprang to her feet, at once agitated and alarmed. “How did
+you know this?” she exclaimed.
+
+M. Fortunat had left his arm-chair, and was now leaning against the
+mantel-shelf, in what he considered a most becoming and awe-inspiring
+attitude, with his thumb in the armhole of his waistcoat. “Ah! nothing
+could be more simple,” he answered, in much the same tone as a conqueror
+might assume to explain his feat. “It is part of my profession to
+penetrate the intentions of persons who deign to honor me with their
+confidence. So my surmises are correct; at least you have not said the
+contrary?”
+
+She had said nothing. When her first surprise was over, she vainly
+endeavored to find a plausible explanation of M. Fortunat’s acquaintance
+with her affairs, for she was not at all deceived by his pretended
+perspicacity. Meanwhile, delighted by the supposed effect he had
+produced, he recklessly continued: “Reserve your amazement for what I
+am about to disclose, for I have made several important discoveries. It
+must have been your good angel who inspired you with the idea of coming
+to me. You would have shuddered if you had realized the dangers that
+threatened you. But now you have nothing to fear; I am watching. I am
+here, and I hold in my hand all the threads of the abominable intrigue
+for ruining you. For it is you, your person, and your fortune that
+are imperilled. It was solely on your account that M. Ferailleur was
+attacked. And I can tell you the names of the scoundrels who ruined him.
+The crime originated with the person who had the most powerful interest
+in the matter--the Marquis de Valorsay. His agent was a scoundrel who is
+generally known as the Viscount de Coralth; but Chupin here can tell you
+his real name and his shameful past. You preferred M. Ferailleur, hence
+it was necessary to put him out of the way. M. de Chalusse had promised
+your hand to the Marquis de Valorsay. This marriage was Valorsay’s only
+resource--the plank that might save the drowning man. People fancy he is
+rich; but he is ruined. Yes, ruined completely, irretrievably. He was in
+such desperate straits that he had almost determined to blow his brains
+out before the hope of marrying you entered his mind.”
+
+“Ah!” thought Chupin, “my employer is well under way.”
+
+This was indeed the case. The name of Valorsay was quite sufficient
+to set all M. Fortunat’s bile in motion. All thought of his ex-client
+irritated him beyond endurance. Unfortunately for him, however, his
+anger in the present instance had ruined his plans. He had intended to
+take Mademoiselle Marguerite by surprise, to work upon her imagination,
+to make her talk without saying anything himself, and to remain master
+of the situation. But on the contrary he had revealed everything; and
+he did not discover this until it was too late to retrieve his blunder.
+“How the Marquis de Valorsay has kept his head above water is a wonder
+to me,” he continued. “His creditors have been threatening to sue him
+for more than six months. How he has been able to keep them quiet since
+M. de Chalusse’s death, I cannot understand. However, this much is
+certain, mademoiselle: the marquis has not renounced his intention of
+becoming your husband; and to attain that object he won’t hesitate to
+employ any means that may promise to prove effectual.”
+
+Completely mistress of herself, Mademoiselle Marguerite listened with an
+impassive face. “I know all this,” she replied, in a frigid tone.
+
+“What! you know----”
+
+“Yes; but there is one thing that baffles my powers of comprehension. My
+dowry was the only temptation to M. de Valorsay, was it not? Why does he
+still wish to marry me, now that I have no fortune?”
+
+M. Fortunat had gradually lost all his advantage. “I have asked myself
+the same question,” he replied, “and I think I have found an answer. I
+believe that the marquis has in his possession a letter, or a will, or a
+document of some sort, written by M. de Chalusse--in fact an instrument
+in which the count acknowledges you as his daughter, and which
+consequently establishes; your right to his property.”
+
+“And the marquis could urge this claim if he became my husband?”
+
+“Certainly he could.”
+
+M. Fortunat explained M. de Valorsay’s conduct exactly as the old
+magistrate had done. However, Mademoiselle Marguerite discreetly
+refrained from committing herself. The great interest that M. Fortunat
+seemed to take in her affairs aroused her distrust; and she decided
+to do what he had attempted in vain--that is, allow him to do all the
+talking, and to conceal all that she knew herself. “Perhaps you are
+right,” she remarked, “but it is necessary to prove the truth of your
+assertion.”
+
+“I can prove that Valorsay hasn’t a shilling, and that he has lived for
+a year by expedients which render him liable to arrest and prosecution
+at any time. I can prove that he deceived M. de Chalusse as to his
+financial position. I can prove that he conspired with M. de Coralth to
+ruin your lover. Wouldn’t this be something?”
+
+She smiled in a way that was exceedingly irritating to his vanity, and
+in a tone of good-natured incredulity, she remarked: “It is easy to SAY
+these things.”
+
+“And to do them,” rejoined M. Fortunat, quickly. “I never promise what I
+cannot perform. A man should never touch a pen when he is meditating any
+evil act. Of course, no one is fool enough to write down his infamy in
+detail. But a man cannot always be on the qui vive. There will be a word
+in one letter, a sentence in another, an allusion in a third. And by
+combining these words, phrases, and allusions, one may finally discover
+the truth.”
+
+He suddenly checked himself, warned of his fresh imprudence by the
+expression on Mademoiselle Marguerite’s face. She drew back, and looking
+him full in the eyes, she exclaimed: “Then you have been in M. de
+Valorsay’s confidence, sir? Would you be willing to swear that you never
+helped him in his designs?”
+
+A silent and ignored witness of this scene, Victor Chupin was secretly
+delighted. “Hit!” he thought--“hit just in the bull’s-eye. Zounds!
+there’s a woman for you! She has beaten the guv’nor on every point.”
+
+M. Fortunat was so taken by surprise that he made no attempt to deny
+his guilt. “I confess that I acted as M. de Valorsay’s adviser for some
+time,” he replied, “and he frequently spoke to me of his intention of
+marrying a rich wife in order to retrieve his shattered fortunes. Upon
+my word, I see nothing so very bad about that! It is not a strictly
+honest proceeding, perhaps, but it is done every day. What is marriage
+in this age? Merely a business transaction, is it not? Perhaps it would
+be more correct to say that it is a transaction in which one person
+tries to cheat the other. The fathers-in-law are deceived, or the
+husband, or the wife, and sometimes all of them together. But when I
+discovered this scheme for mining M. Ferailleur, I cried ‘halt!’ My
+conscience revolted at that. Dishonor an innocent man! It was base,
+cowardly, outrageous! And not being able to prevent this infamous act, I
+swore that I would avenge it.”
+
+Would Mademoiselle Marguerite accept this explanation? Chupin feared so,
+and accordingly turning quickly to his employer, he remarked: “To
+say nothing of the fact that this fine gentleman has swindled you
+outrageously, shrewd as you are--cheating you out of the forty thousand
+francs you lent him, and which he was to pay you eighty thousand for.”
+
+M. Fortunat cast a withering look at his clerk, but the mischief was
+done: denial was useless. He seemed fated to blunder in this affair.
+“Well, yes,” he declared, “it’s true. Valorsay HAS defrauded me, and I
+have sworn to have my revenge. I won’t rest until I see him ruined.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was partially reassured, for she understood
+his zeal now. Her scorn for the man was only increased; but she was
+convinced that he would serve her faithfully. “I like this much better,”
+ said she. “It is better to have no concealment. You desire M. de
+Valorsay’s ruin. I desire the rehabilitation of M. Ferailleur. So our
+interests are in common. But before acting in this matter, we must know
+M. Ferailleur’s wishes.”
+
+“They cannot be considered.”
+
+“And why?”
+
+“Because no one knows what has become of him. When the desire for
+revenge first took possession of me, I at once thought of him. I
+procured his address, and went to the Rue d’Ulm. But he had gone away.
+The very day after his misfortune, M. Ferailleur sold his furniture and
+went away with his mother.”
+
+“I am aware of that, and I have come to ask you to search for him. To
+discover his hiding-place will be only child’s play to you.”
+
+“Do you suppose I haven’t thought of this?” replied M. Fortunat. “Why, I
+spent all day yesterday searching for him. By questioning the people
+in the neighborhood I finally succeeded in ascertaining that Madame
+Ferailleur left her home in a cab several hours after her son, and took
+a very large quantity of baggage with her. Well, do you know where she
+drove? To the Western railway station. I am sure of this, and I know she
+told a porter there that her destination was London. M. Ferailleur is
+now en route for America, and we shall never hear of him again!”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite shook her head. “You are mistaken, sir,” said
+she.
+
+“There can be no mistake about what I have just told you.”
+
+“I don’t question the result of your investigations, but appearances are
+deceitful. I thoroughly understand M. Ferailleur’s character, and he is
+not the man to be crushed by an infamous calumny. He may seem to fly, he
+may disappear, he may conceal himself for a time, but it is only to
+make his vengeance more certain. What! Pascal, who is energy itself, who
+possesses an iron will, and invincible determination, would he renounce
+his honor, his future, and the woman he loves without a struggle? If he
+had felt that his case was hopeless, he would have destroyed himself,
+and as he has not done so, he is not without hope. He has not left
+Paris; I am sure of it.”
+
+M. Fortunat was not convinced. In his opinion this was only sentiment
+and rubbish. Still there was one person present who was deeply impressed
+by the confidence of this young girl, who was the most beautiful
+creature he had ever seen, and whose devotion and energy filled his
+heart with admiration, and this person was Chupin. He stepped forward
+with his eyes sparkling with enthusiasm, and in a feeling voice he
+exclaimed: “I understand your idea! Yes, M. Ferailleur is in Paris. And
+I shall be unworthy of the name of Chupin, if I don’t find him for you
+in less than a fortnight!”
+
+
+
+
+XII.
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite knew Pascal Ferailleur. Suddenly struck down in
+the full sunlight of happiness by a terrible misfortune, he, of course,
+experienced moments of frenzy and terrible depression; but he was
+incapable of the cowardice which M. Fortunat had accused him of.
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite only did him justice when she said that the sole
+condition on which he could consent to live was that of consecrating his
+life, and all his strength, intelligence and will to confounding this
+infamous calumny. And still she did not know the extent of Pascal’s
+misfortune. How could she suppose that he believed himself deserted by
+her? How could she know the doubts and fears and the anguish that had
+been roused in his heart by the note which Madame Leon had given him at
+the garden gate? What did she know of the poignant suspicions that
+had rent his mind, after listening to Madame Vantrasson’s disparaging
+insinuations?
+
+It must be admitted that he was indebted to his mother alone for his
+escape from suicide--that grim madness that seizes hold of so many
+desperate, despairing men. And it was still to his mother--the
+incomparable guardian of his honor--that he owed his resolution on the
+morning he applied to Baron Trigault. And his courage met with its first
+reward.
+
+He was no longer the same man when he left the princely mansion which
+he had entered with his heart so full of anguish. He was still somewhat
+bewildered with the strange scenes which he had involuntarily witnessed,
+the secrets he had overheard, and the revelations which had been made to
+him; but a light gleamed on the horizon--a fitful and uncertain light,
+it is true, but nevertheless a hopeful gleam. At least, he would no
+longer have to struggle alone. An honest and experienced man, powerful
+by reason of his reputation, his connections and his fortune, had
+promised him his help. Thanks to this man whom misfortune had made a
+truer friend than years could have done, he would have access to the
+wretch who had deprived him both of his honor and of the woman he loved.
+He knew the weak spot in the marquis’s armor now; he knew where and how
+to strike, and he felt sure that he should succeed in winning Valorsay’s
+confidence, and in obtaining irrefutable proofs of his villainy.
+
+Pascal was eager to inform his mother of the fortunate result of his
+visit, but certain arrangements which were needful for the success of
+his plans required his attention, and it was nearly five o’clock when
+he reached the Route de la Revolte. Madame Ferailleur was just returning
+home when he arrived, which surprised him considerably, for he had not
+known that she had intended going out. The cab she had used was still
+standing before the door, and she had not had time to take off her
+shawl and bonnet when he entered the house. She uttered a joyful cry on
+perceiving her son. She was so accustomed to read his secret thoughts on
+his face, that it was unnecessary for him to say a word; before he had
+even opened his lips, she cried: “So you have succeeded?”
+
+“Yes, mother, beyond my hopes.”
+
+“I was not deceived, then, in the worthy man who came to offer us his
+assistance?”
+
+“No, certainly not. Do what I may, I can never repay him for his
+generosity and self-denial. If you knew, my dear mother, if you only
+knew----”
+
+“What?”
+
+He kissed her as if he wished to apologize for what he was about to say,
+and then he quickly replied: “Marguerite is the daughter of Baroness
+Trigault.”
+
+Madame Ferailleur started back, as if she had seen a reptile spring up
+in her pathway. “The daughter of the baroness!” she faltered. “Great
+Heavens!”
+
+“It is the truth, mother; listen to me.” And in a voice that trembled
+with emotion, he rapidly related all he had learned by his visit to the
+baron, softening the truth as much as he could without concealing it.
+But prevarication was useless. Madame Ferailleur’s indignation
+and disgust were none the less evident. “That woman is a shameless
+creature,” she said, coldly, when her son’s narrative was concluded.
+
+Pascal made no reply. He knew only too well that his mother was right,
+and yet it wounded him cruelly to hear her speak in this style. For the
+baroness was Marguerite’s mother after all.
+
+“So,” continued Madame Ferailleur, with increasing indignation,
+“creatures do exist who are destitute even of the maternal instincts
+of animals. I am an honest woman myself; I don’t say it in
+self-glorification, it’s no credit to me; my mother was a saint, and I
+loved my husband; what some people call duty was my happiness, so I may
+be allowed to speak on this subject. I don’t excuse infidelity, but I
+can understand how such a thing is possible. Yes, I can understand how a
+beautiful young woman, who is left alone in a city like Paris, may lose
+her senses, and forget the worthy man who has exiled himself for her
+sake, and who is braving a thousand dangers to win a fortune for her.
+The husband who exposes his honor and happiness to such terrible risk,
+is an imprudent man. But when this woman has erred, when she has given
+birth to a child, how she can abandon it, how she can cast it off as
+if it were a dog, I cannot comprehend. I could imagine infanticide more
+easily. No, such a woman has no heart, no bowels of compassion. There is
+nothing human in her! For how could she live, how could she sleep with
+the thought that somewhere in the world her own child, the flesh of her
+flesh, was exposed to all the temptations of poverty, and the horrors of
+shame and vice? And she, the possessor of millions, she, the inmate of a
+palace, thinking only of dress and pleasure! How was it that she didn’t
+ask herself every minute, ‘Where is my daughter now, and what is she
+doing? What is she living on? Has she shelter, clothes and food? To what
+depths of degradation she may have sunk? Perhaps she has so far lived by
+honest toil, and perhaps at this very moment this support fails her, and
+she is abandoning herself to a life of infamy.’ Great God! how does this
+woman dare to step out of doors? On seeing the poor wretches who have
+been driven to vice by want, how can she fail to say to herself: ‘That,
+perhaps, is my daughter!’”
+
+Pascal turned pale, moved to the depths of his soul by his mother’s
+extraordinary vehemence. He trembled lest she should say: “And you,
+my son, would you marry the child of such a mother?” For he knew his
+mother’s prejudices, and the great importance she attached to a
+spotless reputation transmitted from parent to child, from generation to
+generation. “The baroness knew that her husband adored her, and hearing
+of his return she became terrified; she lost her senses,” he ventured to
+say in extenuation.
+
+“Would you try to defend her?” exclaimed Madame Ferailleur. “Do you
+really think one can atone for a fault by a crime?”
+
+“No, certainly not, but----”
+
+“Perhaps you would censure the baroness more severely if you knew what
+her daughter has suffered--if you knew the perils and miseries she has
+been exposed to from the moment her mother left her on a door-step, near
+the central markets, till the day when her father found her. It is a
+miracle that she did not perish.”
+
+Where had Madame Ferailleur learned these particulars? Pascal asked
+himself this question without being able to answer it. “I don’t
+understand you, mother,” he faltered.
+
+“Then you know nothing of Mademoiselle Marguerite’s past life. Is it
+possible she never told you anything about it?”
+
+“I only know that she has been very unhappy.”
+
+“Has she never alluded to the time when she was an apprentice?”
+
+“She has only told me that she earned her living with her own hands at
+one time of her life.”
+
+“Well, I am better informed on the subject.”
+
+Pascal’s amazement was changed to terror. “You, mother, you!”
+
+“Yes; I--I have been to the asylum where she was received and educated.
+I have had a conversation with two Sisters of Charity who remember
+her, and it is scarcely an hour since I left the people to whom she was
+formerly bound as an apprentice.”
+
+Standing opposite his mother with one hand convulsively clutching the
+back of the chair he was leaning on, Pascal tried to nerve himself for
+some terrible blow. For was not his life at stake? Did not his whole
+future depend upon the revelations Madame Ferailleur was about to make?
+“So this was your object in going out, mother?” he faltered.
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“And you went without warning me?”
+
+“Was it necessary? What! you love a young girl, you swear in my presence
+that she shall be your wife, and you think it strange that I should
+try to ascertain whether she is worthy of you or not? It would be very
+strange if I did not do so.”
+
+“This idea occurred to you so suddenly!”
+
+Madame Ferailleur gave an almost imperceptible shrug of the shoulders,
+as if she were astonished to have to answer such puerile objections.
+“Have you already forgotten the disparaging remarks made by our new
+servant, Madame Vantrasson?”
+
+“Good Heavens!”
+
+“I understood her base insinuations as well as you did, and after your
+departure I questioned her, or rather I allowed her to tell her
+story, and I ascertained that Mademoiselle Marguerite had once been an
+apprentice of Vantrasson’s brother-in-law, a man named Greloux, who was
+formerly a bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis, but who has now retired
+from business. It was there that Vantrasson met Mademoiselle Marguerite,
+and this is why he was so greatly surprised to see her doing the
+mistress at the Hotel de Chalusse.”
+
+It seemed to Pascal that the throbbing of his heart stopped his breath.
+
+“By a little tact I obtained the Greloux’s address from Madame
+Vantrasson,” resumed his mother. “Then I sent for a cab and drove there
+at once.”
+
+“And you saw them?”
+
+“Yes; thanks to a falsehood which doesn’t trouble my conscience much, I
+succeeded in effecting an entrance, and had an hour’s conversation with
+them.” His mother’s icy tones frightened Pascal. Her slowness tortured
+him, and still he dared not press her. “The Greloux family,” she
+continued, “seem to be what are called worthy people, that is, incapable
+of committing any crime that is punishable by the code, and very proud
+of their income of seven thousand francs a year. They must have been
+very much attached to Mademoiselle Marguerite, for they were lavish in
+their protestations of affection when I mentioned her name. The husband
+in particular seemed to regard her with a feeling of something like
+gratitude.”
+
+“Ah! you see, mother, you see!”
+
+“As for the wife, it was easy to see that she had sincerely regretted
+the loss of the best apprentice, the most honest servant, and the best
+worker she had ever seen in her life. And yet, from her own story, I
+should be willing to swear that she had abused the poor child, and had
+made a slave of her.” Tears glittered in Pascal’s eyes, but he breathed
+freely once more. “As for Vantrasson,” resumed Madame Ferailleur, “it
+is certain that he took a violent fancy to his sister’s apprentice. This
+man, who has since become an infamous scoundrel, was then only a rake,
+an unprincipled drunkard and libertine. He fancied the poor little
+apprentice--she was then but thirteen years old--would be only too glad
+to become the mistress of her employer’s brother; but she scornfully
+repulsed him, and his vanity was so deeply wounded that he persecuted
+the poor girl to such an extent that she was obliged to complain, first
+to Madame Greloux, who--to her shame be it said--treated these insults
+as mere nonsense; and afterward to Greloux himself, who was probably
+delighted to have an opportunity of ridding himself of his indolent
+brother-in-law, for he turned him out of the house.”
+
+The thought that so vile a rascal as this man Vantrasson should have
+dared to insult Marguerite made Pascal frantic with indignation. “The
+wretch!” he exclaimed; “the wretch!” But without seeming to notice her
+son’s anger, Madame Ferailleur continued: “They pretended they had not
+seen their former apprentice since she had been living in grandeur,
+as they expressed it. But in this they lied to me. For they saw her at
+least once, and that was on the day she brought them twenty thousand
+francs, which proved the nucleus of their fortune. They did not mention
+this fact, however.”
+
+“Dear Marguerite!” murmured Pascal, “dear Marguerite!” And then aloud:
+“But where did you learn these last details, mother?” he inquired.
+
+“At the asylum where Mademoiselle Marguerite was brought up, and there,
+too, I only heard words of praise. ‘Never,’ said the superior, ‘have I
+had a more gifted, sweeter-tempered or more attractive charge.’ They had
+reproached her sometimes for being too reserved, and her self-respect
+had often been mistaken for inordinate pride; but she had not forgotten
+the asylum any more than she had forgotten her former patrons. On one
+occasion the superior received from her the sum of twenty-five thousand
+francs, and a year ago she presented the institution with one hundred
+thousand francs, the yearly income of which is to constitute the
+marriage dowry of some deserving orphan.”
+
+Pascal was greatly elated. “Well, mother!” he exclaimed, “well, is
+it strange that I love her?” Madame Ferailleur made no reply, and a
+sorrowful apprehension seized hold of him. “You are silent,” said he,
+“and why? When the blessed day that will allow me to wed Marguerite
+arrives, you surely won’t oppose our marriage?”
+
+“No, my son, nothing that I have learned gives me the right to do so.”
+
+“The right! Ah, you are unjust, mother.”
+
+“Unjust! Haven’t I faithfully reported all that was told me, although I
+knew it would only increase your passion?”
+
+“That’s true, but----”
+
+Madame Ferailleur sadly shook her head. “Do you think,” she interrupted,
+“that I can, without sorrow, see you choose a girl of no family, a girl
+who is outside the pale of social recognition? Don’t you understand
+my disquietude when I think that the girl that you will marry is the
+daughter of such a woman as Baroness Trigault, an unfortunate girl
+whom her mother cannot even recognize, since her mother is a married
+woman----”
+
+“Ah! mother, is that Marguerite’s fault?”
+
+“Did I say it was her fault? No--I only pray God that you may never
+have to repent of choosing a wife whose past life must ever remain an
+impenetrable mystery!”
+
+Pascal had become very pale. “Mother!” he said in a quivering voice,
+“mother!”
+
+“I mean that you will only know so much of Mademoiselle Marguerite’s
+past life as she may choose to tell you,” continued the obdurate old
+lady. “You heard Madame Vantrasson’s ignoble allegations. It has been
+said that she was the mistress, not the daughter, of the Count de
+Chalusse. Who knows what vile accusations you may be forced to meet?
+And what is your refuge, if doubts should ever assail you? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite’s word! Will this be sufficient? It is now, perhaps; but will
+it suffice in years to come? I would have my son’s wife above suspicion;
+and she--why, there is not a single episode in her life that does not
+expose her to the most atrocious calumny.”
+
+“What does calumny matter? it will never shake my faith in her. The
+misfortunes which you reproach Marguerite for sanctify her in my eyes.”
+
+“Pascal!”
+
+“What! Am I to scorn her because she has been unfortunate? Am I to
+regard her birth as a crime? Am I to despise her because her MOTHER is
+a despicable woman? No--God be praised! the day when illegitimate
+children, the innocent victims of their mother’s faults, were branded as
+outcasts, is past.”
+
+But Madame Ferailleur’s prejudices were too deeply rooted to be shaken
+by these arguments. “I won’t discuss this question, my son,” she
+interrupted, “but take care. By declaring children irresponsible for
+their mother’s faults, you will break the strongest tie that binds a
+woman to duty. If the son of a pure and virtuous wife, and the son of
+an adulterous woman meet upon equal ground, those who are held in check
+only by the thought of their children will finally say to themselves,
+what does it matter?”
+
+It was the first time that a cloud had ever arisen between mother and
+son. On hearing his dearest hopes thus attacked, Pascal was tempted
+to rebel, and a flood of bitter words rose to his lips. However he had
+strength enough to control himself. “Marguerite alone can triumph over
+these implacable prejudices,” he thought; “when my mother knows her, she
+will feel how unjust they are!”
+
+And as he found it difficult to remain master of himself, he stammered
+some excuse, and abruptly retired to his own room, where he threw
+himself on his bed. He felt that it was not his place to reproach his
+mother or censure her for her opinions. What mother had ever been so
+devoted as she had been? And who knows?--it was, perhaps, from these
+same rigid prejudices that this simple-minded and heroic woman had
+derived her energy, her enthusiastic love of God, her hatred of evil,
+and that virility of spirit which misfortune had been powerless to
+daunt. Besides, had she not promised to offer no opposition to his
+marriage! And was not this a great concession, a sacrifice which must
+have cost her a severe struggle? And where can one find the mother
+who does not count as one of the sublime joys of maternity the task of
+seeking a wife for her son, of choosing from among all others the young
+girl who will be the companion of his life, the angel of his dark and of
+his prosperous days? His mind was occupied with these thoughts when his
+door suddenly opened, and he sprang up, exclaiming: “Who is it?”
+
+It was Madame Vantrasson, who came to announce that dinner was
+ready--a dinner which she had herself prepared, for on going out Madame
+Ferailleur had left her in charge of the household. On seeing this
+woman, Pascal was overcome with rage and indignation, and felt a wild
+desire to annihilate her. He knew that she was only a vile slanderer,
+but she might meet other beings as vile as herself who would be only too
+glad to believe her falsehoods. And to think that he was powerless to
+punish her! He now realized the suffering his mother had spoken of--the
+most atrocious suffering which the lover can endure--powerlessness to
+protect the object of his affections, when she is assailed. Engrossed
+in these gloomy thoughts, Pascal preserved a sullen silence during the
+repast. He ate because his mother filled his plate; but if he had been
+questioned, he could scarcely have told what he was eating. And yet, the
+modest dinner was excellent. Madame Vantrasson was really a good cook,
+and in this first effort in her new situation she had surpassed herself.
+Her vanity as a cordon-bleu was piqued because she did not receive the
+compliments she expected, and which she felt she deserved. Four or five
+times she asked impatiently, “Isn’t that good?” and as the only reply
+was a scarcely enthusiastic “Very good,” she vowed she would never again
+waste so much care and talent upon such unappreciative people.
+
+Madame Ferailleur was as silent as her son, and seemed equally anxious
+to finish with the repast. She evidently wanted to get rid of Madame
+Vantrasson, and in fact as soon as the simple dessert had been placed
+on the table, she turned to her, and said: “You may go home now. I will
+attend to the rest.”
+
+Irritated by the taciturnity of these strange folks, the landlady of the
+Model Lodging House withdrew, and they soon heard the street door close
+behind her with a loud bang as she left the house. Pascal drew a long
+breath as if relieved of a heavy weight. While Madame Vantrasson had
+been in the room he had scarcely dared to raise his eyes, so great was
+his dread of encountering the gaze of this woman, whose malignity was
+but poorly veiled by her smooth-tongued hypocrisy. He really feared he
+should not be able to resist his desire to strangle her. However, Madame
+Ferailleur must have understood her son’s agitation, for as soon as
+they were alone, she said: “So you have not forgiven me for my plain
+speaking?”
+
+“How can I be angry with you, mother, when I know that you are thinking
+only of my happiness? But how sorry I shall be if your prejudices----”
+
+Madame Ferailleur checked him with a gesture. “Let us say no more on the
+subject,” she remarked. “Mademoiselle Marguerite will be the innocent
+cause of one of the greatest disappointments of my life; but I have no
+reason to hate her--and I have always been able to show justice even to
+the persons I loved the least. I have done so in this instance, and I am
+going perhaps to give you a convincing proof of it.”
+
+“A proof?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+She reflected for a moment and then she asked: “Did you not tell me,
+my son, that Mademoiselle Marguerite’s education has not suffered on
+account of her neglected childhood?”
+
+“And it’s quite true, mother.”
+
+“She worked diligently, you said, so as to improve herself?”
+
+“Marguerite knows all that an unusually talented girl can learn in four
+years, when she finds herself very unhappy, and study proves her only
+refuge and consolation.”
+
+“If she wrote you a note would it be written grammatically, and be free
+from any mistakes in spelling?”
+
+“Oh, certainly!” exclaimed Pascal, and a sudden inspiration made
+him pause abruptly. He darted to his own room, and a minute later he
+returned with a package of letters, which he laid on the table, saying:
+“Here, mother, read and see for yourself.”
+
+Madame Ferailleur drew her spectacles from their case, and, after
+adjusting them, she began to read.
+
+With his elbows on the table, and his head resting upon his hands,
+Pascal eagerly watched his mother, anxious to read her impressions
+on her face. She was evidently astonished. She had not expected these
+letters would express such nobility of sentiment, an energy no whit
+inferior to her own, and even an echo of her own prejudices. For this
+strange young girl shared Madame Ferailleur’s rather bigoted opinions.
+Again and again she asked herself if her birth and past had not created
+an impassable abyss between Pascal and herself. And she had not felt
+satisfied on this point until the day when the gray-haired magistrate,
+after hearing her story, said: “If I had a son, I should be proud to
+have him beloved by you!”
+
+It soon became apparent that Madame Ferailleur was deeply moved, and
+once she even raised her glasses to wipe away a furtive tear which made
+Pascal’s heart leap with very joy. “These letters are admirable,” she
+said at last; “and no young girl, reared by a virtuous mother, could
+have given better expression to nobler sentiments; but----” She paused,
+not wishing to wound her son’s feelings, and as he insisted, she added:
+
+“But, these letters have the irreparable fault of being addressed to
+you, Pascal!”
+
+This, however, was the expiring cry of her intractable obstinacy. “Now,”
+ she resumed, “wait before you censure your mother.” So saying, she rose,
+opened a drawer, and taking from it a torn and crumpled scrap of paper,
+she handed it to her son, exclaiming: “Read this attentively.”
+
+This proved to be the note in pencil which Madame Leon had given to
+Pascal, and which he had divined rather than read by the light of the
+street-lamp; he had handed it to his mother on his return, and she had
+kept it. He had scarcely been in his right mind the evening he received
+it, but now he was enjoying the free exercise of all his faculties.
+He no sooner glanced at the note than he sprang up, and in an excited
+voice, exclaimed, “Marguerite never wrote this!”
+
+The strange discovery seemed to stupefy him. “I was mad, raving mad!” he
+muttered. “The fraud is palpable, unmistakable. How could I have failed
+to discover it?” And as if he felt the need of convincing himself that
+he was not deceived, he continued, speaking to himself rather than to
+his mother: “The hand-writing is not unlike Marguerite’s, it’s true; but
+it’s only a clever counterfeit. And who doesn’t know that all writings
+in pencil resemble each other more or less? Besides, it’s certain that
+Marguerite, who is simplicity itself, would not have made use of such
+pretentious melodramatic phrases. How could I have been so stupid as to
+believe that she ever thought or wrote this: ‘One cannot break a promise
+made to the dying; I shall keep mine even though my heart break.’ And
+again: ‘Forget, therefore, the girl who has loved you so much: she is
+now the betrothed of another, and honor requires she should forget even
+your name!’” He read these passages with an extravagant emphasis, which
+heightened their absurdity. “And what shall I say of these mistakes in
+spelling?” he resumed. “You noticed them, of course, mother?--command
+is written with a single ‘m,’ and supplicate with one ‘p.’ These are
+certainly not mistakes that we can attribute to haste! Ignorance is
+proved since the blunder is always the same. The forger is evidently in
+the habit of omitting one of the double letters.”
+
+Madame Ferailleur listened with an impassive face. “And these mistakes
+are all the more inexcusable since this letter is only a copy,” she
+observed, quietly.
+
+“What?”
+
+“Yes; a verbatim copy. Yesterday evening, while I was examining it for
+the twentieth time, it occurred to me that I had read some portions of
+it before. Where, and under what circumstances? It was a puzzle which
+kept me awake most of the night. But this morning I suddenly remembered
+a book which I had seen in the hands of the workmen at the factory,
+and which I had often laughed over. So, while I was out this morning I
+entered a book-shop, and purchased the volume. That’s it, there on the
+corner of the mantel-shelf. Take it and see.”
+
+Pascal obeyed, and noticed with surprise that the work was entitled,
+“The Indispensable and Complete Letter-writer, for Both Sexes, in Every
+Condition of Life.”
+
+“Now turn to the page I have marked,” said Madame Ferailleur.
+
+He did so, and read: “(Model 198). Letter from a young lady who has
+promised her dying father to renounce the man she loves, and to bestow
+her hand upon another.” Doubt was no longer possible. Line for line and
+word for word, the mistakes in spelling excepted, the note was an exact
+copy of the stilted prose of the “Indispensable Letter-writer.”
+
+It seemed to Pascal as if the scales had suddenly fallen from his eyes,
+and that he could now understand the whole intrigue which had been
+planned to separate him from Marguerite. His enemies had dishonored him
+in the hope that she would reject and scorn him, and, disappointed
+in their expectations, they had planned this pretended rupture of the
+engagement to prevent him from making any attempt at self-justification.
+So, in spite of some short-lived doubts, his love had been more
+clear-sighted than reason, and stronger than appearances. He had been
+quite right, then, in saying to his mother: “I can never believe that
+Marguerite deserts me at a moment when I am so wretched--that she
+condemns me unheard, and has no greater confidence in me than in my
+accusers. Appearances may indicate the contrary, but I am right.”
+ Certain circumstances, which had previously seemed contradictory,
+now strengthened this belief. “How is it,” he said to himself, “that
+Marguerite writes to me that her father, on his death-bed, made her
+promise to renounce me, while Valorsay declares the Count de Chalusse
+died so suddenly, that he had not even time to acknowledge his daughter
+or to bequeath her his immense fortune? One of these stories must be
+false; and which of them? The one in this note most probably. As for the
+letter itself, it must have been the work of Madame Leon.”
+
+If he had not already possessed irrefutable proofs of this, the
+“Indispensable Letter-writer” would have shown it. The housekeeper’s
+perturbation when she met him at the garden gate was now explained. She
+was shuddering at the thought that she might be followed and watched,
+and that Marguerite might appear at any moment, and discover everything.
+
+“I think it would be a good plan to let this poor young girl know that
+her companion is Valorsay’s spy,” remarked Madame Ferailleur.
+
+Pascal was about to approve this suggestion, when a sudden thought
+deterred him. “They must be watching Marguerite very closely,” he
+replied, “and if I attempt to see her, if I even venture to write to
+her, our enemies would undoubtedly discover it. And then, farewell to
+the success of my plans.”
+
+“Then you prefer to leave her exposed to these dangers?”
+
+“Yes, even admitting there is danger, which is by no means certain.
+Owing to her past life, Marguerite’s experience is far in advance of
+her years, and if some one told me that she had fathomed Madame Leon’s
+character, I should not be at all surprised.”
+
+It was necessary to ascertain what had become of Marguerite; and Pascal
+was puzzling his brain to discover how this might be done, when suddenly
+he exclaimed: “Madame Vantrasson! We have her; let us make use of her.
+It will be easy to find some excuse for sending her to the Hotel de
+Chalusse: she will gossip with the servants there, and in that way we
+can discover the changes that have taken place.”
+
+This was a heroic resolution on Pascal’s part, and one which he would
+have recoiled from the evening before. But it is easy to be brave when
+one is hopeful; and he saw his chances of success increase so rapidly
+that he no longer feared the obstacles that had once seemed almost
+insurmountable. Even his mother’s opposition had ceased to alarm him.
+For why should he fear after the surprising proof she had given him of
+her love of justice, proving that the pretended letter from Mademoiselle
+Marguerite was really a forgery?
+
+He slept but little that night and did not stir from the house on the
+following day. He was busily engaged in perfecting his plan of attack
+against the marquis. His advantages were considerable, thanks to Baron
+Trigault, who had placed a hundred thousand francs at his disposal;
+but the essential point was to use this amount in such a way as to win
+Valorsay’s confidence, and induce him to betray himself. Pascal’s hours
+of meditation were not spent in vain, and when it became time for him to
+repair to his enemy’s house, he said to his mother: “I’ve found a plan;
+and if the baron will let me follow it out, Valorsay is mine!”
+
+
+
+
+XIII.
+
+
+It was pure childishness on Pascal’s part to doubt Baron Trigault’s
+willingness to agree even with closed eyes to any measures he might
+propose. He ought to have recollected that their interests were
+identical, that they hated the same men with equal hatred, and that they
+were equally resolved upon vengeance. And certainly the events which had
+occurred since their last interview had not been of a nature to modify
+the baron’s intentions. However, misfortune had rendered Pascal timid
+and suspicious, and it was not until he reached the baron’s house that
+his fears vanished. The manner in which the servants received him proved
+that the baron greatly esteemed him: for the man must be stupid indeed
+who does not know that the greeting of the servants is ever in harmony
+with the feelings of the master of the house. “Will you be kind enough
+to follow me?” said the servant to whom he handed his card. “The baron
+is very busy, but that doesn’t matter. He gave orders that monsieur
+should be shown up as soon as he arrived.”
+
+Pascal followed without a word. The elegance of this princely abode
+never varied. The same careless, prodigal, regal luxury was apparent
+everywhere. The servants--whose name was legion--were always passing
+noiselessly to and fro. A pair of horses, worth at least a thousand
+louis, and harnessed to the baroness’s brougham, were stamping and
+neighing in the courtyard; and the hall was, as usual, fragrant with the
+perfume of rare flowers, renewed every morning.
+
+On his first visit Pascal had only seen the apartments on the ground
+floor. This time his guide remarked that he would take him upstairs
+to the baron’s private room. He was slowly ascending the broad marble
+staircase and admiring the bronze balustrade, the rich carpet, the
+magnificent frescoes, and the costly statuary, when a rustle of silk
+resounded near him. He had only time to step aside, and a lady passed
+him rapidly, without turning her head, or even deigning to look at him.
+She did not appear more than forty, and she was still very beautiful,
+with her golden hair dressed high on the back of her head. Her costume,
+brilliant enough in hue to frighten a cab horse, was extremely eccentric
+in cut; but it certainly set off her peculiar style of beauty to
+admirable advantage.
+
+“That’s the baroness,” whispered the servant, after she had passed.
+
+Pascal did not need to be told this. He had seen her but once, and then
+only for a second; but it had been under such circumstances that he
+should never forget her so long as he lived. And now he understood the
+strange and terrible impression which had been produced upon him when he
+saw her first. Mademoiselle Marguerite was the living prototype of this
+lady, save as regards the color of her hair. And there would have been
+no difference in this respect had the baroness allowed her locks to
+retain their natural tint. Her hair had been black, like Marguerite’s,
+and black it had remained until she was thirty-five, when she bleached
+it to the fashionable color of the time. And every fourth day even now
+her hairdresser came to apply a certain compound to her head, after
+which she remained in the bright sunlight for several hours, so as to
+impart a livelier shade of gold to her dyed locks.
+
+Pascal had scarcely regained his composure, when the servant opened the
+door of an immense apartment as large as a handsome suite of rooms,
+and magnificently furnished. Here sat the baron, surrounded by several
+clerks, who were busily engaged in putting a pile of papers and
+documents in order.
+
+But as soon as Pascal entered, the baron rose, and cordially holding out
+his hand, exclaimed, “Ah! here you are at last, Monsieur Maumejan!”
+
+So he had not forgotten the name which Pascal had assumed. This was a
+favorable omen. “I called, monsieur----” began the young man.
+
+“Yes--I know--I know!” interrupted the baron. “Come, we must have a
+talk.”
+
+And, taking Pascal’s arm, he led him into his private sanctum, separated
+from the large apartment by folding-doors, which had been removed, and
+replaced by hangings. Once there he indicated by a gesture that they
+could be heard in the adjoining room, and that it was necessary to
+speak in a low tone. “You have no doubt come,” said he, “for the money
+I promised that dear Marquis de Valorsay--I have it all ready for you;
+here it is.” So saying, he opened an escritoire, and took out a large
+roll of bank-notes, which he handed to Pascal. “Here, count it,” he
+added, “and see if the amount is correct.”
+
+But Pascal, whose face had suddenly become as red as fire, did not utter
+a word in reply. On receiving this money a new but quite natural thought
+had entered his mind for the first time. “What is the matter?” inquired
+the baron, surprised by this sudden embarrassment. “What has happened to
+you?”
+
+“Nothing, monsieur, nothing! Only I was asking myself--if I ought--if I
+can accept this money.”
+
+“Bah! and why not?”
+
+“Because if you lend it to M. de Valorsay, it is perhaps lost.”
+
+“PERHAPS! You are polite----”
+
+“Yes, monsieur, you are right. I ought to have said that it is sure to
+be lost; and hence my embarrassment. Is it not solely on my account
+that you sacrifice a sum which would be a fortune to many men? Yes. Very
+well, then. I am asking myself if it is right for me to accept such a
+sacrifice, when it is by no means certain that I shall ever be able to
+requite it. Shall I ever have a hundred thousand francs to repay you?”
+
+“But isn’t this money absolutely necessary to enable you to win
+Valorsay’s confidence?”
+
+“Yes, and if it belonged to me I should not hesitate.”
+
+Though the baron had formed a high estimate of Pascal’s character, he
+was astonished and deeply touched by these scruples, and this excessive
+delicacy of feeling. Like most opulent men, he knew few poor people who
+wore their poverty with grace and dignity, and who did not snatch at a
+twenty-franc piece wherever they chanced to find it. “Ah, well, my dear
+Ferailleur,” he said, kindly, “don’t trouble yourself on this score.
+It’s not at your request nor solely on your account that I make this
+sacrifice.”
+
+“Oh!”
+
+“No; I give you my word of honor it isn’t. Leaving you quite out of the
+question, I should still have lent Valorsay this money; and if you do
+not wish to take it to him, I shall send it by some one else.”
+
+After that, Pascal could not demur any further. He took the baron’s
+proffered hand and pressed it warmly, uttering only this one word, made
+more eloquent than any protestations by the fervor with which it was
+spoken: “Thanks!”
+
+The baron shrugged his shoulders good-naturedly, like a man who fails to
+see that he has done anything at all meritorious, or even worthy of the
+slightest acknowledgment. “And you must understand, my dear sir,” he
+resumed, “that you can employ this sum as you choose, in advancing your
+interests, which are identical with mine. You can give the money to
+Valorsay at such a time and under such conditions as will best serve
+your plans. Give it to him in an hour or in a month, all at once or in
+fifty different instalments, as you please. Only use it like the rope
+one ties round a dog’s neck before drowning him.”
+
+The keenest penetration was concealed beneath the baron’s careless
+good-nature. Pascal knew this, and feeling that his protector understood
+him, he said: “You overpower me with kindness.”
+
+“Nonsense!”
+
+“You offer me just what I came to ask for.”
+
+“So much the better.”
+
+“But you will allow me to explain my intentions?”
+
+“It is quite unnecessary, my dear sir.”
+
+“Excuse me; if I follow my present plan, I shall be obliged to ascribe
+certain sentiments, words, and even acts, to you, which you might
+perhaps disavow, and--”
+
+With a careless toss of the head, accompanied by a disdainful snap of
+the fingers, the baron interrupted him. “Set to work, and don’t give
+yourself the slightest uneasiness about that. You may do whatever you
+like, if you only succeed in unmasking this dear marquis, and Coralth,
+his worthy acolyte. Show me up in whatever light you choose. Who will
+you be in Valorsay’s eyes? Why, Maumejan, one of my business agents,
+and I can always throw the blame on you.” And as if to prove that he had
+divined even the details of the scheme devised by his young friend, he
+added: “Besides, every one knows that a millionaire’s business agent is
+anything but a pleasant person to deal with. A millionaire, who is not
+a fool, must always smile, and no matter how absurd the demands upon him
+may be, he must always answer: ‘Yes, certainly, certainly--I should be
+only too happy!’ But then he adds: ‘You must arrange the matter with my
+agent. Confer with him.’ And it is the unlucky agent who must object,
+declare that his employer has no money at his disposal just now, and
+finally say, ‘No.’”
+
+Pascal was still disposed to insist, but the baron was obdurate. “Oh!
+enough, enough!” he exclaimed. “Don’t waste precious time in idle
+discussion. The days are only twenty-four hours long: and as you see,
+I’m very busy, so busy that I’ve not touched a card since the day before
+yesterday. I am preparing a delightful surprise for Madame Trigault, my
+daughter, and my son-in-law. It has been rather a delicate operation,
+but I flatter myself that I have succeeded finely.” And he laughed a
+laugh that was not pleasant to hear. “You see, I’ve had enough of
+paying several hundred thousand francs a year for the privilege of
+being sneered at by my wife, scorned by my daughter, swindled by my
+son-in-law, and vilified and anathematized by all three of them. I am
+still willing to go on paying, but only on conditions that they give
+me in return for my money, if not the reality, at least a show of love,
+affection, and respect. I’m determined to have the semblance of these
+things; I’m quite resolved on that. Yes, I will have myself treated with
+deference. I’ll be petted and coddled and made much of, or else I’ll
+suspend payment. It was one of my old friends, a parvenu like myself--a
+man whose domestic happiness I have envied for many years--who gave me
+this receipt: ‘At home,’ said he, ‘with my wife, my daughters, and my
+sons-in-law, I’m like a peer of England at an hotel. I order first-class
+happiness at so much a month. If I get it I pay for it; if I don’t get
+it, I cut off the supplies. When I get extras I pay for them cheerfully,
+without haggling. Follow my example, my old friend, and you’ll have a
+comfortable life.’ And I shall follow his advice, M. Ferailleur, for I
+am convinced that his theory is sound and practicable. I have led this
+life long enough. I’ll spend my last days in peace, or, as God hears me,
+I’ll let my family die of starvation!”
+
+His face was purple, and the veins on his forehead stood out like
+whipcords, but not so much from anger as from the constraint he imposed
+upon himself by speaking in a whisper. He drew a long breath, and then
+in a calmer tone, resumed: “But you must make haste and succeed, M.
+Ferailleur, if you don’t want the young girl you love to be deprived
+of her rightful heritage. You do not know into what unworthy hands the
+Chalusse property is about to fall.” He was on the point of telling
+Pascal the story of Madame d’Argeles and M. Wilkie, when he was
+interrupted by the sound of a lively controversy in the hall.
+
+“Who’s taking such liberty in my house?” the baron began. But the
+next instant he heard some one fling open the door of the large room
+adjoining, and then a coarse, guttural voice called out: “What! he isn’t
+here! This is too much!”
+
+The baron made an angry gesture. “That’s Kami-Bey,” said he, “the Turk
+whom I am playing that great game of cards with. The devil take him! He
+will be sure to force his way in here--so we may as well join him, M.
+Ferailleur.”
+
+On reentering the adjoining apartment Pascal beheld a very corpulent
+man, with a very red face, a straggling beard, a flat nose, small,
+beadlike eyes, and sensual lips. He was clad in a black frock-coat,
+buttoned tight to the throat, and he wore a fez. This costume gave him
+the appearance of a chunky bottle, sealed with red wax. Such, indeed,
+was Kami-Bey, a specimen of those semi-barbarians, loaded with gold who
+are not attracted to Paris by its splendors and glories, but rather by
+its corruption--people who come there persuaded that money will purchase
+anything and everything, and who often return home with the same
+conviction. Kami was no doubt more impudent, more cynical and more
+arrogant than others of his class. As he was more wealthy, he had more
+followers; he had been more toadied and flattered, and victimized to
+a greater extent by the host of female intriguers, who look upon every
+foreigner as their rightful prey.
+
+He spoke French passably well, but with an abominable accent. “Here
+you are at last!” he exclaimed, as the baron entered the room. “I was
+becoming very anxious.”
+
+“About what, prince?”
+
+Why Kami-Bey was called prince no one knew, not even the man himself.
+Perhaps it was because the lackey who opened his carriage door on his
+arrival at the Grand Hotel had addressed him by that title.
+
+“About what!” he repeated. “You have won more than three hundred
+thousand francs from me, and I was wondering if you intended to give me
+the slip.”
+
+The baron frowned, and this time he omitted the title of prince
+altogether. “It seems to me, sir, that according to our agreement, we
+were to play until one of us had won five hundred thousand francs,” he
+said haughtily.
+
+“That’s true--but we ought to play every day.”
+
+“Possibly: but I’m very busy just now. I wrote to you explaining this,
+did I not? If you are at all uneasy, tear up the book in which the
+results of our games are noted, and that shall be the end of it. You
+will gain considerably by the operation.”
+
+Kami-Bey felt that the baron would not tolerate his arrogance, and so
+with more moderation he exclaimed: “It isn’t strange that I’ve become
+suspicious. I’m so victimized on every side. Because I’m a foreigner
+and immensely rich, everybody fancies he has a right to plunder me. Men,
+women, hotel-keepers and merchants, all unite in defrauding me. If I
+buy pictures, they sell me vile daubs at fabulous prices. They ask
+ridiculous amounts for horses, and then give me worthless, worn-out
+animals. Everybody borrows money from me--and I’m never repaid. I shall
+be ruined if this sort of thing goes on much longer.”
+
+He had taken a seat, and the baron saw that he was not likely to get
+rid of his guest very soon; so approaching Pascal he whispered: “You had
+better go off, or you may miss Valorsay. And be careful, mind; for he is
+exceedingly shrewd. Courage and good luck!”
+
+Courage! It was not necessary to recommend that to Pascal. He who had
+triumphed over his despair in the terrible hours, when he had reason to
+suppose that Marguerite believed him guilty and had abandoned him, could
+scarcely lack courage. While he was condemned to inaction, his mind had
+no doubt been assailed by countless doubts and fears; but now that he
+knew whom he was to attack--now that the decisive moment had come, he
+was endowed with indomitable energy; he had turned to bronze, and he
+felt sure that nothing could disconcert or even trouble him in future.
+The weapons he had to use were not at all to his taste, but he had not
+been allowed a choice in the matter; and since his enemies had decided
+on a warfare of duplicity, he was resolved to surpass them in cunning,
+and vanquish them by deception.
+
+So, while hastening to the Marquis de Valorsay’s residence, he took
+stock of his chances, and recapitulated his resources, striving to
+foresee and remember everything. Thus if he failed--for he admitted the
+possibility of defeat, without believing in it--he would have no cause
+to reproach himself. Only fools find consolation in saying: “Who could
+have foreseen that?” Great minds do foresee. And Pascal felt almost
+certain that he was fully prepared for any emergency.
+
+That morning, before leaving home, he had dressed with extreme care,
+realizing that the shabby clothes he had worn on his first visit to the
+Trigault mansion would not be appropriate on such an occasion as this.
+The baron’s agent could scarcely have a poverty-stricken appearance,
+for contact with millionaires is supposed to procure wealth as surely
+as proximity to fire insures warmth. So he arrayed himself in a suit
+of black, which was neither too elegant nor too much worn, and donned
+a broad white necktie. He could see only one immediate, decisive chance
+against him. M. de Valorsay might possibly recognize him. He thought
+not, but he was not sure; and anxious on this account, he at first
+decided to disguise himself. However, on reflection, he concluded not
+to do so. An imperfect disguise would attract attention and awaken
+suspicion; and could he really disguise his physiognomy? He was certain
+he could not. Very few men are capable of doing so successfully, even
+after long experience. Only two or three detectives and half a dozen
+actors possess the art of really changing their lineaments. Thus after
+weighing the pros and cons, Pascal determined to present himself as he
+was at the marquis’s house.
+
+On approaching M. de Valorsay’s residence in the Avenue des Champs
+Elysees, he slackened his pace. The mansion, which stood between a
+courtyard and a garden, was very large and handsome. The stables and
+carriage-house--really elegant structures--stood on either side of the
+courtyard, near the half-open gate of which five or six servants were
+amusing themselves by teasing a large dog. Pascal was just saying to
+himself that the coast was clear, and that he should incur no danger by
+going in, when he saw the servants step aside, the gate swing back, and
+M. de Coralth emerged, accompanied by a young, fair-haired man, whose
+mustaches were waxed and turned up in the most audacious fashion. They
+were arm in arm, and turned in the direction of the Arc de Triomphe.
+Pascal’s heart thrilled with joy. “Fate favors me!” he said to himself.
+“If it hadn’t been for Kami-Bey, who detained me a full quarter of an
+hour at Baron Trigault’s, I should have found myself face to face with
+that miserable viscount, and then all would have been lost. But now I’m
+safe!”
+
+It was with this encouraging thought that he approached the house.
+
+“The marquis is very busy this morning,” said the servant to whom Pascal
+addressed himself at the gate. “I doubt if he can see you.” But when
+Pascal handed him one of his visiting cards, bearing the name of
+Maumejan, with this addition in pencil: “Who calls as the representative
+of Baron Trigault,” the valet’s face changed as if by enchantment.
+“Oh!” said he, “that’s quite a different matter. If you come from Baron
+Trigault, you will be received with all the respect due to the Messiah.
+Come in. I will announce you myself.”
+
+Everything in M. de Valorsay’s house, as at the baron’s residence,
+indicated great wealth, and yet a close observer would have detected a
+difference. The luxury of the Rue de la Ville-l’Eveque was of a real and
+substantial character, which one did not find in the Avenue des Champs
+Elysees. Everything in the marquis’s abode bore marks of the haste which
+mars the merest trifle produced at the present age. “Take a seat here,
+and I will see where the marquis is,” said the servant, as he ushered
+Pascal into a large drawing-room. The apartment was elegantly furnished,
+but had somewhat lost its freshness; the carpet, which had once been a
+marvel of beauty, was stained in several places, and as the servants had
+not always been careful to keep the shutters closed, the sunlight had
+perceptibly faded the curtains. The attention of visitors was at once
+attracted by the number of gold and silver cups, vases, and statuettes
+scattered about on side-tables and cheffoniers. Each of these objects
+bore an inscription, setting forth that it had been won at such a race,
+in such a year, by such a horse, belonging to the Marquis de Valorsay.
+These were indeed the marquis’s chief claims to glory, and had cost him
+at least half of the immense fortune he had inherited. However, Pascal
+did not take much interest in these trophies, so the time of waiting
+seemed long. “Valorsay is playing the diplomat,” he thought. “He doesn’t
+wish to appear to be anxious. Unfortunately, his servant has betrayed
+him.”
+
+At last the valet returned. “The marquis will see you now, monsieur,”
+ said he.
+
+This summons affected Pascal’s heart like the first roll of a drum
+beating the charge. But his coolness did not desert him. “Now is the
+decisive moment,” he thought. “Heaven grant that he may not recognize
+me!” And with a firm step he followed the valet.
+
+M. de Valorsay was seated in the apartment he usually occupied when he
+remained at home--a little smoking-room connected with his bedroom. He
+was to all intents busily engaged in examining some sporting journals.
+A bottle of Madeira and a partially filled glass stood near him. As the
+servant announced “Monsieur Maumejan!” he looked up and his eyes met
+Pascal’s. But his glance did not waver; not a muscle of his face moved;
+his countenance retained its usually cold and disdainful expression.
+Evidently he had not the slightest suspicion that the man he had tried
+to ruin--his mortal enemy--was standing there before him.
+
+“M. Maumejan,” said he, “Baron Trigault’s agent?”
+
+“Yes, monsieur----”
+
+“Pray be seated. I am just finishing here; I shall be at leisure in a
+moment.”
+
+Pascal took a chair. He had feared that he might not be able to retain
+his self-control when he found himself in the presence of the scoundrel
+who, after destroying his happiness, ruining his future, and depriving
+him of his honor--dearer than life itself--was at that moment
+endeavoring, by the most infamous manoeuvres, to rob him of the woman
+he loved. “If my blood mounted to my brain,” he had thought, “I should
+spring upon him and strangle him!” But no. His arteries did not throb
+more quickly; it was with perfect calmness--the calmness of a strong
+nature--that he stealthily watched M. de Valorsay. If he had seen him a
+week before he would have been startled by the change which the past few
+days had wrought in this brilliant nobleman’s appearance. He was little
+more than a shadow of his former self. And seen at this hour, before
+placing himself in his valet’s hands, before his premature decrepitude
+had been concealed by the artifices of the toilet, he was really
+frightful. His face was haggard, and his red and swollen eyelids
+betrayed a long-continued want of sleep.
+
+The fact is, he had suffered terribly during the past week. A man may
+be a scapegrace and a spendthrift and may boast of it; he may have no
+principle and no conscience; he may be immoral, he may defy God and the
+devil, but it is nevertheless true that he suffers fearful anguish
+of mind when he is guilty, for the first time, of a positive crime,
+forbidden by the laws and punishable with the galleys. And who can say
+how many crimes the Marquis de Valorsay had committed since the day
+he provided his accomplice, the Viscount de Coralth, with those fatal
+cards? And apart from this there was something extremely appalling in
+the position of this ruined millionaire, who was contending desperately
+against his creditors for the vain appearance of splendor, with
+the despairing energy of a ship-wrecked mariner struggling for the
+possession of a floating spar. Had he not confessed to M. Fortunat that
+he had suffered the tortures of the damned in his struggle to maintain
+a show of wealth, while he was often without a penny in his pocket, and
+was ever subject to the pitiless surveillance of thirty servants?
+His agony, when he thought of his precarious condition, could only be
+compared to that of a miner, who, while ascending from the bowels of
+the earth, finds that the rope, upon which his life depends, is slowly
+parting strand by strand, and who asks himself, in terror, if the few
+threads that still remain unsevered will be strong enough to raise him
+to the mouth of the pit.
+
+However, the moment which M. de Valorsay had asked for had lengthened
+into a quarter of an hour, and he had not yet finished his work. “What
+the devil is he doing?” wondered Pascal, who was following his enemy’s
+slightest movement with eager curiosity.
+
+Countless sporting newspapers were strewn over the table, the chairs,
+and the floor around the marquis, who took them up one after another,
+glanced rapidly through their columns, and threw them on the floor
+again, or placed them on a pile before him, first marking certain
+passages with a red pencil. At last, probably fearing that Pascal was
+growing impatient, he looked up and said:
+
+“I am really very sorry to keep you waiting so long, but some one is
+waiting for this work to be completed.”
+
+“Oh! pray continue, Monsieur le Marquis,” interrupted Pascal. “Strange
+to say, I have a little leisure at my command just now.”
+
+The marquis seemed to feel that it was necessary to make some remark
+in acknowledgment of this courtesy on his visitor’s part, and so, as
+he continued his work, he condescended to explain its purpose. “I am
+playing the part of a commentator,” he remarked. “I sold seven of my
+horses a few days ago, and the purchaser, before paying the stipulated
+price, naturally required an exact and authentic statement of each
+animal’s performances. However, even this does not seem to have
+satisfied the gentleman, for he has now taken it into his head to ask
+for such copies of the sporting journals as record the victories or
+defeats of the animals he has purchased. A gentleman is not so exacting
+generally. It is true, however, that I have a foreigner to deal
+with--one of those half-civilized nabobs who come here every year to
+astonish the Parisians with their wealth and display, and who, by their
+idiotic prodigality, have so increased the price of everything that life
+has become well-nigh an impossibility to such of us as don’t care to
+squander an entire fortune in a couple of years. These folks are the
+curse of Paris, for, with but few exceptions, they only use their
+millions to enrich notorious women, scoundrels, hotel-keepers, and
+jockeys.”
+
+Pascal at once thought of the foreigner, Kami-Bey, whom he had met at
+Baron Trigault’s half an hour before, and who had complained so bitterly
+of having had worthless scrubs palmed off upon him when he fancied
+he had purchased valuable animals. “Kami-Bey must be this exacting
+purchaser,” thought Pascal, “and it’s probable that the marquis,
+desperately straitened as he is, has committed one of those frauds
+which lead their perpetrator to prison?” The surmise was by no means
+far-fetched, for in sporting matters, at least, there was cause to
+suspect Valorsay of great elasticity of conscience. Had he not already
+been accused of defrauding Domingo’s champions by a conspiracy?
+
+At last the marquis heaved a sigh of relief. “I’ve finished,” he
+muttered, as he tied up the bundle of papers he had laid aside, and
+after ringing the bell, he said to the servant who answered the summons:
+“Here, take this package to Prince Kami at the Grand Hotel.”
+
+Pascal’s presentiments had not deceived him, and he said to himself:
+“This is a good thing to know. Before this evening I shall look into
+this affair a little.”
+
+A storm was decidedly gathering over the Marquis de Valorsay’s head. Did
+he know it? Certainly he must have expected it. Still he had sworn to
+stand fast until the end. Besides, he would not concede that all was
+lost; and, like most great gamblers, he told himself that since he
+had so much at stake, he might reasonably hope to succeed. He rose,
+stretched himself, as a man is apt to do after the conclusion of a
+tiresome task, and then, leaning against the mantel-shelf, he exclaimed:
+“Now, Monsieur Maumejan, let us speak of the business that brings you
+here.” His negligent attitude and his careless tone were admirably
+assumed, but a shrewd observer would not have been deceived by them, or
+by the indifferent manner in which he added: “You bring me some money
+from Baron Trigault?”
+
+Pascal shook his head, as he replied: “I regret to say that I don’t,
+Monsieur le Marquis.”
+
+This response had the same effect as a heavy rock falling upon M.
+de Valorsay’s bald pate. He turned whiter than his linen, and even
+tottered, as if his lame leg, which was so much affected by sudden
+changes in the weather, had utterly refused all service. “What! You
+haven’t--this is undoubtedly a joke.”
+
+“It is only too serious!”
+
+“But I had the baron’s word.”
+
+“Oh! his word!”
+
+“I had his solemn promise.”
+
+“It is sometimes impossible to keep one’s promises, sir.”
+
+The consequences of this disappointment must have been terrible, for the
+marquis could not maintain his self-control. Still he strove valiantly
+to conceal his emotion. He thought to himself that if he allowed this
+man to see what a terrible blow this really was, he would virtually
+confess his absolute ruin, and have to renounce the struggle, and own
+himself vanquished and lost. So, summoning all his energy, he mastered
+his emotion in some degree, and, instead of appearing desperate,
+succeeded in looking only irritated and annoyed. “In short,” he resumed,
+angrily, “you have brought no money! I counted on a hundred thousand
+francs this morning. Nothing! This is kind on the baron’s part! But
+probably he doesn’t understand the embarrassing position in which he
+places me.”
+
+“Excuse me, Monsieur le Marquis, he understands it so well that, instead
+of informing you by a simple note, he sent me to acquaint you with his
+sincere regret. When I left him an hour ago, he was really disconsolate.
+He was particularly anxious I should tell you that it was not his fault.
+He counted upon the payment of two very large amounts, and both of these
+have failed him.”
+
+The marquis had now recovered a little from the shock, though he was
+still very pale. He looked at Pascal with evident distrust, for he knew
+with what sweet excuses well-bred people envelope their refusals. “So
+the baron is disconsolate,” he remarked, in a tone of perceptible irony.
+
+“He is indeed!”
+
+“Poor baron! Ah! I pity him--pity him deeply.”
+
+As cold and as unmoved as a statue, Pascal seemed quite unconscious
+of the effect of the message he had brought--quite unconscious of
+Valorsay’s sufferings and self-constraint. “You think I am jesting,
+monsieur,” he said, quietly, “but I assure you that the baron is very
+short of money just now.”
+
+“Nonsense! a man worth seven or eight millions of francs.”
+
+“I should say ten millions, at least.”
+
+“Then the excuse is all the more absurd.”
+
+Pascal shrugged his shoulders disdainfully. “It astonishes me, Monsieur
+le Marquis, to hear YOU speak in this way. It is not the magnitude of
+a man’s income that constitutes affluence, but rather the way in which
+that income is spent. In this foolish age, almost all rich people are
+in arrears. What income does the baron derive from his ten millions of
+francs? Not more than five hundred thousand. A very handsome fortune, no
+doubt, and I should be more than content with it. But the baron
+gambles, and the baroness is the most elegant--in other words, the most
+extravagant--woman in Paris. They both of them love luxury, and their
+establishment is kept up in princely style. What are five hundred
+thousand francs under such circumstances as those? Their situation must
+be something like that of several millionaires of my acquaintance, who
+are obliged to take their silver to the pawn-broker’s while waiting for
+their rents to fall due.”
+
+This excuse might not be true, but it was certainly a very plausible
+one. Had not a recent lawsuit revealed the fact that certain rich folks,
+who had an income of more than a hundred thousand francs a year, had
+kept a thieving coachman for six months, simply because, in all that
+time, they were not able to raise the eight hundred francs they owed
+him, and which must be paid before he was dismissed? M. de Valorsay knew
+this, but a terrible disquietude seized him. Had people begun to suspect
+HIS embarrassment? Had any rumor of it reached Baron Trigault’s ears?
+This was what he wished to ascertain. “Let us understand each other,
+Monsieur Maumejan,” said he; “the baron was unable to procure this money
+he had promised me to-day--but when will he let me have it?”
+
+Pascal opened his eyes in pretended astonishment, and it was with an air
+of the utmost simplicity that he replied, “I concluded the baron would
+take no further action in the matter. I judged so from his parting
+words: ‘It consoles me a little,’ he said, ‘to think that the Marquis
+de Valorsay is very rich and very well known, and that he has a dozen
+friends who will be delighted to do him this trifling service.’”
+
+Until now, M. de Valorsay had cherished a hope that the loan was only
+delayed, and the certainty that the decision was final, crushed him. “My
+ruin’s known,” he thought, and feeling that his strength was deserting
+him, he poured out a brimming glass of Madeira, which he emptied at a
+single draught. The wine lent him fictitious energy. Fury mounted to his
+brain; he lost all control over himself, and springing up, with his face
+purple with rage, he exclaimed: “It’s a shame! an infamous shame! and
+Trigault deserves to be severely punished. He has no business to keep a
+man in hot water for three days about such a trifle. If he had said
+‘No’ in the first place, I should have made other arrangements, and I
+shouldn’t now find myself in a dilemma from which I see no possible way
+of escape. No gentleman would have been guilty of such a contemptible
+act--no one but a shopkeeper or a thief would have stooped to such
+meanness! This is the result of admitting these ridiculous parvenus into
+society, just because they happen to have money.”
+
+It certainly hurt Pascal to hear these insults heaped upon the baron,
+and it hurt him all the more since they were entirely due to the course
+he had personally adopted.
+
+However, a gesture, even a frown, might endanger the success of his
+undertaking, so he preserved an impassive countenance. “I must say that
+I don’t understand your indignation, Monsieur le Marquis,” he said,
+coldly. “I can see why you might feel annoyed, but why you should fly
+into a passion--”
+
+“Ah! you don’t know----” began M. de Valorsay, but he stopped short. It
+was time. The truth had almost escaped his lips.
+
+“Know what?” inquired Pascal.
+
+But the marquis was again upon his guard. “I have a debt that must be
+paid this evening, at all hazards--a sacred obligation--in short, a debt
+of honor.”
+
+“A debt of one hundred thousand francs?”
+
+“No, it is only twenty-five thousand.”
+
+“Is it possible that a rich man like you can be troubled about such a
+trifling sum, which any one would lend you?”
+
+M. de Valorsay interrupted him with a contemptuous sneer. “Didn’t you
+just tell me that we were living in an age when no one has any money
+except those who are in business? The richest of my friends have
+only enough for themselves, even if they have enough. The time of old
+stockings, stuffed full of savings, is past! Shall I apply to a banker?
+He would ask two days for reflection, and he would require the names of
+two or three of my friends on the note. If I go to my notary, there will
+be endless forms to be gone through, and remonstrances without number.”
+
+For a moment or more already, Pascal had been moving about uneasily
+on his chair, like a man who is waiting for an opportunity to make a
+suggestion, and as soon as M. de Valorsay paused to take breath, he
+exclaimed: “Upon my word! if I dared----”
+
+“Well?”
+
+“I would offer to obtain you these twenty-five thousand francs.”
+
+“You?”
+
+“Yes, I.”
+
+“Before six o’clock this evening?”
+
+“Certainly.”
+
+A glass of ice-water presented to a parched traveller while journeying
+over the desert sands of Sahara could not impart greater relief and
+delight than the marquis experienced on hearing Pascal’s offer. He
+literally felt that he was restored to life.
+
+For ruin was inevitable if he did not succeed in obtaining twenty-five
+thousand francs that day. If he could procure that amount he might
+obtain a momentary respite, and to gain time was the main thing.
+Moreover, the offer was a sufficient proof that his financial
+difficulties were not known. “Ah! I have had a fortunate escape,” he
+thought. “What if I had revealed the truth!”
+
+But he was careful to conceal the secret joy that filled his heart. He
+feared lest he might say “Yes” too quickly, so betray his secret, and
+place himself at the mercy of the baron’s envoy. “I would willingly
+accept your offer,” he exclaimed, “if----”
+
+“If what?”
+
+“Would it be proper for me, after the baron has treated me in such a
+contemptible manner, to have any dealings with one of his subordinates?”
+
+Pascal protested vigorously. “Allow me to say,” he exclaimed, “that I am
+not any one’s subordinate. Trigault is my client, like thirty or forty
+others--nothing more. He employs me in certain difficult and delicate
+negotiations, which I conduct to the best of my ability. He pays me, and
+we are each of us perfectly independent of the other.”
+
+From the look which Valorsay gave Pascal, one would have sworn that he
+suspected who his visitor really was. But such was not the case. It was
+simply this: a strange, but by no means impossible, idea had flashed
+through the marquis’s mind--“Oh!” thought he, “this unknown party with
+whom Maumejan offers to negotiate the loan, is probably none other
+than the baron himself. That worthy gambler has invented this ingenious
+method of obliging me so as to extort a rate of interest which he would
+not dare to demand openly. And why not? There have been plenty of such
+instances. Isn’t it a well-known fact that the N---- Brothers, the
+most rigidly honest financiers in the world, have never under any
+circumstances directly obliged one of their friends? If their own
+father, of whom they always speak with the greatest veneration, asked
+them to lend him fifty francs for a month, they would say to him as
+they do to every one else: ‘We are rather cramped just now; but see that
+rascal B----.’ And that rascal B----, who is the most pliable tool in
+existence, will, providing father N---- offers unquestionable security,
+lend the old gentleman his son’s money at from twelve to fifteen per
+cent. interest, plus a small commission.”
+
+These ideas and recollections were of considerable assistance in
+restoring Valorsay’s composure. “Enough said, then,” he answered,
+lightly. “I accept with pleasure. But----”
+
+“Ah! so there is a but!”
+
+“There is always one. I must warn you that it will be difficult for me
+to repay this loan in less than two months.”
+
+This, then, was the time he thought necessary for the accomplishment of
+his designs.
+
+“That does not matter,” replied Pascal, “and even if you desire a longer
+delay.”
+ “That will be unnecessary, thank you! But there is one thing more.”
+
+“What is that?”
+
+“What will this negotiation cost me?”
+
+Pascal had expected this question, and he had prepared a reply which was
+in perfect keeping with the spirit of the role he had assumed. “I shall
+charge you the ordinary rates,” he answered, “six per cent. interest,
+plus one-and-a-half per cent. commission.”
+
+“Bah!”
+
+“Plus the remuneration for my trouble and services.”
+
+“And what remuneration will satisfy you?”
+
+“One thousand francs. Is it too much?”
+
+If the marquis had retained the shadow of a doubt, it vanished now.
+“Ah!” he sneered, “that strikes me as a very liberal compensation for
+your services!”
+
+But he would gladly have recalled the sneer when he saw how the agent
+received it. Pascal drew up his head with a deeply injured air, and
+remarked in the chilling tone of a person who is strongly tempted to
+retract his word, “Then there is nothing more to be said, M. le Marquis;
+and since you find the conditions onerous----”
+
+“I did not say so,” interrupted M. de Valorsay, quickly--“I did not even
+think it!”
+
+This gave Pascal an opportunity to present his programme, and he availed
+himself of it. “Others may pretend to oblige people merely from motives
+of friendship,” he remarked. “But I am more honest. If I do anything
+in the way of business, I expect to be paid for it; and I vary my terms
+according to my clients’ need. It would be impossible to have a fixed
+price for services like mine. When, on two different occasions, I saved
+a gentleman of your acquaintance from bankruptcy, I asked ten thousand
+francs the first time, and fifteen thousand the second. Was that an
+exaggerated estimate of my services? I might boast with truth that
+I once assured the marriage of a brilliant viscount by keeping his
+creditors quiet while his courtship was in progress. The day after the
+wedding he paid me twenty thousand francs. Didn’t he owe them to me? If,
+instead of being a trifle short of money, you happened to be ruined,
+I should not ask you merely for a thousand francs. I should study your
+position, and fix my terms according to the magnitude of the peril from
+which I rescued you.”
+
+There was not a sentence, not a word of this cynical explanation which
+had not been carefully studied beforehand. There was not an expression
+which was not a tempting bait to the marquis’s evil instincts. But M
+de Valorsay made no sign. “I see that you are a shrewd man, Monsieur
+Maumejan,” said he, “and if I am ever in difficulty I shall apply to
+you.”
+
+Pascal bowed with an air of assumed modesty; but he was inwardly
+jubilant, for he felt that his enemy would certainly fall into the trap
+which had been set for him. “And now, when shall I have this money?”
+ inquired the marquis.
+
+“By four o’clock.”
+
+“And I need fear no disappointment as in the baron’s case?”
+
+“Certainly not. What interest would M. Trigault have in lending you a
+hundred thousand francs? None whatever. With me it is quite a different
+thing. The profit I’m to realize is your security. In business matters
+distrust your friends. Apply to usurers rather than to them. Question
+people who are in difficulties, and ninety-five out of a hundred will
+tell you that their worst troubles have been caused by those who called
+themselves their best friends.”
+
+He had risen to take leave, when the door of the smoking-room opened,
+and a servant appeared and said in an undertone: “Madame Leon is in the
+drawing-room with Dr. Jodon. They wish to see you, monsieur.”
+
+Though Pascal had armed himself well against any unexpected mischance,
+he changed color on hearing the name of the worthy housekeeper. “All is
+lost if this creature sees and recognizes me!” he thought.
+
+Fortunately the Marquis was too much engrossed in his own affairs to
+note the momentary agitation of Baron Trigault’s envoy. “It is strange
+that I can’t have five minutes’ peace and quietness,” he said. “I told
+you that I was at home to no one.”
+
+“But----”
+
+“Enough! Let the lady and gentleman wait.”
+
+The servant withdrew.
+
+The thought of passing out through the drawing-room filled Pascal with
+consternation. How could he hope to escape Madame Leon’s keen eyes?
+Fortunately M. de Valorsay came to his relief, for as Pascal was about
+to open the same door by which he had entered, the marquis exclaimed:
+“Not that way! Pass out here--this is the shortest way.”
+
+And leading him through his bedroom the marquis conducted him to the
+staircase, where he even feigned to offer him his hand, saying: “A
+speedy return, dear M. Maumejan.”
+
+It is not at the moment of peril that people endure the worst agony; it
+is afterward, when they have escaped it. As he went down the staircase,
+Pascal wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. “Ah! it was a narrow
+escape!” he exclaimed, under his breath.
+
+He felt proud of the manner in which he had sustained a part so
+repugnant to his nature. He was amazed to find that he could utter
+falsehoods with such a calm, unblushing face--he was astonished at his
+own audacity. And what a success he had achieved! He felt certain that
+he had just slipped round M. de Valorsay’s neck the noose which would
+strangle him later on. Still he was considerably disturbed by Madame
+Leon’s visit to the marquis. “What is she doing here with this
+physician?” he asked himself again and again. “Who is this man? What new
+piece of infamy are they plotting to require his services?” One of those
+presentiments which are prompted by the logic of events, told him that
+this physician had been, or would be, one of the actors in the vile
+conspiracy of which he and Mademoiselle Marguerite were the victims.
+But he had no leisure to devote to the solution of this enigma. Time
+was flying, and before returning to the marquis’s house he must find out
+what had aroused the suspicions of the purchaser of those horses, the
+biographies of which had been so rigidly exacted. Through the baron, he
+might hope to obtain an interview with Kami-Bey--and so it was to the
+baron’s house that Pascal directed his steps.
+
+After the more than cordial reception which the baron had granted him
+that morning, it was quite natural that the servants should receive him
+as a friend of the household. They would scarcely allow him to explain
+what he desired. It was the pompous head valet in person who ushered him
+into one of the small reception-rooms, exclaiming: “The baron’s engaged,
+but I’m sure he would be annoyed if he failed to see you; and I will
+inform him at once.”
+
+A moment later, the baron entered quite breathless from his hurried
+descent of the staircase. “Ah! you have been successful,” he exclaimed,
+on seeing Pascal’s face.
+
+“Everything is progressing as favorably as I could wish, Monsieur
+le Baron, but I must speak with that foreigner whom I met here this
+morning.”
+
+“Kami-Bey?”
+
+“Yes.” And in a few words, Pascal explained the situation.
+
+“Providence is certainly on our side,” said the baron, thoughtfully.
+“Kami is still here.”
+
+“Is it possible?”
+
+“It’s a fact. Did you think it would be easy to get rid of this
+confounded Turk! He invited himself to breakfast without the slightest
+ceremony, and would give me no peace until I promised to play with him
+for two hours. I was closeted with him, cards in hand, when they told me
+you were here. Come, we’ll go and question him.”
+
+They found the interesting foreigner in a savage mood. He had been
+winning when the servant came for the baron, and he feared that an
+interruption would change the luck. “What the devil took you away?” he
+exclaimed, with that coarseness of manner which was habitual with him,
+and which the flatterers around him styled “form.” “A man should no more
+be disturbed when he’s playing than when he’s eating.”
+
+“Come, come, prince,” said the baron, good-naturedly, “don’t be angry,
+and I’ll give you three hours instead of two. But I have a favor to ask
+of you.”
+
+The foreigner at once thrust his hand into his pocket, with such a
+natural gesture, that neither the baron nor Pascal could repress a
+smile, and he himself understanding the cause of their merriment broke
+into a hearty laugh. “It’s purely from force of habit,” said he. “Ah!
+since I’ve been in Paris---- But what do you wish?”
+
+The baron sat down, and gravely replied: “You told us scarcely an hour
+ago that you had been cheated in the purchase of some horses.”
+
+“Cheated! it was worse than highway robbery.”
+
+“Would it be indiscreet to ask you by whom you have been defrauded?”
+
+Kami-Bey’s purple cheeks became a trifle pale. “Hum!” said he, in
+an altered tone of voice, “that is a delicate question. My defrauder
+appears to be a dangerous fellow--a duellist--and if I disclose his
+knavery, he is quite capable of picking a quarrel with me--not that I am
+afraid of him, I assure you, but my principles don’t allow me to fight.
+When a man has an income of a million, he doesn’t care to expose himself
+to the dangers of a duel.”
+
+“But, prince, in France folks don’t do a scoundrel the honor to cross
+swords with him.”
+
+“That’s just what my steward, who is a Frenchman, told me; but no
+matter. Besides, I am not sufficiently sure of the man’s guilt to noise
+it abroad. I have no positive proofs as yet.”
+
+He was evidently terribly frightened, and the first thing to be done was
+to reassure him. “Come,” insisted the baron, “tell us the man’s name.
+This gentleman here”--pointing to Pascal--“is one of my most esteemed
+friends. I will answer for him as I would for myself; and we will swear
+upon our honor not to reveal the secret we ask you for, without your
+permission.”
+
+“Truly?”
+
+“You have our word of honor,” replied both the baron and Pascal in a
+breath.
+
+After casting a half-frightened glance around him, the worthy Turk
+seemed to gather courage. But no! He deliberated some time, and then
+rejoined: “Really, I’m not sufficiently convinced of the accuracy of my
+suspicions to incur the risk of accusing a man who belongs in the very
+best society; a man who is very rich and very highly respected, and who
+would tolerate no imputations upon his character.”
+
+It was plain that he would not speak. The baron shrugged his shoulders,
+but Pascal stepped bravely forward. “Then I will tell you, prince,” he
+said, “the name that you are determined to hide from us.”
+
+“Oh!”
+
+“But you must allow me to remark that the baron and myself retract the
+promise we made you just now.”
+
+“Naturally.”
+
+“Then, your defrauder is the Marquis de Valorsay!”
+
+If Kami-Bey had seen an emissary of his sovereign enter the
+room carrying the fatal bow-string he would not have seemed more
+terror-stricken. He sprang nervously on to his short, fat legs, his eyes
+wildly dilating and his hands fluttering despairingly. “Don’t speak so
+loud! don’t speak so loud!” he exclaimed, imploringly.
+
+As he did not even attempt to deny it, the truth of the assertion might
+be taken for granted. But Pascal was not content with this. “Now that we
+know the fact, I hope, Prince, that you will be sufficiently obliging to
+tell us how it all happened,” he remarked.
+
+Poor Kami. He was in despair. “Alas!” he replied, reluctantly, “nothing
+could be more simple. I wanted to set up a racing stable. Not that I
+care much for sport. I can scarcely distinguish a horse from a mule--but
+morning and evening, everybody says to me: ‘Prince, a man like you ought
+to make your name celebrated on the turf.’ Besides I never open a paper
+without reading: ‘Such a man ought to be a patron of the noblest of
+sports.’ At last, I said to myself: ‘Yes, they are right. I ought to
+take part in racing.’ So I began to look about for some horses. I had
+purchased several, when the Marquis de Valorsay proposed to sell me
+some of his, some that were very well known, and that had--so he assured
+me--won at least ten times the amount they had cost him. I accepted
+his offer, and visited his stables, where I selected seven of his best
+horses and paid for them; and I paid a good round price, I assure you.
+Now comes the knavery. He has not given me the horses I purchased. The
+real animals, the valuable ones--have been sold in England under false
+names, and although the horses sent to me may be like the others in
+appearance, they are really only common animals, wanting both in blood
+and speed.”
+
+Pascal and the baron exchanged astonished glances. It must be confessed
+that frauds of every description are common enough in the racing world,
+and a great deal of dishonest manoeuvring results from greed for gain
+united with the fever of gambling. But never before had any one been
+accused of such an audacious and impudent piece of rascality as that
+which Kami-Bey imputed to Valorsay.
+
+“How did you fail to discover this at the outset, prince?” inquired
+Pascal in an incredulous tone.
+
+“Because my time was so much occupied.”
+
+“But your servants?”
+
+“Ah! that’s another thing. I shouldn’t be at all surprised if it were
+proved that the man who has charge of my stables had been bribed by the
+marquis.”
+
+“Then, how were your suspicions aroused?”
+
+“It was only by the merest chance. A jockey whom I thought of employing
+had often ridden one of the animals which I fancied myself the owner of.
+Naturally, I showed him the horse, but he had no sooner set eyes on it
+than he exclaimed: ‘That the horse! Never! You’ve been cheated, prince!’
+Then we examined the others, and the fraud became apparent.”
+
+Knowing Kami’s character better than Pascal, the baron had good
+reason to distrust the accuracy of these statements. For the Turkish
+millionaire’s superb contempt of money was only affected. Vanity alone
+unloosed his purse-strings. He was quite capable of presenting Jenny
+Fancy with a necklace costing five-and-twenty thousand francs for the
+sake of seeing his generosity recorded in the Gaulois or the Figaro
+the next day; but he would refuse to give a trifle to the mother of a
+starving family. Besides, it was his ambition to be regarded as the most
+swindled man in Europe. But though he was shamefully imposed upon, it
+was not voluntarily--for there was a strong dose of Arabian avarice and
+distrust in his composition.
+
+“Frankly, prince,” said the baron, “your story sounds like one of the
+wild legends of your native land. Valorsay is certainly no fool. How is
+it possible that he could have been guilty of so gross a fraud--a fraud
+which might be, which could not fail to be discovered in twenty-four
+hours--and which, once proven, would dishonor him forever?”
+
+“Before perpetrating such a piece of deception upon any one else,
+he would have thought twice; but upon me it’s different. Isn’t it an
+established fact that a person incurs no risk in robbing Kami-Bey?”
+
+“Had I been in your place I should have quietly instituted an
+investigation.”
+
+“What good would that have done? Besides, the sale was only conditional,
+and took place under the seal of secrecy. The marquis reserved the right
+to take his horses back on payment of a stipulated sum, and the time he
+was to have for consideration only expired on the day before yesterday.”
+
+“Eh! why didn’t you tell us that at first?” cried the baron.
+
+The marquis’s rascality was now easily explained. Finding himself in a
+desperate strait, and feeling that his salvation was certain if he
+could only gain a little time, he had yielded to temptation, saying
+to himself, like unfaithful cashiers when they first appropriate their
+employers’ money: “I will pay it back, and no one will ever know it!”
+ However, when the day of settlement came he had found himself in as
+deplorable a plight as on the day of the robbery, and he had been
+compelled to yield to the force of circumstances.
+
+“And what do you intend to do, prince?” asked Pascal.
+
+“Ah! I am still in doubt. I have compelled the marquis to give me
+the papers in which the exploits of these horses are recorded. These
+statements will be of service in case of a law-suit. But shall I or
+shall I not enter a complaint against him? If it were a mere question of
+money I should let the matter drop; but he has defrauded and deceived me
+so outrageously that it annoys me. On the other hand, to confess that
+he has cheated me in this fashion would cover me with ridicule. Besides,
+the man is a dangerous enemy. And what would become of me if I happened
+to side against him? I should be compelled to leave Paris. Ah! I’d give
+ten thousand francs to any one who’d settle this cursed affair for me!”
+
+His perplexity was so great, and his anger so intense, for that once he
+tore off his eternal fez and flung it on to the table, swearing like a
+drayman. However, controlling himself at last, he exclaimed in a tone
+of assumed indifference: “No matter, there’s been enough said on this
+subject for one day--I’m here to play--so let us begin, baron. For we
+are wasting precious time, as you so often remark.”
+
+Pascal had nothing more to learn; so he shook hands with the baron, made
+an appointment with him for the same evening, and went away.
+
+It was only half-past two; a good hour and a half remained at his
+disposal. “I will profit by this opportunity to eat something,” he
+thought; a sudden faintness reminding him that he had taken nothing but
+a cup of chocolate that day. Thereupon perceiving a cafe near by, he
+entered it, ordered breakfast, and lingered there until it was time to
+return to the Marquis de Valorsay’s. He would have gone there before
+the appointed time if he had merely listened to the promptings of his
+impatience, so thoroughly was he persuaded that this second interview
+would be decisive. But prudence advised him not to expose himself to the
+danger of an encounter with Madame Leon and Dr. Jodon.
+
+“Well! Monsieur Maumejan,” cried the marquis, as soon as Pascal made his
+appearance. He had been counting the seconds with intense anxiety, as
+his tone of voice unmistakably revealed.
+
+In reply Pascal gravely drew from his pocket twenty-four bank-notes, of
+a thousand francs each, and he placed them upon the table, saying:
+“Here is the amount, Monsieur le Marquis. I have, of course, deducted
+my commission. Now, if you will write and sign a note for twenty-five
+thousand francs, payable to my order two months hence, our business for
+to-day will be concluded.”
+
+M. de Valorsay’s hand trembled nervously as he penned the desired note,
+for, until the very last moment, he had doubted the promises of this
+unknown agent who had made his appearance so opportunely Then, when the
+document was signed, he carelessly slipped the money into a drawer
+and exclaimed: “So here’s the needful to pay my debt of honor; but my
+embarrassment is none the less great. These twenty-four thousand francs
+won’t take the place of the hundred thousand which Baron Trigault
+promised me.”
+
+And, as Pascal made no reply, the marquis began a desultory tramp up and
+down the smoking-room. He was very pale, his brows were knit; he looked
+like a man who was meditating a decisive step, and who was calculating
+the consequences. But having no time to waste in hesitation, he soon
+paused in front of Pascal, and exclaimed: “Since you have just lent me
+twenty-four thousand francs, why won’t you lend me the rest?”
+
+But Pascal shook his head. “One risks nothing by advancing twenty-five
+thousand francs to a person in your position, Monsieur le Marquis.
+Whatever happens, such a sum as that can always be gathered from
+the wreck. But double or triple the amount! The deuce! that requires
+reflection, and I must understand the situation thoroughly.”
+
+“And if I told you that I am--almost ruined, what would you reply?”
+
+“I shouldn’t be so very much surprised.”
+
+M. de Valorsay had now gone too far to draw back. “Ah, well!” he
+resumed, “the truth is this--my affairs are terribly involved.”
+
+“The devil! You should have told me that sooner.”
+
+“Wait; I am about to retrieve my fortune--to make it even larger than
+it has ever been. I am on the point of contracting a marriage which will
+make me one of the richest men in Paris; but I must have a little time
+to bring the affair to a successful termination, and I need money--and
+my creditors are pressing me unmercifully. You told me this morning that
+you once assisted a man who was in a similar position. Will you help me?
+You can set your own price on your services.”
+
+More easily overcome by joy than by sorrow, Pascal almost betrayed
+himself. He had attained his object. Still, he succeeded in conquering
+his emotion, and it was in a perfectly calm voice that he replied:
+“I can promise nothing until I understand the situation, Monsieur le
+Marquis. Will you explain it to me? I am listening.”
+
+
+
+
+XIV.
+
+
+It was nearly midnight when M. Wilkie left the Hotel d’Argeles after the
+terrible scene in which he had revealed his true character. On seeing
+him pass out with haggard eyes, colorless lips, and disordered clothing,
+the servants gathered in the vestibule took him at first for another of
+those ruined gamblers who not unfrequently left the house with despair
+in their hearts.
+
+“Another fellow who’s had bad luck!” they remarked sneeringly to one
+another.
+
+“No doubt about that. He is pretty effectually used up, judging from
+appearances,” one of them remarked.
+
+It was not until some moments later that they learned a portion of the
+truth through the servants who had been on duty upstairs, and who now
+ran down in great terror, crying that Madame d’Argeles was dying, and
+that a physician must be summoned at once.
+
+M. Wilkie was already far away, hastening up the boulevard with an agile
+step. Any one else would have been overcome with shame and sorrow--would
+have been frightened by the thought of what he had done, and have
+striven to find some way to conceal his disgrace; but he, not in the
+least. In this frightful crisis, he was only conscious of one fact--that
+just as he raised his hand to strike Madame Lia d’Argeles, his mother, a
+big, burly individual had burst into the room, like a bombshell, caught
+him by the throat, forced him upon his knees, and compelled him to ask
+the lady’s pardon. He, Wilkie, to be humiliated in this style! He would
+never endure that. This was an affront he could not swallow, one of
+those insults that cry out for vengeance and for blood. “Ah! the great
+brute shall pay for it,” he repeated, again and again, grinding his
+teeth. And if he hastened up the boulevard, it was only because he
+hoped to meet his two chosen friends, M. Costard and the Viscount de
+Serpillon, the co-proprietors of Pompier de Nanterre.
+
+For he intended to place his outraged honor in their care. They should
+be his seconds, and present his demand for satisfaction to the man
+who had insulted him. A duel was the only thing that could appease his
+furious anger and heal his wounded pride. And a great scandal, which he
+would be the hero of, was not without a certain charm for him. What a
+glorious chance to win notoriety at an epoch when newspapers have become
+public laundries, in which every one washes his soiled linen and dries
+it in the glare of publicity! He saw his already remarkable reputation
+enhanced by the interest that always attaches to people who are talked
+about, and he could hear in advance the flattering whisper which would
+greet his appearance everywhere: “You see that young man?--he is the
+hero of that famous adventure,” etc. Moreover, he was already twisting
+and turning the terms of the notice which his seconds must have inserted
+in the Figaro, hesitating between two or three equally startling
+beginnings: “Another famous duel,” or “Yesterday, after a scandalous
+scene, an encounter,” etc., etc.
+
+Unfortunately, he did not meet either M. Costard or the Viscount de
+Serpillon. Strange to say, they were not in any of the cafes, where
+the flower of French chivalry usually congregates, in the company of
+golden-haired young women, from nine in the evening until one o’clock in
+the morning. This disappointment grieved M. Wilkie sorely, although
+he derived some benefit from it, for his disordered attire attracted
+attention at each place he entered, and acquaintances eagerly inquired:
+“Where have you come from, and what has happened to you?” Whereupon
+he replied with an air of profound secrecy: “Pray don’t speak of it. A
+shocking affair! If it were noised abroad I should be inconsolable.”
+
+At last the cafes began to close, and promenaders became rare. M.
+Wilkie, much to his regret, was obliged to go home. When he had locked
+his door and donned his dressing-gown, he sat down to think over the
+events of the day, and collect his scattered wits. What most troubled
+and disquieted him was not the condition in which he had left Madame Lia
+d’Argeles, his mother, who was, perhaps, dying, through his fault! It
+was not the terrible sacrifice that this poor woman had made for him in
+a transport of maternal love! It was not the thought of the source from
+which the money he had squandered for so many years had been derived.
+No, M. Wilkie was quite above such paltry considerations--good enough
+for commonplace and antiquated people. “He was too clever for that. Ah!
+yes. He had a stronger stomach, and was up with the times!” If he
+were sorely vexed in spirit it was because he thought that the immense
+property which he had believed his own had slipped, perhaps for ever,
+from his grasp. For rising threateningly between the Chalusse millions
+and himself, he pictured the form of his father, this man whom he did
+not know, but whose very name had made Madame d’Argeles shudder.
+
+M. Wilkie was seized with terror when he looked his actual situation
+in the face. What was to become of him? He was certain that Madame
+d’Argeles would not give him another sou. She could not--he recognized
+that fact. His intelligence was equal to that. On the other hand, if
+he ever obtained anything from the count’s estate, which was more than
+doubtful, would he not be obliged to wait a long time for it? Yes, in
+all probability such would be the case. Then how should he live, how
+would he be able to obtain food in the meantime? His despair was so
+poignant that tears came to his eyes; and he bitterly deplored the step
+he had taken. Yes, he actually sighed for the past; he longed to live
+over again the very years in which he had so often complained of his
+destiny. Then, though not a millionaire by any means, he at least
+wanted for nothing. Every quarter-day a very considerable allowance
+was promptly paid him, and, in great emergencies, he could apply to
+Mr. Patterson, who always sent a favorable answer if not drawn upon too
+heavily. Yes, he sighed for that time! Ah! if he had only then realized
+how fortunate he was! Had he not been one of the most opulent members
+of the society in which he moved? Had he not been flattered and admired
+more than any of his companions? Had he not found the most exquisite
+happiness in his part ownership of Pompier de Nanterre!
+
+Now, what remained? Nothing, save anxiety concerning the future, and all
+sorts of uncertainties and terrors! What a mistake! What a blunder he
+had made! Ah! if he could only begin again. He sincerely wished that the
+great adversary of mankind had the Viscount de Coralth in his clutches.
+For, in his despair, it was the once dear viscount that he blamed,
+accused, and cursed.
+
+He was in this ungrateful frame of mind when a loud, almost savage, ring
+came at his door. As his servant slept in an attic upstairs, Wilkie was
+quite alone in his rooms, so he took the lamp and went to open the door
+himself. At this hour of the night, the visitor could only be M. Costard
+or the Viscount de Serpillon, or perhaps both of them. “They have
+heard that I was looking for them, and so they have hastened here,” he
+thought.
+
+But he was mistaken. The visitor was neither of these gentlemen, but M.
+Ferdinand de Coralth in person. Prudence had compelled the viscount to
+leave Madame d’Argeles’s card-party one of the last, but as soon as he
+was out of the house he had rushed to the Marquis de Valorsay’s to hold
+a conference with him, far from suspecting that he was followed, and
+that an auxiliary of Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite
+was even then waiting for him below--an enemy as formidable as he was
+humble--Victor Chupin.
+
+At sight of the man who had so long been his model--the friend who had
+advised what he styled his blunder--Wilkie was so surprised that he
+almost dropped his lamp. Then as his wrath kindled, “Ah! so it’s you!”
+ he exclaimed, angrily. “You come at a good time!”
+
+But M. de Coralth was too much exasperated to notice Wilkie’s strange
+greeting. Seizing him roughly by the arm, and closing the door with a
+kick, he dragged Wilkie back into the little drawing-room. “Yes, it’s
+I,” he said, curtly. “It’s I--come to inquire if you have gone mad?”
+
+“Viscount!”
+
+“I can find no other explanation of your conduct! What! You choose
+Madame d’Argeles’s reception day, and an hour when there are fifty
+guests in her drawing-room to present yourself!”
+
+“Ah, well! it wasn’t from choice. I had been there twice before, and had
+the doors shut in my face.”
+
+“You ought to have gone back ten times, a hundred times, a thousand
+times, rather than have accomplished such an idiotic prank as this.”
+
+“Excuse me.”
+
+“What did I recommend? Prudence, calmness and moderation, persuasive
+gentleness, sentiments of the loftiest nature, tenderness, a shower of
+tears----”
+
+“Possibly, but----”
+
+“But instead of that, you fall upon this woman like a thunderbolt, and
+set the whole household in the wildest commotion. What could you be
+thinking of, to make such an absurd and frightful scene? For you
+howled and shrieked like a street hawker, and we could hear you in the
+drawing-room. If all is not irretrievably lost, there must be a special
+Providence for the benefit of fools!”
+
+In his dismay, Wilkie endeavored to falter some excuses, but he was
+only able to begin a few sentences which died away, uncompleted in his
+throat. The violence shown by M. de Coralth, who was usually as cold and
+as polished as marble, quieted his own wrath. Still toward the last he
+felt disposed to rebel against the insults that were being heaped upon
+him. “Do you know, viscount, that I begin to think this very strange,”
+ he exclaimed. “If any one else had led me into such a scrape, I should
+have called him to account in double-quick time.”
+
+M. de Coralth shrugged his shoulders with an air of contempt, and
+threateningly replied: “Understand, once for all, that you had better
+not attempt to bully me! Now, tell me what passed between your mother
+and yourself?”
+
+“First I should like----”
+
+“Dash it all! Do you suppose that I intend to remain here all night?
+Tell me what occurred, and be quick about it. And try to speak the
+truth.”
+
+It was one of M. Wilkie’s greatest boasts that he had an indomitable
+will--an iron nature. But the viscount exercised powerful influence over
+him, and, to tell the truth, inspired him with a form of emotion which
+was nearly akin to fear. Moreover, a glimmer of reason had at last
+penetrated his befogged brain: he saw that M. de Coralth was right--that
+he had acted like a fool, and that, if he hoped to escape from the
+dangers that threatened him, he must take the advice of more experienced
+men than himself. So, ceasing his recriminations, he began to describe
+what he styled his explanation with Madame d’Argeles. All went well at
+first; for he dared not misrepresent the facts.
+
+But when he came to the intervention of the man who had prevented him
+from striking his mother, he turned crimson, and rage again filled his
+heart. “I’m sorry I let myself get into such a mess!” he exclaimed. “You
+should have seen my condition. My shirt-collar was torn, and my
+cravat hung in tatters. He was much stronger than I--the contemptible
+scoundrel!--ah! if it hadn’t been for that---- But I shall have my
+revenge. Yes, he shall learn that he can’t trample a man under foot
+with impunity. To-morrow two of my friends will call upon him; and if he
+refuses to apologize or to give me satisfaction, I’ll cane him.”
+
+It was evident enough that M. de Coralth had to exercise considerable
+constraint to listen to these fine projects. “I must warn you that you
+ought to speak in other terms of an honorable and honored gentleman,” he
+interrupted, at last.
+
+“Eh! what! You know him then?”
+
+“Yes, Madame d’Argeles’s defender is Baron Trigault.”
+
+M. Wilkie’s heart bounded with joy, as he heard this name. “Ah! this
+is capital!” he exclaimed. “What! So it was Baron Trigault--the noted
+gambler--who owns such a magnificent house in the Rue de la Ville
+l’Eveque, the husband of that extremely stylish lady, that notorious
+cocotte----”
+
+The viscount sprang from his chair, and interrupting M. Wilkie: “I
+advise you, for the sake of your own safety,” he said, measuring his
+words to give them greater weight, “never to mention the Baroness
+Trigault’s name except in terms of the most profound respect.”
+
+There was no misunderstanding M. de Coralth’s tone, and his glance said
+plainly that he would not allow much time to pass before putting his
+threat into execution. Having always lived in a lower circle to that in
+which the baroness sparkled with such lively brilliancy, M. Wilkie was
+ignorant of the reasons that induced his distinguished friend to defend
+her so warmly; but he DID understand that it would be highly imprudent
+to insist, or even to discuss the matter. So, in his most persuasive
+manner, he resumed: “Let us say no more about the wife, but give our
+attention to the husband. So it was the baron who insulted me! A duel
+with him--what good luck! Well! he may sleep in peace to-night, but as
+soon as he is up in the morning he will find Costard and Serpillon on
+hand. Serpillon has not an equal as a second. First, he knows the best
+places for a meeting; then he lends the combatants weapons when they
+have none; he procures a physician; and he is on excellent terms with
+the journalists, who publish reports of these encounters.”
+
+The viscount had never had a very exalted opinion of Wilkie’s
+intelligence, but now he was amazed to see how greatly he had
+overestimated it. “Enough of such foolishness,” he interrupted, curtly.
+“This duel will never take place.”
+
+“I should like to know who will prevent it?”
+
+“I will, if you persist in such an absurd idea. You ought to have sense
+enough to know that the baron would kick Serpillon out of the house, and
+that you would only cover yourself with ridicule. So, between your duel
+and my help make your choice, and quickly.”
+
+The prospect of sending his seconds to demand satisfaction from Baron
+Trigault was certainly a very attractive one. But, on the other hand,
+Wilkie could not afford to dispense with M. de Coralth’s services. “But
+the baron has insulted me,” he urged.
+
+“Well, you can demand satisfaction when you obtain possession of your
+property: but the least scandal now would spoil your last chances.”
+
+“I will abandon the project, then,” sighed Wilkie, despondently; “but
+pray advise me. What do you think of my situation?”
+
+M. de Coralth seemed to consider a moment, and then gravely replied:
+“I think that, UNASSISTED, you have no chance whatever. You have no
+standing, no influential connections, no position--you are not even a
+Frenchman.”
+
+“Alas! that is precisely what I have said to myself.”
+
+“Still, I am convinced that with some assistance you might overcome your
+mother’s resistance, and even your father’s pretentions.”
+
+“Yes, but where could I find protectors?”
+
+The viscount’s gravity seemed to increase. “Listen to me,” said he; “I
+will do for you what I would not do for any one else. I will endeavor to
+interest in your cause one of my friends, who is all powerful by reason
+of his name, his fortune, and his connections--the Marquis de Valorsay,
+in fact.”
+
+“The one who is so well known upon the turf?”
+
+“The same.”
+
+“And you will introduce me to him?”
+
+“Yes. Be ready to-morrow at eleven o’clock, and I will call for you and
+take you to his house. If he interests himself in your cause, it is as
+good as gained.” And as his companion overwhelmed him with thanks,
+he rose, and said: “I must go now. No more foolishness, and be ready
+to-morrow at the appointed time.”
+
+Thanks to the surprising mutability of temper which was the most
+striking characteristic of his nature, M. Wilkie was already consoled
+for his blunder.
+
+He had received M. de Coralth as an enemy; but he now escorted him to
+the door with every obsequious attention--in fact, just as if he looked
+upon him as his preserver. A word which the viscount had dropped during
+the conversation had considerably helped to bring about this sudden
+revulsion of feelings. “You cannot fail to understand that if the
+Marquis de Valorsay espouses your cause, you will want for nothing. And
+if a lawsuit is unavoidable, he will be perfectly willing to advance the
+necessary funds.” How could M. Wilkie lack confidence after that? The
+brightest hopes, the most ecstatic visions had succeeded the gloomy
+forebodings of a few hours before. The mere thought of being presented
+to M. de Valorsay, a nobleman celebrated for his adventures, his horses,
+and his fortune, more than sufficed to make him forget his troubles.
+What rapture to become that illustrious nobleman’s acquaintance,
+perhaps his friend! To move in the same orbit as this star of the first
+magnitude which would inevitably cast some of its lustre upon him! Now
+he would be a somebody in the world. He felt that he had grown a
+head taller, and Heaven only knows with what disdain poor Costard
+and Serpillon would have been received had they chanced to present
+themselves at that moment.
+
+It is needless to say that Wilkie dressed with infinite care on the
+following morning, no doubt in the hope of making a conquest of the
+marquis at first sight. He tried his best to solve the problem of
+appearing at the same time most recherche but at ease, excessively
+elegant and yet unostentatious; and he devoted himself to the task so
+unreservedly that he lost all conception of the flight of time: so
+that on seeing M. de Coralth enter his rooms, he exclaimed in unfeigned
+astonishment: “You here already?”
+
+It seemed to him that barely five minutes had elapsed since he took his
+place before the looking-glass to study attitudes and gestures, with
+a new and elegant mode of bowing and sitting down, like an actor
+practising the effects which are to win him applause.
+
+“Why do you say ‘already?’” replied the viscount. “I am a quarter of an
+hour behind time. Are you not ready?”
+
+“Yes, certainly.”
+
+“Let us start at once, then; my brougham is outside.”
+
+The drive was a silent one. M. Ferdinand de Coralth, whose smooth white
+skin would ordinarily have excited the envy of a young girl, did not
+look like himself. His face was swollen and covered with blotches, and
+there were dark blue circles round his eyes. He seemed, moreover, to be
+in a most savage humor. “He hasn’t had sleep enough,” thought M. Wilkie,
+with his usual discernment; “he hasn’t a bronze constitution like
+myself.”
+
+M. Wilkie himself was insensible to fatigue, and although he had
+not closed his eyes the previous night, he only felt that nervous
+trepidation which invariably attacks debutants, and makes the throat so
+marvellously dry. For the first, and probably the last time in his life,
+M. Wilkie distrusted his own powers, and feared that he was not “quite
+up to the mark,” as he elegantly expressed it.
+
+The sight of the Marquis de Valorsay’s handsome mansion was not likely
+to restore his assurance. When he entered the courtyard, where the
+master’s mail-phaeton stood in waiting; when through the open doors
+of the handsome stables he espied the many valuable horses neighing in
+their stalls, and the numerous carriages shrouded in linen covers; when
+he counted the valets on duty in the vestibule, and when he ascended the
+staircase behind a lackey attired in a black dress-coat, and as serious
+in mien as a notary; when he passed through the handsome drawing-rooms,
+filled to overflowing with pictures, armor, statuary, and all the
+trophies gained by the marquis’s horses upon the turf, M. Wilkie
+mentally acknowledged that he knew nothing of high life, and that what
+he had considered luxury was scarcely the shadow of the reality. He
+felt actually ashamed of his own ignorance. This feeling of inferiority
+became so powerful that he was almost tempted to turn and fly, when the
+man clothed in black opened the door and announced, in a clear voice:
+“M. le Vicomte de Coralth!--M. Wilkie.”
+
+With a most gracious and dignified air--the air of a true GRAND
+seigneur--the only portion of his inheritance which he had preserved
+intact, the marquis rose to his feet, and, offering his hand to M. de
+Coralth, exclaimed: “You are most welcome, viscount. This gentleman is
+undoubtedly the young friend you spoke of in the note I received from
+you this morning?”
+
+“The same; and really he stands greatly in need of your kindness. He
+finds himself in an extremely delicate position, and knows no one who
+can lend him a helping hand.”
+
+“Ah, well, I will lend him one with pleasure, since he is your friend.
+But I must know the circumstances before I can act. Sit down, gentlemen,
+and enlighten me.”
+
+M. Wilkie had prepared his story in advance, a touching and witty
+narrative; but when the moment came to begin it, he found himself unable
+to speak. He opened his mouth, but no sound issued from his lips, and it
+seemed as if he had been stricken dumb. Accordingly it was M. de Coralth
+who made a statement of the case, and he did it well. The narrative
+thus gained considerably in clearness and precision; and even M. Wilkie
+noticed that his friend understood how to present the events in their
+most favorable light, and how to omit them altogether when his heartless
+conduct would have appeared too odious. He also noticed--and he
+considered it an excellent omen--that M. de Valorsay was listening with
+the closest attention.
+
+Worthy marquis! if his own interests had been in jeopardy he could not
+have appeared more deeply concerned. When the viscount had concluded
+his story, he gravely exclaimed: “Your young friend is indeed in a most
+critical position, a position from which he cannot escape without being
+terribly victimized, if he’s left dependent on his own resources.”
+
+“But it is understood that you will help him, is it not?”
+
+M. de Valorsay reflected for a little, and then, addressing M. Wilkie,
+replied: “Yes, I consent to assist you, monsieur. First, because your
+cause seems to me just, and, also, because you are M. de Coralth’s
+friend. I promise you my aid on one condition--that you will follow my
+advice implicitly.”
+
+The interesting young man lifted his hand, and, by dint of a powerful
+effort, he succeeded in articulating: “Anything you wish!--upon my
+sacred word!”
+
+“You must understand that when I engage in an enterprise, it must
+not fail. The eye of the public is upon me, and I have my PRESTIGE to
+maintain. I have given you a great mark of confidence, for in lending
+you my influence I become, in some measure at least, your sponsor. But
+I cannot accept this great responsibility unless I am allowed absolute
+control of the affair.”
+
+“And I think that we ought to begin operations this very day. The main
+thing is to circumvent your father, the terrible man with whom your
+mother has threatened you.”
+
+“Ah! but how?”
+
+“I shall dress at once and go to the Hotel de Chalusse, in order to
+ascertain what has occurred there. You on your side must hasten to
+Madame d’Argeles and request her politely, but firmly, to furnish you
+with the necessary proofs to assert your rights. If she consents, well
+and good! If she refuses, we will consult some lawyer as to the next
+step. In any case, call here again at four o’clock.”
+
+But the thought of meeting Madame d’Argeles again was anything but
+pleasing to Wilkie. “I would willingly yield that undertaking to some
+one else,” said he. “Cannot some one else go in my place?”
+
+Fortunately M. de Coralth knew how to encourage him. “What! are you
+afraid?” he asked.
+
+Afraid! he?--never! It was easy to see that by the way he settled his
+hat on his head and went off, slamming the door noisily behind him.
+
+“What an idiot!” muttered M. de Coralth. “And to think that there are
+ten thousand in Paris built upon the very same plan!”
+
+M. de Valorsay gravely shook his head. “Let us thank fortune that he is
+as he is. No youth who possessed either heart or intelligence would play
+the part that I intend for him, and enable me to obtain proud Marguerite
+and her millions. But I fear he won’t go to Madame d’Argeles’s house.
+You noticed his repugnance!”
+
+“Oh, you needn’t trouble yourself in the least on that account--he’ll
+go. He would go to the devil if the noble Marquis de Valorsay ordered
+him to do so.”
+
+M. de Coralth understood Wilkie perfectly. The fear of being considered
+a coward by a nobleman like the Marquis de Valorsay was more than
+sufficient, not only to divest him of all his scruples, but even to
+induce him to commit any act of folly, or actually a crime. For if he
+had looked upon M. de Coralth as an oracle, he considered the marquis to
+be a perfect god.
+
+Accordingly, as he hastened toward Madame d’Argeles’s residence, he said
+to himself: “Why shouldn’t I go to her house? I’ve done her no injury.
+Besides, she won’t eat me.” And remembering that he should be obliged to
+render a report of this interview, he resolved to assert his superiority
+and to remain cool and unmoved, as he had seen M. de Coralth do so
+often.
+
+However, the unusual aspect of the house excited his surprise, and
+puzzled him not a little. Three huge furniture vans, heavily laden, were
+standing outside the gate. In the courtyard there were two more vehicles
+of the same description, which a dozen men or so were busily engaged
+in loading. “Ah, ha!” muttered M. Wilkie, “it was fortunate that
+I came--very fortunate; so she was going to run away!” Thereupon,
+approaching a group of servants who were in close conference in the
+hall, he demanded, in his most imperious manner: “Madame d’Argeles!”
+
+The servants remembered the visitor perfectly; they now knew who
+he really was, and they could not understand how he could have the
+impudence and audacity to come there again so soon after the shameful
+scene of the previous evening. “Madame is at home,” replied one of the
+men, in anything but a polite tone; “and I will go and see if she will
+consent to see you. Wait here.”
+
+He went off, leaving M. Wilkie in the vestibule to settle his collar and
+twirl his puny mustaches, with affected indifference; but in reality he
+was far from comfortable. For the servants did not hesitate to stare
+at him, and it was quite impossible not to read their contempt in their
+glances. They even sneered audibly and pointed at him; and he heard five
+or six epithets more expressive than elegant which could only have been
+meant for himself. “The fools!” thought he, boiling with anger. “The
+scoundrels! Ah! if I dared. If a gentleman like myself was allowed to
+notice such blackguards, how I’d chastise them!”
+
+But the valet who had gone to warn Madame d’Argeles soon reappeared
+and put an end to his sufferings. “Madame will see you,” said the man,
+impudently. “Ah! if I were in her place----”
+
+“Come, make haste,” rejoined Wilkie, indignantly, and following the
+servant, he was ushered into a room which had already been divested of
+its hangings, curtains, and furniture. He here found Madame d’Argeles
+engaged in packing a large trunk with household linen and sundry
+articles of clothing.
+
+By a sort of miracle the unfortunate woman had survived the terrible
+shock which had at first threatened to have an immediately fatal
+effect. Still she had none the less received her death-blow. It was
+only necessary to look at her to be assured of that. She was so greatly
+changed that when M. Wilkie’s eyes first fell on her, he asked himself
+if this were really the same person whom he had met on the previous
+evening. Henceforth she would be an old woman. You would have taken her
+for over fifty, so terrible had been the sufferings caused her by the
+shameful conduct of her son. In this sad-eyed, haggard-faced woman, clad
+in black, no one would have recognized the notorious Lia d’Argeles, who,
+only the evening before, had driven round the lake, reclining on the
+cushions of her victoria, and eclipsing all the women around her by the
+splendor of her toilette. Nothing now remained of the gay worldling but
+the golden hair which she was condemned to see always the same, since
+its tint had been fixed by dyes as indelible as the stains upon her
+past.
+
+She rose with difficulty when M. Wilkie entered, and in the
+expressionless voice of those who are without hope, she asked: “What do
+you wish of me?”
+
+As usual, when the time came to carry out his happiest conceptions, his
+courage failed him. “I came to talk about our affairs, you know,” he
+replied, “and I find you moving.”
+
+“I am not moving.”
+
+“Nonsense! you can’t make me believe that! What’s the meaning of these
+carts in the courtyard?”
+
+“They are here to convey all the furniture in the house to the
+auction-rooms.”
+
+Wilkie was struck dumb for a moment, but eventually recovering himself a
+little, he exclaimed: “What! you are going to sell everything?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Astonishing, upon my honor! But afterward?”
+
+“I shall leave Paris.”
+
+“Bah! and where are you going?”
+
+With a gesture of utter indifference, she gently replied: “I don’t know;
+I shall go where no one will know me, and where it will be possible for
+me to hide my shame.”
+
+A terrible disquietude seized hold of Wilkie. This sudden change of
+residence, this departure which so strongly resembled flight, this cold
+greeting when he expected passionate reproaches, seemed to indicate that
+Madame d’Argeles’s resolution would successfully resist any amount of
+entreaty on his part. “The devil,” he remarked, “I don’t think this at
+all pleasant! What is to become of me? How am I to obtain possession of
+the Count de Chalusse’s estate? That’s what I am after! It’s rightfully
+mine, and I’m determined to have it, as I told you once before. And when
+I’ve once taken anything into my head----”
+
+He paused, for he could no longer face the scornful glances that Madame
+d’Argeles was giving him. “Don’t be alarmed,” she replied bitterly,
+“I shall leave you the means of asserting your right to my parents’
+estate.”
+
+“Ah--so----”
+
+“Your threats obliged me to decide contrary to my own wishes. I felt
+that no amount of slander or disgrace would daunt you.”
+
+“Of course not, when so many millions are at stake.”
+
+“I reflected, and I saw that nothing would arrest you upon your downward
+path except a large fortune. If you were poor and compelled to earn your
+daily bread--a task which you are probably incapable of performing--who
+can tell what depths of degradation you might descend to? With your
+instincts and your vices, who knows what crime you wouldn’t commit to
+obtain money? It wouldn’t be long before you were in the dock, and I
+should hear of you only through your disgrace. But, on the other hand,
+if you were rich, you would probably lead an honest life, like many
+others, who, wanting for nothing, are not tempted to do wrong, who, in
+fact, show virtue in which there is nothing worthy of praise. For real
+virtue implies temptation--a struggle and victory.”
+
+Although he did not understand these remarks very well, M. Wilkie
+evinced a desire to offer some objections; but Madame d’Argeles had
+already resumed: “So I went to my notary this morning. I told him
+everything; and by this time my renunciation of my rights to the estate
+of the Count de Chalusse is already recorded.”
+
+“What! your renunciation. Oh! no.”
+
+“Allow me to finish since you don’t understand me. As soon as I renounce
+the inheritance it becomes yours.”
+
+“Truly?”
+
+“I have no wish to deceive you. I only desire that the name of Lia
+d’Argeles should not be mentioned. I will give you the necessary proofs
+to establish your identity; my marriage contract and your certificate of
+birth.”
+
+It was joy that made M. Wilkie speechless now. “And when will you give
+me these documents?” he faltered, after a short pause.
+
+“You shall have them before you leave this house; but first of all I
+must talk with you.”
+
+
+
+
+XV.
+
+
+Agitated and excited though he was, M. Wilkie had not once ceased to
+think of M. de Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay. What would they
+do in such a position, and how should he act to conform himself to the
+probable example of these models of deportment? Manifestly he ought to
+assume that stolid and insolent air of boredom which is considered a
+sure indication of birth and breeding. Convinced of this, and seized
+with a laudable desire to emulate such distinguished examples, he had
+perched himself upon a trunk, where he still sat with his legs crossed.
+He now pretended to suppress a yawn, as he growled, “What! some more
+long phrases--and another melodramatic display?”
+
+Absorbed in the memories she had invoked, Madame d’Argeles paid no heed
+to Wilkie’s impertinence. “Yes, I must talk with you,” she said, “and
+more for your sake than for my own. I must tell you who I am, and
+through what strange vicissitudes I have passed. You know what family
+I belong to. I will tell you, however--for you may be ignorant of the
+fact--that our house is the equal of any in France in lineage, splendor
+of alliance, and fortune. When I was a child, my parents lived at the
+Hotel de Chalusse, in the Faubourg Saint Germain, a perfect palace,
+surrounded by one of those immense gardens, which are no longer seen in
+Paris--a real park, shaded with century-old trees. Certainly everything
+that money could procure, or vanity desire, was within my reach; and
+yet my youth was wretchedly unhappy. I scarcely knew my father, who
+was devoured by ambition, and had thrown himself body and soul into
+the vortex of politics. Either my mother did not love me, or thought
+it beneath her dignity to make any display of sensibility; but at all
+events her reserve had raised a wall of ice between herself and me. As
+for my brother he was too much engrossed in pleasure to think of a
+mere child. So I lived quite alone, too proud to accept the love and
+friendship of my inferiors--abandoned to the dangerous inspirations of
+solitude, and with no other consolation than my books--books which had
+been chosen for me by my mother’s confessor, and which were calculated
+to fill my imagination with visionary and romantic fancies. The only
+conversation I heard dealt with the means of leaving all the family
+fortune to my brother, so that he might uphold the splendor of the name,
+and with the necessity of marrying me to some superannuated nobleman who
+would take me without a dowry, or of compelling me to enter one of those
+aristocratic convents, which are the refuge, and often the prison, of
+poor girls of noble birth.
+
+“I do not pretend to justify my fault, I am only explaining it. I
+thought myself the most unfortunate being in the world--and such I
+really was, since I honestly believed it--when I happened to meet Arthur
+Gordon, your father. I saw him for the first time at a fete given at the
+house of the Comte de Commarin. How he, a mere adventurer, had succeeded
+in forcing his way into the most exclusive society in the world, is a
+point which I have never been able to explain. But, alas! it is only too
+true that when our glances met for the first time, my heart was stirred
+to its inmost depths; I felt that it was no longer mine--that I was no
+longer free! Ah! why does not God allow a man’s face to reflect at
+least something of his nature? This man, who was a corrupt and audacious
+hypocrite, had that air of apparent nobility and frankness which
+inspires you with unlimited confidence, and the melancholy expression on
+his features seemed to indicate that he had known sorrow, and had good
+cause to rail at destiny. In his whole appearance there was certainly
+a mysterious and fatal charm. I afterward learned that this was only a
+natural result of the wild life he had led. He was only twenty-six, and
+he had already been the commander of a slave ship, and had fought in
+Mexico at the head of one of those guerilla bands which make politics an
+excuse for pillage and murder. He divined only too well the impression
+he had made upon my heart. I met him twice afterward in society. He did
+not speak to me; he even pretended to avoid me, but standing a little
+on one side, he watched my every movement with burning eyes in which
+I fancied I could read a passion as absorbing as my own. At last he
+ventured to write to me. The moment a letter addressed to me in an
+unknown hand was covertly handed me by my maid, I divined that it came
+from him. I was frightened, and my first impulse was to take it, not
+to my mother--whom I regarded as my natural enemy--but to my father.
+However, he chanced to be absent; I kept the letter, I read it, I
+answered it--and he wrote again.
+
+“Alas! from that moment my conduct was inexcusable. I knew that it was
+worse than a fault to continue this clandestine correspondence. I knew
+my parents would never give my hand in marriage to a man who was not of
+noble birth. I knew that I was risking my reputation, the spotless honor
+of our house, my happiness, and life! Still I persisted--I was possessed
+with a strange madness that made me ready to brave every danger.
+Besides, he gave me no time to breathe, or reflect. Everywhere,
+constantly, every instant, he compelled me to think of him. By some
+miracle of address and audacity, he had discovered a means of intruding
+upon my presence, even in my father’s house. For instance, every morning
+I found the vases in my room full of choice flowers, though I was never
+able to discover what hands had placed them there. Ah! how can one help
+believing in an omnipresent passion which one inhales with the very air
+one breathes! How can one resist it?
+
+“I only discovered Arthur Gordon’s object when it was too late. He
+had come to Paris with the fixed determination of trapping some rich
+heiress, and forcing her family to give her to him with a large
+dowry, after one of those disgraceful scandals which render a marriage
+inevitable. At the very same time he was pursuing two other rich young
+girls, persuaded that one of the three would certainly become his
+victim.
+
+“I was the first to yield. One of those unforeseen events which are
+the work of Providence, was destined to decide my fate. Several times,
+already, in compliance with Arthur’s urgent entreaties, I had met him at
+night time in a little pavilion in our garden. This pavilion contained
+a billiard-room and a spacious gallery in which my brother practised
+fencing and pistol shooting with his masters and friends. There, thanks
+to the liberty I enjoyed, we thought ourselves perfectly secure from
+observation, and we were imprudent enough to light the candles. One
+night when I had just joined Arthur in the pavilion, I thought I heard
+the sound of hoarse, heavy breathing behind me. I turned round in a
+fright and saw my brother standing on the threshold. Oh! then I realized
+how guilty I had been! I felt that one or the other of these two men--my
+lover or my brother--would not leave that room alive.
+
+“I tried to speak, to throw myself between them, but I found I could
+neither speak nor move; it was as if I had been turned to stone. Nor did
+they exchange a word at first. But at last my brother drew two swords
+from their scabbards, and throwing one at Arthur’s feet, exclaimed: ‘I
+have no wish to assassinate you. Defend yourself, and save your life if
+you can!’ And as Arthur hesitated, and seemed to be trying to gain time
+instead of picking up the weapon that was lying on the floor near him,
+my brother struck him in the face with the flat side of his sword, and
+cried: ‘Now will you fight, you coward! In an instant it was all over.
+Arthur caught up the sword, and springing upon my brother, disarmed him,
+and wounded him in the breast. I saw this. I saw the blood spurt out
+upon my lover’s hands. I saw my brother stagger, beat the air wildly
+with his hands, and fall apparently lifeless to the floor. Then I, too,
+lost consciousness and fell!”
+
+Any one who had seen Madame d’Argeles as she stood there recoiling in
+horror, with her features contracted, and her eyes dilated, would
+have realized that by strength of will she had dispelled the mists
+enshrouding the past, and distinctly beheld the scene she was
+describing. She seemed to experience anew the same agony of terror she
+had felt twenty years before; and this lent such poignant intensity to
+the interest of her narrative that if M. Wilkie’s heart was not exactly
+touched, he was, as he afterward confessed, at least rather interested.
+But Madame d’Argeles seemed to have forgotten his existence. She wiped
+away the foam-flecked blood which had risen to her lips, and in the same
+mournful voice resumed her story.
+
+“When I regained my senses it was morning, and I was lying, still
+dressed, on a bed in a strange room. Arthur Gordon was standing at the
+foot of the bed anxiously watching my movements. He did not give me time
+to question him. ‘You are in my house,’ said he. ‘Your brother is dead!’
+Almighty God! I thought I should die as well. I hoped so. I prayed
+for death. But, in spite of my sobs, he pitilessly continued: ‘It is a
+terrible misfortune which I shall never cease to regret. And yet, it was
+his own fault. You, who witnessed the scene, know that it was so.
+You can still see on my face the mark of the blow he dealt me. I only
+defended myself and you.’ I was ignorant then of the accepted code of
+duelling. I did not know that by throwing himself upon my brother before
+he was on guard, Arthur Gordon had virtually assassinated him. He relied
+upon my ignorance for the success of the sinister farce he was playing.
+‘When I saw your brother fall,’ he continued, ‘I was wild with terror;
+and not knowing what I did, I caught you up in my arms and brought you
+here. But don’t tremble, I know that you are not in my house of your own
+free will. A carriage is below and awaits your orders to convey you
+to your parents’ home. It will be easy to find an explanation for last
+night’s catastrophe. Slander will not venture to attack such a family
+as yours.’ He spoke in the constrained tone, and with that air which a
+brave man, condemned to death, would assume in giving utterance to his
+last wishes. I felt as if I were going mad. ‘And you!’ I exclaimed,
+‘you! What will become of you?’ He shook his head, and with a look
+of anguish, replied: ‘Me! What does it matter about me! I am ruined
+undoubtedly. So much the better. Nothing matters now that I must live
+apart from you’! Ah! he knew my heart. He knew his power! Swayed by an
+emotion which was madness rather than heroism, I sprang toward him, and
+clasped him in my arms: ‘Then I, too, am lost!’ I cried. ‘Since fate
+united us, nothing but death shall separate us. I love you. I am your
+accomplice. Let the curse fall upon both!’
+
+“A keen observer would certainly have detected a gleam of fiendish joy
+in his eyes. But he protested, or pretended to protest. With feigned
+energy he refused to accept such a sacrifice. He could not link my
+destiny to his, for misery had ever been his lot; and now that this last
+and most terrible misfortune had overtaken him, he was more than ever
+convinced that there was a curse hanging over him! He would not suffer
+me to bring misery upon myself, and eternal remorse upon him. But the
+more he repulsed me, the more obstinately I clung to him. The more
+forcibly he showed the horror of the sacrifice, the more I was convinced
+that my honor compelled me to make it. So at last he yielded, or seemed
+to yield, with transports of gratitude and love. ‘Well! yes, I accept
+your sacrifice, my darling!’ he exclaimed. ‘I accept it; and before the
+God who is looking down upon us, I swear that I will do all that is in
+human power to repay such sublime and marvellous devotion.’ And, bending
+over me, he printed a kiss upon my forehead. ‘But we must fly!’ he
+resumed, quickly. ‘I have my happiness to defend now! I will not suffer
+any one to discover us and separate us now. We must start at once,
+without losing a moment, and gain my native land, America. There, we
+shall be safe. For rest assured they will search for us. Who knows but
+even now the officers of the law are upon our track? Your family is
+all-powerful--I am a mere nobody--we should be crushed if they discover
+us. They would bury you in a gloomy cloister, and I should be tried as
+a common thief, or as a vile assassin.’ My only answer was: ‘Let us go!
+Let us go at once!’
+
+“It had been easy for him to foresee what the result of this interview
+would be. A vehicle was indeed waiting at the door, but not for
+the purpose of conveying me to the Hotel de Chalusse--as was proved
+conclusively by the fact that his trunks were already strapped upon it.
+Besides, the coachman must have received his instructions in advance for
+he drove us straight to the Havre Railway station without a word. It
+was not until some months afterward that these trifles, which entirely
+escaped my notice at the time, opened my eyes to the truth. When we
+reached the station we found a train ready to start, and we took our
+places in it. I tried to quiet my conscience with miserable sophistries.
+Remembering that God has said to woman: To follow thy husband thou shalt
+abandon all else, native land, paternal home, parents and friends, I
+told myself that this was the husband whom my heart had instinctively
+chosen, and that it was my duty to follow him and share his destiny. And
+thus I fled with him, although I thought I left a corpse behind me--the
+corpse of my only brother.”
+
+M. Wilkie was actually so much interested that he forgot his anxiety
+concerning his attitude, and no longer thought of M. de Coralth and the
+Marquis de Valorsay. He even sprang up, and exclaimed: “Amazing!”
+
+But Madame d’Argeles had already resumed: “Such was my great,
+inexcusable, irreparable fault. I have told you the whole truth, without
+trying either to conceal or justify anything. Listen to my chastisement!
+On our arrival at Le Havre the next day, Arthur confessed that he was
+greatly embarrassed financially. Owing to our precipitate flight, he had
+not had time to realize the property he possessed--at least so he told
+me--a banker, on whom he had depended, had moreover failed him, and he
+had not sufficient money to pay our passage to New York. This amazed
+me. My education had been absurd, like that of most young girls in
+my station. I knew nothing of real life, of its requirements and
+difficulties. I knew, of course, that there were rich people and poor
+people, that money was a necessity, and that those who did not possess
+it would stoop to any meanness to obtain it. But all this was not very
+clear in my mind, and I never suspected that a few francs more or
+less would be a matter of vital importance. So I was not in the least
+prepared for the request to which this confession served as preface, and
+Arthur Gordon was obliged to ask me point-blank if I did not happen to
+have some money about me, or some jewelry which could be converted into
+money. I gave him all I had, my purse containing a few louis, a ring and
+a necklace, with a handsome diamond cross attached to it. However,
+the total value was comparatively small, and such was Arthur’s
+disappointment that he made a remark which frightened me even then,
+though I did not fully understand its shameful meaning until afterward:
+‘A woman who repairs to a rendezvous should always have all the
+valuables she possesses about her. One never knows what may happen.’
+
+“Want of money was keeping us prisoners at Le Havre, when Arthur Gordon
+chanced to meet an old acquaintance, who was the captain of an American
+sailing vessel. He confided his embarrassment to his friend, and the
+latter, whose vessel was to sail at the end of the same week, kindly
+offered us a free passage. The voyage was one long torture to me, for it
+was then that I first served my apprenticeship in shame and disgrace.
+By the captain’s offensive gallantry, the lower officers’ familiarity of
+manner, and the sailors’ ironical glances whenever I appeared on deck, I
+saw that my position was a secret for no one. Everybody knew that I was
+the mistress and not the wife of the man whom I called my husband: and,
+without being really conscious of it, perhaps, they made me cruelly
+expiate my fault. Moreover, reason had regained its ascendency, my eyes
+were gradually opening to the truth, and I was beginning to learn the
+real character of the scoundrel for whom I had sacrificed all that makes
+life desirable.
+
+“Not that he had wholly ceased to practise dissimulation. But after the
+evening meal he often lingered at table smoking and drinking with
+his friend the captain, and when he joined me afterward, heated with
+alcohol, he shocked me by advocating theories which were both novel
+and repulsive to me. Once, after drinking more than usual, he entirely
+forgot his assumed part, and revealed himself in his true character.
+He declared he bitterly regretted that our love affair had ended so
+disastrously. It was deplorable to think that so happily conceived and
+so skilfully conducted a scheme should have terminated in bloodshed. And
+the blow had fallen just as he fancied he had reached the goal; just as
+he thought he would reap the reward of his labor. In a few weeks’ more
+time he would undoubtedly have gained sufficient influence over me to
+persuade me to elope with him. This would, of course, have caused a
+great scandal; the next day there would have been a family conclave; a
+compromise would have been effected, and finally, a marriage arranged
+with a large dowry, to hush up the affair. ‘And I should now be a
+rich man,’ he added, ‘a very rich man--I should be rolling through the
+streets of Paris in my carriage, instead of being on board this cursed
+ship, eating salt cod twice a day, and living on charity.’
+
+“Ah! it was no longer possible to doubt. The truth was as clear as
+daylight. I had never been loved, not even an hour, not even a moment.
+The loving letters which had blinded me, the protestations of affection
+which had deceived me, had been addressed to my father’s millions, not
+to myself. And not unfrequently I saw Arthur Gordon’s face darken, as he
+talked with evident anxiety about what he could do to earn a living for
+himself and me in America. ‘I have had trouble enough to get on alone,’
+he grumbled. ‘What will it be now? To burden myself with a penniless
+wife! What egregious folly! And yet I couldn’t have acted differently--I
+was compelled to do it.’ Why had he been compelled to do it? why had
+he not acted differently?--that was what I vainly puzzled my brain
+to explain. However, his gloomy fears of poverty were not realized. A
+delightful surprise awaited him at New York. A relative had recently
+died, leaving him a legacy of fifty thousand dollars--a small fortune.
+I hoped that he would now cease his constant complaints, but he seemed
+even more displeased than before. ‘Such is the irony of fate,’ he
+repeated again and again. ‘With this money, I might easily have married
+a wife worth a hundred thousand dollars, and then I should be rich at
+last!’ After that, I had good reason to expect that I should soon be
+forsaken--but no, shortly after our arrival, he married me. Had he done
+so out of respect for his word? I believed so. But, alas! this marriage
+was the result of calculation, like everything else he did.
+
+“We were living in New York, when one evening he came home, looking very
+pale and agitated. He had a French newspaper in his hand. ‘Read this,’
+he said, handing it to me. I took the paper as he bade me, and read
+that my brother had not been killed, that he was improving, and that
+his recovery was now certain. And as I fell on my knees, bursting into
+tears, and thanking God for freeing me from such terrible remorse, he
+exclaimed: ‘We are in a nice fix! I advise you to congratulate yourself!
+‘From that time forward, I noticed he displayed the feverish anxiety of
+a man who feels that he is constantly threatened with some great danger.
+A few days afterward, he said to me: ‘I cannot endure this! Have our
+trunks ready to-morrow, and we will start South. Instead of calling
+ourselves Gordon, we’ll travel under the name of Grant.’ I did not
+venture to question him. He had quite mastered me by his cruel tyranny,
+and I was accustomed to obey him like a slave in terror of the lash.
+However, during our long journey, I learned the cause of our flight and
+change of name.
+
+“‘Your brother, d--n him,’ he said, one day, ‘is hunting for me
+everywhere! He wants to kill me or to deliver me up to justice, I don’t
+know which. He pretends that I tried to murder him!’ It was strange;
+but Arthur Gordon, who was bravery personified, and who exposed himself
+again and again to the most frightful dangers, felt a wild, unreasoning,
+inconceivable fear of my brother. It was this dread that had decided
+him to burden himself with me. He feared that if he left me, lying
+unconscious beside my brother’s lifeless form, I might on recovering my
+senses reveal the truth, and unconsciously act as his accuser. You were
+born in Richmond, Wilkie, where we remained nearly a month, during which
+time I saw but little of your father. He had formed the acquaintance
+of several rich planters, and spent his time hunting and gambling with
+them. Unfortunately, fifty thousand dollars could not last long at this
+rate; and, in spite of his skill as a gambler, he returned home one
+morning ruined. A fortnight later when he had sold our effects, and
+borrowed all the money he could, we embarked again for France. It
+was not until we reached Paris that I discovered the reasons that had
+influenced him in returning to Europe. He had heard of my father and
+mother’s death, and intended to compel me to claim my share of the
+property. He dared not appear in person on account of my brother. At
+last the hour of my vengeance had arrived; for I had taken a solemn oath
+that this scoundrel who had ruined me should never enjoy the fortune
+which had been his only object in seducing me. I had sworn to die inch
+by inch and by the most frightful tortures rather than give him one
+penny of the Chalusse millions. And I kept my word.
+
+“When I told him that I was resolved not to assert my rights, he seemed
+utterly confounded. He could not understand how the down-trodden slave
+dared to revolt against him. And when he found that my decision was
+irrevocable, I thought he would have an attack of apoplexy. It made him
+wild with rage to think that he was only separated from this immense
+fortune--the dream of his life--by a single word of mine, and to find
+that he had not the power to extort that word from me. Then began a
+struggle between us, which became more and more frightful as the
+money he possessed gradually dwindled away. But it was in vain that he
+resorted to brutal treatment; in vain that he struck me, tortured me,
+and dragged me about the floor by the hair of my head! The thought that
+I was avenged, that his sufferings equalled mine, increased my courage
+a hundredfold, and made me almost insensible to physical pain. He
+would certainly have been the first to grow weary of the struggle, if
+a fiendish plan had not occurred to him. He said to himself that if
+he could not conquer the wife, he COULD conquer the mother and he
+threatened to turn his brutality to you, Wilkie. To save you--for I knew
+what he was capable of--I pretended to waver, and I asked twenty-four
+hours for reflection. He granted them. But the next day I left him
+forever, flying from him with you in my arms.”
+
+M. Wilkie turned white, and a cold chill crept up his spine. However,
+it was not pity for his mother’s sufferings, nor shame for his father’s
+infamy that agitated him, but ever the same terrible fear of incurring
+the enmity of this dangerous coveter of the Chalusse millions. Would
+he be able to hold his father at bay even with the assistance of M. de
+Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay? A thousand questions rose to his
+lips, for he was eager to hear the particulars of his mother’s flight;
+but Madame d’Argeles hurried on with her story as if she feared her
+strength would fail before she reached the end.
+
+“I was alone with you, Wilkie, in this great city,” she resumed. “A
+hundred francs was all that I possessed. My first care was to find a
+place of shelter. For sixteen francs a month, which I was compelled to
+pay in advance, I found a small, meagrely furnished room in the Faubourg
+Saint Martin. It was badly ventilated and miserably lighted, but still
+it was shelter. I said to myself that we could live there together by my
+work, Wilkie. I was a proficient in feminine accomplishments; I was an
+excellent musician, and I thought I should have no difficulty in earning
+the four or five francs a day which I considered absolutely necessary
+for our subsistence. Alas! I discovered only too soon what chimerical
+hopes I had cherished. To give music lessons it is necessary to obtain
+pupils. Where should I find them? I had no one to recommend me, and I
+scarcely dared show myself in the streets, so great was my fear that
+your father would discover our hiding-place. At last, I decided to try
+to find some employment in needlework, and timidly offered my services
+at several shops. Alas! it is only those who have gone about from door
+to door soliciting work who know the misery of the thing. To ask alms
+would be scarcely more humiliating. People sneered at me, and replied
+(when they deigned to reply at all) that ‘there was no business doing,
+and they had all the help they wanted.’ My evident inexperience was
+probably the cause of many of these refusals, as well as my attire, for
+I still had the appearance of being a rich woman. Who knows what they
+took me for? Still the thought of you sustained me, Wilkie, and nothing
+daunted me.
+
+“I finally succeeded in obtaining some bands of muslin to embroider, and
+some pieces of tapestry work to fill in. Unremunerative employment, no
+doubt, especially to one ignorant of the art of working quickly, rather
+than well. By rising with daylight, and working until late at night,
+I scarcely succeeded in earning twenty sous a day. And it was not long
+before even this scanty resource failed me. Winter came, and the cold
+weather with it. One morning I changed my last five-franc piece--it
+lasted us a week. Then I pawned and sold everything that was not
+absolutely indispensable until nothing was left me but my patched dress
+and a single skirt. And soon an evening came when the owner of our
+miserable den turned us into the street because I could no longer pay
+the rent.
+
+“This was the final blow! I tottered away, clinging to the walls for
+support; too weak from lack of food to carry you. The rain was falling,
+and chilled us to the bones. You were crying bitterly. And all that
+night and all the next day, aimless and hopeless, we wandered about the
+streets. I must either die of want or return to your father. I preferred
+death. Toward evening--instinct having led me to the Seine--I sat down
+on one of the stone benches of the Point-Neuf, holding you on my knees
+and watching the flow of the dark river below. There was a strange
+fascination--a promise of peace in its depths--that impelled me almost
+irresistibly to plunge into the flood. If I had been alone in the world,
+I should not have stopped to consider a second, but on your account,
+Wilkie, I hesitated.”
+
+Moved by the thought of the danger he had escaped, M. Wilkie shuddered.
+“B-r-r-r!” he growled. “You did well to hesitate.”
+
+She did not even hear him, but continued: “I at last decided that it
+was best to put an end to this misery, and rising with difficulty, I was
+approaching the parapet, when a gruff voice beside us exclaimed: ‘What
+are you doing there?’ I turned, thinking some police officer had spoken,
+but I was mistaken. By the light of the street lamp, I perceived a man
+who looked some thirty years of age, and had a frank and rather genial
+face. Why this stranger instantly inspired me with unlimited confidence
+I don’t know. Perhaps it was an unconscious horror of death that made me
+long for any token of human sympathy. However it may have been, I told
+him my story, but not without changing the names, and omitting many
+particulars. He had taken a seat beside me on the bench, and I saw big
+tears roll down his cheeks as I proceeded with my narrative. ‘It is
+ever so! it is ever so!’ he muttered. ‘To love is to incur the risk of
+martyrdom. It is to offer one’s self as a victim to every perfidy, to
+the basest treason and ingratitude.’ The man who spoke in this fashion
+was Baron Trigault. He did not allow me to finish my story. ‘Enough!’ he
+suddenly exclaimed, ‘follow me!’ A cab was passing, he made us get in,
+and an hour later we were in a comfortable room, beside a blazing fire,
+with a generously spread table before us. The next day, moreover, we
+were installed in a pleasant home. Alas! why wasn’t the baron generous
+to the last? You were saved, Wilkie, but at what a price!”
+
+She paused for a moment, her face redder than fire; but soon mastering
+her agitation, she resumed: “There was one great cause of dissension
+between the baron and myself. I wished you to be educated, Wilkie,
+like the son of a noble family, while he desired you should receive the
+practical training suited to a youth who would have to make his own way
+in the world, and win position, fortune, and even name for himself.
+Ah! he was a thousand times right, as events have since proved only too
+well! But maternal love blinded me, and, after an angry discussion,
+he went away, declaring he would not see me again until I became more
+reasonable. He thought that reflection would cure me of my folly.
+Unfortunately, he was not acquainted with the fatal obstinacy which is
+the distinguishing characteristic of the Chalusse family. While I was
+wondering how I could find the means of carrying the plans I had formed
+for you into execution, two of the baron’s acquaintances presented
+themselves, with the following proposal: Aware of the enormous profits
+derived by clandestine gambling dens, they had conceived the project of
+opening a public establishment on a large scale, where any Parisian or
+foreigner, if he seemed to be a gentleman, and possessed of means,
+would find no difficulty in obtaining admission. By taking certain
+precautions, and by establishing this gambling den in a private
+drawing-room, they believed the scheme practicable, and came to suggest
+that I should keep the drawing-room in question, and be their partner
+in the enterprise. Scarcely knowing what I pledged myself to, I accepted
+their offer, influenced--I should rather say decided--by the
+exalted positions which both these gentlemen occupied, by the public
+consideration they enjoyed, and the honored names they bore. And that
+same week this house was rented and furnished, and I was installed in it
+under the name of Lia d’Argeles.
+
+“But this was not all. There still remained the task of creating
+for myself one of those scandalous reputations that attract public
+attention. This proved an easy task, thanks to the assistance of my
+silent partners, and the innocent simplicity of several of their friends
+and certain journalists. As for myself, I did my best to insure the
+success of the horrible farce which was to lend infamous notoriety
+to the name of Lia d’Argeles. I had magnificent equipages and superb
+dresses, and I made myself conspicuous at the theatres and all places of
+public resort. As is generally the case when one is acting contrary to
+conscience, I called the most absurd sophistries to my assistance. I
+tried to convince myself that appearances are nothing, that reality is
+everything, and that it did not matter if I were known as a courtesan
+since rumor lied, and my life WAS really chaste. When the baron hastened
+to me and tried to rescue me from the abyss into which I had flung
+myself; it was too late. I had discovered that the business would prove
+successful; and for your sake, I longed for money as passionately, as
+madly, as any miser. Last year my gaming-room yielded more than one
+hundred and fifty thousand francs clear profit, and I received as my
+share the thirty-five thousand francs which you squandered. Now you know
+me as I really am. My associates, my partners, the men whose secret
+I have faithfully kept, walk the streets with their heads erect. They
+boast of their unsullied honor, and they are respected by every one.
+Such is the truth, and I have no reason to make their disgrace known.
+Besides, if I proclaimed it from the house-tops, no one would believe
+me. But you are my son, and I owe you the truth, the whole truth!”
+
+In any age but the present, Madame d’Argeles’s story would have seemed
+absolutely incredible. Nowadays, however, such episodes are by no means
+rare. Two men--two men of exalted rank and highly respected, to use a
+common expression--associate in opening a gaming-house under the very
+eyes of the police, and in coining money out of a woman’s supposed
+disgrace. ‘Tis after all but an everyday occurrence.
+
+The unhappy woman had told her story with apparent coldness, and yet,
+in her secret heart, she perhaps hoped that by disclosing her terrible
+sacrifice and long martyrdom, she would draw a burst of gratitude and
+tenderness from her son, calculated to repay her for all her sufferings.
+But the hope was vain. It would have been easier to draw water from a
+solid rock than to, extract a sympathetic tear from Wilkie’s eyes.
+He was only alive to the practical side of this narrative, and what
+impressed him most was the impudent assurance of Madame d’Argeles’s
+business associates. “Not a bad idea; not bad at all,” he exclaimed.
+And, boiling over with curiosity, he continued: “I would give something
+handsome to know those men’s names. Really you ought to tell me. It
+would be worth one’s while to know.”
+
+Any other person than this interesting young man would have been
+crushed by the look his mother gave him--a look embodying the deepest
+disappointment and contempt. “I think you must be mad,” she remarked
+coldly. And as he sprang up, astonished that any one should doubt his
+abundant supply of good sense, “Let us put an end to this,” she sternly
+added.
+
+Thereupon she hastily went into the adjoining room, reappearing a moment
+later with a roll of papers in her hand. “Here,” she remarked, “is
+my marriage certificate, your certificate of birth, and a copy of my
+renunciation--a perfectly valid document, since the court has authorized
+it, owing to my husband’s absence. All these proofs I am ready and
+willing to place at your disposal, but on one condition.”
+
+This last word fell like a cold shower-bath upon Wilkie’s exultant joy.
+“What is this condition?” he anxiously inquired.
+
+“It is that you should sign this deed, which has been drawn up by my
+notary--a deed by which you pledge yourself to hand me the sum of two
+million francs on the day you come into possession of the Chalusse
+property.”
+
+Two millions! The immensity of the sum struck Wilkie dumb with
+consternation. Nor did he forget that he would be compelled to give
+the Viscount de Coralth the large reward he had promised him--a reward
+promised in writing, unfortunately. “I shall have nothing left,” he
+began, piteously.
+
+But with a disdainful gesture Madame d’Argeles interrupted him. “Set
+your mind at rest,” said she. “You will still be immensely rich. All the
+estimates which have been made are far below the mark. When I was a girl
+I often heard my father say that his income amounted to more than eight
+hundred thousand francs a year. My brother inherited the whole property,
+and I would be willing to swear that he never spent more than half of
+his income.”
+
+Wilkie’s nerves had never been subjected to so severe a shock. He
+tottered and his brain whirled. “Oh! oh!” he stammered. This was all he
+could say.
+
+“Only I must warn you of a more than probable deception,” pursued Madame
+d’Argeles. “As my brother was firmly resolved to deprive me even of
+my rightful portion of the estate, he concealed his fortune in every
+possible way. It will undoubtedly require considerable time and trouble
+to gain possession of the whole. However I know a man, formerly the
+Count de Chalusse’s confidential agent, who might aid you in this task.”
+
+“And this man’s name?”
+
+“Is Isidore Fortunat. I saved his card for you. Here it is.”
+
+M. Wilkie took it up, placed it carefully in his pocket, and then
+exclaimed: “That being the case, I consent to sign, but after this
+you need not complain. Two millions at five per cent. ought to greatly
+alleviate one’s sufferings.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles did not deign to notice this delicate irony. “I will
+tell you in advance to what purpose I intend to apply this sum,” she
+said.
+
+“Ah!”
+
+“I intend one of these two millions to serve as the dowry of a young
+girl who would have been the Count de Chalusse’s sole legatee, if his
+death had not been so sudden and so unexpected.”
+
+“And the other one?”
+
+“The other I intend to invest for you in such a way that you can only
+touch the interest of it, so that you will not want for bread after you
+have squandered your inheritance, even to the very last penny.”
+
+This wise precaution could not fail to shock such a brilliant young man
+as M. Wilkie. “Do you take me for a fool?” he exclaimed. “I may appear
+very generous, but I am shrewd enough, never you fear.”
+
+“Sign,” interrupted Madame d’Argeles, coldly.
+
+But he attempted to prove that he was no fool by reading and rereading
+the contract before he would consent to append his name to it. At last,
+however, he did so, and stowed away the proofs which insured him the
+much-coveted property.
+
+“Now,” said Madame d’Argeles, “I have one request to make of you.
+Whenever your father makes his appearance and lays claim to this
+fortune, I entreat you to avoid a lawsuit, which would only make your
+mother’s shame and the disgrace attached to the hitherto stainless name
+of Chalusse still more widely known. Compromise with him. You will be
+rich enough to satisfy his greed without feeling it.”
+
+M. Wilkie remained silent for a moment, as if he were deliberating upon
+the course he ought to pursue. “If my father is reasonable, I will be
+the same,” he said at last. “I will choose as an arbiter between us one
+of my friends--a man who acts on the square, like myself--the Marquis de
+Valorsay.”
+
+“My God! do you know him?”
+
+“He is one of my most intimate friends.”
+
+Madame d’Argeles had become very pale. “Wretched boy!” she exclaimed.
+“You don’t know that it’s the marquis----” She paused abruptly. One word
+more and she would have betrayed Pascal Ferailleur’s secret plans, with
+which she had been made acquainted by Baron Trigault. Had she a right
+to do this, even to put her son on his guard against a man whom she
+considered the greatest villain in the world?
+
+“Well?” insisted M. Wilkie, in surprise.
+
+But Madame d’Argeles had recovered her self-possession. “I only wished
+to warn you against too close a connection with the Marquis de Valorsay.
+He has an excellent position in society, but yours will be far more
+brilliant. His star is on the wane; yours is just rising. All that he is
+regretting, you have a right to hope for. Perhaps even now he is jealous
+of you, and wishes to persuade you to take some false step.”
+
+“Ah! you little know him!”
+
+“I have warned you.”
+
+M. Wilkie took up his hat, but, though he was longing to depart,
+embarrassment kept him to the spot. He vaguely felt that he ought not to
+leave his mother in this style. “I hope I shall soon have some good news
+to bring you,” he began.
+
+“Before night I shall have left this house,” she answered.
+
+“Of course. But you are going to give me your new address.”
+
+“No.”
+
+“What?--No!”
+
+She shook her head sadly, and in a scarcely audible voice responded: “It
+is not likely that we shall meet again.”
+
+“And the two millions that I am to turn over to you?”
+
+“Mr. Patterson will collect the money. As for me, say to yourself
+that I’m dead. You have broken the only link that bound me to life, by
+proving the futility of the most terrible sacrifices. However, I am a
+mother, and I forgive you.” Then as he did not move, and as she felt
+that her strength was deserting her, she dragged herself from the room,
+murmuring, “Farewell!”
+
+
+
+
+XVI.
+
+
+Stupefied with astonishment, M. Wilkie stood for a moment silent and
+motionless. “Allow me,” he faltered at last; “Allow me--I wish to
+explain.” But Madame d’Argeles did not even turn her head; the door
+closed behind her and he was left alone.
+
+However strong a man’s nature may be, he always has certain moments of
+weakness. For instance, at the present moment Wilkie was completely at
+a loss what to do. Not that he repented, he was incapable of that; but
+there are hours when the most hardened conscience is touched, and when
+long dormant instincts at last assert their rights. If he had obeyed his
+first impulse, he would have darted after his mother and thrown himself
+on his knees before her. But reflection, remembrance of the Viscount de
+Coralth, and the Marquis de Valorsay, made him silent the noblest voice
+that had spoken in his soul for many a long day. So, with his head
+proudly erect, he went off, twirling his mustaches and followed by
+the whispers of the servants--whispers which were ready to change into
+hisses at any moment.
+
+But what did he care for the opinion of these plebeians! Before he was
+a hundred paces from the house his emotion had vanished, and he was
+thinking how he could most agreeably spend the time until the hour
+appointed for his second interview with M. de Valorsay. He had not
+breakfasted, but “his stomach was out of sorts,” as he said to himself,
+and it would really have been impossible for him to swallow a morsel.
+Thus not caring to return home, he started in quest of one of his former
+intimates, with the generous intention of overpowering him with the
+great news. Unfortunately he failed to find this friend, and eager
+to vent the pride that was suffocating him, in some way or other, he
+entered the shop of an engraver, whom he crushed by his importance,
+and ordered some visiting cards bearing the inscription W. de
+Gordon-Chalusse, with a count’s coronet in one of the corners.
+
+Thus occupied, time flew by so quickly that he was a trifle late in
+keeping his appointment with his dear friend the marquis. Wilkie found
+M. de Valorsay as he had left him--in his smoking-room, talking with
+the Viscount de Coralth. Not that the marquis had been idle, but it had
+barely taken him an hour to set in motion the machinery which he had had
+in complete readiness since the evening before. “Victory!” cried Wilkie,
+as he appeared on the threshold. “It was a hard battle, but I asserted
+my rights. I am the acknowledged heir! the millions are mine!” And
+without giving his friends time to congratulate him, he began to
+describe his interview with Madame d’Argeles, presenting his conduct in
+the most odious light possible, pretending he had indulged in all sorts
+of harsh rejoinders, and making himself out to be “a man of bronze,” or
+“a block of marble,” as he said.
+
+“You are certainly more courageous than I fancied,” said M. de Valorsay
+gravely, when the narrative was ended.
+
+“Is that really so?”
+
+“It is, indeed. Now the world is before you. Let your story be noised
+abroad--and it will be noised abroad--and you will become a hero.
+Imagine the amazement of Paris when it learns that Lia d’Argeles was a
+virtuous woman, who sacrificed her reputation for the sake of her son--a
+martyr, whose disgrace was only a shameful falsehood invented by two men
+of rank to increase the attractions of their gambling-den! It will take
+the newspapers a month to digest this strange romance. And whom will all
+this notoriety fall upon? Upon you, my dear sir; and as your millions
+will lend an additional charm to the romance, you will become the lion
+of the season.”
+
+M. Wilkie was really too much overwhelmed to feel elated. “Upon my
+word, you overpower me, my dear marquis--you quite overpower me,” he
+stammered.
+
+“I too have been at work,” resumed the marquis. “And I have made
+numerous inquiries, in accordance with my promise. I almost regret it,
+for what I have discovered is--very singular, to say the least. I was
+just saying so to Coralth when you came in. What I have learned makes
+it extremely unpleasant for me, to find myself mixed up in the affair;
+accordingly, I have requested the persons who gave me this information
+to call here. You shall hear their story, and then you must decide
+for yourself.” So saying, he rang the bell, and as soon as a servant
+answered the summons, he exclaimed: “Show M. Casimir in.”
+
+When the lackey had retired to carry out this order, the marquis
+remarked: “Casimir was the deceased count’s valet. He is a clever
+fellow, honest, intelligent, and well up in his business--such a man
+as you will need, in fact, and I won’t try to conceal the fact that the
+hope of entering your service has aided considerably in unloosening his
+tongue.”
+
+M. Casimir, who was irreproachably clad in black, with a white cambric
+tie round his neck, entered the room at this very moment, smiling
+and bowing obsequiously. “This gentleman, my good fellow,” said M. de
+Valorsay, pointing to Wilkie, “is your former master’s only heir. A
+proof of devotion might induce him to keep you with him. What you told
+me a little while ago is of great importance to him; see if you can
+repeat it now for his benefit.”
+
+In his anxiety to secure a good situation, M. Casimir had ventured to
+apply to the Marquis de Valorsay; he had talked a good deal, and the
+marquis had conceived the plan of making him an unsuspecting accomplice.
+“I never deny my words,” replied the valet, “and since monsieur is the
+heir to the property, I won’t hesitate to tell him that immense sums
+have been stolen from the late count’s estate.”
+
+M. Wilkie bounded from his chair. “Immense sums!” he exclaimed. “Is it
+possible!”
+
+“Monsieur shall judge. On the morning preceding his death, the count
+had more than two millions in bank-notes and bonds stowed away in
+his escritoire, but when the justice of the peace came to take the
+inventory, the money could not be found. We servants were terribly
+alarmed, for we feared that suspicion would fall upon us.”
+
+Ah! if Wilkie had only been alone he would have given vent to his true
+feelings. But here, under the eyes of the marquis and M. de Coralth,
+he felt that he must maintain an air of stoical indifference. He ALMOST
+succeeded in doing so, and in a tolerably firm voice he remarked: “This
+is not very pleasant news. Two millions! that’s a good haul. Tell me, my
+friend, have you any clue to the thief?”
+
+The valet’s troubled glance betrayed an uneasy conscience, but he had
+gone too far to draw back. “I shouldn’t like to accuse an innocent
+person,” he replied, “but there was some one who constantly had access
+to that escritoire.”
+
+“And who was that?”
+
+“Mademoiselle Marguerite.”
+
+“I don’t know the lady.”
+
+“She’s a young girl who is--at least people say--the count’s
+illegitimate daughter. Her word was law in the house.”
+
+“What has become of her?”
+
+“She has gone to live with General de Fondege, one of the count’s
+friends. She wouldn’t take her jewels and diamonds away with her, which
+seemed very strange, for they are worth more than a hundred thousand
+francs. Even Bourigeau said to me: ‘That’s unnatural, M. Casimir.’
+Borigeau is the concierge of the house, a very worthy man. Monsieur will
+not find his equal.”
+
+Unfortunately, this tribute to the merits of the valet’s friend was
+interrupted by the arrival of a footman, who, after tapping respectfully
+at the door, entered the room and exclaimed: “The doctor is here, and
+desires to speak with Monsieur le Marquis.”
+
+“Very well,” replied M. de Valorsay, “ask him to wait. When I ring, you
+can usher him in.” Then addressing M. Casimir, he added:
+
+“You may retire for the present, but don’t leave the house. M. Wilkie
+will acquaint you with his intentions by and by.”
+
+The valet thereupon backed out of the room, bowing profoundly.
+
+“There is a story for you!” exclaimed M. Wilkie as soon as the door was
+closed. “A robbery of two millions!”
+
+The marquis shook his head, and remarked, gravely: “That’s a mere
+nothing. I suspect something far more terrible.”
+
+“What, pray? Upon my word! you frighten me.”
+
+“Wait! I may be mistaken. Even the doctor may lie deceived. But you
+shall judge for yourself.” As he spoke, he pulled the bell-rope, and an
+instant after, the servant announced: “Dr. Jodon.”
+
+It was, indeed, the same physician who had annoyed Mademoiselle
+Marguerite by his persistent curiosity and impertinent questions, at
+the Count de Chalusse’s bedside; the same crafty and ambitious man,
+constantly tormented by covetousness, and ready to do anything to
+gratify it--the man of the period, in short, who sacrificed everything
+to the display by which he hoped to deceive other people, and who was
+almost starving in the midst of his mock splendor.
+
+M. Casimir was an innocent accomplice, but the doctor knew what he was
+doing. Interviewed on behalf of the Marquis de Valorsay by Madame Leon,
+he had fathomed the whole mystery at once. These two crafty natures had
+read and understood each other. No definite words had passed between
+them--they were both too shrewd for that; and yet, a compact had been
+concluded by which each had tacitly agreed to serve the other according
+to his need.
+
+As soon as the physician appeared, M. de Valorsay rose and shook hands
+with him; then, offering him an arm-chair, he remarked: “I will not
+conceal from you, doctor, that I have in some measure prepared this
+gentleman”--designating M. Wilkie--“for your terrible revelation.”
+
+By the doctor’s attitude, a keen observer might have divined the secret
+trepidation that always precedes a bad action which has been conceived
+and decided upon in cold blood.
+
+“To tell the truth,” he began, speaking slowly, and with some
+difficulty, “now that the moment for speaking has come, I almost
+hesitate. Our profession has painful exigencies. Perhaps it is now too
+late. If there had been any of the count’s relatives in the house, or
+even an heir at the time, I should have insisted upon an autopsy. But
+now----”
+
+On hearing the word “autopsy,” M. Wilkie looked round with startled
+eyes. He opened his lips to interrupt the speaker, but the physician
+had already resumed his narrative. “Besides, I had only suspicions,”
+ he said, “suspicions based, it is true, upon strange and alarming
+circumstances. I am a man, that is to say, I am liable to error. In
+the kingdom of science it would be unpardonable temerity on my part to
+affirm----”
+
+“To affirm what?” interrupted M. Wilkie.
+
+The physician did not seem to hear him, but continued in the same
+dogmatic tone. “The count apparently died from an attack of apoplexy,
+but certain poisons produce similar and even identical symptoms which
+are apt to deceive the most experienced medical men. The persistent
+efforts of the count’s intellect, his muscular rigidity alternating with
+utter relaxation, the dilation of the pupils of his eyes, and more than
+aught else the violence of his last convulsions, have led me to ask
+myself if some criminal had not hastened his end.”
+
+Whiter than his shirt, and trembling like a leaf, M. Wilkie sprang
+from his chair. “I understand!” he exclaimed. “The count was
+murdered--poisoned.”
+
+But the physician replied with an energetic protest. “Oh, not so fast!”
+ said he. “Don’t mistake my conjectures for assertions. Still, I ought
+not to conceal the circumstances which awakened my suspicions. On
+the morning preceding his attack, the count took two spoonfuls of the
+contents of a vial which the people in charge could not or would not
+produce. When I asked what this vial contained, the answer was: ‘A
+medicine to prevent apoplexy.’ I don’t say that this is false, but prove
+it. As for the motive that led to the crime, it is apparent at once.
+The escritoire contained two millions of francs, and the money has
+disappeared. Show me the vial, find the money, and I will admit that I
+am wrong. But until then, I shall have my suspicions.”
+
+He did not speak like a physician but like an examining magistrate, and
+his alarming deductions found their way even to M. Wilkie’s dull brain.
+“Who could have committed the crime?” he asked.
+
+“It could only have been the person likely to profit by it; and only one
+person besides the count knew that the money was in the house, and had
+possession of the key of this escritoire.”
+
+“And this person?”
+
+“Is the count’s illegitimate daughter, who lived in the house with
+him--Mademoiselle Marguerite.”
+
+M. Wilkie sank into his chair again, completely overwhelmed. The
+coincidence between the doctor’s deposition and M. Casimir’s testimony
+was too remarkable to pass unnoticed. Further doubt seemed impossible.
+“Ah! this is most unfortunate!” faltered Wilkie. “What a pity! Such
+difficulties never assail any one but me! What am I to do?” And in his
+distress he glanced from the doctor to the Marquis de Valorsay, and then
+at M. de Coralth, as if seeking inspiration from each of them.
+
+“My profession forbids my acting as an adviser in such cases,” replied
+the physician, “but these gentlemen have not the same reasons for
+keeping silent.”
+
+“Excuse me,” interrupted the marquis quickly; “but this is one of those
+cases in which a man must be left to his own inspirations. The most
+I can do, is to say what course I should pursue if I were one of the
+deceased count’s relatives or heirs.”
+
+“Pray tell me, my dear marquis,” sighed Wilkie. “You would render me an
+immense service by doing so.”
+
+M. de Valorsay seemed to reflect for a moment; and then he solemnly
+exclaimed: “I should feel that my honor required me to investigate every
+circumstance connected with this mysterious affair. Before receiving a
+man’s estate, one must know the cause of his death, so as to avenge him
+if he has been foully murdered.”
+
+For M. Wilkie the oracle had spoken. “Such is my opinion exactly,” he
+declared. “But what course would you pursue, my dear marquis? How would
+you set about solving this mystery?”
+
+“I should appeal to the authorities.”
+
+“Ah!”
+
+“And this very day, this very hour, without losing a second, I should
+address a communication to the public prosecutor, informing him of the
+robbery which is patent to any one, and referring to the possibility of
+foul play.”
+
+“Yes, that would be an excellent idea; but there is one slight
+drawback--I don’t know how to draw up such a communication.”
+
+“I know no more about it than you do yourself; but any lawyer or notary
+will give you the necessary information. Are you acquainted with any
+such person? Would you like me to give you the address of my business
+man? He is a very clever fellow, who has almost all the members of my
+club as his clients.”
+
+This last reason was more than sufficient to fix M. Wilkie’s choice.
+“Where can I find him?” he inquired.
+
+“At his house--he is always there at this hour. Come! here is a scrap
+of paper and a pencil. You had better make a note of his address. Write:
+‘Maumejan, Route de la Revolte.’ Tell him that I sent you, and he will
+treat you with the same consideration as he would show to me. He lives a
+long way off, but my brougham is standing in the courtyard; so take it,
+and when your consultation is over, come back and dine with me.”
+
+“Ah! you are too kind!” exclaimed M. Wilkie. “You overpower me, my dear
+marquis, you do, upon my word! I shall fly and be back in a moment.”
+
+He went off looking radiant; and a moment later the carriage which was
+to take him to M. Maumejan’s was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+
+The doctor had already taken up his hat and cane.
+
+“You will excuse me for leaving you so abruptly, Monsieur le Marquis,”
+ said he, “but I have an engagement to discuss a business matter.”
+
+“Indeed!”
+
+“I am negotiating for the purchase of a dentist’s establishment.”
+
+“What, you?”
+
+“Yes, I. You may tell me that this is a downfall, but I will answer,
+‘It will give me a living.’ Medicine is becoming a more and more
+unremunerative profession. However hard a physician may work, he can
+scarcely pay for the water he uses in washing his hands. I have an
+opportunity of purchasing the business of a well-established and
+well-known dentist, in an excellent neighborhood. Why not avail myself
+of it? Only one thing worries me--the lack of funds.”
+
+The marquis had expected the doctor would require remuneration for his
+services. Before compromising himself any further, M. Jodon wished to
+knew what compensation he was to receive. The marquis was so sure of
+this, that he quickly exclaimed: “Ah, my dear doctor, if you have need
+of twenty thousand francs, I shall be only too happy to offer them to
+you.”
+
+“Really?”
+
+“Upon my honor!”
+
+“And when can you let me have the money?”
+
+“In three or four days’ time.”
+
+The bargain was concluded. The doctor was now ready to find traces of
+any poison whatsoever in the Count de Chalusse’s exhumed remains. He
+pressed the marquis’s hand and then went off, exclaiming: “Whatever
+happens you can count upon me.”
+
+Left alone with the Viscount de Coralth, and consequently freed from all
+restraint, M. de Valorsay rose with a long-drawn sigh of relief. “What
+an interminable seance!” he growled. And, approaching his acolyte, who
+was sitting silent and motionless in an arm-chair, he slapped him on
+the shoulder, exclaiming: “Are you ill that you sit there like that, as
+still as a mummy?”
+
+The viscount turned as if he had been suddenly aroused from slumber.
+“I’m well enough,” he answered somewhat roughly. “I was only thinking.”
+
+“Your thoughts are not very pleasant, to judge from the look on your
+face.”
+
+“No. I was thinking of the fate that you are preparing for us.”
+
+“Oh! A truce to disagreeable prophecies, please! Besides, it’s too late
+to draw back, or to even think of retreat. The Rubicon is passed.”
+
+“Alas! that is the cause of my anxiety. If it hadn’t been for my
+wretched past, which you have threatened me with like a dagger, I should
+long ago have left you to incur this danger alone. You were useful to
+me in times past, I admit. You presented me to the Baroness Trigault, to
+whose patronage I owe my present means, but I am paying too dearly
+for your services in allowing myself to be made the instrument of your
+dangerous schemes. Who aided you in defrauding Kami-Bey? Who bet for you
+against your own horse Domingo? Who risked his life in slipping those
+cards in the pack which Pascal Ferailleur held? It was Coralth, always
+Coralth.”
+
+A gesture of anger escaped the marquis, but resolving to restrain
+himself, he made no rejoinder. It was not until after he had walked five
+or six times round the smoking-room and grown more calm that he returned
+to the viscount’s side. “Really, I don’t recognize you,” he began. “Is
+it really you who have turned coward? And at what a moment, pray? Why,
+on the very eve of success.”
+
+“I wish I could believe you.”
+
+“Facts shall convince you. This morning I might have doubted, but now,
+thanks to that vain idiot who goes by the name of Wilkie, I am sure,
+perfectly, mathematically sure of success. Maumejan, who is entirely
+devoted to me, and who is the greediest, most avaricious scoundrel
+alive, will draw up such a complaint that Marguerite will sleep in
+prison. Moreover, other witnesses will be summoned. By what Casimir has
+said, you can judge what the other servants will say. This testimony
+will be sufficient to convict her of the robbery. As for the poisoning,
+you heard Dr. Jodon. Can I depend upon him? Evidently, if I pay without
+haggling. Very well; I shall pay.”
+
+But all this did not reassure M. de Coralth. “The accusation will fall
+to the ground,” said he, “as soon as the famous vial from which M. de
+Chalusse took two spoonfuls is found.”
+
+“Excuse me; it won’t be found.”
+
+“But why?”
+
+“Because I know where it is, my dear friend. It is in the count’s
+escritoire, but it won’t be there any longer on the day after
+to-morrow.”
+
+“Who will remove it?”
+
+“A skilful fellow whom Madame Leon has found for me. Everything has been
+carefully arranged. To-morrow night at the latest Madame Leon will let
+this man into the Hotel de Chalusse by the garden gate, which she has
+kept the key of. Vantrasson, as the man is called, knows the management
+of the house, and he will break open the escritoire and take the vial
+away. You may say that there are seals upon the furniture, placed there
+by the justice of the peace. That’s true, but this man tells me that he
+can remove and replace them in such a way as to defy detection; and
+as the lock has been forced once already--the day after the count’s
+death--a second attempt to break the escritoire open will not be
+detected.”
+
+The viscount remarked, with an ironical air: “All that is perfect; but
+the autopsy will reveal the falseness of the accusation.”
+
+“Naturally--but an autopsy will require time, and that will suit my
+plans admirably. After eight or ten days’ solitary confinement and
+several rigid examinations, Mademoiselle Marguerite’s energy and courage
+will flag. What do you think she will reply to the man who says to her:
+‘I love you, and for your sake I will attempt the impossible. Swear to
+become my wife and I will establish your innocence?’”
+
+“I think she will say: ‘Save me and I will marry you!’”
+
+M. de Valorsay clapped his hands. “Bravo!” he exclaimed; “you have
+spoken the truth. Remember, now, that your dark forebodings are only
+chimeras! Yes, she will swear it, and I know she is the woman to keep
+her vow, even if she died of sorrow. And the very next day I will go to
+the examining magistrate and say to him: ‘Marguerite a thief! Ah, what
+a frightful mistake. A robbery has been committed, it’s true; but I know
+the real culprit--a scoundrel who fancied that by destroying a single
+letter he would annihilate all traces of the breach of fidelity he had
+committed. Fortunately, the Count de Chalusse distrusted this man, and
+proof of his breach of trust is in existence. I have this proof in
+my hands.’ And I will show a letter establishing the truth of my
+assertion.”
+
+No forebodings clouded the marquis’s joy; he saw no obstacles; it seemed
+to him as if he had already triumphed. “And the day following,” he
+resumed, “when Marguerite becomes my wife, I shall take from a certain
+drawer a certain document, given to me by M. de Chalusse when I was
+on the point of becoming his son-in-law, and in which he recognizes
+Marguerite as his daughter, and makes her his sole legatee. And this
+document is perfectly en regle, and unattackable. Maumejan, who has
+examined it, guarantees that the value of the count’s estate cannot be
+less than ten millions. Five will go to Madame d’Argeles, or her son
+Wilkie, as their share of the property. The remaining five will be mine.
+Come, confess that the plan is admirable!”
+
+“Admirable, undoubtedly; but terribly complicated. When there are so
+many wheels within wheels, one of them is always sure to get out of
+order.”
+
+“Nonsense!”
+
+“Besides, you have I don’t know how many accomplices--Maumejan, the
+doctor, Madame Leon, and Vantrasson, not counting myself. Will all these
+people perform their duties satisfactorily?”
+
+“Each of them is as much interested in my success as I am myself.”
+
+“But we have enemies--Madame d’Argeles, Fortunat----”
+
+“Madame d’Argeles is about to leave Paris. If Fortunat is troublesome I
+will purchase his silence; Maumejan has promised me money.”
+
+But M. de Coralth had kept his strongest argument until the last. “And
+Pascal Ferailleur?” said he. “You have forgotten him.”
+
+No; M. de Valorsay had not forgotten him. You do not forget the man you
+have ruined and dishonored. Still, it was in a careless tone that ill
+accorded with his state of mind that the marquis replied: “The poor
+devil must be en route for America by this time.”
+
+The viscount shook his head. “That’s what I’ve in vain been trying to
+convince myself of,” said he. “Do you know that Pascal was virtually
+expelled from the Palais de Justice, and that his name has been struck
+off the list of advocates? If he hasn’t blown his brains out, it is only
+because he hopes to prove his innocence. Ah! if you knew him as well as
+I do, you wouldn’t be so tranquil in mind!”
+
+He stopped short for the door had suddenly opened. The interruption
+made the marquis frown, but anger gave way to anxiety when he perceived
+Madame Leon, who entered the room out of breath and extremely red in the
+face.
+
+“There wasn’t a cab to be had!” she groaned. “Just my luck. I came on
+foot, and ran the whole way. I’m utterly exhausted;” and so saying, she
+sank into an arm-chair.
+
+M. de Valorsay had turned very pale. “Defer your complaints until
+another time,” he said, harshly. “What has happened? Tell me.”
+
+The estimable woman raised her hands to heaven, as she plaintively
+replied: “There is so much to tell? First, Mademoiselle Marguerite has
+written two letters, but I have failed to discover to whom they were
+sent. Secondly, she remained for more than an hour yesterday evening
+in the drawing-room with the General’s son, Lieutenant Gustave, and,
+on parting, they shook hands like a couple of friends, and said, ‘It is
+agreed.’”
+
+“And is that all?”
+
+“One moment and you’ll see. This morning Mademoiselle went out with
+Madame de Fondege to call on the Baroness Trigault. I do not know what
+took place there, but there must have been a terrible scene; for they
+brought Mademoiselle Marguerite back unconscious, in one of the baron’s
+carriages.”
+
+“Do you hear that, viscount?” exclaimed M. de Valorsay.
+
+“Yes! You shall have the explanation to-morrow,” answered M. de Coralth.
+
+“And last, but not least,” resumed Madame Leon, “on returning home this
+evening at about five o’clock, I fancied I saw Mademoiselle Marguerite
+leave the house and go up the Rue Pigalle. I had thought she was ill
+and in bed, and I said to myself, ‘This is very strange.’ So I hastened
+after her. It was indeed she. Of course, I followed her. And what did I
+see? Why, Mademoiselle paused to talk with a vagabond, clad in a blouse.
+They exchanged notes, and Mademoiselle Marguerite returned home. And
+here I am. She must certainly suspect something. What is to be done?”
+
+If M. de Valorsay were frightened, he did not show it. “Many thanks for
+your zeal, my dear lady,” he replied, “but all this is a mere nothing.
+Return home at once; you will receive my instructions to-morrow.”
+
+
+
+
+XVII.
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had been greatly surprised on the occasion
+of her visit to M. Fortunat when she saw Victor Chupin suddenly step
+forward and eagerly exclaim: “I shall be unworthy of the name I bear if
+I do not find M. Ferailleur for you in less than a fortnight.”
+
+It is true that M. Fortunat’s clerk did not appear to the best advantage
+on this occasion. In order to watch M. de Coralth, he had again arrayed
+himself in his cast-off clothes, and with his blouse and his worn-out
+shoes, his “knockers” and his glazed cap, he looked the vagabond to
+perfection. Still, strange as it may seem, Mademoiselle Marguerite
+did not once doubt the devotion of this strange auxiliary. Without an
+instant’s hesitation she replied, “I accept your services, monsieur.”
+
+Chupin felt at least a head taller as he heard this beautiful young girl
+speak to him in a voice as clear and as sonorous as crystal. “Ah!
+you are right to trust me,” he rejoined, striking his chest with his
+clinched hand, “for I have a heart--but----”
+
+“But what, monsieur?”
+
+“I am wondering if you would consent to do what I wish. It would be a
+very good plan, but if it displeases you, we will say no more about it.”
+
+“And what do you wish?”
+
+“To see you every day, so as to tell you what I’ve done, and to obtain
+such directions as I may require. I’m well aware that I can’t go to M.
+de Fondege’s door and ask to speak to you; but there are other ways
+of seeing each other. For instance, every evening at five o-clock
+precisely, I might pass along the Rue Pigalle, and warn you of my
+presence by such a signal as this: ‘Pi-ouit!’” So saying he gave vent to
+the peculiar call, half whistle, half ejaculation, which is familiar to
+the Parisian working-classes. “Then,” he resumed, “you might come down
+and I would tell you the news; besides, I might often help you by doing
+errands.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite reflected for a moment, and then bowing her
+head, she replied:
+
+“What you suggest is quite practicable. On and after to-morrow evening I
+will watch for you; and if I don’t come down at the end of half an hour,
+you will know that I am unavoidably detained.”
+
+Chupin ought to have been satisfied. But no, he had still another
+request to make; and instinct, supplying the lack of education, told him
+that it was a delicate one. Indeed, he dared not present his petition;
+but his embarrassment was so evident, and he twisted his poor cap so
+despairingly, that at last the young girl gently asked him: “Is there
+anything more?”
+
+He still hesitated, but eventually, mustering all his courage, he
+replied: “Well, yes, mademoiselle. I’ve never seen Monsieur Ferailleur.
+Is he tall or short, light or dark, stout or thin? I do not know. I
+might stand face to face with him without being able to say, ‘It’s he.’
+But it would be quite a different thing if I only had a photograph of
+him.”
+
+A crimson flush spread over Mademoiselle Marguerite’s face. Still she
+answered, unaffectedly, “I will give you M. Ferailleur’s photograph
+to-morrow, monsieur.”
+
+“Then I shall be all right!” exclaimed Chupin. “Have no fears,
+mademoiselle, we shall outwit these scoundrels!”
+
+So far a silent witness of this scene, M. Fortunat now felt it his duty
+to interfere. He was not particularly pleased by his clerk’s suddenly
+increased importance; and yet it mattered little to him, for his only
+object was to revenge himself on Valorsay. “Victor is a capable and
+trustworthy young fellow, mademoiselle,” he declared; “he has grown up
+under my training, and I think you will find him a faithful servant.”
+
+A “have you finished, you old liar?” rose to Chupin’s lips, but respect
+for Mademoiselle Marguerite prevented him from uttering the words.
+“Then everything is decided,” she said, pleasantly. And with a smile she
+offered her hand to Chupin as one does in concluding a bargain.
+
+If he had yielded to his first impulse he would have thrown himself on
+his knees and kissed this hand of hers, the whitest and most beautiful
+he had ever seen. As it was, he only ventured to touch it with his
+finger-tips, and yet he changed color two or three times. “What a
+woman!” he exclaimed, when she had left them. “A perfect queen! A man
+would willingly allow himself to be chopped in pieces for her sake; and
+she’s as good and as clever as she’s handsome. Did you notice, monsieur,
+that she did not offer to pay me. She understood that I offered to work
+for her for my own pleasure, for my own satisfaction and honor. Heavens!
+how I should have chafed if she had offered me money. How provoked I
+should have been!”
+
+Chupin was so fascinated that he wished no reward for his toil! This was
+so astonishing that M. Fortunat remained for a moment speechless with
+surprise. “Have you gone mad, Victor?” he inquired at last.
+
+“Mad! I?--not at all; I’m only becoming----” He stopped short. He was
+going to add: “an honest man.” But it is scarcely proper to talk about
+the rope in the hangman’s house, and there are certain words which
+should never be pronounced in the presence of certain people. Chupin
+knew this, and so he quickly resumed: “When I become rich, when I’m a
+great banker, and have a host of clerks who spend their time in counting
+my gold behind a grating, I should like to have a wife of my own like
+that. But I must be off about my business now, so till we meet again,
+monsieur.”
+
+The foregoing conversation will explain how it happened that Madame Leon
+chanced to surprise her dear young lady in close conversation with
+a vagabond clad in a blouse. Victor Chupin was not a person to make
+promises and then leave them unfulfilled. Though he was usually
+unimpressionable, like all who lead a precarious existence, still, when
+his emotions were once aroused, they did not spend themselves in
+empty protestations. It became his fixed determination to find Pascal
+Ferailleur, and the difficulties of the task in no wise weakened his
+resolution. His starting point was that Pascal had lived in the Rue
+d’Ulm, and had suddenly gone off with his mother, with the apparent
+intention of sailing for America. This was all he knew positively, and
+everything else was mere conjecture. Still Mademoiselle Marguerite had
+convinced him that instead of leaving Paris, Pascal was really still
+there, only waiting for an opportunity to establish his innocence, and
+to wreak his vengeance upon M. de Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay.
+On the other hand, with such a slight basis to depend upon, was it not
+almost madness to hope to discover a man who had such strong reasons for
+concealing himself? Chupin did not think so in fact, when he declared
+his determination to perform this feat, his plan was already perfected.
+
+On leaving M. Fortunat’s office, he hastened straight to the Rue d’Ulm,
+at the top of his speed. The concierge of the house where Pascal had
+formerly resided was by no means a polite individual. He was the very
+same man who had answered Mademoiselle Marguerite’s questions so rudely;
+but Chupin had a way of conciliating even the most crabbish doorkeeper,
+and of drawing from him such information as he desired. He learned that
+at nine o’clock on the sixteenth of October Madame Ferailleur, after
+seeing her trunks securely strapped on to a cab had entered the vehicle,
+ordering the driver to take her to the Railway Station in the Place
+du Havre! Chupin wished to ascertain the number of the cab, but the
+concierge could not give it. He mentioned, however, that this cab had
+been procured by Madame Ferailleur’s servant-woman, who lived only a few
+steps from the house. A moment later Chupin was knocking at this
+woman’s door. She was a very worthy person, and bitterly regretted the
+misfortunes which had befallen her former employers. She confirmed the
+doorkeeper’s story, but unfortunately she, too, had quite forgotten the
+number of the vehicle. All she could say was that she had hired it at
+the cab stand in the Rue Soufflot, and that the driver was a portly,
+pleasant-faced man.
+
+Chupin repaired at once to the Rue Soufflot, where he found the man
+in charge of the stand in the most savage mood imaginable. He began by
+asking Chupin what right he had to question him, why he wished to do so,
+and if he took him for a spy. He added that his duty only consisted in
+noting the arrivals and departures of the drivers, and that he could
+give no information whatever. There was evidently nothing to be gained
+from this ferocious personage; and yet Chupin bowed none the less
+politely as he left the little office. “This is bad,” he growled, as
+he walked away, for he was really at a loss what to do next; and if not
+discouraged, he was at least extremely disconcerted and perplexed. Ah!
+if he had only had a card from the prefecture of police in his pocket,
+or if he had been more imposing in appearance, he would have encountered
+no obstacles; he might then have tracked this cab through the streets
+of Paris as easily as he could have followed a man bearing a lighted
+lantern through the darkness. But poor and humble, without letters of
+recommendation, and with no other auxiliaries than his own shrewdness
+and experience, he had a great deal to contend against. Pausing in his
+walk, he had taken off his cap and was scratching his head furiously,
+when suddenly he exclaimed: “What an ass I am!” in so loud a tone that
+several passers-by turned to see who was applying this unflattering
+epithet to himself.
+
+Chupin had just remembered one of M. Isidore Fortunat’s debtors, a man
+whom he often visited in the hope of extorting some trifling amount
+from him, and who was employed in the Central office of the Paris Cab
+Company. “If any one can help me out of this difficulty, it must be that
+fellow,” he said to himself. “I hope I shall find him at his desk! Come,
+Victor, my boy, you must look alive!”
+
+However, he could not present himself at the office in the garb he
+then wore, and so, much against his will, he went home and changed
+his clothes. Then he took a cab at his own expense, and drove with all
+possible speed to the main office of the Cab Company, in the Avenue de
+Segur. Nevertheless it was already ten o’clock when he arrived there.
+He was more fortunate than he had dared to hope. The man he wanted
+had charge of a certain department, and was compelled to return to the
+office every evening after dinner. He was there now.
+
+He was a poor devil who, while receiving a salary of fifteen hundred
+francs a year, spent a couple of thousand, and utilized his wits in
+defending his meagre salary from his creditors. On perceiving Chupin,
+he made a wrathful gesture, and his first words were: “I haven’t got a
+penny.”
+
+But Chupin smiled his most genial smile. “What!” said he, “do you fancy
+I’ve come to collect money from you here, and at this hour? You don’t
+know me. I merely came to ask a favor of you.”
+
+The clerk’s clouded face brightened. “Since that is the case, pray take
+a seat, and tell me how I can serve you,” he replied.
+
+“Very well. At nine o’clock in the evening, on the sixteenth of October,
+a lady living in the Rue d’Ulm sent to the stand in the Rue Soufflot for
+a cab. Her baggage was placed upon it, and she went away no one knows
+where. However, this lady is a relative of my employer, and he so much
+wishes to find her that he would willingly give a hundred francs
+over and above the amount you owe him, to ascertain the number of the
+vehicle. He pretends that you can give him this number if you choose;
+and it isn’t an impossibility, is it?”
+
+“On the contrary, nothing could be easier,” replied the clerk, glad of
+an opportunity to explain the ingenious mechanism of the office to an
+outsider. “Have you ten minutes to spare?”
+
+“Ten days, if necessary,” rejoined Chupin.
+
+“Then you shall see.” So saying the clerk rose and went into the
+adjoining room, whence a moment later he returned carrying a large green
+box. “This contains the October reports sent in every evening by the
+branch offices,” he remarked in explanation. He next opened the box,
+glanced over the documents it contained, and joyfully exclaimed: “Here
+we have it. This is the report sent in by the superintendent of the
+cab-stand in the Rue Soumot on the 16th October. Here is a list of the
+vehicles that arrived or left from a quarter to nine o’clock till a
+quarter past nine. Five cabs came in, but we need not trouble ourselves
+about them. Three went out bearing the numbers 1781, 3025, and 2140. One
+of these three must have taken your employer’s relative.”
+
+“Then I must question the three drivers.”
+
+The clerk shrugged his shoulders. “What is the use of doing that?” he
+said, disdainfully. “Ah! you don’t understand the way in which we manage
+our business! The drivers are artful, but the company isn’t a fool. By
+expending a hundred and fifty thousand francs on its detective force
+every year, it knows what each cab is doing at each hour of the day. I
+will now look for the reports sent in respecting these three drivers.
+One of the three will give us the desired information.”
+
+This time the search was a considerably longer one, and Chupin was
+beginning to grow impatient, when the clerk waved a soiled and crumpled
+sheet of paper triumphantly in the air, and cried: “What did I tell you?
+This is the report concerning the driver of No. 2140. Listen: Friday, at
+ten minutes past nine, sent to the Rue d’Ulm---- do you think of that?”
+
+“It’s astonishing! But where can I find this driver?”
+
+“I can’t say, just at this moment; he’s on duty now. But as he belongs
+to this division he will be back sooner or later, so you had better
+wait.”
+
+“I will wait then; only as I’ve had no dinner, I’ll go out and get a
+mouthful to eat. I can promise you that M. Fortunat will send you back
+your note cancelled.”
+
+Chupin was really very hungry, and so he rushed off to a little
+eating-house which he had remarked on his way to the office. There
+for eighteen sous he dined, or rather supped, like a prince; and as he
+subsequently treated himself to a cup of coffee and a glass of brandy,
+as a reward for his toil, some little time had elapsed when he returned
+to the office. However, No. 2140 had not returned in his absence, so he
+stationed himself at the door to wait for it.
+
+His patience was severely tried, for it was past midnight when Chupin
+saw the long-looked-for vehicle enter the courtyard. The driver slowly
+descended from his box and then went into the cashier’s office to pay
+over his day’s earnings, and hand in his report. Then he came out again
+evidently bound for home. As the servant-woman had said, he was a stout,
+jovial-faced man, and he did not hesitate to accept a glass of “no
+matter what” in a wine-shop that was still open. Whether he believed the
+story that Chupin told to excuse his questions or not, at all events he
+answered them very readily. He perfectly remembered having been sent
+to the Rue d’Ulm, and spoke of his “fare” as a respectable-looking old
+lady, enumerated the number of her trunks, boxes, and packages, and even
+described their form. He had taken her to the railway station, stopping
+at the entrance in the Rue d’Amsterdam; and when the porters inquired,
+as usual, “Where is this baggage to go?” the old lady had answered, “To
+London.”
+
+Chupin felt decidedly crestfallen on hearing this. He had fancied that
+Madame Ferailleur had merely announced her intention of driving to the
+Havre railway station so as to set possible spies on the wrong track,
+and he would have willingly wagered anything, that after going a short
+distance she had given the cabman different instructions. Not so,
+however, he had taken her straight to the station. Was Mademoiselle
+Marguerite deceived then? Had Pascal really fled from his enemies
+without an attempt at resistance? Such a course seemed impossible on his
+part. Thinking over all this, Chupin slept but little that night, and
+the next morning, before five o’clock, he was wandering about the
+Rue d’Amsterdam peering into the wine-shops in search of some railway
+porter. It did not take him long to find one, and having done so, he
+made him the best of friends in less than no time. Although this porter
+knew nothing about the matter himself, he took Chupin to a comrade who
+remembered handling the baggage of an old lady bound for London, on the
+evening of the sixteenth. However, this baggage was not put into the
+train after all; the old lady had left it in the cloak-room, and the
+next day a fat woman of unprepossessing appearance had called for the
+things, and had taken them away, after paying the charges for storage.
+This circumstance had been impressed on the porter’s mind by the fact
+that the woman had not given him a farthing gratuity, although he had
+been much more obliging than the regulations required. However, when
+she went off, she remarked in a honeyed voice, but with an exceedingly
+impudent air: “I’ll repay you for your kindness, my lad. I keep a
+wine-shop on the Route d’Asnieres, and if you ever happen to pass that
+way with one of your comrades, come in, and I’ll reward you with a
+famous drink!”
+
+What had exasperated the porter almost beyond endurance, was the
+certainty he felt that she was mocking him. “For she didn’t give me her
+name or address, the old witch!” he growled. “She had better look out,
+if I ever get hold of her again!”
+
+But Chupin had already gone off, unmoved by his informant’s grievances.
+Now that he had discovered the stratagem which Madame Ferailleur had
+employed to elude her pursuers, his conjectures were changed into
+certainties. This information proved that Pascal WAS concealed somewhere
+in Paris; but where? If he could only find out this woman who had called
+for the trunks, it would lead to the discovery of Madame Ferailleur and
+her son but how was he to ascertain the woman’s whereabouts? She had
+said that she kept a wine-shop on the Route d’Asnieres. Was this true?
+Was it not more likely that this vague direction was only a fresh
+precaution?
+
+This much was certain: Chupin, who knew every wine-shop on the Route
+d’Asnieres, did not remember any such powerful matron as the porter had
+described. He had not forgotten Madame Vantrasson. But to imagine any
+bond of interest between Pascal and such a woman as she was, seemed
+absurd in the extreme. However, as he found himself in such a plight and
+could not afford to let any chance escape, he repaired merely for form’s
+sake to the Vantrasson establishment. It had not changed in the least
+since the evening he visited it in company with M. Fortunat--but seen
+in the full light of day, it appeared even more dingy and dilapidated.
+Madame Vantrasson was not in her accustomed place, behind the counter,
+between her black cat--her latest idol--and the bottles from which she
+prepared her ratafia, now her supreme consolation here below. There was
+no one in the shop but the landlord. Seated at a table, with a lighted
+candle near him, he was engaged in an occupation which would have set
+Chupin’s mind working if he had noticed it. Vantrasson had taken some
+wax from a sealed bottle, and, after melting it at the flame of the
+candle, he let it drop slowly on to the table. He then pressed a sou
+upon it, and when the wax had become sufficiently cool and stiff, he
+removed it from the table without destroying the impression, by means of
+a thin bladed knife similar to those which glaziers use. However, Chupin
+did not remark this singular employment. He was engaged in mentally
+ejaculating, “Good! the old woman isn’t here.” And as his plan of
+campaign was already prepared, he entered without further hesitation.
+
+As Vantrasson heard the door turn upon its hinges, he rose so awkwardly,
+or rather so skilfully, as to let all his implements, wax, knife, and
+impressions, fall on the floor behind the counter. “What can I do to
+serve you?” he asked, in a husky voice.
+
+“Nothing. I wished to speak with your wife.”
+
+“She has gone out. She works for a family in the morning.”
+
+This was a gleam of light. Chupin had not thought of the only hypothesis
+that could explain what seemed inexplicable to him. However, he knew how
+to conceal his satisfaction, and so with an air of disappointment, he
+remarked: “That’s too bad! I shall be obliged to call again.”
+
+“So you have a secret to tell my wife?”
+
+“Not at all.”
+
+“Won’t I do as well, then?”
+
+“I’ll tell you how it is. I’m employed in the baggage room of the
+western railway station, and I wanted to know if your wife didn’t call
+there a few days ago for some trunks?”
+
+The landlord’s features betrayed the vague perturbation of a person who
+can count the days by his mistakes, and it was with evident hesitation
+that he replied:
+
+“Yes, my wife went to the Havre station for some baggage last Sunday.”
+
+“I thought so. Well, this is my errand: either the clerk forgot to ask
+her for her receipt, or else he lost it. He can’t find it anywhere. I
+came to ask your wife if she hadn’t kept it. When she returns, please
+deliver my message; and if she has the receipt, pray send it to me
+through the post.”
+
+The ruse was not particularly clever, but it was sufficiently so to
+deceive Vantrasson. “To whom am I to send this receipt?” he asked.
+
+“To me, Victor Chupin, Faubourg Saint Denis,” was the reply.
+
+Imprudent youth! alas, he little suspected what a liberty M. Fortunat
+had taken with his name on the evening he visited the Vantrassons. But
+on his side the landlord of the Model Lodging House had not forgotten
+the name mentioned by the agent. He turned pale with anger on beholding
+his supposed creditor, and quickly slipping between the visitor and the
+door, he said: “So your name is Victor Chupin?”
+
+“Yes, certainly.”
+
+“And you are in the employment of the Railway Company?”
+
+“As I just told you.”
+
+“That doesn’t prevent you from acting as a collector, does it?”
+
+Chupin instinctively recoiled, convinced that he had betrayed himself
+by some blunder, but unable to discover in what he had erred. “I did do
+something in that line formerly,” he faltered.
+
+Vantrasson doubted no longer. “So you confess that you are a vile
+scoundrel!” he exclaimed. “You confess that you purchased an old
+promissory note of mine for fourpence, and then sent a man here to seize
+my goods! Ah! you’d like to trample the poor under foot, would you! Very
+well. I have you now, and I’ll settle your account! Take that!” And so
+saying, he dealt his supposed creditor a terrible blow with his clinched
+fist that sent him reeling to the other end of the shop.
+
+Fortunately, Chupin was very nimble. He did not lose his footing, but
+sprung over a table and used it as a rampart to shield himself from his
+dangerous assailant. In the open field, he could easily have protected
+himself; but here in this narrow space, and hemmed in a corner, he felt
+that despite this barrier he was lost. “What a devil of a mess!” he
+thought, as with wonderful agility he avoided Vantrasson’s fist, a fist
+that would have felled an ox. He had an idea of calling for assistance.
+But would any one hear him? Would any one reply? And if help came, would
+not the police be sure to hear of the broil? And if they did, would
+there not be an investigation which would perhaps disturb Pascal’s
+plans? Fearing to injure those whom he wished to serve, he resolved to
+let himself be hacked to pieces rather than allow a cry to escape him;
+but he changed his tactics, and instead of attempting to parry the blows
+as he had done before, he now only thought of gaining the door, inch by
+inch.
+
+He had almost reached it, not without suffering considerable injury,
+when it suddenly opened, and a young man clad in black, with a smooth
+shaven face, entered the shop, and sternly exclaimed: “Why! what’s all
+this?”
+
+The sight of the newcomer seemed to stupefy Vantrasson. “Ah! it is you,
+Monsieur Maumejan?” he faltered, with a crestfallen air. “It’s nothing;
+we were only in fun.”
+
+M. Maumejan seemed perfectly satisfied with this explanation; and in the
+indifferent tone of a man who is delivering a message, the meaning of
+which he scarcely understood, he said: “A person who knows that your
+wife is in my employ requested me to ask you if you would be ready to
+attend to that little matter she spoke of.”
+
+“Certainly. I was preparing for it a moment ago.”
+
+Chupin heard no more. He had hurried out, his clothes in disorder, and
+himself not a little hurt; but his delight made him lose all thought of
+his injuries. “That’s M. Ferailleur,” he muttered, “I’m sure of it, and
+I’m going to prove it.” So saying he hid himself in the doorway of a
+vacant house a few paces distant from the Vantrassons’, and waited.
+
+Then as soon as M. Maumejan emerged from the Model Lodging House, he
+followed him. The young man with the clean shaven face walked up the
+Route d’Asnieres, turned to the right into the Route de la Revolte, and
+at last paused before a house of humble aspect. At that moment Chupin
+darted toward him, and softly called, “M’sieur Ferailleur!”
+
+The young man turned instinctively. Then seeing his mistake, and feeling
+that he had betrayed himself, he sprang upon Chupin, and caught him by
+the wrists: “Scoundrel! who are you?” he exclaimed. “Who has hired you
+to follow me! What do you want of me?”
+
+“Not so fast, m’sieur! Don’t be so rough! You hurt me. I’m sent by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite!”
+
+
+
+
+XVIII.
+
+
+“O God! send Pascal to my aid,” prayed Mademoiselle Marguerite, as she
+left M. Fortunat’s house. Now she understood the intrigue she had been
+the victim of; but, instead of reassuring her the agent had frightened
+her, by revealing the Marquis de Valorsay’s desperate plight. She
+realized what frenzied rage must fill this man’s heart as he felt
+himself gradually slipping from the heights of opulence, down into
+the depths of poverty and crime. What might he not dare, in order to
+preserve even the semblance of grandeur for a year, or a month, or a
+day longer! Had they measured the extent of his villainy? Would he even
+hesitate at murder? And the poor girl asked herself with a shudder if
+Pascal were still living; and a vision of his bleeding corpse, lying
+lifeless in some deserted street, rose before her. And who could tell
+what dangers threatened her personally? For, though she knew the past,
+she could not read the future. What did M. de Valorsay’s letter mean?
+and what was the fate that he held in reserve for her, and that made
+him so sanguine of success? The impression produced upon her mind was so
+terrible that for a moment she thought of hastening to the old justice
+of the peace to ask for his protection and a refuge. But this weakness
+did not last long. Should she lose her energy? Should her will fail her
+at the decisive moment? “No, a thousand times no!” she said to herself
+again and again. “I will die if needs be, but I will die fighting!” And
+the nearer she approached the Rue Pigalle, the more energetically she
+drove away her apprehension, and sought for an excuse calculated to
+satisfy any one who might have noticed her long absence.
+
+An unnecessary precaution. She found the house as when she left it,
+abandoned to the mercy of the servants--the strangers sent the evening
+before from the employment office. Important matters still kept the
+General and his wife from home. The husband had to show his horses; and
+the wife was intent upon shopping. As for Madame Leon, most of her time
+seemed to be taken up by the family of relatives she had so suddenly
+discovered. Alone, free from all espionage, and wishing to ward off
+despondency by occupation, Mademoiselle Marguerite was just beginning
+a letter to her friend the old magistrate, when a servant entered and
+announced that her dressmaker was there and wished to speak with her.
+“Let her come in,” replied Marguerite, with unusual vivacity. “Let her
+come in at once.”
+
+A lady who looked some forty years of age, plainly dressed, but of
+distinguished appearance, was thereupon ushered into the room. Like any
+well-bred modiste, she bowed respectfully while the servant was
+present, but as soon as he had left the room she approached Mademoiselle
+Marguerite and took hold of her hands: “My dear young lady,” said she,
+“I am the sister-in-law of your old friend, the magistrate. Having an
+important message to send to you, he was trying to find a person whom
+he could trust to play the part of a dressmaker, as had been agreed upon
+between you, when I offered my services, thinking he could find no one
+more trusty than myself.”
+
+Tears glittered in Mademoiselle Marguerite’s eyes. The slightest token
+of sympathy is so sweet to the heart of the lonely and unfortunate! “How
+can I ever thank you, madame?” she faltered.
+
+“By not attempting to thank me at all, and by reading this letter as
+soon as possible.”
+
+The note she now produced ran as follows:
+
+
+“MY DEAR CHILD--At last I am on the track of the thieves. By conferring
+with the people from whom M. de Chalusse received the money a couple of
+days before his death, I have been fortunate enough to obtain from them
+some minute details respecting the missing bonds, as well as the numbers
+of the bank-notes which were deposited in the escritoire. With this
+information, we cannot fail to prove the guilt of the culprits sooner or
+later. You write me word that the Fondeges are spending money lavishly;
+try and find out the names of the people they deal with, and communicate
+them to me. Once more, I tell you that I am sure of success. Courage!”
+
+
+“Well!” said the spurious dressmaker, when she saw that Marguerite
+had finished reading the letter. “What answer shall I take my
+brother-in-law?”
+
+“Tell him that he shall certainly have the information he requires
+to-morrow. To-day, I can only give him the name of the carriage builder,
+from whom M. de Fondege has purchased his new carriages.”
+
+“Give it to me in writing, it is much the safest way.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite did so, and her visitor who, as a woman,
+was delighted to find herself mixed up in an intrigue, then went off
+repeating the old magistrate’s advice: “Courage!”
+
+But it was no longer necessary to encourage Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+The assurance of being so effectually helped, had already increased
+her courage an hundredfold. The future that had seemed so gloomy only a
+moment before, had now suddenly brightened. By means of the negative in
+the keeping of the photographer, Carjat, she had the Marquis de
+Valorsay in her power, and the magistrate, thanks to the numbers of the
+bank-notes, could soon prove the guilt of the Fondeges. The protection
+of Providence was made evident in an unmistakable manner. Thus it was
+with a placid and almost smiling face that she successively greeted
+Madame Leon, who returned home quite played out, then Madame de Fondege,
+who made her appearance attended by two shop-boys overladen with
+packages, and finally the General, who brought his son, Lieutenant
+Gustave, with him to dinner.
+
+The lieutenant was a good-looking fellow of twenty-seven, or
+thereabouts, with laughing eyes and a heavy mustache. He made a great
+clanking with his spurs, and wore the somewhat theatrical uniform of the
+13th Hussars rather ostentatiously. He bowed to Mademoiselle Marguerite
+with a smile that was too becoming to be displeasing; and he offered her
+his arm with an air of triumph to lead her to the dining-room, as soon
+as the servant came to announce that “Madame la Comtesse was served.”
+
+Seated opposite to him at table, the young girl could not refrain from
+furtively watching the man whom they wished to compel her to marry.
+Never had she seen such intense self-complacency coupled with such
+utter mediocrity. It was evident that he was doing his best to produce
+a favorable impression; but as the dinner progressed, his conversation
+became rather venturesome. He gradually grew extremely animated; and
+three or four adventures of garrison life which he persisted in relating
+despite his mother’s frowns, were calculated to convince his hearers
+that he was a great favorite with the fair sex. It was the good cheer
+that loosened his tongue. There could be no possible doubt on that
+score; and, indeed, while drinking a glass of the Chateau Laroze, to
+which Madame Leon had taken such a liking, he was indiscreet enough to
+declare that if his mother had always kept house in this fashion, he
+should have been inclined to ask for more frequent leaves of absence.
+
+However, strange to say, after the coffee was served, the conversation
+languished till at last it died out almost entirely. Madame de Fondege
+was the first to disappear on the pretext that some domestic affairs
+required her attention. The General was the next to rise and go out, in
+order to smoke a cigar; and finally Madame Leon made her escape without
+saying a word. So Mademoiselle Marguerite was left quite alone with
+Lieutenant Gustave. It was evident enough to the young girl that this
+had been preconcerted; and she asked herself what kind of an opinion M.
+and Madame de Fondege could have of her delicacy. The proceeding made
+her so indignant that she was on the point of rising from the table and
+of retiring like the others, when reason restrained her. She said to
+herself that perhaps she might gain some useful information from this
+young man, and so she remained.
+
+His face was crimson, and he seemed by far the more embarrassed of
+the two. He sat with one elbow resting on the table, and with his gaze
+persistently fixed upon a tiny glass half full of brandy which he held
+in his hand, as if he hoped to gain some sublime inspiration from it.
+At last, after an interval of irksome silence, he ventured to exclaim:
+“Mademoiselle, should you like to be an officer’s wife?”
+
+“I don’t know,” answered Marguerite.
+
+“Really! But at least you understand my motive in asking this question?”
+
+“No.”
+
+Any one but the complacent lieutenant would have been disconcerted by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite’s dry tone; but he did not even notice it.
+The effort that he was making in his intense desire to be eloquent and
+persuasive absorbed the attention of all his faculties. “Then permit
+me to explain, mademoiselle,” he resumed. “We meet this evening for the
+first time, but our acquaintance is not the affair of a day. For I know
+not how long my father and mother have continually been chanting your
+praises. ‘Mademoiselle Marguerite does this; Mademoiselle Marguerite
+does that.’ They never cease talking of you, declaring that heart, wit,
+talent, beauty, all womanly charms are united in your person. And they
+have never wearied of telling me that the man whom you honored with your
+preference would be the happiest of mortals. However, so far I had no
+desire to marry, and I distrusted them. In fact, I had conceived a most
+violent prejudice against you. Yes, upon my honor! I felt sure that I
+should dislike you; but I have seen you and all is changed. As soon as
+my eyes fell upon you, I experienced a powerful revulsion of feeling. I
+was never so smitten in my life--and I said to myself, ‘Lieutenant, it
+is all over--you are caught at last!’”
+
+Pale with anger, astonished and humiliated beyond measure, the young
+girl listened with her head lowered, vainly trying to find words
+to express the feelings which disturbed her; but M. Gustave,
+misunderstanding her silence, and congratulating himself upon the
+effect he had produced, grew bolder, and with the tenderest and most
+impassioned inflection he could impart to his voice, continued: “Who
+could fail to be impressed as I have been? How could one behold, without
+rapturous admiration, such beautiful eyes, such glorious black hair,
+such smiling lips, such a graceful mien, such wonderful charms of person
+and of mind? How would it be possible to listen, unmoved, to a voice
+which is clearer and purer than crystal? Ah! my mother’s descriptions
+fell far short of the truth. But how can one describe the perfections of
+an angel? To any one who has the happiness or the misfortune of knowing
+you, there can only be one woman in the world!”
+
+He had gradually approached her chair, and now extended his hand to take
+hold of Marguerite’s, and probably raise it to his lips. But she shrank
+from the contact as from red-hot iron, and rising hurriedly, with her
+eyes flashing, and her voice quivering with indignation: “Monsieur!” she
+exclaimed, “Monsieur!”
+
+He was so surprised that he stood as if petrified, with his eyes wide
+open and his hand still extended. “Permit me--allow me to explain,” he
+stammered. But she declined to listen. “Who has told you that you could
+address such words to me with impunity?” she continued. “Your parents,
+I suppose; I daresay they told you to be bold. And that is why they have
+left us, and why no servant has appeared. Ah! they make me pay dearly
+for the hospitality they have given me!” As she spoke the tears started
+from her eyes and glistened on her long lashes. “Whom did you fancy you
+were speaking to?” she added. “Would you have been so audacious if I had
+a father or a brother to resent your insults?”
+
+The lieutenant started as if he had been lashed with a whip. “Ah! you
+are severe!” he exclaimed.
+
+And a happy inspiration entering his mind, he continued: “A man does not
+insult a woman, mademoiselle, when, while telling her that he loves her
+and thinks her beautiful, he offers her his name and life.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite shrugged her shoulders ironically, and remained
+for a moment silent. She was very proud, and her pride had been cruelly
+wounded; but reason told her that a continuation of this scene would
+render a prolonged sojourn in the General’s house impossible; and where
+could she go, without exciting malevolent remarks? Whom could she ask
+an asylum of? Still this consideration alone would not have sufficed to
+silence her. But she remembered that a quarrel and a rupture with the
+Fondeges would certainly imperil the success of her plans. “So I will
+swallow even this affront,” she said to herself; and then in a tone of
+melancholy bitterness, she remarked, aloud: “A man cannot set a very
+high value on his name when he offers it to a woman whom he knows
+absolutely nothing about.”
+
+“Excuse me--you forget that my mother----”
+
+“Your mother has only known me for a week.”
+
+An expression of intense surprise appeared on the lieutenant’s face. “Is
+it possible?” he murmured.
+
+“Your father has met me five or six times at the table of the Count
+de Chalusse, who was his friend--but what does he know of me?” resumed
+Mademoiselle Marguerite. “That I came to the Hotel de Chalusse a year
+ago, and that the count treated me like a daughter--that is all! Who I
+am, where I was reared, and how, and what my past life has been, these
+are matters that M. de Fondege knows nothing whatever about.”
+
+“My parents told me that you were the daughter of the Count de Chalusse,
+mademoiselle.”
+
+“What proof have they of it? They ought to have told you that I was an
+unfortunate foundling, with no other name than that of Marguerite.”
+
+“Oh!”
+
+“They ought to have told you that I am poor, very poor, and that I
+should probably have been reduced to the necessity of toiling for my
+daily bread, if it had not been for them.”
+
+An incredulous smile curved the lieutenant’s lips. He fancied that
+Mademoiselle Marguerite only wished to prove his disinterestedness, and
+this thought restored his assurance. “Perhaps you are exaggerating a
+little, mademoiselle,” he replied.
+
+“I am not exaggerating--I possess but ten thousand francs in the
+world--I swear it by all that I hold sacred.”
+
+“That would not even be the dowry required of an officer’s wife by law,”
+ muttered the lieutenant.
+
+Was his incredulity sincere or affected? What had his parents really
+told him? Had they confided everything to him, and was he their
+accomplice? or had they told him nothing? All these questions flashed
+rapidly through Marguerite’s mind. “You suppose that I am rich,
+monsieur,” she resumed at last. “I understand that only too well. If I
+was, you ought to shun me as you would shun a criminal, for I could only
+be wealthy through a crime.”
+
+“Mademoiselle----”
+
+“Yes, through a crime. After M. de Chalusse’s death, two million francs
+that had been placed in his escritoire for safe keeping, could not be
+found. Who stole the money? I myself have been accused of the theft.
+Your father must have told you of this, as well as of the cloud of
+suspicion that is still hanging over me.”
+
+She paused, for the lieutenant had become whiter than his shirt. “Good
+God!” he exclaimed in a tone of horror, as if a terrible light had
+suddenly broken upon his mind. He made a movement as if to leave the
+room, but suddenly changing his mind, he bowed low before Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, and said, in a husky voice: “Forgive me, mademoiselle, I did
+not know what I was doing. I have been misinformed. I have been beguiled
+by false hopes. I entreat you to say that you forgive me.”
+
+“I forgive you, monsieur.”
+
+But still he lingered. “I am only a poor devil of a lieutenant,” he
+resumed, “with no other fortune than my epaulettes, no other prospects
+than an uncertain advancement. I have been foolish and thoughtless. I
+have committed many acts of folly; but there is nothing in my past life
+for which I have cause to blush.” He looked fixedly at Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, as if he were striving to read her inmost soul; and in a
+solemn tone, that contrasted strangely with his usual levity of manner,
+he added: “If the name I bear should ever be compromised, my prospects
+would be blighted forever! The only course left for me would be to
+tender my resignation. I will leave nothing undone to preserve my honor
+in the eyes of the world, and to right those who have been wronged.
+Promise me not to interfere with my plans.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite trembled like a leaf. She now realized her
+terrible imprudence. He had divined everything. As she remained silent,
+he continued wildly: “I entreat you. Do you wish me to beg you at your
+feet?”
+
+Ah! it was a terrible sacrifice that he demanded of her. But how could
+she remain obdurate in the presence of such intense anguish? “I will
+remain neutral,” she replied, “that is all I can promise. Providence
+shall decide.”
+
+“Thank you,” he said, sadly, suspecting that perhaps it was already too
+late--“thank you.” Then he turned to go, and, in fact, he had already
+opened the door, when a forlorn hope brought him back to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, whose hand he took, timidly faltering, “We are friends, are
+we not?”
+
+She did not withdraw her icy hand, and in a scarcely audible voice, she
+repeated: “We are friends?”
+
+Convinced that he could obtain nothing more from her than her promised
+neutrality, the lieutenant thereupon hastily left the room, and she sank
+back in her chair more dead than alive. “Great God! what is coming now?”
+ she murmured.
+
+She thought she could understand the unfortunate young man’s intentions,
+and she listened with a throbbing heart, expecting to hear a stormy
+explanation between his parents and himself. In point of fact, she
+almost immediately afterward heard the lieutenant inquire in a stern,
+imperious voice: “Where is my father?”
+
+“The General has just gone to his club.”
+
+“And my mother?”
+
+“A friend of hers called a few moments ago to take her to the opera.”
+
+“What madness!”
+
+That was all. The outer door opened and closed again with extreme
+violence, and then Marguerite heard nothing save the sneering remarks of
+the servants.
+
+It was, indeed, madness on the part of M. and Madame de Fondege not
+to have waited to learn the result of this interview, planned by
+themselves, and upon which their very lives depended. But delirium
+seemed to have seized them since, thanks to a still inexplicable crime,
+they had suddenly found themselves in possession of an immense fortune.
+Perhaps in this wild pursuit of pleasure, in the haste they displayed
+to satisfy their covetous longings, they hoped to forget or silence
+the threatening voice of conscience. Such was Mademoiselle Marguerite’s
+conclusion; but she was not long left to undisturbed meditation. By the
+lieutenant’s departure the restrictions which had been placed upon the
+servants’ movements had evidently been removed, for they came in to
+clear the table.
+
+Having with some little difficulty obtained a candle from one of these
+model servants, Mademoiselle Marguerite now retired to her own room. In
+her anxiety, she forgot Madame Leon, but the latter had not forgotten
+her; she was even now listening at the drawing-room door, inconsolable
+to think that she had not succeeded in hearing at least part of the
+conversation between the lieutenant and her dear young lady. Marguerite
+had no wish to reflect over what had occurred. As she was determined
+to keep the promise which Lieutenant Gustave had wrung from her, it
+mattered little whether she had committed a great mistake in allowing
+him to discover her knowledge of his parent’s guilt, and in listening
+to his entreaties. A secret presentiment warned her that the punishment
+which would overtake the General and his wife would be none the less
+terrible, despite her own forbearance, and that they would find their
+son more inexorable than the severest judge.
+
+The essential thing was to warn the old magistrate; and so in a couple
+of pages she summarized the scene of the evening, feeling sure that she
+would find an opportunity to post her letter on the following day. This
+duty accomplished, she took a book and went to bed, hoping to drive away
+her gloomy thoughts by reading. But the hope was vain. Her eyes read the
+words, followed the lines and crossed the pages, but her mind utterly
+refused to obey her will, and in spite of all her efforts persisted in
+turning to the shrewd youth who had solemnly sworn to find Pascal for
+her. A little after midnight Madame de Fondege returned from the opera,
+and at once proceeded to reprimand her maid for not having lighted a
+fire. The General returned some time afterward, and he was evidently in
+the best of spirits.
+
+“They have not seen their son,” said Mademoiselle Marguerite to herself,
+and this anxiety, combined with many others, tortured her so cruelly,
+that she did not fall asleep until near daybreak. Even then she did not
+slumber long. It was scarcely half-past seven when she was aroused by
+a strange commotion and a loud sound of hammering. She was trying to
+imagine the cause of all this uproar, when Madame de Fondege, already
+arrayed in a marvellous robe composed of three skirts and an enormous
+puff, entered the room. “I have come to take you away, my dear child,”
+ she exclaimed. “The owner of the house has decided to make some repairs,
+and the workmen have already invaded our apartments. The General has
+taken flight, let us follow his example--so make yourself beautiful and
+we’ll go at once.”
+
+Without a word, the young girl hastened to obey, while Madame de
+Fondege expiated on the delightful drive they would take together in
+the wonderful brougham which the General had purchased a couple of days
+before. As for Lieutenant Gustave, she did not even mention his name.
+
+Accustomed to the superb equipages of the Chalusse establishment,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite did not consider the much-lauded brougham at
+all remarkable. At the most, it was very showy, having apparently been
+selected with a view to attracting as much attention as possible. Madame
+de Fondege was not in a mood to consider an objection that morning. She
+was evidently in a nervous state of mind, extremely restless and excited
+indeed, it seemed impossible for her to keep still. In default of
+something better to do, she visited at least a dozen shops, asking to
+see everything, finding everything frightful, and purchasing without
+regard to price. It might have been fancied that she wished to buy
+all Paris. About ten o’clock she dragged Marguerite to Van Klopen’s.
+Received as a habituee of the establishment, thanks to the numerous
+orders she had given within the past few days, she was even allowed to
+enter the mysterious saloon in which the illustrious ruler of Fashion
+served such of his clients as had a predilection for absinthe or
+madeira. On leaving the place, and before entering the carriage again,
+Madame de Fondege turned to Marguerite and inquired: “Where shall we go
+now? I have given the servants an ‘outing’ on account of the workmen,
+and we cannot breakfast at home. Why can’t we go to a restaurant, we
+two? Many of the most distinguished ladies are in the habit of doing
+so. You will see how people will look at us! I am sure it will amuse you
+immensely.”
+
+“Ah! madame, you forget that it is not a fortnight since the count’s
+death!”
+
+Madame de Fondege was about to make an impatient reply, but she mastered
+the impulse, and in a tone of hypocritical compassion, exclaimed: “Poor
+child! poor, dear child! that’s true. I had forgotten. Well, such being
+the case, we’ll go and ask Baroness Trigault to give us our breakfast.
+You will see a lovely woman.” And addressing the coachman she instructed
+him to drive to the Trigault mansion in the Rue de la Ville l’Eveque.
+
+When Madame de Fondege’s brougham drew up before the door, the baron was
+standing in the courtyard with a cigar between his teeth, examining a
+pair of horses which had been sent him on approbation. He did not like
+his wife’s friend, and he usually avoided her. But precisely because he
+was acquainted with the General’s crime and Pascal’s plans, he thought
+it politic to seem amiable. So, on recognizing Madame de Fondege through
+the carriage window, he hastened forward with outstretched hand to
+assist her in alighting. “Did you come to take breakfast with us?” he
+asked. “That would be a most delightful----”
+
+The remainder of the sentence died unuttered upon his lips. His face
+became crimson, and the cigar he was holding slipped from his fingers.
+He had just perceived Mademoiselle Marguerite, and his consternation was
+so apparent that Madame de Fondege could not fail to remark it; however,
+she attributed it to the girl’s remarkable beauty. “This is Mademoiselle
+de Chalusse, my dear baron,” said she, “the daughter of the noble and
+esteemed friend whom we so bitterly lament.”
+
+Ah! it was not necessary to tell the baron who this young girl was;
+he knew it only too well. He was not overcome for long; a thought of
+vengeance speedily flashed through his mind. It seemed to him that
+Providence itself offered him the means of putting an end to an
+intolerable situation. Regaining his self-control by a powerful effort,
+he preceded Madame de Fondege through the magnificent apartments of
+the mansion, lightly saying: “My wife is in her boudoir. She will be
+delighted to see you. But first of all, I have a good secret to confide
+to you. So let me take this young lady to the baroness, and you and
+I can join them in a moment!” Thereupon, without waiting for any
+rejoinder, he took Marguerite’s arm and led her toward the end of the
+hall. Then opening a door, he exclaimed in a mocking voice: “Madame
+Trigault, allow me to present to you the daughter of the Count de
+Chalusse.” And adding in a whisper: “This is your mother, young girl,”
+ he pushed the astonished Marguerite into the room, closed the door, and
+returned to Madame de Fondege.
+
+Paler than her white muslin wrapper, the Baroness Trigault sprang from
+her chair. This was the woman who, while her husband was braving death
+to win fortune for her, had been dazzled by the Count de Chalusse’s
+wealth, and who, later in life, when she was the richest of the rich,
+had sunk into the very depths of degradation--had stooped, indeed, to
+a Coralth! The baroness had once been marvellously beautiful, and even
+now, many murmurs of admiration greeted her when she dashed through
+the Champs Elysees in her magnificent equipage, attired in one of those
+eccentric costumes which she alone dared to wear. She was a type of the
+wife created by the customs of fashionable society; the woman who feels
+elated when her name appears in the newspapers and in the chronicles of
+Parisian “high life”; who has no thought of her deserted fireside, but
+is ever tormented by a terrible thirst for bustle and excitement; whose
+head is empty, and whose heart is dry--the woman who only exists for
+the world; and who is devoured by unappeasable covetousness, and who, at
+times, envies an actress’s liberty, and the notoriety of the leaders of
+the demi-monde; the woman who is always in quest of fresh excitement,
+and fails to find it; the woman who is blase, and prematurely old in
+mind and body, and who yet still clings despairingly to her fleeting
+youth.
+
+Inaccessible to any emotion but vanity, the baroness had never shed a
+tear over her husband’s sufferings. She was sure of her absolute power
+over him. What did the rest matter? She even gloried in her knowledge
+that she could make this man--who loved her in spite of everything--at
+one moment furious with rage or wild with grief, and then an instant
+afterward plunge him into the rapture of a senseless ecstasy by a word,
+a smile, or a caress. For such was her power, and she often exercised it
+mercilessly. Even after the frightful scene that Pascal had witnessed,
+she had made another appeal to the baron, and he had been weak enough
+to give her the thirty thousand francs which M. de Coralth needed to
+purchase his wife’s silence.
+
+However, this time the baroness trembled. Her usual shrewdness had
+not deserted her, and she perfectly understood all that Marguerite’s
+presence in that house portended. Since her husband brought this young
+girl--her daughter--to her he must know everything, and have taken some
+fatal resolution. Had she, indeed, exhausted the patience which she had
+fancied inexhaustible? She was not ignorant of the fact that her husband
+had disposed of his immense fortune in a way that would enable him to
+say and prove that he was insolvent whenever occasion required; and if
+he found courage to apply for a legal separation, what could she hope to
+obtain from the courts? A bare living, almost nothing. In such a case,
+how could she exist? She would be compelled to spend her last years
+in the same poverty that had made her youth so wretched. She saw
+herself--ah! what a frightful misfortune--turfed out of her princely
+home, and reduced to furnished apartments rented for five hundred francs
+a year!
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was no less startled and horror-stricken than
+Madame Trigault, and she stood rooted to the spot, exactly where the
+baron had left her. Silent and motionless, they confronted each
+other for a moment which seemed a century to both of them. The
+resemblance--which had astonished Pascal could not fail to strike them,
+for it was still more noticeable now that they stood face to face. But
+anything was preferable to this torturing suspense, and so, summoning
+all her courage, the baroness broke the silence by saying: “You are the
+daughter of the Count de Chalusse?”
+
+“I think so, but I have no proofs of it.”
+
+“And--your mother?”
+
+“I don’t know her; madame, and I have no desire to know her.”
+
+Disconcerted by this brief but implacable reply, Madame Trigault hung
+her head.
+
+“What could I have to say to my mother?” continued Marguerite. “That I
+hate her? My courage would fail me to do so. And yet, how can I think
+without bitterness of the woman who, after abandoning me herself,
+endeavored to deprive me of my father’s love and protection? I could
+have forgiven anything but that. Ah! I have not always been so patient
+and resigned! The laws of our country do not forbid illigitimate
+children to search for their parents, and more than once I have said to
+myself that I would discover my mother, and have my revenge.”
+
+“But you have no means of discovering her?”
+
+“In this you are greatly mistaken, madame. After the Count de Chalusse’s
+death, a package of letters, a glove and some withered flowers were
+found in one of the drawers of his escritoire.”
+
+The baroness started back as if a yawning chasm had suddenly opened at
+her feet. “My letters!” she exclaimed. “Ah! wretched woman that I am,
+he kept them. It is all over! I am lost, for of course, they have been
+read?”
+
+“The ribbon securing them together has never been untied.”
+
+“Is that true? Don’t deceive me! Where are they, then--where are they?”
+
+“Under the protection of the seals affixed by the justice of the peace.”
+
+Madame Trigault tottered, as if she were about to fall. “Then it is only
+a reprieve,” she moaned, “and I am none the less ruined. Those cursed
+letters will necessarily be read, and all will be discovered. They will
+see----” The thought of what they would see endowed her with the energy
+of despair, and clutching hold of Marguerite’s wrists: “Listen!” said
+she, approaching so near that her hot breath scorched the girl’s cheeks,
+“no one must be allowed to see those letters!--it must not be! I will
+tell you what they contain. I hated my husband; I loved the Count de
+Chalusse madly, and he had sworn that he would marry me if ever I became
+a widow. Do you understand now? The name of the poison I obtained--how
+I proposed to administer it, and what its effects would be--all this is
+plainly written in my own handwriting and signed--yes, signed--with
+my own name. The plot failed, but it was none the less real, positive,
+palpable--and those letters are a proof of it. But they shall never be
+read--no--not if I am obliged to set fire to the Hotel de Chalusse with
+my own hand.”
+
+Now the count’s constant terror, the fear with which this woman had
+inspired him, were explained. He was an accomplice--he also had written
+no doubt, and she had preserved his letters as he had preserved hers.
+Crime had bound them indissolubly together.
+
+Horrified beyond expression, Marguerite freed herself from Madame
+Trigault’s grasp. “I swear to you, madame, that everything any human
+being can do to save your letters shall be done by me,” she exclaimed.
+
+“And have you any hope of success?”
+
+“Yes,” replied the girl, remembering her friend, the magistrate.
+
+Moved by a far more powerful emotion than any she had ever known before,
+the baroness uttered an exclamation of joy. “Ah! how good you are!” she
+exclaimed--“how generous! how noble! You take your revenge in giving me
+back life, honor, everything--for you are my daughter; do you not know
+it? Did they not tell you, before bringing you here, that I was the
+hated and unnatural mother who abandoned you?”
+
+She advanced with tearful eyes and outstretched arms, but Marguerite
+sternly waved her back. “Spare yourself, madame, and spare me, the
+humiliation of an unnecessary explanation.”
+
+“Marguerite! Good God! you repulse me. After all you have promised to do
+for me, will you not forgive me?”
+
+“I will try to forget, madame,” replied the girl and she was already
+stepping toward the door when the baroness threw herself at her feet,
+crying, in a heart-rending tone: “Have pity, Marguerite, I am your
+mother. One has no right to deny one’s own mother.”
+
+But the young girl passed on. “My mother is dead, madame; I do not know
+you!” And she left the room without even turning her head, without even
+glancing at the baroness, who had fallen upon the floor in a deep swoon.
+
+
+
+
+XIX
+
+
+Baron Trigault still held Madame de Fondege a prisoner in the hall. What
+did he say to her in justification of the expedient he had improvised?
+His own agitation was so great that he scarcely knew, and it mattered
+but little after all, for the good lady did not even pretend to listen
+to his apologies. Although by no means overshrewd, she suspected some
+great mystery, some bit of scandal, perhaps, and her eyes never once
+wandered from the door leading to the boudoir. At last this door opened
+and Mademoiselle Marguerite reappeared. “Great heavens!” exclaimed
+Madame de Fondege; “what has happened to my poor child?”
+
+For the unfortunate girl advanced with an automatic tread, her eyes
+fixed on vacancy, and her hands outstretched, as if feeling her way. It
+indeed seemed to her as if the floor swayed to and fro under her feet,
+as if the walls tottered, as if the ceiling were about to fall and crush
+her.
+
+Madame de Fondege sprang forward. “What is the matter, my dearest?”
+
+Alas! the poor girl was utterly overcome. “It is but a trifle,” she
+faltered. But her eyes closed, her hands clutched wildly for some
+support, and she would have fallen to the ground if the baron had not
+caught her in his arms and carried her to a sofa. “Help!” cried Madame
+de Fondege, “help, she is dying!--a physician!”
+
+But there was no need of a physician. One of the maids came with
+some fresh water and a bottle of smelling salts, and Marguerite soon
+recovered sufficiently to sit up, and cast a frightened glance around
+her, while she mechanically passed her hand again and again over her
+cold forehead. “Do you feel better my darling?” inquired Madame de
+Fondege at last.
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“Ah! you gave me a terrible fright; see how I tremble.” But the worthy
+lady’s fright was as nothing in comparison with the curiosity that
+tortured her. It was so powerful, indeed, that she could not control it.
+“What has happened?” she asked.
+
+“Nothing, madame, nothing.”
+
+“But----”
+
+“I am subject to such attacks. I was very cold, and the heat of the room
+made me feel faint.”
+
+Although she could only speak with the greatest difficulty, the baron
+realized by her tone that she would never reveal what had taken place,
+and his attitude and relief knew no bounds. “Don’t tire the poor child,”
+ he said to Madame de Fondege. “The best thing you can do would be to
+take her home and put her to bed.”
+
+“I agree with you; but unfortunately, I have sent away my brougham with
+orders not to return for me until one o’clock.”
+
+“Is that the only difficulty? If so, you shall have a carriage at
+once, my dear madame.” So saying, the baron made a sign to one of the
+servants, and the man started on his mission at once.
+
+Madame de Fondege was silent but furious. “He is actually putting me out
+of doors,” she thought. “This is a little too much! And why doesn’t the
+baroness make her appearance--she must certainly have heard my voice?
+What does it all mean? However, I’m sure Marguerite will tell me when we
+are alone.”
+
+But Madame de Fondege was wrong, for she vainly plied the girl with
+questions all the way from the Rue de la Ville l’Eveque to the Rue
+Pigalle. She could only obtain this unvarying and obstinate reply:
+“Nothing has happened. What do you suppose could have happened?”
+
+Never in her whole life had Madame de Fondege been so incensed. “The
+blockhead!” she mentally exclaimed. “Who ever saw such obstinacy!
+Hateful creature!--I could beat her!”
+
+She did not beat her, but on reaching the house she eagerly asked: “Do
+you feel strong enough to go up stairs alone?”
+
+“Yes, madame.”
+
+“Then I will leave you. You know Van Klopen expects me again at one
+o’clock precisely; and I have not breakfasted yet. Remember that my
+servants are at your disposal, and don’t hesitate to call them. You are
+at home, recollect.”
+
+It was not without considerable difficulty--not without being compelled
+to stop and rest several times on her way up stairs--that Mademoiselle
+Marguerite succeeded in reaching the apartments of the Fondege family.
+“Where is madame?” inquired the servant who opened the door.
+
+“She is still out.”
+
+“Will she return to dinner?”
+
+“I don’t know.”
+
+“M. Gustave has been here three times already; he was very angry when he
+found that there was no one at home--he went on terribly. Besides, the
+workmen have turned everything topsy-turvy.”
+
+However, Marguerite had already reached her own room, and thrown herself
+on the bed. She was suffering terribly. Her brave spirit still retained
+its energy; but the flesh had succumbed. Every vein and artery throbbed
+with violence, and while a chill seemed to come to her heart, her head
+burned as if it had been on fire. “My Lord,” she thought, “am I going
+to fall ill at the last moment, just when I have most need of all my
+strength?”
+
+She tried to sleep, but was unable to do so. How could she free herself
+from the thought that haunted her? Her mother! To think that such a
+woman was her mother! Was it not enough to make her die of sorrow and
+shame? And yet this woman must be saved--the proofs of her crime must be
+annihilated with her letters. Marguerite asked herself whether the
+old magistrate would have it in his power to help her in this respect.
+Perhaps not, and then what could she do? She asked herself if she had
+not been too cruel, too severe. Guilty or not, the baroness was still
+her mother. Had she the right to be pitiless, when by stretching out
+her hand she might, perhaps, have rescued the wretched woman from her
+terrible life.
+
+Thus thinking, the young girl sat alone and forgotten in her little
+room. The hours went by, and daylight had begun to wane, when suddenly a
+shrill whistle resounded in the street, under her windows. “Pi-ouit.” It
+came upon her like an electric shock, and with a bound she sprang to
+her feet. For this cry was the signal that had been agreed upon between
+herself and the young man who had so abruptly offered to help her on the
+occasion of her visit to M. Fortunat’s office. Was she mistaken? No--for
+on listening she heard the cry resound a second time, even more shrill
+and prolonged than before.
+
+This was no time for hesitation, and so she went down-stairs at once.
+Hope sent new blood coursing through her veins and endowed her with
+invincible energy. On reaching the street-door, she paused and looked
+around her. At a short distance off she perceived a young fellow clad in
+a blouse, who was apparently engaged in examining the goods displayed in
+a shop window. Despite his position, he hurriedly exclaimed: “Follow me
+at a little; distance in the rear until I stop.”
+
+Marguerite, obeyed him in breathless suspense. The young fellow was
+our friend Victor Chupin, now somewhat the worse for his encounter with
+Vantrasson that same morning. His face was considerably disfigured, and
+one of his eyes was black and swollen; nevertheless he was in a state
+of ecstatic happiness. Happy, and yet anxious; for, as he preceded
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, he said to himself: “How shall I tell her
+that I have succeeded? There must be no folly. If I tell her the news
+suddenly, she will most likely faint, so I must break the news gently.”
+
+On reaching the Rue Boursault, he turned the corner, and paused,
+waiting for Mademoiselle Marguerite to join him. “What is the news?” she
+anxiously asked.
+
+“Everything is progressing finely--slowly, but finely.”
+
+“You know something, monsieur! Speak! Don’t you see how anxious I am?”
+
+He did see it only too well; and his embarrassment increased to such a
+pitch that he began to scratch his head furiously. At last he decided
+on a plan. “First of all, mademoiselle, brace yourself against the wall,
+and now stand firm. Yes, like that. Now, are you all right? Well, I have
+found M. Ferailleur!”
+
+Chupin’s precaution was a wise one, for Marguerite tottered. Such a
+success, so quickly gained, was indeed astounding. “Is it possible?” she
+murmured.
+
+“So possible that I have a letter for you from M. Ferailleur in my
+pocket mademoiselle. Here it is--I am to wait for an answer.”
+
+She took the note he handed her, broke the seal with trembling hand, and
+read as follows:
+
+
+“We are approaching the end, my dearest. One step more and we shall
+triumph. But I must see you to-day at any risk. Leave the house this
+evening at eight o’clock. My mother will be waiting for you in a cab,
+at the corner of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue Boursault. Come, and let
+no fear of arousing suspicions of the Fondeges deter you. They are
+henceforth powerless to injure you.”
+
+“PASCAL”
+
+
+“I will go!” replied Marguerite at once, careless of the obstacles that
+might impede the fulfilment of her promise. For it was quite possible
+that serious difficulties might arise. Madame Leon, who had been
+invisible since the morning, might suddenly reappear, or the General
+and his wife might return to dinner. And what could Marguerite answer if
+they asked her where she wanted to go alone, and at such an hour of
+the evening? And if they attempted to prevent her from keeping her
+appointment, how could she resist? All these were weighty questions and
+yet she did not hesitate. Pascal had spoken, that sufficed, and she was
+determined to obey him implicitly, cost what it might. If he advised
+such a step, it was because he deemed it best and necessary; and she
+willingly submitted to the instructions of the man in whom she felt such
+unbounded confidence.
+
+Having told Chupin that she might be relied upon for the evening, she
+was retracing her way home, when suddenly the thought occurred to her
+that she ought not to neglect this opportunity to place a decisive
+weapon in Pascal’s hands. She was close to the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette
+and so without more ado she hurried to the establishment of Carjat the
+photographer. He was fortunately disengaged, and she at once obtained
+from him a proof of the compromising letter written by the Marquis de
+Valorsay to Madame Leon. She placed it carefully in her pocket, thanked
+the photographer, and then hurried back to the Rue Pigalle to wait
+for the hour appointed in Pascal’s letter. Fortunately none of her
+unpleasant apprehensions were realized. The dinner-hour came and passed,
+and still the house remained deserted. The workmen had gone off and the
+laughter and chatter of the servants in the kitchen were the only sounds
+that broke the stillness. Faint for want of food--for she had taken no
+nourishment during the day--Marguerite had considerable difficulty in
+obtaining something to eat from the servants. At last, however, they
+gave her some soup and cold meat, served on a corner of the bare table
+in the dining-room. It was half-past seven when she finished this
+frugal meal. She waited a moment, and then fearing she might keep Madame
+Ferailleur waiting, she went down into the street.
+
+A cab was waiting at the corner of the Rue Boursault, as indicated. Its
+windows were lowered, and in the shade one could discern the face and
+white hair of an elderly lady. Glancing behind her to assure herself
+that she had not been followed, Marguerite eagerly approached the
+vehicle, whereupon a kindly voice exclaimed: “Jump in quickly,
+mademoiselle.”
+
+Marguerite obeyed, and the door was scarcely closed behind her before
+the driver had urged his horse into a gallop. He had evidently received
+his instructions in advance, as well as the promise of a magnificent
+gratuity.
+
+Sitting side by side on the back seat, the old lady and the young girl
+remained silent, but this did not prevent them from casting stealthy
+glances at each other, and striving to distinguish one another’s
+features whenever the vehicle passed in front of some brilliantly
+lighted shop. They had never met before, and their anxiety to become
+acquainted was intense, for they each felt that the other would exert
+a decisive influence upon her life. All of Madame Ferailleur’s friends
+would undoubtedly have been surprised at the step she had taken, and
+yet it was quite in accordance with her character. As long as she had
+entertained any hope of preventing this marriage she had not hesitated
+to express and even exaggerate her objections and repugnance. But her
+point of view was entirely changed when conquered by the strength of her
+son’s passion, she at last yielded a reluctant consent. The young girl
+who was destined to be her daughter-in-law at once became sacred in her
+eyes; and it seemed to her an act of duty to watch over Marguerite, and
+shield her reputation. Having considered the subject, she had decided
+that it was not proper for her son’s betrothed to run about the streets
+alone in the evening. Might it not compromise her honor? and later on
+might it not furnish venomous Madame de Fondege with an opportunity to
+exercise her slanderous tongue? Thus the puritanical old lady had come
+to fetch Marguerite, so that whenever occasion required she might be
+able to say: “I was there!”
+
+As for Marguerite, after the trials of the day, she yielded without
+reserve to the feeling of rest and happiness that now filled her heart.
+Again and again had Pascal spoken of his mother’s prejudices and the
+inflexibility of her principles. But he had also spoken of her dauntless
+energy, the nobility of her nature, and of her love and devotion to
+him. With Marguerite, moreover, one consideration--one which she
+would scarcely have admitted, perhaps--outweighed all others: Madame
+Ferailleur was Pascal’s mother. For that reason alone, if for no other,
+she was prepared to worship her. How fervently she blessed this noble
+woman, who, a widow, and ruined in fortune by an unprincipled scoundrel,
+had bravely toiled to educate her son, making him the man whom
+Marguerite had freely chosen from among all others. She would have knelt
+before this grand but simple-hearted mother had she dared; she would
+have kissed her hands. And a poignant regret came to her heart when she
+remembered her own mother, Baroness Trigault, and compared her with this
+matchless woman.
+
+Meanwhile the cab had passed the outer boulevards, and was now whirling
+along the Route d’Asnieres, as fast as the horse could drag it. “We are
+almost there,” remarked Madame Ferailleur, speaking for the first time.
+
+Marguerite’s response was inaudible, she was so overcome with emotion.
+The driver had just turned the corner of the Route de la Revolte; and it
+was not long before he checked his panting horse. “Look, mademoiselle,”
+ said Madame Ferailleur again, “this is our home.”
+
+Upon the threshold, bareheaded, and breathless with impatience and hope,
+stood a man who was counting the seconds with the violent throbbings
+of his heart. He did not wait for the cab to stop, but springing to
+the door, he opened it; and then, catching Marguerite in his arms, he
+carried her into the house with a cry of joy. She had not even time to
+look around her, ere he had placed her in an arm-chair, and fallen on
+his knees before her. “At last I see you again, my beloved Marguerite,”
+ he exclaimed. “You are mine--nothing shall part us again!”
+
+They sobbed in each other’s arms. They could bear adversity unmoved; but
+their composure deserted them in this excess of happiness; and standing
+in the door-way, Madame Ferailleur felt the tears come to her eyes as
+she stood watching them.
+
+“How can I tell you all that I have suffered!” said Pascal, whose voice
+was hoarse with feeling. “The papers have told you all the details, I
+suppose. How I was accused of cheating at cards; how the vile epithet
+‘thief’ was cast in my face; how they tried to search me; how my most
+intimate friends deserted me; how I was virtually expelled from the
+Palais de Justice. All this is terrible, is it not? Ah, well! it
+is nothing in comparison with the intense, unendurable anguish I
+experienced in thinking that you believed the infamous calumny which
+disgraced me.”
+
+Marguerite rose to her feet. “You thought that!” she exclaimed. “You
+believed that I doubted you? I! Like you, I have been accused of robbery
+myself. Do you believe me guilty?”
+
+“Good God! I suspect you!”
+
+“Then why----”
+
+“I was mad, Marguerite, my only love, I was mad! But who would not have
+lost his senses under such circumstances? It was the very day after this
+atrocious conspiracy. I had seen Madame Leon, and had trusted her with
+a letter for you in which I entreated you to grant me five minutes’
+Conversation.”
+
+“Alas! I never received it.”
+
+“I know that now; but then I was deceived. I went to the little garden
+gate to await your coming, but it was Madame Leon who appeared. She
+brought me a note written in pencil and signed with your name, bidding
+me an eternal farewell. And, fool that I was, I did not see that the
+note was a forgery!”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was amazed. The veil was now torn aside, and the
+truth revealed to her. Now she remembered Madame Leon’s embarrassment
+when she met her returning from the garden on the night following the
+count’s death. “Ah, well! Pascal,” she said, “do you know what I was
+doing at almost the same moment? Alarmed at having received no news from
+you, I hastened to the Rue d’Ulm, where I learned that you had sold your
+furniture and started for America. Any other woman might have believed
+herself deserted under such circumstances, but not I. I felt sure that
+you had not fled in ignominious fashion. I was convinced that you had
+only concealed yourself for a time in order to strike your enemies more
+surely.”
+
+“Do not shame me, Marguerite. It is true that of us two I showed myself
+the weaker.”
+
+Lost in the rapture of the present moment, they had forgotten the past
+and the future, the agony they had endured, the dangers that still
+threatened them, and even the existence of their enemies.
+
+But Madame Ferailleur was watching. She pointed to the clock, and
+earnestly exclaimed: “Time is passing, my son. Each moment that
+is wasted endangers our success. Should any suspicion bring Madame
+Vantrasson here, all would be lost.”
+
+“She cannot come upon us unawares, my dear mother. Chupin has promised
+not to lose sight of her. If she stirs from her shop, he will hasten
+here and throw a stone against the shutters to warn us.”
+
+But even this did not satisfy Madame Ferailleur.
+
+“You forget, Pascal.” she insisted, “that Mademoiselle Marguerite must
+be at home again by ten o’clock, if she consents to the ordeal you feel
+obliged to impose upon her.”
+
+This was the voice of duty recalling Pascal to the stern realities of
+life. He slowly rose, conquered his emotion, and, after reflecting for
+a moment, said: “First of all, Marguerite, I owe you the truth and an
+exact statement of our situation. Circumstances have compelled me to act
+without consulting you. Have I done right or wrong? You shall judge.”
+ And without stopping to listen to the girl’s protestations, he rapidly
+explained how he had managed to win M. de Valorsay’s confidence,
+discover his plans, and become his trusted accomplice. “This scoundrel’s
+plan is very simple,” he continued. “He is determined to marry you.
+Why? Because, though you are not aware of it, you are rich, and the
+sole heiress to the fortune of the Count de Chalusse, your father. This
+surprises you, does it not? Very well! listen to me. Deceived by the
+Marquis de Valorsay, the Count de Chalusse had promised him your hand.
+These arrangements were nearly completed, though you had not been
+informed of them. In fact, everything had been decided. At the outset,
+however, a grave difficulty had presented itself. The marquis wished
+your father to acknowledge you before your marriage, but this he refused
+to do. ‘It would expose me to the most frightful dangers,’ he declared.
+‘However, I will recognize Marguerite as my daughter in my will, and, at
+the same time, leave all my property to her.’ But the marquis would not
+listen to this proposal. ‘I don’t doubt your good intentions, my dear
+count,’ said he,’ but suppose this will should be contested, your
+property might pass into other hands.’ This difficulty put a stop to the
+proceedings for some time. The marquis asked for guarantees; the other
+refused to give them--until, at last, M. de Chalusse discovered an
+expedient which would satisfy both parties. He confided to M. de
+Valorsay’s keeping a will in which he recognized you as his daughter,
+and bequeathed you his entire fortune. This document, the validity of
+which is unquestionable, has been carefully preserved by the marquis.
+He has not spoken of its existence; and he would destroy it rather than
+restore it to you at present. But as soon as you became his wife,
+he intended to produce it and thus obtain possession of the count’s
+millions.”
+
+“Ah! the old justice of the peace was not mistaken,” murmured
+Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+
+Pascal did not hear her. All his faculties were absorbed in the attempt
+he was making to give a clear and concise explanation, for he had much
+to say, and it was growing late. “As for the enormous sum you have been
+accused of taking,” he continued, “I know what has become of it; it is
+in the hands of M. de Fondege.”
+
+“I know that, Pascal--I’m sure of it; but the proof, the proof!”
+
+“The proof exists, and, like the will, it is in the hands of the Marquis
+de Valorsay.”
+
+“Is it possible! Great Heavens! You are sure you are not deceived?”
+
+“I have seen the proof, and it is overpowering, irrefutable! I have
+touched it--I have held it in my hands. And it explains everything which
+may have seemed strange and incomprehensible to you. The letter which M.
+de Chalusse received on the day of his death was written by his sister.
+She asked in it for her share of the family estate, threatening him with
+a terrible scandal if he refused to comply with her request. Had the
+count decided to brave this scandal rather than yield? We have good
+reason to suppose so. However, this much is certain: he had a terrible
+hatred, not so much for his sister, perhaps, as for the man who had
+seduced her, and afterward married her, actuated by avaricious motives
+alone. He had sworn thousands of times that neither husband nor wife
+should ever have a penny of the large fortune which really belonged
+to them. Believing that a lawsuit was now inevitable, and wishing to
+conceal his wealth, he was greatly embarrassed by the large amount of
+money he had on hand. What should he do with it? Where could he hide it?
+He finally decided to intrust it to the keeping of M. de Fondege, who
+was known as an eccentric man, but whose honesty seemed to be above
+suspicion. So, when he left home, on the afternoon of his illness, he
+took the package of bank-notes and bonds, which you had noticed in the
+escritoire that morning, away with him. We shall never know what passed
+between your father and the General--we can only surmise. But what I do
+know, and what I shall be able to prove, is that M. de Fondege accepted
+the trust, and that he gave an acknowledgment of it in the form of a
+letter, which read as follows:
+
+   “‘MY DEAR COUNT DE CHALUSSE--I hereby acknowledge the receipt, on
+   Thursday, October 15, 186-, of the sum of two millions, two
+   hundred and fifty thousand francs, which I shall deposit, in my
+   name, at the Bank of France, subject to the orders of Mademoiselle
+   Marguerite, your daughter, on the day she presents this letter.
+   And believe, my dear count, in the absolute devotion of your old
+   comrade,
+
+                                “GENERAL DE FONDEGE.’”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was thunderstruck. “Who can have furnished you
+with these particulars?” she inquired.
+
+“The Marquis de Valorsay, my dearest; and I will explain how he was
+enabled to do so. M. de Fondege wrote the address of his ‘old comrade’
+on this letter, which was folded and sealed, but not enclosed in an
+envelope. M. de Chalusse proposed to post it himself, so that the
+official stamp might authenticate its date. But on reflection, he became
+uneasy. He felt that this tiny, perishable scrap of paper would be
+the only proof of the deposit which he had confided to M. de Fondege’s
+honor. This scrap might be lost, burned, or stolen. Then what would
+happen? He had so often seen trustees betray the confidence of which
+they had seemed worthy. So M. de Chalusse racked his brains to discover
+a means of protection from an improbable but possible misfortune. He
+found it. Passing a stationer’s shop, he went in, purchased one of those
+letter-presses which merchants use in their correspondence, and, under
+pretext of trying it, took a copy of M. de Fondege’s letter. Having
+done this, he placed the copy in an envelope addressed to the Marquis de
+Valorsay, and, with his heart relieved of all anxiety, posted it at the
+same time as the original letter. A few moments later he got into the
+cab in which he was stricken down with apoplexy.”
+
+Extraordinary as Pascal’s explanations must have seemed to her,
+Marguerite did not doubt their accuracy in the least. “Then it is the
+copy of this letter which you saw in the possession of the Marquis de
+Valorsay?”
+
+“Yes.”
+
+“And the original?”
+
+“M. de Fondege alone can tell what has become of that. It is evident
+that he has somehow succeeded in obtaining possession of it. Would he
+have dared to squander money as he has done if he had not been convinced
+that there was no proof of his guilt in existence? Perhaps on hearing
+of the count’s sudden death he bribed the concierge at the Hotel de
+Chalusse to watch for this letter and return it to him. But on this
+subject I have only conjectures to offer. If they wish you to marry
+their son, it is probably because it seems too hard that you should be
+left in abject poverty while they are enjoying the fortune they have
+stolen from you. The vilest scoundrels have their scruples. Besides,
+a marriage with their son would protect them against any possible
+mischance in the future.”
+
+He was silent for a moment, and then more slowly resumed: “You see,
+Marguerite, we have clear, palpable, and irrefutable proofs of YOUR
+innocence; but in my efforts to clear my own name of disgrace, I have
+been far less fortunate. I have tried in vain to collect material proofs
+of the conspiracy against me. It is only by proving the guilt of the
+Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth that I can establish my
+innocence, and so far I am powerless to do so.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite’s face brightened with supreme joy. “Then I can
+serve you, in my turn, my only love,” she exclaimed. “Ah! blessed be God
+who inspired me, and who thus rewards me for an hour of courage. My
+poor father’s plan also occurred to me, Pascal. Was it not strange? The
+material proof of your innocence which you have sought for in vain, is
+in my possession, written and signed by the Marquis de Valorsay. Like
+M. de Fondege, he believes that the letter which proves his guilt is
+annihilated. He burned it himself, and yet it exists.” So saying, she
+drew from her bosom one of the copies which she had received from Carjat
+the photographer, and handed it to Pascal, adding, “Look!”
+
+Pascal eagerly perused the marvellous facsimile of the letter which the
+marquis had written to Madame Leon. “Ah! this is the scoundrel’s death
+warrant.” he exclaimed, exultantly. And approaching Madame Ferailleur,
+who still stood leaning against the door, silent and motionless: “Look,
+mother,” he repeated, “look!”
+
+And he pointed to this paragraph which was so convincing and so
+explicit, that the most exacting jury would have asked for no further
+evidence. “I have formed a plan which will completely efface all
+remembrance of that cursed P. F., in case any one could condescend to
+think of him, after the disgrace we fastened upon him the other evening
+at the house of Madame d’A----.”
+
+“Nor is this all,” resumed Mademoiselle Marguerite. “There are other
+letters which will prove that this plot was the marquis’s work and which
+give the name of his accomplice, Coralth. And these letters are in the
+possession of a man of dubious integrity, who was once the marquis’s
+ally, but who has now become his enemy. He is known as Isidore Fortunat,
+and lives in the Place de la Bourse.”
+
+Marguerite felt that Madame Ferailleur’s keen glance was riveted
+upon her. She intuitively divined what was passing in the mind of
+the puritanical old lady, and realized that her whole future, and the
+happiness of her entire wedded life, depended upon her conduct at that
+moment. So, desirous of making a full confession, she hastily exclaimed:
+“My conduct may have seemed strange in a young girl, Pascal. A timid,
+inexperienced girl, who had been carefully kept from all knowledge of
+life and evil, would have been crushed by such a burden of disgrace,
+and could only have wept and prayed. I did weep and pray; but I also
+struggled and fought. In the hour of peril I found myself endowed with
+some of the courage and energy which distinguished the poor women of the
+people among whom I formerly earned my bread. The teachings and miseries
+of the past were not lost to me!” And as simply as if she were telling
+the most natural thing in the world, she described the struggle she had
+undertaken against the world, strong in her faith in Pascal and in his
+love.
+
+“Ah, you are a noble and courageous girl!” exclaimed Madame Ferailleur.
+“You are worthy of my son, and you will proudly guard our honest name!”
+
+For some little time already the obstinate old lady had been struggling
+against the sympathetic emotion that filled her heart, and big tears
+were coursing down her wrinkled cheeks.
+
+Unable to restrain herself any longer, she now threw both arms around
+Marguerite’s neck, and drew her toward her in a long embrace, murmuring:
+“Marguerite, my daughter! Ah! how unjust my prejudices were!”
+
+It might be thought that Pascal was transported with joy on hearing
+this, but no: the lines of care on his forehead deepened, as he said:
+“Happiness is so near! Why must a final test, another humiliation,
+separate us from it?”
+
+But Marguerite now felt strong enough to meet even martyrdom with a
+smile. “Speak, Pascal!” said she, “don’t you see that it is almost ten
+o’clock?”
+
+He hesitated; there was grief in his eyes and his breath came quick and
+hard, as he resumed: “For your sake and mine, we must conquer, at any
+price. This is the only reason that can justify the horrible expedient
+I have to suggest. M. de Valorsay, as you know, has boasted of his power
+to overcome your resistance, and he really believes that he possesses
+this power. Why I have not killed him again and again when he has been
+at my mercy, I can scarcely understand. The only thing that gave me
+power to restrain myself was my desire for as sure, as terrible, and
+as public a revenge as the humiliation he inflicted on me. His plan for
+your ruin is such as only a scoundrel like himself could conceive.
+With the assistance of his vile tool, Coralth, he has formed a league,
+offensive and defensive, with the son of the Count de Chalusse’s sister,
+who is the only acknowledged heir at this moment--a young man destitute
+of heart and intelligence, and inordinately vain, but neither better nor
+worse than many others who figure respectably in society. His name is
+Wilkie Gordon. The marquis has acquired great influence over him,
+and has persuaded him that it is his duty to denounce you to the
+authorities. He has, in short, accused you of defrauding the heirs of
+the Chalusse estate of two millions of francs and also of poisoning the
+count.”
+
+The girl shrugged her shoulders disdainfully. “As for the robbery,
+we have an answer to that,” she answered, “and as regards the
+poisoning--really the accusation is too absurd!”
+
+But Pascal still looked gloomy. “The matter is more serious than you
+suppose,” he replied. “They have found a physician--a vile, cowardly
+scoundrel--who for a certain sum has consented to appear in support of
+the accusation.”
+
+“Dr. Jodon, I presume!”
+
+“Yes; and this is not all. The count’s escritoire contains the vial
+of medicine of which he drank a portion on the day of his death. Well,
+to-morrow night, Madame Leon will open the garden gate of the Hotel de
+Chalusse and admit a rascal who will abstract the vial.”
+
+Marguerite shuddered. Now she understood the fiendish cunning of the
+plot. “It might ruin me!” she murmured.
+
+Pascal nodded affirmatively. “M. de Valorsay wishes you to consider
+yourself as irretrievably lost, and then he intends to offer to save you
+on condition that you consent to marry him. I should say, however, that
+M. Wilkie is ignorant of the atrocious projects he is abetting. They are
+known only to the marquis and M. de Coralth; and it is I who, under the
+name of Maumejan, act as their adviser. It was to me that the marquis
+sent M. Wilkie for assistance in drawing up this accusation. I myself
+wrote out the denunciation, which was as terrible and as formidable as
+our bitterest enemy could possibly desire, combining, as it did, with
+perfidious art, the reports of the valets and the suspicions of the
+physician, and establishing the connection between the robbery and the
+murder. It finished by demanding a thorough investigation. And M. Wilkie
+copied and signed this document, and carried it to the prosecution
+office himself.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite sank half-fainting into an arm-chair. “You have
+done this!” she faltered.
+
+“It was necessary, my daughter,” whispered Madame Ferailleur.
+
+“Yes, it was necessary, absolutely necessary,” repeated Pascal, “as
+you will see. Justice, which is a human institution, and limited in its
+powers, cannot fathom motives, read thoughts, or interfere with plans,
+however abominable they may be, or however near realization. Before it
+can interfere, the law must have material, tangible proof, convincing
+to the senses. Until you are arrested, the crimes committed by M. de
+Valorsay, and those associated with him, do not come within the reach
+of human justice; but as soon as you are in prison, I can hasten to
+our friend the justice of the peace, and we shall go at once to
+the investigating magistrate and explain everything. Now, when your
+innocence and the guilt of your accusers have been established, what
+do you fancy the authorities will do? They will wait until your enemies
+declare themselves, in order to capture them all at once, and prevent
+the escape of a single one. To-morrow night some clever detectives will
+watch the Hotel de Chalusse, and just as Madame Leon and the wretch with
+her think themselves sure of success, they will be caught in the
+very act and arrested. When they are examined by a magistrate, who
+is conversant with the whole affair, can they deny their guilt? No;
+certainly not. Acting upon their confession, the authorities will force
+an entrance into Valorsay’s house, where they will find your father’s
+will and the receipt given by M. de Fondege--in a word, all the proofs
+of their guilt. And while this search is going on, all your enemies,
+reassured by your arrest, will be at a grand soiree given by Baron
+Trigault. I shall be there as well.”
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had mastered her momentary weakness. She rose to
+her feet, and in a firm voice exclaimed: “You have acted rightly.”
+
+“Ah! there was no other way. And yet I wished to see you, to learn if
+this course were too repugnant to you.”
+
+She interrupted him with a gesture. “When shall I be arrested?” she
+asked, quietly.
+
+“This evening or to-morrow.” was his answer.
+
+“Very well! I have only one request to make. The Fondeges have a son who
+has no hand in the affair, but who will be more severely punished than
+his parents, if we do not spare them. Could you not----”
+
+“I can do nothing, Marguerite. I am powerless now.”
+
+Everything was soon arranged. Marguerite raised her forehead to Pascal
+for his parting kiss, and went away accompanied by Madame Ferailleur,
+who escorted her to the corner of the Rue Boursault. The General and his
+wife had returned home in advance of Marguerite. She found them sitting
+in the drawing-room, with distorted faces and teeth chattering with
+fear. With them was a bearded man who, as soon as she appeared,
+exclaimed:
+
+“You are Mademoiselle Marguerite, are you not? I arrest you in the name
+of the law. There is my warrant.” And without more ado he led her away.
+
+
+
+
+XX.
+
+
+Money, which nowadays has taken the place of the good fairies of former
+times, had gratified M. Wilkie’s every longing in a single night.
+Without any period of transition, dreamlike as it were, he had passed
+from what he called “straitened circumstances” to the splendid enjoyment
+of a princely fortune. Madame d’Argeles’s renunciation had been
+so correctly drawn up, that as soon as he presented his claims and
+displayed his credentials he was placed in possession of the Chalusse
+estate. It is true that a few trifling difficulties presented
+themselves. For instance, the old justice of the peace who had affixed
+the seals refused to remove them from certain articles of furniture,
+especially from the late count’s escritoire, without an order from the
+court, and several days were needed to obtain this. But what did that
+matter to M. Wilkie? The house, with its splendid reception-rooms,
+pictures, statuary and gardens, was at his disposal, and he installed
+himself therein at once. Twenty horses neighed and stamped in his
+stables; there were at least a dozen carriages in the coach-house. He
+devoted his attention exclusively to the horses and vehicles; but acting
+upon the advice of Casimir, who had become his valet and oracle, he
+retained all the former servants of the house, from Bourigeau the
+concierge down to the humblest scullery maid. Still, he gave them
+to understand that this was only a temporary arrangement. A man like
+himself, living in this progressive age, could scarcely be expected to
+content himself with what had satisfied the Count de Chalusse. “For I
+have my plans,” he remarked to Casimir, “but let Paris wait awhile.”
+
+He repudiated his former friends. Costard and Serpillon, pretended
+viscounts though they were, were quite beneath the notice of a
+Gordon-Chalusse, as M. Wilkie styled himself on his visiting cards.
+However, he purchased their share of Pompier de Nanterre, feeling
+convinced that this remarkable steeplechaser had a brilliant future
+before him. He did not trouble himself to any great extent about his
+mother. Like every one else, he knew that she had disappeared, but
+nothing further. On the other hand, the thought of his father, the
+terrible chevalier d’industrie, hung over his joy like a pall; and each
+time the great entrance bell announced a visitor, he trembled, turned
+pale, and muttered: “Perhaps it’s he!”
+
+Tortured by this fear, he clung closely to the Marquis de Valorsay as if
+he felt that this distinguished friend was a powerful support. Besides,
+people of rank and distinction naturally exercised a powerful attraction
+over him, and he fancied he grew several inches taller when, in some
+public place, in the street, or a restaurant, he was able to call out,
+“I say, Valorsay, my good friend,” or, “Upon my word! my dear marquis!”
+
+M. de Valorsay received these effusions graciously enough, although,
+in point of fact, he was terribly bored by the platitudes of his new
+acquaintance. He intended to send him to Coventry later on, but just now
+M. Wilkie was too useful to be ignored. So he had introduced him to his
+club, and was seen with him everywhere--in the Bois, at the restaurants,
+and the theatres. At times, some of his friends inquired: “Who is that
+queer little fellow?” with a touch of irony in their tone, but when
+the marquis carelessly answered: “A poor devil who has just come into
+possession of a property worth twenty millions!” they became serious,
+and requested the pleasure and honor of an introduction to this
+fortunate young man.
+
+So M. de Valorsay had invited Gordon-Chalusse to accompany him to Baron
+Trigault’s approaching fete. It was to be an entertainment for gentlemen
+only, a monster card-party; but every one knew the wealthy baron, and
+no doubt with a view of stimulating curiosity he had declared, and
+the Figaro had repeated, that he had a great surprise in store for his
+guests. Oh! such a surprise! They could have no idea what it was! This
+fete was to take place on the second day after Mademoiselle Marguerite’s
+arrest; and on the appointed evening, between nine and ten o’clock,
+M. de Valorsay and his friend Coralth sat together in the former’s
+smoking-room waiting for Wilkie to call for them, as had been
+agreed upon. They were both in the best of spirits. The viscount’s
+apprehensions had been entirely dispelled; and the marquis had quite
+forgotten the twinges of pain in his injured limb. “Marguerite will only
+leave prison to marry me,” said M. de Valorsay, triumphantly; and he
+added: “What a willing tool this Wilkie is! A single word sufficed to
+make him give all his servants leave of absence. The Hotel de Chalusse
+will be deserted, and Madame Leon and Vantrasson can operate at their
+leisure.”
+
+It was ten o’clock when M. Wilkie made his appearance. “Come, my good
+friends!” said he, “my carriage is below.”
+
+They started off at once, and five minutes later they were ushered into
+the presence of Baron Trigault, who received M. Wilkie as if he had
+never seen him before. There was quite a crowd already. At least three
+or four hundred people had assembled in the Baron’s reception-rooms, and
+among them were several former habitues of Madame d’Argeles’s house;
+one could also espy M. de Fondege ferociously twirling his mustaches
+as usual, together with Kami-Bey, who was conspicuous by reason of
+his portly form and eternal red fez. However, among these men, all
+noticeable for their studied elegance of attire and manner, and all
+of them known to M. de Valorsay, there moved numerous others of very
+different appearance. Their waistcoats were less open, and their clothes
+did not fit them as perfectly; on the other hand, there was something
+else than a look of idiotic self-complacency on their faces. “Who can
+these people be?” whispered the marquis to M. de Coralth. “They look
+like lawyers or magistrates.” But although he said this he did not
+really believe it, and it was without the slightest feeling of anxiety
+that he strolled from group to group, shaking hands with his friends and
+introducing M. Wilkie.
+
+A strange rumor was in circulation among the guests. Many of them
+declared--where could they have heard such a thing?--that in consequence
+of a quarrel with her husband, Madame Trigault had left Paris the
+evening before. They even went so far as to repeat her parting words to
+the Baron: “You will never see me again,” she had said. “You are amply
+avenged. Farewell!” However, the best informed among the guests, the
+folks who were thoroughly acquainted with all the scandals of the day,
+declared the story false, and said that if the baroness had really fled,
+handsome Viscount de Coralth would not appear so calm and smiling.
+
+The report WAS true, however. But M. de Coralth did not trouble himself
+much about the baroness now. Had he not got in his pocket M. Wilkie’s
+signature insuring him upward of half a million? Standing near one of
+the windows in the main reception-room, between the Marquis de Valorsay
+and M. Wilkie, the brilliant viscount was gayly chatting with them,
+when a footman, in a voice loud enough to interrupt all conversation,
+suddenly announced: “M. Maumejan!”
+
+It seemed such a perfectly natural thing to M. de Valorsay that
+Maumejan, as one of the baron’s business agents, should be received at
+his house, that he was not in the least disturbed. But M. de Coralth,
+having heard the name, wished to see the man who had aided and advised
+the marquius so effectually. He abruptly turned, and as he did so the
+words he would have spoken died upon his lips. He became livid, his eyes
+seemed to start from their sockets, and it was with difficulty that he
+ejaculated: “He!”
+
+“Who?” inquired the astonished marquis.
+
+“Look!”
+
+M. de Valorsay did so, and to his utter amazement he perceived a
+numerous party in the rear of the man announced under the name of
+Maumejan. First came Mademoiselle Marguerite, leaning on the arm of the
+white-haired magistrate, and then Madame Ferailleur; next M. Isidore
+Fortunat, and finally Chupin--Victor Chupin, resplendent in a handsome,
+bran-new, black dress-suit.
+
+The marquis could no longer fail to understand the truth. He realized
+who Maumejan really was, and the audacious comedy he had been duped by.
+He was so frightfully agitated that five or six persons sprang forward
+exclaiming: “What is the matter, marquis? Are you ill?” But he made
+no reply. He felt that he was caught in a trap, and he glanced wildly
+around him seeking for some loophole of escape.
+
+However, the word of command had evidently been given. Suddenly all the
+guests scattered about the various drawing-rooms poured into the main
+hall, and the doors were closed. Then, with a solemnity of manner
+which no one had ever seen him display before, Baron Trigault took
+the so-called Maumejan by the hand and led him into the centre of the
+apartment opposite the lofty chimney-piece. “Gentlemen,” he began, in
+a commanding tone, “this is M. Pascal Ferailleur, the honorable man who
+was falsely accused of cheating at cards at Madame d’Argeles’s house.
+You owe him a hearing.”
+
+Pascal was greatly agitated. The strangeness of the situation, the
+certainty of speedy and startling rehabilitation, perhaps the joy of
+vengeance, the silence, which was so profound that he could hear his
+own panting breath, and the many eyes riveted upon him, all combined to
+unnerve him. But only for a moment. He swiftly conquered his weakness,
+and surveying his audience with flashing eyes, he explained, in a clear
+and ringing voice, the shameful conspiracy to obtain possession of the
+count’s millions, and the abominable machinations by which Mademoiselle
+Marguerite and himself had been victimized. Then when he had finished
+his explanations he added, in a still more commanding voice, “Now look;
+you can read the culprits’ guilt on their faces. One is the scoundrel
+known to you as the Viscount de Coralth, but Paul Violaine is his true
+name. He was formerly an accomplice of the notorious Mascarot; he is a
+cowardly villain, for he is married, and leaves his wife and children to
+die of starvation!” The Viscount de Coralth fairly bellowed with rage.
+But Pascal did not heed him. “The other criminal is the Marquis de
+Valorsay,” he added, in the same ringing tone. There was, moreover, a
+third culprit who would have inspired mingled pity and disgust if any
+one had noticed him shrinking into a corner, terrified and muttering:
+“It wasn’t my fault, my wife compelled me to do it!” This was General de
+Fondege.
+
+Pascal did not mention his name. But it was not absolutely necessary
+he should do so, and besides, he remembered Marguerite’s entreaty
+respecting the son.
+
+However, while the young lawyer was speaking, the marquis had summoned
+all his energy and assurance to his aid. Desperate as his plight
+might be, he would not surrender. “This is an infamous conspiracy,” he
+exclaimed. “Baron, you shall atone for this. The man’s an impostor!--he
+lies!--all that he says is false!”
+
+“Yes, it is false!” echoed M. de Coralth.
+
+But a clamor arose, drowning these protestations, and the most
+opprobrious epithets could be heard on every side.
+
+“How will you prove your assertion?” cried M. de Valorsay.
+
+“Don’t try that dodge on us!” shouted Chupin. “Vantrasson and mother
+Leon have confessed everything.”
+
+“Who defrauded us all with Domingo?” cried several people; and, loud
+above all the others, Kami-Bey bawled out: “To say nothing of the fact
+that the sale of your racing stud was a complete swindle!”
+
+Meanwhile, Pascal’s former friends and associates, his brother advocates
+and the magistrates who had listened to his first efforts at the
+bar, crowded round him, pressing his hands, embracing him almost to
+suffocation, censuring themselves for having suspected him, the very
+soul of honor, and pleading in self-justification the degenerate age in
+which we live--an age in which we daily see those whom we had considered
+immaculate suddenly yield to temptation. And a murmur of respectful
+admiration rose from the throng when the excitement had subsided a
+little, and the guests had an opportunity to observe Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, whose eyes sparkled more brightly than ever through her
+happy tears; and whose beauty acquired an almost sublime expression from
+her deep emotion.
+
+The wretched Valorsay felt that all was over--that he was irretrievably
+lost. Seized by a blind fury like that which impels a hunted animal
+to turn and face the hounds that pursue him, and bid them defiance, he
+confronted the throng with his face distorted with passion, his eyes
+bloodshot, and foam upon his lips; he was absolutely frightful in his
+cynicism, hatred, and scorn. “Ah! well, yes!” he exclaimed--“yes, all
+that you have just heard is true. I was sinking, and I tried to save
+myself as best I could. Beggars cannot be choosers; I staked my all upon
+a single die. If I had won, you would have been at my feet; but I have
+lost and you spurn me. Cowards! hypocrites! that you are, insult me if
+you like, but tell me how many among you all are sufficiently pure and
+upright to have a right to despise me! Are there a hundred among you?
+are there even fifty?”
+
+A tempest of hisses momentarily drowned his voice, but as soon as the
+uproar had ceased, he resumed, sneeringly: “Ah! the truth wounds you, my
+dear friends. Pray, don’t pretend to be so distressingly virtuous! I
+was ruined--that is the long and short of it. But what man of you is not
+embarrassed? Who among you finds his income sufficient? Which one of you
+is not encroaching upon his capital? And when you have come to your last
+louis, you will do what I have done, or something worse. Do not deny it,
+for not one among you has a more uncompromising conscience, more moral
+firmness, or more generous aspirations than I once possessed. You are
+pursuing what I pursued. You desire what I desired--a life of luxury,
+brief if it must be, but happy--a life of gayety, wild excitement,
+and dissipation. You, too, have a passion for pleasure and gambling,
+race-horses, and notorious women, a table always bountifully spread,
+glasses ever overflowing with wine, all the delights of luxury, and
+everything that gratifies your vanity! But an abyss of shame awaits you
+at the end of it all. I am in it now. I await you there, for there you
+will surely, necessarily, inevitably come. Ah, ha! you will not then
+think my downfall so very strange. Let me pass! make way! if you
+please.”
+
+He advanced with his head haughtily erect, and would actually have
+made his escape if a frightened servant had not at that moment appeared
+crying: “Monsieur--Monsieur le Baron! a commissary of police is
+downstairs. He is coming up. He has a warrant!”
+
+The marquis’s frenzied assurance deserted him. He turned even paler
+than he already was if that were possible, and reeled like an ox
+but partially stunned by the butcher’s hammer. Suddenly a desperate
+resolution could be read in his eyes, the resolution of the condemned
+criminal, who, knowing that he cannot escape the scaffold, ascends it
+with a firm step.
+
+He hastily approached Baron Trigault, and asked in a husky voice: “Will
+you allow me to be arrested in your house, baron? me--a Valorsay!”
+
+It might have been supposed that the baron had expected this reproach,
+for without a word he led the marquis and M. de Coralth to a little room
+at the end of the hall, pushed them inside, and closed the door again.
+
+It was time he did so, for the commissary of police was already upon
+the threshold. “Which of you gentlemen is the Marquis de Valorsay?” he
+asked. “Which of you is Paul Violaine, alias the Viscount de----”
+
+The sharp report of firearms suddenly interrupted him. Every one at once
+rushed to the little room, where the wretched men had been conducted.
+There extended, face upward, on the floor, lay the Marquis de Valorsay,
+with his brains oozing from his fractured skull, and his right hand
+still clutching a revolver. He was dead. “And the other!” cried the
+throng; “the other!”
+
+The open window, and a curtain rudely torn from its fastenings and
+secured to the balustrade, told how M. de Coralth had made his escape.
+It was not till later that people learned what precautions the baron
+had taken. On the table in that room he had laid two revolvers, and
+two packages containing ten thousand francs each. The viscount had not
+hesitated.
+
+* * * * *
+
+Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse were married
+at the church of Saint Etienne du Mont, only a few steps from the Rue
+d’Ulm. Those who knew the mystery connected with the bride’s parentage
+were greatly astonished when they saw Baron Trigault act as a witness on
+this occasion, in company with the venerable justice of the peace. But
+such was the fact, nevertheless. Treated more and more outrageously by
+his daughter and her husband, separated from his wife, who had nearly
+lost her reason, although her letters were saved, the baron has nowadays
+found affection and a home with Pascal and his wife. He plays cards but
+seldom now--only an occasional game of piquet with Madame Ferailleur,
+and he amuses himself by making her start when she is too long in
+discarding, by ejaculating, in a stentorian voice: “We are wasting
+precious time!” Sometimes they go out together, to the great
+astonishment of such as chance to meet the puritanical old lady leaning
+on the baron’s arm. She often goes to visit and console the widow
+Gordon, formerly known as Lia d’Argeles, who now keeps an establishment
+near Montrouge, where she provides poor, betrayed and forsaken girls
+with a home and employment. She has yet to receive any token of
+remembrance from her son. As for her husband, she supposes he is dead or
+incarcerated in some prison.
+
+It is to Madame Gordon that the Fondeges are often indebted for bread.
+Obliged to disgorge their plunder, and left with no resources save the
+fifty francs a month allowed them by their son, who has been promoted
+to the rank of captain, their poverty is necessarily extreme. Oh! those
+Fondeges! M. Fortunat only speaks of them with horror. But he is loud
+in his praises of Madame Marguerite, who repaid him the forty thousand
+francs he had advanced to M. de Valorsay. He speaks in the highest terms
+of Chupin also; but in this, he is scarcely sincere, for Victor, who
+has been set up in business by Pascal, told him very plainly that he
+was determined not to put his hand to any more dirty work, and that
+expression, “dirty work,” rankles in M. Fortunat’s heart.
+
+Chupin’s resolution did not, however, prevent him from attending the
+trial of Vantrasson and Madame Leon--the former of whom was sentenced to
+hard labor for life, and the latter to ten years’ imprisonment. Nothing
+is known concerning M. de Coralth; but his wife has disappeared, to
+the great disappointment of M. Mouchon. As a dentist, Dr. Jodon is
+successful. As for M. Wilkie, you can learn anything you wish to
+know concerning him in the newspapers, for his sayings, doings, and
+movements, are constantly being chronicled. The reporters exhaust all
+the resources of their vocabulary in describing his horses, carriages,
+and stables, and the gorgeous liveries of his servants. His changes of
+residence are always mentioned; his brilliant sayings are quoted. He
+is a social success; he is admired, fondled, and flattered. He makes a
+great stir in the fashionable world--in fact, he reigns over it like a
+king. After all, assurance is the winning card in the game of life!
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg’s Baron Trigault’s Vengeance, by Emile Gaboriau
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+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Baron Trigault's Vengeance, by Emile Gaboriau
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Baron Trigault's Vengeance
+       Volume 2 (of 2)
+
+Author: Emile Gaboriau
+
+Release Date: July 1, 2008 [EBook #547]
+Last Updated: September 24, 2016
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BARON TRIGAULT'S VENGEANCE ***
+
+
+Produced by David Widger
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <h1>
+      BARON TRIGAULT&rsquo;S VENGEANCE
+    </h1>
+    <p>
+      <br />
+    </p>
+    <h2>
+      by Emile Gaboriau
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <h4>
+      A Sequel to<br /> <a
+      href="http://www.gutenberg.org/files/305/305-h/305-h.htm">"The Count&rsquo;s
+      Millions"</a>
+    </h4>
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <blockquote>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <big><b>CONTENTS</b></big>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#linkveng"><b>BARON TRIGAULT&rsquo;S VENGEANCE</b></a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> I </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0002"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> III. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0004"> IV. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0005"> V. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0006"> VI. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0007"> VII. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0008"> VIII. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0009"> IX </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0010"> X. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0011"> XI. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0012"> XII. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0013"> XIII. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0014"> XIV. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0015"> XV. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0016"> XVI. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0017"> XVII. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0018"> XVIII. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0019"> XIX </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0020"> XX. </a>
+      </p>
+    </blockquote>
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /><a name="linkveng" id="linkveng"></a> <br />
+    </p>
+    <h2>
+      BARON TRIGAULT&rsquo;S VENGEANCE
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br /> <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <h2>
+      I
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Vengeance! that is the first, the only thought, when a man finds himself
+      victimized, when his honor and fortune, his present and future, are
+      wrecked by a vile conspiracy! The torment he endures under such
+      circumstances can only be alleviated by the prospect of inflicting them a
+      hundredfold upon his persecutors. And nothing seems impossible at the
+      first moment, when hatred surges in the brain, and the foam of anger rises
+      to the lips; no obstacle seems insurmountable, or, rather, none are
+      perceived. But later, when the faculties have regained their equilibrium,
+      one can measure the distance which separates the dream from reality, the
+      project from execution. And on setting to work, how many discouragements
+      arise! The fever of revolt passes by, and the victim wavers. He still
+      breathes bitter vengeance, but he does not act. He despairs, and asks
+      himself what would be the good of it? And in this way the success of
+      villainy is once more assured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Similar despondency attacked Pascal Ferailleur when he awoke for the first
+      time in the abode where he had hidden himself under the name of Maumejan.
+      A frightful slander had crushed him to the earth&mdash;he could kill his
+      slanderer, but afterward&mdash;? How was he to reach and stifle the
+      slander itself? As well try to hold a handful of water; as well try to
+      stay with extended arms the progress of the poisonous breeze which wafts
+      an epidemic on its wings. So the hope that had momentarily lightened his
+      heart faded away again. Since he had received that fatal letter from
+      Madame Leon the evening before, he believed that Marguerite was lost to
+      him forever, and in this case, it was useless to struggle against fate.
+      What would be the use of victory even if he conquered? Marguerite lost to
+      him&mdash;what did the rest matter? Ah! if he had been alone in the world.
+      But he had his mother to think of;&mdash;he belonged to this brave-hearted
+      woman, who had saved him from suicide already. &ldquo;I will not yield, then; I
+      will struggle on for her sake,&rdquo; he muttered, like a man who foresees the
+      futility of his efforts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He rose, and had nearly finished dressing, when he heard a rap at his
+      chamber door. &ldquo;It is I, my son,&rdquo; said Madame Ferailleur outside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal hastened to admit her. &ldquo;I have come for you because the woman you
+      spoke about last evening is already here, and before employing her, I want
+      your advice.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then the woman doesn&rsquo;t please you, mother?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I want you to see her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On entering the little parlor with his mother, Pascal found himself in the
+      presence of a portly, pale-faced woman, with thin lips and restless eyes,
+      who bowed obsequiously. It was indeed Madame Vantrasson, the landlady of
+      the model lodging-house, who was seeking employment for the three or four
+      hours which were at her disposal in the morning, she said. It certainly
+      was not for pleasure that she had decided to go out to service again; her
+      dignity suffered terribly by this fall&mdash;but then the stomach has to
+      be cared for. Tenants were not numerous at the model lodging-house, in
+      spite of its seductive title; and those who slept there occasionally,
+      almost invariably succeeded in stealing something. Nor did the grocery
+      store pay; the few half-pence which were left there occasionally in
+      exchange for a glass of liquor were pocketed by Vantrasson, who spent them
+      at some neighboring establishment; for it is a well-known fact that the
+      wine a man drinks in his own shop is always bitter in flavor. So, having
+      no credit at the butcher&rsquo;s or the baker&rsquo;s, Madame Vantrasson was sometimes
+      reduced to living for days together upon the contents of the shop&mdash;mouldy
+      figs or dry raisins&mdash;which she washed down with torrents of ratafia,
+      her only consolation here below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But this was not a satisfying diet, as she was forced to confess; so she
+      decided to find some work, that would furnish her with food and a little
+      money, which she vowed she would never allow her worthy husband to see.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What would you charge per month?&rdquo; inquired Pascal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She seemed to reflect, and after a great deal of counting on her fingers,
+      she finally declared that she would be content with breakfast and fifteen
+      francs a month, on condition she was allowed to do the marketing. The
+      first question of French cooks, on presenting themselves for a situation,
+      is almost invariably, &ldquo;Shall I do the marketing?&rdquo; which of course means,
+      &ldquo;Shall I have any opportunities for stealing?&rdquo; Everybody knows this, and
+      nobody is astonished at it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shall do the marketing myself,&rdquo; declared Madame Ferailleur, boldly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then I shall want thirty francs a month,&rdquo; replied Madame Vantrasson,
+      promptly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal and his mother exchanged glances. They were both unfavorably
+      impressed by this woman, and were equally determined to rid themselves of
+      her, which it was easy enough to do. &ldquo;Too dear!&rdquo; said Madame Ferailleur;
+      &ldquo;I have never given over fifteen francs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame Vantrasson was not the woman to be easily discouraged,
+      especially as she knew that if she failed to obtain this situation, she
+      might have considerable difficulty in finding another one. She could only
+      hope to obtain employment from strangers and newcomers, who were ignorant
+      of the reputation of the model lodging-house. So in view of softening the
+      hearts of Pascal and his mother, she began to relate the history of her
+      life, skilfully mingling the false with the true, and representing herself
+      as an unfortunate victim of circumstances, and the inhuman cruelty of
+      relatives. For she belonged, like her husband, to a very respectable
+      family, as the Maumejans might easily ascertain by inquiry. Vantrasson&rsquo;s
+      sister was the wife of a man named Greloux, who had once been a bookbinder
+      in the Rue Saint-Denis, but who had now retired from business with a
+      competency. &ldquo;Why had this Greloux refused to save them from bankruptcy?
+      Because one could never hope for a favor from relatives,&rdquo; she groaned;
+      &ldquo;they are jealous if you succeed; and if you are unfortunate, they cast
+      you off.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      However, these doleful complaints, far from rendering Madame Vantrasson
+      interesting, imparted a deceitful and most disagreeable expression to her
+      countenance. &ldquo;I told you that I could only give fifteen francs,&rdquo;
+       interrupted Madame Ferailleur&mdash;&ldquo;take it or leave it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Vantrasson protested. She expressed her willingness to deduct five
+      francs from the sum she had named, but more&mdash;it was impossible! Would
+      they haggle over ten francs to secure such a treasure as herself, an
+      honest, settled woman, who was entirely devoted to her employers?
+      &ldquo;Besides, I have been a grand cook in my time,&rdquo; she added, &ldquo;and I have not
+      lost all my skill. Monsieur and madame would be delighted with my cooking,
+      for I have seen more than one fine gentleman smack his lips over my sauces
+      when was in the employment of the Count de Chalusse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal and his mother could not repress a start on hearing this name; but
+      it was in a tone of well-assumed indifference that Madame Ferailleur
+      repeated, &ldquo;M. de Chalusse?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, madame&mdash;a count&mdash;and so rich that he didn&rsquo;t know how much
+      he was worth. If he were still alive I shouldn&rsquo;t be compelled to go out to
+      service again. But he&rsquo;s dead and he&rsquo;s to be buried this very day.&rdquo; And
+      with an air of profound secrecy, she added: &ldquo;On going yesterday to the
+      Hotel de Chalusse to ask for a little help, I heard of the great
+      misfortune. Vantrasson, my husband, accompanied me, and while we were
+      talking with the concierge, a young woman passed through the hall, and he
+      recognized her as a person who some time ago was&mdash;well&mdash;no
+      better than she should be. Now, however, she&rsquo;s a young lady as lofty as
+      the clouds, and the deceased count has been passing her off as his
+      daughter. Ah! this is a strange world.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal had become whiter than the ceiling. His eyes blazed; and Madame
+      Ferailleur trembled. &ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;I will give you twenty-five
+      francs&mdash;but on condition you come without complaining if I sometimes
+      require your services of an evening. On these occasions I will give you
+      your dinner.&rdquo; And taking five francs from her pocket she placed them in
+      Madame Vantrasson&rsquo;s hand, adding: &ldquo;Here is your earnest money.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The other quickly pocketed the coin, not a little surprised by this sudden
+      decision which she had scarcely hoped for, and which she by no means
+      understood. Still she was so delighted with this denouement that she
+      expressed her willingness to enter upon her duties at once; and to get rid
+      of her Madame Ferailleur was obliged to send her out to purchase the
+      necessary supplies for breakfast. Then, as soon as she was alone with her
+      son, she turned to him and asked: &ldquo;Well, Pascal?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the wretched man seemed turned to stone, and seeing that he neither
+      spoke nor moved, she continued in a severe tone: &ldquo;Is this the way you keep
+      your resolutions and your oaths! You express your intention of
+      accomplishing a task which requires inexhaustible patience and
+      dissimulation, and at the very first unforeseen circumstance your coolness
+      deserts you, and you lose your head completely. If it had not been for me
+      you would have betrayed yourself in that woman&rsquo;s presence. You must
+      renounce your revenge, and tamely submit to be conquered by the Marquis de
+      Valorsay if your face is to be an open book in which any one may read your
+      secret plans and thoughts.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal shook his head dejectedly. &ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t you hear, mother?&rdquo; he faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hear what?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What that vile woman said? This young lady whom she spoke of, whom her
+      husband recognized, can be none other than Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am sure of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He recoiled in horror. &ldquo;You are sure of it!&rdquo; he repeated; &ldquo;and you can
+      tell me this unmoved&mdash;coldly, as if it were a natural, a possible
+      thing. Didn&rsquo;t you understand the shameful meaning of her insinuations?
+      Didn&rsquo;t you see her hypocritical smile and the malice gleaming in her
+      eyes?&rdquo; He pressed his hands to his burning brow, and groaned &ldquo;And I did
+      not crush the infamous wretch! I did not fell her to the ground!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ah! if she had obeyed the impulse of her heart. Madame Ferailleur would
+      have thrown her arms round her son&rsquo;s neck, and have mingled her tears with
+      his, but reason prevailed. The worthy woman&rsquo;s heart was pervaded with that
+      lofty sentiment of duty which sustains the humble heroines of the
+      fireside, and lends them even more courage than the reckless adventurers
+      whose names are recorded by history could boast of. She felt that Pascal
+      must not be consoled, but spurred on to fresh efforts; and so mustering
+      all her courage, she said: &ldquo;Are you acquainted with Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite&rsquo;s past life? No. You only know that hers has been a life of
+      great vicissitudes&mdash;and so it is not strange that she should be
+      slandered.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In that case, mother,&rdquo; said Pascal, &ldquo;you were wrong to interrupt Madame
+      Vantrasson. She would probably have told us many things.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I interrupted her, it is true, and sent her away&mdash;and you know why.
+      But she is in our service now; and when you are calm, when you have
+      regained your senses, nothing will prevent you from questioning her. It
+      may be useful for you to know who this man Vantrasson is, and how and
+      where he met Mademoiselle Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Shame, sorrow, and rage, brought tears to Pascal&rsquo;s eyes. &ldquo;My God!&rdquo; he
+      exclaimed, &ldquo;to be reduced to the unspeakable misery of hearing my mother
+      doubt Marguerite!&rdquo; He did not doubt her. HE could have listened to the
+      most infamous accusations against her without feeling a single doubt.
+      However, Madame Ferailleur had sufficient self-control to shrug her
+      shoulders. &ldquo;Ah, well! silence this slander,&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;I wish for
+      nothing better; but don&rsquo;t forget that we have ourselves to rehabilitate.
+      To crush your enemies will be far more profitable to Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite than vain threats and weak lamentations. It seemed to me that
+      you had sworn to act, not to complain.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This ironical thrust touched Pascal&rsquo;s sensitive mind to the quick; he rose
+      at once to his feet, and coldly said, &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true. I thank you for having
+      recalled me to myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She made no rejoinder, but mentally thanked God. She had read her son&rsquo;s
+      heart, and perceiving his hesitation and weakness she had supplied the
+      stimulus he needed. Now she saw him as she wished to see him. Now he was
+      ready to reproach himself for his lack of courage and his weakness in
+      displaying his feelings. And as a test of his powers of endurance, he
+      decided not to question Madame Vantrasson till four or five days had
+      elapsed. If her suspicions had been aroused, this delay would suffice to
+      dispel them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He said but little during breakfast; for he was now eager to commence the
+      struggle. He longed to act, and yet he scarcely knew how to begin the
+      campaign. First of all, he must study the enemy&rsquo;s position&mdash;gain some
+      knowledge of the men he had to deal with, find out exactly who the Marquis
+      de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth were. Where could he obtain
+      information respecting these two men? Should he be compelled to follow
+      them and to gather up here and there such scraps of intelligence as came
+      in his way? This method of proceeding would be slow and inconvenient in
+      the extreme. He was revolving the subject in his mind when he suddenly
+      remembered the man who, on the morning that followed the scene at Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s house, had come to him in the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm to give him a proof of
+      his confidence. He remembered that this strange man had said: &ldquo;If you ever
+      need a helping hand, come to me.&rdquo; And at the recollection he made up his
+      mind. &ldquo;I am going to Baron Trigault&rsquo;s,&rdquo; he remarked to his mother; &ldquo;if my
+      presentiments don&rsquo;t deceive me, he will be of service to us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In less than half an hour he was on his way. He had dressed himself in the
+      oldest clothes he possessed; and this, with the change he had made by
+      cutting off his hair and beard, had so altered his appearance that it was
+      necessary to look at him several times, and most attentively, to recognize
+      him. The visiting cards which he carried in his pocket bore the
+      inscription: &ldquo;P. Maumejan, Business Agent, Route de la Revolte.&rdquo; His
+      knowledge of Parisian life had induced him to choose the same profession
+      as M. Fortunat followed&mdash;a profession which opens almost every door.
+      &ldquo;I will enter the nearest cafe and ask for a directory,&rdquo; he said to
+      himself. &ldquo;I shall certainly find Baron Trigault&rsquo;s address in it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron lived in the Rue de la Ville-l&rsquo;Eveque. His mansion was one of
+      the largest and most magnificent in the opulent district of the Madeleine,
+      and its aspect was perfectly in keeping with its owner&rsquo;s character as an
+      expert financier, and a shrewd manufacturer, the possessor of valuable
+      mines. The marvellous luxury so surprised Pascal, that he asked himself
+      how the owner of this princely abode could find any pleasure at the gaming
+      table of the Hotel d&rsquo;Argeles. Five or six footmen were lounging about the
+      courtyard when he entered it. He walked straight up to one of them, and
+      with his hat in his hand, asked: &ldquo;Baron Trigault, if you please?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If he had asked for the Grand Turk the valet would not have looked at him
+      with greater astonishment. His surprise, indeed, seemed so profound that
+      Pascal feared he had made some mistake and added: &ldquo;Doesn&rsquo;t he live here?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The servant laughed heartily. &ldquo;This is certainly his house,&rdquo; he replied,
+      &ldquo;and strange to say, by some fortunate chance, he&rsquo;s here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I wish to speak with him on business.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The servant called one of his colleagues. &ldquo;Eh! Florestan&mdash;is the
+      baron receiving?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The baroness hasn&rsquo;t forbidden it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This seemed to satisfy the footman; for, turning to Pascal he said: &ldquo;In
+      that case, you can follow me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0002" id="link2H_4_0002">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The sumptuous interior of the Trigault mansion was on a par with its
+      external magnificence. Even the entrance bespoke the lavish millionaire,
+      eager to conquer difficulties, jealous of achieving the impossible, and
+      never haggling when his fancies were concerned. The spacious hall, paved
+      with costly mosaics, had been transformed into a conservatory full of
+      flowers, which were renewed every morning. Rare plants climbed the walls
+      up gilded trellis work, or hung from the ceiling in vases of rare old
+      china, while from among the depths of verdure peered forth exquisite
+      statues, the work of sculptors of renown. On a rustic bench sat a couple
+      of tall footmen, as bright in their gorgeous liveries as gold coins fresh
+      from the mint; still, despite their splendor, they were stretching and
+      yawning to such a degree, that it seemed as if they would ultimately
+      dislocate their jaws and arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Tell me,&rdquo; inquired the servant who was escorting Pascal, &ldquo;can any one
+      speak to the baron?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This gentleman has something to say to him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The two valets eyed the unknown visitor, plainly considering him to be one
+      of those persons who have no existence for the menials of fashionable
+      establishments, and finally burst into a hearty laugh. &ldquo;Upon my word!&rdquo;
+       exclaimed the eldest, &ldquo;he&rsquo;s just in time. Announce him, and madame will be
+      greatly obliged to you. She and monsieur have been quarrelling for a good
+      half-hour. And, heavenly powers, isn&rsquo;t he tantalizing!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The most intense curiosity gleamed in the eyes of Pascal&rsquo;s conductor, and
+      with an airy of secrecy, he asked: &ldquo;What is the cause of the rumpus? That
+      Fernand, no doubt&mdash;or some one else?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No; this morning it&rsquo;s about M. Van Klopen.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Madame&rsquo;s dressmaker?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The same. Monsieur and madame were breakfasting together&mdash;a most
+      unusual thing&mdash;when M. Van Klopen made his appearance. I thought to
+      myself, when I admitted him: &lsquo;Look out for storms!&rsquo; I scented one in the
+      air, and in fact the dressmaker hadn&rsquo;t been in the room five minutes
+      before we heard the baron&rsquo;s voice rising higher and higher. I said to
+      myself: &lsquo;Whew! the mantua-maker is presenting his bill!&rsquo; Madame cried and
+      went on like mad; but, pshaw! when the master really begins, there&rsquo;s no
+      one like him. There isn&rsquo;t a cab-driver in Paris who&rsquo;s his equal for
+      swearing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And M. Van Klopen?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, he&rsquo;s used to such scenes! When gentlemen abuse him he does the same
+      as dogs do when they come up out of the water; he just shakes his head and
+      troubles himself no more about it. He has decidedly the best of the row.
+      He has furnished the goods, and he&rsquo;ll have to be paid sooner or later&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! hasn&rsquo;t he been paid then?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know; he&rsquo;s still here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A terrible crash of breaking china interrupted this edifying conversation.
+      &ldquo;There!&rdquo; exclaimed one of the footmen, &ldquo;that&rsquo;s monsieur; he has smashed
+      two or three hundred francs&rsquo; worth of dishes. He MUST be rich to pay such
+      a price for his angry fits.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; observed the other, &ldquo;if I were in monsieur&rsquo;s place I should be
+      angry too. Would you let your wife have her dresses fitted on by a man? I
+      says that it&rsquo;s indecent. I&rsquo;m only a servant, but&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense, it&rsquo;s the fashion. Besides, monsieur does not care about that. A
+      man who&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He stopped short; in fact, the others had motioned him to be silent. The
+      baron was surrounded by exceptional servants, and the presence of a
+      stranger acted as a restraint upon them. For this reason, one of them,
+      after asking Pascal for his card, opened a door and ushered him into a
+      small room, saying: &ldquo;I will go and inform the baron. Please wait here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Here,&rdquo; as he called it, was a sort of smoking-room hung with cashmere of
+      fantastic design and gorgeous hues, and encircled by a low, cushioned
+      divan, covered with the same material. A profusion of rare and costly
+      objects was to be seen on all sides, armor, statuary, pictures, and richly
+      ornamented weapons. But Pascal, already amazed by the conversation of the
+      servants, did not think of examining these objects of virtu. Through a
+      partially open doorway, directly opposite the one he had entered by, came
+      the sound of loud voices in excited conversation. Baron Trigault, the
+      baroness, and the famous Van Klopen were evidently in the adjoining room.
+      It was a woman, the baroness, who was speaking, and the quivering of her
+      clear and somewhat shrill voice betrayed a violent irritation, which was
+      only restrained with the greatest difficulty. &ldquo;It is hard for the wife of
+      one of the richest men in Paris to see a bill for absolute necessities
+      disputed in this style,&rdquo; she was saying.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A man&rsquo;s voice, with a strong Teutonic accent, the voice of Van Klopen, the
+      Hollander, caught up the refrain. &ldquo;Yes, strict necessities, one can swear
+      to that. And if, before flying into a passion, Monsieur le Baron had taken
+      the trouble to glance over my little bill, he would have seen&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No more! You bore me to death. Besides I haven&rsquo;t time to listen to your
+      nonsense; they are waiting for me to play a game of whist at the club.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This time it was the master of the house, Baron Trigault, who spoke, and
+      Pascal recognized his voice instantly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If monsieur would only allow me to read the items. It will take but a
+      moment,&rdquo; rejoined Van Klopen. And as if he had construed the oath that
+      answered him as an exclamation of assent, he began: &ldquo;In June, a Hungarian
+      costume with jacket and sash, two train dresses with upper skirts and
+      trimmings of lace, a Medicis polonaise, a jockey costume, a walking
+      costume, a riding-habit, two morning-dresses, a Velleda costume, an
+      evening dress.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was obliged to attend the races very frequently during the month of
+      June,&rdquo; remarked the baroness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the illustrious adorner of female loveliness had already resumed his
+      reading. &ldquo;In July we have: two morning-jackets, one promenade costume, one
+      sailor suit, one Watteau shepherdess costume, one ordinary bathing-suit,
+      with material for parasol and shoes to match, one Pompadour bathing-suit,
+      one dressing-gown, one close-fitting Medicis mantle, two opera cloaks&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And I was certainly not the most elegantly attired of the ladies at
+      Trouville, where I spent the month of July,&rdquo; interrupted the baroness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There are but few entries in the month of August,&rdquo; continued Van Klopen.
+      &ldquo;We have: a morning-dress, a travelling-dress, with trimmings&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+       And he went on and on, gasping for breath, rattling off the ridiculous
+      names which he gave to his &ldquo;creations,&rdquo; and interrupted every now and then
+      by the blow of a clinched fist on the table, or by a savage oath.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal stood in the smoking-room, motionless with astonishment. He did not
+      know what surprised him the most, Van Klopen&rsquo;s impudence in daring to read
+      such a bill, the foolishness of the woman who had ordered all these
+      things, or the patience of the husband who was undoubtedly going to pay
+      for them. At last, after what seemed an interminable enumeration, Van
+      Klopen exclaimed: &ldquo;And that&rsquo;s all!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, that&rsquo;s all,&rdquo; repeated the baroness, like an echo.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s all!&rdquo; exclaimed the baron&mdash;&ldquo;that&rsquo;s all! That is to say, in
+      four months, at least seven hundred yards of silk, velvet, satin, and
+      muslin, have been put on this woman&rsquo;s back!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The dresses of the present day require a great deal of material. Monsieur
+      le Baron will understand that flounces, puffs, and ruches&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Naturally! Total, twenty-seven thousand francs!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me! Twenty-seven thousand nine hundred and thirty-three francs,
+      ninety centimes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Call it twenty-eight thousand francs then. Ah, well, M. Van Klopen, if
+      you are ever paid for this rubbish it won&rsquo;t be by me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If Van Klopen was expecting this denouement, Pascal wasn&rsquo;t; in fact, he
+      was so startled, that an exclamation escaped him which would have betrayed
+      his presence under almost any other circumstances. What amazed him most
+      was the baron&rsquo;s perfect calmness, following, as it did, such a fit of
+      furious passion, violent enough even to be heard in the vestibule. &ldquo;Either
+      he has extraordinary control over himself or this scene conceals some
+      mystery,&rdquo; thought Pascal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile, the man-milliner continued to urge his claims&mdash;but the
+      baron, instead of replying, only whistled; and wounded by this breach of
+      good manners, Van Klopen at last exclaimed: &ldquo;I have had dealings with all
+      the distinguished men in Europe, and never before did one of them refuse
+      to pay me for his wife&rsquo;s toilettes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well&mdash;I don&rsquo;t pay for them&mdash;there&rsquo;s the difference. Do you
+      suppose that I, Baron Trigault, that I&rsquo;ve worked like a negro for twenty
+      years merely for the purpose of aiding your charming and useful branch of
+      industry? Gather up your papers, Mr. Ladies&rsquo; Tailor. There may be husbands
+      who believe themselves responsible for their wives&rsquo; follies&mdash;it&rsquo;s
+      quite possible there are&mdash;but I&rsquo;m not made of that kind of stuff. I
+      allow Madame Trigault eight thousand francs a month for her toilette&mdash;that
+      is sufficient&mdash;and it is a matter for you and her to arrange
+      together. What did I tell you last year when I paid a bill of forty
+      thousand francs? That I would not be responsible for any more of my wife&rsquo;s
+      debts. And I not only said it, I formally notified you through my private
+      secretary.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I remember, indeed&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then why do you come to me with your bill? It is with my wife that you
+      have opened an account. Apply to her, and leave me in peace.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Madame promised me&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Teach her to keep her promises.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It costs a great deal to retain one&rsquo;s position as a leader of fashion;
+      and many of the most distinguished ladies are obliged to run into debt,&rdquo;
+       urged Van Klopen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s their business. But my wife is not a fine lady. She is simply
+      Madame Trigault, a baroness, thanks to her husband&rsquo;s gold and the
+      condescension of a worthy German prince, who was in want of money. SHE is
+      not a person of consequence&mdash;she has no rank to keep up.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baroness must have attached immense importance to the satisfying of
+      Van Klopen&rsquo;s demands, for concealing the anger this humiliating scene
+      undoubtedly caused her, she condescended to try and explain, and even to
+      entreat. &ldquo;I have been a little extravagant, perhaps,&rdquo; she said; &ldquo;but I
+      will be more prudent in future. Pay, monsieur&mdash;pay just once more.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If not for my sake, for your own.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not a farthing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By the baron&rsquo;s tone, Pascal realized that his wife would never shake his
+      fixed determination. Such must also have been the opinion of the
+      illustrious ruler of fashion, for he returned to the charge with an
+      argument he had held in reserve. &ldquo;If this is the case, I shall, to my
+      great regret, be obliged to fail in the respect I owe to Monsieur le
+      Baron, and to place this bill in the hands of a solicitor.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Send him along&mdash;send him along.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I cannot believe that monsieur wishes a law-suit.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In that you are greatly mistaken. Nothing would please me better. It
+      would at last give me an opportunity to say what I think about your
+      dealings. Do you think that wives are to turn their husbands into machines
+      for supplying money? You draw the bow-string too tightly, my dear fellow&mdash;it
+      will break. I&rsquo;ll proclaim on the house-top what others dare not say, and
+      we&rsquo;ll see if I don&rsquo;t succeed in organizing a little crusade against you.&rdquo;
+       And animated by the sound of his own words, his anger came back to him,
+      and in a louder and ever louder voice he continued: &ldquo;Ah! you prate of the
+      scandal that would be created by my resistance to your demands. That&rsquo;s
+      your system; but, with me, it won&rsquo;t succeed. You threaten me with a
+      law-suit; very good. I&rsquo;ll take it upon myself to enlighten Paris, for I
+      know your secrets, Mr. Dressmaker. I know the goings on in your
+      establishment. It isn&rsquo;t always to talk about dress that ladies stop at
+      your place on returning from the Bois. You sell silks and satins no doubt;
+      but you sell Madeira, and excellent cigarettes as well, and there are some
+      who don&rsquo;t walk very straight on leaving your establishment, but smell
+      suspiciously of tobacco and absinthe. Oh, yes, let us go to law, by all
+      means! I shall have an advocate who will know how to explain the parts
+      your customers pay, and who will reveal how, with your assistance, they
+      obtain money from other sources than their husband&rsquo;s cash-box.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      When M. Van Klopen was addressed in this style, he was not at all pleased.
+      &ldquo;And I!&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;I will tell people that Baron Trigault, after
+      losing all his money at play, repays his creditors with curses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The noise of an overturned chair told Pascal that the baron had sprung up
+      in a furious passion &ldquo;You may say what you like, you rascally fool! but
+      not in my house,&rdquo; he shouted. &ldquo;Leave&mdash;leave, or I will ring&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Monsieur&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Leave, leave, I tell you, or I sha&rsquo;n&rsquo;t have the patience to wait for a
+      servant!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He must have joined action to word, and have seized Van Klopen by the
+      collar to thrust him into the hall, for Pascal heard a sound of scuffling,
+      a series of oaths worthy of a coal-heaver, two or three frightened cries
+      from the baroness, and several guttural exclamations in German. Then a
+      door closed with such violence that the whole house shook, and a
+      magnificent clock, fixed to the wall of the smoking-room, fell on to the
+      floor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If Pascal had not heard this scene, he would have deemed it incredible.
+      How could one suppose that a creditor would leave this princely mansion
+      with his bill unpaid? But more and more clearly he understood that there
+      must be some greater cause of difference between husband and wife than
+      this bill of twenty-eight thousand francs. For what was this amount to a
+      confirmed gambler who, without as much as a frown, gained or lost a
+      fortune every evening of his life. Evidently there was some skeleton in
+      this household&mdash;one of those terrible secrets which make a man and
+      his wife enemies, and all the more bitter enemies as they are bound
+      together by a chain which it is impossible to break. And undoubtedly, a
+      good many of the insults which the baron had heaped upon Van Klopen must
+      have been intended for the baroness. These thoughts darted through
+      Pascal&rsquo;s mind with the rapidity of lightning, and showed him the horrible
+      position in which he was placed. The baron, who had been so favorably
+      disposed toward him, and from whom he was expecting a great service, would
+      undoubtedly hate him, undoubtedly become his enemy, when he learned that
+      he had been a listener, although an involuntary one, to this conversation
+      with Van Klopen. How did it happen that he had been placed in this
+      dangerous position? What had become of the footman who had taken his card?
+      These were questions which he was unable to answer. And what was he to do?
+      If he could have retired noiselessly, if he could have reached the
+      courtyard and have made his escape without being observed he would not
+      have hesitated. But was this plan practicable? And would not his card
+      betray him? Would it not be discovered sooner or later that he had been in
+      the smoking-room while M. Van Klopen was in the dining-room? In any case,
+      delicacy of feeling as well as his own interest forbade him to remain any
+      longer a listener to the private conversation of the baron and his wife.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He therefore noisily moved a chair, and coughed in that affected style
+      which means in every country: &ldquo;Take care&mdash;I&rsquo;m here!&rdquo; But he did not
+      succeed in attracting attention. And yet the silence was profound; he
+      could distinctly hear the creaking of the baron&rsquo;s boots, as he paced to
+      and fro, and the sound of fingers nervously beating a tattoo on the table.
+      If he desired to avoid hearing the confidential conversation, which would
+      no doubt ensue between the baron and his wife, there was but one course
+      for him to pursue, and that was to reveal his presence at once. He was
+      about to do so, when some one opened a door which must have led from the
+      hall into the dining-room. He listened attentively, but only heard a few
+      confused words, to which the baron replied: &ldquo;Very well. That&rsquo;s sufficient.
+      I will see him in a moment.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal breathed freely once more. &ldquo;They have just given him my card,&rdquo; he
+      thought. &ldquo;I can remain now; he will come here in a moment.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron must really have started to leave the room, for his wife
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;One word more: have you quite decided?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, fully!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are resolved to leave me exposed to the persecutions of my
+      dressmaker?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Van Klopen is too charming and polite to cause you the least worry.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You will brave the disgrace of a law-suit?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense! You know very well that he won&rsquo;t bring any action against me&mdash;unfortunately.
+      And, besides, pray tell me where the disgrace would be? I have a foolish
+      wife&mdash;is that my fault? I oppose her absurd extravagance&mdash;haven&rsquo;t
+      I a right to do so? If all husbands were as courageous, we should soon
+      close the establishments of these artful men, who minister to your vanity,
+      and use you ladies as puppets, or living advertisements, to display the
+      absurd fashions which enrich them.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron took two or three more steps forward, as if about to leave the
+      room, but his wife interposed: &ldquo;The Baroness Trigault, whose husband has
+      an income of seven or eight hundred thousand francs a year, can&rsquo;t go about
+      clad like a simple woman of the middle classes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I should see nothing so very improper in that.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, I know. Only your ideas don&rsquo;t coincide with mine. I shall never
+      consent to make myself ridiculous among the ladies of my set&mdash;among
+      my friends.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It would indeed be a pity to arouse the disapproval of your friends.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This sneering remark certainly irritated the baroness, for it was with the
+      greatest vehemence that she replied: &ldquo;All my friends are ladies of the
+      highest rank in society&mdash;noble ladies!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron no doubt shrugged his shoulders, for in a tone of crushing irony
+      and scorn, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Noble ladies! whom do you call noble ladies,
+      pray? The brainless fools who only think of displaying themselves and
+      making themselves notorious?&mdash;the senseless idiots who pique
+      themselves on surpassing lewd women in audacity, extravagance, and
+      effrontery, who fleece their husbands as cleverly as courtesans fleece
+      their lovers? Noble ladies! who drink, and smoke, and carouse, who attend
+      masked balls, and talk slang! Noble ladies! the idiots who long for the
+      applause of the crowd, and consider notoriety to be desirable and
+      flattering. A woman is only noble by her virtues&mdash;and the chief of
+      all virtues, modesty, is entirely wanting in your illustrious friends&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Monsieur,&rdquo; interrupted the baroness, in a voice husky with anger, &ldquo;you
+      forget yourself&mdash;you&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the baron was well under way. &ldquo;If it is scandal that crowns one a
+      great lady, you ARE one&mdash;and one of the greatest; for you are
+      notorious&mdash;almost as notorious as Jenny Fancy. Can&rsquo;t I learn from the
+      newspapers all your sayings and gestures, your amusements, your
+      occupations, and the toilettes you wear? It is impossible to read of a
+      first performance at a theatre, or of a horse-race, without finding your
+      name coupled with that of Jenny Fancy, or Cora Pearl, or Ninette Simplon.
+      I should be a very strange husband indeed, if I wasn&rsquo;t proud and
+      delighted. Ah! you are a treasure to the reporters. On the day before
+      yesterday the Baroness Trigault skated in the Bois. Yesterday she was
+      driving in her pony-carriage. To-day she distinguished herself by her
+      skill at pigeon-shooting. To-morrow she will display herself half nude in
+      some tableaux vivants. On the day after to-morrow she will inaugurate a
+      new style of hair-dressing, and take part in a comedy. It is always the
+      Baroness Trigault who is the observed of all observers at Vincennes. The
+      Baroness Trigault has lost five hundred louis in betting. The Baroness
+      Trigault uses her lorgnette with charming impertinence. It is she who has
+      declared it proper form to take a &lsquo;drop&rsquo; on returning from the Bois. No
+      one is so famed for &lsquo;form,&rsquo; as the baroness&mdash;and silk merchants have
+      bestowed her name upon a color. People rave of the Trigault blue&mdash;what
+      glory! There are also costumes Trigault, for the witty, elegant baroness
+      has a host of admirers who follow her everywhere, and loudly sing her
+      praises. This is what I, a plain, honest man, read every day in the
+      newspapers. The whole world not only knows how my wife dresses, but how
+      she looks en dishabille, and how she is formed; folks are aware that she
+      has an exquisite foot, a divinely-shaped leg, and a perfect hand. No one
+      is ignorant of the fact that my wife&rsquo;s shoulders are of dazzling
+      whiteness, and that high on the left shoulder there is a most enticing
+      little mole. I had the satisfaction of reading this particular last
+      evening. It is charming, upon my word! and I am truly a fortunate man!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In the smoking-room, Pascal could hear the baroness angrily stamp her
+      foot, as she exclaimed: &ldquo;It is an outrageous insult&mdash;your journalists
+      are most impertinent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why? Do they ever trouble honest women?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They wouldn&rsquo;t trouble me if I had a husband who knew how to make them
+      treat me with respect!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron laughed a strident, nervous laugh, which it was not pleasant to
+      hear, and which revealed the fact that intense suffering was hidden
+      beneath all this banter. &ldquo;Would you like me to fight a duel then? After
+      twenty years has the idea of ridding yourself of me occurred to you again?
+      I can scarcely believe it. You know too well that you would receive none
+      of my money, that I have guarded against that. Besides, you would be
+      inconsolable if the newspapers ceased talking about you for a single day.
+      Respect yourself, and you will be respected. The publicity you complain of
+      is the last anchor which prevents society from drifting one knows not
+      where. Those who would not listen to the warning voice of honor and
+      conscience are restrained by the fear of a little paragraph which might
+      disclose their shame. Now that a woman no longer has a conscience, the
+      newspapers act in place of it. And I think it quite right, for it is our
+      only hope of salvation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By the stir in the adjoining room, Pascal felt sure that the baroness had
+      stationed herself before the door to prevent her husband from leaving her.
+      &ldquo;Ah! well, monsieur,&rdquo; she exclaimed, &ldquo;I declare to you that I must have
+      Van Klopen&rsquo;s twenty-eight thousand francs before this evening. I will have
+      them, too; I am resolved to have them, and you will give them to me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; thundered the baron, &ldquo;you WILL have them&mdash;you will&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+       He paused, and then, after a moment&rsquo;s reflection, he said: &ldquo;Very well. So
+      be it! I will give you this amount, but not just now. Still if, as you
+      say, it is absolutely necessary that you should have it to-day, there is a
+      means of procuring it. Pawn your diamonds for thirty thousand francs&mdash;I
+      authorize you to do so; and I give you my word of honor that I will redeem
+      them within a week. Say, will you do this?&rdquo; And, as the baroness made no
+      reply, he continued: &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t answer! shall I tell you why? It is
+      because your diamonds were long since sold and replaced by imitation ones;
+      it is because you are head over heels in debt; it is because you have
+      stooped so low as to borrow your maid&rsquo;s savings; it is because you already
+      owe three thousand francs to one of my coachmen; it is because our steward
+      lends you money at the rate of thirty or forty per cent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is false!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron sneered. &ldquo;You certainly must think me a much greater fool than I
+      really am!&rdquo; he replied. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m not often at home, it&rsquo;s true&mdash;the sight
+      of you exasperates me; but I know what&rsquo;s going on. You believe me your
+      dupe, but you are altogether mistaken. It is not twenty-seven thousand
+      francs you owe Van Klopen, but fifty or sixty thousand. However, he is
+      careful not to demand payment. If he brought me a bill this morning, it
+      was only because you had begged him to do so, and because it had been
+      agreed he should give you the money back if I paid him. In short, if you
+      require twenty-eight thousand francs before to-night, it is because M.
+      Fernand de Coralth has demanded that sum, and because you have promised to
+      give it to him!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Leaning against the wall of the smoking-room, speechless and motionless,
+      holding his breath, with his hands pressed upon his heart, as if to stop
+      its throbbings, Pascal Ferailleur listened. He no longer thought of
+      flying; he no longer thought of reproaching himself for his enforced
+      indiscretion. He had lost all consciousness of his position. The name of
+      the Viscount de Coralth, thus mentioned in the course of this frightful
+      scene, came as a revelation to him. He now understood the meaning of the
+      baron&rsquo;s conduct. His visit to the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm, and his promises of help were
+      all explained. &ldquo;My mother was right,&rdquo; he thought; &ldquo;the baron hates that
+      miserable viscount mortally. He will do all in his power to assist me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile, the baroness energetically denied her husband&rsquo;s charges. She
+      swore that she did not know what he meant. What had M. de Coralth to do
+      with all this? She commanded her husband to speak more plainly&mdash;to
+      explain his odious insinuations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He allowed her to speak for a moment, and then suddenly, in a harsh,
+      sarcastic voice, he interrupted her by saying: &ldquo;Oh! enough! No more
+      hypocrisy! Why do you try to defend yourself? What matters one crime more?
+      I know only too well that what I say is true; and if you desire proofs,
+      they shall be in your hands in less than half an hour. It is a long time
+      since I was blind&mdash;full twenty years! Nothing concerning you has
+      escaped my knowledge and observation since the cursed day when I
+      discovered the depths of your disgrace and infamy&mdash;since the terrible
+      evening when I heard you plan to murder me in cold blood. You had grown
+      accustomed to freedom of action; while I, who had gone off with the first
+      gold-seekers, was braving a thousand dangers in California, so as to win
+      wealth and luxury for you more quickly. Fool that I was! No task seemed
+      too hard or too distasteful when I thought of you&mdash;and I was always
+      thinking of you. My mind was at peace&mdash;I had perfect faith in you. We
+      had a daughter; and if a fear or a doubt entered my mind, I told myself
+      that the sight of her cradle would drive all evil thoughts from your
+      heart. The adultery of a childless wife may be forgiven or explained; but
+      that of a mother, never! Fool! idiot! that I was! With what joyous pride,
+      on my return after an absence of eighteen months, I showed you the
+      treasures I had brought back with me! I had two hundred thousand francs! I
+      said to you as I embraced you: &lsquo;It is yours, my well-beloved, the source
+      of all my happiness!&rsquo; But you did not care for me&mdash;I wearied you! You
+      loved another! And while you were deceiving me with your caresses, you
+      were, with fiendish skill, preparing a conspiracy which, if it had
+      succeeded, would have resulted in my death! I should consider myself amply
+      revenged if I could make you suffer for a single day all the torments that
+      I endured for long months. For this was not all! You had not even the
+      excuse, if excuse it be, of a powerful, all-absorbing passion. Convinced
+      of your treachery, I resolved to ascertain everything, and I discovered
+      that in my absence you had become a mother. Why didn&rsquo;t I kill you? How did
+      I have the courage to remain silent and conceal what I knew? Ah! it was
+      because, by watching you, I hoped to discover the cursed bastard and your
+      accomplice. It was because I dreamed of a vengeance as terrible as the
+      offence. I said to myself that the day would come when, at any risk, you
+      would try to see your child again, to embrace her, and provide for her
+      future. Fool! fool that I was! You had already forgotten her! When you
+      received news of my intended return, she was sent to some foundling
+      asylum, or left to die upon some door-step. Have you ever thought of her?
+      Have you ever asked what has become of her? ever asked yourself if she had
+      needed bread while you have been living in almost regal luxury? ever asked
+      yourself into what depths of vice she may have fallen?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Always the same ridiculous accusation!&rdquo; exclaimed the baroness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, always!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You must know, however, that this story of a child is only a vile
+      slander. I told you so when you spoke of it to me a dozen years afterward.
+      I have repeated it a thousand times since.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron uttered a sigh that was very like a sob, and without paying any
+      heed to his wife&rsquo;s words, he continued: &ldquo;If I consented to allow you to
+      remain under my roof, it was only for the sake of our daughter. I trembled
+      lest the scandal of a separation should fall upon her. But it was useless
+      suffering on my part. She was as surely lost as you yourself were; and it
+      was your work, too!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! you blame me for that?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Whom ought I to blame, then? Who took her to balls, and theatres and
+      races&mdash;to every place where a young girl ought NOT to be taken? Who
+      initiated her into what you call high life? and who used her as a discreet
+      and easy chaperon? Who married her to a wretch who is a disgrace to the
+      title he bears, and who has completed the work of demoralization you
+      began? And what is your daughter to-day? Her extravagance has made her
+      notorious even among the shameless women who pretend to be leaders of
+      society. She is scarcely twenty-two, and there is not a single prejudice
+      left for her to brave! Her husband is the companion of actresses and
+      courtesans; her own companions are no better&mdash;and in less than two
+      years the million of francs which I bestowed on her as a dowry has been
+      squandered, recklessly squandered&mdash;for there isn&rsquo;t a penny of it
+      left. And, at this very hour, my daughter and my son-in-law are plotting
+      to extort money from me. On the day before yesterday&mdash;listen
+      carefully to this&mdash;my son-in-law came to ask me for a hundred
+      thousand francs, and when I refused them, he threatened if I did not give
+      them to him that he would publish some letters written by my daughter&mdash;by
+      his wife&mdash;to some low scoundrel. I was horrified and gave him what he
+      asked. But that same evening I learned that the husband and wife, my
+      daughter and my son-in-law, had concocted this vile conspiracy together.
+      Yes, I have positive proofs of it. Leaving here, and not wishing to return
+      home that day, he telegraphed the good news to his wife. But in his
+      delight he made a mistake in the address, and the telegram was brought
+      here. I opened it, and read: &lsquo;Papa has fallen into the trap, my darling. I
+      beat my drum, and he surrendered at once.&rsquo; Yes, that is what he dared to
+      write, and sign with his own name, and then send to his wife&mdash;my
+      daughter!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal was absolutely terrified. He wondered if he were not the victim of
+      some absurd nightmare&mdash;if his senses were not playing him false. He
+      had little conception of the terrible dramas which are constantly enacted
+      in these superb mansions, so admired and envied by the passing crowd. He
+      thought that the baroness would be crushed&mdash;that she would fall on
+      her knees before her husband. What a mistake! The tone of her voice told
+      him that, instead of yielding, she was only bent on retaliation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Does your son-in-law do anything worse than you?&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;How
+      dare you censure him&mdash;you who drag your name through all the gambling
+      dens of Europe?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Wretch!&rdquo; interrupted the baron, &ldquo;wretch!&rdquo; But quickly mastering himself,
+      he remarked: &ldquo;Yes, it&rsquo;s true that I gamble. People say, &lsquo;That great Baron
+      Trigault is never without cards in his hands!&rsquo; But you know very well that
+      I really hold gambling in horror&mdash;that I loathe it. But when I play,
+      I sometimes forget&mdash;for I must forget. I tried drink, but it wouldn&rsquo;t
+      drown thought, so I had recourse to cards; and when the stakes are large,
+      and my fortune is imperilled, I sometimes lose consciousness of my
+      misery!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baroness gave vent to a cold, sneering laugh, and, in a tone of
+      mocking commiseration, she said: &ldquo;Poor baron! It is no doubt in the hope
+      of forgetting your sorrows that you spend all your time&mdash;when you are
+      not gambling&mdash;with a woman named Lia d&rsquo;Argeles. She&rsquo;s rather pretty.
+      I have seen her several times in the Bois&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Be silent!&rdquo; exclaimed the baron, &ldquo;be silent! Don&rsquo;t insult an unfortunate
+      woman who is a thousand times better than yourself.&rdquo; And, feeling that he
+      could endure no more&mdash;that he could no longer restrain his passion,
+      he cried: &ldquo;Out of my sight! Go! or I sha&rsquo;n&rsquo;t be responsible for my acts!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal heard a chair move, the floor creak, and a moment afterward a lady
+      passed quickly through the smoking-room. How was it that she did not
+      perceive him? No doubt, because she was greatly agitated, in spite of her
+      bravado. And, besides, he was standing a little back in the shade. But he
+      saw her, and his brain reeled. &ldquo;Good Lord! what a likeness!&rdquo; he murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      III.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was as if he had seen an apparition, and he was vainly striving to
+      drive away a terrible, mysterious fear, when a heavy footfall made the
+      floor of the dining-room creak anew. The noise restored him to
+      consciousness of his position. &ldquo;It is the baron!&rdquo; he thought; &ldquo;he is
+      coming this way! If he finds me here I am lost; he will never consent to
+      help me. A man would never forgive another man for hearing what I have
+      just heard.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Why should he not try to make his escape? The card, bearing the name of
+      Maumejan, would be no proof of his visit. He could see the baron somewhere
+      else some other day&mdash;elsewhere than at his own house, so that he need
+      not fear the recognition of the servants. These thoughts flashed through
+      his mind, and he was about to fly, when a harsh cry held him spell-bound.
+      Baron Trigault was standing on the threshold. His emotion, as is almost
+      always the case with corpulent people, was evinced by a frightful
+      distortion of his features. His face was transformed, his lips had become
+      perfectly white, and his eyes seemed to be starting from their sockets.
+      &ldquo;How came you here?&rdquo; he asked, in a husky voice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Your servants ushered me into this room.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who are you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! monsieur, don&rsquo;t you recognize me?&rdquo; rejoined Pascal, who in his
+      agitation forgot that the baron had seen him only twice before. He forgot
+      the absence of his beard, his almost ragged clothing, and all the
+      precautions he had taken to render recognition impossible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have never met any person named Maumejan,&rdquo; said the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! monsieur, that&rsquo;s not my name. Have you forgotten the innocent man who
+      was caught in that infamous snare set for him by the Viscount de Coralth?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, yes,&rdquo; replied the baron, &ldquo;I remember you now.&rdquo; And then recollecting
+      the terrible scene that had just taken place in the adjoining room: &ldquo;How
+      long have you been here?&rdquo; he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Should Pascal tell a falsehood, or confess the truth? He hesitated, but
+      his hesitation lasted scarcely the tenth part of a second. &ldquo;I have been
+      here about half an hour,&rdquo; he replied.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron&rsquo;s livid cheeks suddenly became purple, his eyes glittered, and
+      it seemed by his threatening gesture as if he were strongly tempted to
+      murder this man, who had discovered the terrible, disgraceful secrets of
+      his domestic life. But it was a mere flash of energy. The terrible ordeal
+      which he had just passed through had exhausted him mentally and
+      physically, and it was in a faltering voice that he resumed: &ldquo;Then you
+      have not lost a word&mdash;a word of what was said in the other room?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not a word.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron sank on to the divan. &ldquo;So the knowledge of my disgrace is no
+      longer confined to myself!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;A stranger&rsquo;s eye has penetrated
+      the depths of misery I have fallen into! The secret of my wretchedness and
+      shame is mine no longer!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, monsieur, monsieur!&rdquo; interrupted Pascal. &ldquo;Before I recross the
+      threshold of your home, all shall have been forgotten. I swear it by all
+      that is most sacred!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had raised his hand as if to take a solemn oath, when the baron caught
+      hold of it, and, pressing it with sorrowful gratitude, exclaimed: &ldquo;I
+      believe you! You are a man of honor&mdash;I only needed to see your home
+      to be convinced of that. You will not laugh at my misfortunes or my
+      misery!&rdquo; He must have been suffering frightfully, for big tears rolled
+      slowly down his cheeks. &ldquo;What have I done, my God! that I should be so
+      cruelly punished?&rdquo; he continued. &ldquo;I have always been generous and
+      charitable, and ready to help all who applied to me. I am utterly alone! I
+      have a wife and a daughter&mdash;but they hate me. They long for my death,
+      which would give them possession of my wealth. What torture! For months
+      together I dared not eat a morsel of food, either in my own house, or in
+      the house of my son-in-law. I feared poison; and I never partook of a dish
+      until I had seen my daughter or my wife do so. To prevent a crime, I was
+      obliged to resort to the strangest expedients. I made a will, and left my
+      property in such a way that if I die, my family will not receive one
+      penny. So, they now have an interest in prolonging my life.&rdquo; As he spoke
+      he sprang up with an almost frenzied air, and, seizing Pascal by the arm,
+      again continued. &ldquo;Nor is this all! This woman&mdash;my wife&mdash;you know&mdash;you
+      have heard the extent of her shame and degradation. Ah, well! I&mdash;love
+      her!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal recoiled with an exclamation of mingled horror and consternation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This amazes you, eh?&rdquo; rejoined the baron. &ldquo;It is indeed incomprehensible,
+      monstrous&mdash;but it is the truth. It is to gratify her desire for
+      luxury that I have toiled to amass millions. If I purchased a title, which
+      is absurd and ridiculous, it was only because I wished to satisfy her
+      vanity. Do what she may, I can only see in her the chaste and beautiful
+      wife of our early married life. It is cowardly, absurd, ridiculous&mdash;I
+      realize it; but my love is stronger than my reason or my will. I love her
+      madly, passionately; I cannot tear her from my heart!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So speaking, he sank sobbing on to the divan again. Was this, indeed, the
+      frivolous and jovial Baron Trigault whom Pascal had seen at Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s house&mdash;the man of self-satisfied mien and superb
+      assurance, the good-natured cynic, the frequenter of gambling-dens? Alas,
+      yes! But the baron whom the world knew was only a comedian; this was the
+      real man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After a little while he succeeded in controlling his emotion, and in a
+      comparatively calm voice he exclaimed: &ldquo;But it is useless to distract
+      one&rsquo;s mind with an incurable evil. Let us speak of yourself, M.
+      Ferailleur. To what do I owe the honor of this visit?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To your own kind offer, monsieur, and the hope that you will help me in
+      refuting this slander, and wreaking vengeance upon those who have ruined
+      me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! yes, I will help you in that to the full extent of my power,&rdquo;
+       exclaimed the baron. But experience reminded him that confidential
+      disclosures ought not to be made with the doors open, so he rose, shut
+      them, and returning to Pascal, said: &ldquo;Explain in what way I can be of
+      service to you, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not without many misgivings that Pascal had presented himself at
+      the baron&rsquo;s house, but after what he had heard he felt no further
+      hesitation; he could speak with perfect freedom. &ldquo;It is quite unnecessary
+      for me to tell you, Monsieur le Baron,&rdquo; he began, &ldquo;that the cards which
+      made me win were inserted in the pack by M. de Coralth&mdash;that is
+      proven beyond question, and whatever the consequences may be, I shall have
+      my revenge. But before striking him, I wish to reach the man whose
+      instrument he was.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! you suppose&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t suppose&mdash;I am sure that M. de Coralth acted in obedience to
+      the instructions of some other scoundrel whose courage does not equal his
+      meanness.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Perhaps so! I think he would shrink from nothing in the way of rascality.
+      But who could have employed him in this vile work of dishonoring an honest
+      man?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Marquis de Valorsay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On hearing this name, the baron bounded to his feet. &ldquo;Impossible!&rdquo; he
+      exclaimed; &ldquo;absolutely impossible! M. de Valorsay is incapable of the
+      villainy you ascribe to him. What do I say?&mdash;he is even above
+      suspicion. I have known him for years, and I have never met a more loyal,
+      more honorable, or more courageous man. He is one of my few trusted
+      friends; we see each other almost every day. I am expecting a visit from
+      him even now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Still it was he who incited M. de Coralth to do the deed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But why? What could have been his object?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To win a young girl whom I love. She&mdash;loved me, and he saw that I
+      was an obstacle. He put me out of the way more surely than if he had
+      murdered me. If I died, she might mourn for me&mdash;dishonored, she would
+      spurn me&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is Valorsay so madly in love with the girl, then?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I think he cares but very little for her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then why&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She is the heiress of several millions.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was evident that this explanation did not shake Baron Trigault&rsquo;s faith
+      in his friend. &ldquo;But the marquis has an income of a hundred and fifty or
+      two hundred thousand francs,&rdquo; said he; &ldquo;that is an all-sufficient
+      justification. With his fortune and his name, he is in a position to
+      choose his wife from among all the heiresses of France. Why should he
+      address his attentions in particular to the woman you love? Ah! if he were
+      poor&mdash;if his fortune were impaired&mdash;if he felt the need of
+      regilding his escutcheon, like my son-in-law&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He paused; there was a rap at the door. The baron called out: &ldquo;Come in,&rdquo;
+       and a valet appeared, and informed his master that the Marquis de Valorsay
+      wished to speak with him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was the enemy! Pascal&rsquo;s features were distorted with rage; but he did
+      not stir&mdash;he did not utter a word. &ldquo;Ask the marquis into the next
+      room,&rdquo; said the baron. &ldquo;I will join him there at once.&rdquo; Then as the
+      servant retired, the baron turned to Pascal and said: &ldquo;Well, M.
+      Ferailleur, do you divine my intentions?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I think so, monsieur. You probably intend me to hear the conversation you
+      are going to have with M. de Valorsay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Exactly. I shall leave the door open, and you can listen.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This word, &ldquo;listen,&rdquo; was uttered without bitterness, or even reproach; and
+      yet Pascal could not help blushing and hanging his head. &ldquo;I wish to prove
+      to you that your suspicions are without foundation,&rdquo; pursued the baron.
+      &ldquo;Rest assured that I shall prove this conclusively. I will conduct the
+      conversation in the form of a cross-examination, and after the marquis&rsquo;s
+      departure, you will be obliged to confess that you were wrong.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Or you, that I am right?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So be it. Any one is liable to be mistaken, and I am not obstinate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was about to leave the room, when Pascal detained him. &ldquo;I scarcely know
+      how to testify my gratitude even now, monsieur, and yet&mdash;if I dared&mdash;if
+      I did not fear to abuse your kindness, I should ask one more favor.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Speak, Monsieur Ferailleur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is this, I do not know the Marquis de Valorsay; and if, instead of
+      leaving the door wide open, you would partially close it, I should hear as
+      distinctly, and I could also see him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Agreed,&rdquo; replied the baron. And, opening the door, he passed into the
+      dining-room, with his right hand cordially extended, and saying, in his
+      most genial tones: &ldquo;Excuse me, my dear friend, for keeping you waiting. I
+      received your letter this morning, and I was expecting you, but some
+      unexpected business required my attention just now. Are you quite well?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As the baron entered the room, the marquis had stepped quickly forward to
+      meet him. Either he was inspired with fresh hope, or else he had wonderful
+      powers of self-control, for never had he looked more calm&mdash;never had
+      his face evinced haughtier indifference, more complete satisfaction with
+      himself, and greater contempt for others. He was dressed with even more
+      than usual care, and in perfect taste as well; moreover, his valet had
+      surpassed himself in dressing his hair&mdash;for one would have sworn that
+      his locks were still luxuriant. If he experienced any secret anxiety, it
+      only showed itself in a slightly increased stiffness of his right leg&mdash;the
+      limb broken in hunting. &ldquo;I ought rather to inquire concerning your own
+      health,&rdquo; he remarked. &ldquo;You seem greatly disturbed; your cravat is untied.&rdquo;
+       And, pointing to the broken china scattered about the floor, he added: &ldquo;On
+      seeing this, I asked myself if an accident had not happened.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The baroness was taken suddenly ill at the breakfast table. Her fainting
+      fit startled me a little. But it was a mere trifle. She has quite
+      recovered already, and you may rely upon her applauding your victory at
+      Vincennes to-day. She has I don&rsquo;t know how many hundred louis staked upon
+      your horses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis&rsquo;s countenance assumed an expression of cordial regret. &ldquo;I am
+      very sorry, upon my word!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;But I sha&rsquo;n&rsquo;t take part in the
+      races at Vincennes. I have withdrawn my horses. And, in future, I shall
+      have nothing to do with racing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is the truth, however. I have been led to this determination by the
+      infamous slander which has been circulated respecting me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This answer was a mere trifle, but it somewhat shook Baron Trigault&rsquo;s
+      confidence. &ldquo;You have been slandered!&rdquo; he muttered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Abominably. Last Sunday the best horse in my stables, Domingo, came in
+      third. He was the favorite in the ring. You can understand the rest. I
+      have been accused of manoeuvering to have my own horse beaten. People have
+      declared that it was my interest he should be beaten, and that I had an
+      understanding with my jockey to that effect. This is an every-day
+      occurrence, I know very well; but, as regards myself, it is none the less
+      an infamous lie!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who has dared to circulate such a report?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, how can I tell? It is a fact, however, that the story has been
+      circulated everywhere, but in such a cautious manner that there is no way
+      of calling the authors to account. They have even gone so far as to say
+      that this piece of knavery brought me in an enormous sum, and that I used
+      Rochecotte&rsquo;s, Kervaulieu&rsquo;s, and Coralth&rsquo;s names in betting against my own
+      horse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron&rsquo;s agitation was so great that M. de Valorsay observed it, though
+      he did not understand the cause. Living in the same society with the
+      Baroness Trigault, and knowing her story, he thought that Coralth&rsquo;s name
+      might, perhaps, have irritated the baron. &ldquo;And so,&rdquo; he quickly continued,
+      &ldquo;don&rsquo;t be surprised if, during the coming week, you see the sale of my
+      horses announced.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! you are going to sell&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;All my horses&mdash;yes, baron. I have nineteen; and it will be very
+      strange if I don&rsquo;t get eight or ten thousand louis for the lot. Domingo
+      alone is worth more than forty thousand francs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      To talk of selling&mdash;of realizing something you possess&mdash;rings
+      ominously in people&rsquo;s ears. The person who talks of selling proclaims his
+      need of money&mdash;and often his approaching ruin. &ldquo;It will save you at
+      least a hundred and fifty or sixty thousand francs a year,&rdquo; observed the
+      baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Double it and you won&rsquo;t come up to the mark. Ah! my dear baron, you have
+      yet to learn that there is nothing so ruinous as a racing stable. It&rsquo;s
+      worse than gambling; and women, in comparison, are a real economy. Ninette
+      costs me less than Domingo, with his jockey, his trainer, and his grooms.
+      My manager declares that the twenty-three thousand francs I won last year,
+      cost me at least fifty thousand.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Was he boasting, or was he speaking the truth? The baron was engaged in a
+      rapid calculation. &ldquo;What does Valorsay spend a year?&rdquo; he was saying to
+      himself. &ldquo;Let us say two hundred and fifty thousand francs for his stable;
+      forty thousand francs for Ninette Simplon; eighty thousand for his
+      household expenses, and at least thirty thousand for personal matters,
+      travelling, and play. All this amounts to something like four hundred and
+      thirty thousand francs a year. Does his income equal that sum? Certainly
+      not. Then he must have been living on the principal&mdash;he is ruined.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile the marquis gayly continued: &ldquo;You see, I&rsquo;m going to make a
+      change in my mode of life. Ah! it surprises you! But one must make an end
+      of it, sooner or later. I begin to find a bachelor life not so very
+      pleasant after all; there is rheumatism in prospect, and my digestion is
+      becoming impaired&mdash;in short, I feel that it is time for marriage,
+      baron; and&mdash;I am about to marry.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, I. What, haven&rsquo;t you heard of it, yet? It has been talked of at the
+      club for three days or more.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, this is the first intimation I have received of it. It is true,
+      however, that I have not been to the club for three days. I have made a
+      wager with Kami-Bey, you know&mdash;that rich Turk&mdash;and as our
+      sittings are eight or ten hours long, we play in his apartments at the
+      Grand Hotel. And so you are to be married,&rdquo; the baron continued, after a
+      slight pause. &ldquo;Ah, well! I know one person who won&rsquo;t be pleased.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who, pray?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ninette Simplon.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay laughed heartily. &ldquo;As if that would make any difference to
+      me!&rdquo; he exclaimed. And then in a most confidential manner he resumed: &ldquo;She
+      will soon be consoled. Ninette Simplon is a shrewd girl&mdash;a girl whom
+      I have always suspected of having an account book in place of a heart. I
+      know she has at least three hundred thousand francs safely invested; her
+      furniture and diamonds are worth as much more. Why should she regret me?
+      Add to this that I have promised her fifty thousand francs to dry her
+      tears with on my wedding-day, and you will understand that she really
+      longs to see me married.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I understand,&rdquo; replied the baron; &ldquo;Ninette Simplon won&rsquo;t trouble you. But
+      I can&rsquo;t understand why you should talk of economy on the eve of a marriage
+      which will no doubt double your fortune; for I&rsquo;m sure you won&rsquo;t surrender
+      your liberty without good and substantial reasons.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are mistaken.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How mistaken?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, I won&rsquo;t hesitate to confess to you, my dear baron, that the girl I
+      am about to marry hasn&rsquo;t a penny of her own. My future wife has no dowry
+      save her black eyes&mdash;but they are certainly superb ones.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This assertion seemed to disprove Pascal&rsquo;s statements. &ldquo;Can it really be
+      you who are talking in this strain?&rdquo; cried the baron. &ldquo;You, a practical,
+      worldly man, give way to such a burst of sentiment?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron opened his eyes in astonishment. &ldquo;Ah! then you adore your future
+      bride!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Adore only feebly expresses my feelings.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I must be dreaming.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Valorsay shrugged his shoulders with the air of a man who has made up his
+      mind to accept the banter of his friends; and in a tone of mingled
+      sentimentality and irony, he said: &ldquo;I know that it&rsquo;s absurd, and that I
+      shall be the laughing-stock of my acquaintances. Still it doesn&rsquo;t matter;
+      I have never been coward enough to hide my feelings. I&rsquo;m in love, my dear
+      baron, as madly in love as a young collegian&mdash;sufficiently in love to
+      watch my lady&rsquo;s house at night even when I have no possible hope of seeing
+      her. I thought myself blase, I boasted of being invulnerable. Well, one
+      fine morning I woke up with the heart of a youth of twenty beating in my
+      breast&mdash;a heart which trembled at the slightest glance from the girl
+      I love, and sent purple flushes to my face. Naturally I tried to reason
+      with myself. I was ashamed of my weakness; but the more clearly I showed
+      myself my folly, the more obstinate my heart became. And perhaps my folly
+      is not such a great one after all. Such perfect beauty united with such
+      modesty, grace, and nobility of soul, such passion, candor and talent,
+      cannot be met twice in a lifetime. I intend to leave Paris. We shall first
+      of all go to Italy, my wife and I. After a while we shall return and
+      install ourselves at Valorsay, like two turtle-doves. Upon my word, my
+      imagination paints a charming picture of the calm and happy life we shall
+      lead there! I don&rsquo;t deserve such good fortune. I must have been born under
+      a lucky star!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Had he been less engrossed in his narrative, he would have heard the sound
+      of a stifled oath in the adjoining room; and had he been less absorbed in
+      the part he was playing, he would have observed a cloud on his companion&rsquo;s
+      brow. The baron was a keen observer, and he had detected a false ring in
+      this apparently vehement outburst of passion. &ldquo;I understand it now, my
+      dear marquis,&rdquo; said he; &ldquo;you have met the descendant of some illustrious
+      but impoverished family.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are wrong. My future bride has no other name than her Christian name
+      of Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is a regular romance then!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are quite right; it is a romance. Were you acquainted with the Count
+      de Chalusse, who died a few days ago?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No; but I have often heard him spoken of.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, it is his daughter whom I am about to marry&mdash;his illegitimate
+      daughter.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron started. &ldquo;Excuse me,&rdquo; said he; &ldquo;M. de Chalusse was immensely
+      rich, and he was a bachelor. How does it happen then that his daughter,
+      even though she be his illegitimate child, should find herself penniless?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A mere chance&mdash;a fatality. M. de Chalusse died very suddenly; he had
+      no time to make a will or to acknowledge his daughter.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But why had he not taken some precautions?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A formal recognition of his daughter was attended by too many
+      difficulties, and even dangers. Mademoiselle Marguerite had been abandoned
+      by her mother when only five or six months old; it is only a few years
+      since M. de Chalusse, after a thousand vain attempts, at last succeeded in
+      finding her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was no longer on Pascal&rsquo;s account, but on his own, that Baron Trigault
+      listened with breathless attention. &ldquo;How very strange,&rdquo; he exclaimed, in
+      default of something better to say. &ldquo;How very strange!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t it? It is as good as a novel.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Would it be&mdash;indiscreet&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To inquire? Certainly not. The count told me the whole story, without
+      entering into particulars&mdash;you understand. When he was quite young,
+      M. de Chalusse became enamoured of a charming young lady, whose husband
+      had gone to tempt fortune in America. Being an honest woman, she resisted
+      the count&rsquo;s advances for awhile&mdash;a very little while; but in less
+      than a year after her husband&rsquo;s departure, she gave birth to a pretty
+      little daughter, Mademoiselle Marguerite. But then why had the husband
+      gone to America?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; faltered the baron; &ldquo;why&mdash;why, indeed?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Everything was progressing finely, when M. de Chalusse was in his turn
+      obliged to start for Germany, having been informed that a sister of his,
+      who had fled from the paternal roof with nobody knows who, had been seen
+      there. He had been absent some four months or so, when one morning the
+      post brought him a letter from his pretty mistress, who wrote: &lsquo;We are
+      lost! My husband is at Marseilles: he will be here to-morrow. Never
+      attempt to see me again. Fear everything from him. Farewell.&rsquo; On receiving
+      this letter, M. de Chalusse flung himself into a postchaise, and returned
+      to Paris. He was determined, absolutely determined, to have his daughter.
+      But he arrived too late. On hearing of her husband&rsquo;s return, the young
+      wife had lost her head. She had but one thought&mdash;to conceal her
+      fault, at any cost; and one night, being completely disguised, she left
+      her child on a doorstep in the vicinity of the central markets&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis suddenly paused in his story to exclaim: &ldquo;Why, what is the
+      matter with you, my dear baron? What is the matter? Are you ill? Shall I
+      ring?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron was as pale as if the last drop of blood had been drawn from his
+      veins, and there were dark purple circles about his eyes. Still, on being
+      questioned, he managed to answer in a choked voice, but not without a
+      terrible effort: &ldquo;Nothing! It is nothing. A mere trifle! It will be over
+      in a moment. It IS over!&rdquo; Still his limbs trembled so much that he could
+      not stand, and he sank on to a chair, murmuring: &ldquo;I entreat you, marquis&mdash;continue.
+      It is very interesting&mdash;very interesting indeed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay resumed his narrative. &ldquo;The husband was incontestably an
+      artless fellow: but he was also, it appears, a man of remarkable energy
+      and determination. Having somehow ascertained that his wife had given
+      birth to a child in his absence, he moved heaven and earth not only to
+      discover the child, but its father also. He had sworn to kill them both;
+      and he was a man to keep his vow unmoved by a thought of the guillotine.
+      And if you require a proof of his strength of character, here it is: He
+      said nothing to his wife on the subject, he did not utter a single
+      reproach; he treated her exactly as he had done before his absence. But he
+      watched her, or employed others to watch her, both day and night,
+      convinced that she would finally commit some act of imprudence which would
+      give him the clue he wanted. Fortunately, she was very shrewd. She soon
+      discovered that her husband knew everything, and she warned M. de
+      Chalusse, thus saving his life.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It is not at all remarkable that the Marquis de Valorsay should have
+      failed to see any connection between his narrative and the baron&rsquo;s
+      agitation. What possible connection could there be between opulent Baron
+      Trigault and the poor devil who went to seek his fortune in America? What
+      imaginable connection could there be between the confirmed gambler, who
+      was Kami-Bey&rsquo;s companion, Lia d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s friend, and the husband who for
+      ten long years had pursued the man who, by seducing his wife, had robbed
+      him of all the happiness of life? Another point that would have dispelled
+      any suspicions on the marquis&rsquo;s part was that he had found the baron
+      greatly agitated on arriving, and that he now seemed to be gradually
+      regaining his composure. So he continued his story in his customary light,
+      mocking tone. It is the perfection of good taste and high breeding&mdash;&ldquo;proper
+      form,&rdquo; indeed, not to be astonished or moved by anything, in fact to sneer
+      at everything, and hold one&rsquo;s self quite above the emotions which disturb
+      the minds of plebeians.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus the marquis continued: &ldquo;I am necessarily compelled to omit many
+      particulars, my dear baron. The count was not very explicit when he
+      reached this part of his story; but, in spite of his reticence, I learned
+      that he had been tricked in his turn, that certain papers had been stolen
+      from him, and that he had been defrauded in many ways by his inamorata. I
+      also know that M. de Chalusse&rsquo;s whole life was haunted by the thought of
+      the husband he had wronged. He felt a presentiment that he would die by
+      this man&rsquo;s hand. He saw danger on every side. If he went out alone in the
+      evening, which was an exceedingly rare occurrence, he turned the street
+      corners with infinite caution; it seemed to him that he could always see
+      the gleam of a poniard or a pistol in the shade. I should never have
+      believed in this constant terror on the part of a really brave man, if he
+      had not confessed it to me with his own lips. Ten or twelve years passed
+      before he dared to make the slightest attempt to find his daughter, so
+      much did he fear to arouse his enemy&rsquo;s attention. It was not until he had
+      discovered that the husband had become discouraged and had discontinued
+      his search, that the count began his. It was a long and arduous one, but
+      at last it succeeded, thanks to the assistance of a clever scoundrel named
+      Fortunat.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron with difficulty repressed a movement of eager curiosity, and
+      remarked: &ldquo;What a peculiar name!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And his first name is Isidore. Ah! he&rsquo;s a smooth-tongued scoundrel, a
+      rascal of the most dangerous kind, who richly deserves to be in jail. How
+      it is that he is allowed to prosecute his dishonorable calling I can&rsquo;t
+      understand; but it is none the less true that he does follow it, and
+      without the slightest attempt at concealment, at an office he has on the
+      Place de la Bourse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This name and address were engraved upon the baron&rsquo;s memory, never to be
+      effaced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;However,&rdquo; resumed M. de Valorsay, &ldquo;the poor count was fated to have no
+      peace. The husband had scarcely ceased to torment him, he had scarcely
+      begun to breathe freely, when the wife attacked him in her turn. She must
+      have been one of those vile and despicable women who make a man hate the
+      entire sex. Pretending that the count had turned her from the path of
+      duty, and destroyed her life and happiness, she lost no opportunity of
+      tormenting him. She would not allow M. de Chalusse to keep the child with
+      him, nor would she consent to his adopting the girl. She declared it an
+      act of imprudence, which would surely set her husband upon the track,
+      sooner or later. And when the count announced his intention of legally
+      adopting the child, in spite of her protests, she declared that, rather
+      than allow it, she would confess everything to her husband.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The count was a patient man,&rdquo; sneered the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not so patient as you may suppose. His submission was due to some secret
+      cause which he never confided to me. There must have been some great crime
+      under all this. In any case, the poor count found it impossible to escape
+      this terrible woman. He took refuge at Cannes; but she followed him. He
+      travelled through Italy, for I don&rsquo;t know how many months under an assumed
+      name, but all in vain. He was at last compelled to conceal his daughter in
+      some provincial convent. During the last few months of his life he
+      obtained peace&mdash;that is to say, he bought it. This lady&rsquo;s husband
+      must either be very poor or exceedingly stingy; and as she was exceedingly
+      fond of luxury, M. de Chalusse effected a compromise by giving her a large
+      sum monthly, and also by paying her dress-maker&rsquo;s bills.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron sprang to his feet with a passionate exclamation. &ldquo;The vile
+      wretch!&rdquo; he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he quickly reseated himself, and the exclamation astonished M. de
+      Valorsay so little that he quietly concluded by saying: &ldquo;And this is the
+      reason, baron, why my beloved Marguerite, the future Marquise de Valorsay,
+      has no dowry.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron cast a look of positive anguish at the door of the smoking-room.
+      He had heard a slight movement there; and he trembled with fear lest
+      Pascal, maddened with anger and jealousy, should rush in and throw himself
+      upon the marquis. Plainly enough, this perilous situation could not last
+      much longer. The baron&rsquo;s own powers of self-control and dissimulation were
+      almost exhausted, and so postponing until another time the many questions
+      he still wished to ask M. de Valorsay, he made haste to check these
+      confidential disclosures. &ldquo;Upon my word,&rdquo; he exclaimed, with a forced
+      laugh, &ldquo;I was expecting something quite different. This affair begins like
+      a genuine romance, and ends, as everything ends nowadays, in money!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0004" id="link2H_4_0004">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      IV.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      As a millionaire and a gambler, Baron Trigault enjoyed all sorts of
+      privileges. He assumed the right to be brutal, ill-bred, cynical and bold;
+      to be one of those persons who declare that folks must take them as they
+      find them. But his rudeness now was so thoroughly offensive that under any
+      other circumstances the marquis would have resented it. However, he had
+      special reasons for preserving his temper, so he decided to laugh.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, these stories always end in the same way, baron,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;You
+      haven&rsquo;t touched a card this morning, and I know your hands are itching.
+      Excuse me for making you waste precious time, as you say; but what you
+      have just heard was only a necessary preface.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Only a preface?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; but don&rsquo;t be discouraged. I have arrived at the object of my visit
+      now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As Baron Trigault was supposed to enjoy an income of at least eight
+      hundred thousand francs a year, he received in the course of a twelvemonth
+      at least a million applications for money or help, and for this reason he
+      had not an equal for detecting a coming appeal. &ldquo;Good heavens!&rdquo; he
+      thought, &ldquo;Valorsay is going to ask me for money.&rdquo; In fact, he felt certain
+      that the marquis&rsquo;s pretended carelessness concealed real embarrassment,
+      and that it was difficult for him to find the words he wanted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So I am about to marry,&rdquo; M. de Valorsay resumed&mdash;&ldquo;I wish to break
+      off my former life, to turn over a new leaf. And now the wedding gifts,
+      the two fetes that I propose giving, the repairs at Valorsay, and the
+      honeymoon with my wife&mdash;all these things will cost a nice little
+      sum.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A nice little sum, indeed!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, well! as I&rsquo;m not going to wed an heiress, I fear I shall run a trifle
+      short. The matter was worrying me a little, when I thought of you. I said
+      to myself: &lsquo;The baron, who always has money at his disposal, will no doubt
+      let me have the use of five thousand louis for a year.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron&rsquo;s eyes were fixed upon his companion&rsquo;s face. &ldquo;Zounds!&rdquo; he
+      exclaimed in a half-grieved, half-petulant tone; &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t the amount!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not disappointment that showed itself on the marquis&rsquo;s face; it was
+      absolute despair, quickly concealed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the baron had detected it; and he realized his applicant&rsquo;s urgent
+      need. He felt certain that M. de Valorsay was financially ruined&mdash;and
+      yet, as it did not suit his plans to refuse, he hastily added: &ldquo;When I say
+      I haven&rsquo;t that amount, I mean that I haven&rsquo;t got it on hand just at this
+      moment. But I shall have it within forty-eight hours; and if you are at
+      home at this time on the day after to-morrow, I will send you one of my
+      agents, who will arrange the matter with you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A moment before, the marquis had allowed his consternation to show itself;
+      but this time he knew how to conceal the joy that filled his soul. So it
+      was in the most indifferent manner, as if the affair were one of trivial
+      importance, that he thanked the baron for being so obliging. Plainly
+      enough, he now longed to make his escape, and indeed, after rattling off a
+      few commonplace remarks, he rose to his feet and took his leave,
+      exclaiming: &ldquo;Till the day after to-morrow, then!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron sank into an arm-chair, completely overcome. A martyr to a
+      passion that was stronger than reason itself, the victim of a fatal love
+      which he had not been able to drive from his heart, Baron Trigault had
+      passed many terrible hours, but never had he been so completely crushed as
+      at this moment when chance revealed the secret which he had vainly pursued
+      for years. The old wounds in his heart opened afresh, and his sufferings
+      were poignant beyond description. All his efforts to save this woman whom
+      he at once loved and hated from the depths of degradation, had proved
+      unavailing. &ldquo;And she has extorted money from the Count de Chalusse,&rdquo; he
+      thought; &ldquo;she sold him the right to adopt their own daughter.&rdquo; And so
+      strange are the workings of the human heart, that this circumstance,
+      trivial in comparison with many others, drove the unfortunate baron almost
+      frantic with rage. What did it avail him that he had become one of the
+      richest men in Paris? He allowed his wife eight thousand francs a month,
+      almost one hundred thousand francs a year, merely for her dresses and
+      fancies. Not a quarter-day passed, but what he paid her debts to a large
+      amount, and in spite of all this, she had sunk so low as to extort money
+      from a man who had once loved her. &ldquo;What can she do with it all?&rdquo; muttered
+      the baron, overcome with sorrow and indignation. &ldquo;How can she succeed in
+      spending the income of several millions?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A name, the name of Ferdinand de Coralth, rose to his lips; but he did not
+      pronounce it. He saw Pascal emerging from the smoking-room; and though he
+      had forgotten the young advocate&rsquo;s very existence, his appearance now
+      restored him to a consciousness of reality. &ldquo;Ah, well! M. Ferailleur?&rdquo; he
+      said, like a man suddenly aroused from some terrible nightmare. Pascal
+      tried to make some reply, but he was unable to do so&mdash;such a flood of
+      incoherent thoughts was seething and foaming in his brain. &ldquo;Did you hear,
+      M. de Valorsay?&rdquo; continued the baron. &ldquo;Now we know, beyond the possibility
+      of doubt, who Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s mother is. What is to be done?
+      What would you do in my place?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, monsieur! how can I tell?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Wouldn&rsquo;t your first thought be of vengeance! It is mine. But upon whom
+      can I wreak my vengeance? Upon the Count de Chalusse? He is dead. Upon my
+      wife? Yes, I might do so; but I lack the courage&mdash;Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite remains.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But she is innocent, monsieur; she has never wronged you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron did not seem to hear this exclamation. &ldquo;And to make Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite&rsquo;s life one long misery,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;I need only favor her
+      marriage with the marquis. Ah, he would make her cruelly expiate the crime
+      of her birth.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you won&rsquo;t do so!&rdquo; cried Pascal, in a transport, &ldquo;it would be
+      shameful; I won&rsquo;t allow it. Never, I swear before high Heaven! never,
+      while I live, shall Valorsay marry Marguerite. He may perhaps vanquish me
+      in the coming struggle; he may lead her to the threshold of the church,
+      but there he will find me&mdash;armed&mdash;and I will have justice&mdash;human
+      justice in default of legal satisfaction. And, afterward, the law may take
+      its course!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron looked at him with deep emotion. &ldquo;Ah, you know what it is to
+      love!&rdquo; he exclaimed; and in a hollow voice, he added: &ldquo;and thus it was
+      that I loved Marguerite&rsquo;s mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The breakfast-table had not been cleared, and a large decanter of water
+      was still standing on it. The baron poured out two large glasses, which he
+      drained with feverish avidity, and then he began to walk aimlessly about
+      the room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal held his peace. It seemed to him that his own destiny was being
+      decided in this man&rsquo;s mind, that his whole future depended upon the
+      determination he arrived at. A prisoner awaiting the verdict of the jury
+      could not have suffered more intense anxiety. At last, when a minute,
+      which seemed a century, had elapsed, the baron paused. &ldquo;Now as before, M.
+      Ferailleur,&rdquo; he said, roughly, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m for you and with you. Give me your
+      hand&mdash;that&rsquo;s right. Honest people ought to protect and assist one
+      another when scoundrels assail them. We will reinstate you in public
+      esteem, monsieur. We will unmask Coralth, and we will crush Valorsay if we
+      find that he is really the instigator of the infamous plot that ruined
+      you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, monsieur! Can you doubt it after your conversation with him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron shook his head. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve no doubt but what Valorsay is ruined
+      financially,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;I am certain that my hundred thousand francs will
+      be lost forever if I lend them to him. I would be willing to swear that he
+      bet against his own horse and prevented the animal from winning, as he is
+      accused of doing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You must see, then&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me&mdash;all this does NOT explain the great discrepancy between
+      your allegations and his story. You assure me that he cares nothing
+      whatever for Mademoiselle Marguerite; he pretends that he adores her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, monsieur, yes&mdash;the scoundrel dared to say so. Ah! if I had not
+      been deterred by a fear of losing my revenge!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I understand; but allow me to conclude. According to you, Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite possesses several millions. According to him, she hasn&rsquo;t a
+      penny of her own. Which is right? I believe he is. His desire to borrow a
+      hundred thousand francs of me proves it; and, besides, he wouldn&rsquo;t have
+      come this morning to tell me a falsehood, which would be discovered
+      to-morrow. Still, if he is telling the truth, it is impossible to explain
+      the foul conspiracy you have suffered by.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This objection had previously presented itself to Pascal&rsquo;s mind, and he
+      had found an explanation which seemed to him a plausible one. &ldquo;M. de
+      Chalusse was not dead,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;when M. de Coralth and M. de Valorsay
+      decided on this plan of ridding themselves of me. Consequently,
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite was still an heiress.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true; but the very day after the commission of the crime, the
+      accomplices must have discovered that it could do them no good; so, why
+      have they still persisted in their scheme?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal tried to find a satisfactory answer, but failed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There must be some iniquitous mystery in this affair, which neither you
+      nor I suspect,&rdquo; remarked the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That is exactly what my mother told me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! that&rsquo;s Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s opinion? Then it is a good one. Come, let
+      us reason a little. Mademoiselle Marguerite loved you, you say?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And she has suddenly broken off the engagement?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She wrote to me that the Count de Chalusse extorted from her a promise on
+      his death-bed, that she would marry the Marquis de Valorsay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron sprang to his feet. &ldquo;Stop,&rdquo; he cried&mdash;&ldquo;stop! We now have a
+      clue to the truth, perhaps. Ah! so Mademoiselle Marguerite has written to
+      you that M. de Chalusse commanded her to marry the marquis! Then the count
+      must have been fully restored to consciousness before he breathed his
+      last. On the other hand, Valorsay pretends that Mademoiselle Marguerite is
+      left without resources, simply because the count died too suddenly to be
+      able to write or to sign a couple of lines. Can you reconcile these two
+      versions of the affair, M. Ferailleur? Certainly not. Then which version
+      is false? We must ascertain that point. When shall you see Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite again?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She has requested me NEVER to try to see her again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well! She must be disobeyed. You must discover some way of seeing
+      her without anyone&rsquo;s knowledge. She is undoubtedly watched, so don&rsquo;t write
+      on any account.&rdquo; He reflected for a moment, and then added: &ldquo;We shall,
+      perhaps, become morally certain of Valorsay&rsquo;s and Coralth&rsquo;s guilt, but
+      there&rsquo;s a wide difference between this and the establishment of their
+      guilt by material proofs. Two scoundrels who league to ruin an honest man
+      don&rsquo;t sign a contract to that effect before a notary. Proofs! Ah! where
+      shall we find them? We must gain an intimate knowledge of Valorsay&rsquo;s
+      private life. The best plan would be to find some man devoted to our
+      interests who would watch him, and insinuate himself into his confidence.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal interrupted the baron with an eager gesture. Hope glittered in his
+      eyes. &ldquo;Yes!&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;yes; it is necessary that M. de Valorsay
+      should be watched by a man of quick perception&mdash;a man clever enough
+      to make himself useful to the marquis, and capable of rendering him an
+      important service in case of need. I will be the man, monsieur, if you
+      will allow me. The thought occurred to me just now while I was listening
+      to you. You promised to send some one to Valorsay&rsquo;s house with money. I
+      entreat you to allow me to take the place of the man you intended to send.
+      The marquis doesn&rsquo;t know me, and I am sufficiently sure of myself to
+      promise you that I will not betray my identity. I will present myself as
+      your agent; he will give me his confidence. I shall take him money or fair
+      promises, I shall be well received, and I have a plan&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was interrupted by a rap at the door. The next moment a footman
+      entered, and informed his master that a messenger wished to speak to him
+      on urgent business. &ldquo;Let him come in,&rdquo; said the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was Job, Madame Lia d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s confidential servant, who entered the
+      room. He bowed respectfully, and, with an air of profound mystery
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;I have been looking for the baron everywhere. I was ordered by
+      madame not to return without him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; said M. Trigault. &ldquo;I will go with you at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0005" id="link2H_4_0005">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      V.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      How was it that a clever man like M. Fortunat made such a blunder as to
+      choose a Sunday, and a racing Sunday too, to call on M. Wilkie. His
+      anxiety might explain the mistake, but it did not justify it. He felt
+      certain, that under any other circumstances he would not have been
+      dismissed so cavalierly. He would at least have been allowed to develop
+      his proposals, and then who knows what might have happened?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the races had interfered with his plans. M. Wilkie had been compelled
+      to attend to Pompier de Nanterre, that famous steeplechaser, of which he
+      owned one-third part, and he had, moreover, to give orders to the jockey,
+      whose lord and master he was to an equal extent. These were sacred duties,
+      since Wilkie&rsquo;s share in a race-horse constituted his only claim to a
+      footing in fashionable society. But it was a strong claim&mdash;a claim
+      that justified the display of whips and spurs that decorated his
+      apartments in the Rue du Helder, and allowed him to aspire to the
+      character of a sporting man. Wilkie really imagined that folks were
+      waiting for him at Vincennes; and that the fete would not be complete
+      without his presence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Still, when he presented himself inside the enclosure, a cigar in his
+      mouth, and his racing card dangling from his button-hole, he was obliged
+      to confess that his entrance did not create much of a sensation. An
+      astonishing bit of news had imparted unusual excitement to the ring.
+      People were eagerly discussing the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s sudden
+      determination to pay forfeit and withdraw his horses from the contest; and
+      the best informed declared that in the betting-rooms the evening before he
+      had openly announced his intention of selling his racing stable. If the
+      marquis had hoped that by adopting this course he would silence the
+      suspicions which had been aroused, he was doomed to grievous
+      disappointment. The rumor that he had secretly bet against his own horse,
+      Domingo, on the previous Sunday, and that he had given orders not to let
+      the animal win the race, was steadily gaining credence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Large sums had been staked on Domingo&rsquo;s success. He had been the favorite
+      in the betting ring and the losers were by no means pleased. Some declared
+      that they had seen the jockey hold Domingo back; and they insisted that it
+      was necessary to make an example, and disqualify both the marquis and his
+      jockey. Still one weighty circumstance pleaded in M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s favor&mdash;his
+      fortune, or, at least, the fortune he was supposed to possess. &ldquo;Why should
+      such a rich man stoop to cheat?&rdquo; asked his defenders. &ldquo;To put money into
+      one&rsquo;s pocket in this way is even worse than to cheat at cards! Besides,
+      it&rsquo;s impossible! Valorsay is above such contemptible charges. He is a
+      perfect gentleman.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Perhaps so,&rdquo; replied the skeptical bystanders. &ldquo;But people said exactly
+      the same of Croisenois, of the Duc de H., and Baron P., who were finally
+      convicted of the same rascality that Valorsay is accused of.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It&rsquo;s an infamous slander! If he had been inclined to cheat, he could have
+      easily diverted suspicion. He would have let Domingo come in second, not
+      third!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If he were not guilty, and afraid of detection, he wouldn&rsquo;t pay forfeit
+      to-day nor sell his horses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He only retires from the turf because he&rsquo;s going to marry&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense! That&rsquo;s no reason whatever.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Like all gamblers, the frequenters of the turf are distrustful and
+      inclined to be quarrelsome. No one is above their suspicions when they
+      lose nor above their wrath when they are duped. And this Domingo affair
+      united all the losers against Valorsay; they formed a little battalion of
+      enemies who were no doubt powerless for the time being, but who were ready
+      to take a startling revenge whenever a good opportunity presented itself.
+      Naturally enough, M. Wilkie sided with the marquis, whom he had heard his
+      friend, M. de Coralth, speak of on several occasions. &ldquo;Accuse the dear
+      marquis!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s contemptible, outrageous. Why, only last
+      evening he said to me, &lsquo;My good friend, Domingo&rsquo;s defeat cost me two
+      thousand louis!&rsquo;&rdquo; M. de Valorsay had said nothing of the kind, for the
+      very good reason that he did not even know Wilkie by sight; still, no one
+      paid much heed to the assertion, whereat Wilkie felt vexed, and resolved
+      to turn his attention to his jockey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The latter was a lazy, worthless fellow, who had been dismissed from every
+      stable he had previously served in, and who swindled and robbed the young
+      gentlemen who employed him without either limit or shame. Although he made
+      them pay him a very high salary&mdash;something like eight thousand francs
+      a year&mdash;on the plea that it was most repugnant to his feelings to act
+      as a groom, trainer, and jockey at the same time, he regularly every month
+      presented them with fabulous bills from the grain merchant, the veterinary
+      surgeon, and the harness-maker. In addition, he regularly sold Pompier&rsquo;s
+      oats in order to obtain liquor, and in fact the poor animal was so nearly
+      starved that he could scarcely stand on his legs. The jockey ascribed the
+      horse&rsquo;s extreme thinness to a system of rigorous training; and the owners
+      did not question the statement in the least. He had made them believe, and
+      they in turn had made many others believe, that Pompier de Nanterre would
+      certainly win such and such a race; and, trusting in this fallacious
+      promise, they risked their money on the poor animal&mdash;and lost it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In point of fact, this jockey would have been the happiest mortal in the
+      world if such things as steeple-chases had never existed. In the first
+      place, he judged, with no little reason, that it was dangerous to leap
+      hurdles on such an animal as Pompier; and, secondly, nothing irritated him
+      so much as to be obliged to promenade with his three employers in turn.
+      But how could he refuse, since he knew that if these young men hired him,
+      it was chiefly, or only in view of, displaying themselves in his company.
+      It afforded them untold satisfaction to walk to and fro along the course
+      in front of the grand stand, with their jockey in his orange jacket with
+      green sleeves. They were firmly convinced that he reflected enormous
+      credit upon them, and their hearts swelled with joy at the thought of the
+      envy they no doubt inspired. This conviction gave rise indeed to terrible
+      quarrels, in which each of the three owners was wont to accuse the others
+      of monopolizing the jockey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On this occasion, M. Wilkie&mdash;being fortunate enough to arrive the
+      first&mdash;immediately repaired to Pompier de Nanterre&rsquo;s stall. Never had
+      circumstances been more favorable for a display of the animal&rsquo;s speed. The
+      day was magnificent; the stands were crowded, and thousands of eager
+      spectators were pushing and jostling one another beyond the ropes which
+      limited the course. M. Wilkie seemed to be everywhere; he showed himself
+      in a dozen different places at once, always followed by his jockey, whom
+      he ordered about in a loud voice, with many excited gesticulations. And
+      how great his delight was when, as he passed through the crowd, he heard
+      people exclaim: &ldquo;That gentleman has a racing stable. His horses are going
+      to compete!&rdquo; What bliss thrilled his heart when he overheard the admiring
+      exclamation of some worthy shopkeeper who was greatly impressed by the gay
+      silk jacket and the top-boots!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But, unfortunately, this happiness could not last forever. His partners
+      arrived, and claimed the jockey in their turn. So M. Wilkie left the
+      course and strolled about among the carriages, until at last he found an
+      equipage which was occupied by the young ladies who had accepted his
+      invitation to supper the evening before, and who were now making a profuse
+      display of the very yellowest hair they possessed. This afforded him
+      another opportunity of attracting public attention, and to giving proofs
+      of his &ldquo;form,&rdquo; for he had not filled the box of his carriage with
+      champagne for nothing. At last the decisive moment came, and he made
+      himself conspicuous by shouting. &ldquo;Now! Now! Here he is! Look! Bravo,
+      Pompier! One hundred on Pompier!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But, alas! poor Pompier de Nanterre fell exhausted before half the
+      distance was accomplished; and that evening Wilkie described his defeat,
+      with a profusion of technical terms that inspired the uninitiated with the
+      deepest awe. &ldquo;What a disaster, my friends,&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Pompier de
+      Nanterre, an incomparable steeplechaser, to break down in such a fashion!
+      And beaten by whom? My Mustapha, an outsider, without any record whatever!
+      The ring was intensely excited&mdash;and I was simply crazed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      However, his defeat did not affect him very deeply. It was forgotten at
+      thought of the inheritance which his friend Coralth had spoken to him
+      about. And to-morrow M. de Coralth would tell him the secret. He had only
+      twenty hours longer to wait! &ldquo;To-morrow! to-morrow!&rdquo; he said to himself
+      again and again, with a thrill of mingled joy and impatience. And what
+      bright visions of future glory haunted him! He saw himself the possessor
+      of a magnificent stud, of sufficient wealth to gratify every fancy; he
+      would splash mud upon all the passers-by, and especially upon his former
+      acquaintances, as he dashed past them in his superb equipage; the best
+      tailor should invent astonishing garments for him; he would make himself
+      conspicuous at all the first performances in a stage-box, with the most
+      notorious women in Paris; his fetes would be described in the papers; he
+      would be the continual subject of comment; he would be credited with
+      splendid, perfect &ldquo;form.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It is true that M. de Coralth had promised him all this, without a word of
+      explanation; but what did that matter? Should he doubt his friend&rsquo;s word?
+      Never! The viscount was not merely his model, but his oracle as well. By
+      the way in which he spoke of him, it might have been supposed that they
+      had been friends from their childhood, or, at least, that they had known
+      each other for years. Such was not the case, however. Their acquaintance
+      dated only seven or eight months back, and their first meeting had
+      apparently been the result of chance; though it is needless to say,
+      perhaps, that this chance had been carefully prepared by M. de Coralth.
+      Having discovered Madame Lia d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s secret, the viscount watched
+      Wilkie, ascertained where he spent his evenings, contrived a way of
+      introducing himself into his society, and on their third meeting was
+      skilful enough to render him a service&mdash;in other words, to lend him
+      some money. From that moment the conquest was assured; for M. de Coralth
+      possessed in an eminent degree all the attributes that were likely to
+      dazzle and charm the gifted owner of Pompier de Nanterre. First of all,
+      there was his title, then his impudent assurance and his apparent wealth,
+      and last, but by no means least, his numerous and fashionable
+      acquaintances. He was not long in discovering his advantage, and in
+      profiting by it. And without giving M. Wilkie an inkling of the truth, he
+      succeeded in obtaining from him as accurate a knowledge of his past career
+      as the young fellow himself possessed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie did not know much concerning his origin or his early life; and
+      his history, so far as he was acquainted with it, could be told in a few
+      words. His earliest recollection was of the ocean. He was sure, perfectly
+      sure, that he had made a very long sea voyage when only a little child,
+      and he looked upon America as his birthplace. The French language was
+      certainly not the first he had learned, for he still remembered a limited
+      number of English phrases. The English word &ldquo;father&rdquo; was among those that
+      lingered in his memory; and now, after a lapse of twenty years, he
+      pronounced it without the least foreign accent. But while he remembered
+      the word perfectly well, no recollection remained to him of the person he
+      had called by that name. His first sensations were those of hunger,
+      weariness, and cold. He recollected, and very distinctly too, how on one
+      long winter night, a woman had dragged him after her through the streets
+      of Paris, in an icy rain. He could still see himself as he wandered on,
+      crying with weariness, and begging for something to eat. And then the poor
+      woman who held him by the hand lifted him in her arms and carried him on&mdash;on,
+      until her own strength failed, and she was obliged to set him on the
+      ground again. A vague portrait of this woman, who was most probably his
+      mother, still lingered in his memory. According to his description, she
+      was extremely handsome, tall, and very fair. He had been particularly
+      impressed with the pale tint and profusion of her beautiful hair.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Their poverty had not lasted long. He remembered being installed with his
+      mother in a very handsome suite of rooms. A man, who was still young, and
+      whom he called &ldquo;Monsieur Jacques,&rdquo; came every day, and brought him
+      sweetmeats and playthings. He thought he must have been about four years
+      old at that time. However, he had enjoyed this comfortable state of things
+      scarcely a month, when one morning a stranger presented himself. The
+      visitor held a long conference with his mother, or, at least, with the
+      person whom he called by that name. He did not understand what they were
+      talking about, but he was none the less very uneasy. The result of the
+      interview must have justified his instinctive fear, for his mother took
+      him on her lap, and embraced him with convulsive tenderness. She sobbed
+      violently, and repeated again and again in a faltering voice: &ldquo;Poor child!
+      my beloved Wilkie! I shall never kiss you again&mdash;never, never! &lsquo;Alas!
+      It must be so! Give me courage, my God!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Those were the exact words; Wilkie was sure on that point. It seemed to
+      him he could still hear that despairing farewell. For it was indeed a
+      farewell. The stranger took him in his arms and carried him away, in spite
+      of his cries and struggles to escape. This person to whose care he was
+      confined was the master of a small boarding-school, and his wife was the
+      kindest and most patient of women. However, this did not prevent Wilkie
+      from crying and begging for his mother at first; but gradually he forgot
+      her. He was not unhappy, for he was petted and indulged more than any of
+      the other pupils, and he spent most of his time playing on the terrace or
+      wandering about the garden. But this charming life could not last for
+      ever. According to his calculation, he was just ten years old when, one
+      Sunday, toward the end of October, a grave-looking, red-whiskered
+      gentleman, clad in solemn black with a white necktie, presented himself at
+      the school, and declared that he had been instructed by Wilkie&rsquo;s relatives
+      to place him in a college to continue his education.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Young Wilkie&rsquo;s lamentations were long and loud; but they did not prevent
+      M. Patterson&mdash;for that was the gentleman&rsquo;s name&mdash;from taking him
+      to the college of Louis-the-Great, where he was entered as a boarder. As
+      he did not study, and as he was only endowed with a small amount of
+      intelligence, he learned scarcely anything during the years he remained
+      there. Every Sunday and every fete day, M. Patterson made his appearance
+      at ten o&rsquo;clock precisely, took Wilkie for a walk in Paris or the environs,
+      gave him his breakfast and dinner at some of the best restaurants, bought
+      everything he expressed a desire to have, and at nine o&rsquo;clock precisely
+      took him back to the college again. During the holidays M. Patterson kept
+      the boy with him, refusing him nothing in the way of pleasure, granting
+      all his wishes, but never losing sight of him for a moment. And if Wilkie
+      complained of this constant watchfulness, M. Patterson always replied, &ldquo;I
+      must obey orders;&rdquo; and this answer invariably put an end to the
+      discussion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So things went on until it became time for Wilkie to take his degree. He
+      presented himself for examination; and, of course, he failed. Fortunately,
+      however, M. Patterson was not at a loss for an expedient. He placed his
+      charge in a private school; and the following year, at a cost of five
+      thousand francs, he beguiled a poor devil into running the risk of three
+      years&rsquo; imprisonment, by assuming M. Wilkie&rsquo;s name, and passing the
+      examination in his place. In possession of the precious diploma which
+      opens the door of every career, M. Wilkie now hoped that his pockets would
+      be filled, and that he would then be set at liberty. But the hope was
+      vain! M. Patterson placed him in the hands of an old tutor who had been
+      engaged to travel with him through Europe; and as this tutor held the
+      purse-strings, Wilkie was obliged to follow him through Germany, England,
+      and Italy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he returned to Paris he was just twenty years old, and the very next
+      day M. Patterson conducted him to the suite of rooms which he still
+      occupied in the Rue du Helder. &ldquo;You are now in your own home, M. Wilkie,&rdquo;
+       said M. Patterson in his most impressive manner. &ldquo;You are now old enough
+      to be responsible for your own actions, and I hope you will conduct
+      yourself like an honest man. From this moment you are your own master.
+      Those who gave you your education desire you to study law. If I were in
+      your place, I should obey them. If you wish to be somebody, and to acquire
+      a fortune, work, for you have no property, nor anything to expect from any
+      one. The allowance which is granted you, a far too liberal one in my
+      opinion, may be cut off at any moment. I don&rsquo;t think it right to conceal
+      this fact from you. But at all events until then. I am instructed to pay
+      you five thousand francs quarterly. Here is the amount for the first
+      quarter, and in three months&rsquo; time I shall send you a similar amount. I
+      say &lsquo;shall SEND,&rsquo; because my business compels me to return to England, and
+      take up my abode there. Here is my London address; and if any serious
+      trouble befalls you, write to me. Now, my duty being fulfilled, farewell.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Go to the devil, you old preacher!&rdquo; growled Wilkie, as he saw the door
+      close on the retreating figure of M. Patterson, who had acted as his
+      guardian for ten years. None of M. Patterson&rsquo;s wise advice lingered in the
+      young fellow&rsquo;s mind. To use a familiar expression, &ldquo;It went in through one
+      ear and came out through the other.&rdquo; Only two facts had made an impression
+      upon him: that he was to be his own master henceforth, and that he had a
+      fortune at his command. There it lay upon the table, five thousand francs
+      in glittering gold.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If M. Wilkie had taken the trouble to attentively examine the rooms which
+      had suddenly become his own, he would perhaps have recognized the fact
+      that a loving hand had prepared them for his reception. Countless details
+      revealed the delicate taste of a woman, and the thoughtful tenderness of a
+      mother. None of those little superfluities which delight a young man had
+      been forgotten. There was a box of choice cigars upon the table, and a jar
+      of tobacco on the mantel-shelf. But Wilkie did not take time to discover
+      this. He hastily slipped five hundred francs into his pocket, locked the
+      rest of his money in a drawer, and went out with as lofty an air as if all
+      Paris belonged to him, or as if he had enough money to purchase it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had resolved to give a fete in honor of his deliverance, and so he
+      hurried off in search of some of his old college chums. He found two of
+      them; and, although it was very wounding to his self-love, M. Wilkie was
+      obliged to confess to them that this was his first taste of liberty, and
+      that he scarcely knew what to do with himself. Of course his friends
+      assured him that they could quickly make him acquainted with the only life
+      that it was worth while living; and, to prove it, they accepted the
+      invitation to dinner which he immediately offered them. It was a
+      remarkable repast. Other acquaintances dropped in, the wine flowed in
+      rivers; and after dinner they danced. And at day-break, having served his
+      apprenticeship at baccarat, M. Wilkie found himself without a penny in his
+      pocket, and face to face with a bill of four hundred francs, for which
+      amount he was obliged to go to his rooms, under the escort of one of the
+      waiters. This first experiment ought to have disgusted him, or at least
+      have made him reflect. But no. He felt quite in his element in the society
+      of dissipated young men and enamelled women. He swore that he would win a
+      place in their midst, and an influential place too. But it was easier to
+      form this plan than to carry it into execution, as he discovered when, at
+      the end of the month, he counted his money to see what remained of the
+      five thousand francs that had been given him for his quarterly allowance.
+      He had just three hundred francs left.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Twenty thousand francs a year is what one chooses to make it&mdash;wealth
+      or poverty. Twenty thousand francs a year represents about sixty francs a
+      day; but what are sixty francs to a high liver, who breakfasts and dines
+      at the best restaurants, whose clothes are designed by an illustrious
+      tailor, who declines to make a pair of trousers for less than a hundred
+      francs? What are three louis a day to a man who hires a box for first
+      performances at the opera, to a man who gambles and gives expensive
+      suppers, to a man who drives out with yellow-haired demoiselles, and who
+      owns a race-horse? Measuring his purse and his ambition, M. Wilkie
+      discovered that he should never succeed in making both ends meet. &ldquo;How do
+      other people manage?&rdquo; he wondered. A puzzling question! Every evening a
+      thousand gorgeously apparelled gentlemen, with a cigar in their mouth and
+      a flower in their button-hole, may be seen promenading between the
+      Chaussee d&rsquo;Antin and the Faubourg Montmartre. Everybody knows them, and
+      they know everybody, but how they exist is a problem which it is
+      impossible to solve. How do they live, and what do they live on? Everybody
+      knows that they have no property; they do nothing, and yet they are
+      reckless in their expenditures, and rail at work and jeer at economy. What
+      source do they derive their money from? What vile business are they
+      engaged in?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, M. Wilkie did not devote much time to solving this question. &ldquo;My
+      relatives must wish me to starve,&rdquo; he said to himself. &ldquo;Not I&mdash;I&rsquo;m
+      not that sort of a person, as I&rsquo;ll soon let them know.&rdquo; And thereupon he
+      wrote to M. Patterson. By return of post that gentleman sent him a cheque
+      for one thousand francs&mdash;a mere drop in the bucket. M. Wilkie felt
+      indignant and so he wrote again. This time he was obliged to wait for a
+      reply. Still at last it came. M. Patterson sent him two thousand francs,
+      and an interminable epistle full of reproaches. The interesting young man
+      threw the letter into the fire, and went out to hire a carriage by the
+      month and a servant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From that day forward, his life was spent in demanding money and waiting
+      for it. He employed in quick succession every pretext that could soften
+      the hearts of obdurate relatives, or find the way to the most closely
+      guarded cash-box. He was ill&mdash;he had contracted a debt of honor&mdash;he
+      had imprudently lent money to an unscrupulous friend&mdash;he was about to
+      be arrested for debt. And in accordance with the favorable or unfavorable
+      character of the replies his manner became humble or impertinent, so that
+      his friends soon learned to judge very accurately of the condition of his
+      purse by the way he wore his mustaches. He became wise with experience,
+      however; and on adding all the sums he had received together, he decided
+      that his family must be very rich to allow him so much money. And this
+      thought made him anxious to fathom the mystery of his birth and his
+      infancy. He finally persuaded himself that he was the son of a great
+      English nobleman&mdash;a member of the House of Lords, who was twenty
+      times a millionaire. And he more than half believed it when he told his
+      creditors that his lordship, his father, would some day or other come to
+      Paris and pay all his debts. Unfortunately it was not M. Wilkie&rsquo;s noble
+      father that arrived, but a letter from M. Patterson, which was couched as
+      follows:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;MY DEAR SIR, a considerable sum was placed in my hands to meet your
+      unexpected requirements; and in compliance with your repeated appeals, I
+      have remitted the entire amount to you. Not a penny remains in my
+      possession&mdash;so that my instructions have been fulfilled. Spare
+      yourself the trouble of making any fresh demands; they will meet with no
+      reply. In future you will not receive a penny above your allowance, which
+      in my opinion is already too large a one for a young man of your age.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This letter proved a terrible blow to Wilkie. What should he do? He felt
+      that M. Patterson would not revoke his decision; and indeed he wrote him
+      several imploring letters, in vain. Yet never had his need of money been
+      so urgent. His creditors were becoming uneasy; bills actually rained in
+      upon his concierge; his next quarterly allowance was not due for some time
+      to come, and it was only through the pawnbroker that he could obtain money
+      for his more pressing requirements. He had begun to consider himself
+      ruined. He saw himself reduced to dismissing his carriage, to selling his
+      third share of Pompier de Nanterre and losing the esteem of all his witty
+      friends.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was in the depths of despair, when one morning his servant woke him up
+      with the announcement that the Viscount de Coralth was in the sitting-room
+      and wished to speak with him on very important business. It was not
+      usually an easy task to entice M. Wilkie from his bed, but the name his
+      servant mentioned seemed to have a prodigious effect upon him. He bounded
+      on to the floor, and as he hastily dressed himself, he muttered: &ldquo;The
+      viscount here, at this hour! It&rsquo;s astonishing! What if he&rsquo;s going to fight
+      a duel and wishes me to be his second? That would be a piece of grand good
+      luck and no mistake. It would assure my position at once. Certainly
+      something must have happened!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This last remark was by no means a proof of any remarkable perspicuity on
+      M. Wilkie&rsquo;s part. As M. de Coralth never went to bed until two or three
+      o&rsquo;clock in the morning, he was by no means an early riser, and only some
+      very powerful reason could explain the presence of his blue-lined brougham
+      in the street before nine o&rsquo;clock A.M. And the influence that had made him
+      rise betimes in the present case had indeed been extremely powerful.
+      Although the brilliant viscount had discovered Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s secret,
+      several months previously, he had so far disclosed it to no one. It was
+      certainly not from any delicacy of feeling that he had held his peace; but
+      only because it had not been for his interest to speak. Now, however, the
+      sudden death of the Count de Chalusse changed the situation. He heard of
+      the catastrophe at his club on the evening after the count&rsquo;s death, and
+      his emotion was so great that he actually declined to take part in a game
+      of baccarat that was just beginning. &ldquo;The devil!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Let me
+      think a moment. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles is the heiress of all these millions&mdash;will
+      she come forward and claim them? From what I know of her, I am inclined to
+      think that she won&rsquo;t. Will she ever go to Wilkie and confess that she, Lia
+      d&rsquo;Argeles, is a Chalusse, and that he is her illegitimate son? Never! She
+      would rather relinquish her millions, both for herself and for him, than
+      take such a step. She is so ridiculously antiquated in her notions.&rdquo; And
+      then he began to study what advantages he might derive from his knowledge
+      of the situation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth, like all persons whose present is more or less uncertain,
+      had great misgivings concerning his future. Just now he was cunning enough
+      to find a means of procuring the thirty or forty thousand francs a year
+      that were indispensable to his comfort; but he had not a farthing laid by,
+      and the vein of silver he was now working might fail him at any moment.
+      The slightest indiscretion, the least blunder, might hurl him from his
+      splendor into the mire. The perspiration started out on his forehead when
+      he thought of his peril. He passionately longed for a more assured
+      position&mdash;for a little capital that would insure him his bread until
+      the end of his days, and rid him of the grim phantom of poverty forever.
+      And it was this desire which inspired him with the same plan that M.
+      Fortunat had formed. &ldquo;Why shouldn&rsquo;t I inform Wilkie?&rdquo; he said to himself.
+      &ldquo;If I present him with a fortune, the simpleton ought certainly to give me
+      some reward.&rdquo; But to carry this plan into execution it would be necessary
+      to brave Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s anger; and that was attended by no little
+      danger. If he knew something about her, she on her side knew everything
+      connected with his past life. She had only to speak to ruin him forever.
+      Still, after weighing all the advantages and all the dangers, he decided
+      to act, convinced that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles might be kept ignorant of his
+      treason, providing he only played his cards skilfully. And his matutinal
+      visit to M. Wilkie was caused by a fear that he might not be the only
+      person knowing the truth, and that some one else might forestall him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You here, at sunrise, my friend!&rdquo; exclaimed Wilkie, as he entered the
+      room where the viscount was seated. &ldquo;What has happened?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To me?&mdash;nothing,&rdquo; replied the viscount. &ldquo;It was solely on your
+      account that I deviated from my usual habits.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is it? You frighten me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! don&rsquo;t be alarmed. I have only some good news to communicate,&rdquo; and in
+      a careless tone which cleverly concealed his anxiety, the viscount added:
+      &ldquo;I have come, my dear Wilkie, to ask you what you would be willing to give
+      the man who put you in possession of a fortune of several millions?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie&rsquo;s face turned from white to purple at least three times in ten
+      seconds; and it was in a strangely altered voice that he replied: &ldquo;Ah!
+      that&rsquo;s good&mdash;very good&mdash;excellent!&rdquo; He tried his best to laugh,
+      but he was completely overcome; and, in fact, he had cherished so many
+      extravagant hopes that nothing seemed impossible to him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never in all my life have I spoken more seriously,&rdquo; insisted the
+      viscount.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His companion at first made no reply. It was easy to divine the conflict
+      that was raging in his mind, between the hope that the news was true and
+      the fear of being made the victim of a practical joke. &ldquo;Come, my friend,&rdquo;
+       he said at last, &ldquo;do you want to poke fun at me? That wouldn&rsquo;t be polite.
+      A debtor is always sacred, and I owe you twenty-five louis. This is
+      scarcely the time to talk of millions. My relatives have cut off my
+      supplies; and my creditors are overwhelming me with their bills&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But M. de Coralth checked him, saying gravely: &ldquo;Upon my honor, I am not
+      jesting. What would you give a man who&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I would give him half of the fortune he gave me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s too much!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, no!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was in earnest, certainly. What wouldn&rsquo;t a man promise in all sincerity
+      of soul to a fellow mortal who gave him money when he had none&mdash;when
+      he needed it urgently and must have it to save himself from ruin?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At such a moment no commission, however large, seems exorbitant. It is
+      afterward, when the day of settlement comes, that people begin to find
+      fault with the rate of interest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If I tell you that one-half is too much, it is because such is really the
+      case. And I am the best judge of the matter, since I am the man who can
+      put you in possession of this enormous fortune.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie started back in speechless amazement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This astonishes you!&rdquo; said the viscount; &ldquo;and why, pray? Is it because I
+      ask for a commission?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! not at all!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is not perhaps a very gentlemanly proceeding, but it is a sensible
+      one. Business is business. In the afternoon, when I am in a restaurant, at
+      the club, or in a lady&rsquo;s boudoir, I am merely the viscount and the grand
+      seigneur. All money questions sicken me. I am careless, liberal, and
+      obliging to a fault. But in the morning I am simply Coralth, a man of the
+      middle classes who doesn&rsquo;t pay his bills without examining them, and who
+      watches his money, because he doesn&rsquo;t wish to be ruined and end his
+      brilliant career as a common soldier in some foreign legion.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie did not allow him to continue. He believed, and his joy was wild&mdash;delirious.
+      &ldquo;Enough, enough!&rdquo; he interrupted. &ldquo;A difficulty between us! Never! I am
+      yours without reserve! Do you understand me? How much must you have? Do
+      you wish for it all?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the viscount was unmoved. &ldquo;It is not fitting that I should fix upon
+      the indemnity which is due to me. I will consult a man of business; and I
+      will decide upon this point on the day after to-morrow, when I shall
+      explain everything to you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On the day after to-morrow! You won&rsquo;t leave me in suspense for
+      forty-eight hours?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is unavoidable. I have still some important information to procure. I
+      lost no time in coming to you, so that I might put you on your guard. If
+      any scoundrel comes to you with proposals, be extremely careful. Some
+      agents, when they obtain a hold on an estate, leave nothing for the
+      rightful owner. So don&rsquo;t treat with any one.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, no! You may rest assured I won&rsquo;t.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I should be quieter in mind if I had your promise in writing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a word, Wilkie darted to a table, and wrote a short contract by
+      which he bound himself to give M. Ferdinand de Coralth one-half of the
+      inheritance which the aforesaid Coralth might prove him to be entitled to.
+      The viscount read the document, placed it in his pocket, and then said, as
+      he took up his hat:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well. I will see you again on Monday.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But M. Wilkie&rsquo;s doubts were beginning to return. &ldquo;Monday, so be it!&rdquo; said
+      he; &ldquo;but swear that you are not deceiving me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, do you still doubt me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie reflected for a moment; and suddenly a brilliant inspiration
+      darted through his brain. &ldquo;If you are speaking the truth, I shall soon be
+      rich,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;But, in the meantime, life is hard. I haven&rsquo;t a penny,
+      and it isn&rsquo;t a pleasant situation. I have a horse entered for the race
+      to-morrow, Pompier de Nanterre. You know the animal very well. The chances
+      are enormously in his favor. So, if it wouldn&rsquo;t inconvenience you to lend
+      me fifty louis.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly,&rdquo; interrupted the viscount, cordially. &ldquo;Certainly; with the
+      greatest pleasure.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And drawing a beautiful little notebook from his pocket he took from it
+      not one, but two bank-notes of a thousand francs, and handed them to M.
+      Wilkie, saying: &ldquo;Monsieur believes me now, does he not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As will be readily believed, it was not for his own pleasure that M. de
+      Coralth postponed his confidential disclosures for a couple of days. He
+      knew Wilkie perfectly well, and felt that it was dangerous to let him roam
+      about Paris with half of an important secret. Postponement generally
+      furnishes fate with weapons against oneself. But it was impossible for the
+      viscount to act otherwise. He had not seen the Marquis de Valorsay since
+      the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s death and he dared not conclude the contract with
+      Wilkie before he had conferred with him, for he was completely in the
+      marquis&rsquo;s power. At the least suspicion of treason, M. de Valorsay would
+      close his hand, and he, Coralth, would be crushed like an egg-shell. It
+      was to the house of his formidable associate that he repaired on leaving
+      M. Wilkie; and in a single breath he told the marquis all that he knew,
+      and the plans that he had formed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s astonishment must have been intense when he heard that
+      Lia d&rsquo;Argeles was a Chalusse, but he knew how to maintain his composure.
+      He listened quietly, and when the viscount had completed his story, he
+      asked: &ldquo;Why did you wait so long before telling me all this?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t see how it could interest you in the least.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis looked at him keenly, and then calmly said: &ldquo;In other words,
+      you were waiting to see whether it would be most advantageous to you to be
+      with me or against me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How can you think&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think, I&rsquo;m sure of it. As long as I was strong support for you,
+      you were devoted to me. But now I am tottering, and you are ready to
+      betray me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me! The step I am about to take&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, haven&rsquo;t you taken it already?&rdquo; interrupted the marquis, quickly.
+      And shrugging his shoulders, he added: &ldquo;Observe that I don&rsquo;t reproach you
+      in the least. Only remember this: we survive or we perish together.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By the angry gleam in M. de Coralth&rsquo;s eyes, the marquis must have realized
+      that his companion was disposed to rebel; still this knowledge did not
+      seem to disquiet him, for it was in the same icy tone that he continued:
+      &ldquo;Besides, your plans, far from conflicting with mine, will be of service
+      to me. Yes, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles must lay claim to the count&rsquo;s estate. If she
+      hesitates, her son will compel her to urge her claims, will he not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, you may rest assured of that.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And when he becomes rich, will you be able to retain your influence over
+      him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Rich or poor, I can mould him like wax.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very good. Marguerite was escaping me, but I shall soon have her in my
+      power. I have a plan. The Fondeges think they can outwit me, but we shall
+      soon see about that.&rdquo; The viscount was watching his companion stealthily;
+      as the latter perceived, and so in a tone of brusque cordiality, he
+      resumed: &ldquo;Excuse me for not keeping you to breakfast, but I must go out
+      immediately&mdash;Baron Trigault is waiting for me at his house. Let us
+      part friends&mdash;au revoir&mdash;and, above all, keep me well posted
+      about matters in general.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth&rsquo;s temper was already somewhat ruffled when he entered
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s house; and he was in a furious passion when he left it. &ldquo;So we
+      are to survive or perish together,&rdquo; he growled. &ldquo;Thanks for the preference
+      you display for my society. Is it my fault that the fool has squandered
+      his fortune? I fancy I&rsquo;ve had enough of his threats and airs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Still his wrath was not so violent as to make him forget his own
+      interests. He at once went to inquire if the agreement which M. Wilkie had
+      just signed would be binding. The lawyer whom he consulted replied that,
+      at all events, a reasonable compensation would most probably be granted by
+      the courts, in case of any difficulty; and he suggested a little plan
+      which was a chef d&rsquo;oeuvre in its way, at the same time advising his client
+      to strike the iron while it was hot.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not yet noon, and the viscount determined to act upon the
+      suggestion at once; he now bitterly regretted the delay he had specified.
+      &ldquo;I must find Wilkie at once,&rdquo; he said to himself. But he did not succeed
+      in meeting him until the evening, when he found him at the Cafe Riche&mdash;and
+      in what a condition too! The two bottles of wine which the young fool had
+      drank at dinner had gone to his head, and he was enumerating, in a loud
+      voice, the desires he meant to gratify as soon as he came into possession
+      of his millions. &ldquo;What a brute!&rdquo; thought the enraged viscount. &ldquo;If I leave
+      him to himself, no one knows what foolish thing he may do or say. I must
+      remain with him until he becomes sober again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So he followed him to the theatre, and thence to Brebant&rsquo;s, where he was
+      sitting feeling terribly bored, when M. Wilkie conceived the unfortunate
+      idea of inviting Victor Chupin to come up and take some refreshment. The
+      scene which followed greatly alarmed the viscount. Who could this young
+      man be? He did not remember having ever seen him before, and yet the young
+      scamp was evidently well acquainted with his past life, for he had cast
+      the name of Paul in his face, as a deadly insult. Surely this was enough
+      to make the viscount shudder! How did it happen that this young man had
+      been just on the spot ready to pick up Wilkie&rsquo;s hat? Was it mere chance?
+      Certainly not. He could not believe it. Then why was the fellow there?
+      Evidently to watch somebody. And whom? Why, him&mdash;Coralth&mdash;undoubtedly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In going through life as he had done, a man makes enemies at every step;
+      and he had an imposing number of foes, whom he only held in check by his
+      unbounded impudence and his renown as a duellist. Thus it was not strange
+      if some one had set a snare for him; it was rather a miracle that he had
+      not fallen into one before. The dangers that threatened him were so
+      formidable that he was almost tempted to relinquish his attack on Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles. Was it prudent to incur the risk of making this woman an enemy?
+      All Sunday he hesitated. It would be very easy to get out of the scrape.
+      He could concoct some story for Wilkie&rsquo;s benefit, and that would be the
+      end of it. But on the other hand, there was the prospect of netting at
+      least five hundred thousand francs&mdash;a fortune&mdash;a competency, and
+      the idea was too tempting to be relinquished.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So on Monday morning, at about ten o&rsquo;clock, he presented himself at
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s house, looking pale with anxiety, and far more solemn in manner
+      than usual. &ldquo;Let us say but little, and that to the point,&rdquo; he remarked on
+      entering. &ldquo;The secret I am about to reveal to you will make you rich; but
+      it might ruin me if it were known that you obtained this information
+      through me. You will therefore swear, upon your honor as a gentleman,
+      never to betray me, under any circumstances, or for any reason.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie extended his hand and solemnly exclaimed: &ldquo;I swear!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well, then. Now my mind is at rest. It is scarcely necessary for me
+      to add that if you break your faith you are a dead man. You know me. You
+      know how I handle a sword; and don&rsquo;t forget it.&rdquo; His manner was so
+      threatening that Wilkie shuddered. &ldquo;You will certainly be questioned,&rdquo;
+       continued M. de Coralth; &ldquo;but you must reply that you received the
+      information through one of Mr. Patterson&rsquo;s friends. Now let us sign our
+      formal contract in lieu of the temporary one you gave me the other day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It is needless to say that Wilkie signed it eagerly. Not so the viscount;
+      he read the document through carefully, before appending his signature,
+      and then exclaimed: &ldquo;The estate that belongs to you is that of the Count
+      de Chalusse, your uncle. He leaves, I am informed, at least eight or ten
+      millions of property.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By M. Wilkie&rsquo;s excited gestures, by the glitter in his eyes, it might have
+      been supposed that this wonderful good fortune was too much for him, and
+      that he was going mad. &ldquo;I knew that I belonged to a noble family,&rdquo; he
+      began. &ldquo;The Count de Chalusse my uncle! I shall have a coronet on the
+      corner of my visiting cards.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But with a gesture M. de Coralth silenced him. &ldquo;Wait a little before you
+      rejoice,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Yes, your mother is the sister of the Count de
+      Chalusse, and it is through her that you are an heir to the estate. But&mdash;don&rsquo;t
+      grieve too much&mdash;there are similar misfortunes in many of our most
+      distinguished families&mdash;circumstances&mdash;the obstinacy of parents&mdash;a
+      love more powerful than reason&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; The viscount paused,
+      certainly he had no prejudices; but at the moment of telling this
+      interesting young man who his mother really was, he hesitated.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Go on,&rdquo; insisted M. Wilkie.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well&mdash;when your mother was a young girl, about twenty, she fled from
+      her paternal home with a man she loved. Forsaken afterward, she found
+      herself in the depths of poverty. She was obliged to live. You were
+      starving. So she changed her name, and now she is known as Lia d&rsquo;Argeles.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie sprang to his feet. &ldquo;Lia d&rsquo;Argeles!&rdquo; he exclaimed. Then, with a
+      burst of laughter, he added: &ldquo;Nevertheless, I think it a piece of grand
+      good luck!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0006" id="link2H_4_0006">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      VI.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This man carries away your secret; you are lost.&rdquo; A sinister voice
+      whispered these words in Madame Lia d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s heart when M. Isidore
+      Fortunat, after being rudely dismissed, closed the door of her
+      drawing-room behind him. This man had addressed her by the ancient and
+      illustrious name of Chalusse which she had not heard for twenty years, and
+      which she had forbidden her own lips to pronounce. This man knew that she,
+      Lia d&rsquo;Argeles, was really a Durtal de Chalusse.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This frightful certainty overwhelmed her. It is true this man Fortunat had
+      declared that his visit was entirely disinterested. He had pretended that
+      his regard for the Chalusse family, and the compassion aroused in his
+      heart by the unfortunate plight of Mademoiselle Marguerite, were the only
+      motives that has influenced him in taking this step. However, Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s experience in life had left her but limited faith in apparent
+      or pretended disinterestedness. This is a practical age; chivalrous
+      sentiments are expensive&mdash;as she had learned conclusively. &ldquo;If the
+      man came here,&rdquo; she murmured, &ldquo;it was only because he thought he might
+      derive some benefit from the prosecution of my claim to my poor brother&rsquo;s
+      estate. In refusing to listen to his entreaties, I have deprived him of
+      this expected profit and so I have made him my enemy. Ah! I was foolish to
+      send him away like that! I ought to have pretended to listen&mdash;I ought
+      to have bound him by all sorts of promises.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She suddenly paused. It occurred to her that M. Fortunat could not have
+      gone very far; so that, if she sent for him to come back, she might
+      perhaps be able to repair her blunder. Without losing a second, she rushed
+      downstairs, and ordered her concierge and a servant to run after the
+      gentleman who had just left the house, and ask him to return; to tell him
+      that she had reflected, and wished to speak to him again. They rushed out
+      in pursuit, and she remained in the courtyard, her heart heavy with
+      anxiety. Too late! About a quarter of an hour afterward her emissaries
+      returned. They had made all possible haste in contrary directions, but
+      they had seen no one in the street who at all resembled the person they
+      were looking for. They had questioned the shopkeepers, but no one had seen
+      him pass. &ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t matter,&rdquo; faltered Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, in a tone that
+      belied her words. And, anxious to escape the evident curiosity of her
+      servants, she hastened back to the little boudoir where she usually spent
+      her mornings.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat had left his card&mdash;that is to say, his address&mdash;and
+      it would have been an easy matter to send a servant to his house. She was
+      strongly tempted to do so; but she ultimately decided that it would be
+      better to wait&mdash;that an hour more or less would make but little
+      difference. She had sent her trusty servant, Job, for Baron Trigault; he
+      would probably return with the baron at any moment; and the baron would
+      advise her. He would know at once what was the best course for her to
+      pursue. And so she waited for his coming in breathless anxiety; and the
+      more she reflected, the more imminent her peril seemed, for she realized
+      that M. Fortunat must be a very dangerous and cunning man. He had set a
+      trap for her, and she had allowed herself to be caught. Perhaps he had
+      only suspected the truth when he presented himself at the house. He had
+      suddenly announced the death of the Count de Chalusse; she had betrayed
+      herself; and any doubts he might have entertained were dispelled. &ldquo;If I
+      had only had sufficient presence of mind to deny it,&rdquo; she murmured. &ldquo;If I
+      had only been courageous enough to reply that I knew absolutely nothing
+      about the person he spoke of. Ah! then he would have gone away convinced
+      that he was mistaken.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But would the smooth-spoken visitor have declared that he knew everything,
+      if he had not really penetrated the mystery of her life? It was scarcely
+      probable. He had implored her to accept the property, if not for her own
+      sake at least for the sake of another. And when she asked him whom he
+      meant he had answered, &ldquo;Mademoiselle Marguerite,&rdquo; but he was undoubtedly
+      thinking of Wilkie. So this man, this Isidore Fortunat, knew that she had
+      a son. Perhaps he was even acquainted with him personally. In his anger he
+      would very likely hasten to Wilkie&rsquo;s rooms and tell him everything. This
+      thought filled the wretched woman&rsquo;s heart with despair. What! Had she not
+      yet expiated her fault? Must she suffer again?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For the first time a terrible doubt came over her. What she had formerly
+      regarded as a most sublime effort of maternal love, was, perhaps, even a
+      greater crime than the first she had committed. She had given her honor as
+      the price of her son&rsquo;s happiness and prosperity. Had she a right to do so?
+      Did not the money she had lavished upon him contain every germ of
+      corruption, misfortune, and shame? How terrible Wilkie&rsquo;s grief and rage
+      would be if he chanced to hear the truth!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! he would certainly pay no heed to the extenuating circumstances; he
+      would close his ears to all attempts at justification. He would be
+      pitiless. He would have naught but hatred and scorn to bestow upon a
+      mother who had fallen from the highest rank in society down to everlasting
+      infamy. She fancied she heard him saying in an indignant voice, &ldquo;It would
+      have been better to have allowed me to die of starvation than to have
+      given me bread purchased at such a price! Why have you dishonored me by
+      your ill-gotten wealth? Fallen, you might have raised yourself by honest
+      toil. You ought to have made me a laborer, and not a spoiled idler,
+      incapable of earning an honest livelihood. As the son of a poor, betrayed,
+      and deserted woman, with whom I could have shared my scanty earnings, I
+      might have looked the world proudly in the face. But where can the son of
+      Lia d&rsquo;Argeles hide his disgrace after playing the gentleman for twenty
+      years with Lia d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s money?&rdquo; Yes, Wilkie would certainly say this if
+      he ever learned the truth; and he would learn it&mdash;she felt sure of
+      it. How could she hope to keep a secret which was known to Baron Trigault,
+      M. Patterson, the Viscount de Coralth, and M. Fortunat&mdash;four persons!
+      She had confidence in the first two; she believed she had a hold on the
+      third, but the fourth&mdash;Fortunat!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The hours went by; and still Job did not return. What was the meaning of
+      this delay? Had he failed to find the baron? At last the sound of
+      carriage-wheels in the courtyard made her start. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s Job!&rdquo; she said to
+      herself. &ldquo;He brings the baron.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! no. Job returned alone. And yet the honest fellow had spared neither
+      pains nor horseflesh. He had visited every place where there was the least
+      probability of finding the baron, and he was everywhere told that Baron
+      Trigault had not been seen for several days. &ldquo;In that case, you ought to
+      have gone to his house. Perhaps he is there,&rdquo; remarked Madame d&rsquo;Argeles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Madame knows that the baron is never at home. I did go there, however,
+      but in vain.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This chanced to be one of three consecutive days which Baron Trigault had
+      spent with Kami-Bey, the Turkish ambassador. It had been agreed between
+      them that they should play until one or the other had lost five hundred
+      thousand francs; and, in order to prevent any waste of &ldquo;precious time,&rdquo; as
+      the baron was wont to remark, they neither of them stirred from the Grand
+      Hotel, where Kami-Bey had a suite of rooms. They ate and slept there. By
+      some strange chance, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had not heard of this duel with
+      bank-notes, although nothing else was talked of at the clubs; indeed, the
+      Figaro had already published a minute description of the apartment where
+      the contest was going on; and every evening it gave the results. According
+      to the latest accounts, the baron had the advantage; he had won about two
+      hundred and eighty thousand francs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I only returned to inform madame that I had so far been unsuccessful,&rdquo;
+       said Job. &ldquo;But I will recommence the search at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That is unnecessary,&rdquo; replied Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. &ldquo;The baron will
+      undoubtedly drop in this evening, after dinner, as usual.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She said this, and tried her best to believe it; but in her secret heart
+      she felt that she could no longer depend upon the baron&rsquo;s assistance. &ldquo;I
+      wounded him this morning,&rdquo; she thought. &ldquo;He went away more angry than I
+      had ever seen him before. He is incensed with me; and who knows how long
+      it will be before he comes again?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Still she waited, with feverish anxiety, listening breathlessly to every
+      sound in the street, and trembling each time she heard or fancied she
+      heard a carriage stop at the door. However, at two o&rsquo;clock in the morning
+      the baron had not made his appearance. &ldquo;It is too late&mdash;he won&rsquo;t
+      come!&rdquo; she murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But now her sufferings were less intolerable, for excess of wretchedness
+      had deadened her sensibility. Utter prostration paralyzed her energies and
+      benumbed her mind. Ruin seemed so inevitable that she no longer thought of
+      avoiding it; she awaited it with that blind resignation displayed by
+      Spanish women, who, when they hear the roll of thunder, fall upon their
+      knees, convinced that lightning is about to strike their defenceless
+      heads. She tottered to her room, flung herself on the bed, and instantly
+      fell asleep. Yes, she slept the heavy, leaden slumber which always follows
+      a great mental crisis, and which falls like God&rsquo;s blessing upon a tortured
+      mind. On waking up, her first act was to ring for her maid, in order to
+      send a message to Job, to go out again in search of the baron. But the
+      faithful servant had divined his mistress&rsquo;s wishes, and had already
+      started off of his own accord. It was past mid-day when he returned, but
+      his face was radiant; and it was in a triumphant voice that he announced:
+      &ldquo;Monsieur le Baron Trigault.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles sprang up, and greeted the baron with a joyful
+      exclamation. &ldquo;Ah! how kind of you to come!&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;You are most
+      welcome. If you knew how anxiously I have been waiting for you!&rdquo; He made
+      no reply. &ldquo;If you knew,&rdquo; continued Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, &ldquo;if you only knew.&rdquo;
+       But she paused, for in spite of her own agitation, she was suddenly struck
+      by the peculiar expression on her visitor&rsquo;s face. He was standing silent
+      and motionless in the centre of the room, and his eyes were fixed upon her
+      with a strange, persistent stare in which she could read all the
+      contradictory feelings which were battling for mastery in his mind&mdash;anger,
+      hatred, pity, and forgiveness. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles shuddered. So her cup of
+      sorrow was not yet full. A new misfortune was about to fall upon her. She
+      had hoped that the baron would be able to alleviate her wretchedness, but
+      it seemed as if he were fated to increase it. &ldquo;Why do you look at me like
+      that?&rdquo; she asked, anxiously. &ldquo;What have I done?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You, my poor Lia&mdash;nothing!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then&mdash;what is it? Oh, my God! you frighten me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is it? Well, I am going to tell you,&rdquo; he said, as he stepped forward
+      and took her hand in his own. &ldquo;You know that I have been infamously duped
+      and deceived, that the happiness of my life has been destroyed by a
+      scoundrel who tempted the wife I so fondly loved to forget her duty, and
+      trample her honor under foot. You have heard my vows of vengeance if I
+      ever succeeded in discovering him. Ah, well, Lia, I have discovered him.
+      The man who stole my share of earthly happiness was the Count de Chalusse,
+      your brother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With a sudden gesture Madame d&rsquo;Argeles freed her hand from the baron&rsquo;s
+      grasp, and recoiled as terrified as if she had seen a spectre rise up
+      before her. Then with her hands extended as if to ward off the horrible
+      apparition, she exclaimed: &ldquo;O, my God!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A bitter smile curved the baron&rsquo;s lips. &ldquo;What do you fear?&rdquo; he asked.
+      &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t your brother dead? He has defrauded me alike of happiness and
+      vengeance!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If her son&rsquo;s life had depended on a single word, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles could
+      not have uttered it. She knew what mental agony had urged the baron to a
+      sort of moral suicide, and led him to contract the vice in which he wasted
+      his life and squandered, or, at least risk, his millions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nor is this all,&rdquo; he continued. &ldquo;Listen. As I have often told you, I was
+      sure that my wife became a mother in my absence. I sought the child for
+      years, hoping that through the offspring I might discover the father. Ah,
+      well! I&rsquo;ve found what I sought, at last. The child is now a beautiful
+      young girl. She lives at the Hotel de Chalusse as your brother&rsquo;s daughter.
+      She is known as Mademoiselle Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles listened, leaning against the wall for support, and
+      trembling like a leaf. Her reason was shaken by so many repeated blows,
+      and her son, her brother, Marguerite, Pascal Ferailleur, Coralth, Valorsay&mdash;all
+      those whom she loved or feared, or hated&mdash;rose like spectres before
+      her troubled brain. The horror of the truth exceeded her most frightful
+      apprehensions. The strangeness of the reality surpassed every flight of
+      fancy. And, moreover, the baron&rsquo;s calmness increased her stupor. She so
+      often had heard him give vent to his rage and despair in terrible threats,
+      that she could not believe he would be thus resigned. But was his calmness
+      real? Was it not a mask, would not his fury suddenly break forth?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, he continued, &ldquo;It is thus that destiny makes us its sport&mdash;it
+      is thus that it laughs at our plans. Do you remember, Lia, the day when I
+      met you wandering through the streets of Paris&mdash;with your child in
+      your arms&mdash;pale and half dead with fatigue, faint for want of food,
+      homeless and penniless? You saw no refuge but in death, as you have since
+      told me. How could I imagine when I rescued you that I was saving my
+      greatest enemy&rsquo;s sister from suicide&mdash;the sister of the man whom I
+      was vainly pursuing? And yet this might not be the end, if I chose to have
+      it otherwise. The count is dead, but I can still return him disgrace for
+      disgrace. He dishonored me. What prevents me from casting ineffaceable
+      opprobrium upon the great name of Chalusse, of which he was so proud? He
+      seduced my wife. To-day I can tell all Paris what his sister has been and
+      what she is to-day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ah! it was this&mdash;yes, it was this that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had dreaded.
+      She fell upon her knees, and, with clasped hands she entreated: &ldquo;Pity!&mdash;oh!
+      have pity&mdash;forgive me! Have mercy! Have I not always been a faithful
+      and devoted friend to you? Think of the past you have just invoked! Who
+      helped you then to bear your intolerable sufferings? Don&rsquo;t you remember
+      the day when you, yourself, had determined to die by your own hand? There
+      was a woman who persuaded you to abandon the thought of suicide. It was
+      I!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He looked at her for a moment with a softer expression, tears came to his
+      eyes, and rolled down his cheeks. Then suddenly he raised her, and placed
+      her in an arm-chair, exclaiming: &ldquo;Ah! you know very well that I shall not
+      do what I said. Don&rsquo;t you know me better than that? Are you not sure of my
+      affection, are you not aware that you are sacred in my eyes?&rdquo; He was
+      evidently striving hard to master his emotion. &ldquo;Besides,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;I had
+      already pardoned before coming here. It was foolish on my part, perhaps,
+      and for nothing in the world would I confess it to my acquaintances, but
+      it is none the less true. I shall have my revenge in a certain fashion,
+      however. I need only hold my peace, and the daughter of M. de Chalusse and
+      Madame Trigault would become a lost woman. Is this not so? Very well, I
+      shall offer her my assistance. It may, or may not, be another absurd and
+      ridiculous fancy added to the many I have been guilty of. But no matter. I
+      have promised. And why, indeed, should this poor girl be held responsible
+      for the sins of her parents? I&mdash;I declare myself on her side against
+      the world!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles rose, her face radiant with joy and hope. &ldquo;Then perhaps
+      we are saved!&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;Ah! I knew when I sent for you that I
+      should not appeal to your heart in vain!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She took hold of his hand as if to raise it to her lips; but he gently
+      withdrew it, and inquired, with an air of astonishment: &ldquo;What do you
+      mean?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That I have been cruelly punished for not wishing you to assist that
+      unfortunate man who was dishonored here the other evening.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pascal Ferailleur?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, he is innocent. The Viscount de Coralth is a scoundrel. It was he
+      who slipped the cards which made M. Ferailleur win, into the pack, and he
+      did it at the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s instigation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron looked at Madame d&rsquo;Argeles with pro-found amazement. &ldquo;What!&rdquo;
+       said he; &ldquo;you knew this and you allowed it? You were cruel enough to
+      remain silent when that innocent man entreated you to testify on his
+      behalf! You allowed this atrocious crime to be executed under your own
+      roof, and under your very eyes?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was then ignorant of Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s existence. I did not
+      know that the young man was beloved by my brother&rsquo;s daughter&mdash;I did
+      not know&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron interrupted her, and exclaimed, indignantly: &ldquo;Ah! what does that
+      matter? It was none the less an abominable action.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She hung her head, and in a scarcely audible voice replied: &ldquo;I was not
+      free. I submitted to a will that was stronger than my own. If you had
+      heard M. de Coralth&rsquo;s threats you would not censure me so severely. He has
+      discovered my secret; he knows Wilkie&mdash;I am in his power. Don&rsquo;t frown&mdash;I
+      make no attempt to excuse myself&mdash;I am only explaining the position
+      in which I was placed. My peril is imminent; I have only confidence in you&mdash;you
+      alone can aid me; listen!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Thereupon she hastily explained M. de Coralth&rsquo;s position respecting
+      herself, what she had been able to ascertain concerning the Marquis de
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s plans, the alarming visit she had received from M. Fortunat,
+      his advice and insinuations, the dangers she apprehended, and her firm
+      determination to deliver Mademoiselle Marguerite from the machinations of
+      her enemies. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s disclosures formed, as it were, a sequel
+      to the confidential revelations of Pascal Ferailleur, and the involuntary
+      confession of the Marquis de Valorsay; and the baron could no longer doubt
+      the existence of the shameful intrigue which had been planned in view of
+      obtaining possession of the count&rsquo;s millions. And if he did not, at first,
+      understand the motives, he at least began to discern what means had been
+      employed. He now understood why Valorsay persisted in his plan of marrying
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite, even without a fortune. &ldquo;The wretch knows through
+      Coralth that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles is a Chalusse,&rdquo; he said to himself; &ldquo;and
+      when Mademoiselle Marguerite has become his wife, he intends to oblige
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles to accept her brother&rsquo;s estate and share it with him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      At that same moment Madame d&rsquo;Argeles finished her narrative. &ldquo;And now,
+      what shall I do?&rdquo; she added.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron was stroking his chin, as was his usual habit when his mind was
+      deeply exercised. &ldquo;The first thing to be done,&rdquo; he replied, &ldquo;is to show
+      Coralth in his real colors, and prove M. Ferailleur&rsquo;s innocence. It will
+      probably cost me a hundred thousand francs to do so, but I shall not
+      grudge the money. I should probably spend as much or even more in play
+      next summer; and the amount had better be spent in a good cause than in
+      swelling the dividends of my friend Blanc, at Baden.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But M. de Coralth will speak out as soon as he finds that I have revealed
+      his shameful past.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let him speak.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles shuddered. &ldquo;Then the name of Chalusse will be disgraced,&rdquo;
+       said she; &ldquo;and Wilkie will know who his mother is.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! allow me to finish, my dear friend. I have my plan, and it is as
+      plain as daylight. This evening you will write to your London
+      correspondent. Request M. Patterson to summon your son to England, under
+      any pretext whatever; let him pretend that he wishes to give him some
+      money, for instance. He will go there, of course, and then we will keep
+      him there. Coralth certainly won&rsquo;t run after him, and we shall have
+      nothing more to fear on that score.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Great heavens!&rdquo; murmured Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, &ldquo;why did this idea never occur
+      to me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron had now completely recovered his composure. &ldquo;As regards
+      yourself,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;the plan you ought to adopt is still more simple.
+      What is your furniture worth? About a hundred thousand francs, isn&rsquo;t it?
+      Very well, then. You will sign me notes, dated some time back, to the
+      amount of a hundred thousand francs. On the day these notes fall due, on
+      Monday, for instance, they will be presented for payment. You will refuse
+      to pay them. A writ will be served, and an attachment placed upon your
+      furniture; but you will offer no resistance. I don&rsquo;t know if I explain my
+      meaning very clearly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, very clearly!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So your property is seized. You make no opposition, and next week we
+      shall have flaming posters on all the walls, telling Paris that the
+      furniture, wardrobe, cashmeres, laces, and diamonds of Madame Lia
+      d&rsquo;Argeles will be sold without reserve, at public auction, in the Rue
+      Drouot, with the view of satisfying the claims of her creditors. You can
+      imagine the sensation this announcement will create. I can see your
+      friends and the frequenters of your drawing-room meeting one another in
+      the street, and saying: &lsquo;Ah, well! what&rsquo;s this about poor d&rsquo;Argeles?&rsquo; 
+      &lsquo;Pshaw!&mdash;no doubt it&rsquo;s a voluntary sale.&rsquo; &lsquo;Not at all; she&rsquo;s really
+      ruined. Everything is mortgaged above its value.&rsquo; &lsquo;Indeed, I&rsquo;m very sorry
+      to hear it. She was a good creature.&rsquo; &lsquo;Oh, excellent; a deal of amusement
+      could be found at her house,&mdash;only between you and me&mdash;&mdash;&rsquo; 
+      &lsquo;Well?&rsquo; &lsquo;Well, she was no longer young.&rsquo; &lsquo;That&rsquo;s true. However, I shall
+      attend the sale, and I think I shall bid.&rsquo; And, in fact, your
+      acquaintances won&rsquo;t fail to repair to the Hotel Drouot, and maybe your
+      most intimate friends will yield to their generous impulses sufficiently
+      to offer twenty sous for one of the dainty trifles on your etageres.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Overcome with shame, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles hung her head. She had never before
+      so keenly felt the disgrace of her situation. She had never so clearly
+      realized what a deep abyss she had fallen into. And this crushing
+      humiliation came from whom? From the only friend she possessed&mdash;from
+      the man who was her only hope, Baron Trigault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And what made it all the more frightful was, that he did not seem to be in
+      the least degree conscious of the cruelty of his words. Indeed, he
+      continued, in a tone of bitter irony: &ldquo;Of course, you will have an
+      exhibition before the sale, and you will see all the dolls that
+      hairdressers, milliners and fools call great ladies, come running to the
+      show. They will come to see how a notorious woman lives, and to ascertain
+      if there are any good bargains to be had. This is the right form. These
+      great ladies would be delighted to display diamonds purchased at the sale
+      of a woman of the demi monde. Oh! don&rsquo;t fear&mdash;your exhibition will be
+      visited by my wife and daughter, by the Viscountess de Bois d&rsquo;Ardon, by
+      Madame de Rochecote, her five daughters, and a great many more. Then the
+      papers will take up the refrain; they will give an account of your
+      financial difficulties, and tell the public what you paid for your
+      pictures.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was with a sort of terror-stricken curiosity that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles
+      watched the baron. It had been many years since she had seen him in such a
+      frame of mind&mdash;since she had heard him talk in such a cynical
+      fashion. &ldquo;I am ready to follow your advice,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;but afterward?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, don&rsquo;t you understand the object I have in view? Afterward you will
+      disappear. I know five or six journalists; and it would be very strange if
+      I could not convince one of them that you had died upon an hospital
+      pallet. It will furnish the subject of a touching, and what is better, a
+      moral article. The papers will say, &lsquo;Another star has disappeared. This is
+      the miserable end of all the poor wretches whose passing luxury
+      scandalizes honest women.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what will become of me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A respected woman, Lia. You will go to England, install yourself in some
+      pretty cottage near London, and create a new identity for yourself. The
+      proceeds of your sale will supply your wants and Wilkie&rsquo;s for more than a
+      year. Before that time has elapsed you will have succeeded in accumulating
+      the necessary proofs of your identity, and then you can assert your claims
+      and take possession of your brother&rsquo;s estate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles sprang to her feet. &ldquo;Never never!&rdquo; she exclaimed,
+      vehemently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron evidently thought he must have misunderstood her. &ldquo;What!&rdquo; he
+      stammered; &ldquo;you will relinquish the millions that are legally yours, to
+      the government?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes&mdash;I am resolved&mdash;it must be so.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Will you sacrifice your son&rsquo;s future in this style?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, it isn&rsquo;t in my power to do that; but Wilkie will do so, later, on,
+      I&rsquo;m sure of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But this is simply folly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A feverish agitation had now succeeded Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s torpor; there
+      was an expression of scorn and anger on her rigid features, and her eyes,
+      usually so dull and lifeless, fairly blazed. &ldquo;It is not folly,&rdquo; she
+      exclaimed, &ldquo;but vengeance!&rdquo; And as the astonished baron opened his lips to
+      question her: &ldquo;Let me finish,&rdquo; she said imperiously, &ldquo;and then you shall
+      judge me. I have told you with perfect frankness everything concerning my
+      past life, save this&mdash;this&mdash;that I am married, Monsieur le
+      Baron, legally married. I am bound by a chain that nothing can break, and
+      my husband is a scoundrel. You would be frightened if you knew half the
+      extent of his villainy. Oh! do not shake your head. I ought not to be
+      suspected of exaggeration when I speak in this style of a man whom I once
+      loved so devotedly. For I loved him, alas!&mdash;even to madness&mdash;loved
+      him so much that I forgot self, family, honor, and all the most sacred
+      duties. I loved him so madly that I was willing to follow him, while his
+      hands were still wet with my brother&rsquo;s blood. Ah! chastisement could not
+      fail to come, and it was terrible, like the sin. This man for whom I had
+      abandoned everything&mdash;whom I had made my idol&mdash;do you know what
+      he said to me the third day after my flight from home? &lsquo;You must be more
+      stupid than an owl to have forgotten to take your jewels.&rsquo; Yes, those were
+      the very words he said to me, with a furious air. And then I could measure
+      the depths of the abyss into which I had plunged. This man, with whom I
+      had been so infatuated, did not love me at all, he had never loved me. It
+      had only been cold calculation on his part. He had devoted months to the
+      task of winning my heart, just as he would have devoted them to some
+      business transaction. He only saw in me the fortune that I was to inherit.
+      Oh! he didn&rsquo;t conceal it from me. &lsquo;If your parents are not monsters,&rsquo; he
+      was always saying, &lsquo;they will finally become reconciled to our marriage.
+      They will give you a handsome fortune and we will divide it. I will give
+      you back your liberty, and then we can each of us be happy in our own
+      way.&rsquo; It was for this reason that he wished to marry me. I consented on
+      account of my unborn child. My father and mother had died, and he hoped to
+      prevail upon me to claim my share of the paternal fortune. As for claiming
+      it himself, he dared not. He was a coward, and he was afraid of my
+      brother. But I took a solemn oath that he should never have a farthing of
+      the wealth he coveted, and neither threats nor BLOWS could compel me to
+      assert my claim. God only knows how much I had suffered from his brutality
+      when I at last succeeded in making my escape with Wilkie. He has sought us
+      everywhere for fifteen years, but he has not yet succeeded in finding a
+      trace of us. Still he has not ceased to watch my brother. I am sure of
+      that, my presentiments never deceive me. So, if I followed your advice&mdash;if
+      I claimed possession of my brother&rsquo;s fortune&mdash;my husband would
+      instantly appear with our marriage contract in his hands, and demand
+      everything. Shall I enrich him? No, never, never! I would rather die of
+      want! I would rather see Wilkie die of starvation before my very eyes!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles spoke in that tone of concentrated rage which betrays
+      years of repressed passion and unflinching resolution. One could scarcely
+      hope to modify her views even by the wisest and most practical advice. The
+      baron did not even think of attempting to do so. He had known Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles for years; he had seen so many proofs of her invincible energy
+      and determination. She possessed the distinguishing characteristic of her
+      family in a remarkable degree&mdash;that proverbial Chalusse obstinacy
+      which Madame Vantrasson had alluded to in her conversation with M.
+      Fortunat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She was silent for a moment, and then, in a firm tone she said: &ldquo;Still, I
+      will follow your advice in part, baron. This evening I will write to M.
+      Patterson and request him to send for Wilkie. In less than a fortnight I
+      shall have sold my furniture and disappeared. I shall remain poor. My
+      fortune is not so large as people suppose. No matter. My son is a man; he
+      must learn to earn his own living.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My banking account is always at your disposal, Lia.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thanks, my friend, thanks a thousand times; but it will not be necessary
+      for me to accept your kind offer. When Wilkie was a child I did not
+      refuse. But now I would dig the ground with my own hands, rather than give
+      him a louis that came from you. You think me full of contradictions!
+      Perhaps I am. It is certain that I am no longer what I was yesterday. This
+      trouble has torn away the bandage that covered my eyes. I can see my
+      conduct clearly now, and I condemn it. I sinned for my son&rsquo;s sake, more
+      than for my own. But I might have rehabilitated myself through him, and
+      now he will perhaps be dishonored through me.&rdquo; Her breathing came short
+      and hard, and it was in a choked voice that she continued: &ldquo;Wilkie shall
+      work for me and for himself. If he is strong, he will save us. If he is
+      weak&mdash;ah, well! we shall perish. But there has been cowardice and
+      shame enough! It shall never be said that I sacrificed the honor of a
+      noble name and the happiness of my brother&rsquo;s child to my son. I see what
+      my duty is, and I shall do it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron nodded approvingly. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s no doubt right,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Only
+      allow me to tell you that all is not lost yet. The code has a weapon for
+      every just cause. Perhaps there will be a way for you to obtain and hold
+      your fortune independent of your husband.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! I made inquiries on the subject years ago, and I was told that it
+      would be impossible. Still, you might investigate the matter. I have
+      confidence in you. I know that you would not advise me rashly;&mdash;but
+      don&rsquo;t delay. The worst misfortune would be less intolerable than this
+      suspense.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will lose no time. M. Ferailleur is a very clever lawyer, I am told. I
+      will consult him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what shall I do about this man Fortunat, who called upon me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron reflected for a moment. &ldquo;The safest thing would be to take no
+      action whatever at present,&rdquo; he replied. &ldquo;If he has any evil designs, a
+      visit or a letter from you would only hasten them.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By the way Madame d&rsquo;Argeles shook her head, it was easy to see that she
+      had very little hope. &ldquo;All this will end badly,&rdquo; she murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron shared her opinion, but he did not think it wise or kind to
+      discourage her. &ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo; he said lightly, &ldquo;luck is going to change; it
+      is always changing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Then as he heard the clock strike, he sprang from his arm-chair in dismay.
+      &ldquo;Two o&rsquo;clock,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;and Kami-Bey is waiting for me. I certainly
+      haven&rsquo;t been wasting time here, but I ought to have been at the Grand
+      Hotel at noon. Kami is quite capable of suspecting a man of any knavery.
+      These Turks are strange creatures. It&rsquo;s true that I am now a winner to the
+      tune of two hundred and eighty thousand francs.&rdquo; He settled his hat firmly
+      on his head, and opening the door, he added: &ldquo;Good-by, my dear madame, I
+      will soon see you again, and in the meantime don&rsquo;t deviate in the least
+      from your usual habits. Our success depends, in a great measure, upon the
+      fancied security of our enemies!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles considered this advice so sensible that half an hour
+      later she went out for her daily drive in the Bois, little suspecting that
+      M. Fortunat&rsquo;s spy, Victor Chupin, was dogging her carriage. It was most
+      imprudent on her part to have gone to Wilkie&rsquo;s house on her return. She
+      incurred such a risk of awakening suspicion by wandering about near her
+      son&rsquo;s home that she seldom allowed herself that pleasure, but sometimes
+      her anxiety overpowered her reason. So, on this occasion, she ordered the
+      coachman to stop near the Rue du Helder, and she reached the street just
+      in time to betray her secret to Victor Chupin, and receive a foul insult
+      from M. Wilkie. The latter&rsquo;s cruel words stabbed her to the heart, and yet
+      she tried to construe them as mere proofs of her son&rsquo;s honesty of feeling&mdash;as
+      proof of his scorn for the depraved creatures who haunt the boulevards
+      each evening. But though her energy was indomitable, her physical strength
+      was not equal to her will. On returning home, she felt so ill that she was
+      obliged to go to bed. She shivered with cold, and yet the blood that
+      flowed in her veins seemed to her like molten lead. The physician who was
+      summoned declared that her illness was a mere trifle, but prescribed rest
+      and quiet. And as he was a very discerning man, he added, not without a
+      malicious smile, that any excess is injurious&mdash;excess of pleasure as
+      well as any other. As it was Sunday, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles was able to obey the
+      physician, and so she closed her doors against every one, the baron
+      excepted. Still, fearing that this seclusion might seem a little strange,
+      she ordered her concierge to tell any visitors that she had gone into the
+      country, and would not return until her usual reception-day. She would
+      then be compelled to open her doors as usual. For what would the habitues
+      of the house, who had played there every Monday for years, say if they
+      found the doors closed? She was less her own mistress than an actress&mdash;she
+      had no right to weep or suffer in solitude.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, at about seven o&rsquo;clock on Monday evening, although still grievously
+      suffering both in mind and body, she arranged herself to receive her
+      guests. From among all her dresses, she chose the same dark robe she had
+      worn on the night when Pascal Ferailleur was ruined at her house; and as
+      she was even paler than usual, she tried to conceal the fact by a prodigal
+      use of rouge. At ten o&rsquo;clock, when the first arrivals entered the
+      brilliantly lighted rooms, they found her seated as usual on the sofa,
+      near the fire, with the same eternal, unchangeable smile upon her lips.
+      There were at least forty persons in the room, and the gambling had become
+      quite animated when the baron entered. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles read in his eyes
+      that he was the bearer of good news. &ldquo;Everything is going on well,&rdquo; he
+      whispered, as he shook hands with her. &ldquo;I have seen M. Ferailleur&mdash;I
+      wouldn&rsquo;t give ten sous for Valorsay&rsquo;s and Coralth&rsquo;s chances.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This intelligence revived Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s drooping spirits, and she
+      received M. de Coralth with perfect composure when he came to pay his
+      respects to her soon afterward. For he had the impudence to come, in order
+      to dispel any suspicions that might have been aroused anent his complicity
+      in the card-cheating affair. The hostess&rsquo;s calmness amazed him. Was she
+      still ignorant of her brother&rsquo;s death and the complications arising from
+      it, or was she only acting a part? He was so anxious and undecided, that
+      instead of mingling with the groups of talkers, he at once took a seat at
+      the card-table, whence he could watch the poor woman&rsquo;s every movement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Both rooms were full, and almost everybody was engaged in play, when,
+      shortly after midnight, a servant entered the room, whispered a few words
+      in his mistress&rsquo;s ear, and handed her a card. She took it, glanced at it,
+      and uttered so harsh, so terrible, so heart-broken a cry, that several of
+      the guests sprang to their feet. &ldquo;What is it? What is it?&rdquo; they asked. She
+      tried to reply, but could not. Her lips parted, she opened her mouth, but
+      no sound came forth. She turned ghastly white under her rouge, and a wild,
+      unnatural light gleamed in her eyes. One curious guest, without a thought
+      of harm, tried to take the card, which she still held in her clinched
+      hand; but she repulsed him with such an imperious gesture that he recoiled
+      in terror. &ldquo;What is it? What is the matter with her?&rdquo; was the astonished
+      query on every side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last, with a terrible effort, she managed to reply, &ldquo;Nothing.&rdquo; And
+      then, after clinging for a moment to the mantel-shelf, in order to steady
+      herself, she tottered out of the room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0007" id="link2H_4_0007">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      VII.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was not enough to tell M. Wilkie the secret of his birth. He must be
+      taught how to utilize the knowledge. The Viscount de Coralth devoted
+      himself to this task, and burdened Wilkie with such a host of injunctions,
+      that it was quite evident he had but a poor opinion of his pupil&rsquo;s
+      sagacity. &ldquo;That woman d&rsquo;Argeles,&rdquo; he thought, &ldquo;is as sharp as steel. She
+      will deceive this young idiot completely, if I don&rsquo;t warn him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So he did warn him; and Wilkie was instructed exactly what to do and say,
+      how to answer any questions, and what position to take up according to
+      circumstances. Moreover, he was especially enjoined to distrust tears, and
+      not to let himself be put out of countenance by haughty airs. The Viscount
+      spent at least an hour in giving explanations and advice, to the great
+      disgust of M. Wilkie, who, feeling that he was being treated like a child,
+      somewhat testily declared that he was no fool, and that he knew how to
+      take care of himself as well as any one else. Still, this did not prevent
+      M. de Coralth from persisting in his instructions until he was persuaded
+      that he had prepared his pupil for all possible emergencies. He then rose
+      to depart. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s all, I think,&rdquo; he remarked, with a shade of uneasiness.
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve traced the plan&mdash;you must execute it, and keep cool, or the
+      game&rsquo;s lost.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His companion rose proudly. &ldquo;If it fails, it won&rsquo;t be from any fault of
+      mine,&rdquo; he answered with unmistakable petulance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Lose no time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no danger of that.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And understand, that whatever happens, my name is not to be mentioned.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If there should be any new revelations, I will inform you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At the club?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, but don&rsquo;t be uneasy; the affair is as good as concluded.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I hope so, indeed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wilkie gave a sigh of relief as he saw his visitor depart. He wished to be
+      alone, so as to brood over the delights that the future had in store for
+      him. He was no longer to be limited to a paltry allowance of twenty
+      thousand francs! No more debts, no more ungratified longings. He would
+      have millions at his disposal! He seemed to see them, to hold them, to
+      feel them gliding in golden waves between his fingers! What horses he
+      would have! what carriages! what mistresses! And a gleam of envy that he
+      had detected in M. de Coralth&rsquo;s eyes put the finishing touch to his bliss.
+      To be envied by this brilliant viscount, his model and his ideal, what
+      happiness it was!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The reputation that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles bore had at first cast a shadow over
+      his joy; but this shadow had soon vanished. He was troubled by no foolish
+      prejudices, and personally he cared little or nothing for his mother&rsquo;s
+      reputation. The prejudices of society must, of course, be considered. But
+      nonsense! society has no prejudices nowadays when millionaires are
+      concerned, and asks no questions respecting their parents. Society only
+      requires passports of the indigent. Besides, no matter what Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles might have done, she was none the less a Chalusse, the
+      descendant of one of the most aristocratic families in France.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Such were Wilkie&rsquo;s meditations while he was engaged in dressing himself
+      with more than usual care. He had been quite shocked by the suggestion
+      that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles might try to deny him, and he wished to appear
+      before her in the most advantageous light. His toilette was consequently a
+      lengthy operation. However, shortly after twelve o&rsquo;clock he was ready. He
+      cast a last admiring glance at himself in the mirror, twirled his
+      mustaches, and departed on his mission. He even went on foot, which was a
+      concession to what he considered M. de Coralth&rsquo;s absurd ideas. The aspect
+      of the Hotel d&rsquo;Argeles, in the Rue de Berry, impressed him favorably, but,
+      at the same time, it somewhat disturbed his superb assurance. &ldquo;Everything
+      is very stylish here,&rdquo; he muttered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A couple of servants&mdash;the concierge and Job&mdash;were standing at
+      the door engaged in conversation. M. Wilkie approached them, and in his
+      most imposing manner, but not without a slight tremble in his voice,
+      requested to see Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. &ldquo;Madame is in the country,&rdquo; replied the
+      concierge; &ldquo;she will not return before this evening. If monsieur will
+      leave his card.&rdquo; &ldquo;Oh! that&rsquo;s quite unnecessary. I shall be passing again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This, too, was in obedience to the instructions of M. de Coralth, who had
+      advised him not to send in his name, but to gain admission into Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s presence as speedily as possible, without giving her time to
+      prepare herself for the interview; and Wilkie had ultimately decided that
+      these precautions might not prove as superfluous as he had at first
+      supposed. But this first mishap annoyed him extremely. What should he do?
+      how should he kill time till the evening? A cab was passing. He hired it
+      for a drive to the Bois, whence he returned to the boulevards, played a
+      game of billiards with one of the co-proprietors of Pompier de Nanterre,
+      and finally dined at the Cafe Riche, devoting as much time as possible to
+      the operation. He was finishing his coffee when the clock struck eight. He
+      caught up his hat, drew on his gloves, and hastened to the Hotel d&rsquo;Argeles
+      again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Madame has not yet returned,&rdquo; said the concierge, who knew that his
+      mistress had only just risen from her bed, &ldquo;but I don&rsquo;t think it will be
+      long. And if monsieur wishes&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No,&rdquo; replied M. Wilkie brusquely, and he was going off in a furious
+      passion, when, on crossing the street, he chanced to turn his head and
+      notice that the reception rooms were brilliantly lighted up. &ldquo;Ah! I think
+      that a very shabby trick!&rdquo; grumbled the intelligent youth. &ldquo;They won&rsquo;t
+      succeed in playing that game on me again. Why, she&rsquo;s there now!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It occurred to him that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had perhaps described him to her
+      servants, and had given them strict orders not to admit him. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll find
+      out if that is the case, even if I have to wait here until to-morrow
+      morning,&rdquo; he thought, angrily. However, he had not been on guard very
+      long, when he saw a brougham stop in front of the mansion, whereupon the
+      gate opened, as if by enchantment. The vehicle entered the courtyard,
+      deposited its occupants, and drove away. A second carriage soon appeared,
+      then a third, and then five or six in quick succession. &ldquo;And does she
+      think I&rsquo;ll wear out my shoe-leather here, while everybody else is allowed
+      to enter?&rdquo; he grumbled. &ldquo;Never!&mdash;I&rsquo;ve an idea.&rdquo; And, without giving
+      himself time for further deliberation, he returned to his rooms, arrayed
+      himself in evening-dress, and sent for his carriage. &ldquo;You will drive to
+      No.&mdash;in the Rue de Berry,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;There is a soiree there, and you
+      can drive directly into the courtyard.&rdquo; The coachman obeyed, and M. Wilkie
+      realized that his idea was really an excellent one.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as he alighted, the doors were thrown open, and he ascended a
+      handsome staircase, heavily carpeted, and adorned with flowers. Two
+      liveried footmen were standing at the door of the drawing-room, and one of
+      them advanced to relieve Wilkie of his overcoat, but his services were
+      declined. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t wish to go in,&rdquo; said the young man roughly. &ldquo;I wish to
+      speak with Madame d&rsquo;Argeles in private. She is expecting me&mdash;inform
+      her. Here is my card.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The servant was hesitating, when Job, suspecting some mystery perhaps,
+      approached. &ldquo;Take in the gentleman&rsquo;s card,&rdquo; he said, with an air of
+      authority; and, opening the door of a small room on the left-hand side of
+      the staircase, he invited Wilkie to enter, saying, &ldquo;If monsieur will be
+      kind enough to take a seat, I will summon madame at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie sank into an arm-chair, considerably overcome. The air of luxury
+      that pervaded the entire establishment, the liveried servants, the lights
+      and flowers, all impressed him much more deeply than he would have been
+      willing to confess. And in spite of his affected arrogance, he felt that
+      the superb assurance which was the dominant trait in his character was
+      deserting him. In his breast, moreover, in the place where physiologists
+      locate the heart, he felt certain extraordinary movements which strongly
+      resembled palpitations. For the first time it occurred to him that this
+      woman, whose peace he had come to destroy, was not only the heiress of the
+      Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s millions, but also his mother, that is to say, the
+      good fairy whose protection had followed him everywhere since he entered
+      the world. The thought that he was about to commit an atrocious act
+      entered his mind, but he drove it away. It was too late now to draw back,
+      or even to reflect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Suddenly a door opposite the one by which he had entered opened, and
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles appeared on the threshold. She was no longer the woman
+      whose anguish and terror had alarmed her guests. During the brief moment
+      of respite which fate had granted her, she had summoned all her energy and
+      courage, and had mastered her despair. She felt that her salvation
+      depended upon her calmness, and she had succeeded in appearing calm,
+      haughty, and disdainful&mdash;as impassive as if she had been a statue.
+      &ldquo;Was it you, sir, who sent me this card?&rdquo; she inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Greatly disconcerted, M. Wilkie could only bow and stammer out an almost
+      unintelligible answer. &ldquo;Excuse me! I am much grieved, upon my word! I
+      disturb you, perhaps&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are Monsieur Wilkie!&rdquo; interrupted Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, in a tone of
+      mingled irony and disdain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; he replied, drawling out the name affectedly, &ldquo;I am M. Wilkie.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Did you desire to speak with me?&rdquo; inquired Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, dryly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In fact&mdash;yes. I should like&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well. I will listen to you, although your visit is most inopportune,
+      for I have eighty guests or more in my drawing-room. Still, speak!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was very easy to say &ldquo;speak,&rdquo; but unfortunately for M. Wilkie he could
+      not articulate a syllable. His tongue was as stiff, and as dry, as if it
+      had been paralyzed. He nervously passed and repassed his fingers between
+      his neck and his collar, but although this gave full play to his cravat,
+      his words did not leave his throat any more readily. For he had imagined
+      that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles would be like other women he had known, but not at
+      all. He found her to be an extremely proud and awe-inspiring creature,
+      who, to use his own vocabulary, SQUELCHED him completely. &ldquo;I wished to say
+      to you,&rdquo; he repeated, &ldquo;I wished to say to you&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; But the words
+      he was seeking would not come; and, so at last, angry with himself, he
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;Ah! you know as well as I, why I have come. Do you dare to
+      pretend that you don&rsquo;t know?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She looked at him with admirably feigned astonishment, glanced
+      despairingly at the ceiling, shrugged her shoulders, and replied: &ldquo;Most
+      certainly I don&rsquo;t know&mdash;unless indeed it be a wager.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A wager!&rdquo; M. Wilkie wondered if he were not the victim of some practical
+      joke, and if there were not a crowd of listeners hidden somewhere, who,
+      after enjoying his discomfiture, would suddenly make their appearance,
+      holding their sides. This fear restored his presence of mind. &ldquo;Well,
+      then,&rdquo; he replied, huskily, &ldquo;this is my reason. I know nothing respecting
+      my parents. This morning, a man with whom you are well acquainted, assured
+      me that I was&mdash;your son. I was completely stunned at first, but after
+      a while I recovered sufficiently to call here, and found that you had gone
+      out.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was interrupted by a nervous laugh from Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. For she was
+      heroic enough to laugh, although death was in her heart, and although the
+      nails of her clinched hands were embedded deep in her quivering flesh.
+      &ldquo;And you believed him, monsieur?&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;Really, this is too
+      absurd! I&mdash;your mother! Why, look at me&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was doing nothing else, he was watching her with all the powers of
+      penetration he possessed. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s laugh had an unnatural ring
+      that awakened his suspicions. All Coralth&rsquo;s recommendations buzzed
+      confusedly in his ears, and he judged that the moment had come &ldquo;to do the
+      sentimental,&rdquo; as he would have expressed it. So he lowered his head, and
+      in an aggrieved tone, exclaimed: &ldquo;Ah! you think it very amusing, I don&rsquo;t.
+      Do you realize how wretched it makes one to live as utterly alone as a
+      leper, without a soul to love or care for you? Other young men have a
+      mother, sisters, relatives. I have no one! Ah! if&mdash;&mdash; But I only
+      have friends while my money lasts.&rdquo; He wiped his eyes, dry as they were,
+      with his handkerchief, and in a still more pathetic tone, resumed: &ldquo;Not
+      that I want for anything; I receive a very handsome allowance. But when my
+      relatives have given me the wherewithal to keep me from starving, they
+      imagine their duty is fulfilled. I think this very hard. I didn&rsquo;t come
+      into the world at my own request, did I? I didn&rsquo;t ask to be born. If I was
+      such an annoyance to them when I came into existence, why didn&rsquo;t they
+      throw me into the river? Then they would have been well rid of me, and I
+      should be out of my misery!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He stopped short, struck dumb with amazement, for Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had
+      thrown herself on her knees at his feet. &ldquo;Have mercy!&rdquo; she faltered;
+      &ldquo;Wilkie; my son, forgive me!&rdquo; Alas! the unfortunate woman had failed in
+      playing a part which was too difficult for a mother&rsquo;s heart. &ldquo;You have
+      suffered cruelly, my son,&rdquo; she continued; &ldquo;but I&mdash;I&mdash;Ah! you
+      can&rsquo;t conceive the frightful agony it costs a mother to separate from her
+      child! But you were not deserted, Wilkie; don&rsquo;t say that. Have you not
+      felt my love in the air around you? YOU forgotten? Know, then, that for
+      years and years I have seen you every day, and that all my thoughts and
+      all my hopes are centered in you alone! Wilkie!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She dragged herself toward him with her hands clasped in an agony of
+      supplication, while he recoiled, frightened by this outburst of passion,
+      and utterly amazed by his easily won victory. The poor woman misunderstood
+      this movement. &ldquo;Great God!&rdquo; she exclaimed, &ldquo;he spurns me; he loathes me.
+      Ah! I knew it would be so. Oh! why did you come? What infamous wretch sent
+      you here? Name him, Wilkie! Do you understand, now, why I concealed myself
+      from you? I dreaded the day when I should blush before you, before my own
+      son. And yet it was for your sake. Death would have been a rest, a welcome
+      release for me. But your breath was ebbing away, your poor little arms no
+      longer had strength to clasp me round the neck. And then I cried: &lsquo;Perish
+      my soul and body, if only my child can be saved!&rsquo; I believed such a
+      sacrifice permissible in a mother. I am punished for it as if it were a
+      crime. I thought you would be happy, my Wilkie. I said to myself that you,
+      my pride and joy, would move freely and proudly far above me and my shame.
+      I accepted ignominy, so that your honor might be preserved intact. I knew
+      the horrors of abject poverty, and I wished to save my son from it. I
+      would have licked up the very mire in your pathway to save you from a
+      stain. I renounced all hope for myself, and I consecrated all that was
+      noble and generous in my nature to you. Oh! I will discover the vile
+      coward who sent you here, who betrayed my secret. I will discover him and
+      I will have my revenge! You were never to know this, Wilkie. In parting
+      from you, I took a solemn oath never to see you again, and to die without
+      the supreme consolation of feeling your lips upon my forehead.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She could not continue; sobs choked her utterance. And for more than a
+      minute the silence was so profound that one could hear the sound of low
+      conversation in the hall outside, the exclamations of the players as they
+      greeted each unexpected turn of luck, and occasionally a cry of &ldquo;Banco!&rdquo;
+       or &ldquo;I stake one hundred louis!&rdquo; Standing silent and motionless near the
+      window, Wilkie gazed with consternation at Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, his mother,
+      who was crouching in the middle of the room with her face hidden in her
+      hands, and sobbing as if her heart would break. He would willingly have
+      given his third share in Pompier de Nanterre to have made his escape. The
+      strangeness of the scene appalled him. It was not emotion that he felt,
+      but an instinctive fear mingled with commiseration. And he was not only
+      ill at ease, but he was angry with himself for what he secretly styled his
+      weakness. &ldquo;Women are incomprehensible,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;It would be so easy
+      to explain things quietly and properly, but they must always cry and have
+      a sort of melodrama.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Suddenly the sound of footsteps near the door roused him from his stupor.
+      He shuddered at the thought that some one might come in. He hated the very
+      idea of ridicule. So summoning all his courage he went toward Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles, and, raising her from the floor, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t cry so.
+      You grieve me, upon my word! Pray get up. Some one is coming. Do you hear
+      me? Some one is coming.&rdquo; Thereupon, as she offered no resistance, he half
+      led, half carried her to an arm-chair, into which she sank heavily. &ldquo;Now
+      she is going to faint!&rdquo; thought Wilkie, in despair. What should he do?
+      Call for help? He dared not. However, necessity inspired him. He knelt at
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s feet, and gently said: &ldquo;Come, come, be reasonable! Why
+      do you give way like this? I don&rsquo;t reproach you!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Slowly, with an air of humility which was indescribably touching, she took
+      her hands from her face, and for the first time raised her tear-stained
+      eyes to her son&rsquo;s. &ldquo;Wilkie,&rdquo; she murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Madame!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She heaved a deep sigh, and in a half-stifled voice:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;MADAME!&rdquo; she repeated. &ldquo;Will you not call me mother?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, of course&mdash;certainly. But&mdash;only you know it will take me
+      some time to acquire the habit. I shall do so, of course; but I shall have
+      to get used to it, you know.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;True, very true!&mdash;but tell me it is not mere pity that leads you to
+      make this promise? If you should hate me&mdash;if you should curse me&mdash;how
+      should I bear it! Ah! when a woman reaches the years of understanding one
+      should never cease repeating to her: &lsquo;Take care! Your son will be twenty
+      some day, and you will have to meet his searching gaze. You will have to
+      render an account of your honor to him!&rsquo; My God! If women thought of this,
+      they would never sin. To be reduced to such a state of abject misery that
+      one dares not lift one&rsquo;s head before one&rsquo;s own son! Alas! Wilkie, I know
+      only too well that you cannot help despising me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, indeed. Not at all! What an idea!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Tell me that you forgive me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do, upon my word I do.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Poor woman, her face brightened. She so longed to believe him! And her son
+      was beside her, so near that she felt his breath upon her cheek. It was he
+      indeed. Had they ever been separated? She almost doubted it, she had lived
+      so near him in thought. It was with a sort of ecstasy that she looked at
+      him. There was a world of entreaty in her eyes; they seemed to be begging
+      a caress; she raised her quivering lips to his, but he did not observe it.
+      For a long time she hesitated, fearing he might spurn her; but at last,
+      yielding to a supreme impulse, she threw her arms around his neck, drew
+      him toward her, and pressed him to her heart in a close embrace. &ldquo;My son!
+      my son!&rdquo; she repeated; &ldquo;to have you with me again, after all these years!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Unfortunately, no whirlwind of passion was capable of carrying M. Wilkie
+      beyond himself. His emotion was now spent and his mind had regained its
+      usual indifference. He flattered himself that he was a man of mettle&mdash;and
+      he remained as cold as ice beneath his mother&rsquo;s kisses. Indeed, he barely
+      tolerated them; and if he did allow her to embrace him, it was only
+      because he did not know how to refuse. &ldquo;Will she never have done?&rdquo; he
+      thought. &ldquo;This is a pretty state of things! I must be very attractive. How
+      Costard and Serpillon would laugh if they saw me now.&rdquo; Costard and
+      Serpillon were his intimate friends, the co-proprietors of the famous
+      steeplechaser.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In her rapture, however, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles did not observe the peculiar
+      expression on her son&rsquo;s face. She had compelled him to take a chair
+      opposite her, and, with nervous volubility, she continued: &ldquo;If I don&rsquo;t
+      deny myself the happiness of embracing you again, it is because I have not
+      broken the vow I took never to make myself known to you. When I entered
+      this room, I was firmly resolved to convince you, no matter how, that you
+      had been deceived. God knows that it was not my fault if I did not
+      succeed. There are some sacrifices that are above human strength.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie deigned to smile. &ldquo;Oh! yes, I saw your little game,&rdquo; he said,
+      with a knowing air. &ldquo;But I had been well posted, and besides, it is not
+      very easy to fool me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles did not even hear him. &ldquo;Perhaps destiny is weary of
+      afflicting us,&rdquo; she continued; &ldquo;perhaps a new life is about to begin.
+      Through you, Wilkie. I can again be happy. I, who for years have lived
+      without even hope. But will you have courage to forget?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She hung her head, and in an almost inaudible voice replied, &ldquo;The past,
+      Wilkie.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But with an air of the greatest indifference, he snapped his fingers, and
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;Nonsense! What is past is past. Such things are soon
+      forgotten. Paris has known many such cases. You are my mother; I care very
+      little for public opinion. I begin by pleasing myself, and I consult other
+      people afterward; and when they are dissatisfied, I tell them to mind
+      their own business.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The poor woman listened to these words with a joy bordering on rapture.
+      One might have supposed that the strangeness of her son&rsquo;s expressions
+      would have surprised her&mdash;have enlightened her in regard to his true
+      character&mdash;but no. She only saw and understood one thing&mdash;that
+      he had no intention of casting her off, but was indeed ready to devote
+      himself to her. &ldquo;My God!&rdquo; she faltered, &ldquo;is this really true? Will you
+      allow me to remain with you? Oh, don&rsquo;t reply rashly! Consider well, before
+      you promise to make such a sacrifice. Think how much sorrow and pain it
+      will cost you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have considered. It is decided&mdash;mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She sprang up, wild with hope and enthusiasm. &ldquo;Then we are saved!&rdquo; she
+      cried. &ldquo;Blessed be he who betrayed my secret! And I doubted your courage,
+      my Wilkie! At last I can escape from this hell! This very night we will
+      fly from this house, without one backward glance. I will never set foot in
+      these rooms again&mdash;the detested gamblers who are sitting here shall
+      never see me again. From this moment Lia d&rsquo;Argeles is dead.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie positively felt like a man who had just fallen from the clouds.
+      &ldquo;What, fly?&rdquo; he stammered. &ldquo;Where shall we go, then?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To a country where we are unknown, Wilkie&mdash;to a land where you will
+      not have to blush for your mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Trust yourself to me, my son. I know a pleasant village near London where
+      we can find a refuge. My connections in England are such that you need not
+      fear the obstacles one generally meets with among foreigners. M.
+      Patterson, who manages a large manufacturing establishment, will, I know,
+      be happy to be of service to us&mdash;but we shall not be indebted to any
+      one for long, now that you have resolved to work.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On hearing these words, M. Wilkie sprang up in dismay. &ldquo;Excuse me,&rdquo; he
+      said, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t understand you. You propose to set me to work in M.
+      Patterson&rsquo;s factory? Well, to tell the truth, that doesn&rsquo;t suit me at
+      all.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was impossible to mistake M. Wilkie&rsquo;s manner, his tone, or gesture.
+      They revealed him in his true character. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles saw her terrible
+      mistake at once. The bandage fell from her eyes. She had taken her dreams
+      for realities, and the desires of her own heart for those of her son. She
+      rose, trembling with sorrow and with indignation. &ldquo;Wilkie!&rdquo; she exclaimed,
+      &ldquo;Wilkie, wretched boy! what did you dare to hope?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And, without giving him time to reply, she continued: &ldquo;Then it was only
+      idle curiosity that brought you here. You wished to know the source of the
+      money which you spend like water. Very well, you may see for yourself.
+      This is a gambling house; one of those establishments frequented by
+      distinguished personages, which the police ignore, or which they cannot
+      suppress. The hubbub you hear is made by the players. Men are ruined here.
+      Some poor wretches have blown their brains out on leaving the house;
+      others have parted with the last vestige of honor here. And the business
+      pays me well. One louis out of every hundred that change hands falls to my
+      share. This is the source of your wealth, my son.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This anger, which succeeded such deep grief&mdash;this outburst of
+      disdain, following such abject humility&mdash;considerably astonished M.
+      Wilkie. &ldquo;Allow me to ask&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; he began.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he was not allowed a hearing. &ldquo;Fool!&rdquo; continued Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, &ldquo;did
+      nothing warn you that in coming here you would deprive yourself forever of
+      the income you received? Did no inward voice tell you that all would be
+      changed when you compelled me, Lia d&rsquo;Argeles, to say, &lsquo;Well, yes, it is
+      true; you are my son?&rsquo; So long as you did not know who and what I was, I
+      had a mother&rsquo;s right to watch over you. I could help you without
+      disgracing you, without despising you. But now that you know me, and know
+      what I am, I can do nothing more for you&mdash;nothing! I would rather let
+      you starve than succor you, for I would rather see you dead than
+      dishonored by my money.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! would you still consent to receive the allowance I have made you,
+      even if I consented to continue it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Had a viper raised its head in M. Wilkie&rsquo;s path he would not have recoiled
+      more quickly. &ldquo;Never!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Ah, no! What do you take me for?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This repugnance was sincere; there could be no doubt of that, and it
+      seemed to give Madame d&rsquo;Argeles a ray of hope. &ldquo;I have misjudged him,&rdquo; she
+      thought. &ldquo;Poor Wilkie! Evil advice has led him astray; but he is not bad
+      at heart. In that case, my poor child,&rdquo; she said aloud, &ldquo;you must see that
+      a new life is about to commence for you. What do you intend to do? How
+      will you gain a livelihood? People must have food, and clothes, and a roof
+      to shelter them. These things cost money. And where will you obtain it&mdash;you
+      who rebel at the very word work? Ah! if I had only listened to M.
+      Patterson. He was not blind like myself. He was always telling me that I
+      was spoiling you, and ruining your future by giving you so much money. Do
+      you know that you have spent more than fifty thousand francs during the
+      past two years? How have you squandered them? Have you been to the
+      law-school a dozen times? No. But you can be seen at the races, at the
+      opera, in the fashionable restaurants, and at every place of amusement
+      where a young man can squander money. And who are your associates?
+      Dissipated and heartless idlers, grooms, gamblers, and abandoned women.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A sneer from M. Wilkie interrupted her. To think that any one should dare
+      to attack his friends, his tastes, and his pleasures. Such a thing was not
+      to be tolerated. &ldquo;This is astonishing&mdash;astonishing, upon my word!&rdquo;
+       said he. &ldquo;You moralizing! that&rsquo;s really too good! I should like a few
+      minutes to laugh; it is too ridiculous!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Was he really conscious of the cruelty of his ironical words? The blow was
+      so terrible that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles staggered beneath it. She was prepared
+      for anything and everything except this insult from her son. Still, she
+      accepted it without rebellion, although it was in a tone of heart-broken
+      anguish that she replied: &ldquo;Perhaps I have no right to tell you the truth.
+      I hope the future will prove that I am wrong. However, you are without
+      resources, and you have no profession. Pray Heaven that you may never know
+      what it is to be hungry and to have no bread.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For some time already the ingenious young man had shown unmistakable signs
+      of impatience. This gloomy prediction irritated him beyond endurance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;All this is empty talk,&rdquo; he interrupted. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t mean to work, for it&rsquo;s
+      not at all in my line. Still, I don&rsquo;t expect to want for anything! That&rsquo;s
+      plain enough, I hope.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles did not wince. &ldquo;What do you mean to do then?&rdquo; she asked,
+      coldly. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t understand you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He shrugged his shoulders impatiently. &ldquo;Are we to keep up this farce for
+      ever?&rdquo; he petulantly exclaimed. &ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t take with me. You know what I
+      mean as well as I do. Why do you talk to me about dying of starvation?
+      What about the fortune?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What fortune?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Eh? why, my uncle&rsquo;s, of course! Your brother&rsquo;s, the Count de Chalusse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now M. Wilkie&rsquo;s visit, manner, assurance, wheedling, and contradictions
+      were all explained. That maternal confidence which is so strong in the
+      hearts of mothers vanished from Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s for ever. The depths of
+      selfishness and cunning she discerned in Wilkie&rsquo;s mind appalled her. She
+      now understood why he had declared himself ready to brave public opinion&mdash;why
+      he had proved willing to accept his share of the past ignominy. It was not
+      his mother&rsquo;s, but the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s estate that he claimed. &ldquo;Ah! so
+      you&rsquo;ve heard of that,&rdquo; she said, in a tone of bitter irony. And then,
+      remembering M. Isidore Fortunat, she asked: &ldquo;Some one has sold you this
+      valuable secret. How much have you promised to pay him in case of
+      success?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Although Wilkie prided himself on being very clever, he did not pretend to
+      be a diplomatist, and, indeed, he was greatly disconcerted by this
+      question; still, recovering himself, he replied: &ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t matter how I
+      obtained the information&mdash;whether I paid for it, or whether it cost
+      me nothing&mdash;but I know that you are a Chalusse, and that you are the
+      heiress of the count&rsquo;s property, which is valued at eight or ten millions
+      of francs. Do you deny it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles sadly shook her head. &ldquo;I deny nothing,&rdquo; she replied, &ldquo;but
+      I am about to tell you something which will destroy all your plans and
+      extinguish your hopes. I am resolved, understand, and my resolution is
+      irrevocable, never to assert my rights. To receive this fortune, I should
+      be obliged to confess that Lia d&rsquo;Argeles is a Chalusse&mdash;and that is a
+      confession which no consideration whatever will wring from me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She imagined that this declaration would silence and discomfit Wilkie, but
+      she was mistaken. If he had been obliged to depend upon himself he would
+      perhaps have been conquered by it; but he was armed with weapons which had
+      been furnished by the cunning viscount. So he shrugged his shoulders, and
+      coolly replied: &ldquo;In that case we should remain poor, and the government
+      would take possession of our millions. One moment. I have something to say
+      in this matter. You may renounce your claim, but I shall not renounce
+      mine. I am your son, and I shall claim the property.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Even if I entreated you on my knees not to do so?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s eyes flashed. &ldquo;Very well. I will show you that this
+      estate can never be yours. By what right will you lay claim to it? Because
+      you are my son? But I will deny that you are. I will declare upon oath
+      that you are nothing to me, and that I don&rsquo;t even know you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But even this did not daunt Wilkie. He drew from his pocket a scrap of
+      paper, and flourishing it triumphantly, he exclaimed: &ldquo;It would be
+      extremely cruel on your part to deny me, but I foresaw such a contingency,
+      and here is my answer, copied from the civil code: &lsquo;Article 341. Inquiry
+      as to maternity allowed, etc., etc.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      What the exact bearing of Wilkie&rsquo;s threat might be Madame d&rsquo;Argeles did
+      not know. But she felt that this Article 341 would no doubt destroy her
+      last hope; for the person who had chosen this weapon from the code to
+      place it in Wilkie&rsquo;s hand must have chosen it carefully. She understood
+      the situation perfectly. With her experience of life, she could not fail
+      to understand the despicable part Wilkie was playing. And though it was
+      not her son who had conceived this odious plot, it was more than enough to
+      know that he had consented to carry it into execution. Should she try to
+      persuade Wilkie to abandon this shameful scheme? She might have done so if
+      she had not been so horrified by the utter want of principle which she had
+      discovered in his character. But, under the circumstances, she realized
+      that any effort in this direction would prove unavailing. So it was purely
+      from a sense of duty and to prevent her conscience from reproaching her
+      that she exclaimed: &ldquo;So you will apply to the courts in order to constrain
+      me to acknowledge you as my son?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If you are not reasonable&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That is to say, you care nothing for the scandal that will be created by
+      such a course. In order to prove yourself a member of the Chalusse family
+      you will begin by disgracing the name and dragging it through the mire.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wilkie had no wish to prolong this discussion. So much talk about an
+      affair, which, in his opinion, at least, was an extremely simple one,
+      seemed to him utterly ridiculous, and irritated him beyond endurance. &ldquo;It
+      strikes me this is much ado about nothing,&rdquo; he remarked. &ldquo;One would
+      suppose, to hear you talk, that you were the greatest criminal in the
+      world. Goodness is all very well in its way, but there is such a thing as
+      having too much of it! Break loose from this life to-morrow, assume your
+      rightful name, install yourself at the Hotel de Chalusse, and in a week
+      from now no one will remember that you were once known as Lia d&rsquo;Argeles. I
+      wager one hundred louis on it. Why, if people attempted to rake up the
+      past life of their acquaintances, they should have far too much to do.
+      Folks do not trouble themselves as to whether a person has done this or
+      that; the essential thing is to have plenty of money. And if any fool
+      speaks slightingly of you, you can reply: &lsquo;I have an income of five
+      hundred thousand francs,&rsquo; and he&rsquo;ll say no more.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles listened, speechless with horror and disgust. Was it
+      really her son who was speaking in this style, and to her of all people in
+      the world? M. Wilkie misunderstood her silence. He had an excellent
+      opinion of himself, but he was rather surprised at the effect of his
+      eloquence. &ldquo;Besides, I&rsquo;m tired of vegetating, and having only one name,&rdquo;
+       he continued. &ldquo;I want to be on the move. Even with the small allowance
+      I&rsquo;ve had, I have gained a very good position in society; and if I had
+      plenty of money I should be the most stylish man in Paris. The count&rsquo;s
+      estate belongs to me, and so I must have it&mdash;in fact, I will have it.
+      So believe me when I tell you that it will be much better for you if you
+      acknowledge me without any fuss! Now, will you do so? No? Once, twice,
+      three times? Is it still no? Very well then; to-morrow, then, you may
+      expect an official notice. I wish you good-evening.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He bowed; he was really going, for his hand was already on the door-knob.
+      But Madame d&rsquo;Argeles detained him with a gesture. &ldquo;One word more,&rdquo; she
+      said, in a voice hoarse with emotion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He scarcely deigned to come back, and he made no attempt to conceal his
+      impatience. &ldquo;Well, what is it?&rdquo; he asked, hastily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I wish to give you a bit of parting advice. The court will undoubtedly
+      decide in your favor; I shall be placed in possession of my brother&rsquo;s
+      estate; but neither you nor I will have the disposal of these millions.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because, though this fortune belongs to me, the control of it belongs to
+      your father.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie was thunderstruck. &ldquo;To my father?&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Impossible!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is so, however; and you would not have been ignorant of the fact, if
+      your greed for money had not made you forget to question me. You believe
+      yourself an illegitimate child. Wilkie, you are mistaken. You are my
+      legitimate child. I am a married woman&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Bah!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And my husband&mdash;your father&mdash;is not dead. If he is not here
+      now, threatening our safety, it is because I have succeeded in eluding
+      him. He lost all trace of us eighteen years ago. Since then he has been
+      constantly striving to discover us, but in vain. He is still watching, you
+      may be sure of that; and as soon as there is any talk of a law-suit
+      respecting the Chalusse property, you will see him appear, armed with his
+      rights. He is the head of the family&mdash;your master and mine. Ah! this
+      seems to disturb you. You will find him full of insatiable greed for
+      wealth, a greed which has been whetted by twenty years&rsquo; waiting. You may
+      yet see the day when you will regret the paltry twenty thousand francs a
+      year formerly given you by your poor mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s face was whiter than his shirt. &ldquo;You are deceiving me,&rdquo; he
+      stammered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To-morrow I will show you my marriage certificate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why not this evening?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because it is locked up in a room which is now full of people.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what was my father&rsquo;s name?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Arthur Gordon&mdash;he is an American.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then my name is Wilkie Gordon?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And&mdash;-is my father rich?&rdquo; he inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What does he do?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Everything that a man can do when he has a taste for luxury and a horror
+      for work.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This reply was so explicit in its brevity, and implied so many terrible
+      accusations, that Wilkie was dismayed. &ldquo;The devil!&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;and
+      where does he live!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He lives at Baden or Homburg in the summer; in Paris or at Monaco in the
+      winter.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! oh! oh!&rdquo; ejaculated Wilkie, in three different tones. He knew what he
+      had to expect from such a father as that. Anger now followed stupor&mdash;one
+      of those terrible, white rages which stir the bile and not the blood. He
+      saw his hopes and his cherished visions fade. Luxury and notoriety,
+      high-stepping horses, yellow-haired mistresses, all vanished. He pictured
+      himself reduced to a mere pittance, and held in check and domineered over
+      by a brutal father. &ldquo;Ah! I understand your game,&rdquo; he hissed through his
+      set teeth. &ldquo;If you would only quietly assert your rights, everything could
+      be arranged privately, and I should have time to put the property out of
+      my father&rsquo;s reach before he could claim it. Instead of doing that&mdash;as
+      you hate me&mdash;you compel me to make the affair public, so that my
+      father will hear of it and defraud me of everything. But you won&rsquo;t play
+      this trick on me. You are going to write at once, and make known your
+      claim to your brother&rsquo;s estate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! you won&rsquo;t? You refuse&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; He approached threateningly, and
+      caught hold of her arm. &ldquo;Take care!&rdquo; he vociferated; &ldquo;take care! Do not
+      infuriate me beyond endurance&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As cold and rigid as marble, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles faced him with the undaunted
+      glance of a martyr whose spirit no violence can subdue. &ldquo;You will obtain
+      nothing from me,&rdquo; she said, firmly; &ldquo;nothing, nothing, nothing!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Maddened with rage and disappointment, M. Wilkie dared to lift his hand as
+      if about to strike her. But at this moment the door was flung open, and a
+      man sprang upon him. It was Baron Trigault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Like the other guests, the baron had seen the terrible effect produced
+      upon Madame d&rsquo;Argeles by a simple visiting card. But he had this advantage
+      over the others: he thought he could divine and explain the reason of this
+      sudden, seemingly incomprehensible terror. &ldquo;The poor woman has been
+      betrayed,&rdquo; he thought; &ldquo;her son is here!&rdquo; Still, while the other players
+      crowded around their hostess, he did not leave the card-table. He was
+      sitting opposite M. de Coralth, and he had seen the dashing viscount start
+      and change color. His suspicions were instantly aroused, and he wished to
+      verify them. He therefore pretended to be more than ever absorbed in the
+      cards, and swore lustily at the deserters who had broken up the game.
+      &ldquo;Come back, gentleman, come back,&rdquo; he cried, angrily. &ldquo;We are wasting
+      precious time. While you have been trifling there, I might have gained&mdash;or
+      lost&mdash;a hundred louis.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was nevertheless greatly alarmed, and the prolonged absence of Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles increased his fears each moment. At the end of an hour he could
+      restrain himself no longer. So taking advantage of a heavy loss, he rose
+      from the table, swearing that the beastly turmoil of a few moments before
+      had changed the luck. Then passing into the adjoining drawing-room, he
+      managed to make his escape unobserved. &ldquo;Where is madame?&rdquo; he inquired of
+      the first servant he met.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the little sitting-room.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alone?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No; a young gentleman is with her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron no longer doubted the correctness of his conjectures, and his
+      disquietude increased. Quickly, and as if he had been in his own house, he
+      hastened to the door of the little sitting-room and listened. At that
+      moment rage was imparting a truly frightful intonation to M. Wilkie&rsquo;s
+      voice. The baron really felt alarmed. He stooped, applied his eye to the
+      keyhole, and seeing M. Wilkie with his hand uplifted, he burst open the
+      door and went in. He arrived only just in time to fell Wilkie to the
+      floor, and save Madame d&rsquo;Argeles from that most terrible of humiliations:
+      the degradation of being struck by her own son. &ldquo;Ah, you rascal!&rdquo; cried
+      the worthy baron, transported with indignation, &ldquo;you beggarly rascal! you
+      brigand! Is this the way you treat an unfortunate woman who has sacrificed
+      herself for you&mdash;your mother? You try to strike your mother, when you
+      ought to kiss her very footprints!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As livid as if his blood had been suddenly turned to gall&mdash;with
+      quivering lips and eyes starting from their sockets&mdash;M. Wilkie rose,
+      with difficulty, to his feet, at the same time rubbing his left elbow
+      which had struck against the corner of a piece of furniture, in his fall.
+      &ldquo;Scoundrel! You brutal scoundrel!&rdquo; he growled, ferociously. And then,
+      retreating a step: &ldquo;Who gave you permission to come in here?&rdquo; he added.
+      &ldquo;Who are you? By what right do you meddle with my affairs?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By the right that every honest man possesses to chastise a cowardly
+      rascal.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie shook his fist at the baron. &ldquo;You are a coward yourself,&rdquo; he
+      retorted. &ldquo;You had better learn who you are talking to! You must mend your
+      manners a little, you old&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The word he uttered was so vile that no man could fail to resent it, much
+      less the baron, who was already frantic with passion. His faced turned as
+      purple as if he were stricken with apoplexy, and such furious rage gleamed
+      in his eyes that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles was frightened. She feared she should
+      see her son butchered before her very eyes, and she extended her arms as
+      if to protect him. &ldquo;Jacques,&rdquo; she said beseechingly, &ldquo;Jacques!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the name which was indelibly impressed upon Wilkie&rsquo;s memory&mdash;the
+      name he had heard when he was but a child. Jacques&mdash;that was the name
+      of the man who had brought him cakes and toys in the comfortable rooms
+      where he had remained only a few days. He understood, or at least he
+      thought he understood, everything. &ldquo;Ah, ha!&rdquo; he exclaimed, with a laugh
+      that was at once both ferocious and idiotic. &ldquo;This is very fine&mdash;monsieur
+      is the lover. He has the say here&mdash;he&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He did not have time to finish his sentence, for quick as thought the
+      baron caught him by the collar, lifted him from the ground with
+      irresistible strength, and flung him on his knees at Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s
+      feet, exclaiming: &ldquo;Ask her pardon, you vile wretch! Ask her pardon, or&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+       &ldquo;Or&rdquo; meant the baron&rsquo;s clinched fist descending like a sledge-hammer on M.
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The worthy youth was frightened&mdash;so terribly frightened that his
+      teeth chattered. &ldquo;Pardon!&rdquo; he faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Louder&mdash;speak up better than that. Your mother must answer you!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! the poor woman could no longer hear. She had endured so much during
+      the past hour that her strength was exhausted, and she had fallen back in
+      her arm-chair in a deep swoon. The baron waited for a moment, and seeing
+      that her eyes remained obstinately closed, he exclaimed: &ldquo;This is your
+      work, wretch!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And lifting him again, as easily as if he had been a child, he set him on
+      his feet, saying in a calmer tone, but in one that admitted of no reply:
+      &ldquo;Arrange your clothes and go.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This advice was not unnecessary. Baron Trigault had a powerful hand; and
+      M. Wilkie&rsquo;s attire was decidedly the worse for the encounter. He had lost
+      his cravat, his shirt-front was crumpled and torn, and his waistcoat&mdash;one
+      of those that open to the waist and are fastened by a single button&mdash;hung
+      down in the most dejected manner. He obeyed the baron&rsquo;s order without a
+      word, but not without considerable difficulty, for his hands trembled like
+      a leaf. When he had finished, the baron exclaimed: &ldquo;Now be off; and never
+      set foot here again&mdash;understand me&mdash;never set foot here again,
+      never!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie made no reply until he reached the door leading into the hall.
+      But when he had opened it, he suddenly regained his powers of speech. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m
+      not afraid of you,&rdquo; he cried, with frantic violence. &ldquo;You have taken
+      advantage of your superior strength&mdash;you are a coward. But this shall
+      not end here. No!&mdash;you shall answer for it. I shall find your
+      address, and to-morrow you will receive a visit from my friends M. Costard
+      and M. Serpillon. I am the insulted party&mdash;and I choose swords!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A frightful oath from the baron somewhat hastened M. Wilkie&rsquo;s exit. He
+      went out into the hall, and holding the door open, in a way that would
+      enable him to close it at the shortest notice, he shouted back, so as to
+      be heard by all the servants: &ldquo;Yes; I will have satisfaction. I will not
+      stand such treatment. Is it any fault of mine that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles is a
+      Chalusse, and that she wishes to defraud me of my fortune. To-morrow, I
+      call you all to witness, there will be a lawyer here. You don&rsquo;t frighten
+      me. Here is my card!&rdquo; And actually, before he closed the door, he threw
+      one of his cards into the middle of the room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron did not trouble himself to pick it up; his attention was devoted
+      to Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. She was lying back in her arm-chair, white,
+      motionless and rigid, to all appearance dead. What should the baron do? He
+      did not wish to call the servants; they had heard too much already&mdash;but
+      he had almost decided to do so, when his eyes fell upon a tiny aquarium,
+      in a corner of the room. He dipped his handkerchief in it; and alternately
+      bathed Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s temples and chafed her hands. It was not long
+      before the cold water revived her. She trembled, a convulsive shudder
+      shook her from head to foot, and at last she opened her eyes, murmuring:
+      &ldquo;Wilkie!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have sent him away,&rdquo; replied the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Poor woman! with returning life came the consciousness of the terrible
+      reality. &ldquo;He is my son!&rdquo; she moaned, &ldquo;my son, my Wilkie!&rdquo; Then with a
+      despairing gesture she pressed her hands to her forehead as if to calm its
+      throbbings. &ldquo;And I believed that my sin was expiated,&rdquo; she pursued. &ldquo;I
+      thought I had been sufficiently punished. Fool that I was! This is my
+      chastisement, Jacques. Ah! women like me have no right to be mothers!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A burning tear coursed down the baron&rsquo;s cheek; but he concealed his
+      emotion as well as he could, and said, in a tone of assumed gayety:
+      &ldquo;Nonsense! Wilkie is young&mdash;he will mend his ways! We were all
+      ridiculous when we were twenty. We have all caused our mothers many
+      anxious nights. Time will set everything to rights, and put some ballast
+      in this young madcap&rsquo;s brains. Besides, your friend Patterson doesn&rsquo;t seem
+      to me quite free from blame. In knowledge of books, he may have been
+      unequalled; but as a guardian for youth, he must have been the worst of
+      fools. After keeping your son on a short allowance for years, he suddenly
+      gorges him with oats&mdash;or I should say, money&mdash;lets him loose;
+      and then seems surprised because the boy is guilty of acts of folly. It
+      would be a miracle if he were not. So take courage, and hope for the best,
+      my dear Lia.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She shook her head despondingly. &ldquo;Do you suppose that my heart hasn&rsquo;t
+      pleaded for him?&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;I am his mother; I can never cease to love
+      him, whatever he may do. Even now I am ready to give a drop of blood for
+      each tear I can save him. But I am not blind; I have read his nature.
+      Wilkie has no heart.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! my dear friend, how do you know what shameful advice he may have
+      received before coming to you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles half rose, and said, in an agitated voice: &ldquo;What! you try
+      to make me believe that? &lsquo;Advice!&rsquo; Then he must have found a man who said
+      to him: &lsquo;Go to the house of this unfortunate woman who gave you birth, and
+      order her to publish her dishonor and yours. If she refuses, insult and
+      beat her! &lsquo;You know, even better than I, baron, that this is impossible.
+      In the vilest natures, and when every other honorable feeling has been
+      lost, love for one&rsquo;s mother survives. Even convicts deprive themselves of
+      their wine, and sell their rations, in order to send a trifle now and then
+      to their mothers&mdash;while he&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She paused, not because she shrunk from what she was about to say, but
+      because she was exhausted and out of breath. She rested for a moment, and
+      then resumed in a calmer tone: &ldquo;Besides, the person who sent him here had
+      counselled coolness and prudence. I discovered this at once. It was only
+      toward the close of the interview, and after an unexpected revelation from
+      me, that he lost all control over himself. The thought that he would lose
+      my brother&rsquo;s millions crazed him. Oh! that fatal and accursed money!
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s adviser wished him to employ legal means to obtain an
+      acknowledgment of his parentage; and he had copied from the Code a clause
+      which is applicable to this case. By this one circumstance I am convinced
+      that his adviser is a man of experience in such matters&mdash;in other
+      words, the business agent&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What business agent?&rdquo; inquired the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The person who called here the other day, M. Isidore Fortunat. Ah! why
+      didn&rsquo;t I not bribe him to hold his peace?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron had entirely forgotten the existence of Victor Chupin&rsquo;s
+      honorable employer. &ldquo;You are mistaken, Lia,&rdquo; he replied. &ldquo;M. Fortunat has
+      had no hand in this.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then who could have betrayed my secret?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, your former ally, the rascal for whose sake you allowed Pascal
+      Ferailleur to be sacrificed&mdash;the Viscount de Coralth!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The bare supposition of such treachery on the viscount&rsquo;s part brought a
+      flush of indignant anger to Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s cheek. &ldquo;Ah! if I thought
+      that!&rdquo; she exclaimed. And then, remembering what reasons the baron had for
+      hating M. de Coralth, she murmured: &ldquo;No! Your animosity misleads you&mdash;he
+      wouldn&rsquo;t dare!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron read her thoughts. &ldquo;So you are persuaded that it is personal
+      vengeance that I am pursuing?&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;You think that fear of ridicule
+      and public odium prevents me from striking M. de Coralth in my own name,
+      and that I am endeavoring to find some other excuse to crush him. This
+      might have been so once; but it is not the case now. When I promised M.
+      Ferailleur to do all in my power to save the young girl he loves,
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite, my wife&rsquo;s daughter, I renounced all thought of
+      self, all my former plans. And why should you doubt Coralth&rsquo;s treachery?
+      You, yourself, promised me to unmask HIM. If he has betrayed YOU, my poor
+      Lia, he has only been a little in advance of you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She hung her head and made no reply. She had forgotten this.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Besides,&rdquo; continued the baron, &ldquo;you ought to know that when I make such a
+      statement I have some better foundation for it than mere conjecture. It
+      was to some purpose that I watched M. de Coralth during your absence. When
+      the servant handed you that card he turned extremely pale. Why? Because he
+      knew whose card it was. After you left the room his hands trembled like
+      leaves, and his mind was no longer occupied with the game. He&mdash;who is
+      usually such a cautious player&mdash;risked his money recklessly. When the
+      cards came to him he did still worse; and though luck favored him, he made
+      the strangest blunders, and lost. His agitation and preoccupation were so
+      marked as to attract attention; and one acquaintance laughingly inquired
+      if he were ill, while another jestingly remarked that he had dined and
+      wined a little too much. The traitor was evidently on coals of fire. I
+      could see the perspiration on his forehead, and each time the door opened
+      or shut, he changed color, as if he expected to see you and Wilkie enter.
+      A dozen times I surprised him listening eagerly, as if by dint of
+      attention, or by the magnetic force of his will, he hoped to hear what you
+      and your son were saying. With a single word I could have wrung a
+      confession from him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This explanation was so plausible that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles felt half
+      convinced. &ldquo;Ah! if you had only spoken that word!&rdquo; she murmured. The baron
+      smiled a crafty and malicious smile, which would have chilled M. de
+      Coralth&rsquo;s very blood if he had chanced to see it. &ldquo;I am not so stupid!&rdquo; he
+      replied. &ldquo;We mustn&rsquo;t frighten the fish till we are quite ready. Our net is
+      the Chalusse estate, and Coralth and Valorsay will enter it of their own
+      accord. It is not my plan, but M. Ferailleur&rsquo;s. There&rsquo;s a man for you! and
+      if Mademoiselle Marguerite is worthy of him they will make a noble pair.
+      Without suspecting it, your son has perhaps rendered us an important
+      service this evening&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; faltered Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, &ldquo;I am none the less ruined&mdash;the
+      name of Chalusse is none the less dishonored!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She wanted to return to the drawing-room; but she was compelled to
+      relinquish this idea. The expression of her face betrayed too plainly the
+      terrible ordeal she had passed through. The servants had heard M. Wilkie&rsquo;s
+      parting words; and news of this sort flies about with the rapidity of
+      lightning. That very night, indeed, it was currently reported at the clubs
+      that there would be no more card-playing at the d&rsquo;Argeles establishment,
+      as that lady was a Chalusse, and consequently the aunt of the beautiful
+      young girl whom M. and Madame de Fondege had taken under their protection.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0008" id="link2H_4_0008">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      VIII.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Unusual strength of character, unbounded confidence in one&rsquo;s own energy,
+      with thorough contempt of danger, and an invincible determination to
+      triumph or perish, are all required of the person who, like Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite, intrusts herself to the care of strangers&mdash;worse yet, to
+      the care of actual enemies. It is no small matter to place yourself in the
+      power of smooth-tongued hypocrites and impostors, who are anxious for your
+      ruin, and whom you know to be capable of anything. And the task is a
+      mighty one&mdash;to brave unknown dangers, perilous seductions, perfidious
+      counsels, and perhaps even violence, at the same time retaining a calm eye
+      and smiling lips. Yet such was the heroism that Marguerite, although
+      scarcely twenty, displayed when she left the Hotel de Chalusse to accept
+      the hospitality of the Fondege family. And, to crown all, she took Madame
+      Leon with her&mdash;Madame Leon, whom she knew to be the Marquis de
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s spy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But, brave as she was, when the moment of departure came her heart almost
+      failed her. There was despair in the parting glance she cast upon the
+      princely mansion and the familiar faces of the servants. And there was no
+      one to encourage or sustain her. Ah, yes! standing at a window on the
+      second floor, with his forehead pressed close against the pane of glass,
+      she saw the only friend she had in the world&mdash;the old magistrate who
+      had defended, encouraged, and sustained her&mdash;the man who had promised
+      her his assistance and advice, and prophesied ultimate success.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Shall I be a coward?&rdquo; she thought; &ldquo;shall I be unworthy of Pascal?&rdquo; And
+      she resolutely entered the carriage, mentally exclaiming: &ldquo;The die is
+      cast!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The General insisted that she should take a place beside Madame de Fondege
+      on the back seat; while he found a place next to Madame Leon on the seat
+      facing them. The drive was a silent and tedious one. The night was coming
+      on; it was a time when all Paris was on the move, and the carriage was
+      delayed at each street corner by a crowd of passing vehicles. The
+      conversation was solely kept alive by the exertions of Madame de Fondege,
+      whose shrill voice rose above the rumble of the wheels, as she chronicled
+      the virtues of the late Count de Chalusse, and congratulated Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite on the wisdom of her decision. Her remarks were of a
+      commonplace description, and yet each word she uttered evinced intense
+      satisfaction, almost delight, as if she had won some unexpected victory.
+      Occasionally, the General leaned from the carriage window to see if the
+      vehicle laden with Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s trunks was following them,
+      but he said nothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last they reached his residence in the Rue Pigalle. He alighted first,
+      offered his hand successively to his wife, Mademoiselle Marguerite, and
+      Madame Leon, and motioned the coachman to drive away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the man did not stir. &ldquo;Pardon&mdash;excuse me, monsieur,&rdquo; he said,
+      &ldquo;but my employers bade&mdash;requested me&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To ask you&mdash;you know, for the fare&mdash;thirty-five francs&mdash;not
+      counting the little gratuity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well!&mdash;I will pay you to-morrow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me, monsieur; but if it is all the same to you, would you do so
+      this evening? My employer said that the bill had been standing a long time
+      already.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, scoundrel!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame de Fondege, who was on the point of entering the house,
+      suddenly stepped back, and drawing out her pocketbook, exclaimed: &ldquo;That&rsquo;s
+      enough! Here are thirty-five francs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The man went to his carriage lamp to count the money, and seeing that he
+      had the exact amount&mdash;&ldquo;And my gratuity?&rdquo; he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I give none to insolent people,&rdquo; replied the General.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You should take a cab if you haven&rsquo;t money enough to pay for coaches,&rdquo;
+       replied the driver with an oath. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be even with you yet.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite heard no more, for Madame de Fondege caught her by the arm and
+      hurried her up the staircase, saying: &ldquo;Quick! we must make haste. Your
+      baggage is here already, and we must see if the rooms I intended for you&mdash;for
+      you and your companion&mdash;suit you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      When Marguerite reached the second floor, Madame de Fondege hunted in her
+      pocket for her latch-key. Not finding it, she rang. A tall man-servant of
+      impudent appearance and arrayed in a glaring livery opened the door,
+      carrying an old battered iron candlestick, in which a tiny scrap of candle
+      was glaring and flickering. &ldquo;What!&rdquo; exclaimed Madame de Fondege, &ldquo;the
+      reception-room not lighted yet? This is scandalous! What have you been
+      doing in my absence? Come, make haste. Light the lamp. Tell the cook that
+      I have some guests to dine with me. Call my maid. See that M. Gustave&rsquo;s
+      room is in order. Go down and see if the General doesn&rsquo;t need your
+      assistance about the baggage.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Finding it difficult to choose between so many contradictory orders, the
+      servant did not choose at all. He placed his rusty candlestick on one of
+      the side-tables in the reception-room, and gravely, without saying a
+      single word, went out into the passage leading to the kitchen. &ldquo;Evariste!&rdquo;
+       cried Madame de Fondege, crimson with anger, &ldquo;Evariste, you insolent
+      fellow!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As he deigned no reply, she rushed out in pursuit of him. And soon the
+      sound of a violent altercation arose; the servant lavishing insults upon
+      his mistress, and she unable to find any response, save, &ldquo;I dismiss you;
+      you are an insolent scamp&mdash;I dismiss you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Leon, who was standing near Mademoiselle Marguerite in the
+      reception-room, seemed greatly amused. &ldquo;This is a strange household,&rdquo; said
+      she. &ldquo;A fine beginning, upon my word.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the worthy housekeeper was the last person on earth to whom
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite wished to reveal her thoughts. &ldquo;Hush, Leon,&rdquo; she
+      replied. &ldquo;We are the cause of all this disturbance, and I am very sorry
+      for it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The retort that rose to the housekeeper&rsquo;s lips was checked by the return
+      of Madame de Fondege, followed by a servant-girl with a turn-up nose, a
+      pert manner, and who carried a lighted candle in her hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How can I apologize, madame,&rdquo; began Mademoiselle Marguerite, &ldquo;for all the
+      trouble I am giving you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! my dear child, I&rsquo;ve never been so happy. Come, come, and see your
+      room.&rdquo; And while they crossed several scantily-furnished apartments,
+      Madame de Fondege continued: &ldquo;It is I who ought to apologize to you. I
+      fear you will pine for the splendors of the Hotel de Chalusse. We are not
+      millionaires like your poor father. We have only a modest competence, no
+      more. But here we are!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The maid had opened a door, and Mademoiselle Marguerite entered a
+      good-sized room lighted by two windows, hung with soiled wall paper, and
+      adorned with chintz curtains, from which the sun had extracted most of the
+      coloring. Everything was in disorder here, and in fact, the whole room was
+      extremely dirty. The bed was not made, the washstand was dirty, some
+      woollen stockings were hanging over the side of the rumpled bed, and on
+      the mantel-shelf stood an ancient clock, an empty beer bottle, and some
+      glasses. On the floor, on the furniture, in the corners, everywhere in
+      fact, stumps of cigars were scattered in profusion, as if they had
+      positively rained down.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What!&rdquo; gasped Madame de Fondege, &ldquo;you haven&rsquo;t put this room in order,
+      Justine?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Indeed, madame, I haven&rsquo;t had time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But it&rsquo;s more than a month since M. Gustave slept here?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I know it; but madame must remember that I have been very much hurried
+      this last month, having to do all the washing and ironing since the
+      laundress&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s sufficient,&rdquo; interrupted Madame de Fondege. And turning to
+      Marguerite, she said: &ldquo;You will, I am sure, excuse this disorder, my dear
+      child. By this time to-morrow the room shall be transformed into one of
+      those dainty nests of muslin and flowers which young girls delight in.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Connected with this apartment, which was known to the household as the
+      lieutenant&rsquo;s room, there was a much smaller chamber lighted only by a
+      single window, and originally intended for a dressing-room. It had two
+      doors, one of them communicating with Marguerite&rsquo;s room, and the other
+      with the passage; and it was now offered to Madame Leon, who on comparing
+      these quarters with the spacious suite of rooms she had occupied at the
+      Hotel de Chalusse, had considerable difficulty in repressing a grimace.
+      Still she did not hesitate nor even murmur. M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s orders bound
+      her to Marguerite, and she deemed it fortunate that she was allowed to
+      follow her. And whether the marquis succeeded or not, he had promised her
+      a sufficiently liberal reward to compensate for all personal discomfort.
+      So, in the sweetest of voices, and with a feigned humility of manner, she
+      declared this little room to be even much too good for a poor widow whose
+      misfortunes had compelled her to abdicate her position in society.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The attentions which M. and Madame de Fondege showed her contributed not a
+      little to her resignation. Without knowing exactly what the General and
+      his wife expected from Mademoiselle Marguerite, she was shrewd enough to
+      divine that they hoped to gain some important advantage. Now her &ldquo;dear
+      child&rdquo; had declared her to be a trusted friend, who was indispensable to
+      her existence and comfort. &ldquo;So these people will pay assiduous court to
+      me,&rdquo; she thought. And being quite ready to play a double part as the spy
+      of the Marquis de Valorsay, and the Fondege family, and quite willing to
+      espouse the latter&rsquo;s cause should that prove to be the more remunerative
+      course, she saw a long series of polite attentions and gifts before her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That very evening her prophecies were realized; and she received a proof
+      of consideration which positively delighted her. It was decided that she
+      should take her meals at the family table, a thing which had never
+      happened at the Hotel de Chalusse. Mademoiselle Marguerite raised a few
+      objections, which Madame Leon answered with a venomous look, but Madame de
+      Fondege insisted upon the arrangement, not understanding, she said,
+      graciously, why they need deprive themselves of the society of such an
+      agreeable and distinguished person. Madame Leon in no wise doubted but
+      this favor was due to her merit alone, but Mademoiselle Marguerite, who
+      was more discerning, saw that their hostess was really furious at the
+      idea, but was compelled to submit to it by the imperious necessity of
+      preventing Madame Leon from coming in contact with the servants, who might
+      make some decidedly compromising disclosures. For there were evidently
+      many little mysteries and make-shifts to be concealed in this household.
+      For instance, while the servants were carrying the luggage upstairs,
+      Marguerite discovered Madame de Fondege and her maid in close
+      consultation, whispering with that volubility which betrays an unexpected
+      and pressing perplexity. What were they talking about? She listened
+      without any compunctions of conscience, and the words &ldquo;a pair of sheets,&rdquo;
+       repeated again and again, furnished her with abundant food for reflection.
+      &ldquo;Is it possible,&rdquo; she thought, &ldquo;that they have no sheets to give us?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It did not take her long to discover the maid&rsquo;s opinion of the
+      establishment in which she served; for while she brandished her broom and
+      duster, this girl, exasperated undoubtedly by the increase of work she saw
+      in store for her, growled and cursed the old barrack where one was worked
+      to death, where one never had enough to eat, and where the wages were
+      always in arrears. Mademoiselle Marguerite was doing her best to aid the
+      maid, who was greatly surprised to find this handsome, queenly young lady
+      so obliging, when Evariste, the same who had received warning an hour
+      before, made his appearance, and announced in an insolent tone that
+      &ldquo;Madame la Comtesse was served.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For Madame de Fondege exacted this title. She had improvised it, as her
+      husband had improvised his title of General, and without much more
+      difficulty. By a search in the family archives she had discovered&mdash;so
+      she declared to her intimate friends&mdash;that she was the descendant of
+      a noble family, and that one of her ancestors had held a most important
+      position at the court of Francis I. or of Louis XII. Indeed, she sometimes
+      confounded them. However, people who had not known her father, the wood
+      merchant, saw nothing impossible in the statements.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Evariste was dressed as a butler should be dressed when he announces
+      dinner to a person of rank. In the daytime when he discharged the duties
+      of footman, he was gorgeous in gold lace; but in the evening, he arrayed
+      himself in severe black, such as is appropriate to the butler of an
+      aristocratic household. Immediately after his announcement everybody
+      repaired to the sumptuous dining-room which, with its huge side-boards,
+      loaded with silver and rare china, looked not unlike a museum. Such was
+      the display, indeed, that when Mademoiselle Marguerite took a seat at the
+      table, between the General and his wife, and opposite Madame Leon, she
+      asked herself if she had not been the victim of that dangerous optical
+      delusion known as prejudice. She noticed that the supply of knives and
+      forks was rather scanty; but many economical housewives keep most of their
+      silver under lock and key; besides the china was very handsome and marked
+      with the General&rsquo;s monogram, surmounted by his wife&rsquo;s coronet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the dinner was badly cooked and poorly served. One might have
+      supposed it to be a scullery maid&rsquo;s first attempt. Still the General
+      devoured it with delight. He partook ravenously of every dish, a flush
+      rose to his cheeks, and an expression of profound satisfaction was visible
+      upon his countenance. &ldquo;From this,&rdquo; thought Mademoiselle Marguerite, &ldquo;I
+      must infer that he usually goes hungry, and that this seems a positive
+      feast to him.&rdquo; In fact, he seemed bubbling over with contentment. He
+      twirled his mustaches a la Victor Emmanuel, and rolled his &ldquo;r,&rdquo; as he
+      said, &ldquo;Sacr-r-r-r-r-e bleu!&rdquo; even more ferociously than usual. It was only
+      by a powerful effort that he restrained himself from indulging in various
+      witticisms which would have been most unseemly in the presence of a poor
+      girl who had just lost her father and all her hopes of fortune. But he did
+      forget himself so much as to say that the drive to the cemetery had
+      whetted his appetite, and to address his wife as Madame Range-a-bord, a
+      title which had been bestowed upon her by a sailor brother.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Crimson with anger to the very roots of her coarse, sandy hair&mdash;amazed
+      to see her husband deport himself in this style, and almost suffocated by
+      the necessity of restraining her wrath, Madame de Fondege was heroic
+      enough to smile, though her eyes flashed ominously. But the General was
+      not at all dismayed. On the contrary, he cared so little for his wife&rsquo;s
+      displeasure that, when the dessert was served, he turned to the servant,
+      and, with a wink that Mademoiselle Marguerite noticed, &ldquo;Evariste,&rdquo; he
+      ordered, &ldquo;go to the wine-cellar, and bring me a bottle of old Bordeaux.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The valet, who had just received a week&rsquo;s notice, was only too glad of an
+      opportunity for revenge. So with a malicious smile, and in a drawling
+      tone, he replied: &ldquo;Then monsieur must give me the money. Monsieur knows
+      very well that neither the grocer nor the wine-merchant will trust him any
+      longer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Fondege rose from the table, looking very pale; but before he had
+      time to utter a word, his wife came to the rescue. &ldquo;You know, my dear,
+      that I don&rsquo;t trust the key of my cellar to this lad. Evariste, call
+      Justine.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The pert-looking chambermaid appeared, and her mistress told her where she
+      would find the key of the famous cellar. About a quarter of an hour
+      afterward, one of those bottles which grocers and wine-merchants prepare
+      for the benefit of credulous customers was brought in&mdash;a bottle duly
+      covered with dust and mould to give it a venerable appearance, and
+      festooned with cobwebs, such as the urchins of Paris collect and sell at
+      from fifteen sous to two francs a pound, according to quality. But the
+      Bordeaux did not restore the General&rsquo;s equanimity. He was silent and
+      subdued; and his relief was evident when, after the coffee had been
+      served, his wife exclaimed: &ldquo;We won&rsquo;t keep you from your club, my dear. I
+      want a chat with our dear child.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Since she dismissed the General so unceremoniously, Madame de Fondege
+      evidently wished for a tete-a-tete with Mademoiselle Marguerite. At least
+      Madame Leon thought so, or feigned to think so, and addressing the young
+      girl, she said: &ldquo;I shall be obliged to leave you for a couple of hours, my
+      dear young lady. My relatives would never forgive me if I did not inform
+      them of my change of residence.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the first time since she had been engaged by the Count de
+      Chalusse, that the estimable &ldquo;companion&rdquo; had ever made any direct allusion
+      to her relatives, and what is more, to relatives residing in Paris. She
+      had previously only spoken of them in general terms, giving people to
+      understand that her relatives had not been unfortunate like herself&mdash;that
+      they still retained their exalted rank, though she had fallen, and that
+      she found it difficult to decline the favors they longed to heap upon her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, Mademoiselle Marguerite evinced no surprise. &ldquo;Go at once and
+      inform your relatives, my dear Leon,&rdquo; she said, without a shade of sarcasm
+      in her manner. &ldquo;I hope they won&rsquo;t be offended by your devotion to me.&rdquo; But
+      in her secret heart, she thought: &ldquo;This hypocrite is going to report to
+      the Marquis de Valorsay, and these relatives of hers will furnish her with
+      excuses for future visits to him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The General went off, the servants began to clear the table, and
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite followed her hostess to the drawing-room. It was a
+      lofty and spacious apartment, lighted by three windows, and even more
+      sumptuous in its appointments than the dining-room. Furniture, carpets,
+      and hangings, were all in rather poor taste, perhaps, but costly, very
+      costly. As the evening was a cold one, Madame de Fondege ordered the fire
+      to be lighted. She seated herself on a sofa near the mantelpiece, and when
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite had taken a chair opposite her, she began, &ldquo;Now,
+      my dear child, let us have a quiet talk.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite expected some important communication, so that she
+      was not a little surprised when Madame de Fondege resumed: &ldquo;Have you
+      thought about your mourning?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;About my mourning, madame?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes. I mean, have you decided what dresses you will purchase? It is an
+      important matter, my dear&mdash;more important than you suppose. They are
+      making costumes entirely of crepe now, puffed and plaited, and extremely
+      stylish. I saw one that would suit you well. You may think that a costume
+      for deep mourning made with puffs would be a trifle LOUD, but that depends
+      upon tastes. The Duchess de Veljo wore one only eleven days after her
+      husband&rsquo;s death; and she allowed some of her hair, which is superb, to
+      fall over her shoulders, a la pleureuse, and the effect was extremely
+      touching.&rdquo; Was Madame de Fondege speaking sincerely? There could be no
+      doubt of it. Her features, which had been distorted with anger when the
+      General took it into his head to order the bottle of Bordeaux, had
+      regained their usual placidity of expression, and had even brightened a
+      little. &ldquo;I am entirely at your service, my dear, if you wish any shopping
+      done,&rdquo; she continued. &ldquo;And if you are not quite pleased with your
+      dressmaker, I will take you to mine, who works like an angel. But how
+      absurd I am. You will of course employ Van Klopen. I go to him
+      occasionally myself, but only on great occasions. Between you and me, I
+      think him a trifle too high in his charges.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite could scarcely repress a smile. &ldquo;I must confess,
+      madame, that from my infancy I have been in the habit of making almost all
+      my dresses myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The General&rsquo;s wife raised her eyes to Heaven in real or feigned
+      astonishment. &ldquo;Yourself!&rdquo; she repeated four or five times, as if to make
+      sure that she had heard aright. &ldquo;Yourself! That is incomprehensible! You,
+      the daughter of a man who possessed an income of five or six hundred
+      thousand francs a year! Still I know that poor M. de Chalusse, though
+      unquestionably a very worthy and excellent man, was peculiar in some of
+      his ideas.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me, madame. What I did, I did for my own pleasure.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But this assertion exceeded Madame de Fondege&rsquo;s powers of comprehension.
+      &ldquo;Impossible!&rdquo; she murmured, &ldquo;impossible! But, my poor child, what did you
+      do for fashions&mdash;for patterns?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The immense importance she attached to the matter was so manifest that
+      Marguerite could not refrain from smiling. &ldquo;I was probably not a very
+      close follower of the fashions,&rdquo; she replied. &ldquo;The dress that I am wearing
+      now&mdash;&mdash;.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is very pretty, my child, and it becomes you extremely; that&rsquo;s the truth.
+      Only, to be frank, I must confess that this style is no longer worn&mdash;no&mdash;not
+      at all. You must have your new dresses made in quite a different way.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But I already have more dresses than I need, madame.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! black dresses?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I seldom wear anything but black.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Evidently her hostess had never heard anything like this before. &ldquo;Oh! all
+      right,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;these dresses will doubtless do very well for your
+      first months of mourning&mdash;but afterward? Do you suppose, my poor
+      dear, that I&rsquo;m going to allow you to shut yourself up as you did at the
+      Hotel de Chalusse? Good heavens! how dull it must have been for you, alone
+      in that big house, without society or friends.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A tear fell from Marguerite&rsquo;s long lashes. &ldquo;I was very happy there,
+      madame,&rdquo; she murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You think so; but you will change your mind. When one has never tasted
+      real pleasure, one cannot realize how gloomy one&rsquo;s life really is. No
+      doubt, you were very unhappy alone with M. de Chalusse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! madame&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Tut! tut! my dear, I know what I am talking about. Wait until you have
+      been introduced into society before you boast of the charms of solitude.
+      Poor dear! I doubt if you have ever attended a ball in your whole life.
+      No! I was sure of it, and you are twenty! Fortunately, I am here. I will
+      take your mother&rsquo;s place, and we will make up for lost time! Beautiful as
+      you are, my child&mdash;for you are divinely beautiful&mdash;you will
+      reign as a queen wherever you appear. Doesn&rsquo;t that thought make that cold
+      little heart of yours throb more quickly? Ah! fetes and music, wonderful
+      toilettes and the flashing of diamonds, the admiration of gentlemen, the
+      envy of rivals, the consciousness of one&rsquo;s own beauty, are these delights
+      not enough to fill any woman&rsquo;s life? It is intoxication, perhaps, but an
+      intoxication which is happiness.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Was she sincere, or did she hope to dazzle this lonely girl, and then rule
+      her through the tastes she might succeed in giving her? As is not
+      unfrequently the case with callous natures, Madame de Fondege was a
+      compound of frankness and cunning. What she was saying now she really
+      meant; and as it was to her interest to say it, she urged her opinions
+      boldly and even eloquently. Twenty-four hours earlier, proud and truthful
+      Marguerite would have silenced her at once. She would have told her that
+      such pleasures could never have any charm for her, and that she felt only
+      scorn and disgust for such worthless aims and sordid desires. But having
+      resolved to appear a dupe, she concealed her real feelings under an air of
+      surprise, and was astonished and even ashamed to find that she could
+      dissemble so well.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Besides,&rdquo; continued Madame de Fondege, &ldquo;a marriageable young girl should
+      never shut herself up like a nun. She will never find a husband if she
+      remains at home&mdash;and she must marry. Indeed, marriage is a sensible
+      woman&rsquo;s only object in life, since it is her emancipation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Was Madame de Fondege going to plead her son&rsquo;s cause? Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite almost believed it&mdash;but the lady was too shrewd for that.
+      She took good care not to mention as much as Lieutenant Gustave&rsquo;s name.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The season will certainly be unusually brilliant,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and it will
+      begin very early. On the fifth of November, the Countess de Commarin will
+      give a superb fete; all Paris will be there. On the seventh, there will be
+      a ball at the house of the Viscountess de Bois d&rsquo;Ardon. On the eleventh,
+      there will be a concert, followed by a ball, at the superb mansion of the
+      Baroness Trigault&mdash;you know&mdash;the wife of that strange man who
+      spends all his time in playing cards.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This is the first time I ever heard the name mentioned.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Really! and you have been living in Paris for years. It seems
+      incomprehensible. You must know then, my dear little ignoramus, that the
+      Baroness Trigault is one of the most distinguished ladies in Paris, and
+      certainly the best dressed. I am sure her bill at Van Klopen&rsquo;s is not less
+      than a hundred thousand francs a year&mdash;and that is saying enough, is
+      it not?&rdquo; And with genuine pride, she added: &ldquo;The baroness is my friend. I
+      will introduce you to her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Having once started on this theme, Madame de Fondege was not easily
+      silenced. It was evidently her ambition to be considered a woman of the
+      world, and to be acquainted with all the leaders of fashionable society;
+      and, in fact, if one listened to her conversation for an hour one could
+      learn all the gossip of the day. Though she was unable to interest herself
+      in this tittle-tattle, Marguerite was pretending to listen to it with
+      profound attention when the drawing-room door suddenly opened and Evariste
+      appeared with an impudent smile on his face. &ldquo;Madame Landoire, the
+      milliner, is here, and desires to speak with Madame la Comtesse,&rdquo; he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On hearing this name, Madame de Fondege started as if she had been stung
+      by a viper. &ldquo;Let her wait,&rdquo; she said quickly. &ldquo;I will see her in a
+      moment.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The order was useless, for the visitor was already on the threshold. She
+      was a tall, dark-haired, ill-mannered woman. &ldquo;Ah! I&rsquo;ve found you at last,&rdquo;
+       she said, rudely, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;m not sorry. This is the fourth time I&rsquo;ve come
+      here with my bill.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame de Fondege pointed to Mademoiselle Marguerite, and exclaimed:
+      &ldquo;Wait, at least, until I am alone before you speak to me on business.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Landoire shrugged her shoulders. &ldquo;As if you were ever alone,&rdquo; she
+      growled. &ldquo;I wish to put an end to this.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Step into my room then, and we will put an end to it, and at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This opportunity to escape from Madame de Fondege must not be allowed to
+      pass; so Marguerite asked permission to withdraw, declaring, what was
+      really the truth, that she felt completely tired out. After receiving a
+      maternal kiss from her hostess, accompanied by a &ldquo;sleep well, my dear
+      child,&rdquo; she retired to her own room. Thanks to Madame Leon&rsquo;s absence, she
+      found herself alone, and, drawing a blotting-pad from one of her trunks,
+      she hastily wrote a note to M. Isidore Fortunat, telling him that she
+      would call upon him on the following Tuesday. &ldquo;I must be very awkward,&rdquo;
+       she thought, &ldquo;if to-morrow, on going to mass, I can&rsquo;t find an opportunity
+      to throw this note into a letter-box without being observed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was fortunate that she had lost no time, for her writing-case was
+      scarcely in its place again before Madame Leon entered, evidently out of
+      sorts. &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; asked Marguerite, &ldquo;did you see your friends?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t speak of it, my dear young lady; they were all of them away from
+      home&mdash;they had gone to the play.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So I shall go again early to-morrow morning; you must realize how
+      important it is.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, I understand.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame Leon, who was usually so loquacious, did not seem to be in a
+      talkative mood that evening, and, after kissing her dear young lady, she
+      went into her own room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She did not succeed in finding the Marquis de Valorsay,&rdquo; thought
+      Marguerite, &ldquo;and being in doubt as to the part she is to play, she feels
+      furious.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The young girl tried to sum up the impressions of the evening, and to
+      decide upon a plan of conduct, but she felt sad and very weary. She said
+      to herself that rest would be more beneficial than anything else, and that
+      her mind would be clearer on the morrow; so after a fervent prayer in
+      which Pascal Ferailleur&rsquo;s name was mentioned several times, she prepared
+      for bed. But before she fell asleep she was able to collect another bit of
+      evidence. The sheets on her bed were new.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If Marguerite had been born in the Hotel de Chalusse, if she had known a
+      father&rsquo;s and a mother&rsquo;s tender care from her infancy, if she had always
+      been protected by a large fortune from the stern realities of life, there
+      would have been no hope for her now that she was left poor and alone&mdash;for
+      how can a girl avoid dangers she is ignorant of? But from her earliest
+      childhood Marguerite had studied the difficult science of real life under
+      the best of teachers&mdash;misfortune. Cast upon her own resources at the
+      age of thirteen, she had learned to look upon everybody and everything
+      with distrust; and by relying only on herself, she had become strangely
+      cautious and clear-sighted. She knew how to watch and how to listen, how
+      to deliberate and how to act. Two men, the Marquis de Valorsay and M. de
+      Fondege&rsquo;s son, coveted her hand; and one of the two, the marquis, so she
+      believed, was capable of any crime. Still she felt no fears. She had been
+      in danger once before when she was little more than a child, when the
+      brother of her employer insulted her with his attentions, but she had
+      escaped unharmed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Deceit was certainly most repugnant to her truth-loving nature; but it was
+      the only weapon of defence she possessed. And so on the following day she
+      carefully studied the abode of her entertainers. And certainly the study
+      was instructive. The General&rsquo;s household was truly Parisian in character;
+      or, at least, it was what a Parisian household inevitably becomes when its
+      inmates fall a prey to the constantly increasing passion for luxury and
+      display, to the furore for aping the habits and expenditure of
+      millionaires, and to the noble and elevated desire of humiliating and
+      outshining their neighbors. Ease, health, and comfort had been
+      unscrupulously sacrificed to show. The dining-room was magnificent, the
+      drawing-room superb; but these were the only comfortably furnished
+      apartments in the establishment. The other rooms were bare and desolate.
+      It is true that Madame de Fondege had a handsome wardrobe with glass doors
+      in her own room, but this was an article which the friend of the
+      fashionable Baroness Trigault could not possibly dispense with. On the
+      other hand, her bed had no curtains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The aspect of the place fittingly explained the habits and manners of the
+      inmates. What sinister fears must have haunted them! for how could this
+      extreme destitution in one part of the establishment be reconciled with
+      the luxury noticeable in the other, except by the fact that a desperate
+      struggle to keep up appearances was constantly going on? And this constant
+      anxiety made out-door noise, excitement, and gayety a necessity of their
+      existence, and caused them to welcome anything that took them from the
+      home where they had barely sufficient to deceive society, and not enough
+      to impose upon their creditors. &ldquo;And they keep three servants,&rdquo; thought
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite&mdash;&ldquo;three enemies who spend their time in
+      ridiculing them, and torturing their vanity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus, on the very first day after her arrival, she realized the real
+      situation of the General and his wife. They were certainly on the verge of
+      ruin when Mademoiselle Marguerite accepted their hospitality. Everything
+      went to prove this: the coachman&rsquo;s insolent demand, the servants&rsquo; 
+      impudence, the grocer&rsquo;s refusal to furnish a single bottle of wine on
+      credit, the milliner&rsquo;s persistence, and, lastly, the new sheets on the
+      visitors&rsquo; beds. &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; thought Mademoiselle Marguerite to herself, &ldquo;the
+      Fondeges were ruined when I came here. They would never have sunk so low
+      if they had not been utterly destitute of resources. So, if they rise
+      again, if money and credit come back again, then the old magistrate is
+      right&mdash;they have obtained possession of the Chalusse millions!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0009" id="link2H_4_0009">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      IX
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      On this side, at least, Mademoiselle Marguerite had no very wide field of
+      investigation to explore. Her common sense told her that her task would
+      merely consist in carefully watching the behavior of the General and his
+      wife, in noting their expenditure, and so on. It was a matter of close
+      attention, and of infinitesimal trifles. Nor was she much encouraged by
+      her first success. It was, perhaps, important; and yet it might be
+      nothing. For she felt that the real difficulties would not begin until she
+      became morally certain that the General had stolen the millions that were
+      missing from the count&rsquo;s escritoire. Even then it would remain for her to
+      discover how he had obtained possession of this money. And when she had
+      succeeded in doing this, would her task be ended? Certainly not. She must
+      obtain sufficient evidence to give her the right of accusing the General
+      openly, and in the face of every one. She must have material and
+      indisputable proofs before she could say: &ldquo;A robbery has been committed. I
+      was accused of it. I was innocent. Here is the culprit!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      What a long journey must be made before this goal was reached! No matter!
+      Now that she had a positive and fixed point of departure, she felt that
+      she possessed enough energy to sustain her in her endeavors for years, if
+      need be. What troubled her most was that she could not logically explain
+      the conduct of her enemies from the time M. de Fondege had asked her hand
+      for his son up to the present moment. And first, why had they been so
+      audacious or so imprudent as to bring her to their own home if they had
+      really stolen one of those immense amounts that are sure to betray their
+      possessors? &ldquo;They are mad,&rdquo; she thought, &ldquo;or else they must deem me blind,
+      deaf, and more stupid than mortal ever was!&rdquo; Secondly, why should they be
+      so anxious to marry her to their son, Lieutenant Gustave? This also was a
+      puzzling question. However, she was fully decided on one point: the
+      suspicions of the Fondege family must not be aroused. If they were on
+      their guard, it would be the easiest thing in the world for them to pay
+      their debts quietly, and increase their expenditure so imperceptibly that
+      she would not be able to prove a sudden acquisition of wealth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the events of the next few days dispelled these apprehensions. That
+      very afternoon, although it was Sunday, it became evident that a shower of
+      gold had fallen on the General&rsquo;s abode. The door-bell rang incessantly for
+      several hours, and an interminable procession of tradesmen entered. It
+      looked very much as if M. de Fondege had called a meeting of his
+      creditors. They came in haughty and arrogant, with their hats upon their
+      heads, and surly of speech, like people who have made up their minds to
+      accept their loss, but who intend to pay themselves in rudeness. They were
+      ushered into the drawing-room where the General was holding his levee;
+      they remained there from five to ten minutes, and then, bowing low with
+      hat in hand, they retired with radiant countenances, and an obsequious
+      smile on their lips. So they had been paid. And as if to prove to
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite that her suspicions were correct, she chanced to
+      be present when the livery stable-keeper presented his bill.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame de Fondege received him very haughtily. &ldquo;Ah! here you are!&rdquo; she
+      exclaimed, rudely, as soon as he appeared. &ldquo;So you are the man who teaches
+      his drivers to insult his customers? That is an excellent way to gain
+      patronage. What! I hire a one-horse carriage from you by the month, and
+      because I happen to wish for a two-horse vehicle for a single day, you
+      make me pay the difference. You should demand payment in advance if you
+      are so suspicious.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The stable-keeper, who had a bill for nearly four thousand francs in his
+      pocket, stood listening with the air of a man who is meditating some
+      crushing reply; but she did not give him time to deliver it. &ldquo;When I have
+      cause to complain of the people I employ, I dismiss them and replace them
+      by others. Insolence is one of those things that I never forgive. Give me
+      your bill.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The man, in whose face doubt, fear, and hope had succeeded each other in
+      swift succession, thereupon drew an interminable bill from his pocket. And
+      when he saw the bank-notes, when he saw the bill paid without dispute or
+      even examination, he was seized with a wondering respect, and his voice
+      became sweeter than honey. They say the payment of a bad debt delights a
+      merchant a thousand times more than the settlement of fifty good ones. The
+      truth of this assertion became apparent in the present case. Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite thought the man was going to beg &ldquo;Madame la Comtesse to do him
+      the favor to withhold a portion of the small amount.&rdquo; For the Parisian
+      tradesman is so constituted that very frequently it is not necessary to
+      pay him money, but only to show it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, this creditor&rsquo;s abnegation did not extend so far; still he did
+      entreat Madame la Comtesse not to leave him on account of a blunder&mdash;for
+      it was a blunder&mdash;he swore it on his children&rsquo;s heads. His coachman
+      was only a fool and a drunkard, who had misunderstood him entirely, and
+      whom he should ignominiously dismiss on returning to his establishment.
+      But &ldquo;Madame la Comtesse&rdquo; was inflexible. She sent the man about his
+      business, saying, &ldquo;I never place myself in a position to be treated with
+      disrespect a second time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This probably accounted for the fact that Evariste, the footman, who had
+      been so wanting in respect the previous evening, had been sent away that
+      very morning. Mademoiselle Marguerite did not see him again. Dinner was
+      served by a new servant, who had been sent by an Employment Office, and
+      engaged without a question, no doubt because Evariste&rsquo;s livery fitted him
+      like a glove. Had the cook also been replaced? Mademoiselle Marguerite
+      thought so, though she had no means of convincing herself on this point.
+      It was certain, however, that the Sunday dinner was utterly unlike that of
+      the evening before. Quality had replaced quantity, and care, profusion. It
+      was not necessary to send to the cellar for a bottle of Chateau-Laroze; it
+      made its appearance at the proper moment, warmed to the precise degree of
+      temperature, and seemed quite to the taste of excellent Madame Leon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In twenty-four hours the Fondege family had been raised to such affluence
+      that they must have asked themselves if it were possible they had ever
+      known the agonies of that life of false appearances and sham luxury which
+      is a thousand times worse than an existence of abject poverty. &ldquo;Is it
+      possible that I am deceived?&rdquo; Marguerite said to herself, on retiring to
+      her room that evening. For it surprised her that a keen-sighted person
+      like Madame Leon should not have remarked this revolution; but the worthy
+      companion merely declared the General and his wife to be charming people,
+      and did not cease to congratulate her dear young lady upon having accepted
+      their hospitality. &ldquo;I feel quite at home here,&rdquo; said she; &ldquo;and though my
+      room is a trifle small, I shall have nothing to wish for when it has been
+      refurnished.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite spent a restless and uncomfortable night. In spite
+      of her reason, in spite of the convincing proofs she had seen, the most
+      disturbing doubts returned. Might she not have judged the situation with a
+      prejudiced mind? Had the Fondeges really been as reduced in circumstances
+      as she supposed? Like every one who has been unfortunate, she feared
+      illusions, and was extremely distrustful of everything that seemed to
+      favor her hopes and wishes. The only thing that really encouraged her was
+      the thought that she could consult the old magistrate, and that M. de
+      Chalusse&rsquo;s former agent might succeed in finding Pascal Ferailleur. M.
+      Fortunat must have received her letter by this time: he would undoubtedly
+      expect her on Tuesday, and it only remained for her to invent some excuse
+      which would give her a couple of hours&rsquo; liberty without awakening
+      suspicion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She rose early the next morning, and had almost completed her toilette,
+      when she heard some one in the passage outside rapping at the door of
+      Madame Leon&rsquo;s room. &ldquo;Who&rsquo;s there?&rdquo; inquired that worthy lady.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was Justine, Madame de Fondege&rsquo;s maid, who answered in a pert voice,
+      &ldquo;Here is a letter, madame, which has just been sent up by the concierge.
+      It is addressed to Madame Leon. That is your name, is it not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite staggered as if she had received a heavy blow. &ldquo;My God! a
+      letter from the Marquis de Valorsay!&rdquo; she thought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was evident that the estimable lady was expecting this missive by the
+      eagerness with which she sprang out of bed and opened the door. And
+      Marguerite heard her say to the servant in her sweetest voice: &ldquo;A thousand
+      thanks, my child! Ah! this is a great relief, I have heard from my
+      brother-in-law at last. I recognize his hand-writing.&rdquo; And then the door
+      closed again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Standing silent and motionless in the middle of her room, Marguerite
+      listened with that feverish anxiety that excites the perceptive faculties
+      to the utmost degree. An inward voice, stronger than reason, told her that
+      this letter threatened her happiness, her future, perhaps her life! But
+      how could she convince herself of the truth of this presentiment? If she
+      had followed her first impulse, she would have rushed into Madame Leon&rsquo;s
+      room and have snatched the letter from her hands. But if she did this, she
+      would betray herself, and prove that she was not the dupe they supposed
+      her to be, and this supposition on the part of her enemies constituted her
+      only chance of salvation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If she could only watch Madame Leon as she read the letter, and gain some
+      information from the expression of her face; but this seemed impossible,
+      for the keyhole was blocked up by the key, which had been left in the lock
+      on the other side. Suddenly a crack in the partition attracted her
+      attention, and finding that it extended through the wall, she realized she
+      might watch what was passing in the adjoining room. So she approached the
+      spot on tiptoe, and, with bated breath, stooped and looked in.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In her impatience to learn the contents of her letter, Madame Leon had not
+      gone back to bed. She had broken the seal, and was reading the missive,
+      standing barefooted in her night-dress, directly opposite the little
+      crevice. She read line after line, and word after word, and her knitted
+      brows and compressed lips suggested deep concentration of thought mingled
+      with discontent. At last she shrugged her shoulders, muttered a few
+      inaudible words, and laid the open letter upon the rickety chest of
+      drawers, which, with two chairs and a bed, constituted the entire
+      furniture of her apartment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My God!&rdquo; exclaimed Marguerite, with bated breath, &ldquo;if she would only
+      forget it!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But she did not forget it. She began to dress, and when she had finished
+      she read the letter again, and then placed it carefully in one of the
+      drawers, which she locked, putting the key in her pocket.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shall never know, then,&rdquo; thought Marguerite; &ldquo;no, I shall never know.
+      But I must know&mdash;and I will!&rdquo; she added vehemently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From that moment a firm determination to obtain that letter took
+      possession of her mind; and so deeply was she occupied in seeking for some
+      means to surmount the difficulties which stood in her way that she did not
+      say a dozen words during breakfast. &ldquo;I must be a fool if I can&rsquo;t find some
+      way of gaining possession of that letter,&rdquo; she said to herself again and
+      again. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure I could find in it the explanation of the abominable
+      intrigue which Pascal and I are the victims of.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Happily, her preoccupation was not remarked. Each person present was too
+      deeply engrossed in his or her own concerns to notice the behavior of the
+      others. Madame Leon&rsquo;s mind was occupied with the news she had just
+      received; and, besides, her attention was considerably attracted by some
+      partridges garnished with truffles, and a bottle of Chateau-Laroze. For
+      she was rather fond of good living, the dear lady, as she confessed
+      herself, adding that no one is perfect. The General talked of nothing but
+      a certain pair of horses which he was to look at that afternoon, and which
+      he thought of buying&mdash;being quite disgusted with job-masters, so he
+      declared. Besides, he expected to get the animals at a bargain, as they
+      were the property of a young gentleman who had been led to commit certain
+      misdemeanors by his love of gambling and his passion for a notorious woman
+      who was addicted with an insatiable desire for jewelry.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As for Madame de Fondege, her head seemed to have been completely turned
+      by the prospect of the approaching fete at the Countess de Commarin&rsquo;s. She
+      had only a fortnight left to make her preparations. All the evening
+      before, through part of the night, and ever since she had been awake that
+      morning, she had been racking her brain to arrive at an effective
+      combination of colors and materials. And at the cost of a terrible
+      headache, she had at last conceived one of those toilettes which are sure
+      to make a sensation, and which the newspaper reporters will mention as
+      noticeable for its &ldquo;chic.&rdquo; &ldquo;Picture to yourself,&rdquo; she said, all ablaze
+      with enthusiasm, &ldquo;picture to yourself a robe of tea-flower silk, trimmed
+      with bands of heavy holland-tinted satin, thickly embroidered with
+      flowers. A wide flounce of Valenciennes at the bottom of the skirt. Over
+      this, I shall wear a tunic of pearl-gray crepe, edged with a fringe of the
+      various shades in the dress, and forming a panier behind.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But how much trouble, time and labor must be expended before such an
+      elaborate chef-d&rsquo;oeuvre could be completed! How many conferences with the
+      dressmaker, with the florist, and the embroiderer! How many doubts, how
+      many inevitable mistakes! Ah! there was not a moment to lose! Madame de
+      Fondege, who was dressed to go out, and who had already sent for a
+      carriage, insisted that Mademoiselle Marguerite should accompany her. And
+      certainly, the General&rsquo;s wife deemed the proposal a seductive one. It is a
+      very fashionable amusement to run from one shop to another, even when one
+      cannot, or will not, buy. It is a custom, which some noble ladies have
+      imported from America, to the despair of the poor shopkeepers. And thus
+      every fine afternoon, the swell shops are filled to overflowing with
+      richly-attired dames and damsels, who ask to see all the new goods. It is
+      far more amusing than remaining at home. And when they return to dinner in
+      the evening, after inspecting hundreds of yards of silk and satin, they
+      are very well pleased with themselves, for they have not lost the day. Nor
+      do the shrewdest always return from these expeditions empty-handed. A
+      dozen gloves or a piece of lace can be hidden so easily in the folds of a
+      mantle!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And yet, to Madame de Fondege&rsquo;s great surprise, Marguerite declined the
+      invitation. &ldquo;I have so many things to put in order,&rdquo; she added, feeling
+      that an excuse was indispensable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame Leon, who had not the same reasons as her dear child for
+      wishing to remain at home, kindly offered her services. She was acquainted
+      with several of the best shops, she declared, particularly with the
+      establishment of a dealer in laces, in the Rue de Mulhouse, and thanks to
+      an introduction from her, Madame de Fondege could not fail to conclude a
+      very advantageous bargain there. &ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; replied Madame de Fondege,
+      &ldquo;I will take you with me, then; but make haste and dress while I put on my
+      bonnet.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      They left the breakfast-room at the same time, closely followed by
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite, who was disturbed by a hope which she scarcely
+      dared confess to herself. With her forehead resting against the wall, and
+      her eye peering through the tiny crack, she watched her governess change
+      her dress, throw a shawl over her shoulders, put on her best bonnet, and,
+      after a glance at the looking-glass, rush from the room, exclaiming: &ldquo;Here
+      I am, my dear countess. I&rsquo;m ready.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And a few moments afterward they left the house together.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the outer door closed after them, Marguerite&rsquo;s brain whirled. If she
+      were not deceived, Madame Leon had left the key of the drawers in the
+      pocket of the dress she had just taken off. So it was with a wildly
+      throbbing heart that she opened the communicating door and entered her
+      &ldquo;companion&rsquo;s&rdquo; room. She hastily approached the bed on which the dress was
+      lying, and, with a trembling hand, she began to search for the pocket.
+      Fortune favored her! The key was there. The letter was within her reach.
+      But she was about to do a deed against which her whole nature revolted. To
+      steal a key, to force an article of furniture open, and violate the secret
+      of a private correspondence, these were actions so repugnant to her sense
+      of honor, and her pride, that for some time she stood irresolute. At last
+      the instinct of self-preservation overpowered her scruples. Was not her
+      honor, and Pascal&rsquo;s honor also, at stake&mdash;as well as their mutual
+      love and happiness? &ldquo;It would be folly to hesitate.&rdquo; she murmured. And
+      with a firm hand she placed the key in the lock.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The latter was out of order and the drawer was only opened with
+      difficulty. But there, on some clothes which Madame Leon had not yet found
+      time to arrange, Marguerite saw the letter. She eagerly snatched it up,
+      unfolded it, and read: &ldquo;Dear Madame Leon&mdash;&rdquo; &ldquo;Dear me,&rdquo; she muttered,
+      &ldquo;here is the name in full. This is an indiscretion which will render
+      denial difficult.&rdquo; And she resumed her perusal: &ldquo;Your letter, which I have
+      just received, confirms what my servants had already told me: that twice
+      during my absence&mdash;on Saturday evening and Sunday morning&mdash;you
+      called at my house to see me.&rdquo; So Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s penetration
+      had served her well. All this talk about anxious relatives had only been
+      an excuse invented by Madame Leon to enable her to absent herself whenever
+      occasion required. &ldquo;I regret,&rdquo; continued the letter, &ldquo;that you did not
+      find me at home, for I have instructions of the greatest importance to
+      give you. We are approaching the decisive moment. I have formed a plan
+      which will completely, and forever, efface all remembrance of that cursed
+      P. F., in case any one condescended to think of him after the disgrace we
+      fastened upon him the other evening at the house of Madame d&rsquo;Argeles.&rdquo; P.
+      F.&mdash;these initials of course meant Pascal Ferailleur. Then he was
+      innocent, and she held an undeniable, irrefutable proof of his innocence
+      in her hands. How coolly and impudently Valorsay confessed his atrocious
+      crime! &ldquo;A bold stroke is in contemplation which, if no unfortunate and
+      well-nigh impossible accident occur, will throw the girl into my arms.&rdquo;
+       Marguerite shuddered. &ldquo;The girl&rdquo; referred to her, of course. &ldquo;Thanks to
+      the assistance of one of my friends,&rdquo; added the letter &ldquo;I can place this
+      proud damsel in a perilous, terribly perilous position, from which she
+      cannot possibly extricate herself unaided. But, just as she gives herself
+      up for lost, I shall interpose. I shall save her; and it will be strange
+      if gratitude does not work the necessary miracle in my favor. The plan is
+      certain to succeed. Still, it will be all the better if the physician who
+      attended M. de C&mdash;&mdash; in his last moments, and whom you spoke to
+      me about (Dr. Jodon, if I remember rightly), will consent to lend us a
+      helping hand. What kind of a man is he? If he is accessible to the
+      seductive influence of a few thousand francs, I shall consider the
+      business as good as concluded. Your conduct up to the present time has
+      been a chef-d&rsquo;oeuvre, for which you shall be amply compensated. You have
+      cause to know that I am not ungrateful. Let the F&rsquo;s continue their
+      intrigues, and even pretend to favor them. I am not afraid of these
+      people. I understand their game perfectly, and know why they wish my
+      little one to marry their son. But when they become troublesome, I shall
+      crush them like glass. In spite of these explanations, which I have just
+      given you for your guidance, it is very necessary that I should see you. I
+      shall look for you on Tuesday afternoon, between three and four o&rsquo;clock.
+      Above all, don&rsquo;t fail to bring me the desired information respecting Dr.
+      Jodon. I am, my dear madame, devotedly yours&mdash;V.&rdquo; Below ran a
+      postscript which read as follows: &ldquo;When you come on Tuesday bring this
+      letter with you. We will burn it together. Don&rsquo;t imagine that I distrust
+      you&mdash;but there is nothing so dangerous as letters.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For some time Marguerite stood, stunned and appalled by the Marquis de
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s audacity, and by the language of this letter, which was at once
+      so obscure and so clear, every line of it threatening her future. The
+      reality surpassed her worst apprehensions, but realizing the gravity of
+      the situation, she shook off the torpor stealing over her. She felt that
+      every second was precious, and that she must act, and act at once. But
+      what should she do? Simply return the letter to its place, and continue to
+      act the role of a dupe, as if nothing had happened? No; that must not be.
+      It would be madness not to seize this flagrant proof of the Marquis de
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s infamy. But on the other hand, if she kept the letter, Madame
+      Leon would immediately discover its loss, and an explanation would be
+      unavoidable. M. de Valorsay would be worsted, but not annihilated, and the
+      plans which made the physician&rsquo;s intervention a necessity would never be
+      revealed. She thought of hastening to her friend the old magistrate; but
+      he lived a long way off, and time was pressing. Besides she might not find
+      him at home. Then she thought of going to a notary, to a judge. She would
+      show them the letter, and they could take a copy of it. But no&mdash;this
+      would do no good&mdash;the marquis could still deny it. She was becoming
+      desperate, and was accusing herself of stupidity, when a sudden
+      inspiration illumined her mind, turning night into day, as it were. &ldquo;Oh,
+      Pascal, we are saved!&rdquo; she exclaimed. And without pausing to deliberate
+      any longer, she threw a mantle over her shoulders, hastily tied on her
+      bonnet, and hurried from the house, without saying a word to any one.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Unfortunately she was not acquainted with this part of Paris, and on
+      reaching the Rue Pigalle she was at a loss for her way. Unwilling to waste
+      any more time, she hastily entered a grocer&rsquo;s shop at the corner of the
+      Rue Pigalle and the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette, and anxiously inquired: &ldquo;Do
+      you know any photographer in this neighborhood, monsieur?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Her agitation made this question seem so singular that the grocer looked
+      at her closely for a moment, as if to make sure that she was not jesting.
+      &ldquo;You have only to go down the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette,&rdquo; he replied, &ldquo;and
+      on the left-hand side, at the foot of the hill, you will find the
+      photographer Carjat.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thank you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The grocer stepped to the door to watch her. &ldquo;That girl&rsquo;s certainly
+      light-headed,&rdquo; he thought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Her demeanor was really so extraordinary that it attracted the attention
+      of the passers-by. She saw this, and slackening her pace, tried to become
+      more composed. At the spot the grocer had indicated, she perceived several
+      show frames filled with photographs hanging on either side of a broad,
+      open gateway, above which ran the name, &ldquo;E. Carjat.&rdquo; She went in, and
+      seeing a man standing at the door of an elegant pavilion on the right-hand
+      side of a large courtyard, she approached him, and asked for his employer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He is here,&rdquo; replied the man. &ldquo;Does madame come for a photograph?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then will madame be so kind as to pass in. She will not be obliged to
+      wait long. There are only four or five persons before her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Four or five persons! How long would she be obliged to wait?&mdash;half an
+      hour&mdash;two hours? She had not the slightest idea. But she DID know
+      that she had not a second to lose, that Madame Leon might return at any
+      moment, and find the letter missing; and, to crown all, she remembered now
+      that she had not even locked the drawer again. &ldquo;I cannot wait,&rdquo; she said,
+      imperiously. &ldquo;I must speak to M. Carjat at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At once, I tell you. Go and tell him that he must come.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Her tone was so commanding, and there was so much authority in her glance,
+      that the servant hesitated no longer. He ushered her into a little
+      sitting-room, and said, &ldquo;If madame will take a seat, I will call
+      monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She sank on to a chair, for her limbs were failing her. She was beginning
+      to realize the strangeness of the step she had taken&mdash;to fear the
+      result it might lead to&mdash;and to be astonished at her own boldness.
+      But she had no time to prepare what she wished to say, for a man of
+      five-and-thirty, wearing a mustache and imperial, and clad in a velvet
+      coat, entered the room, and bowing with an air of surprise, exclaimed:
+      &ldquo;You desire to speak with me, madame?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have a great favor to ask of you, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Of me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She drew M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s letter from her pocket, and, showing it to the
+      photographer, she said, &ldquo;I have come to you, monsieur, to ask you to
+      photograph this letter&mdash;but at once&mdash;before me&mdash;and quickly&mdash;very
+      quickly. The honor of two persons is imperilled by each moment I lose
+      here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s embarrassment was extreme. Her cheeks were
+      crimson, and she trembled like a leaf. Still her attitude was proud,
+      generous enthusiasm glowed in her dark eyes, and her tone of voice
+      revealed the serenity of a lofty soul ready to dare anything for a just
+      and noble cause. This striking contrast&mdash;this struggle between
+      girlish timidity and a lover&rsquo;s virgil energy, endowed her with a strange
+      and powerful charm, which the photographer made no attempt to resist.
+      Unusual as was the request, he did not hesitate. &ldquo;I am ready to do what
+      you desire, madame,&rdquo; he replied, bowing again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! monsieur, how can I ever thank you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He did not stop to listen to her thanks. Not wishing to return to the
+      reception-room, where five or six clients were impatiently awaiting their
+      turn, he called one of his subordinates, and ordered him to bring the
+      necessary apparatus at once. While he was speaking, Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite paused; but, as soon as his instructions were concluded, she
+      remarked: &ldquo;Perhaps you are too hasty, sir. You have not allowed me to
+      explain; and perhaps what I desire is impossible. I came on the impulse of
+      the moment, without any knowledge on the subject. Before you set to work,
+      I must know if what you can do will answer my purpose.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Speak, madame.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Will the copy you obtain be precisely like the original in every
+      particular?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In every particular.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The writing will be the same&mdash;exactly the same?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Absolutely the same.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So like, that if one of your photographs should be presented to the
+      person who wrote this letter&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He could no more deny his handwriting than he could if some one handed
+      him the letter itself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the operation will leave no trace on the original?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;None.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A smile of triumph played upon Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s lips. It was as
+      she had thought; the defensive plan which she had suddenly conceived was a
+      good one. &ldquo;One more question, sir,&rdquo; she resumed. &ldquo;I am only a poor,
+      ignorant girl: excuse me, and give me the benefit of your knowledge. This
+      letter will be returned to its author to-morrow, and he will burn it. But
+      afterward, in case of any difficulty&mdash;in case of a law-suit&mdash;or
+      in case it should be necessary for me to prove certain things which one
+      might establish by means of this letter, would one of your photographs be
+      admitted as evidence?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The photographer did not answer for a moment. Now he understood
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s motive, and the importance she attached to a
+      facsimile. But this imparted an unexpected gravity to the service he was
+      called upon to perform. He therefore wished some time for reflection, and
+      he scrutinized Mademoiselle Marguerite as if he were trying to read her
+      very soul. Was it possible that this young girl, with such a pure and
+      noble brow, and with such frank, honest eyes, could be meditating any
+      cowardly, dishonorable act? No, he could not believe it. In whom, or in
+      what, could he trust if such a countenance deceived him? &ldquo;My facsimile
+      would certainly be admitted as evidence,&rdquo; he replied at last; &ldquo;and this
+      would not be the first time that the decision of a court has depended on
+      proofs which have been photographed by me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile, his assistant had returned, bringing the necessary apparatus
+      with him. When all was ready, the photographer asked her, &ldquo;Will you give
+      me the letter, madame?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She hesitated for a second&mdash;only for a second. The man&rsquo;s honest,
+      kindly face told her that he would not betray her, that he would rather
+      give her assistance. So she handed him the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s letter,
+      saying, with melancholy dignity, &ldquo;It is my happiness and my future that I
+      place in your hands&mdash;and I have no fears.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He read her thoughts, and understood that she either dared not ask for a
+      pledge of secrecy, or else that she thought it unnecessary. He took pity
+      on her, and his last doubt fled. &ldquo;I shall read this letter, madame,&rdquo; said
+      he, &ldquo;but I am the only person who will read it. I give you my word on
+      that! No one but myself will see the proofs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Greatly moved, she offered him her hand, and simply said, &ldquo;Thanks; I am
+      more than repaid.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      To obtain an absolutely perfect facsimile of a letter is a delicate and
+      sometimes lengthy operation. However, at the end of about twenty minutes,
+      the photographer possessed two negatives that promised him perfect proofs.
+      He looked at them with a satisfied air; and then returning the letter to
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite, he said, &ldquo;In less than three days the facsimiles
+      will be ready, madame; and if you will tell me to what address I ought to
+      send them&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She trembled on hearing these words, and quickly answered, &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t send
+      them, sir&mdash;keep them carefully. Great heavens! all would be lost if
+      it came to the knowledge of any one. I will send for them, or come
+      myself.&rdquo; And, feeling the extent of her obligation, she added, &ldquo;But I will
+      not go without introducing myself&mdash;I am Mademoiselle Marguerite de
+      Chalusse.&rdquo; And, thereupon, she went off, leaving the photographer
+      surprised at the adventure and dazzled by his strange visitor&rsquo;s beauty.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Rather more than an hour had elapsed since Marguerite left M. de Fondege&rsquo;s
+      house. &ldquo;How time flies!&rdquo; she murmured, quickening her pace as much as she
+      could without exciting remark&mdash;&ldquo;how time flies!&rdquo; But, hurried as she
+      was, she stopped and spent five minutes at a shop in the Rue Notre Dame de
+      Lorette where she purchased some black ribbon and a few other trifles. How
+      else could she explain and justify her absence, if the servants, who had
+      probably discovered she had gone out, chanced to speak of it?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But her heart throbbed as if it would burst as she ascended the General&rsquo;s
+      staircase, and anxiety checked her breathing as she rang the bell. &ldquo;What
+      if Madame de Fondege and Madame Leon had returned, and the abstraction of
+      the letter been discovered!&rdquo; Fortunately, Madame de Fondege required more
+      than an hour to purchase the materials for the elaborate toilette she had
+      dreamt of. The ladies were still out, and Mademoiselle Marguerite found
+      everything in the same condition as she had left it. She carefully placed
+      the letter in the drawer again, locked it, and put the key in the pocket
+      of Madame Leon&rsquo;s dress. Then she breathed freely once more; and, for the
+      first time in six days, she felt something very like joy in her heart. Now
+      she had no fear of the Marquis de Valorsay. She had him in her power. He
+      would destroy his letter the next day, and think that he was annihilating
+      all proofs of his infamy. Not so. At the decisive moment, at the very
+      moment of his triumph, she would produce the photograph of this letter,
+      and crush him. And she&mdash;only a young girl&mdash;had outwitted this
+      consummate scoundrel! &ldquo;I have not been unworthy of Pascal,&rdquo; she said to
+      herself, with a flash of pride.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, her nature was not one of those weak ones which are become
+      intoxicated by the first symptom of success, and then relax in their
+      efforts. When her excitement had abated a little, she was inclined to
+      disparage rather than to exaggerate the advantage she had gained. What she
+      desired was a complete, startling, incontestable victory. It was not
+      enough to prove Valorsay&rsquo;s GUILT&mdash;she was resolved to penetrate his
+      designs, to discover why he pursued her so desperately. And, though she
+      felt that she possessed a formidable weapon of defence, she could not
+      drive away her gloomy forebodings when she thought of the threats
+      contained in the marquis&rsquo;s letter. &ldquo;Thanks to the assistance of one of my
+      friends,&rdquo; he wrote, &ldquo;I can place this proud girl in a perilous, terribly
+      perilous, position, from which she cannot possibly extricate herself
+      unaided.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      These words persistently lingered in Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s mind. What
+      was the danger hanging over her? whence would it come? and in what form?
+      What abominable machination might she not expect from the villain who had
+      deliberately dishonored Pascal? How would he attack her? Would he strive
+      to ruin her reputation, or did he intend to forcibly abduct her? Would he
+      attempt to decoy her into a trap where she would be subjected to the
+      insults of the vilest wretches? A thousand frightful memories of the time
+      when she was an apprentice drove her nearly frantic. &ldquo;I will never go out
+      unarmed,&rdquo; she thought, &ldquo;and woe to the man who raises his hand against
+      me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The vagueness of the threat increased her fears. No one is courageous
+      enough to confront an unknown, mysterious, and always imminent danger
+      without sometimes faltering. Nor was this all. The marquis was not her
+      only enemy. She had the Fondege family to dread&mdash;these dangerous
+      hypocrites, who had taken her to their home so that they might ruin her
+      the more surely. M. de Valorsay wrote that he had no fears of the Fondeges&mdash;that
+      he understood their little game. What was their little game? No doubt they
+      were resolved that she should become their son&rsquo;s wife, even if they were
+      obliged to use force to win her consent. At this thought a sudden terror
+      seized her soul, so full of peace and hope an instant before. When she was
+      attacked, would she have time to produce and use the facsimile of
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s letter? &ldquo;I must reveal my secret to a friend&mdash;to a trusty
+      friend&mdash;who will avenge me!&rdquo; she muttered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately she had a friend in whom she could safely confide&mdash;the
+      old magistrate who had given her such proofs of sympathy. She felt that
+      she needed the advice of a riper experience than her own, and the thought
+      of consulting him at once occurred to her. She was alone; she had no spy
+      to fear; and it would be folly not to profit by the few moments of liberty
+      that remained. So she drew her writing-case from her trunk, and, after
+      barricading her door to prevent a surprise, she wrote her friend an
+      account of the events which had taken place since their last interview.
+      She told him everything with rare precision and accuracy of detail,
+      sending him a copy of Valorsay&rsquo;s letter, and informing him that, in case
+      any misfortune befell her, he could obtain the facsimiles from Carjat. She
+      finished her letter, but did not seal it. &ldquo;If anything should happen
+      before I have an opportunity to post it, I will add a postscript,&rdquo; she
+      said to herself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She had made all possible haste, fearing that Madame de Fondege and Madame
+      Leon might return at any moment. But this was truly a chimerical
+      apprehension. It was nearly six o&rsquo;clock when the two shoppers made their
+      appearance, wearied with the labors of the day, but in fine spirits.
+      Besides purchasing every requisite for that wonderful costume of hers, the
+      General&rsquo;s wife had found some laces of rare beauty, which she had secured
+      for the mere trifle of four thousand francs. &ldquo;It was one of those
+      opportunities one ought always to profit by,&rdquo; she said, as she displayed
+      her purchase. &ldquo;Besides, it is the same with lace as with diamonds, you
+      should purchase them when you can&mdash;then you have them. It isn&rsquo;t an
+      outlay&mdash;it&rsquo;s an investment.&rdquo; Subtle reasoning that has cost many a
+      husband dear!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On her side, Madame Leon proudly showed her dear young lady a very pretty
+      present which Madame de Fondege had given her. &ldquo;So money is no longer
+      lacking in this household,&rdquo; thought Mademoiselle Marguerite, all the more
+      confirmed in her suspicions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The General came in a little later, accompanied by a friend, and
+      Marguerite soon discovered that the worthy man had spent the day as
+      profitably as his wife. He too was quite tired out; and he had reason to
+      be fatigued. First, he had purchased the horses belonging to the ruined
+      spendthrift, and he had paid five thousand francs for them, a mere trifle
+      for such animals. Less than an hour after the purchase he had refused
+      almost double that amount from a celebrated connoisseur in horse-flesh, M.
+      de Breulh-Faverlay. This excellent speculation had put him in such good
+      humor that he had been unable to resist the temptation of purchasing a
+      beautiful saddle-horse, which they let him have for a hundred louis. He
+      had not been foolish, for he was sure that he could sell the animal again
+      at an advance of a thousand francs whenever he wished to do so. &ldquo;So,&rdquo;
+       remarked his friend, &ldquo;if you bought such a horse every day, you would make
+      three hundred and sixty-five thousand francs a year.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Was this only a jest&mdash;one of those witticisms which people who boast
+      of wonderful bargains must expect to parry, or had the remark a more
+      serious meaning? Marguerite could not determine. One thing is certain, the
+      General did not lose his temper, but gayly continued his account of the
+      way in which he had spent his time. Having purchased the horses, his next
+      task was to find a carriage, and he had heard of a barouche which a
+      Russian prince had ordered but didn&rsquo;t take, so that the builder was
+      willing to sell it at less than cost price; and to recoup this worthy man,
+      the General had purchased a brougham as well. He had, moreover, hired
+      stabling in the Rue Pigalle, only a few steps from the house, and he
+      expected a coachman and a groom the following morning.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And all this will cost us less than the miserable vehicle we have been
+      hiring by the year,&rdquo; observed Madame de Fondege, gravely. &ldquo;Oh, I know what
+      I say. I&rsquo;ve counted the cost. What with gratuities and extras, it costs us
+      now fully a thousand francs a month, and three horses and a coachman won&rsquo;t
+      cost you more. And what a difference! I shall no longer be obliged to
+      blush for the skinny horses the stable-keeper sends me, nor to endure the
+      insolence of his men. The first outlay frightened me a little; but that is
+      made now, and I am delighted. We will save it in something else.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In laces, no doubt,&rdquo; thought Mademoiselle Marguerite. She was intensely
+      exasperated, and on regaining her chamber she said to herself, for the
+      tenth time, &ldquo;What do they take me for? Do they think me an idiot to flaunt
+      the millions they have stolen from my father&mdash;that they have stolen
+      from me&mdash;before my eyes in this fashion? A common thief would take
+      care not to excite suspicion by a foolish expenditure of the fruits of his
+      knavery, but they&mdash;they have lost their senses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Leon was already in bed, and when Mademoiselle Marguerite was
+      satisfied that she was asleep, she took her letter from her trunk, and
+      added this post-script: &ldquo;P. S.&mdash;It is impossible to retain the shadow
+      of a doubt, M. and Madame de Fondege have spent certainly twenty thousand
+      francs to-day. This audacity must arise from a conviction that no proofs
+      of the crime they have committed exist. Still they continue to talk to me
+      about their son, Lieutenant Gustave. He will be presented to me to-morrow.
+      To-morrow, also, between three and four, I shall be at the house of a man
+      who can perhaps discover Pascal&rsquo;s hiding-place for me,&mdash;the house of
+      M. Isidore Fortunat. I hope to make my escape easily enough, for at that
+      same hour, Madame Leon has an appointment with the Marquis de Valorsay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0010" id="link2H_4_0010">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      X.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The old legend of Achilles&rsquo;s heel will be eternally true. A man may be
+      humble or powerful, feeble or strong, but there are none of us without
+      some weak spot in our armor, a spot vulnerable beyond all others, a
+      certain place where wounds prove most dangerous and painful. M. Isidore
+      Fortunat&rsquo;s weak place was his cash-box. To attack him there was to
+      endanger his life&mdash;to wound him at a point where all his sensibility
+      centred. For it was in this cash-box and not in his breast that his heart
+      really throbbed. His safe made him happy or dejected. Happy when it was
+      filled to overflowing by some brilliant operation, and dejected when he
+      saw it become empty as some imprudent transaction failed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This then explains his frenzy on that ill-fated Sunday, when, after being
+      brutally dismissed by M. Wilkie, he returned to his rooms in the company
+      of his clerk, Victor Chupin. This explains, too, the intensity of the
+      hatred he now felt for the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de
+      Coralth. The former, the marquis, had defrauded him of forty thousand
+      francs in glittering gold. The other, the viscount, had suddenly sprung up
+      out of the ground, and carried off from under his very nose that
+      magnificent prize, the Chalusse inheritance, which he had considered as
+      good as won. And he had not only been defrauded and swindled&mdash;such
+      were his own expressions&mdash;but he had been tricked, deceived, duped,
+      and outwitted, and by whom? By people who did not make it their profession
+      to be shrewd, like he did himself. Just fancy, his business was to outwit
+      others, and a couple of mere amateurs had outgeneraled him. He had not
+      only suffered in pocket, he had been humiliated as well, and so he
+      indulged in threats of such terrible import.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, at the very moment when he was dreaming of wreaking vengeance on
+      the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth, his housekeeper,
+      austere Madame Dodelin, handed him Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s letter. He
+      read it with intense astonishment, rubbing his eyes as if to assure
+      himself that he were really awake. &ldquo;Tuesday,&rdquo; he repeated, &ldquo;the day after
+      to-morrow&mdash;at your house&mdash;between three and four o&rsquo;clock&mdash;I
+      must speak with you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His manner was so strange, and his usually impassive face so disturbed by
+      conflicting feelings, that Madame Dodelin&rsquo;s curiosity overcame her
+      prudence, and she remained standing in front of him with open mouth,
+      staring with all her eyes and listening with all her ears. He perceived
+      this, and angrily exclaimed: &ldquo;What are you doing here? You are watching
+      me, I do believe. Get back to your kitchen, or&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She fled in alarm, and he then entered his private office. His heart was
+      leaping with joy, and he laughed wickedly at the hope of a speedy revenge.
+      &ldquo;She&rsquo;s on the scent,&rdquo; he muttered; &ldquo;and she has luck in her favor. She has
+      chanced to apply to me on the very day that I had resolved to defend and
+      rehabilitate her lover, the honest fool who allowed himself to be
+      dishonored by those unscrupulous blackguards. Just as I was thinking of
+      going in search of her, she comes to me. As I was about to write to her,
+      she writes to me. Who can deny the existence of Providence after this?&rdquo;
+       Like many other people, M. Fortunat piously believed in Providence when
+      things went to his liking, but it is sad to add that in the contrary case
+      he denied its existence. &ldquo;If she has any courage,&rdquo; he resumed, &ldquo;and she
+      seems to have plenty of it, Valorsay and Coralth will be in a tight place
+      soon. And if it takes ten thousand francs to put them there, and if
+      neither Mademoiselle Marguerite nor M. Ferailleur has the amount&mdash;ah,
+      well! I&rsquo;ll advance&mdash;well, at least five thousand&mdash;without
+      charging them any commission. I&rsquo;ll even pay the expenses out of my own
+      pocket, if necessary. Ah, my fine fellows, you&rsquo;ve laughed too soon. In a
+      week&rsquo;s time we&rsquo;ll see who laughs last.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He paused, for Victor Chupin, who had lingered behind to pay the driver,
+      had just entered the room. &ldquo;You gave me twenty francs, m&rsquo;sieur,&rdquo; he
+      remarked to his employer. &ldquo;I paid the driver four francs and five sous,
+      here&rsquo;s the change.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Keep it yourself, Victor,&rdquo; said M. Fortunat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What! keep fifteen francs and fifteen sous? Under any other circumstances
+      such unusual generosity would have drawn a grimace of satisfaction from
+      young Chupin. But to-day he did not even smile; he slipped the money
+      carelessly into his pocket, and scarcely deigned to say &ldquo;thanks,&rdquo; in the
+      coldest possible tone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Absorbed in thought, M. Fortunat did not remark this little circumstance.
+      &ldquo;We have them, Victor,&rdquo; he resumed. &ldquo;I told you that Valorsay and Coralth
+      should pay me for their treason. Vengeance is near. Read this letter.&rdquo;
+       Victor read it slowly, and as soon as he had finished his employer
+      ejaculated, &ldquo;Well?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Chupin was not a person to give advice lightly. &ldquo;Excuse me, m&rsquo;sieur,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;but in order to answer you, I must have some knowledge of the
+      affair. I only know what you&rsquo;ve told me&mdash;which is little enough&mdash;and
+      what I&rsquo;ve guessed. In fact, I know nothing at all.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat reflected for a moment. &ldquo;You are right, Victor,&rdquo; he said, at
+      last. &ldquo;So far the explanation I gave you was all that was necessary; but
+      now that I expect more important services from you, I ought to tell you
+      the whole truth, or at least all I know about the affair. This will prove
+      my great confidence in you.&rdquo; Whereupon, he acquainted Chupin with
+      everything he knew concerning the history of M. de Chalusse, the Marquis
+      de Valorsay, and Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, if he expected these disclosures to elevate him in his
+      subordinate&rsquo;s estimation he was greatly mistaken. Chupin had sufficient
+      experience and common sense to read his master&rsquo;s character and discern his
+      motives. He saw plainly enough that this honest impulse on M. Fortunat&rsquo;s
+      part came from disappointed avarice and wounded vanity, and that the agent
+      would have allowed the Marquis de Valorsay to carry out his infamous
+      scheme without any compunctions of conscience, providing he, himself, had
+      not been injured by it. Still, the young fellow did not allow his real
+      feelings to appear on his face. First, it was not his business to tell M.
+      Fortunat his opinion of him; and in the second place, he did not deem it
+      an opportune moment for a declaration of his sentiments. So, when his
+      employer paused, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Well, we must outwit these scoundrels&mdash;for
+      I&rsquo;ll join you, m&rsquo;sieur; and I flatter myself that I can be very useful to
+      you. Do you want the particulars of the viscount&rsquo;s past life? If so, I can
+      furnish them. I know the brigand. He&rsquo;s married, as I told you before, and
+      I&rsquo;ll find his wife for you in a few days. I don&rsquo;t know exactly where she
+      lives, but she keeps a tobacco store, somewhere, and that&rsquo;s enough. She&rsquo;ll
+      tell you how much he&rsquo;s a viscount. Ha! ha! Viscount just as much as I am&mdash;and
+      no more. I can tell you the scrapes he has been in.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No doubt; but the most important thing is to know how he&rsquo;s living now,
+      and on what!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not by honest work, I can tell you. But give me a little time, and I&rsquo;ll
+      find out for sure. As soon as I can go home, change my clothes, and
+      disguise myself, I&rsquo;ll start after him; and may I be hung, if I don&rsquo;t
+      return with a complete report before Tuesday.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A smile of satisfaction appeared on M. Fortunat&rsquo;s face. &ldquo;Good, Victor!&rdquo; he
+      said, approvingly, &ldquo;very good! I see that you will serve me with your
+      usual zeal and intelligence. Rest assured that you will be rewarded as you
+      have never been rewarded before. As long as you are engaged in this
+      affair, you shall have ten francs a day; and I&rsquo;ll pay your board, your
+      cab-hire, and all your expenses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was a most liberal offer, and yet, far from seeming delighted, Chupin
+      gravely shook his head. &ldquo;You know how I value money, m&rsquo;sieur,&rdquo; he began.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Too much, Victor, my boy, too much&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me, it&rsquo;s because I have responsibilities, m&rsquo;sieur. You know my
+      establishment&rdquo;&mdash;he spoke this word with a grandiloquent air&mdash;&ldquo;you
+      have seen my good mother&mdash;my expenses are heavy&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In short, you don&rsquo;t think I offer you enough?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On the contrary, sir&mdash;but you don&rsquo;t allow me to finish. I love
+      money, don&rsquo;t I? But no matter, I don&rsquo;t want to be paid for this business.
+      I don&rsquo;t want either my board or my expenses, not a penny&mdash;nothing.
+      I&rsquo;ll serve you, but for my own sake, for my own pleasure&mdash;gratis.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat could not restrain an exclamation of astonishment. Chupin, who
+      was as eager for gain as an old usurer&mdash;Chupin, as grasping as
+      avarice itself, refuse money! This was something which he had never seen
+      before, and which he would no doubt never see again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Victor had become very much excited; his usually pale cheeks were crimson,
+      and in a harsh voice, he continued: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a fancy of mine&mdash;that&rsquo;s
+      all. I have eight hundred francs hidden in my room, the fruit of years of
+      work. I&rsquo;ll spend the last penny of it if need be; and if I can see Coralth
+      in the mire, I shall say, &lsquo;My money has been well expended.&rsquo; I&rsquo;d rather
+      see that day dawn than be the possessor of a hundred thousand francs. If a
+      horrible vision haunted you every night, and prevented you from sleeping,
+      wouldn&rsquo;t you give something to get rid of it? Very well! that brigand&rsquo;s my
+      nightmare. There must be an end to it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth, who was a man of wide experience, would certainly have felt
+      alarmed if he had seen his unknown enemy at the present moment, for
+      Victor&rsquo;s eyes, usually a pale and undecided blue, were glittering like
+      steel, and his hands were clinched most threateningly. &ldquo;For he was the
+      cause of all my trouble,&rdquo; he continued, gloomily. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve told you, sir,
+      that I was guilty of an infamous deed once upon a time. If it hadn&rsquo;t been
+      for a miracle I should have killed a man&mdash;the king of men. Ah, well!
+      if Monsieur Andre had broken his back by falling from a fifth-floor
+      window, my Coralth would be the Duc de Champdoce to-day. And shall he be
+      allowed to ride about in his carriage, and deceive and ruin honest people?
+      No&mdash;there are too many such villains at large for public safety. Wait
+      a little, Coralth&mdash;I owe you something, and I always pay my debts.
+      When M. Andre saved me, though I richly deserved to have my throat cut, he
+      made no conditions. He only said, &lsquo;If you are not irredeemably bad you
+      will be honest after this.&rsquo; And he said these words as he was lying there
+      as pale as death with his shoulder broken, and his body mangled from his
+      fall. Great heavens! I felt smaller than&mdash;than nothing before him.
+      But I swore that I would do honor to his teachings&mdash;and when evil
+      thoughts enter my mind, and when I feel a thirst for liquor, I say to
+      myself, &lsquo;Wait a bit, and&mdash;and M. Andre will take a glass with you.&rsquo; 
+      And that quenches my thirst instantly. I have his portrait at home, and
+      every night, before going to bed, I tell him the history of the day&mdash;and
+      sometimes I fancy that he smiles at me. All this is very absurd, perhaps,
+      but I&rsquo;m not ashamed of it. M. Andre and my good mother, they are my
+      supports, my crutches, and with them I&rsquo;m not afraid of making a false
+      step.&rdquo; Schebel, the German philosopher, who has written a treatise on
+      Volition, in four volumes, was no greater a man than Chupin. &ldquo;So you may
+      keep your money, sir,&rdquo; he resumed. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m an honest fellow, and honest men
+      ought to ask no reward for the performance of a duty. Coralth mustn&rsquo;t be
+      allowed to triumph over the innocent chap he ruined. What did you call
+      him? Ferailleur? It&rsquo;s an odd name. Never mind&mdash;we&rsquo;ll get him out of
+      this scrape; he shall marry his sweetheart after all; and I&rsquo;ll dance at
+      the wedding.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As he finished speaking he laughed a shrill, dangerous laugh, which
+      revealed his sharp teeth&mdash;but such invincible determination was
+      apparent on his face, that M. Fortunat felt no misgivings. He was sure
+      that this volunteer would be of more service than the highest-priced
+      hireling. &ldquo;So I can count on you, Victor?&rdquo; he inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As upon yourself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And you hope to have some positive information by Tuesday?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Before then, I hope, if nothing goes amiss.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well; I will devote my attention to Ferailleur then. As to
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s affairs, I am better acquainted with them than he is himself.
+      We must be prepared to enter upon the campaign when Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite comes, and we will act in accordance with her instructions.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin had already caught up his hat; but just as he was leaving the room,
+      he paused abruptly. &ldquo;How stupid!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;I had forgotten the
+      principal thing. Where does Coralth live?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Unfortunately, I don&rsquo;t know.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      According to his habit when things did not go to his liking, Chupin began
+      to scratch his head furiously. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s bad,&rdquo; growled he. &ldquo;Viscounts of his
+      stamp don&rsquo;t parade their addresses in the directory. Still, I shall find
+      him.&rdquo; However, although he expressed this conviction he went off decidedly
+      out of temper.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shall lose the entire evening hunting up the rascal&rsquo;s address,&rdquo; he
+      grumbled, as he hastened homeward. &ldquo;And whom shall I ask for it?&mdash;Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s concierge? Would he know it&mdash;M. Wilkie&rsquo;s servant? That
+      would be dangerous.&rdquo; He thought of roaming sound about M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s
+      residence, and of bribing one of the valets; but while crossing the
+      boulevard, the sight of Brebant&rsquo;s Restaurant put a new idea into his head.
+      &ldquo;I have it!&rdquo; he muttered; &ldquo;my man&rsquo;s caught!&rdquo; And he darted into the
+      nearest cafe where he ordered some beer and writing materials.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under other circumstances, he would have hesitated to employ so hazardous
+      an expedient as the one he was about to resort to, but the character of
+      his adversaries justified any course; besides, time was passing, and he
+      had no choice of resources. As soon as the waiter served him, he drained
+      his glass of beer to give himself an inspiration, and then, in his finest
+      hand, he wrote:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+     &ldquo;MY DEAR VISCOUNT&mdash;Here&rsquo;s the amount&mdash;one hundred francs&mdash;that I
+     lost to you last evening at piquet.  When shall I have my revenge?
+     Your friend,
+                                              &ldquo;VALORSAY.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      When he had finished this letter he read it over three or four times,
+      asking himself if this were the style of composition that very fashionable
+      folks employ in repaying their debts. To tell the truth, he doubted it. In
+      the rough draft which he penned at first, he had written bezique, but in
+      the copy he wrote piquet, which he deemed a more aristocratic game.
+      &ldquo;However,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;no one will examine it closely!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Then, as soon as the ink was dry, he folded the letter and slipped it into
+      an envelope with a hundred franc-note which he drew from an old
+      pocketbook. He next addressed the envelope as follows: &ldquo;Monsieur le
+      Vicomte de Coralth, En Ville,&rdquo; and having completed his preparations, he
+      paid his score, and hastened to Brebant&rsquo;s. Two waiters were standing at
+      the doorway, and, showing them the letter, he politely asked: &ldquo;Do you
+      happen to know this name? A gentleman dropped this letter on leaving your
+      place last evening. I ran after him to return it; but I couldn&rsquo;t overtake
+      him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The waiters examined the address. &ldquo;Coralth!&rdquo; they replied. &ldquo;We scarcely
+      know him. He isn&rsquo;t a regular customer, but he comes here occasionally.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And where does he live?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why do you wish to know?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So as to take him this letter, to be sure!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The waiters shrugged their shoulders. &ldquo;Let the letter go; it is not worth
+      while to trouble yourself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin had foreseen this objection, and was prepared for it. &ldquo;But there&rsquo;s
+      money in the letter,&rdquo; he remonstrated. And opening the envelope, he showed
+      the bank-note which he had taken from his own pocket-book.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This changed the matter entirely. &ldquo;That is quite a different thing,&rdquo;
+       remarked one of the waiters. &ldquo;If you find money, you are, of course,
+      responsible for it. But just leave it here at the desk, and the next time
+      the viscount comes in, the cashier will give it to him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A cold chill crept over Chupin at the thought of losing his bank-note in
+      this way. &ldquo;Ah! I don&rsquo;t fancy that idea!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Leave it here?
+      Never in life! Who&rsquo;d get the reward? A viscount is always generous; it is
+      quite likely he would give me twenty francs as a reward for my honesty.
+      And that&rsquo;s why I want his address.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The argument was of a nature to touch the waiters; they thought the young
+      man quite right; but they did not know M. de Coralth&rsquo;s address, and they
+      saw no way of procuring it. &ldquo;Unless perhaps the porter knows,&rdquo; observed
+      one of them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The porter, on being called, remembered that he had once been sent to M.
+      de Coralth&rsquo;s house for an overcoat. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve forgotten his number,&rdquo; he
+      declared; &ldquo;but he lives in the Rue d&rsquo;Anjou, near the corner of the Rue de
+      la Ville l&rsquo;Eveque.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This direction was not remarkable for its precision, but it was more than
+      sufficient for a pure-blooded Parisian like Victor Chupin. &ldquo;Many thanks
+      for your kindness,&rdquo; he said to the porter. &ldquo;A blind man, perhaps, might
+      not be able to go straight to M. de Coralth&rsquo;s house from your directions,
+      but I have eyes and a tongue as well. And, believe me, if there&rsquo;s any
+      reward, you shall see that I know how to repay a good turn.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And if you don&rsquo;t find the viscount,&rdquo; added the waiters, &ldquo;bring the money
+      here, and it will be returned to him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Naturally!&rdquo; replied Chupin. And he strode hurriedly away. &ldquo;Return!&rdquo; he
+      muttered; &ldquo;not I! I thought for a moment they had their hands on my
+      precious bank-note.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But he had already recovered from his fright, and as he turned his steps
+      homeward he congratulated himself on the success of his stratagem. &ldquo;For my
+      viscount is caught,&rdquo; he said to himself. &ldquo;The Rue d&rsquo;Anjou Saint Honore
+      hasn&rsquo;t a hundred numbers in it, and even if I&rsquo;m compelled to go from door
+      to door, my task will soon be accomplished.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On reaching home he found his mother engaged in knitting, as usual. This
+      was the only avocation that her almost complete blindness allowed her to
+      pursue; and she followed it constantly. &ldquo;Ah! here you are, Toto,&rdquo; she
+      exclaimed, joyously. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t expect you so soon. Don&rsquo;t you scent a
+      savory smell? As you must be greatly tired after being up all night, I&rsquo;m
+      making you a stew.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As customary when he returned, Chupin embraced the good woman with the
+      respectful tenderness which had so surprised M. Fortunat. &ldquo;You are always
+      kind,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;but, unfortunately, I can&rsquo;t remain to dine with you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you promised me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true, mamma; but business, you see&mdash;business.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The worthy woman shook her head. &ldquo;Always business!&rdquo; she exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes&mdash;when a fellow hasn&rsquo;t ten thousand francs a year.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You have become a worker, Toto, and that makes me very happy; but you are
+      too eager for money, and that frightens me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s to say, you fear I shall do something dishonest. Ah! mother! do
+      you think I can forget you and Monsieur Andre?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His mother said no more, and he entered the tiny nook which he so
+      pompously styled his chamber, and quickly changed the clothes he was
+      wearing (his Sunday toggery) for an old pair of checked trousers, a black
+      blouse, and a glazed cap. And when he had finished, and given a peculiar
+      turn to his hair, no one would have recognized him. In place of M.
+      Fortunat&rsquo;s respectable clerk, there appeared one of those vagabonds who
+      hang about cafes and theatres from six in the evening till midnight, and
+      spend the rest of their time playing cards in the low drinking dens near
+      the barrieres. It was the old Chupin come to life once more&mdash;Toto
+      Chupin as he had appeared before his conversion. And as he took a last
+      look in the little glass hanging over the table, he was himself astonished
+      at the transformation. &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; he muttered, &ldquo;I was a sorry looking devil in
+      those days.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Although he had cautiously avoided making any noise in dressing, his
+      mother, with the wonderfully acute hearing of the blind, had followed each
+      of his movements as surely as if she had been standing near watching him.
+      &ldquo;You have changed your clothes, Toto,&rdquo; she remarked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But why have you put on your blouse, my son?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Although accustomed to his mother&rsquo;s remarkable quickness of perception, he
+      was amazed. Still he did not think of denying it. She would only have to
+      extend her hand to prove that he was telling a falsehood. The blind
+      woman&rsquo;s usually placid face had become stern. &ldquo;So it is necessary to
+      disguise yourself,&rdquo; she said, gravely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, mother&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hush, my son! When a man doesn&rsquo;t wish to be recognized, he&rsquo;s evidently
+      doing something he&rsquo;s ashamed of. Ever since your employer came here, you
+      have been concealing something from me. Take care, Toto! Since I heard
+      that man&rsquo;s voice, I&rsquo;m sure that he is quite as capable of urging you to
+      commit a crime as others were in days gone by.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The blind woman was preaching to a convert; for during the past three
+      days, M. Fortunat had shown himself in such a light that Chupin had
+      secretly resolved to change his employer. &ldquo;I promise you I&rsquo;ll leave him,
+      mother,&rdquo; he declared, &ldquo;so you may be quite easy in mind.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well; but now, at this moment, where are you going?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was only one way of completely reassuring the good woman, and that
+      was to tell her all. Chupin did so with absolute frankness. &ldquo;Ah, well!&rdquo;
+       she said, when the narrative was finished. &ldquo;You see now how easy it is to
+      lead you astray! How could you be induced to play the part of a spy, when
+      you know so well what it leads to? It&rsquo;s only God&rsquo;s protecting care that
+      has saved you again from an act which you would have reproached yourself
+      for all your life. Your employer&rsquo;s intentions are good now; but they WERE
+      criminal when he ordered you to follow Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. Poor woman! She
+      had sacrificed herself for her son, she had concealed herself from him,
+      and you were working to betray her. Poor creature! how she must have
+      suffered, and how much I pity her! To be what she is, and to see herself
+      denounced by her own son! I, who am only a poor plebeian, should die of
+      shame under such circumstances.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin blew his nose so loudly that the window-panes rattled; this was his
+      way of repressing his emotion whenever it threatened to overcome him. &ldquo;You
+      speak like the good mother that you are,&rdquo; he exclaimed at last, &ldquo;and I&rsquo;m
+      prouder of you than if you were the handsomest and richest lady in Paris,
+      for you&rsquo;re certainly the most honest and virtuous; and I should be a
+      thorough scoundrel if I caused you a moment&rsquo;s sorrow. And if ever I set my
+      foot in such a mess again, I hope some one will cut it off. But for this
+      once&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;For this once, you may go, Toto; I give my consent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He went off with a lighter heart; and on reaching the Rue d&rsquo;Anjou he
+      immediately began his investigations. They were not successful at first.
+      At every house where he made inquiries nobody had any knowledge of the
+      Viscount de Coralth. He had visited half the buildings in the street, when
+      he reached one of the handsomest houses, in front of which stood a cart
+      laden with plants and flowers. An old man, who seemed to be the concierge,
+      and a valet in a red waistcoat, were removing the plants from the vehicle
+      and arranging them in a line under the porte cochere. As soon as the cart
+      was emptied, it drove away, whereupon Chupin stepped forward, and
+      addressing the concierge, asked: &ldquo;Does the Viscount de Coralth live here?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes. What do you want with him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Having foreseen this question, Chupin had prepared a reply. &ldquo;I certainly
+      don&rsquo;t come to call on him,&rdquo; he answered. &ldquo;My reason for inquiring is this:
+      just now, as I passed near the Madeleine, a very elegant lady called me,
+      and said: &lsquo;M. de Coralth lives in the Rue d&rsquo;Anjou, but I&rsquo;ve forgotten the
+      number. I can&rsquo;t go about from door to door making inquiries, so if you&rsquo;ll
+      go there and ascertain his address for me, I&rsquo;ll give you five francs for
+      yourself,&rsquo; so my money&rsquo;s made.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Profiting by his old Parisian experience, Chupin had chosen such a clever
+      excuse that both his listeners heartily laughed. &ldquo;Well, Father Moulinet,&rdquo;
+       cried the servant in the red waistcoat, &ldquo;what do you say to that? Are
+      there any elegant ladies who give five francs for YOUR address?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is there any lady who&rsquo;s likely to send such flowers as these to YOU?&rdquo; was
+      the response.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin was about to retire with a bow, when the concierge stopped him.
+      &ldquo;You accomplish your errands so well that perhaps you&rsquo;d be willing to take
+      these flower-pots up to the second floor, if we gave you a glass of wine!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      No proposal could have suited Chupin better. Although he was prone to
+      exaggerate his own powers and the fecundity of his resources, he had not
+      flattered himself with the hope that he should succeed in crossing the
+      threshold of M. de Coralth&rsquo;s rooms. For, without any great mental effort,
+      he had realized that the servant arrayed in the red waistcoat was in the
+      viscount&rsquo;s employ, and these flowers were to be carried to his apartments.
+      However any signs of satisfaction would have seemed singular under the
+      circumstances, and so he sulkily replied: &ldquo;A glass of wine! you had better
+      say two.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, I&rsquo;ll say a whole bottleful, my boy, if that suits you any better,&rdquo;
+       replied the servant, with the charming good-nature so often displayed by
+      people who are giving other folk&rsquo;s property away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then I&rsquo;m at your service!&rdquo; exclaimed Chupin. And, loading himself with a
+      host of flower-pots as skilfully as if he had been accustomed to handling
+      them all his life, he added: &ldquo;Now, lead the way.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The valet and the concierge preceded him with empty hands, of course; and,
+      on reaching the second floor, they opened a door, and said: &ldquo;This is the
+      place. Come in.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin had expected to find that M. de Coralth&rsquo;s apartments were handsomer
+      than his own in the Faubourg Saint Denis; but he had scarcely imagined
+      such luxury as pervaded this establishment. The chandeliers seemed marvels
+      in his eyes; and the sumptuous chairs and couches eclipsed M. Fortunat&rsquo;s
+      wonderful sofa completely. &ldquo;So he no longer amuses himself with petty
+      rascalities,&rdquo; thought Chupin, as he surveyed the rooms. &ldquo;Monsieur&rsquo;s
+      working on a grand scale now. Decidedly this mustn&rsquo;t be allowed to
+      continue.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Thereupon he busied himself placing the flowers in the numerous
+      jardinieres scattered about the rooms, as well as in a tiny conservatory,
+      cleverly contrived on the balcony, and adjoining a little apartment with
+      silk hangings, that was used as a smoking-room. Under the surveillance of
+      the concierge and the valet he was allowed to visit the whole apartments.
+      He admired the drawing-room, filled to overflowing with costly trifles;
+      the dining-room, furnished in old oak; the luxurious bed-room with its bed
+      mounted upon a platform, as if it were a throne, and the library filled
+      with richly bound volumes. Everything was beautiful, sumptuous and
+      magnificent, and Chupin admired, though he did not envy, this luxury. He
+      said to himself that, if ever he became rich, his establishment should be
+      quite different. He would have preferred rather more simplicity, a trifle
+      less satin, velvet, hangings, mirrors and gilding. Still this did not
+      prevent him from going into ecstasies over each room he entered; and he
+      expressed his admiration so artlessly that the valet, feeling as much
+      flattered as if he were the owner of the place, took a sort of pride in
+      exhibiting everything.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He showed Chupin the target which the viscount practised at with pistols
+      for an hour every morning; for Monsieur le Vicomte was a capital marksman,
+      and could lodge eight balls out of ten in the neck of a bottle at a
+      distance of twenty paces. He also displayed his master&rsquo;s swords; for
+      Monsieur le Vicomte handled side arms as adroitly as pistols. He took a
+      lesson every day from one of the best fencing-masters in Paris; and his
+      duels had always terminated fortunately. He also showed the viscount&rsquo;s
+      blue velvet dressing-gown, his fur-trimmed slippers, and even his
+      elaborately embroidered night-shirts. But it was the dressing-room that
+      most astonished and stupefied Chupin. He stood gazing in open-mouthed
+      wonder at the immense white marble table, with its water spigots and its
+      basins, its sponges and boxes, its pots and vials and cups; and he counted
+      the brushes by the dozen&mdash;brushes hard and soft, brushes for the
+      hair, for the beard, for the hands, and the application of cosmetic to the
+      mustaches and eyebrows. Never had he seen in one collection such a variety
+      of steel and silver instruments, knives, pincers, scissors, and files.
+      &ldquo;One might think oneself in a chiropodist&rsquo;s, or a dentist&rsquo;s
+      establishment,&rdquo; remarked Chupin to the servant. &ldquo;Does your master use all
+      these every day?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly, or rather twice a day&mdash;morning and evening&mdash;at his
+      toilette.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin expressed his feelings with a grimace and an exclamation of mocking
+      wonder. &ldquo;Ah, well! he must have a clean skin,&rdquo; he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His listeners laughed heartily; and the concierge, after exchanging a
+      significant glance with the valet, said sotto voce, &ldquo;Zounds! it&rsquo;s his
+      business to be a handsome fellow!&rdquo; The mystery was solved.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While Chupin changed the contents of the jardinieres, and remained
+      upstairs in the intervals between the nine or ten journeys he made to the
+      porte-cochere for more flowers, he listened attentively to the
+      conversation between the concierge and the valet, and heard snatches of
+      sentences that enlightened him wonderfully. Moreover, whenever a question
+      arose as to placing a plant in one place rather than another, the valet
+      stated as a conclusive argument that the baroness liked it in such or such
+      a place, or that she would be better pleased with this or that
+      arrangement, or that he must comply with the instructions she had given
+      him. Chupin was therefore obliged to conclude that the flowers had been
+      sent here by a baroness who possessed certain rights in the establishment.
+      But who was she?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was manoeuvering cleverly in the hope of ascertaining this point, when
+      a carriage was heard driving into the courtyard below. &ldquo;Monsieur must have
+      returned!&rdquo; exclaimed the valet, darting to the window.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin also ran to look out, and saw a very elegant blue-lined brougham,
+      drawn by a superb horse, but he did not perceive the viscount. In point of
+      fact, M. de Coralth was already climbing the stairs, four at a time, and,
+      a moment later, he entered the room, angrily exclaiming, &ldquo;Florent, what
+      does this mean? Why have you left all the doors open?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Florent was the servant in the red waistcoat. He slightly shrugged his
+      shoulders like a servant who knows too many of his master&rsquo;s secrets to
+      have anything to fear, and in the calmest possible tone replied, &ldquo;If the
+      doors are open, it is only because the baroness has just sent some
+      flowers. On Sunday, too, what a funny idea! And I have been treating
+      Father Moulinet and this worthy fellow&rdquo; (pointing to Chupin) &ldquo;to a glass
+      of wine, to acknowledge their kindness in assisting me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Fearing recognition, Chupin hid his face as much as possible; but M. de
+      Coralth did not pay the slightest attention to him. There was a dark frown
+      on his handsome, usually smiling countenance, and his hair was in great
+      disorder. Evidently enough, something had greatly annoyed him. &ldquo;I am going
+      out again,&rdquo; he remarked to his valet, &ldquo;but first of all I must write two
+      letters which you must deliver immediately.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He passed into the drawing-room as he spoke, and Florent scarcely waited
+      till the door was closed before uttering an oath. &ldquo;May the devil take
+      him!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Here he sets me on the go again. It is five o&rsquo;clock,
+      too, and I have an appointment in half an hour.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A sudden hope quickened the throbbings of Chupin&rsquo;s heart. He touched the
+      valet&rsquo;s arm, and in his most persuasive tone remarked: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve nothing to
+      do, and as your wine was so good, I&rsquo;ll do your errands for you, if you&rsquo;ll
+      pay me for the wear and tear of shoe-leather.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin&rsquo;s appearance must have inspired confidence, for the servant
+      replied:&mdash;&ldquo;Well&mdash;I don&rsquo;t refuse&mdash;but we&rsquo;ll see.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount did not spend much time in writing; he speedily reappeared
+      holding two letters which he flung upon the table, saying: &ldquo;One of these
+      is for the baroness. You must deliver it into HER hands or into the hands
+      of her maid&mdash;there will be no answer. You will afterward take the
+      other to the person it is addressed to, and you must wait for an answer
+      which you will place on my writing-table&mdash;and make haste.&rdquo; So saying,
+      the viscount went off as he had entered&mdash;on the run&mdash;and a
+      moment later, his brougham was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Florent was crimson with rage. &ldquo;There,&rdquo; said he, addressing Chupin rather
+      than the concierge, &ldquo;what did I tell you? A letter to be placed in
+      madame&rsquo;s own hands or in the hands of her maid, and to be concealed from
+      the baron, who is on the watch, of course. Naturally no one can execute
+      that commission but myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true!&rdquo; replied Chupin; &ldquo;but how about the other?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The valet had not yet examined the second letter. He now took it from the
+      table, and glanced at the address. &ldquo;Ah,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;I can confide this one
+      to you, my good fellow, and it&rsquo;s very fortunate, for it is to be taken to
+      a place on the other side of the river. Upon my word! masters are strange
+      creatures! You manage your work so as to have a little leisure, and the
+      moment you think yourself free, pouf!&mdash;they send you anywhere in
+      creation without even asking if it suits your convenience. If it hadn&rsquo;t
+      been for you, I should have missed a dinner with some very charming
+      ladies. But, above all, don&rsquo;t loiter on the way. I don&rsquo;t mind paying your
+      omnibus fare if you like. And you heard him say there would be an answer.
+      You can give it to Moulinet, and in exchange, he&rsquo;ll give you fifteen sous
+      for your trouble, and six sous for your omnibus fare. Besides, if you can
+      extract anything from the party the letter&rsquo;s intended for, you are quite
+      welcome to it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Agreed, sir! Grant me time enough to give an answer to the lady who is
+      waiting at the Madeleine, and I&rsquo;m on my way. Give me the letter.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Here it is,&rdquo; said the valet, handing it to Chupin. But as the latter
+      glanced at the address he turned deadly pale, and his eyes almost started
+      from their sockets. For this is what he read: &ldquo;Madame Paul. Dealer in
+      Tobacco. Quai de la Seine.&rdquo; Great as was his self-control, his emotion was
+      too evident to escape notice. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s the matter with you?&rdquo; asked the
+      concierge and the valet in the same breath. &ldquo;What has happened to you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A powerful effort of will restored this young fellow&rsquo;s coolness, and ready
+      in an instant with an excuse for his blunder, he replied, &ldquo;I have changed
+      my mind. What! you&rsquo;d only give me fifteen sous to measure such a distance
+      as that! Why, it isn&rsquo;t a walk&mdash;it&rsquo;s a journey!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His explanation was accepted without demur. His listeners thought he was
+      only taking advantage of the need they had of his services&mdash;as was
+      perfectly natural under the circumstances. &ldquo;What! So you are
+      dissatisfied!&rdquo; cried the valet. &ldquo;Very well! you shall have thirty sous&mdash;but
+      be off!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So I will, at once,&rdquo; replied Chupin. And, imitating the whistle of a
+      locomotive with wonderful perfection, he darted away at a pace which
+      augured a speedy return.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, when he was some twenty yards from the house he stopped short,
+      glanced around him, and espying a dark corner slipped into it. &ldquo;That fool
+      in the red waistcoat will be coming out to take the letter to that famous
+      baroness,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m here, and I&rsquo;ll watch him and see where he
+      goes. I should like to find out the name of the kind and charitable lady
+      who watches over his brigand of a master with such tender care.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The day and the hour were in his favor. Night was coming on, hastened by a
+      thick fog; the street lamps were not yet lighted, and as it was Sunday
+      most of the shops were closed. It grew dark so rapidly that Chupin was
+      scarcely able to recognize Florent when he at last emerged from the house.
+      It is true that he looked altogether unlike the servant in the red
+      waist-coat. As he had the key to the wardrobe containing his master&rsquo;s
+      clothes, he did not hesitate to use them whenever an opportunity offered.
+      On this occasion he had appropriated a pair of those delicately tinted
+      trousers which were M. de Coralth&rsquo;s specialty, with a handsome overcoat, a
+      trifle too small for him, and a very elegant hat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Fine doings, indeed!&rdquo; growled Chupin as he started in pursuit. &ldquo;My
+      servants sha&rsquo;n&rsquo;t serve me in that way if I ever have any.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But he paused in his soliloquy, and prudently hid himself under a
+      neighboring gateway. The gorgeous Florent was ringing at the door of one
+      of the most magnificent mansions in the Rue de la Ville l&rsquo;Eveque. The door
+      was opened, and he went in. &ldquo;Ah! ah!&rdquo; thought Chupin, &ldquo;he hadn&rsquo;t far to
+      go. The viscount and the baroness are shrewd. When you have flowers to
+      send to anybody it&rsquo;s convenient to be neighbors!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He glanced round, and seeing an old man smoking his pipe on the threshold
+      of a shop, he approached him and asked politely &ldquo;Can you tell me whom that
+      big house belongs to?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To Baron Trigault,&rdquo; replied the man, without releasing his hold on his
+      pipe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thank you, monsieur,&rdquo; replied Chupin, gravely. &ldquo;I inquired, because I
+      think of buying a house.&rdquo; And repeating the name of Trigault several times
+      to impress it upon his memory he darted off on his errand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It might be supposed that his unexpected success had delighted him, but,
+      on the contrary, it rendered him even more exacting. The letter he carried
+      burned his pocket like a red-hot iron. &ldquo;Madame Paul,&rdquo; he muttered, &ldquo;that
+      must be the rascal&rsquo;s wife. First, Paul is his Christian name; secondly,
+      I&rsquo;ve been told that his wife keeps a tobacco shop&mdash;so the case is
+      plain. But the strangest thing about it is that this husband and wife
+      should write to each other, when I fancied them at dagger&rsquo;s ends.&rdquo; Chupin
+      would have given a pint of his own blood to know the contents of the
+      missive. The idea of opening it occurred to him, and it must be confessed
+      that it was not a feeling of delicacy that prevented him. He was deterred
+      by a large seal which had been carefully affixed, and which would plainly
+      furnish evidence if the letter were tampered with. Thus Chupin was
+      punished for Florent&rsquo;s faults, for this seal was the viscount&rsquo;s&rsquo; 
+      invariable precaution against his servant&rsquo;s prying curiosity. So our
+      enterprising youth could only read and re-read the superscription and
+      smell the paper, which was strongly scented with verbena. He fancied that
+      there was some mysterious connection between this letter intended for M.
+      de Coralth&rsquo;s wife and the missive sent to the baroness. And why should it
+      not be so? Had they not both been written under the influence of anger?
+      Still he failed to perceive any possible connection between the rich
+      baroness and the poor tobacco dealer, and his cogitations only made him
+      more perplexed than ever. However, his efforts to solve the mystery did
+      not interfere with the free use of his limbs, and he soon found himself on
+      the Quai de la Seine. &ldquo;Here I am,&rdquo; he muttered. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve come more quickly
+      than an omnibus.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The Quai de la Seine is a broad road, connecting the Rue de Flandres with
+      the canal de l&rsquo;Ourcq. On the left-hand side it is bordered with miserable
+      shanties interspersed with some tiny shops, and several huge coal depots.
+      On the right-hand side&mdash;that next to the canal&mdash;there are also a
+      few provision stores. In the daytime there is no noisier nor livelier
+      place than this same Quai; but nothing could be more gloomy at night-time
+      when the shops are closed, when the few gas-lamps only increase the
+      grimness of the shadows, and when the only sound that breaks the silence
+      is the rippling of the water as its smooth surface is ruffled by some
+      boatman propelling his skiff through the canal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Viscount must certainly have made a mistake,&rdquo; thought Chupin; &ldquo;there
+      is no such shop on the Quai.&rdquo; He was wrong, however; for after passing the
+      Rue de Soissons he espied the red lantern of a tobacco-shop, glimmering
+      through the fog.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0011" id="link2H_4_0011">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XI.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Having almost reached the goal, Chupin slackened his pace. He approached
+      the shop very cautiously and peered inside, deeming it prudent to
+      reconnoitre a little before he went in. And certainly there was nothing to
+      prevent a prolonged scrutiny. The night was very dark, the quay deserted.
+      No one was to be seen; not a sound broke the stillness. The darkness, the
+      surroundings, and the silence were sinister enough to make even Chupin
+      shudder, though he was usually as thoroughly at home in the loneliest and
+      most dangerous by-ways of Paris as an honest man of the middle classes
+      would be in the different apartments of his modest household. &ldquo;That
+      scoundrel&rsquo;s wife must have less than a hundred thousand a year if she
+      takes up her abode here!&rdquo; thought Chupin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And, in fact, nothing could be more repulsive than the tenement in which
+      Madame Paul had installed herself. It was but one story high, and built of
+      clay, and it had fallen to ruin to such an extent that it had been found
+      necessary to prop it up with timber, and to nail some old boards over the
+      yawning fissures in the walls. &ldquo;If I lived here, I certainly shouldn&rsquo;t
+      feel quite at ease on a windy day,&rdquo; continued Chupin, sotto voce.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The shop itself was of a fair size, but most wretched in its appointments,
+      and disgustingly dirty. The floor was covered with that black and
+      glutinous coal-dust which forms the soil of the Quai de la Seine. An
+      auctioneer would have sold the entire stock and fixtures for a few
+      shillings. Four stone jars, and a couple of pairs of scales, a few odd
+      tumblers, filled with pipes and packets of cigarettes, some wine-glasses,
+      and three or four labelled bottles, five or six boxes of cigars, and as
+      many packages of musty tobacco, constituted the entire stock in trade.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Chupin compared this vile den with the viscount&rsquo;s luxurious abode, his
+      blood fairly boiled in his veins. &ldquo;He ought to be shot for this, if for
+      nothing else,&rdquo; he muttered through his set teeth. &ldquo;To let his wife die of
+      starvation here!&rdquo; For it was M. de Coralth&rsquo;s wife who kept this shop.
+      Chupin, who had seen her years before, recognized her now as she sat
+      behind her counter, although she was cruelly changed. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s her,&rdquo; he
+      murmured. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s certainly Mademoiselle Flavie.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had used her maiden name in speaking of her. Poor woman! She was
+      undoubtedly still young&mdash;but sorrow, regret, and privations, days
+      spent in hard work to earn a miserable subsistence, and nights spent in
+      weeping, had made her old, haggard, and wrinkled before her time. Of her
+      once remarkable beauty naught remained but her hair, which was still
+      magnificent, though it was in wild disorder, and looked as if it had not
+      been touched by a comb for weeks; and her big black eyes, which gleamed
+      with the phosphorescent and destructive brilliancy of fever. Everything
+      about her person bespoke terrible reverses, borne without dignity. Even if
+      she had struggled at first, it was easy to see that she struggled no
+      longer. Her attire&mdash;her torn and soiled silk dress, and her dirty cap&mdash;revealed
+      thorough indolence, and that morbid indifference which at times follows
+      great misfortunes with weak natures.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Such is life,&rdquo; thought Chupin, philosophically. &ldquo;Here&rsquo;s a girl who was
+      brought up like a queen and allowed to have her own way in everything! If
+      any one had predicted this in those days, how she would have sneered! I
+      can see her now as she looked that day when I met her driving her gray
+      ponies. If people didn&rsquo;t clear the road it was so much the worse for them!
+      In those times Paris was like some great shop where she could select
+      whatever she chose. She said: &lsquo;I want this,&rsquo; and she got it. She saw a
+      handsome young fellow and wanted him for her husband; her father, who
+      could refuse her nothing, consented, and now behold the result!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had lingered longer at the window than he had meant to do, perhaps
+      because he could see that the young woman was talking with some person in
+      a back room, the door of which stood open. Chupin tried to find out who
+      this person was, but he did not succeed; and he was about to go in when
+      suddenly he saw Madame Paul rise from her seat and say a few words with an
+      air of displeasure. And this time her eyes, instead of turning to the open
+      door, were fixed on a part of the shop directly opposite her. &ldquo;Is there
+      some one there as well, then?&rdquo; Chupin wondered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He changed his post of observation, and, by standing on tiptoe, he
+      succeeded in distinguishing a puny little boy, some three or four years
+      old, and clad in rags, who was playing with the remnants of a toy-horse.
+      The sight of this child increased Chupin&rsquo;s indignation. &ldquo;So there&rsquo;s a
+      child?&rdquo; he growled. &ldquo;The rascal not only deserts his wife, but he leaves
+      his child to starve! We may as well make a note of that: and when we
+      settle up our accounts, he shall pay dearly for his villainy.&rdquo; With this
+      threat he brusquely entered the shop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What do you wish, sir?&rdquo; asked the woman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nothing; I bring you a letter, madame.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A letter for me! You must be mistaken.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me; aren&rsquo;t you Madame Paul?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then this is for you.&rdquo; And he handed her the missive which Florent had
+      confided to his care.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Paul took hold of it with some hesitation, eying the messenger
+      suspiciously meanwhile; but, on seeing the handwriting, she uttered a cry
+      of surprise. And, turning toward the open door, she called, &ldquo;M. Mouchon!
+      M. Mouchon! It&rsquo;s from him&mdash;it&rsquo;s from my husband; from Paul. Come,
+      come!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A bald-headed, corpulent man, who looked some fifty years of age, now
+      timidly emerged from the room behind the shop with a cap in his hand. &ldquo;Ah,
+      well! my dear child,&rdquo; he said, in an oily voice, &ldquo;what was I telling you
+      just now? Everything comes to those who know how to wait.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      However she had already broken the seal, and she was now reading the
+      letter eagerly, clapping her hands with delight as she finished its
+      perusal. &ldquo;He consents!&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s frightened&mdash;he begs me
+      to wait a little&mdash;look&mdash;read!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But M. Mouchon could not read without his spectacles, and he lost at least
+      two minutes in searching his pockets before he found them. And when they
+      were adjusted, the light was so dim that it took him at least three
+      minutes more to decipher the missive. Chupin had spent this time in
+      scrutinizing&mdash;in appraising the man, as it were. &ldquo;What is this
+      venerable gentleman doing here?&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;He&rsquo;s a middle class man,
+      that&rsquo;s evident from his linen. He&rsquo;s married&mdash;there&rsquo;s a wedding-ring
+      on his finger; he has a daughter, for the ends of his necktie are
+      embroidered. He lives in the neighborhood, for, well dressed as he is, he
+      wears a cap. But what was he doing there in that back room in the dark?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile M. Mouchon had finished reading the letter. &ldquo;What did I tell
+      you?&rdquo; he said complacently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, you were right!&rdquo; answered Madame Paul as she took up the letter and
+      read it again with her eyes sparkling with joy. &ldquo;And now what shall I do?&rdquo;
+       she asked. &ldquo;Wait, shall I not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, no!&rdquo; exclaimed the elderly gentleman, in evident dismay. &ldquo;You must
+      strike the iron while it&rsquo;s hot.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But he promises me&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To promise and to keep one&rsquo;s promises are two different things.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He wants a reply.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Tell him&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; But he stopped short, calling her attention with
+      a gesture to the messenger, whose eyes were glittering with intense
+      curiosity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She understood. So filling a glass with some liquor, she placed it before
+      Chupin, and offered him a cigar, saying: &ldquo;Take a seat&mdash;here&rsquo;s
+      something to keep you from feeling impatient while you wait here.&rdquo;
+       Thereupon she followed the old gentleman into the adjoining room, and
+      closed the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Even if Chupin had not possessed the precocious penetration he owed to his
+      life of adventure, the young woman and the old gentleman had said enough
+      to enable him to form a correct estimate of the situation. He was certain
+      now that he knew the contents of the letter as perfectly as if he had read
+      it. M. de Coralth&rsquo;s anger, and his order to make haste, were both
+      explained. Moreover, Chupin distinctly saw what connection there was
+      between the letter to the baroness and the letter to Madame Paul. He
+      understood that one was the natural consequence of the other. Deserted by
+      her husband, Madame Paul had at last become weary of poverty and
+      privations. She had instituted a search for her husband, and, having found
+      him, she had written to him in this style: &ldquo;I consent to abstain from
+      interfering with you, but only on conditions that you provide means of
+      subsistence for me, your lawfully wedded wife, and for your child. If you
+      refuse, I shall urge my claims, and ruin you. The scandal won&rsquo;t be of much
+      use to me, it&rsquo;s true, but at least I shall no longer be obliged to endure
+      the torture of knowing that you are surrounded by every luxury while I am
+      dying of starvation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Yes, she had evidently written that. It might not be the precise text; but
+      no doubt it was the purport of her letter. On receiving it, Coralth had
+      become alarmed. He knew only too well that if his wife made herself known
+      and revealed his past, it would be all over with him. But he had no money.
+      Charming young men like the Viscount de Coralth never have any money on
+      hand. So, in this emergency, the dashing young fellow had written to his
+      wife imploring her to have patience, and to the baroness, entreating, or
+      rather commanding her to advance him a certain sum at once.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was no doubt the case, and yet there was one circumstance which
+      puzzled Chupin exceedingly. In former years, he had heard it asserted that
+      Mademoiselle Flavie was the very personification of pride, and that she
+      adored her husband even to madness. Had this great love vanished? Had
+      poverty and sorrow broken her spirit to such a degree that she was willing
+      to stoop to such shameful concessions! If she were acquainted with her
+      husband&rsquo;s present life, how did it happen that she did not prefer
+      starvation, or the alms-house and a pauper&rsquo;s grave to his assistance?
+      Chupin could understand how, in a moment of passion, she might be driven
+      to denounce her husband in the presence of his fashionable acquaintances,
+      how she might be impelled to ruin him so as to avenge herself; but he
+      could not possibly understand how she could consent to profit by the
+      ignominy of the man she loved. &ldquo;The plan isn&rsquo;t hers,&rdquo; said Chupin to
+      himself, after a moment&rsquo;s reflection. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s probably the work of that
+      stout old gentleman.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was a means of verifying his suspicions, for on returning into the
+      adjoining room, Madame Paul had not taken her son with her. He was still
+      sitting on the muddy floor of the shop, playing with his dilapidated
+      horse. Chupin called him. &ldquo;Come here, my little fellow,&rdquo; said he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The child rose, and timidly approached, his eyes dilating with distrust
+      and astonishment. The poor boy&rsquo;s repulsive uncleanliness was a terrible
+      charge against the mother. Did she no longer love her own offspring? The
+      untidiness of sorrow and poverty has its bounds. A long time must have
+      passed since the child&rsquo;s face and hands had been washed, and his soiled
+      clothes were literally falling to rags. Still, he was a handsome little
+      fellow, and seemed fairly intelligent, in spite of his bashfulness. He was
+      very light-haired, and in features he was extremely like M. de Coralth.
+      Chupin took him on his knees, and, after looking to see if the door
+      communicating with the inner room were securely closed, he asked: &ldquo;What&rsquo;s
+      your name, little chap?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Paul.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Do you know your father?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Doesn&rsquo;t your mother ever talk to you about him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, yes!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what does she say?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That he&rsquo;s rich&mdash;very rich.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what else?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The child did not reply; perhaps his mother had forbidden him to say
+      anything on the subject&mdash;perhaps that instinct which precedes
+      intelligence, just as the dawn precedes daylight, warned him to be prudent
+      with a stranger. &ldquo;Doesn&rsquo;t your papa ever come to see you?&rdquo; insisted
+      Chupin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mamma is very poor.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And wouldn&rsquo;t you like to go and see him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know. But he&rsquo;ll come some day, and take us away with him to a
+      large house. We shall be all right, then; and he will give us a deal of
+      money and pretty dresses, and I shall have plenty of toys.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Satisfied on this point, Chupin, pushed his investigations farther. &ldquo;And
+      do you know this old gentleman who is with your mamma in the other room?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, yes!&mdash;that&rsquo;s Mouchon.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And who&rsquo;s Mouchon?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He&rsquo;s the gentleman who owns that beautiful garden at the corner of the
+      Rue Riquet, where there are such splendid grapes. I&rsquo;m going with him to
+      get some.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Does he often come to see you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Every evening. He always has goodies in his pocket for mamma and me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why does he sit in that back room without any light?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, he says that the customers mustn&rsquo;t see him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It would have been an abominable act to continue this examination, and
+      make this child the innocent accuser of his own mother. Chupin felt
+      conscience-smitten even now. So he kissed the cleanest spot he could find
+      on the boy&rsquo;s face, and set him on the floor again, saying, &ldquo;Go and play.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The child had revealed his mother&rsquo;s character with cruel precision. What
+      had she told him about his father? That he was rich, and that, in case he
+      returned, he would give them plenty of money and fine clothes. The woman&rsquo;s
+      nature stood revealed in all its deformity. Chupin had good cause to feel
+      proud of his discernment&mdash;all his suppositions had been confirmed. He
+      had read Mouchon&rsquo;s character at a glance. He had recognized him as one of
+      those wily evil-minded men who employ their leisure to the profit of their
+      depravity&mdash;one of those patient, cold-blooded hypocrites who make
+      poverty their purveyor, and whose passion is prodigal only in advice. &ldquo;So
+      he&rsquo;s paying his court to Madame Paul,&rdquo; thought Chupin. &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t it shameful?
+      The old villain! he might at least give her enough to eat!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So far his preoccupation had made him forget his wine and his cigar. He
+      emptied the glass at a single draught, but it proved far more difficult to
+      light the cigar. &ldquo;Zounds! this is a non-combustible,&rdquo; he growled. &ldquo;When I
+      arrive at smoking ten sous cigars, I sha&rsquo;n&rsquo;t come here to buy them.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      However, with the help of several matches and a great deal of drawing, he
+      had almost succeeded, when the door opened, and Madame Paul reappeared
+      with a letter in her hand. She seemed greatly agitated; her anxiety was
+      unmistakable. &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t decide,&rdquo; she was saying to Mouchon, whose figure
+      Chupin could only dimly distinguish in the darkness. &ldquo;No, I can&rsquo;t. If I
+      send this letter, I must forever renounce all hope of my husband&rsquo;s return.
+      Whatever happens, he will never forgive me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He can&rsquo;t treat you worse than he does now, at all events,&rdquo; replied the
+      old gentleman. &ldquo;Besides, a gloved cat has never caught a mouse yet.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He&rsquo;ll hate me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The man who wants his dog to love him, beats it; and, besides, when the
+      wine is drawn, one must drink it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This singular logic seemed to decide her. She handed the letter to Chupin,
+      and drawing a franc from her pocket she offered it to him. &ldquo;This is for
+      your trouble,&rdquo; she said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He involuntarily held out his hand to take the money, but quickly withdrew
+      it, exclaiming: &ldquo;No, thank you; keep it. I&rsquo;ve been paid already.&rdquo; And,
+      thereupon, he left the shop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin&rsquo;s mother&mdash;his poor good mother, as he called her&mdash;would
+      certainly have felt proud and delighted at her son&rsquo;s disinterestedness.
+      That very morning, he had refused the ten francs a day that M. Fortunat
+      had offered him, and this evening he declined the twenty sous proffered
+      him by Madame Paul. This was apparently a trifle, and yet in reality it
+      was something marvellous, unprecedented, on the part of this poor lad,
+      who, having neither trade nor profession, was obliged to earn his daily
+      bread through the medium of those chance opportunities which the lower
+      classes of Paris are continually seeking. As he returned to the Rue de
+      Flandres, he muttered: &ldquo;Take twenty sous from that poor creature, who
+      hasn&rsquo;t had enough to satisfy her hunger for heaven knows how long! That
+      would be altogether unworthy of a man.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It is only just to say that money had never given him a feeling of
+      satisfaction at all comparable with that which he now experienced. He was
+      impressed, too, with a sense of vastly-increased importance on thinking
+      that all the faculties, and all the energy he had once employed in the
+      service of evil, were now consecrated to the service of good. By becoming
+      the instrument of Pascal Ferailleur&rsquo;s salvation he would, in some measure,
+      atone for the crime he had committed years before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin&rsquo;s mind was so busily occupied with these thoughts that he reached
+      the Rue d&rsquo;Anjou and M. de Coralth&rsquo;s house almost before he was aware of
+      it. To his great surprise, the concierge and his wife were not alone.
+      Florent was there, taking coffee with them. The valet had divested himself
+      of his borrowed finery, and had donned his red waistcoat again. He seemed
+      to be in a savage humor; and his anger was not at all strange under the
+      circumstances. There was but a step from M. de Coralth&rsquo;s house to the
+      baroness&rsquo;s residence, but fatalities may attend even a step! The baroness,
+      on receiving the letter from her maid, had sent a message to Florent
+      requesting him to wait, as she desired to speak with him! and she had been
+      so inconsiderate as to keep him waiting for more than an hour, so that he
+      had missed his appointment with the charming ladies he had spoken of. In
+      his despair he had returned home to seek consolation in the society of his
+      friend the concierge. &ldquo;Have you the answer?&rdquo; he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, here it is,&rdquo; replied Chupin, and Florent had just slipped the letter
+      into his pocket, and was engaged in counting out the thirty sous which he
+      had promised his messenger, when the familiar cry, &ldquo;Open, please,&rdquo; was
+      heard outside.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth had returned. He sprang to the ground as soon as the
+      carriage entered the courtyard, and on perceiving his servant, he
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;Have you executed my commissions?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They have been executed, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Did you see the baroness?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She made me wait two hours to tell me that the viscount need not be
+      worried in the least; that she would certainly be able to comply with his
+      request to-morrow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth seemed to breathe more freely. &ldquo;And the other party?&rdquo; he
+      inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Gave me this for monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount seized the missive, with an eager hand, tore it open, read it
+      at one glance, and flew into such a paroxysm of passion that he quite
+      forgot those around him, and began to tear the letter, and utter a string
+      of oaths which would have astonished a cab-driver. But suddenly realizing
+      his imprudence, he mastered his rage, and exclaimed, with a forced laugh:
+      &ldquo;Ah! these women! they are enough to drive one mad!&rdquo; And deeming this a
+      sufficient explanation, he added, addressing Florent. &ldquo;Come and undress
+      me; I must be up early to-morrow morning.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This remark was not lost upon Chupin, and at seven o&rsquo;clock the next
+      morning he mounted guard at M. de Coralth&rsquo;s door. All through the day he
+      followed the viscount about, first to the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s, then to
+      the office of a business agent, then to M. Wilkie&rsquo;s, then, in the
+      afternoon, to Baroness Trigault&rsquo;s, and finally, in the evening, to the
+      house of Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. Here, by making himself useful to the servants,
+      by his zeal in opening and shutting the doors of the carriages that left
+      the house, he succeeded in gathering some information concerning the
+      frightful scene which had taken place between the mother and the son. He
+      perceived M. Wilkie leave the house with his clothes in disorder, and
+      subsequently he saw the viscount emerge. He followed him, first to the
+      house of the Marquis de Valorsay, and afterward to M. Wilkie&rsquo;s rooms,
+      where he remained till nearly daybreak.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus, when Chupin presented himself in M. Fortunat&rsquo;s office at two o&rsquo;clock
+      on the Tuesday afternoon, he felt that he held every possible clue to the
+      shameful intrigue which would ruin the viscount as soon as it was made
+      public.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat knew that his agent was shrewd, but he had not done justice to
+      his abilities; and it was, indeed, with something very like envy that he
+      listened to Chupin&rsquo;s clear and circumstantial report. &ldquo;I have not been as
+      successful,&rdquo; he remarked, when Chupin&rsquo;s story was ended. But he had not
+      time to explain how or why, for just as he was about to do so, Madame
+      Dodelin appeared, and announced that the young lady he expected was there.
+      &ldquo;Let her come in!&rdquo; exclaimed M. Fortunat, eagerly&mdash;&ldquo;let her come in!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite had not been compelled to resort to any subterfuge
+      to make her escape from Madame de Fondege&rsquo;s house. The General had
+      decamped early in the morning to try his horses and his carriages,
+      announcing, moreover, that he would breakfast at the club. And as soon as
+      her breakfast was concluded, Madame de Fondege had hurried off to her
+      dressmaker&rsquo;s, warning the household that she would not return before
+      dinner-time. A little while later, Madame Leon had suddenly remembered
+      that her noble relative would certainly be expecting a visit from her, and
+      so she dressed herself in haste, and went off, first to Dr. Jodon&rsquo;s and
+      thence to the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus, Mademoiselle Marguerite had been able to make her escape without
+      attracting any one&rsquo;s attention, and she would be able to remain away as
+      many hours as she chose, since the servants would not know how long she
+      had been absent even if they saw her when she returned. An empty cab was
+      passing as she left the house, so she hailed it and got in. The step she
+      was about to take cost her a terrible effort. It was a difficult task for
+      her, a girl naturally so reserved, to confide in a stranger, and open to
+      him her maidenly heart, filled with love for Pascal Ferailleur! Still, she
+      was much calmer than she had been on the previous evening, when she called
+      on the photographer for a facsimile of M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s letter. Several
+      circumstances combined to reassure her. M. Fortunat knew her already,
+      since he was the agent whom the Count de Chalusse had employed to carry on
+      the investigations which had resulted in her discovery at the foundling
+      asylum. A vague presentiment told her that this man was better acquainted
+      with her past life than she was herself, and that he could, if he chose,
+      tell her her mother&rsquo;s name&mdash;the name of the woman whom the count so
+      dreaded, and who had so pitilessly deserted her. However, her heart beat
+      more quickly, and she felt that she was turning pale when, at Madame
+      Dodelin&rsquo;s invitation, she at last entered M. Fortunat&rsquo;s private office.
+      She took in the room and its occupants with a single glance. The handsome
+      appointments of the office surprised her, for she had expected to see a
+      den. The agent&rsquo;s polite manner and rather elegant appearance disconcerted
+      her, for she had expected to meet a coarse and illiterate boor; and
+      finally, Victor Chupin, who was standing twisting his cap near the
+      fireplace, attired in a blouse and a pair of ragged trousers, fairly
+      alarmed her. Still, no sign of her agitation was perceptible on her
+      countenance. Not a muscle of her beautiful, proud face moved&mdash;her
+      glance remained clear and haughty, and she exclaimed in a ringing voice:
+      &ldquo;I am the late Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s ward, Mademoiselle Marguerite. You have
+      received my letter, I suppose?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat bowed with all the grace of manner he was wont to display in
+      the circles where he went wife-hunting, and with a somewhat pretentious
+      gesture he advanced an arm-chair, and asked his visitor to sit down. &ldquo;Your
+      letter reached me, mademoiselle,&rdquo; he replied, &ldquo;and I was expecting you&mdash;flattered
+      and honored beyond expression by your confidence. My door, indeed, was
+      closed to any one but you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite took the proffered seat, and there was a moment&rsquo;s silence. M.
+      Fortunat found it difficult to believe that this beautiful, imposing young
+      girl could be the poor little apprentice whom he had seen in the
+      book-bindery, years before, clad in a coarse serge frock, with dishevelled
+      hair covered with scraps of paper. In the meantime, Marguerite was
+      regretting the necessity of confiding in this man, for the more she looked
+      at him, the more she was convinced that he was not an honest,
+      straightforward person; and she would infinitely have preferred a cynical
+      scoundrel to this plausible and polite gentleman, whom she strongly
+      suspected of being a hypocrite. She remained silent, waiting for M.
+      Fortunat to dismiss the young man in the blouse, whose presence she could
+      not explain, and who stood in a sort of mute ecstasy, staring at her with
+      eyes expressive of the most intense surprise and the liveliest admiration.
+      But weary at last of this fruitless delay, she exclaimed: &ldquo;I have come,
+      monsieur, to confer with you respecting certain matters which require the
+      most profound secrecy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin understood her, for he blushed to the tips of his ears, and started
+      as if to leave the room. But his employer detained him with a gesture.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Remain, Victor,&rdquo; he said kindly, and, turning to Mademoiselle Marguerite,
+      he added: &ldquo;You have no indiscretion to fear from this worthy fellow,
+      mademoiselle. He knows everything, and he has already been actively at
+      work&mdash;and with the best result&mdash;on your behalf.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t understand you, sir,&rdquo; replied the girl.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat smiled sweetly. &ldquo;I have already taken your business in hand,
+      mademoiselle,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;An hour after the receipt of your letter I began
+      the campaign.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But I had not told you&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What you wished of me&mdash;that&rsquo;s true. But I allowed myself to suspect&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I fancied I might conclude that you wished the help of my experience and
+      poor ability in clearing an innocent man who has been vilely slandered, M.
+      Pascal Ferailleur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite sprang to her feet, at once agitated and alarmed. &ldquo;How did you
+      know this?&rdquo; she exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat had left his arm-chair, and was now leaning against the
+      mantel-shelf, in what he considered a most becoming and awe-inspiring
+      attitude, with his thumb in the armhole of his waistcoat. &ldquo;Ah! nothing
+      could be more simple,&rdquo; he answered, in much the same tone as a conqueror
+      might assume to explain his feat. &ldquo;It is part of my profession to
+      penetrate the intentions of persons who deign to honor me with their
+      confidence. So my surmises are correct; at least you have not said the
+      contrary?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She had said nothing. When her first surprise was over, she vainly
+      endeavored to find a plausible explanation of M. Fortunat&rsquo;s acquaintance
+      with her affairs, for she was not at all deceived by his pretended
+      perspicacity. Meanwhile, delighted by the supposed effect he had produced,
+      he recklessly continued: &ldquo;Reserve your amazement for what I am about to
+      disclose, for I have made several important discoveries. It must have been
+      your good angel who inspired you with the idea of coming to me. You would
+      have shuddered if you had realized the dangers that threatened you. But
+      now you have nothing to fear; I am watching. I am here, and I hold in my
+      hand all the threads of the abominable intrigue for ruining you. For it is
+      you, your person, and your fortune that are imperilled. It was solely on
+      your account that M. Ferailleur was attacked. And I can tell you the names
+      of the scoundrels who ruined him. The crime originated with the person who
+      had the most powerful interest in the matter&mdash;the Marquis de
+      Valorsay. His agent was a scoundrel who is generally known as the Viscount
+      de Coralth; but Chupin here can tell you his real name and his shameful
+      past. You preferred M. Ferailleur, hence it was necessary to put him out
+      of the way. M. de Chalusse had promised your hand to the Marquis de
+      Valorsay. This marriage was Valorsay&rsquo;s only resource&mdash;the plank that
+      might save the drowning man. People fancy he is rich; but he is ruined.
+      Yes, ruined completely, irretrievably. He was in such desperate straits
+      that he had almost determined to blow his brains out before the hope of
+      marrying you entered his mind.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo; thought Chupin, &ldquo;my employer is well under way.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was indeed the case. The name of Valorsay was quite sufficient to set
+      all M. Fortunat&rsquo;s bile in motion. All thought of his ex-client irritated
+      him beyond endurance. Unfortunately for him, however, his anger in the
+      present instance had ruined his plans. He had intended to take
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite by surprise, to work upon her imagination, to make
+      her talk without saying anything himself, and to remain master of the
+      situation. But on the contrary he had revealed everything; and he did not
+      discover this until it was too late to retrieve his blunder. &ldquo;How the
+      Marquis de Valorsay has kept his head above water is a wonder to me,&rdquo; he
+      continued. &ldquo;His creditors have been threatening to sue him for more than
+      six months. How he has been able to keep them quiet since M. de Chalusse&rsquo;s
+      death, I cannot understand. However, this much is certain, mademoiselle:
+      the marquis has not renounced his intention of becoming your husband; and
+      to attain that object he won&rsquo;t hesitate to employ any means that may
+      promise to prove effectual.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Completely mistress of herself, Mademoiselle Marguerite listened with an
+      impassive face. &ldquo;I know all this,&rdquo; she replied, in a frigid tone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! you know&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; but there is one thing that baffles my powers of comprehension. My
+      dowry was the only temptation to M. de Valorsay, was it not? Why does he
+      still wish to marry me, now that I have no fortune?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat had gradually lost all his advantage. &ldquo;I have asked myself the
+      same question,&rdquo; he replied, &ldquo;and I think I have found an answer. I believe
+      that the marquis has in his possession a letter, or a will, or a document
+      of some sort, written by M. de Chalusse&mdash;in fact an instrument in
+      which the count acknowledges you as his daughter, and which consequently
+      establishes; your right to his property.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the marquis could urge this claim if he became my husband?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly he could.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat explained M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s conduct exactly as the old
+      magistrate had done. However, Mademoiselle Marguerite discreetly refrained
+      from committing herself. The great interest that M. Fortunat seemed to
+      take in her affairs aroused her distrust; and she decided to do what he
+      had attempted in vain&mdash;that is, allow him to do all the talking, and
+      to conceal all that she knew herself. &ldquo;Perhaps you are right,&rdquo; she
+      remarked, &ldquo;but it is necessary to prove the truth of your assertion.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I can prove that Valorsay hasn&rsquo;t a shilling, and that he has lived for a
+      year by expedients which render him liable to arrest and prosecution at
+      any time. I can prove that he deceived M. de Chalusse as to his financial
+      position. I can prove that he conspired with M. de Coralth to ruin your
+      lover. Wouldn&rsquo;t this be something?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She smiled in a way that was exceedingly irritating to his vanity, and in
+      a tone of good-natured incredulity, she remarked: &ldquo;It is easy to SAY these
+      things.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And to do them,&rdquo; rejoined M. Fortunat, quickly. &ldquo;I never promise what I
+      cannot perform. A man should never touch a pen when he is meditating any
+      evil act. Of course, no one is fool enough to write down his infamy in
+      detail. But a man cannot always be on the qui vive. There will be a word
+      in one letter, a sentence in another, an allusion in a third. And by
+      combining these words, phrases, and allusions, one may finally discover
+      the truth.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He suddenly checked himself, warned of his fresh imprudence by the
+      expression on Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s face. She drew back, and looking
+      him full in the eyes, she exclaimed: &ldquo;Then you have been in M. de
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s confidence, sir? Would you be willing to swear that you never
+      helped him in his designs?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A silent and ignored witness of this scene, Victor Chupin was secretly
+      delighted. &ldquo;Hit!&rdquo; he thought&mdash;&ldquo;hit just in the bull&rsquo;s-eye. Zounds!
+      there&rsquo;s a woman for you! She has beaten the guv&rsquo;nor on every point.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat was so taken by surprise that he made no attempt to deny his
+      guilt. &ldquo;I confess that I acted as M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s adviser for some time,&rdquo;
+       he replied, &ldquo;and he frequently spoke to me of his intention of marrying a
+      rich wife in order to retrieve his shattered fortunes. Upon my word, I see
+      nothing so very bad about that! It is not a strictly honest proceeding,
+      perhaps, but it is done every day. What is marriage in this age? Merely a
+      business transaction, is it not? Perhaps it would be more correct to say
+      that it is a transaction in which one person tries to cheat the other. The
+      fathers-in-law are deceived, or the husband, or the wife, and sometimes
+      all of them together. But when I discovered this scheme for mining M.
+      Ferailleur, I cried &lsquo;halt!&rsquo; My conscience revolted at that. Dishonor an
+      innocent man! It was base, cowardly, outrageous! And not being able to
+      prevent this infamous act, I swore that I would avenge it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Would Mademoiselle Marguerite accept this explanation? Chupin feared so,
+      and accordingly turning quickly to his employer, he remarked: &ldquo;To say
+      nothing of the fact that this fine gentleman has swindled you
+      outrageously, shrewd as you are&mdash;cheating you out of the forty
+      thousand francs you lent him, and which he was to pay you eighty thousand
+      for.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat cast a withering look at his clerk, but the mischief was done:
+      denial was useless. He seemed fated to blunder in this affair. &ldquo;Well,
+      yes,&rdquo; he declared, &ldquo;it&rsquo;s true. Valorsay HAS defrauded me, and I have sworn
+      to have my revenge. I won&rsquo;t rest until I see him ruined.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite was partially reassured, for she understood his
+      zeal now. Her scorn for the man was only increased; but she was convinced
+      that he would serve her faithfully. &ldquo;I like this much better,&rdquo; said she.
+      &ldquo;It is better to have no concealment. You desire M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s ruin. I
+      desire the rehabilitation of M. Ferailleur. So our interests are in
+      common. But before acting in this matter, we must know M. Ferailleur&rsquo;s
+      wishes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They cannot be considered.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And why?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because no one knows what has become of him. When the desire for revenge
+      first took possession of me, I at once thought of him. I procured his
+      address, and went to the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm. But he had gone away. The very day
+      after his misfortune, M. Ferailleur sold his furniture and went away with
+      his mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am aware of that, and I have come to ask you to search for him. To
+      discover his hiding-place will be only child&rsquo;s play to you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Do you suppose I haven&rsquo;t thought of this?&rdquo; replied M. Fortunat. &ldquo;Why, I
+      spent all day yesterday searching for him. By questioning the people in
+      the neighborhood I finally succeeded in ascertaining that Madame
+      Ferailleur left her home in a cab several hours after her son, and took a
+      very large quantity of baggage with her. Well, do you know where she
+      drove? To the Western railway station. I am sure of this, and I know she
+      told a porter there that her destination was London. M. Ferailleur is now
+      en route for America, and we shall never hear of him again!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite shook her head. &ldquo;You are mistaken, sir,&rdquo; said she.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There can be no mistake about what I have just told you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t question the result of your investigations, but appearances are
+      deceitful. I thoroughly understand M. Ferailleur&rsquo;s character, and he is
+      not the man to be crushed by an infamous calumny. He may seem to fly, he
+      may disappear, he may conceal himself for a time, but it is only to make
+      his vengeance more certain. What! Pascal, who is energy itself, who
+      possesses an iron will, and invincible determination, would he renounce
+      his honor, his future, and the woman he loves without a struggle? If he
+      had felt that his case was hopeless, he would have destroyed himself, and
+      as he has not done so, he is not without hope. He has not left Paris; I am
+      sure of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Fortunat was not convinced. In his opinion this was only sentiment and
+      rubbish. Still there was one person present who was deeply impressed by
+      the confidence of this young girl, who was the most beautiful creature he
+      had ever seen, and whose devotion and energy filled his heart with
+      admiration, and this person was Chupin. He stepped forward with his eyes
+      sparkling with enthusiasm, and in a feeling voice he exclaimed: &ldquo;I
+      understand your idea! Yes, M. Ferailleur is in Paris. And I shall be
+      unworthy of the name of Chupin, if I don&rsquo;t find him for you in less than a
+      fortnight!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0012" id="link2H_4_0012">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XII.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite knew Pascal Ferailleur. Suddenly struck down in
+      the full sunlight of happiness by a terrible misfortune, he, of course,
+      experienced moments of frenzy and terrible depression; but he was
+      incapable of the cowardice which M. Fortunat had accused him of.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite only did him justice when she said that the sole
+      condition on which he could consent to live was that of consecrating his
+      life, and all his strength, intelligence and will to confounding this
+      infamous calumny. And still she did not know the extent of Pascal&rsquo;s
+      misfortune. How could she suppose that he believed himself deserted by
+      her? How could she know the doubts and fears and the anguish that had been
+      roused in his heart by the note which Madame Leon had given him at the
+      garden gate? What did she know of the poignant suspicions that had rent
+      his mind, after listening to Madame Vantrasson&rsquo;s disparaging insinuations?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It must be admitted that he was indebted to his mother alone for his
+      escape from suicide&mdash;that grim madness that seizes hold of so many
+      desperate, despairing men. And it was still to his mother&mdash;the
+      incomparable guardian of his honor&mdash;that he owed his resolution on
+      the morning he applied to Baron Trigault. And his courage met with its
+      first reward.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was no longer the same man when he left the princely mansion which he
+      had entered with his heart so full of anguish. He was still somewhat
+      bewildered with the strange scenes which he had involuntarily witnessed,
+      the secrets he had overheard, and the revelations which had been made to
+      him; but a light gleamed on the horizon&mdash;a fitful and uncertain
+      light, it is true, but nevertheless a hopeful gleam. At least, he would no
+      longer have to struggle alone. An honest and experienced man, powerful by
+      reason of his reputation, his connections and his fortune, had promised
+      him his help. Thanks to this man whom misfortune had made a truer friend
+      than years could have done, he would have access to the wretch who had
+      deprived him both of his honor and of the woman he loved. He knew the weak
+      spot in the marquis&rsquo;s armor now; he knew where and how to strike, and he
+      felt sure that he should succeed in winning Valorsay&rsquo;s confidence, and in
+      obtaining irrefutable proofs of his villainy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal was eager to inform his mother of the fortunate result of his
+      visit, but certain arrangements which were needful for the success of his
+      plans required his attention, and it was nearly five o&rsquo;clock when he
+      reached the Route de la Revolte. Madame Ferailleur was just returning home
+      when he arrived, which surprised him considerably, for he had not known
+      that she had intended going out. The cab she had used was still standing
+      before the door, and she had not had time to take off her shawl and bonnet
+      when he entered the house. She uttered a joyful cry on perceiving her son.
+      She was so accustomed to read his secret thoughts on his face, that it was
+      unnecessary for him to say a word; before he had even opened his lips, she
+      cried: &ldquo;So you have succeeded?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, mother, beyond my hopes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was not deceived, then, in the worthy man who came to offer us his
+      assistance?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, certainly not. Do what I may, I can never repay him for his
+      generosity and self-denial. If you knew, my dear mother, if you only knew&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He kissed her as if he wished to apologize for what he was about to say,
+      and then he quickly replied: &ldquo;Marguerite is the daughter of Baroness
+      Trigault.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur started back, as if she had seen a reptile spring up in
+      her pathway. &ldquo;The daughter of the baroness!&rdquo; she faltered. &ldquo;Great
+      Heavens!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is the truth, mother; listen to me.&rdquo; And in a voice that trembled with
+      emotion, he rapidly related all he had learned by his visit to the baron,
+      softening the truth as much as he could without concealing it. But
+      prevarication was useless. Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s indignation and disgust
+      were none the less evident. &ldquo;That woman is a shameless creature,&rdquo; she
+      said, coldly, when her son&rsquo;s narrative was concluded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal made no reply. He knew only too well that his mother was right, and
+      yet it wounded him cruelly to hear her speak in this style. For the
+      baroness was Marguerite&rsquo;s mother after all.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So,&rdquo; continued Madame Ferailleur, with increasing indignation, &ldquo;creatures
+      do exist who are destitute even of the maternal instincts of animals. I am
+      an honest woman myself; I don&rsquo;t say it in self-glorification, it&rsquo;s no
+      credit to me; my mother was a saint, and I loved my husband; what some
+      people call duty was my happiness, so I may be allowed to speak on this
+      subject. I don&rsquo;t excuse infidelity, but I can understand how such a thing
+      is possible. Yes, I can understand how a beautiful young woman, who is
+      left alone in a city like Paris, may lose her senses, and forget the
+      worthy man who has exiled himself for her sake, and who is braving a
+      thousand dangers to win a fortune for her. The husband who exposes his
+      honor and happiness to such terrible risk, is an imprudent man. But when
+      this woman has erred, when she has given birth to a child, how she can
+      abandon it, how she can cast it off as if it were a dog, I cannot
+      comprehend. I could imagine infanticide more easily. No, such a woman has
+      no heart, no bowels of compassion. There is nothing human in her! For how
+      could she live, how could she sleep with the thought that somewhere in the
+      world her own child, the flesh of her flesh, was exposed to all the
+      temptations of poverty, and the horrors of shame and vice? And she, the
+      possessor of millions, she, the inmate of a palace, thinking only of dress
+      and pleasure! How was it that she didn&rsquo;t ask herself every minute, &lsquo;Where
+      is my daughter now, and what is she doing? What is she living on? Has she
+      shelter, clothes and food? To what depths of degradation she may have
+      sunk? Perhaps she has so far lived by honest toil, and perhaps at this
+      very moment this support fails her, and she is abandoning herself to a
+      life of infamy.&rsquo; Great God! how does this woman dare to step out of doors?
+      On seeing the poor wretches who have been driven to vice by want, how can
+      she fail to say to herself: &lsquo;That, perhaps, is my daughter!&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal turned pale, moved to the depths of his soul by his mother&rsquo;s
+      extraordinary vehemence. He trembled lest she should say: &ldquo;And you, my
+      son, would you marry the child of such a mother?&rdquo; For he knew his mother&rsquo;s
+      prejudices, and the great importance she attached to a spotless reputation
+      transmitted from parent to child, from generation to generation. &ldquo;The
+      baroness knew that her husband adored her, and hearing of his return she
+      became terrified; she lost her senses,&rdquo; he ventured to say in extenuation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Would you try to defend her?&rdquo; exclaimed Madame Ferailleur. &ldquo;Do you really
+      think one can atone for a fault by a crime?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, certainly not, but&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Perhaps you would censure the baroness more severely if you knew what her
+      daughter has suffered&mdash;if you knew the perils and miseries she has
+      been exposed to from the moment her mother left her on a door-step, near
+      the central markets, till the day when her father found her. It is a
+      miracle that she did not perish.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Where had Madame Ferailleur learned these particulars? Pascal asked
+      himself this question without being able to answer it. &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t understand
+      you, mother,&rdquo; he faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then you know nothing of Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s past life. Is it
+      possible she never told you anything about it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I only know that she has been very unhappy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Has she never alluded to the time when she was an apprentice?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She has only told me that she earned her living with her own hands at one
+      time of her life.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, I am better informed on the subject.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal&rsquo;s amazement was changed to terror. &ldquo;You, mother, you!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; I&mdash;I have been to the asylum where she was received and
+      educated. I have had a conversation with two Sisters of Charity who
+      remember her, and it is scarcely an hour since I left the people to whom
+      she was formerly bound as an apprentice.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Standing opposite his mother with one hand convulsively clutching the back
+      of the chair he was leaning on, Pascal tried to nerve himself for some
+      terrible blow. For was not his life at stake? Did not his whole future
+      depend upon the revelations Madame Ferailleur was about to make? &ldquo;So this
+      was your object in going out, mother?&rdquo; he faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And you went without warning me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Was it necessary? What! you love a young girl, you swear in my presence
+      that she shall be your wife, and you think it strange that I should try to
+      ascertain whether she is worthy of you or not? It would be very strange if
+      I did not do so.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This idea occurred to you so suddenly!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur gave an almost imperceptible shrug of the shoulders, as
+      if she were astonished to have to answer such puerile objections. &ldquo;Have
+      you already forgotten the disparaging remarks made by our new servant,
+      Madame Vantrasson?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good Heavens!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I understood her base insinuations as well as you did, and after your
+      departure I questioned her, or rather I allowed her to tell her story, and
+      I ascertained that Mademoiselle Marguerite had once been an apprentice of
+      Vantrasson&rsquo;s brother-in-law, a man named Greloux, who was formerly a
+      bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis, but who has now retired from business.
+      It was there that Vantrasson met Mademoiselle Marguerite, and this is why
+      he was so greatly surprised to see her doing the mistress at the Hotel de
+      Chalusse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed to Pascal that the throbbing of his heart stopped his breath.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By a little tact I obtained the Greloux&rsquo;s address from Madame
+      Vantrasson,&rdquo; resumed his mother. &ldquo;Then I sent for a cab and drove there at
+      once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And you saw them?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; thanks to a falsehood which doesn&rsquo;t trouble my conscience much, I
+      succeeded in effecting an entrance, and had an hour&rsquo;s conversation with
+      them.&rdquo; His mother&rsquo;s icy tones frightened Pascal. Her slowness tortured
+      him, and still he dared not press her. &ldquo;The Greloux family,&rdquo; she
+      continued, &ldquo;seem to be what are called worthy people, that is, incapable
+      of committing any crime that is punishable by the code, and very proud of
+      their income of seven thousand francs a year. They must have been very
+      much attached to Mademoiselle Marguerite, for they were lavish in their
+      protestations of affection when I mentioned her name. The husband in
+      particular seemed to regard her with a feeling of something like
+      gratitude.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! you see, mother, you see!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As for the wife, it was easy to see that she had sincerely regretted the
+      loss of the best apprentice, the most honest servant, and the best worker
+      she had ever seen in her life. And yet, from her own story, I should be
+      willing to swear that she had abused the poor child, and had made a slave
+      of her.&rdquo; Tears glittered in Pascal&rsquo;s eyes, but he breathed freely once
+      more. &ldquo;As for Vantrasson,&rdquo; resumed Madame Ferailleur, &ldquo;it is certain that
+      he took a violent fancy to his sister&rsquo;s apprentice. This man, who has
+      since become an infamous scoundrel, was then only a rake, an unprincipled
+      drunkard and libertine. He fancied the poor little apprentice&mdash;she
+      was then but thirteen years old&mdash;would be only too glad to become the
+      mistress of her employer&rsquo;s brother; but she scornfully repulsed him, and
+      his vanity was so deeply wounded that he persecuted the poor girl to such
+      an extent that she was obliged to complain, first to Madame Greloux, who&mdash;to
+      her shame be it said&mdash;treated these insults as mere nonsense; and
+      afterward to Greloux himself, who was probably delighted to have an
+      opportunity of ridding himself of his indolent brother-in-law, for he
+      turned him out of the house.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The thought that so vile a rascal as this man Vantrasson should have dared
+      to insult Marguerite made Pascal frantic with indignation. &ldquo;The wretch!&rdquo;
+       he exclaimed; &ldquo;the wretch!&rdquo; But without seeming to notice her son&rsquo;s anger,
+      Madame Ferailleur continued: &ldquo;They pretended they had not seen their
+      former apprentice since she had been living in grandeur, as they expressed
+      it. But in this they lied to me. For they saw her at least once, and that
+      was on the day she brought them twenty thousand francs, which proved the
+      nucleus of their fortune. They did not mention this fact, however.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Dear Marguerite!&rdquo; murmured Pascal, &ldquo;dear Marguerite!&rdquo; And then aloud:
+      &ldquo;But where did you learn these last details, mother?&rdquo; he inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At the asylum where Mademoiselle Marguerite was brought up, and there,
+      too, I only heard words of praise. &lsquo;Never,&rsquo; said the superior, &lsquo;have I had
+      a more gifted, sweeter-tempered or more attractive charge.&rsquo; They had
+      reproached her sometimes for being too reserved, and her self-respect had
+      often been mistaken for inordinate pride; but she had not forgotten the
+      asylum any more than she had forgotten her former patrons. On one occasion
+      the superior received from her the sum of twenty-five thousand francs, and
+      a year ago she presented the institution with one hundred thousand francs,
+      the yearly income of which is to constitute the marriage dowry of some
+      deserving orphan.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal was greatly elated. &ldquo;Well, mother!&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;well, is it
+      strange that I love her?&rdquo; Madame Ferailleur made no reply, and a sorrowful
+      apprehension seized hold of him. &ldquo;You are silent,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;and why? When
+      the blessed day that will allow me to wed Marguerite arrives, you surely
+      won&rsquo;t oppose our marriage?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, my son, nothing that I have learned gives me the right to do so.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The right! Ah, you are unjust, mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Unjust! Haven&rsquo;t I faithfully reported all that was told me, although I
+      knew it would only increase your passion?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true, but&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur sadly shook her head. &ldquo;Do you think,&rdquo; she interrupted,
+      &ldquo;that I can, without sorrow, see you choose a girl of no family, a girl
+      who is outside the pale of social recognition? Don&rsquo;t you understand my
+      disquietude when I think that the girl that you will marry is the daughter
+      of such a woman as Baroness Trigault, an unfortunate girl whom her mother
+      cannot even recognize, since her mother is a married woman&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! mother, is that Marguerite&rsquo;s fault?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Did I say it was her fault? No&mdash;I only pray God that you may never
+      have to repent of choosing a wife whose past life must ever remain an
+      impenetrable mystery!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal had become very pale. &ldquo;Mother!&rdquo; he said in a quivering voice,
+      &ldquo;mother!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I mean that you will only know so much of Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s past
+      life as she may choose to tell you,&rdquo; continued the obdurate old lady. &ldquo;You
+      heard Madame Vantrasson&rsquo;s ignoble allegations. It has been said that she
+      was the mistress, not the daughter, of the Count de Chalusse. Who knows
+      what vile accusations you may be forced to meet? And what is your refuge,
+      if doubts should ever assail you? Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s word! Will
+      this be sufficient? It is now, perhaps; but will it suffice in years to
+      come? I would have my son&rsquo;s wife above suspicion; and she&mdash;why, there
+      is not a single episode in her life that does not expose her to the most
+      atrocious calumny.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What does calumny matter? it will never shake my faith in her. The
+      misfortunes which you reproach Marguerite for sanctify her in my eyes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pascal!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! Am I to scorn her because she has been unfortunate? Am I to regard
+      her birth as a crime? Am I to despise her because her MOTHER is a
+      despicable woman? No&mdash;God be praised! the day when illegitimate
+      children, the innocent victims of their mother&rsquo;s faults, were branded as
+      outcasts, is past.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s prejudices were too deeply rooted to be shaken by
+      these arguments. &ldquo;I won&rsquo;t discuss this question, my son,&rdquo; she interrupted,
+      &ldquo;but take care. By declaring children irresponsible for their mother&rsquo;s
+      faults, you will break the strongest tie that binds a woman to duty. If
+      the son of a pure and virtuous wife, and the son of an adulterous woman
+      meet upon equal ground, those who are held in check only by the thought of
+      their children will finally say to themselves, what does it matter?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was the first time that a cloud had ever arisen between mother and son.
+      On hearing his dearest hopes thus attacked, Pascal was tempted to rebel,
+      and a flood of bitter words rose to his lips. However he had strength
+      enough to control himself. &ldquo;Marguerite alone can triumph over these
+      implacable prejudices,&rdquo; he thought; &ldquo;when my mother knows her, she will
+      feel how unjust they are!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And as he found it difficult to remain master of himself, he stammered
+      some excuse, and abruptly retired to his own room, where he threw himself
+      on his bed. He felt that it was not his place to reproach his mother or
+      censure her for her opinions. What mother had ever been so devoted as she
+      had been? And who knows?&mdash;it was, perhaps, from these same rigid
+      prejudices that this simple-minded and heroic woman had derived her
+      energy, her enthusiastic love of God, her hatred of evil, and that
+      virility of spirit which misfortune had been powerless to daunt. Besides,
+      had she not promised to offer no opposition to his marriage! And was not
+      this a great concession, a sacrifice which must have cost her a severe
+      struggle? And where can one find the mother who does not count as one of
+      the sublime joys of maternity the task of seeking a wife for her son, of
+      choosing from among all others the young girl who will be the companion of
+      his life, the angel of his dark and of his prosperous days? His mind was
+      occupied with these thoughts when his door suddenly opened, and he sprang
+      up, exclaiming: &ldquo;Who is it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was Madame Vantrasson, who came to announce that dinner was ready&mdash;a
+      dinner which she had herself prepared, for on going out Madame Ferailleur
+      had left her in charge of the household. On seeing this woman, Pascal was
+      overcome with rage and indignation, and felt a wild desire to annihilate
+      her. He knew that she was only a vile slanderer, but she might meet other
+      beings as vile as herself who would be only too glad to believe her
+      falsehoods. And to think that he was powerless to punish her! He now
+      realized the suffering his mother had spoken of&mdash;the most atrocious
+      suffering which the lover can endure&mdash;powerlessness to protect the
+      object of his affections, when she is assailed. Engrossed in these gloomy
+      thoughts, Pascal preserved a sullen silence during the repast. He ate
+      because his mother filled his plate; but if he had been questioned, he
+      could scarcely have told what he was eating. And yet, the modest dinner
+      was excellent. Madame Vantrasson was really a good cook, and in this first
+      effort in her new situation she had surpassed herself. Her vanity as a
+      cordon-bleu was piqued because she did not receive the compliments she
+      expected, and which she felt she deserved. Four or five times she asked
+      impatiently, &ldquo;Isn&rsquo;t that good?&rdquo; and as the only reply was a scarcely
+      enthusiastic &ldquo;Very good,&rdquo; she vowed she would never again waste so much
+      care and talent upon such unappreciative people.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur was as silent as her son, and seemed equally anxious to
+      finish with the repast. She evidently wanted to get rid of Madame
+      Vantrasson, and in fact as soon as the simple dessert had been placed on
+      the table, she turned to her, and said: &ldquo;You may go home now. I will
+      attend to the rest.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Irritated by the taciturnity of these strange folks, the landlady of the
+      Model Lodging House withdrew, and they soon heard the street door close
+      behind her with a loud bang as she left the house. Pascal drew a long
+      breath as if relieved of a heavy weight. While Madame Vantrasson had been
+      in the room he had scarcely dared to raise his eyes, so great was his
+      dread of encountering the gaze of this woman, whose malignity was but
+      poorly veiled by her smooth-tongued hypocrisy. He really feared he should
+      not be able to resist his desire to strangle her. However, Madame
+      Ferailleur must have understood her son&rsquo;s agitation, for as soon as they
+      were alone, she said: &ldquo;So you have not forgiven me for my plain speaking?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How can I be angry with you, mother, when I know that you are thinking
+      only of my happiness? But how sorry I shall be if your prejudices&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur checked him with a gesture. &ldquo;Let us say no more on the
+      subject,&rdquo; she remarked. &ldquo;Mademoiselle Marguerite will be the innocent
+      cause of one of the greatest disappointments of my life; but I have no
+      reason to hate her&mdash;and I have always been able to show justice even
+      to the persons I loved the least. I have done so in this instance, and I
+      am going perhaps to give you a convincing proof of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A proof?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She reflected for a moment and then she asked: &ldquo;Did you not tell me, my
+      son, that Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s education has not suffered on account
+      of her neglected childhood?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And it&rsquo;s quite true, mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She worked diligently, you said, so as to improve herself?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Marguerite knows all that an unusually talented girl can learn in four
+      years, when she finds herself very unhappy, and study proves her only
+      refuge and consolation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If she wrote you a note would it be written grammatically, and be free
+      from any mistakes in spelling?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, certainly!&rdquo; exclaimed Pascal, and a sudden inspiration made him pause
+      abruptly. He darted to his own room, and a minute later he returned with a
+      package of letters, which he laid on the table, saying: &ldquo;Here, mother,
+      read and see for yourself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur drew her spectacles from their case, and, after
+      adjusting them, she began to read.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With his elbows on the table, and his head resting upon his hands, Pascal
+      eagerly watched his mother, anxious to read her impressions on her face.
+      She was evidently astonished. She had not expected these letters would
+      express such nobility of sentiment, an energy no whit inferior to her own,
+      and even an echo of her own prejudices. For this strange young girl shared
+      Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s rather bigoted opinions. Again and again she asked
+      herself if her birth and past had not created an impassable abyss between
+      Pascal and herself. And she had not felt satisfied on this point until the
+      day when the gray-haired magistrate, after hearing her story, said: &ldquo;If I
+      had a son, I should be proud to have him beloved by you!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It soon became apparent that Madame Ferailleur was deeply moved, and once
+      she even raised her glasses to wipe away a furtive tear which made
+      Pascal&rsquo;s heart leap with very joy. &ldquo;These letters are admirable,&rdquo; she said
+      at last; &ldquo;and no young girl, reared by a virtuous mother, could have given
+      better expression to nobler sentiments; but&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; She paused, not
+      wishing to wound her son&rsquo;s feelings, and as he insisted, she added:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, these letters have the irreparable fault of being addressed to you,
+      Pascal!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This, however, was the expiring cry of her intractable obstinacy. &ldquo;Now,&rdquo;
+       she resumed, &ldquo;wait before you censure your mother.&rdquo; So saying, she rose,
+      opened a drawer, and taking from it a torn and crumpled scrap of paper,
+      she handed it to her son, exclaiming: &ldquo;Read this attentively.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This proved to be the note in pencil which Madame Leon had given to
+      Pascal, and which he had divined rather than read by the light of the
+      street-lamp; he had handed it to his mother on his return, and she had
+      kept it. He had scarcely been in his right mind the evening he received
+      it, but now he was enjoying the free exercise of all his faculties. He no
+      sooner glanced at the note than he sprang up, and in an excited voice,
+      exclaimed, &ldquo;Marguerite never wrote this!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The strange discovery seemed to stupefy him. &ldquo;I was mad, raving mad!&rdquo; he
+      muttered. &ldquo;The fraud is palpable, unmistakable. How could I have failed to
+      discover it?&rdquo; And as if he felt the need of convincing himself that he was
+      not deceived, he continued, speaking to himself rather than to his mother:
+      &ldquo;The hand-writing is not unlike Marguerite&rsquo;s, it&rsquo;s true; but it&rsquo;s only a
+      clever counterfeit. And who doesn&rsquo;t know that all writings in pencil
+      resemble each other more or less? Besides, it&rsquo;s certain that Marguerite,
+      who is simplicity itself, would not have made use of such pretentious
+      melodramatic phrases. How could I have been so stupid as to believe that
+      she ever thought or wrote this: &lsquo;One cannot break a promise made to the
+      dying; I shall keep mine even though my heart break.&rsquo; And again: &lsquo;Forget,
+      therefore, the girl who has loved you so much: she is now the betrothed of
+      another, and honor requires she should forget even your name!&rsquo;&rdquo; He read
+      these passages with an extravagant emphasis, which heightened their
+      absurdity. &ldquo;And what shall I say of these mistakes in spelling?&rdquo; he
+      resumed. &ldquo;You noticed them, of course, mother?&mdash;command is written
+      with a single &lsquo;m,&rsquo; and supplicate with one &lsquo;p.&rsquo; These are certainly not
+      mistakes that we can attribute to haste! Ignorance is proved since the
+      blunder is always the same. The forger is evidently in the habit of
+      omitting one of the double letters.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Ferailleur listened with an impassive face. &ldquo;And these mistakes are
+      all the more inexcusable since this letter is only a copy,&rdquo; she observed,
+      quietly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; a verbatim copy. Yesterday evening, while I was examining it for the
+      twentieth time, it occurred to me that I had read some portions of it
+      before. Where, and under what circumstances? It was a puzzle which kept me
+      awake most of the night. But this morning I suddenly remembered a book
+      which I had seen in the hands of the workmen at the factory, and which I
+      had often laughed over. So, while I was out this morning I entered a
+      book-shop, and purchased the volume. That&rsquo;s it, there on the corner of the
+      mantel-shelf. Take it and see.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal obeyed, and noticed with surprise that the work was entitled, &ldquo;The
+      Indispensable and Complete Letter-writer, for Both Sexes, in Every
+      Condition of Life.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now turn to the page I have marked,&rdquo; said Madame Ferailleur.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He did so, and read: &ldquo;(Model 198). Letter from a young lady who has
+      promised her dying father to renounce the man she loves, and to bestow her
+      hand upon another.&rdquo; Doubt was no longer possible. Line for line and word
+      for word, the mistakes in spelling excepted, the note was an exact copy of
+      the stilted prose of the &ldquo;Indispensable Letter-writer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed to Pascal as if the scales had suddenly fallen from his eyes,
+      and that he could now understand the whole intrigue which had been planned
+      to separate him from Marguerite. His enemies had dishonored him in the
+      hope that she would reject and scorn him, and, disappointed in their
+      expectations, they had planned this pretended rupture of the engagement to
+      prevent him from making any attempt at self-justification. So, in spite of
+      some short-lived doubts, his love had been more clear-sighted than reason,
+      and stronger than appearances. He had been quite right, then, in saying to
+      his mother: &ldquo;I can never believe that Marguerite deserts me at a moment
+      when I am so wretched&mdash;that she condemns me unheard, and has no
+      greater confidence in me than in my accusers. Appearances may indicate the
+      contrary, but I am right.&rdquo; Certain circumstances, which had previously
+      seemed contradictory, now strengthened this belief. &ldquo;How is it,&rdquo; he said
+      to himself, &ldquo;that Marguerite writes to me that her father, on his
+      death-bed, made her promise to renounce me, while Valorsay declares the
+      Count de Chalusse died so suddenly, that he had not even time to
+      acknowledge his daughter or to bequeath her his immense fortune? One of
+      these stories must be false; and which of them? The one in this note most
+      probably. As for the letter itself, it must have been the work of Madame
+      Leon.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If he had not already possessed irrefutable proofs of this, the
+      &ldquo;Indispensable Letter-writer&rdquo; would have shown it. The housekeeper&rsquo;s
+      perturbation when she met him at the garden gate was now explained. She
+      was shuddering at the thought that she might be followed and watched, and
+      that Marguerite might appear at any moment, and discover everything.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I think it would be a good plan to let this poor young girl know that her
+      companion is Valorsay&rsquo;s spy,&rdquo; remarked Madame Ferailleur.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal was about to approve this suggestion, when a sudden thought
+      deterred him. &ldquo;They must be watching Marguerite very closely,&rdquo; he replied,
+      &ldquo;and if I attempt to see her, if I even venture to write to her, our
+      enemies would undoubtedly discover it. And then, farewell to the success
+      of my plans.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then you prefer to leave her exposed to these dangers?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, even admitting there is danger, which is by no means certain. Owing
+      to her past life, Marguerite&rsquo;s experience is far in advance of her years,
+      and if some one told me that she had fathomed Madame Leon&rsquo;s character, I
+      should not be at all surprised.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was necessary to ascertain what had become of Marguerite; and Pascal
+      was puzzling his brain to discover how this might be done, when suddenly
+      he exclaimed: &ldquo;Madame Vantrasson! We have her; let us make use of her. It
+      will be easy to find some excuse for sending her to the Hotel de Chalusse:
+      she will gossip with the servants there, and in that way we can discover
+      the changes that have taken place.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was a heroic resolution on Pascal&rsquo;s part, and one which he would have
+      recoiled from the evening before. But it is easy to be brave when one is
+      hopeful; and he saw his chances of success increase so rapidly that he no
+      longer feared the obstacles that had once seemed almost insurmountable.
+      Even his mother&rsquo;s opposition had ceased to alarm him. For why should he
+      fear after the surprising proof she had given him of her love of justice,
+      proving that the pretended letter from Mademoiselle Marguerite was really
+      a forgery?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He slept but little that night and did not stir from the house on the
+      following day. He was busily engaged in perfecting his plan of attack
+      against the marquis. His advantages were considerable, thanks to Baron
+      Trigault, who had placed a hundred thousand francs at his disposal; but
+      the essential point was to use this amount in such a way as to win
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s confidence, and induce him to betray himself. Pascal&rsquo;s hours of
+      meditation were not spent in vain, and when it became time for him to
+      repair to his enemy&rsquo;s house, he said to his mother: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve found a plan;
+      and if the baron will let me follow it out, Valorsay is mine!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0013" id="link2H_4_0013">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XIII.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was pure childishness on Pascal&rsquo;s part to doubt Baron Trigault&rsquo;s
+      willingness to agree even with closed eyes to any measures he might
+      propose. He ought to have recollected that their interests were identical,
+      that they hated the same men with equal hatred, and that they were equally
+      resolved upon vengeance. And certainly the events which had occurred since
+      their last interview had not been of a nature to modify the baron&rsquo;s
+      intentions. However, misfortune had rendered Pascal timid and suspicious,
+      and it was not until he reached the baron&rsquo;s house that his fears vanished.
+      The manner in which the servants received him proved that the baron
+      greatly esteemed him: for the man must be stupid indeed who does not know
+      that the greeting of the servants is ever in harmony with the feelings of
+      the master of the house. &ldquo;Will you be kind enough to follow me?&rdquo; said the
+      servant to whom he handed his card. &ldquo;The baron is very busy, but that
+      doesn&rsquo;t matter. He gave orders that monsieur should be shown up as soon as
+      he arrived.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal followed without a word. The elegance of this princely abode never
+      varied. The same careless, prodigal, regal luxury was apparent everywhere.
+      The servants&mdash;whose name was legion&mdash;were always passing
+      noiselessly to and fro. A pair of horses, worth at least a thousand louis,
+      and harnessed to the baroness&rsquo;s brougham, were stamping and neighing in
+      the courtyard; and the hall was, as usual, fragrant with the perfume of
+      rare flowers, renewed every morning.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On his first visit Pascal had only seen the apartments on the ground
+      floor. This time his guide remarked that he would take him upstairs to the
+      baron&rsquo;s private room. He was slowly ascending the broad marble staircase
+      and admiring the bronze balustrade, the rich carpet, the magnificent
+      frescoes, and the costly statuary, when a rustle of silk resounded near
+      him. He had only time to step aside, and a lady passed him rapidly,
+      without turning her head, or even deigning to look at him. She did not
+      appear more than forty, and she was still very beautiful, with her golden
+      hair dressed high on the back of her head. Her costume, brilliant enough
+      in hue to frighten a cab horse, was extremely eccentric in cut; but it
+      certainly set off her peculiar style of beauty to admirable advantage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s the baroness,&rdquo; whispered the servant, after she had passed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal did not need to be told this. He had seen her but once, and then
+      only for a second; but it had been under such circumstances that he should
+      never forget her so long as he lived. And now he understood the strange
+      and terrible impression which had been produced upon him when he saw her
+      first. Mademoiselle Marguerite was the living prototype of this lady, save
+      as regards the color of her hair. And there would have been no difference
+      in this respect had the baroness allowed her locks to retain their natural
+      tint. Her hair had been black, like Marguerite&rsquo;s, and black it had
+      remained until she was thirty-five, when she bleached it to the
+      fashionable color of the time. And every fourth day even now her
+      hairdresser came to apply a certain compound to her head, after which she
+      remained in the bright sunlight for several hours, so as to impart a
+      livelier shade of gold to her dyed locks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal had scarcely regained his composure, when the servant opened the
+      door of an immense apartment as large as a handsome suite of rooms, and
+      magnificently furnished. Here sat the baron, surrounded by several clerks,
+      who were busily engaged in putting a pile of papers and documents in
+      order.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But as soon as Pascal entered, the baron rose, and cordially holding out
+      his hand, exclaimed, &ldquo;Ah! here you are at last, Monsieur Maumejan!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So he had not forgotten the name which Pascal had assumed. This was a
+      favorable omen. &ldquo;I called, monsieur&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; began the young man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes&mdash;I know&mdash;I know!&rdquo; interrupted the baron. &ldquo;Come, we must
+      have a talk.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And, taking Pascal&rsquo;s arm, he led him into his private sanctum, separated
+      from the large apartment by folding-doors, which had been removed, and
+      replaced by hangings. Once there he indicated by a gesture that they could
+      be heard in the adjoining room, and that it was necessary to speak in a
+      low tone. &ldquo;You have no doubt come,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;for the money I promised
+      that dear Marquis de Valorsay&mdash;I have it all ready for you; here it
+      is.&rdquo; So saying, he opened an escritoire, and took out a large roll of
+      bank-notes, which he handed to Pascal. &ldquo;Here, count it,&rdquo; he added, &ldquo;and
+      see if the amount is correct.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Pascal, whose face had suddenly become as red as fire, did not utter a
+      word in reply. On receiving this money a new but quite natural thought had
+      entered his mind for the first time. &ldquo;What is the matter?&rdquo; inquired the
+      baron, surprised by this sudden embarrassment. &ldquo;What has happened to you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nothing, monsieur, nothing! Only I was asking myself&mdash;if I ought&mdash;if
+      I can accept this money.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Bah! and why not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because if you lend it to M. de Valorsay, it is perhaps lost.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;PERHAPS! You are polite&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, monsieur, you are right. I ought to have said that it is sure to be
+      lost; and hence my embarrassment. Is it not solely on my account that you
+      sacrifice a sum which would be a fortune to many men? Yes. Very well,
+      then. I am asking myself if it is right for me to accept such a sacrifice,
+      when it is by no means certain that I shall ever be able to requite it.
+      Shall I ever have a hundred thousand francs to repay you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But isn&rsquo;t this money absolutely necessary to enable you to win Valorsay&rsquo;s
+      confidence?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, and if it belonged to me I should not hesitate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Though the baron had formed a high estimate of Pascal&rsquo;s character, he was
+      astonished and deeply touched by these scruples, and this excessive
+      delicacy of feeling. Like most opulent men, he knew few poor people who
+      wore their poverty with grace and dignity, and who did not snatch at a
+      twenty-franc piece wherever they chanced to find it. &ldquo;Ah, well, my dear
+      Ferailleur,&rdquo; he said, kindly, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t trouble yourself on this score. It&rsquo;s
+      not at your request nor solely on your account that I make this
+      sacrifice.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No; I give you my word of honor it isn&rsquo;t. Leaving you quite out of the
+      question, I should still have lent Valorsay this money; and if you do not
+      wish to take it to him, I shall send it by some one else.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      After that, Pascal could not demur any further. He took the baron&rsquo;s
+      proffered hand and pressed it warmly, uttering only this one word, made
+      more eloquent than any protestations by the fervor with which it was
+      spoken: &ldquo;Thanks!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron shrugged his shoulders good-naturedly, like a man who fails to
+      see that he has done anything at all meritorious, or even worthy of the
+      slightest acknowledgment. &ldquo;And you must understand, my dear sir,&rdquo; he
+      resumed, &ldquo;that you can employ this sum as you choose, in advancing your
+      interests, which are identical with mine. You can give the money to
+      Valorsay at such a time and under such conditions as will best serve your
+      plans. Give it to him in an hour or in a month, all at once or in fifty
+      different instalments, as you please. Only use it like the rope one ties
+      round a dog&rsquo;s neck before drowning him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The keenest penetration was concealed beneath the baron&rsquo;s careless
+      good-nature. Pascal knew this, and feeling that his protector understood
+      him, he said: &ldquo;You overpower me with kindness.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You offer me just what I came to ask for.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So much the better.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you will allow me to explain my intentions?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is quite unnecessary, my dear sir.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me; if I follow my present plan, I shall be obliged to ascribe
+      certain sentiments, words, and even acts, to you, which you might perhaps
+      disavow, and&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With a careless toss of the head, accompanied by a disdainful snap of the
+      fingers, the baron interrupted him. &ldquo;Set to work, and don&rsquo;t give yourself
+      the slightest uneasiness about that. You may do whatever you like, if you
+      only succeed in unmasking this dear marquis, and Coralth, his worthy
+      acolyte. Show me up in whatever light you choose. Who will you be in
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s eyes? Why, Maumejan, one of my business agents, and I can
+      always throw the blame on you.&rdquo; And as if to prove that he had divined even
+      the details of the scheme devised by his young friend, he added: &ldquo;Besides,
+      every one knows that a millionaire&rsquo;s business agent is anything but a
+      pleasant person to deal with. A millionaire, who is not a fool, must
+      always smile, and no matter how absurd the demands upon him may be, he
+      must always answer: &lsquo;Yes, certainly, certainly&mdash;I should be only too
+      happy!&rsquo; But then he adds: &lsquo;You must arrange the matter with my agent.
+      Confer with him.&rsquo; And it is the unlucky agent who must object, declare
+      that his employer has no money at his disposal just now, and finally say,
+      &lsquo;No.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal was still disposed to insist, but the baron was obdurate. &ldquo;Oh!
+      enough, enough!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t waste precious time in idle
+      discussion. The days are only twenty-four hours long: and as you see, I&rsquo;m
+      very busy, so busy that I&rsquo;ve not touched a card since the day before
+      yesterday. I am preparing a delightful surprise for Madame Trigault, my
+      daughter, and my son-in-law. It has been rather a delicate operation, but
+      I flatter myself that I have succeeded finely.&rdquo; And he laughed a laugh
+      that was not pleasant to hear. &ldquo;You see, I&rsquo;ve had enough of paying several
+      hundred thousand francs a year for the privilege of being sneered at by my
+      wife, scorned by my daughter, swindled by my son-in-law, and vilified and
+      anathematized by all three of them. I am still willing to go on paying,
+      but only on conditions that they give me in return for my money, if not
+      the reality, at least a show of love, affection, and respect. I&rsquo;m
+      determined to have the semblance of these things; I&rsquo;m quite resolved on
+      that. Yes, I will have myself treated with deference. I&rsquo;ll be petted and
+      coddled and made much of, or else I&rsquo;ll suspend payment. It was one of my
+      old friends, a parvenu like myself&mdash;a man whose domestic happiness I
+      have envied for many years&mdash;who gave me this receipt: &lsquo;At home,&rsquo; said
+      he, &lsquo;with my wife, my daughters, and my sons-in-law, I&rsquo;m like a peer of
+      England at an hotel. I order first-class happiness at so much a month. If
+      I get it I pay for it; if I don&rsquo;t get it, I cut off the supplies. When I
+      get extras I pay for them cheerfully, without haggling. Follow my example,
+      my old friend, and you&rsquo;ll have a comfortable life.&rsquo; And I shall follow his
+      advice, M. Ferailleur, for I am convinced that his theory is sound and
+      practicable. I have led this life long enough. I&rsquo;ll spend my last days in
+      peace, or, as God hears me, I&rsquo;ll let my family die of starvation!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His face was purple, and the veins on his forehead stood out like
+      whipcords, but not so much from anger as from the constraint he imposed
+      upon himself by speaking in a whisper. He drew a long breath, and then in
+      a calmer tone, resumed: &ldquo;But you must make haste and succeed, M.
+      Ferailleur, if you don&rsquo;t want the young girl you love to be deprived of
+      her rightful heritage. You do not know into what unworthy hands the
+      Chalusse property is about to fall.&rdquo; He was on the point of telling Pascal
+      the story of Madame d&rsquo;Argeles and M. Wilkie, when he was interrupted by
+      the sound of a lively controversy in the hall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who&rsquo;s taking such liberty in my house?&rdquo; the baron began. But the next
+      instant he heard some one fling open the door of the large room adjoining,
+      and then a coarse, guttural voice called out: &ldquo;What! he isn&rsquo;t here! This
+      is too much!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron made an angry gesture. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s Kami-Bey,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;the Turk
+      whom I am playing that great game of cards with. The devil take him! He
+      will be sure to force his way in here&mdash;so we may as well join him, M.
+      Ferailleur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On reentering the adjoining apartment Pascal beheld a very corpulent man,
+      with a very red face, a straggling beard, a flat nose, small, beadlike
+      eyes, and sensual lips. He was clad in a black frock-coat, buttoned tight
+      to the throat, and he wore a fez. This costume gave him the appearance of
+      a chunky bottle, sealed with red wax. Such, indeed, was Kami-Bey, a
+      specimen of those semi-barbarians, loaded with gold who are not attracted
+      to Paris by its splendors and glories, but rather by its corruption&mdash;people
+      who come there persuaded that money will purchase anything and everything,
+      and who often return home with the same conviction. Kami was no doubt more
+      impudent, more cynical and more arrogant than others of his class. As he
+      was more wealthy, he had more followers; he had been more toadied and
+      flattered, and victimized to a greater extent by the host of female
+      intriguers, who look upon every foreigner as their rightful prey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He spoke French passably well, but with an abominable accent. &ldquo;Here you
+      are at last!&rdquo; he exclaimed, as the baron entered the room. &ldquo;I was becoming
+      very anxious.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;About what, prince?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Why Kami-Bey was called prince no one knew, not even the man himself.
+      Perhaps it was because the lackey who opened his carriage door on his
+      arrival at the Grand Hotel had addressed him by that title.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;About what!&rdquo; he repeated. &ldquo;You have won more than three hundred thousand
+      francs from me, and I was wondering if you intended to give me the slip.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron frowned, and this time he omitted the title of prince
+      altogether. &ldquo;It seems to me, sir, that according to our agreement, we were
+      to play until one of us had won five hundred thousand francs,&rdquo; he said
+      haughtily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s true&mdash;but we ought to play every day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Possibly: but I&rsquo;m very busy just now. I wrote to you explaining this, did
+      I not? If you are at all uneasy, tear up the book in which the results of
+      our games are noted, and that shall be the end of it. You will gain
+      considerably by the operation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Kami-Bey felt that the baron would not tolerate his arrogance, and so with
+      more moderation he exclaimed: &ldquo;It isn&rsquo;t strange that I&rsquo;ve become
+      suspicious. I&rsquo;m so victimized on every side. Because I&rsquo;m a foreigner and
+      immensely rich, everybody fancies he has a right to plunder me. Men,
+      women, hotel-keepers and merchants, all unite in defrauding me. If I buy
+      pictures, they sell me vile daubs at fabulous prices. They ask ridiculous
+      amounts for horses, and then give me worthless, worn-out animals.
+      Everybody borrows money from me&mdash;and I&rsquo;m never repaid. I shall be
+      ruined if this sort of thing goes on much longer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had taken a seat, and the baron saw that he was not likely to get rid
+      of his guest very soon; so approaching Pascal he whispered: &ldquo;You had
+      better go off, or you may miss Valorsay. And be careful, mind; for he is
+      exceedingly shrewd. Courage and good luck!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Courage! It was not necessary to recommend that to Pascal. He who had
+      triumphed over his despair in the terrible hours, when he had reason to
+      suppose that Marguerite believed him guilty and had abandoned him, could
+      scarcely lack courage. While he was condemned to inaction, his mind had no
+      doubt been assailed by countless doubts and fears; but now that he knew
+      whom he was to attack&mdash;now that the decisive moment had come, he was
+      endowed with indomitable energy; he had turned to bronze, and he felt sure
+      that nothing could disconcert or even trouble him in future. The weapons
+      he had to use were not at all to his taste, but he had not been allowed a
+      choice in the matter; and since his enemies had decided on a warfare of
+      duplicity, he was resolved to surpass them in cunning, and vanquish them
+      by deception.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, while hastening to the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s residence, he took stock
+      of his chances, and recapitulated his resources, striving to foresee and
+      remember everything. Thus if he failed&mdash;for he admitted the
+      possibility of defeat, without believing in it&mdash;he would have no
+      cause to reproach himself. Only fools find consolation in saying: &ldquo;Who
+      could have foreseen that?&rdquo; Great minds do foresee. And Pascal felt almost
+      certain that he was fully prepared for any emergency.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That morning, before leaving home, he had dressed with extreme care,
+      realizing that the shabby clothes he had worn on his first visit to the
+      Trigault mansion would not be appropriate on such an occasion as this. The
+      baron&rsquo;s agent could scarcely have a poverty-stricken appearance, for
+      contact with millionaires is supposed to procure wealth as surely as
+      proximity to fire insures warmth. So he arrayed himself in a suit of
+      black, which was neither too elegant nor too much worn, and donned a broad
+      white necktie. He could see only one immediate, decisive chance against
+      him. M. de Valorsay might possibly recognize him. He thought not, but he
+      was not sure; and anxious on this account, he at first decided to disguise
+      himself. However, on reflection, he concluded not to do so. An imperfect
+      disguise would attract attention and awaken suspicion; and could he really
+      disguise his physiognomy? He was certain he could not. Very few men are
+      capable of doing so successfully, even after long experience. Only two or
+      three detectives and half a dozen actors possess the art of really
+      changing their lineaments. Thus after weighing the pros and cons, Pascal
+      determined to present himself as he was at the marquis&rsquo;s house.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On approaching M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s residence in the Avenue des Champs
+      Elysees, he slackened his pace. The mansion, which stood between a
+      courtyard and a garden, was very large and handsome. The stables and
+      carriage-house&mdash;really elegant structures&mdash;stood on either side
+      of the courtyard, near the half-open gate of which five or six servants
+      were amusing themselves by teasing a large dog. Pascal was just saying to
+      himself that the coast was clear, and that he should incur no danger by
+      going in, when he saw the servants step aside, the gate swing back, and M.
+      de Coralth emerged, accompanied by a young, fair-haired man, whose
+      mustaches were waxed and turned up in the most audacious fashion. They
+      were arm in arm, and turned in the direction of the Arc de Triomphe.
+      Pascal&rsquo;s heart thrilled with joy. &ldquo;Fate favors me!&rdquo; he said to himself.
+      &ldquo;If it hadn&rsquo;t been for Kami-Bey, who detained me a full quarter of an hour
+      at Baron Trigault&rsquo;s, I should have found myself face to face with that
+      miserable viscount, and then all would have been lost. But now I&rsquo;m safe!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was with this encouraging thought that he approached the house.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The marquis is very busy this morning,&rdquo; said the servant to whom Pascal
+      addressed himself at the gate. &ldquo;I doubt if he can see you.&rdquo; But when
+      Pascal handed him one of his visiting cards, bearing the name of Maumejan,
+      with this addition in pencil: &ldquo;Who calls as the representative of Baron
+      Trigault,&rdquo; the valet&rsquo;s face changed as if by enchantment. &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; said he,
+      &ldquo;that&rsquo;s quite a different matter. If you come from Baron Trigault, you
+      will be received with all the respect due to the Messiah. Come in. I will
+      announce you myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Everything in M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s house, as at the baron&rsquo;s residence,
+      indicated great wealth, and yet a close observer would have detected a
+      difference. The luxury of the Rue de la Ville-l&rsquo;Eveque was of a real and
+      substantial character, which one did not find in the Avenue des Champs
+      Elysees. Everything in the marquis&rsquo;s abode bore marks of the haste which
+      mars the merest trifle produced at the present age. &ldquo;Take a seat here, and
+      I will see where the marquis is,&rdquo; said the servant, as he ushered Pascal
+      into a large drawing-room. The apartment was elegantly furnished, but had
+      somewhat lost its freshness; the carpet, which had once been a marvel of
+      beauty, was stained in several places, and as the servants had not always
+      been careful to keep the shutters closed, the sunlight had perceptibly
+      faded the curtains. The attention of visitors was at once attracted by the
+      number of gold and silver cups, vases, and statuettes scattered about on
+      side-tables and cheffoniers. Each of these objects bore an inscription,
+      setting forth that it had been won at such a race, in such a year, by such
+      a horse, belonging to the Marquis de Valorsay. These were indeed the
+      marquis&rsquo;s chief claims to glory, and had cost him at least half of the
+      immense fortune he had inherited. However, Pascal did not take much
+      interest in these trophies, so the time of waiting seemed long. &ldquo;Valorsay
+      is playing the diplomat,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t wish to appear to be
+      anxious. Unfortunately, his servant has betrayed him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      At last the valet returned. &ldquo;The marquis will see you now, monsieur,&rdquo; said
+      he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This summons affected Pascal&rsquo;s heart like the first roll of a drum beating
+      the charge. But his coolness did not desert him. &ldquo;Now is the decisive
+      moment,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;Heaven grant that he may not recognize me!&rdquo; And with
+      a firm step he followed the valet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay was seated in the apartment he usually occupied when he
+      remained at home&mdash;a little smoking-room connected with his bedroom.
+      He was to all intents busily engaged in examining some sporting journals.
+      A bottle of Madeira and a partially filled glass stood near him. As the
+      servant announced &ldquo;Monsieur Maumejan!&rdquo; he looked up and his eyes met
+      Pascal&rsquo;s. But his glance did not waver; not a muscle of his face moved;
+      his countenance retained its usually cold and disdainful expression.
+      Evidently he had not the slightest suspicion that the man he had tried to
+      ruin&mdash;his mortal enemy&mdash;was standing there before him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;M. Maumejan,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;Baron Trigault&rsquo;s agent?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, monsieur&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pray be seated. I am just finishing here; I shall be at leisure in a
+      moment.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal took a chair. He had feared that he might not be able to retain his
+      self-control when he found himself in the presence of the scoundrel who,
+      after destroying his happiness, ruining his future, and depriving him of
+      his honor&mdash;dearer than life itself&mdash;was at that moment
+      endeavoring, by the most infamous manoeuvres, to rob him of the woman he
+      loved. &ldquo;If my blood mounted to my brain,&rdquo; he had thought, &ldquo;I should spring
+      upon him and strangle him!&rdquo; But no. His arteries did not throb more
+      quickly; it was with perfect calmness&mdash;the calmness of a strong
+      nature&mdash;that he stealthily watched M. de Valorsay. If he had seen him
+      a week before he would have been startled by the change which the past few
+      days had wrought in this brilliant nobleman&rsquo;s appearance. He was little
+      more than a shadow of his former self. And seen at this hour, before
+      placing himself in his valet&rsquo;s hands, before his premature decrepitude had
+      been concealed by the artifices of the toilet, he was really frightful.
+      His face was haggard, and his red and swollen eyelids betrayed a
+      long-continued want of sleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fact is, he had suffered terribly during the past week. A man may be a
+      scapegrace and a spendthrift and may boast of it; he may have no principle
+      and no conscience; he may be immoral, he may defy God and the devil, but
+      it is nevertheless true that he suffers fearful anguish of mind when he is
+      guilty, for the first time, of a positive crime, forbidden by the laws and
+      punishable with the galleys. And who can say how many crimes the Marquis
+      de Valorsay had committed since the day he provided his accomplice, the
+      Viscount de Coralth, with those fatal cards? And apart from this there was
+      something extremely appalling in the position of this ruined millionaire,
+      who was contending desperately against his creditors for the vain
+      appearance of splendor, with the despairing energy of a ship-wrecked
+      mariner struggling for the possession of a floating spar. Had he not
+      confessed to M. Fortunat that he had suffered the tortures of the damned
+      in his struggle to maintain a show of wealth, while he was often without a
+      penny in his pocket, and was ever subject to the pitiless surveillance of
+      thirty servants? His agony, when he thought of his precarious condition,
+      could only be compared to that of a miner, who, while ascending from the
+      bowels of the earth, finds that the rope, upon which his life depends, is
+      slowly parting strand by strand, and who asks himself, in terror, if the
+      few threads that still remain unsevered will be strong enough to raise him
+      to the mouth of the pit.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the moment which M. de Valorsay had asked for had lengthened into
+      a quarter of an hour, and he had not yet finished his work. &ldquo;What the
+      devil is he doing?&rdquo; wondered Pascal, who was following his enemy&rsquo;s
+      slightest movement with eager curiosity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Countless sporting newspapers were strewn over the table, the chairs, and
+      the floor around the marquis, who took them up one after another, glanced
+      rapidly through their columns, and threw them on the floor again, or
+      placed them on a pile before him, first marking certain passages with a
+      red pencil. At last, probably fearing that Pascal was growing impatient,
+      he looked up and said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am really very sorry to keep you waiting so long, but some one is
+      waiting for this work to be completed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! pray continue, Monsieur le Marquis,&rdquo; interrupted Pascal. &ldquo;Strange to
+      say, I have a little leisure at my command just now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis seemed to feel that it was necessary to make some remark in
+      acknowledgment of this courtesy on his visitor&rsquo;s part, and so, as he
+      continued his work, he condescended to explain its purpose. &ldquo;I am playing
+      the part of a commentator,&rdquo; he remarked. &ldquo;I sold seven of my horses a few
+      days ago, and the purchaser, before paying the stipulated price, naturally
+      required an exact and authentic statement of each animal&rsquo;s performances.
+      However, even this does not seem to have satisfied the gentleman, for he
+      has now taken it into his head to ask for such copies of the sporting
+      journals as record the victories or defeats of the animals he has
+      purchased. A gentleman is not so exacting generally. It is true, however,
+      that I have a foreigner to deal with&mdash;one of those half-civilized
+      nabobs who come here every year to astonish the Parisians with their
+      wealth and display, and who, by their idiotic prodigality, have so
+      increased the price of everything that life has become well-nigh an
+      impossibility to such of us as don&rsquo;t care to squander an entire fortune in
+      a couple of years. These folks are the curse of Paris, for, with but few
+      exceptions, they only use their millions to enrich notorious women,
+      scoundrels, hotel-keepers, and jockeys.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal at once thought of the foreigner, Kami-Bey, whom he had met at
+      Baron Trigault&rsquo;s half an hour before, and who had complained so bitterly
+      of having had worthless scrubs palmed off upon him when he fancied he had
+      purchased valuable animals. &ldquo;Kami-Bey must be this exacting purchaser,&rdquo;
+       thought Pascal, &ldquo;and it&rsquo;s probable that the marquis, desperately
+      straitened as he is, has committed one of those frauds which lead their
+      perpetrator to prison?&rdquo; The surmise was by no means far-fetched, for in
+      sporting matters, at least, there was cause to suspect Valorsay of great
+      elasticity of conscience. Had he not already been accused of defrauding
+      Domingo&rsquo;s champions by a conspiracy?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last the marquis heaved a sigh of relief. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve finished,&rdquo; he muttered,
+      as he tied up the bundle of papers he had laid aside, and after ringing
+      the bell, he said to the servant who answered the summons: &ldquo;Here, take
+      this package to Prince Kami at the Grand Hotel.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal&rsquo;s presentiments had not deceived him, and he said to himself: &ldquo;This
+      is a good thing to know. Before this evening I shall look into this affair
+      a little.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A storm was decidedly gathering over the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s head. Did
+      he know it? Certainly he must have expected it. Still he had sworn to
+      stand fast until the end. Besides, he would not concede that all was lost;
+      and, like most great gamblers, he told himself that since he had so much
+      at stake, he might reasonably hope to succeed. He rose, stretched himself,
+      as a man is apt to do after the conclusion of a tiresome task, and then,
+      leaning against the mantel-shelf, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Now, Monsieur Maumejan,
+      let us speak of the business that brings you here.&rdquo; His negligent attitude
+      and his careless tone were admirably assumed, but a shrewd observer would
+      not have been deceived by them, or by the indifferent manner in which he
+      added: &ldquo;You bring me some money from Baron Trigault?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal shook his head, as he replied: &ldquo;I regret to say that I don&rsquo;t,
+      Monsieur le Marquis.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This response had the same effect as a heavy rock falling upon M. de
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s bald pate. He turned whiter than his linen, and even tottered,
+      as if his lame leg, which was so much affected by sudden changes in the
+      weather, had utterly refused all service. &ldquo;What! You haven&rsquo;t&mdash;this is
+      undoubtedly a joke.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is only too serious!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But I had the baron&rsquo;s word.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! his word!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I had his solemn promise.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is sometimes impossible to keep one&rsquo;s promises, sir.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The consequences of this disappointment must have been terrible, for the
+      marquis could not maintain his self-control. Still he strove valiantly to
+      conceal his emotion. He thought to himself that if he allowed this man to
+      see what a terrible blow this really was, he would virtually confess his
+      absolute ruin, and have to renounce the struggle, and own himself
+      vanquished and lost. So, summoning all his energy, he mastered his emotion
+      in some degree, and, instead of appearing desperate, succeeded in looking
+      only irritated and annoyed. &ldquo;In short,&rdquo; he resumed, angrily, &ldquo;you have
+      brought no money! I counted on a hundred thousand francs this morning.
+      Nothing! This is kind on the baron&rsquo;s part! But probably he doesn&rsquo;t
+      understand the embarrassing position in which he places me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me, Monsieur le Marquis, he understands it so well that, instead
+      of informing you by a simple note, he sent me to acquaint you with his
+      sincere regret. When I left him an hour ago, he was really disconsolate.
+      He was particularly anxious I should tell you that it was not his fault.
+      He counted upon the payment of two very large amounts, and both of these
+      have failed him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis had now recovered a little from the shock, though he was still
+      very pale. He looked at Pascal with evident distrust, for he knew with
+      what sweet excuses well-bred people envelope their refusals. &ldquo;So the baron
+      is disconsolate,&rdquo; he remarked, in a tone of perceptible irony.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He is indeed!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Poor baron! Ah! I pity him&mdash;pity him deeply.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As cold and as unmoved as a statue, Pascal seemed quite unconscious of the
+      effect of the message he had brought&mdash;quite unconscious of Valorsay&rsquo;s
+      sufferings and self-constraint. &ldquo;You think I am jesting, monsieur,&rdquo; he
+      said, quietly, &ldquo;but I assure you that the baron is very short of money
+      just now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense! a man worth seven or eight millions of francs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I should say ten millions, at least.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then the excuse is all the more absurd.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal shrugged his shoulders disdainfully. &ldquo;It astonishes me, Monsieur le
+      Marquis, to hear YOU speak in this way. It is not the magnitude of a man&rsquo;s
+      income that constitutes affluence, but rather the way in which that income
+      is spent. In this foolish age, almost all rich people are in arrears. What
+      income does the baron derive from his ten millions of francs? Not more
+      than five hundred thousand. A very handsome fortune, no doubt, and I
+      should be more than content with it. But the baron gambles, and the
+      baroness is the most elegant&mdash;in other words, the most extravagant&mdash;woman
+      in Paris. They both of them love luxury, and their establishment is kept
+      up in princely style. What are five hundred thousand francs under such
+      circumstances as those? Their situation must be something like that of
+      several millionaires of my acquaintance, who are obliged to take their
+      silver to the pawn-broker&rsquo;s while waiting for their rents to fall due.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This excuse might not be true, but it was certainly a very plausible one.
+      Had not a recent lawsuit revealed the fact that certain rich folks, who
+      had an income of more than a hundred thousand francs a year, had kept a
+      thieving coachman for six months, simply because, in all that time, they
+      were not able to raise the eight hundred francs they owed him, and which
+      must be paid before he was dismissed? M. de Valorsay knew this, but a
+      terrible disquietude seized him. Had people begun to suspect HIS
+      embarrassment? Had any rumor of it reached Baron Trigault&rsquo;s ears? This was
+      what he wished to ascertain. &ldquo;Let us understand each other, Monsieur
+      Maumejan,&rdquo; said he; &ldquo;the baron was unable to procure this money he had
+      promised me to-day&mdash;but when will he let me have it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal opened his eyes in pretended astonishment, and it was with an air
+      of the utmost simplicity that he replied, &ldquo;I concluded the baron would
+      take no further action in the matter. I judged so from his parting words:
+      &lsquo;It consoles me a little,&rsquo; he said, &lsquo;to think that the Marquis de Valorsay
+      is very rich and very well known, and that he has a dozen friends who will
+      be delighted to do him this trifling service.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Until now, M. de Valorsay had cherished a hope that the loan was only
+      delayed, and the certainty that the decision was final, crushed him. &ldquo;My
+      ruin&rsquo;s known,&rdquo; he thought, and feeling that his strength was deserting
+      him, he poured out a brimming glass of Madeira, which he emptied at a
+      single draught. The wine lent him fictitious energy. Fury mounted to his
+      brain; he lost all control over himself, and springing up, with his face
+      purple with rage, he exclaimed: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a shame! an infamous shame! and
+      Trigault deserves to be severely punished. He has no business to keep a
+      man in hot water for three days about such a trifle. If he had said &lsquo;No&rsquo; 
+      in the first place, I should have made other arrangements, and I shouldn&rsquo;t
+      now find myself in a dilemma from which I see no possible way of escape.
+      No gentleman would have been guilty of such a contemptible act&mdash;no
+      one but a shopkeeper or a thief would have stooped to such meanness! This
+      is the result of admitting these ridiculous parvenus into society, just
+      because they happen to have money.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It certainly hurt Pascal to hear these insults heaped upon the baron, and
+      it hurt him all the more since they were entirely due to the course he had
+      personally adopted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, a gesture, even a frown, might endanger the success of his
+      undertaking, so he preserved an impassive countenance. &ldquo;I must say that I
+      don&rsquo;t understand your indignation, Monsieur le Marquis,&rdquo; he said, coldly.
+      &ldquo;I can see why you might feel annoyed, but why you should fly into a
+      passion&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! you don&rsquo;t know&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; began M. de Valorsay, but he stopped
+      short. It was time. The truth had almost escaped his lips.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Know what?&rdquo; inquired Pascal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the marquis was again upon his guard. &ldquo;I have a debt that must be paid
+      this evening, at all hazards&mdash;a sacred obligation&mdash;in short, a
+      debt of honor.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A debt of one hundred thousand francs?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, it is only twenty-five thousand.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is it possible that a rich man like you can be troubled about such a
+      trifling sum, which any one would lend you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay interrupted him with a contemptuous sneer. &ldquo;Didn&rsquo;t you just
+      tell me that we were living in an age when no one has any money except
+      those who are in business? The richest of my friends have only enough for
+      themselves, even if they have enough. The time of old stockings, stuffed
+      full of savings, is past! Shall I apply to a banker? He would ask two days
+      for reflection, and he would require the names of two or three of my
+      friends on the note. If I go to my notary, there will be endless forms to
+      be gone through, and remonstrances without number.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For a moment or more already, Pascal had been moving about uneasily on his
+      chair, like a man who is waiting for an opportunity to make a suggestion,
+      and as soon as M. de Valorsay paused to take breath, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Upon
+      my word! if I dared&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I would offer to obtain you these twenty-five thousand francs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, I.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Before six o&rsquo;clock this evening?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A glass of ice-water presented to a parched traveller while journeying
+      over the desert sands of Sahara could not impart greater relief and
+      delight than the marquis experienced on hearing Pascal&rsquo;s offer. He
+      literally felt that he was restored to life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For ruin was inevitable if he did not succeed in obtaining twenty-five
+      thousand francs that day. If he could procure that amount he might obtain
+      a momentary respite, and to gain time was the main thing. Moreover, the
+      offer was a sufficient proof that his financial difficulties were not
+      known. &ldquo;Ah! I have had a fortunate escape,&rdquo; he thought. &ldquo;What if I had
+      revealed the truth!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But he was careful to conceal the secret joy that filled his heart. He
+      feared lest he might say &ldquo;Yes&rdquo; too quickly, so betray his secret, and
+      place himself at the mercy of the baron&rsquo;s envoy. &ldquo;I would willingly accept
+      your offer,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;if&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If what?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Would it be proper for me, after the baron has treated me in such a
+      contemptible manner, to have any dealings with one of his subordinates?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal protested vigorously. &ldquo;Allow me to say,&rdquo; he exclaimed, &ldquo;that I am
+      not any one&rsquo;s subordinate. Trigault is my client, like thirty or forty
+      others&mdash;nothing more. He employs me in certain difficult and delicate
+      negotiations, which I conduct to the best of my ability. He pays me, and
+      we are each of us perfectly independent of the other.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      From the look which Valorsay gave Pascal, one would have sworn that he
+      suspected who his visitor really was. But such was not the case. It was
+      simply this: a strange, but by no means impossible, idea had flashed
+      through the marquis&rsquo;s mind&mdash;&ldquo;Oh!&rdquo; thought he, &ldquo;this unknown party
+      with whom Maumejan offers to negotiate the loan, is probably none other
+      than the baron himself. That worthy gambler has invented this ingenious
+      method of obliging me so as to extort a rate of interest which he would
+      not dare to demand openly. And why not? There have been plenty of such
+      instances. Isn&rsquo;t it a well-known fact that the N&mdash;&mdash; Brothers,
+      the most rigidly honest financiers in the world, have never under any
+      circumstances directly obliged one of their friends? If their own father,
+      of whom they always speak with the greatest veneration, asked them to lend
+      him fifty francs for a month, they would say to him as they do to every
+      one else: &lsquo;We are rather cramped just now; but see that rascal B&mdash;&mdash;.&rsquo; 
+      And that rascal B&mdash;&mdash;, who is the most pliable tool in
+      existence, will, providing father N&mdash;&mdash; offers unquestionable
+      security, lend the old gentleman his son&rsquo;s money at from twelve to fifteen
+      per cent. interest, plus a small commission.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      These ideas and recollections were of considerable assistance in restoring
+      Valorsay&rsquo;s composure. &ldquo;Enough said, then,&rdquo; he answered, lightly. &ldquo;I accept
+      with pleasure. But&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! so there is a but!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There is always one. I must warn you that it will be difficult for me to
+      repay this loan in less than two months.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This, then, was the time he thought necessary for the accomplishment of
+      his designs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That does not matter,&rdquo; replied Pascal, &ldquo;and even if you desire a longer
+      delay.&rdquo; &ldquo;That will be unnecessary, thank you! But there is one thing
+      more.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is that?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What will this negotiation cost me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal had expected this question, and he had prepared a reply which was
+      in perfect keeping with the spirit of the role he had assumed. &ldquo;I shall
+      charge you the ordinary rates,&rdquo; he answered, &ldquo;six per cent. interest, plus
+      one-and-a-half per cent. commission.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Bah!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Plus the remuneration for my trouble and services.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what remuneration will satisfy you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;One thousand francs. Is it too much?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If the marquis had retained the shadow of a doubt, it vanished now. &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo;
+       he sneered, &ldquo;that strikes me as a very liberal compensation for your
+      services!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But he would gladly have recalled the sneer when he saw how the agent
+      received it. Pascal drew up his head with a deeply injured air, and
+      remarked in the chilling tone of a person who is strongly tempted to
+      retract his word, &ldquo;Then there is nothing more to be said, M. le Marquis;
+      and since you find the conditions onerous&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I did not say so,&rdquo; interrupted M. de Valorsay, quickly&mdash;&ldquo;I did not
+      even think it!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This gave Pascal an opportunity to present his programme, and he availed
+      himself of it. &ldquo;Others may pretend to oblige people merely from motives of
+      friendship,&rdquo; he remarked. &ldquo;But I am more honest. If I do anything in the
+      way of business, I expect to be paid for it; and I vary my terms according
+      to my clients&rsquo; need. It would be impossible to have a fixed price for
+      services like mine. When, on two different occasions, I saved a gentleman
+      of your acquaintance from bankruptcy, I asked ten thousand francs the
+      first time, and fifteen thousand the second. Was that an exaggerated
+      estimate of my services? I might boast with truth that I once assured the
+      marriage of a brilliant viscount by keeping his creditors quiet while his
+      courtship was in progress. The day after the wedding he paid me twenty
+      thousand francs. Didn&rsquo;t he owe them to me? If, instead of being a trifle
+      short of money, you happened to be ruined, I should not ask you merely for
+      a thousand francs. I should study your position, and fix my terms
+      according to the magnitude of the peril from which I rescued you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was not a sentence, not a word of this cynical explanation which had
+      not been carefully studied beforehand. There was not an expression which
+      was not a tempting bait to the marquis&rsquo;s evil instincts. But M de Valorsay
+      made no sign. &ldquo;I see that you are a shrewd man, Monsieur Maumejan,&rdquo; said
+      he, &ldquo;and if I am ever in difficulty I shall apply to you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal bowed with an air of assumed modesty; but he was inwardly jubilant,
+      for he felt that his enemy would certainly fall into the trap which had
+      been set for him. &ldquo;And now, when shall I have this money?&rdquo; inquired the
+      marquis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By four o&rsquo;clock.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And I need fear no disappointment as in the baron&rsquo;s case?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly not. What interest would M. Trigault have in lending you a
+      hundred thousand francs? None whatever. With me it is quite a different
+      thing. The profit I&rsquo;m to realize is your security. In business matters
+      distrust your friends. Apply to usurers rather than to them. Question
+      people who are in difficulties, and ninety-five out of a hundred will tell
+      you that their worst troubles have been caused by those who called
+      themselves their best friends.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had risen to take leave, when the door of the smoking-room opened, and
+      a servant appeared and said in an undertone: &ldquo;Madame Leon is in the
+      drawing-room with Dr. Jodon. They wish to see you, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Though Pascal had armed himself well against any unexpected mischance, he
+      changed color on hearing the name of the worthy housekeeper. &ldquo;All is lost
+      if this creature sees and recognizes me!&rdquo; he thought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately the Marquis was too much engrossed in his own affairs to note
+      the momentary agitation of Baron Trigault&rsquo;s envoy. &ldquo;It is strange that I
+      can&rsquo;t have five minutes&rsquo; peace and quietness,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I told you that I
+      was at home to no one.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Enough! Let the lady and gentleman wait.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The servant withdrew.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The thought of passing out through the drawing-room filled Pascal with
+      consternation. How could he hope to escape Madame Leon&rsquo;s keen eyes?
+      Fortunately M. de Valorsay came to his relief, for as Pascal was about to
+      open the same door by which he had entered, the marquis exclaimed: &ldquo;Not
+      that way! Pass out here&mdash;this is the shortest way.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And leading him through his bedroom the marquis conducted him to the
+      staircase, where he even feigned to offer him his hand, saying: &ldquo;A speedy
+      return, dear M. Maumejan.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It is not at the moment of peril that people endure the worst agony; it is
+      afterward, when they have escaped it. As he went down the staircase,
+      Pascal wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. &ldquo;Ah! it was a narrow
+      escape!&rdquo; he exclaimed, under his breath.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He felt proud of the manner in which he had sustained a part so repugnant
+      to his nature. He was amazed to find that he could utter falsehoods with
+      such a calm, unblushing face&mdash;he was astonished at his own audacity.
+      And what a success he had achieved! He felt certain that he had just
+      slipped round M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s neck the noose which would strangle him
+      later on. Still he was considerably disturbed by Madame Leon&rsquo;s visit to
+      the marquis. &ldquo;What is she doing here with this physician?&rdquo; he asked
+      himself again and again. &ldquo;Who is this man? What new piece of infamy are
+      they plotting to require his services?&rdquo; One of those presentiments which
+      are prompted by the logic of events, told him that this physician had
+      been, or would be, one of the actors in the vile conspiracy of which he
+      and Mademoiselle Marguerite were the victims. But he had no leisure to
+      devote to the solution of this enigma. Time was flying, and before
+      returning to the marquis&rsquo;s house he must find out what had aroused the
+      suspicions of the purchaser of those horses, the biographies of which had
+      been so rigidly exacted. Through the baron, he might hope to obtain an
+      interview with Kami-Bey&mdash;and so it was to the baron&rsquo;s house that
+      Pascal directed his steps.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After the more than cordial reception which the baron had granted him that
+      morning, it was quite natural that the servants should receive him as a
+      friend of the household. They would scarcely allow him to explain what he
+      desired. It was the pompous head valet in person who ushered him into one
+      of the small reception-rooms, exclaiming: &ldquo;The baron&rsquo;s engaged, but I&rsquo;m
+      sure he would be annoyed if he failed to see you; and I will inform him at
+      once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A moment later, the baron entered quite breathless from his hurried
+      descent of the staircase. &ldquo;Ah! you have been successful,&rdquo; he exclaimed, on
+      seeing Pascal&rsquo;s face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Everything is progressing as favorably as I could wish, Monsieur le
+      Baron, but I must speak with that foreigner whom I met here this morning.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Kami-Bey?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo; And in a few words, Pascal explained the situation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Providence is certainly on our side,&rdquo; said the baron, thoughtfully. &ldquo;Kami
+      is still here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is it possible?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a fact. Did you think it would be easy to get rid of this confounded
+      Turk! He invited himself to breakfast without the slightest ceremony, and
+      would give me no peace until I promised to play with him for two hours. I
+      was closeted with him, cards in hand, when they told me you were here.
+      Come, we&rsquo;ll go and question him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      They found the interesting foreigner in a savage mood. He had been winning
+      when the servant came for the baron, and he feared that an interruption
+      would change the luck. &ldquo;What the devil took you away?&rdquo; he exclaimed, with
+      that coarseness of manner which was habitual with him, and which the
+      flatterers around him styled &ldquo;form.&rdquo; &ldquo;A man should no more be disturbed
+      when he&rsquo;s playing than when he&rsquo;s eating.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Come, come, prince,&rdquo; said the baron, good-naturedly, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t be angry, and
+      I&rsquo;ll give you three hours instead of two. But I have a favor to ask of
+      you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The foreigner at once thrust his hand into his pocket, with such a natural
+      gesture, that neither the baron nor Pascal could repress a smile, and he
+      himself understanding the cause of their merriment broke into a hearty
+      laugh. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s purely from force of habit,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Ah! since I&rsquo;ve been in
+      Paris&mdash;&mdash; But what do you wish?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baron sat down, and gravely replied: &ldquo;You told us scarcely an hour ago
+      that you had been cheated in the purchase of some horses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Cheated! it was worse than highway robbery.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Would it be indiscreet to ask you by whom you have been defrauded?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Kami-Bey&rsquo;s purple cheeks became a trifle pale. &ldquo;Hum!&rdquo; said he, in an
+      altered tone of voice, &ldquo;that is a delicate question. My defrauder appears
+      to be a dangerous fellow&mdash;a duellist&mdash;and if I disclose his
+      knavery, he is quite capable of picking a quarrel with me&mdash;not that I
+      am afraid of him, I assure you, but my principles don&rsquo;t allow me to fight.
+      When a man has an income of a million, he doesn&rsquo;t care to expose himself
+      to the dangers of a duel.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, prince, in France folks don&rsquo;t do a scoundrel the honor to cross
+      swords with him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s just what my steward, who is a Frenchman, told me; but no matter.
+      Besides, I am not sufficiently sure of the man&rsquo;s guilt to noise it abroad.
+      I have no positive proofs as yet.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was evidently terribly frightened, and the first thing to be done was
+      to reassure him. &ldquo;Come,&rdquo; insisted the baron, &ldquo;tell us the man&rsquo;s name. This
+      gentleman here&rdquo;&mdash;pointing to Pascal&mdash;&ldquo;is one of my most esteemed
+      friends. I will answer for him as I would for myself; and we will swear
+      upon our honor not to reveal the secret we ask you for, without your
+      permission.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Truly?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You have our word of honor,&rdquo; replied both the baron and Pascal in a
+      breath.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After casting a half-frightened glance around him, the worthy Turk seemed
+      to gather courage. But no! He deliberated some time, and then rejoined:
+      &ldquo;Really, I&rsquo;m not sufficiently convinced of the accuracy of my suspicions
+      to incur the risk of accusing a man who belongs in the very best society;
+      a man who is very rich and very highly respected, and who would tolerate
+      no imputations upon his character.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was plain that he would not speak. The baron shrugged his shoulders,
+      but Pascal stepped bravely forward. &ldquo;Then I will tell you, prince,&rdquo; he
+      said, &ldquo;the name that you are determined to hide from us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you must allow me to remark that the baron and myself retract the
+      promise we made you just now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Naturally.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then, your defrauder is the Marquis de Valorsay!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If Kami-Bey had seen an emissary of his sovereign enter the room carrying
+      the fatal bow-string he would not have seemed more terror-stricken. He
+      sprang nervously on to his short, fat legs, his eyes wildly dilating and
+      his hands fluttering despairingly. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t speak so loud! don&rsquo;t speak so
+      loud!&rdquo; he exclaimed, imploringly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he did not even attempt to deny it, the truth of the assertion might be
+      taken for granted. But Pascal was not content with this. &ldquo;Now that we know
+      the fact, I hope, Prince, that you will be sufficiently obliging to tell
+      us how it all happened,&rdquo; he remarked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Poor Kami. He was in despair. &ldquo;Alas!&rdquo; he replied, reluctantly, &ldquo;nothing
+      could be more simple. I wanted to set up a racing stable. Not that I care
+      much for sport. I can scarcely distinguish a horse from a mule&mdash;but
+      morning and evening, everybody says to me: &lsquo;Prince, a man like you ought
+      to make your name celebrated on the turf.&rsquo; Besides I never open a paper
+      without reading: &lsquo;Such a man ought to be a patron of the noblest of
+      sports.&rsquo; At last, I said to myself: &lsquo;Yes, they are right. I ought to take
+      part in racing.&rsquo; So I began to look about for some horses. I had purchased
+      several, when the Marquis de Valorsay proposed to sell me some of his,
+      some that were very well known, and that had&mdash;so he assured me&mdash;won
+      at least ten times the amount they had cost him. I accepted his offer, and
+      visited his stables, where I selected seven of his best horses and paid
+      for them; and I paid a good round price, I assure you. Now comes the
+      knavery. He has not given me the horses I purchased. The real animals, the
+      valuable ones&mdash;have been sold in England under false names, and
+      although the horses sent to me may be like the others in appearance, they
+      are really only common animals, wanting both in blood and speed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal and the baron exchanged astonished glances. It must be confessed
+      that frauds of every description are common enough in the racing world,
+      and a great deal of dishonest manoeuvring results from greed for gain
+      united with the fever of gambling. But never before had any one been
+      accused of such an audacious and impudent piece of rascality as that which
+      Kami-Bey imputed to Valorsay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How did you fail to discover this at the outset, prince?&rdquo; inquired Pascal
+      in an incredulous tone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because my time was so much occupied.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But your servants?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! that&rsquo;s another thing. I shouldn&rsquo;t be at all surprised if it were
+      proved that the man who has charge of my stables had been bribed by the
+      marquis.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then, how were your suspicions aroused?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was only by the merest chance. A jockey whom I thought of employing
+      had often ridden one of the animals which I fancied myself the owner of.
+      Naturally, I showed him the horse, but he had no sooner set eyes on it
+      than he exclaimed: &lsquo;That the horse! Never! You&rsquo;ve been cheated, prince!&rsquo; 
+      Then we examined the others, and the fraud became apparent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Knowing Kami&rsquo;s character better than Pascal, the baron had good reason to
+      distrust the accuracy of these statements. For the Turkish millionaire&rsquo;s
+      superb contempt of money was only affected. Vanity alone unloosed his
+      purse-strings. He was quite capable of presenting Jenny Fancy with a
+      necklace costing five-and-twenty thousand francs for the sake of seeing
+      his generosity recorded in the Gaulois or the Figaro the next day; but he
+      would refuse to give a trifle to the mother of a starving family. Besides,
+      it was his ambition to be regarded as the most swindled man in Europe. But
+      though he was shamefully imposed upon, it was not voluntarily&mdash;for
+      there was a strong dose of Arabian avarice and distrust in his
+      composition.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Frankly, prince,&rdquo; said the baron, &ldquo;your story sounds like one of the wild
+      legends of your native land. Valorsay is certainly no fool. How is it
+      possible that he could have been guilty of so gross a fraud&mdash;a fraud
+      which might be, which could not fail to be discovered in twenty-four hours&mdash;and
+      which, once proven, would dishonor him forever?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Before perpetrating such a piece of deception upon any one else, he would
+      have thought twice; but upon me it&rsquo;s different. Isn&rsquo;t it an established
+      fact that a person incurs no risk in robbing Kami-Bey?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Had I been in your place I should have quietly instituted an
+      investigation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What good would that have done? Besides, the sale was only conditional,
+      and took place under the seal of secrecy. The marquis reserved the right
+      to take his horses back on payment of a stipulated sum, and the time he
+      was to have for consideration only expired on the day before yesterday.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Eh! why didn&rsquo;t you tell us that at first?&rdquo; cried the baron.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis&rsquo;s rascality was now easily explained. Finding himself in a
+      desperate strait, and feeling that his salvation was certain if he could
+      only gain a little time, he had yielded to temptation, saying to himself,
+      like unfaithful cashiers when they first appropriate their employers&rsquo; 
+      money: &ldquo;I will pay it back, and no one will ever know it!&rdquo; However, when
+      the day of settlement came he had found himself in as deplorable a plight
+      as on the day of the robbery, and he had been compelled to yield to the
+      force of circumstances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what do you intend to do, prince?&rdquo; asked Pascal.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! I am still in doubt. I have compelled the marquis to give me the
+      papers in which the exploits of these horses are recorded. These
+      statements will be of service in case of a law-suit. But shall I or shall
+      I not enter a complaint against him? If it were a mere question of money I
+      should let the matter drop; but he has defrauded and deceived me so
+      outrageously that it annoys me. On the other hand, to confess that he has
+      cheated me in this fashion would cover me with ridicule. Besides, the man
+      is a dangerous enemy. And what would become of me if I happened to side
+      against him? I should be compelled to leave Paris. Ah! I&rsquo;d give ten
+      thousand francs to any one who&rsquo;d settle this cursed affair for me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      His perplexity was so great, and his anger so intense, for that once he
+      tore off his eternal fez and flung it on to the table, swearing like a
+      drayman. However, controlling himself at last, he exclaimed in a tone of
+      assumed indifference: &ldquo;No matter, there&rsquo;s been enough said on this subject
+      for one day&mdash;I&rsquo;m here to play&mdash;so let us begin, baron. For we
+      are wasting precious time, as you so often remark.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal had nothing more to learn; so he shook hands with the baron, made
+      an appointment with him for the same evening, and went away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was only half-past two; a good hour and a half remained at his
+      disposal. &ldquo;I will profit by this opportunity to eat something,&rdquo; he
+      thought; a sudden faintness reminding him that he had taken nothing but a
+      cup of chocolate that day. Thereupon perceiving a cafe near by, he entered
+      it, ordered breakfast, and lingered there until it was time to return to
+      the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s. He would have gone there before the appointed
+      time if he had merely listened to the promptings of his impatience, so
+      thoroughly was he persuaded that this second interview would be decisive.
+      But prudence advised him not to expose himself to the danger of an
+      encounter with Madame Leon and Dr. Jodon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well! Monsieur Maumejan,&rdquo; cried the marquis, as soon as Pascal made his
+      appearance. He had been counting the seconds with intense anxiety, as his
+      tone of voice unmistakably revealed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In reply Pascal gravely drew from his pocket twenty-four bank-notes, of a
+      thousand francs each, and he placed them upon the table, saying: &ldquo;Here is
+      the amount, Monsieur le Marquis. I have, of course, deducted my
+      commission. Now, if you will write and sign a note for twenty-five
+      thousand francs, payable to my order two months hence, our business for
+      to-day will be concluded.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s hand trembled nervously as he penned the desired note,
+      for, until the very last moment, he had doubted the promises of this
+      unknown agent who had made his appearance so opportunely Then, when the
+      document was signed, he carelessly slipped the money into a drawer and
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;So here&rsquo;s the needful to pay my debt of honor; but my
+      embarrassment is none the less great. These twenty-four thousand francs
+      won&rsquo;t take the place of the hundred thousand which Baron Trigault promised
+      me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And, as Pascal made no reply, the marquis began a desultory tramp up and
+      down the smoking-room. He was very pale, his brows were knit; he looked
+      like a man who was meditating a decisive step, and who was calculating the
+      consequences. But having no time to waste in hesitation, he soon paused in
+      front of Pascal, and exclaimed: &ldquo;Since you have just lent me twenty-four
+      thousand francs, why won&rsquo;t you lend me the rest?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Pascal shook his head. &ldquo;One risks nothing by advancing twenty-five
+      thousand francs to a person in your position, Monsieur le Marquis.
+      Whatever happens, such a sum as that can always be gathered from the
+      wreck. But double or triple the amount! The deuce! that requires
+      reflection, and I must understand the situation thoroughly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And if I told you that I am&mdash;almost ruined, what would you reply?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shouldn&rsquo;t be so very much surprised.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay had now gone too far to draw back. &ldquo;Ah, well!&rdquo; he resumed,
+      &ldquo;the truth is this&mdash;my affairs are terribly involved.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The devil! You should have told me that sooner.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Wait; I am about to retrieve my fortune&mdash;to make it even larger than
+      it has ever been. I am on the point of contracting a marriage which will
+      make me one of the richest men in Paris; but I must have a little time to
+      bring the affair to a successful termination, and I need money&mdash;and
+      my creditors are pressing me unmercifully. You told me this morning that
+      you once assisted a man who was in a similar position. Will you help me?
+      You can set your own price on your services.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      More easily overcome by joy than by sorrow, Pascal almost betrayed
+      himself. He had attained his object. Still, he succeeded in conquering his
+      emotion, and it was in a perfectly calm voice that he replied: &ldquo;I can
+      promise nothing until I understand the situation, Monsieur le Marquis.
+      Will you explain it to me? I am listening.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0014" id="link2H_4_0014">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XIV.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was nearly midnight when M. Wilkie left the Hotel d&rsquo;Argeles after the
+      terrible scene in which he had revealed his true character. On seeing him
+      pass out with haggard eyes, colorless lips, and disordered clothing, the
+      servants gathered in the vestibule took him at first for another of those
+      ruined gamblers who not unfrequently left the house with despair in their
+      hearts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Another fellow who&rsquo;s had bad luck!&rdquo; they remarked sneeringly to one
+      another.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No doubt about that. He is pretty effectually used up, judging from
+      appearances,&rdquo; one of them remarked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not until some moments later that they learned a portion of the
+      truth through the servants who had been on duty upstairs, and who now ran
+      down in great terror, crying that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles was dying, and that a
+      physician must be summoned at once.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie was already far away, hastening up the boulevard with an agile
+      step. Any one else would have been overcome with shame and sorrow&mdash;would
+      have been frightened by the thought of what he had done, and have striven
+      to find some way to conceal his disgrace; but he, not in the least. In
+      this frightful crisis, he was only conscious of one fact&mdash;that just
+      as he raised his hand to strike Madame Lia d&rsquo;Argeles, his mother, a big,
+      burly individual had burst into the room, like a bombshell, caught him by
+      the throat, forced him upon his knees, and compelled him to ask the lady&rsquo;s
+      pardon. He, Wilkie, to be humiliated in this style! He would never endure
+      that. This was an affront he could not swallow, one of those insults that
+      cry out for vengeance and for blood. &ldquo;Ah! the great brute shall pay for
+      it,&rdquo; he repeated, again and again, grinding his teeth. And if he hastened
+      up the boulevard, it was only because he hoped to meet his two chosen
+      friends, M. Costard and the Viscount de Serpillon, the co-proprietors of
+      Pompier de Nanterre.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For he intended to place his outraged honor in their care. They should be
+      his seconds, and present his demand for satisfaction to the man who had
+      insulted him. A duel was the only thing that could appease his furious
+      anger and heal his wounded pride. And a great scandal, which he would be
+      the hero of, was not without a certain charm for him. What a glorious
+      chance to win notoriety at an epoch when newspapers have become public
+      laundries, in which every one washes his soiled linen and dries it in the
+      glare of publicity! He saw his already remarkable reputation enhanced by
+      the interest that always attaches to people who are talked about, and he
+      could hear in advance the flattering whisper which would greet his
+      appearance everywhere: &ldquo;You see that young man?&mdash;he is the hero of
+      that famous adventure,&rdquo; etc. Moreover, he was already twisting and turning
+      the terms of the notice which his seconds must have inserted in the
+      Figaro, hesitating between two or three equally startling beginnings:
+      &ldquo;Another famous duel,&rdquo; or &ldquo;Yesterday, after a scandalous scene, an
+      encounter,&rdquo; etc., etc.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Unfortunately, he did not meet either M. Costard or the Viscount de
+      Serpillon. Strange to say, they were not in any of the cafes, where the
+      flower of French chivalry usually congregates, in the company of
+      golden-haired young women, from nine in the evening until one o&rsquo;clock in
+      the morning. This disappointment grieved M. Wilkie sorely, although he
+      derived some benefit from it, for his disordered attire attracted
+      attention at each place he entered, and acquaintances eagerly inquired:
+      &ldquo;Where have you come from, and what has happened to you?&rdquo; Whereupon he
+      replied with an air of profound secrecy: &ldquo;Pray don&rsquo;t speak of it. A
+      shocking affair! If it were noised abroad I should be inconsolable.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      At last the cafes began to close, and promenaders became rare. M. Wilkie,
+      much to his regret, was obliged to go home. When he had locked his door
+      and donned his dressing-gown, he sat down to think over the events of the
+      day, and collect his scattered wits. What most troubled and disquieted him
+      was not the condition in which he had left Madame Lia d&rsquo;Argeles, his
+      mother, who was, perhaps, dying, through his fault! It was not the
+      terrible sacrifice that this poor woman had made for him in a transport of
+      maternal love! It was not the thought of the source from which the money
+      he had squandered for so many years had been derived. No, M. Wilkie was
+      quite above such paltry considerations&mdash;good enough for commonplace
+      and antiquated people. &ldquo;He was too clever for that. Ah! yes. He had a
+      stronger stomach, and was up with the times!&rdquo; If he were sorely vexed in
+      spirit it was because he thought that the immense property which he had
+      believed his own had slipped, perhaps for ever, from his grasp. For rising
+      threateningly between the Chalusse millions and himself, he pictured the
+      form of his father, this man whom he did not know, but whose very name had
+      made Madame d&rsquo;Argeles shudder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie was seized with terror when he looked his actual situation in
+      the face. What was to become of him? He was certain that Madame d&rsquo;Argeles
+      would not give him another sou. She could not&mdash;he recognized that
+      fact. His intelligence was equal to that. On the other hand, if he ever
+      obtained anything from the count&rsquo;s estate, which was more than doubtful,
+      would he not be obliged to wait a long time for it? Yes, in all
+      probability such would be the case. Then how should he live, how would he
+      be able to obtain food in the meantime? His despair was so poignant that
+      tears came to his eyes; and he bitterly deplored the step he had taken.
+      Yes, he actually sighed for the past; he longed to live over again the
+      very years in which he had so often complained of his destiny. Then,
+      though not a millionaire by any means, he at least wanted for nothing.
+      Every quarter-day a very considerable allowance was promptly paid him,
+      and, in great emergencies, he could apply to Mr. Patterson, who always
+      sent a favorable answer if not drawn upon too heavily. Yes, he sighed for
+      that time! Ah! if he had only then realized how fortunate he was! Had he
+      not been one of the most opulent members of the society in which he moved?
+      Had he not been flattered and admired more than any of his companions? Had
+      he not found the most exquisite happiness in his part ownership of Pompier
+      de Nanterre!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, what remained? Nothing, save anxiety concerning the future, and all
+      sorts of uncertainties and terrors! What a mistake! What a blunder he had
+      made! Ah! if he could only begin again. He sincerely wished that the great
+      adversary of mankind had the Viscount de Coralth in his clutches. For, in
+      his despair, it was the once dear viscount that he blamed, accused, and
+      cursed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was in this ungrateful frame of mind when a loud, almost savage, ring
+      came at his door. As his servant slept in an attic upstairs, Wilkie was
+      quite alone in his rooms, so he took the lamp and went to open the door
+      himself. At this hour of the night, the visitor could only be M. Costard
+      or the Viscount de Serpillon, or perhaps both of them. &ldquo;They have heard
+      that I was looking for them, and so they have hastened here,&rdquo; he thought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he was mistaken. The visitor was neither of these gentlemen, but M.
+      Ferdinand de Coralth in person. Prudence had compelled the viscount to
+      leave Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s card-party one of the last, but as soon as he was
+      out of the house he had rushed to the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s to hold a
+      conference with him, far from suspecting that he was followed, and that an
+      auxiliary of Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite was even then
+      waiting for him below&mdash;an enemy as formidable as he was humble&mdash;Victor
+      Chupin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At sight of the man who had so long been his model&mdash;the friend who
+      had advised what he styled his blunder&mdash;Wilkie was so surprised that
+      he almost dropped his lamp. Then as his wrath kindled, &ldquo;Ah! so it&rsquo;s you!&rdquo;
+       he exclaimed, angrily. &ldquo;You come at a good time!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But M. de Coralth was too much exasperated to notice Wilkie&rsquo;s strange
+      greeting. Seizing him roughly by the arm, and closing the door with a
+      kick, he dragged Wilkie back into the little drawing-room. &ldquo;Yes, it&rsquo;s I,&rdquo;
+       he said, curtly. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s I&mdash;come to inquire if you have gone mad?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Viscount!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I can find no other explanation of your conduct! What! You choose Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s reception day, and an hour when there are fifty guests in her
+      drawing-room to present yourself!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, well! it wasn&rsquo;t from choice. I had been there twice before, and had
+      the doors shut in my face.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You ought to have gone back ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times,
+      rather than have accomplished such an idiotic prank as this.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What did I recommend? Prudence, calmness and moderation, persuasive
+      gentleness, sentiments of the loftiest nature, tenderness, a shower of
+      tears&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Possibly, but&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But instead of that, you fall upon this woman like a thunderbolt, and set
+      the whole household in the wildest commotion. What could you be thinking
+      of, to make such an absurd and frightful scene? For you howled and
+      shrieked like a street hawker, and we could hear you in the drawing-room.
+      If all is not irretrievably lost, there must be a special Providence for
+      the benefit of fools!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In his dismay, Wilkie endeavored to falter some excuses, but he was only
+      able to begin a few sentences which died away, uncompleted in his throat.
+      The violence shown by M. de Coralth, who was usually as cold and as
+      polished as marble, quieted his own wrath. Still toward the last he felt
+      disposed to rebel against the insults that were being heaped upon him. &ldquo;Do
+      you know, viscount, that I begin to think this very strange,&rdquo; he
+      exclaimed. &ldquo;If any one else had led me into such a scrape, I should have
+      called him to account in double-quick time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth shrugged his shoulders with an air of contempt, and
+      threateningly replied: &ldquo;Understand, once for all, that you had better not
+      attempt to bully me! Now, tell me what passed between your mother and
+      yourself?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;First I should like&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Dash it all! Do you suppose that I intend to remain here all night? Tell
+      me what occurred, and be quick about it. And try to speak the truth.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was one of M. Wilkie&rsquo;s greatest boasts that he had an indomitable will&mdash;an
+      iron nature. But the viscount exercised powerful influence over him, and,
+      to tell the truth, inspired him with a form of emotion which was nearly
+      akin to fear. Moreover, a glimmer of reason had at last penetrated his
+      befogged brain: he saw that M. de Coralth was right&mdash;that he had
+      acted like a fool, and that, if he hoped to escape from the dangers that
+      threatened him, he must take the advice of more experienced men than
+      himself. So, ceasing his recriminations, he began to describe what he
+      styled his explanation with Madame d&rsquo;Argeles. All went well at first; for
+      he dared not misrepresent the facts.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But when he came to the intervention of the man who had prevented him from
+      striking his mother, he turned crimson, and rage again filled his heart.
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sorry I let myself get into such a mess!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;You should
+      have seen my condition. My shirt-collar was torn, and my cravat hung in
+      tatters. He was much stronger than I&mdash;the contemptible scoundrel!&mdash;ah!
+      if it hadn&rsquo;t been for that&mdash;&mdash; But I shall have my revenge. Yes,
+      he shall learn that he can&rsquo;t trample a man under foot with impunity.
+      To-morrow two of my friends will call upon him; and if he refuses to
+      apologize or to give me satisfaction, I&rsquo;ll cane him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was evident enough that M. de Coralth had to exercise considerable
+      constraint to listen to these fine projects. &ldquo;I must warn you that you
+      ought to speak in other terms of an honorable and honored gentleman,&rdquo; he
+      interrupted, at last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Eh! what! You know him then?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s defender is Baron Trigault.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie&rsquo;s heart bounded with joy, as he heard this name. &ldquo;Ah! this is
+      capital!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;What! So it was Baron Trigault&mdash;the noted
+      gambler&mdash;who owns such a magnificent house in the Rue de la Ville
+      l&rsquo;Eveque, the husband of that extremely stylish lady, that notorious
+      cocotte&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount sprang from his chair, and interrupting M. Wilkie: &ldquo;I advise
+      you, for the sake of your own safety,&rdquo; he said, measuring his words to
+      give them greater weight, &ldquo;never to mention the Baroness Trigault&rsquo;s name
+      except in terms of the most profound respect.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no misunderstanding M. de Coralth&rsquo;s tone, and his glance said
+      plainly that he would not allow much time to pass before putting his
+      threat into execution. Having always lived in a lower circle to that in
+      which the baroness sparkled with such lively brilliancy, M. Wilkie was
+      ignorant of the reasons that induced his distinguished friend to defend
+      her so warmly; but he DID understand that it would be highly imprudent to
+      insist, or even to discuss the matter. So, in his most persuasive manner,
+      he resumed: &ldquo;Let us say no more about the wife, but give our attention to
+      the husband. So it was the baron who insulted me! A duel with him&mdash;what
+      good luck! Well! he may sleep in peace to-night, but as soon as he is up
+      in the morning he will find Costard and Serpillon on hand. Serpillon has
+      not an equal as a second. First, he knows the best places for a meeting;
+      then he lends the combatants weapons when they have none; he procures a
+      physician; and he is on excellent terms with the journalists, who publish
+      reports of these encounters.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount had never had a very exalted opinion of Wilkie&rsquo;s
+      intelligence, but now he was amazed to see how greatly he had
+      overestimated it. &ldquo;Enough of such foolishness,&rdquo; he interrupted, curtly.
+      &ldquo;This duel will never take place.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I should like to know who will prevent it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will, if you persist in such an absurd idea. You ought to have sense
+      enough to know that the baron would kick Serpillon out of the house, and
+      that you would only cover yourself with ridicule. So, between your duel
+      and my help make your choice, and quickly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The prospect of sending his seconds to demand satisfaction from Baron
+      Trigault was certainly a very attractive one. But, on the other hand,
+      Wilkie could not afford to dispense with M. de Coralth&rsquo;s services. &ldquo;But
+      the baron has insulted me,&rdquo; he urged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, you can demand satisfaction when you obtain possession of your
+      property: but the least scandal now would spoil your last chances.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will abandon the project, then,&rdquo; sighed Wilkie, despondently; &ldquo;but pray
+      advise me. What do you think of my situation?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth seemed to consider a moment, and then gravely replied: &ldquo;I
+      think that, UNASSISTED, you have no chance whatever. You have no standing,
+      no influential connections, no position&mdash;you are not even a
+      Frenchman.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! that is precisely what I have said to myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Still, I am convinced that with some assistance you might overcome your
+      mother&rsquo;s resistance, and even your father&rsquo;s pretentions.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, but where could I find protectors?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount&rsquo;s gravity seemed to increase. &ldquo;Listen to me,&rdquo; said he; &ldquo;I
+      will do for you what I would not do for any one else. I will endeavor to
+      interest in your cause one of my friends, who is all powerful by reason of
+      his name, his fortune, and his connections&mdash;the Marquis de Valorsay,
+      in fact.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The one who is so well known upon the turf?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The same.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And you will introduce me to him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes. Be ready to-morrow at eleven o&rsquo;clock, and I will call for you and
+      take you to his house. If he interests himself in your cause, it is as
+      good as gained.&rdquo; And as his companion overwhelmed him with thanks, he
+      rose, and said: &ldquo;I must go now. No more foolishness, and be ready
+      to-morrow at the appointed time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Thanks to the surprising mutability of temper which was the most striking
+      characteristic of his nature, M. Wilkie was already consoled for his
+      blunder.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had received M. de Coralth as an enemy; but he now escorted him to the
+      door with every obsequious attention&mdash;in fact, just as if he looked
+      upon him as his preserver. A word which the viscount had dropped during
+      the conversation had considerably helped to bring about this sudden
+      revulsion of feelings. &ldquo;You cannot fail to understand that if the Marquis
+      de Valorsay espouses your cause, you will want for nothing. And if a
+      lawsuit is unavoidable, he will be perfectly willing to advance the
+      necessary funds.&rdquo; How could M. Wilkie lack confidence after that? The
+      brightest hopes, the most ecstatic visions had succeeded the gloomy
+      forebodings of a few hours before. The mere thought of being presented to
+      M. de Valorsay, a nobleman celebrated for his adventures, his horses, and
+      his fortune, more than sufficed to make him forget his troubles. What
+      rapture to become that illustrious nobleman&rsquo;s acquaintance, perhaps his
+      friend! To move in the same orbit as this star of the first magnitude
+      which would inevitably cast some of its lustre upon him! Now he would be a
+      somebody in the world. He felt that he had grown a head taller, and Heaven
+      only knows with what disdain poor Costard and Serpillon would have been
+      received had they chanced to present themselves at that moment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is needless to say that Wilkie dressed with infinite care on the
+      following morning, no doubt in the hope of making a conquest of the
+      marquis at first sight. He tried his best to solve the problem of
+      appearing at the same time most recherche but at ease, excessively elegant
+      and yet unostentatious; and he devoted himself to the task so unreservedly
+      that he lost all conception of the flight of time: so that on seeing M. de
+      Coralth enter his rooms, he exclaimed in unfeigned astonishment: &ldquo;You here
+      already?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed to him that barely five minutes had elapsed since he took his
+      place before the looking-glass to study attitudes and gestures, with a new
+      and elegant mode of bowing and sitting down, like an actor practising the
+      effects which are to win him applause.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why do you say &lsquo;already?&rsquo;&rdquo; replied the viscount. &ldquo;I am a quarter of an
+      hour behind time. Are you not ready?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, certainly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let us start at once, then; my brougham is outside.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The drive was a silent one. M. Ferdinand de Coralth, whose smooth white
+      skin would ordinarily have excited the envy of a young girl, did not look
+      like himself. His face was swollen and covered with blotches, and there
+      were dark blue circles round his eyes. He seemed, moreover, to be in a
+      most savage humor. &ldquo;He hasn&rsquo;t had sleep enough,&rdquo; thought M. Wilkie, with
+      his usual discernment; &ldquo;he hasn&rsquo;t a bronze constitution like myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie himself was insensible to fatigue, and although he had not
+      closed his eyes the previous night, he only felt that nervous trepidation
+      which invariably attacks debutants, and makes the throat so marvellously
+      dry. For the first, and probably the last time in his life, M. Wilkie
+      distrusted his own powers, and feared that he was not &ldquo;quite up to the
+      mark,&rdquo; as he elegantly expressed it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sight of the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s handsome mansion was not likely to
+      restore his assurance. When he entered the courtyard, where the master&rsquo;s
+      mail-phaeton stood in waiting; when through the open doors of the handsome
+      stables he espied the many valuable horses neighing in their stalls, and
+      the numerous carriages shrouded in linen covers; when he counted the
+      valets on duty in the vestibule, and when he ascended the staircase behind
+      a lackey attired in a black dress-coat, and as serious in mien as a
+      notary; when he passed through the handsome drawing-rooms, filled to
+      overflowing with pictures, armor, statuary, and all the trophies gained by
+      the marquis&rsquo;s horses upon the turf, M. Wilkie mentally acknowledged that
+      he knew nothing of high life, and that what he had considered luxury was
+      scarcely the shadow of the reality. He felt actually ashamed of his own
+      ignorance. This feeling of inferiority became so powerful that he was
+      almost tempted to turn and fly, when the man clothed in black opened the
+      door and announced, in a clear voice: &ldquo;M. le Vicomte de Coralth!&mdash;M.
+      Wilkie.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With a most gracious and dignified air&mdash;the air of a true GRAND
+      seigneur&mdash;the only portion of his inheritance which he had preserved
+      intact, the marquis rose to his feet, and, offering his hand to M. de
+      Coralth, exclaimed: &ldquo;You are most welcome, viscount. This gentleman is
+      undoubtedly the young friend you spoke of in the note I received from you
+      this morning?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The same; and really he stands greatly in need of your kindness. He finds
+      himself in an extremely delicate position, and knows no one who can lend
+      him a helping hand.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, well, I will lend him one with pleasure, since he is your friend. But
+      I must know the circumstances before I can act. Sit down, gentlemen, and
+      enlighten me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie had prepared his story in advance, a touching and witty
+      narrative; but when the moment came to begin it, he found himself unable
+      to speak. He opened his mouth, but no sound issued from his lips, and it
+      seemed as if he had been stricken dumb. Accordingly it was M. de Coralth
+      who made a statement of the case, and he did it well. The narrative thus
+      gained considerably in clearness and precision; and even M. Wilkie noticed
+      that his friend understood how to present the events in their most
+      favorable light, and how to omit them altogether when his heartless
+      conduct would have appeared too odious. He also noticed&mdash;and he
+      considered it an excellent omen&mdash;that M. de Valorsay was listening
+      with the closest attention.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Worthy marquis! if his own interests had been in jeopardy he could not
+      have appeared more deeply concerned. When the viscount had concluded his
+      story, he gravely exclaimed: &ldquo;Your young friend is indeed in a most
+      critical position, a position from which he cannot escape without being
+      terribly victimized, if he&rsquo;s left dependent on his own resources.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But it is understood that you will help him, is it not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay reflected for a little, and then, addressing M. Wilkie,
+      replied: &ldquo;Yes, I consent to assist you, monsieur. First, because your
+      cause seems to me just, and, also, because you are M. de Coralth&rsquo;s friend.
+      I promise you my aid on one condition&mdash;that you will follow my advice
+      implicitly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The interesting young man lifted his hand, and, by dint of a powerful
+      effort, he succeeded in articulating: &ldquo;Anything you wish!&mdash;upon my
+      sacred word!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You must understand that when I engage in an enterprise, it must not
+      fail. The eye of the public is upon me, and I have my PRESTIGE to
+      maintain. I have given you a great mark of confidence, for in lending you
+      my influence I become, in some measure at least, your sponsor. But I
+      cannot accept this great responsibility unless I am allowed absolute
+      control of the affair.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And I think that we ought to begin operations this very day. The main
+      thing is to circumvent your father, the terrible man with whom your mother
+      has threatened you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! but how?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shall dress at once and go to the Hotel de Chalusse, in order to
+      ascertain what has occurred there. You on your side must hasten to Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles and request her politely, but firmly, to furnish you with the
+      necessary proofs to assert your rights. If she consents, well and good! If
+      she refuses, we will consult some lawyer as to the next step. In any case,
+      call here again at four o&rsquo;clock.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the thought of meeting Madame d&rsquo;Argeles again was anything but
+      pleasing to Wilkie. &ldquo;I would willingly yield that undertaking to some one
+      else,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Cannot some one else go in my place?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately M. de Coralth knew how to encourage him. &ldquo;What! are you
+      afraid?&rdquo; he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Afraid! he?&mdash;never! It was easy to see that by the way he settled his
+      hat on his head and went off, slamming the door noisily behind him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What an idiot!&rdquo; muttered M. de Coralth. &ldquo;And to think that there are ten
+      thousand in Paris built upon the very same plan!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay gravely shook his head. &ldquo;Let us thank fortune that he is as
+      he is. No youth who possessed either heart or intelligence would play the
+      part that I intend for him, and enable me to obtain proud Marguerite and
+      her millions. But I fear he won&rsquo;t go to Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s house. You
+      noticed his repugnance!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, you needn&rsquo;t trouble yourself in the least on that account&mdash;he&rsquo;ll
+      go. He would go to the devil if the noble Marquis de Valorsay ordered him
+      to do so.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Coralth understood Wilkie perfectly. The fear of being considered a
+      coward by a nobleman like the Marquis de Valorsay was more than
+      sufficient, not only to divest him of all his scruples, but even to induce
+      him to commit any act of folly, or actually a crime. For if he had looked
+      upon M. de Coralth as an oracle, he considered the marquis to be a perfect
+      god.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, as he hastened toward Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s residence, he said
+      to himself: &ldquo;Why shouldn&rsquo;t I go to her house? I&rsquo;ve done her no injury.
+      Besides, she won&rsquo;t eat me.&rdquo; And remembering that he should be obliged to
+      render a report of this interview, he resolved to assert his superiority
+      and to remain cool and unmoved, as he had seen M. de Coralth do so often.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the unusual aspect of the house excited his surprise, and puzzled
+      him not a little. Three huge furniture vans, heavily laden, were standing
+      outside the gate. In the courtyard there were two more vehicles of the
+      same description, which a dozen men or so were busily engaged in loading.
+      &ldquo;Ah, ha!&rdquo; muttered M. Wilkie, &ldquo;it was fortunate that I came&mdash;very
+      fortunate; so she was going to run away!&rdquo; Thereupon, approaching a group
+      of servants who were in close conference in the hall, he demanded, in his
+      most imperious manner: &ldquo;Madame d&rsquo;Argeles!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The servants remembered the visitor perfectly; they now knew who he really
+      was, and they could not understand how he could have the impudence and
+      audacity to come there again so soon after the shameful scene of the
+      previous evening. &ldquo;Madame is at home,&rdquo; replied one of the men, in anything
+      but a polite tone; &ldquo;and I will go and see if she will consent to see you.
+      Wait here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He went off, leaving M. Wilkie in the vestibule to settle his collar and
+      twirl his puny mustaches, with affected indifference; but in reality he
+      was far from comfortable. For the servants did not hesitate to stare at
+      him, and it was quite impossible not to read their contempt in their
+      glances. They even sneered audibly and pointed at him; and he heard five
+      or six epithets more expressive than elegant which could only have been
+      meant for himself. &ldquo;The fools!&rdquo; thought he, boiling with anger. &ldquo;The
+      scoundrels! Ah! if I dared. If a gentleman like myself was allowed to
+      notice such blackguards, how I&rsquo;d chastise them!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the valet who had gone to warn Madame d&rsquo;Argeles soon reappeared and
+      put an end to his sufferings. &ldquo;Madame will see you,&rdquo; said the man,
+      impudently. &ldquo;Ah! if I were in her place&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Come, make haste,&rdquo; rejoined Wilkie, indignantly, and following the
+      servant, he was ushered into a room which had already been divested of its
+      hangings, curtains, and furniture. He here found Madame d&rsquo;Argeles engaged
+      in packing a large trunk with household linen and sundry articles of
+      clothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By a sort of miracle the unfortunate woman had survived the terrible shock
+      which had at first threatened to have an immediately fatal effect. Still
+      she had none the less received her death-blow. It was only necessary to
+      look at her to be assured of that. She was so greatly changed that when M.
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s eyes first fell on her, he asked himself if this were really the
+      same person whom he had met on the previous evening. Henceforth she would
+      be an old woman. You would have taken her for over fifty, so terrible had
+      been the sufferings caused her by the shameful conduct of her son. In this
+      sad-eyed, haggard-faced woman, clad in black, no one would have recognized
+      the notorious Lia d&rsquo;Argeles, who, only the evening before, had driven
+      round the lake, reclining on the cushions of her victoria, and eclipsing
+      all the women around her by the splendor of her toilette. Nothing now
+      remained of the gay worldling but the golden hair which she was condemned
+      to see always the same, since its tint had been fixed by dyes as indelible
+      as the stains upon her past.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She rose with difficulty when M. Wilkie entered, and in the expressionless
+      voice of those who are without hope, she asked: &ldquo;What do you wish of me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As usual, when the time came to carry out his happiest conceptions, his
+      courage failed him. &ldquo;I came to talk about our affairs, you know,&rdquo; he
+      replied, &ldquo;and I find you moving.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am not moving.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense! you can&rsquo;t make me believe that! What&rsquo;s the meaning of these
+      carts in the courtyard?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They are here to convey all the furniture in the house to the
+      auction-rooms.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wilkie was struck dumb for a moment, but eventually recovering himself a
+      little, he exclaimed: &ldquo;What! you are going to sell everything?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Astonishing, upon my honor! But afterward?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shall leave Paris.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Bah! and where are you going?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With a gesture of utter indifference, she gently replied: &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know; I
+      shall go where no one will know me, and where it will be possible for me
+      to hide my shame.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A terrible disquietude seized hold of Wilkie. This sudden change of
+      residence, this departure which so strongly resembled flight, this cold
+      greeting when he expected passionate reproaches, seemed to indicate that
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s resolution would successfully resist any amount of
+      entreaty on his part. &ldquo;The devil,&rdquo; he remarked, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think this at all
+      pleasant! What is to become of me? How am I to obtain possession of the
+      Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s estate? That&rsquo;s what I am after! It&rsquo;s rightfully mine,
+      and I&rsquo;m determined to have it, as I told you once before. And when I&rsquo;ve
+      once taken anything into my head&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He paused, for he could no longer face the scornful glances that Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles was giving him. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t be alarmed,&rdquo; she replied bitterly, &ldquo;I
+      shall leave you the means of asserting your right to my parents&rsquo; estate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah&mdash;so&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Your threats obliged me to decide contrary to my own wishes. I felt that
+      no amount of slander or disgrace would daunt you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Of course not, when so many millions are at stake.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I reflected, and I saw that nothing would arrest you upon your downward
+      path except a large fortune. If you were poor and compelled to earn your
+      daily bread&mdash;a task which you are probably incapable of performing&mdash;who
+      can tell what depths of degradation you might descend to? With your
+      instincts and your vices, who knows what crime you wouldn&rsquo;t commit to
+      obtain money? It wouldn&rsquo;t be long before you were in the dock, and I
+      should hear of you only through your disgrace. But, on the other hand, if
+      you were rich, you would probably lead an honest life, like many others,
+      who, wanting for nothing, are not tempted to do wrong, who, in fact, show
+      virtue in which there is nothing worthy of praise. For real virtue implies
+      temptation&mdash;a struggle and victory.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Although he did not understand these remarks very well, M. Wilkie evinced
+      a desire to offer some objections; but Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had already
+      resumed: &ldquo;So I went to my notary this morning. I told him everything; and
+      by this time my renunciation of my rights to the estate of the Count de
+      Chalusse is already recorded.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What! your renunciation. Oh! no.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Allow me to finish since you don&rsquo;t understand me. As soon as I renounce
+      the inheritance it becomes yours.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Truly?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have no wish to deceive you. I only desire that the name of Lia
+      d&rsquo;Argeles should not be mentioned. I will give you the necessary proofs to
+      establish your identity; my marriage contract and your certificate of
+      birth.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was joy that made M. Wilkie speechless now. &ldquo;And when will you give me
+      these documents?&rdquo; he faltered, after a short pause.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You shall have them before you leave this house; but first of all I must
+      talk with you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0015" id="link2H_4_0015">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XV.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Agitated and excited though he was, M. Wilkie had not once ceased to think
+      of M. de Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay. What would they do in such a
+      position, and how should he act to conform himself to the probable example
+      of these models of deportment? Manifestly he ought to assume that stolid
+      and insolent air of boredom which is considered a sure indication of birth
+      and breeding. Convinced of this, and seized with a laudable desire to
+      emulate such distinguished examples, he had perched himself upon a trunk,
+      where he still sat with his legs crossed. He now pretended to suppress a
+      yawn, as he growled, &ldquo;What! some more long phrases&mdash;and another
+      melodramatic display?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Absorbed in the memories she had invoked, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles paid no heed to
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s impertinence. &ldquo;Yes, I must talk with you,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;and more
+      for your sake than for my own. I must tell you who I am, and through what
+      strange vicissitudes I have passed. You know what family I belong to. I
+      will tell you, however&mdash;for you may be ignorant of the fact&mdash;that
+      our house is the equal of any in France in lineage, splendor of alliance,
+      and fortune. When I was a child, my parents lived at the Hotel de
+      Chalusse, in the Faubourg Saint Germain, a perfect palace, surrounded by
+      one of those immense gardens, which are no longer seen in Paris&mdash;a
+      real park, shaded with century-old trees. Certainly everything that money
+      could procure, or vanity desire, was within my reach; and yet my youth was
+      wretchedly unhappy. I scarcely knew my father, who was devoured by
+      ambition, and had thrown himself body and soul into the vortex of
+      politics. Either my mother did not love me, or thought it beneath her
+      dignity to make any display of sensibility; but at all events her reserve
+      had raised a wall of ice between herself and me. As for my brother he was
+      too much engrossed in pleasure to think of a mere child. So I lived quite
+      alone, too proud to accept the love and friendship of my inferiors&mdash;abandoned
+      to the dangerous inspirations of solitude, and with no other consolation
+      than my books&mdash;books which had been chosen for me by my mother&rsquo;s
+      confessor, and which were calculated to fill my imagination with visionary
+      and romantic fancies. The only conversation I heard dealt with the means
+      of leaving all the family fortune to my brother, so that he might uphold
+      the splendor of the name, and with the necessity of marrying me to some
+      superannuated nobleman who would take me without a dowry, or of compelling
+      me to enter one of those aristocratic convents, which are the refuge, and
+      often the prison, of poor girls of noble birth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do not pretend to justify my fault, I am only explaining it. I thought
+      myself the most unfortunate being in the world&mdash;and such I really
+      was, since I honestly believed it&mdash;when I happened to meet Arthur
+      Gordon, your father. I saw him for the first time at a fete given at the
+      house of the Comte de Commarin. How he, a mere adventurer, had succeeded
+      in forcing his way into the most exclusive society in the world, is a
+      point which I have never been able to explain. But, alas! it is only too
+      true that when our glances met for the first time, my heart was stirred to
+      its inmost depths; I felt that it was no longer mine&mdash;that I was no
+      longer free! Ah! why does not God allow a man&rsquo;s face to reflect at least
+      something of his nature? This man, who was a corrupt and audacious
+      hypocrite, had that air of apparent nobility and frankness which inspires
+      you with unlimited confidence, and the melancholy expression on his
+      features seemed to indicate that he had known sorrow, and had good cause
+      to rail at destiny. In his whole appearance there was certainly a
+      mysterious and fatal charm. I afterward learned that this was only a
+      natural result of the wild life he had led. He was only twenty-six, and he
+      had already been the commander of a slave ship, and had fought in Mexico
+      at the head of one of those guerilla bands which make politics an excuse
+      for pillage and murder. He divined only too well the impression he had
+      made upon my heart. I met him twice afterward in society. He did not speak
+      to me; he even pretended to avoid me, but standing a little on one side,
+      he watched my every movement with burning eyes in which I fancied I could
+      read a passion as absorbing as my own. At last he ventured to write to me.
+      The moment a letter addressed to me in an unknown hand was covertly handed
+      me by my maid, I divined that it came from him. I was frightened, and my
+      first impulse was to take it, not to my mother&mdash;whom I regarded as my
+      natural enemy&mdash;but to my father. However, he chanced to be absent; I
+      kept the letter, I read it, I answered it&mdash;and he wrote again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! from that moment my conduct was inexcusable. I knew that it was
+      worse than a fault to continue this clandestine correspondence. I knew my
+      parents would never give my hand in marriage to a man who was not of noble
+      birth. I knew that I was risking my reputation, the spotless honor of our
+      house, my happiness, and life! Still I persisted&mdash;I was possessed
+      with a strange madness that made me ready to brave every danger. Besides,
+      he gave me no time to breathe, or reflect. Everywhere, constantly, every
+      instant, he compelled me to think of him. By some miracle of address and
+      audacity, he had discovered a means of intruding upon my presence, even in
+      my father&rsquo;s house. For instance, every morning I found the vases in my
+      room full of choice flowers, though I was never able to discover what
+      hands had placed them there. Ah! how can one help believing in an
+      omnipresent passion which one inhales with the very air one breathes! How
+      can one resist it?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I only discovered Arthur Gordon&rsquo;s object when it was too late. He had
+      come to Paris with the fixed determination of trapping some rich heiress,
+      and forcing her family to give her to him with a large dowry, after one of
+      those disgraceful scandals which render a marriage inevitable. At the very
+      same time he was pursuing two other rich young girls, persuaded that one
+      of the three would certainly become his victim.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was the first to yield. One of those unforeseen events which are the
+      work of Providence, was destined to decide my fate. Several times,
+      already, in compliance with Arthur&rsquo;s urgent entreaties, I had met him at
+      night time in a little pavilion in our garden. This pavilion contained a
+      billiard-room and a spacious gallery in which my brother practised fencing
+      and pistol shooting with his masters and friends. There, thanks to the
+      liberty I enjoyed, we thought ourselves perfectly secure from observation,
+      and we were imprudent enough to light the candles. One night when I had
+      just joined Arthur in the pavilion, I thought I heard the sound of hoarse,
+      heavy breathing behind me. I turned round in a fright and saw my brother
+      standing on the threshold. Oh! then I realized how guilty I had been! I
+      felt that one or the other of these two men&mdash;my lover or my brother&mdash;would
+      not leave that room alive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I tried to speak, to throw myself between them, but I found I could
+      neither speak nor move; it was as if I had been turned to stone. Nor did
+      they exchange a word at first. But at last my brother drew two swords from
+      their scabbards, and throwing one at Arthur&rsquo;s feet, exclaimed: &lsquo;I have no
+      wish to assassinate you. Defend yourself, and save your life if you can!&rsquo; 
+      And as Arthur hesitated, and seemed to be trying to gain time instead of
+      picking up the weapon that was lying on the floor near him, my brother
+      struck him in the face with the flat side of his sword, and cried: &lsquo;Now
+      will you fight, you coward! In an instant it was all over. Arthur caught
+      up the sword, and springing upon my brother, disarmed him, and wounded him
+      in the breast. I saw this. I saw the blood spurt out upon my lover&rsquo;s
+      hands. I saw my brother stagger, beat the air wildly with his hands, and
+      fall apparently lifeless to the floor. Then I, too, lost consciousness and
+      fell!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Any one who had seen Madame d&rsquo;Argeles as she stood there recoiling in
+      horror, with her features contracted, and her eyes dilated, would have
+      realized that by strength of will she had dispelled the mists enshrouding
+      the past, and distinctly beheld the scene she was describing. She seemed
+      to experience anew the same agony of terror she had felt twenty years
+      before; and this lent such poignant intensity to the interest of her
+      narrative that if M. Wilkie&rsquo;s heart was not exactly touched, he was, as he
+      afterward confessed, at least rather interested. But Madame d&rsquo;Argeles
+      seemed to have forgotten his existence. She wiped away the foam-flecked
+      blood which had risen to her lips, and in the same mournful voice resumed
+      her story.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When I regained my senses it was morning, and I was lying, still dressed,
+      on a bed in a strange room. Arthur Gordon was standing at the foot of the
+      bed anxiously watching my movements. He did not give me time to question
+      him. &lsquo;You are in my house,&rsquo; said he. &lsquo;Your brother is dead!&rsquo; Almighty God!
+      I thought I should die as well. I hoped so. I prayed for death. But, in
+      spite of my sobs, he pitilessly continued: &lsquo;It is a terrible misfortune
+      which I shall never cease to regret. And yet, it was his own fault. You,
+      who witnessed the scene, know that it was so. You can still see on my face
+      the mark of the blow he dealt me. I only defended myself and you.&rsquo; I was
+      ignorant then of the accepted code of duelling. I did not know that by
+      throwing himself upon my brother before he was on guard, Arthur Gordon had
+      virtually assassinated him. He relied upon my ignorance for the success of
+      the sinister farce he was playing. &lsquo;When I saw your brother fall,&rsquo; he
+      continued, &lsquo;I was wild with terror; and not knowing what I did, I caught
+      you up in my arms and brought you here. But don&rsquo;t tremble, I know that you
+      are not in my house of your own free will. A carriage is below and awaits
+      your orders to convey you to your parents&rsquo; home. It will be easy to find
+      an explanation for last night&rsquo;s catastrophe. Slander will not venture to
+      attack such a family as yours.&rsquo; He spoke in the constrained tone, and with
+      that air which a brave man, condemned to death, would assume in giving
+      utterance to his last wishes. I felt as if I were going mad. &lsquo;And you!&rsquo; I
+      exclaimed, &lsquo;you! What will become of you?&rsquo; He shook his head, and with a
+      look of anguish, replied: &lsquo;Me! What does it matter about me! I am ruined
+      undoubtedly. So much the better. Nothing matters now that I must live
+      apart from you&rsquo;! Ah! he knew my heart. He knew his power! Swayed by an
+      emotion which was madness rather than heroism, I sprang toward him, and
+      clasped him in my arms: &lsquo;Then I, too, am lost!&rsquo; I cried. &lsquo;Since fate
+      united us, nothing but death shall separate us. I love you. I am your
+      accomplice. Let the curse fall upon both!&rsquo; 
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A keen observer would certainly have detected a gleam of fiendish joy in
+      his eyes. But he protested, or pretended to protest. With feigned energy
+      he refused to accept such a sacrifice. He could not link my destiny to
+      his, for misery had ever been his lot; and now that this last and most
+      terrible misfortune had overtaken him, he was more than ever convinced
+      that there was a curse hanging over him! He would not suffer me to bring
+      misery upon myself, and eternal remorse upon him. But the more he repulsed
+      me, the more obstinately I clung to him. The more forcibly he showed the
+      horror of the sacrifice, the more I was convinced that my honor compelled
+      me to make it. So at last he yielded, or seemed to yield, with transports
+      of gratitude and love. &lsquo;Well! yes, I accept your sacrifice, my darling!&rsquo; 
+      he exclaimed. &lsquo;I accept it; and before the God who is looking down upon
+      us, I swear that I will do all that is in human power to repay such
+      sublime and marvellous devotion.&rsquo; And, bending over me, he printed a kiss
+      upon my forehead. &lsquo;But we must fly!&rsquo; he resumed, quickly. &lsquo;I have my
+      happiness to defend now! I will not suffer any one to discover us and
+      separate us now. We must start at once, without losing a moment, and gain
+      my native land, America. There, we shall be safe. For rest assured they
+      will search for us. Who knows but even now the officers of the law are
+      upon our track? Your family is all-powerful&mdash;I am a mere nobody&mdash;we
+      should be crushed if they discover us. They would bury you in a gloomy
+      cloister, and I should be tried as a common thief, or as a vile assassin.&rsquo; 
+      My only answer was: &lsquo;Let us go! Let us go at once!&rsquo; 
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It had been easy for him to foresee what the result of this interview
+      would be. A vehicle was indeed waiting at the door, but not for the
+      purpose of conveying me to the Hotel de Chalusse&mdash;as was proved
+      conclusively by the fact that his trunks were already strapped upon it.
+      Besides, the coachman must have received his instructions in advance for
+      he drove us straight to the Havre Railway station without a word. It was
+      not until some months afterward that these trifles, which entirely escaped
+      my notice at the time, opened my eyes to the truth. When we reached the
+      station we found a train ready to start, and we took our places in it. I
+      tried to quiet my conscience with miserable sophistries. Remembering that
+      God has said to woman: To follow thy husband thou shalt abandon all else,
+      native land, paternal home, parents and friends, I told myself that this
+      was the husband whom my heart had instinctively chosen, and that it was my
+      duty to follow him and share his destiny. And thus I fled with him,
+      although I thought I left a corpse behind me&mdash;the corpse of my only
+      brother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie was actually so much interested that he forgot his anxiety
+      concerning his attitude, and no longer thought of M. de Coralth and the
+      Marquis de Valorsay. He even sprang up, and exclaimed: &ldquo;Amazing!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had already resumed: &ldquo;Such was my great, inexcusable,
+      irreparable fault. I have told you the whole truth, without trying either
+      to conceal or justify anything. Listen to my chastisement! On our arrival
+      at Le Havre the next day, Arthur confessed that he was greatly embarrassed
+      financially. Owing to our precipitate flight, he had not had time to
+      realize the property he possessed&mdash;at least so he told me&mdash;a
+      banker, on whom he had depended, had moreover failed him, and he had not
+      sufficient money to pay our passage to New York. This amazed me. My
+      education had been absurd, like that of most young girls in my station. I
+      knew nothing of real life, of its requirements and difficulties. I knew,
+      of course, that there were rich people and poor people, that money was a
+      necessity, and that those who did not possess it would stoop to any
+      meanness to obtain it. But all this was not very clear in my mind, and I
+      never suspected that a few francs more or less would be a matter of vital
+      importance. So I was not in the least prepared for the request to which
+      this confession served as preface, and Arthur Gordon was obliged to ask me
+      point-blank if I did not happen to have some money about me, or some
+      jewelry which could be converted into money. I gave him all I had, my
+      purse containing a few louis, a ring and a necklace, with a handsome
+      diamond cross attached to it. However, the total value was comparatively
+      small, and such was Arthur&rsquo;s disappointment that he made a remark which
+      frightened me even then, though I did not fully understand its shameful
+      meaning until afterward: &lsquo;A woman who repairs to a rendezvous should
+      always have all the valuables she possesses about her. One never knows
+      what may happen.&rsquo; 
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Want of money was keeping us prisoners at Le Havre, when Arthur Gordon
+      chanced to meet an old acquaintance, who was the captain of an American
+      sailing vessel. He confided his embarrassment to his friend, and the
+      latter, whose vessel was to sail at the end of the same week, kindly
+      offered us a free passage. The voyage was one long torture to me, for it
+      was then that I first served my apprenticeship in shame and disgrace. By
+      the captain&rsquo;s offensive gallantry, the lower officers&rsquo; familiarity of
+      manner, and the sailors&rsquo; ironical glances whenever I appeared on deck, I
+      saw that my position was a secret for no one. Everybody knew that I was
+      the mistress and not the wife of the man whom I called my husband: and,
+      without being really conscious of it, perhaps, they made me cruelly
+      expiate my fault. Moreover, reason had regained its ascendency, my eyes
+      were gradually opening to the truth, and I was beginning to learn the real
+      character of the scoundrel for whom I had sacrificed all that makes life
+      desirable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not that he had wholly ceased to practise dissimulation. But after the
+      evening meal he often lingered at table smoking and drinking with his
+      friend the captain, and when he joined me afterward, heated with alcohol,
+      he shocked me by advocating theories which were both novel and repulsive
+      to me. Once, after drinking more than usual, he entirely forgot his
+      assumed part, and revealed himself in his true character. He declared he
+      bitterly regretted that our love affair had ended so disastrously. It was
+      deplorable to think that so happily conceived and so skilfully conducted a
+      scheme should have terminated in bloodshed. And the blow had fallen just
+      as he fancied he had reached the goal; just as he thought he would reap
+      the reward of his labor. In a few weeks&rsquo; more time he would undoubtedly
+      have gained sufficient influence over me to persuade me to elope with him.
+      This would, of course, have caused a great scandal; the next day there
+      would have been a family conclave; a compromise would have been effected,
+      and finally, a marriage arranged with a large dowry, to hush up the
+      affair. &lsquo;And I should now be a rich man,&rsquo; he added, &lsquo;a very rich man&mdash;I
+      should be rolling through the streets of Paris in my carriage, instead of
+      being on board this cursed ship, eating salt cod twice a day, and living
+      on charity.&rsquo; 
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! it was no longer possible to doubt. The truth was as clear as
+      daylight. I had never been loved, not even an hour, not even a moment. The
+      loving letters which had blinded me, the protestations of affection which
+      had deceived me, had been addressed to my father&rsquo;s millions, not to
+      myself. And not unfrequently I saw Arthur Gordon&rsquo;s face darken, as he
+      talked with evident anxiety about what he could do to earn a living for
+      himself and me in America. &lsquo;I have had trouble enough to get on alone,&rsquo; he
+      grumbled. &lsquo;What will it be now? To burden myself with a penniless wife!
+      What egregious folly! And yet I couldn&rsquo;t have acted differently&mdash;I
+      was compelled to do it.&rsquo; Why had he been compelled to do it? why had he
+      not acted differently?&mdash;that was what I vainly puzzled my brain to
+      explain. However, his gloomy fears of poverty were not realized. A
+      delightful surprise awaited him at New York. A relative had recently died,
+      leaving him a legacy of fifty thousand dollars&mdash;a small fortune. I
+      hoped that he would now cease his constant complaints, but he seemed even
+      more displeased than before. &lsquo;Such is the irony of fate,&rsquo; he repeated
+      again and again. &lsquo;With this money, I might easily have married a wife
+      worth a hundred thousand dollars, and then I should be rich at last!&rsquo; 
+      After that, I had good reason to expect that I should soon be forsaken&mdash;but
+      no, shortly after our arrival, he married me. Had he done so out of
+      respect for his word? I believed so. But, alas! this marriage was the
+      result of calculation, like everything else he did.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We were living in New York, when one evening he came home, looking very
+      pale and agitated. He had a French newspaper in his hand. &lsquo;Read this,&rsquo; he
+      said, handing it to me. I took the paper as he bade me, and read that my
+      brother had not been killed, that he was improving, and that his recovery
+      was now certain. And as I fell on my knees, bursting into tears, and
+      thanking God for freeing me from such terrible remorse, he exclaimed: &lsquo;We
+      are in a nice fix! I advise you to congratulate yourself! &lsquo;From that time
+      forward, I noticed he displayed the feverish anxiety of a man who feels
+      that he is constantly threatened with some great danger. A few days
+      afterward, he said to me: &lsquo;I cannot endure this! Have our trunks ready
+      to-morrow, and we will start South. Instead of calling ourselves Gordon,
+      we&rsquo;ll travel under the name of Grant.&rsquo; I did not venture to question him.
+      He had quite mastered me by his cruel tyranny, and I was accustomed to
+      obey him like a slave in terror of the lash. However, during our long
+      journey, I learned the cause of our flight and change of name.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;&lsquo;Your brother, d&mdash;n him,&rsquo; he said, one day, &lsquo;is hunting for me
+      everywhere! He wants to kill me or to deliver me up to justice, I don&rsquo;t
+      know which. He pretends that I tried to murder him!&rsquo; It was strange; but
+      Arthur Gordon, who was bravery personified, and who exposed himself again
+      and again to the most frightful dangers, felt a wild, unreasoning,
+      inconceivable fear of my brother. It was this dread that had decided him
+      to burden himself with me. He feared that if he left me, lying unconscious
+      beside my brother&rsquo;s lifeless form, I might on recovering my senses reveal
+      the truth, and unconsciously act as his accuser. You were born in
+      Richmond, Wilkie, where we remained nearly a month, during which time I
+      saw but little of your father. He had formed the acquaintance of several
+      rich planters, and spent his time hunting and gambling with them.
+      Unfortunately, fifty thousand dollars could not last long at this rate;
+      and, in spite of his skill as a gambler, he returned home one morning
+      ruined. A fortnight later when he had sold our effects, and borrowed all
+      the money he could, we embarked again for France. It was not until we
+      reached Paris that I discovered the reasons that had influenced him in
+      returning to Europe. He had heard of my father and mother&rsquo;s death, and
+      intended to compel me to claim my share of the property. He dared not
+      appear in person on account of my brother. At last the hour of my
+      vengeance had arrived; for I had taken a solemn oath that this scoundrel
+      who had ruined me should never enjoy the fortune which had been his only
+      object in seducing me. I had sworn to die inch by inch and by the most
+      frightful tortures rather than give him one penny of the Chalusse
+      millions. And I kept my word.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When I told him that I was resolved not to assert my rights, he seemed
+      utterly confounded. He could not understand how the down-trodden slave
+      dared to revolt against him. And when he found that my decision was
+      irrevocable, I thought he would have an attack of apoplexy. It made him
+      wild with rage to think that he was only separated from this immense
+      fortune&mdash;the dream of his life&mdash;by a single word of mine, and to
+      find that he had not the power to extort that word from me. Then began a
+      struggle between us, which became more and more frightful as the money he
+      possessed gradually dwindled away. But it was in vain that he resorted to
+      brutal treatment; in vain that he struck me, tortured me, and dragged me
+      about the floor by the hair of my head! The thought that I was avenged,
+      that his sufferings equalled mine, increased my courage a hundredfold, and
+      made me almost insensible to physical pain. He would certainly have been
+      the first to grow weary of the struggle, if a fiendish plan had not
+      occurred to him. He said to himself that if he could not conquer the wife,
+      he COULD conquer the mother and he threatened to turn his brutality to
+      you, Wilkie. To save you&mdash;for I knew what he was capable of&mdash;I
+      pretended to waver, and I asked twenty-four hours for reflection. He
+      granted them. But the next day I left him forever, flying from him with
+      you in my arms.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie turned white, and a cold chill crept up his spine. However, it
+      was not pity for his mother&rsquo;s sufferings, nor shame for his father&rsquo;s
+      infamy that agitated him, but ever the same terrible fear of incurring the
+      enmity of this dangerous coveter of the Chalusse millions. Would he be
+      able to hold his father at bay even with the assistance of M. de Coralth
+      and the Marquis de Valorsay? A thousand questions rose to his lips, for he
+      was eager to hear the particulars of his mother&rsquo;s flight; but Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles hurried on with her story as if she feared her strength would
+      fail before she reached the end.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was alone with you, Wilkie, in this great city,&rdquo; she resumed. &ldquo;A
+      hundred francs was all that I possessed. My first care was to find a place
+      of shelter. For sixteen francs a month, which I was compelled to pay in
+      advance, I found a small, meagrely furnished room in the Faubourg Saint
+      Martin. It was badly ventilated and miserably lighted, but still it was
+      shelter. I said to myself that we could live there together by my work,
+      Wilkie. I was a proficient in feminine accomplishments; I was an excellent
+      musician, and I thought I should have no difficulty in earning the four or
+      five francs a day which I considered absolutely necessary for our
+      subsistence. Alas! I discovered only too soon what chimerical hopes I had
+      cherished. To give music lessons it is necessary to obtain pupils. Where
+      should I find them? I had no one to recommend me, and I scarcely dared
+      show myself in the streets, so great was my fear that your father would
+      discover our hiding-place. At last, I decided to try to find some
+      employment in needlework, and timidly offered my services at several
+      shops. Alas! it is only those who have gone about from door to door
+      soliciting work who know the misery of the thing. To ask alms would be
+      scarcely more humiliating. People sneered at me, and replied (when they
+      deigned to reply at all) that &lsquo;there was no business doing, and they had
+      all the help they wanted.&rsquo; My evident inexperience was probably the cause
+      of many of these refusals, as well as my attire, for I still had the
+      appearance of being a rich woman. Who knows what they took me for? Still
+      the thought of you sustained me, Wilkie, and nothing daunted me.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I finally succeeded in obtaining some bands of muslin to embroider, and
+      some pieces of tapestry work to fill in. Unremunerative employment, no
+      doubt, especially to one ignorant of the art of working quickly, rather
+      than well. By rising with daylight, and working until late at night, I
+      scarcely succeeded in earning twenty sous a day. And it was not long
+      before even this scanty resource failed me. Winter came, and the cold
+      weather with it. One morning I changed my last five-franc piece&mdash;it
+      lasted us a week. Then I pawned and sold everything that was not
+      absolutely indispensable until nothing was left me but my patched dress
+      and a single skirt. And soon an evening came when the owner of our
+      miserable den turned us into the street because I could no longer pay the
+      rent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This was the final blow! I tottered away, clinging to the walls for
+      support; too weak from lack of food to carry you. The rain was falling,
+      and chilled us to the bones. You were crying bitterly. And all that night
+      and all the next day, aimless and hopeless, we wandered about the streets.
+      I must either die of want or return to your father. I preferred death.
+      Toward evening&mdash;instinct having led me to the Seine&mdash;I sat down
+      on one of the stone benches of the Point-Neuf, holding you on my knees and
+      watching the flow of the dark river below. There was a strange fascination&mdash;a
+      promise of peace in its depths&mdash;that impelled me almost irresistibly
+      to plunge into the flood. If I had been alone in the world, I should not
+      have stopped to consider a second, but on your account, Wilkie, I
+      hesitated.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Moved by the thought of the danger he had escaped, M. Wilkie shuddered.
+      &ldquo;B-r-r-r!&rdquo; he growled. &ldquo;You did well to hesitate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She did not even hear him, but continued: &ldquo;I at last decided that it was
+      best to put an end to this misery, and rising with difficulty, I was
+      approaching the parapet, when a gruff voice beside us exclaimed: &lsquo;What are
+      you doing there?&rsquo; I turned, thinking some police officer had spoken, but I
+      was mistaken. By the light of the street lamp, I perceived a man who
+      looked some thirty years of age, and had a frank and rather genial face.
+      Why this stranger instantly inspired me with unlimited confidence I don&rsquo;t
+      know. Perhaps it was an unconscious horror of death that made me long for
+      any token of human sympathy. However it may have been, I told him my
+      story, but not without changing the names, and omitting many particulars.
+      He had taken a seat beside me on the bench, and I saw big tears roll down
+      his cheeks as I proceeded with my narrative. &lsquo;It is ever so! it is ever
+      so!&rsquo; he muttered. &lsquo;To love is to incur the risk of martyrdom. It is to
+      offer one&rsquo;s self as a victim to every perfidy, to the basest treason and
+      ingratitude.&rsquo; The man who spoke in this fashion was Baron Trigault. He did
+      not allow me to finish my story. &lsquo;Enough!&rsquo; he suddenly exclaimed, &lsquo;follow
+      me!&rsquo; A cab was passing, he made us get in, and an hour later we were in a
+      comfortable room, beside a blazing fire, with a generously spread table
+      before us. The next day, moreover, we were installed in a pleasant home.
+      Alas! why wasn&rsquo;t the baron generous to the last? You were saved, Wilkie,
+      but at what a price!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She paused for a moment, her face redder than fire; but soon mastering her
+      agitation, she resumed: &ldquo;There was one great cause of dissension between
+      the baron and myself. I wished you to be educated, Wilkie, like the son of
+      a noble family, while he desired you should receive the practical training
+      suited to a youth who would have to make his own way in the world, and win
+      position, fortune, and even name for himself. Ah! he was a thousand times
+      right, as events have since proved only too well! But maternal love
+      blinded me, and, after an angry discussion, he went away, declaring he
+      would not see me again until I became more reasonable. He thought that
+      reflection would cure me of my folly. Unfortunately, he was not acquainted
+      with the fatal obstinacy which is the distinguishing characteristic of the
+      Chalusse family. While I was wondering how I could find the means of
+      carrying the plans I had formed for you into execution, two of the baron&rsquo;s
+      acquaintances presented themselves, with the following proposal: Aware of
+      the enormous profits derived by clandestine gambling dens, they had
+      conceived the project of opening a public establishment on a large scale,
+      where any Parisian or foreigner, if he seemed to be a gentleman, and
+      possessed of means, would find no difficulty in obtaining admission. By
+      taking certain precautions, and by establishing this gambling den in a
+      private drawing-room, they believed the scheme practicable, and came to
+      suggest that I should keep the drawing-room in question, and be their
+      partner in the enterprise. Scarcely knowing what I pledged myself to, I
+      accepted their offer, influenced&mdash;I should rather say decided&mdash;by
+      the exalted positions which both these gentlemen occupied, by the public
+      consideration they enjoyed, and the honored names they bore. And that same
+      week this house was rented and furnished, and I was installed in it under
+      the name of Lia d&rsquo;Argeles.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But this was not all. There still remained the task of creating for
+      myself one of those scandalous reputations that attract public attention.
+      This proved an easy task, thanks to the assistance of my silent partners,
+      and the innocent simplicity of several of their friends and certain
+      journalists. As for myself, I did my best to insure the success of the
+      horrible farce which was to lend infamous notoriety to the name of Lia
+      d&rsquo;Argeles. I had magnificent equipages and superb dresses, and I made
+      myself conspicuous at the theatres and all places of public resort. As is
+      generally the case when one is acting contrary to conscience, I called the
+      most absurd sophistries to my assistance. I tried to convince myself that
+      appearances are nothing, that reality is everything, and that it did not
+      matter if I were known as a courtesan since rumor lied, and my life WAS
+      really chaste. When the baron hastened to me and tried to rescue me from
+      the abyss into which I had flung myself; it was too late. I had discovered
+      that the business would prove successful; and for your sake, I longed for
+      money as passionately, as madly, as any miser. Last year my gaming-room
+      yielded more than one hundred and fifty thousand francs clear profit, and
+      I received as my share the thirty-five thousand francs which you
+      squandered. Now you know me as I really am. My associates, my partners,
+      the men whose secret I have faithfully kept, walk the streets with their
+      heads erect. They boast of their unsullied honor, and they are respected
+      by every one. Such is the truth, and I have no reason to make their
+      disgrace known. Besides, if I proclaimed it from the house-tops, no one
+      would believe me. But you are my son, and I owe you the truth, the whole
+      truth!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In any age but the present, Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s story would have seemed
+      absolutely incredible. Nowadays, however, such episodes are by no means
+      rare. Two men&mdash;two men of exalted rank and highly respected, to use a
+      common expression&mdash;associate in opening a gaming-house under the very
+      eyes of the police, and in coining money out of a woman&rsquo;s supposed
+      disgrace. &lsquo;Tis after all but an everyday occurrence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The unhappy woman had told her story with apparent coldness, and yet, in
+      her secret heart, she perhaps hoped that by disclosing her terrible
+      sacrifice and long martyrdom, she would draw a burst of gratitude and
+      tenderness from her son, calculated to repay her for all her sufferings.
+      But the hope was vain. It would have been easier to draw water from a
+      solid rock than to, extract a sympathetic tear from Wilkie&rsquo;s eyes. He was
+      only alive to the practical side of this narrative, and what impressed him
+      most was the impudent assurance of Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s business associates.
+      &ldquo;Not a bad idea; not bad at all,&rdquo; he exclaimed. And, boiling over with
+      curiosity, he continued: &ldquo;I would give something handsome to know those
+      men&rsquo;s names. Really you ought to tell me. It would be worth one&rsquo;s while to
+      know.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Any other person than this interesting young man would have been crushed
+      by the look his mother gave him&mdash;a look embodying the deepest
+      disappointment and contempt. &ldquo;I think you must be mad,&rdquo; she remarked
+      coldly. And as he sprang up, astonished that any one should doubt his
+      abundant supply of good sense, &ldquo;Let us put an end to this,&rdquo; she sternly
+      added.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thereupon she hastily went into the adjoining room, reappearing a moment
+      later with a roll of papers in her hand. &ldquo;Here,&rdquo; she remarked, &ldquo;is my
+      marriage certificate, your certificate of birth, and a copy of my
+      renunciation&mdash;a perfectly valid document, since the court has
+      authorized it, owing to my husband&rsquo;s absence. All these proofs I am ready
+      and willing to place at your disposal, but on one condition.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This last word fell like a cold shower-bath upon Wilkie&rsquo;s exultant joy.
+      &ldquo;What is this condition?&rdquo; he anxiously inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is that you should sign this deed, which has been drawn up by my
+      notary&mdash;a deed by which you pledge yourself to hand me the sum of two
+      million francs on the day you come into possession of the Chalusse
+      property.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Two millions! The immensity of the sum struck Wilkie dumb with
+      consternation. Nor did he forget that he would be compelled to give the
+      Viscount de Coralth the large reward he had promised him&mdash;a reward
+      promised in writing, unfortunately. &ldquo;I shall have nothing left,&rdquo; he began,
+      piteously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But with a disdainful gesture Madame d&rsquo;Argeles interrupted him. &ldquo;Set your
+      mind at rest,&rdquo; said she. &ldquo;You will still be immensely rich. All the
+      estimates which have been made are far below the mark. When I was a girl I
+      often heard my father say that his income amounted to more than eight
+      hundred thousand francs a year. My brother inherited the whole property,
+      and I would be willing to swear that he never spent more than half of his
+      income.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wilkie&rsquo;s nerves had never been subjected to so severe a shock. He tottered
+      and his brain whirled. &ldquo;Oh! oh!&rdquo; he stammered. This was all he could say.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Only I must warn you of a more than probable deception,&rdquo; pursued Madame
+      d&rsquo;Argeles. &ldquo;As my brother was firmly resolved to deprive me even of my
+      rightful portion of the estate, he concealed his fortune in every possible
+      way. It will undoubtedly require considerable time and trouble to gain
+      possession of the whole. However I know a man, formerly the Count de
+      Chalusse&rsquo;s confidential agent, who might aid you in this task.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And this man&rsquo;s name?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is Isidore Fortunat. I saved his card for you. Here it is.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie took it up, placed it carefully in his pocket, and then
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;That being the case, I consent to sign, but after this you
+      need not complain. Two millions at five per cent. ought to greatly
+      alleviate one&rsquo;s sufferings.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles did not deign to notice this delicate irony. &ldquo;I will tell
+      you in advance to what purpose I intend to apply this sum,&rdquo; she said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I intend one of these two millions to serve as the dowry of a young girl
+      who would have been the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s sole legatee, if his death had
+      not been so sudden and so unexpected.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the other one?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The other I intend to invest for you in such a way that you can only
+      touch the interest of it, so that you will not want for bread after you
+      have squandered your inheritance, even to the very last penny.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This wise precaution could not fail to shock such a brilliant young man as
+      M. Wilkie. &ldquo;Do you take me for a fool?&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;I may appear very
+      generous, but I am shrewd enough, never you fear.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sign,&rdquo; interrupted Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, coldly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he attempted to prove that he was no fool by reading and rereading the
+      contract before he would consent to append his name to it. At last,
+      however, he did so, and stowed away the proofs which insured him the
+      much-coveted property.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now,&rdquo; said Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, &ldquo;I have one request to make of you. Whenever
+      your father makes his appearance and lays claim to this fortune, I entreat
+      you to avoid a lawsuit, which would only make your mother&rsquo;s shame and the
+      disgrace attached to the hitherto stainless name of Chalusse still more
+      widely known. Compromise with him. You will be rich enough to satisfy his
+      greed without feeling it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie remained silent for a moment, as if he were deliberating upon
+      the course he ought to pursue. &ldquo;If my father is reasonable, I will be the
+      same,&rdquo; he said at last. &ldquo;I will choose as an arbiter between us one of my
+      friends&mdash;a man who acts on the square, like myself&mdash;the Marquis
+      de Valorsay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My God! do you know him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He is one of my most intimate friends.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had become very pale. &ldquo;Wretched boy!&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;You
+      don&rsquo;t know that it&rsquo;s the marquis&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; She paused abruptly. One
+      word more and she would have betrayed Pascal Ferailleur&rsquo;s secret plans,
+      with which she had been made acquainted by Baron Trigault. Had she a right
+      to do this, even to put her son on his guard against a man whom she
+      considered the greatest villain in the world?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well?&rdquo; insisted M. Wilkie, in surprise.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame d&rsquo;Argeles had recovered her self-possession. &ldquo;I only wished to
+      warn you against too close a connection with the Marquis de Valorsay. He
+      has an excellent position in society, but yours will be far more
+      brilliant. His star is on the wane; yours is just rising. All that he is
+      regretting, you have a right to hope for. Perhaps even now he is jealous
+      of you, and wishes to persuade you to take some false step.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! you little know him!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have warned you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie took up his hat, but, though he was longing to depart,
+      embarrassment kept him to the spot. He vaguely felt that he ought not to
+      leave his mother in this style. &ldquo;I hope I shall soon have some good news
+      to bring you,&rdquo; he began.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Before night I shall have left this house,&rdquo; she answered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Of course. But you are going to give me your new address.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What?&mdash;No!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She shook her head sadly, and in a scarcely audible voice responded: &ldquo;It
+      is not likely that we shall meet again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the two millions that I am to turn over to you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mr. Patterson will collect the money. As for me, say to yourself that I&rsquo;m
+      dead. You have broken the only link that bound me to life, by proving the
+      futility of the most terrible sacrifices. However, I am a mother, and I
+      forgive you.&rdquo; Then as he did not move, and as she felt that her strength
+      was deserting her, she dragged herself from the room, murmuring,
+      &ldquo;Farewell!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0016" id="link2H_4_0016">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XVI.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Stupefied with astonishment, M. Wilkie stood for a moment silent and
+      motionless. &ldquo;Allow me,&rdquo; he faltered at last; &ldquo;Allow me&mdash;I wish to
+      explain.&rdquo; But Madame d&rsquo;Argeles did not even turn her head; the door closed
+      behind her and he was left alone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However strong a man&rsquo;s nature may be, he always has certain moments of
+      weakness. For instance, at the present moment Wilkie was completely at a
+      loss what to do. Not that he repented, he was incapable of that; but there
+      are hours when the most hardened conscience is touched, and when long
+      dormant instincts at last assert their rights. If he had obeyed his first
+      impulse, he would have darted after his mother and thrown himself on his
+      knees before her. But reflection, remembrance of the Viscount de Coralth,
+      and the Marquis de Valorsay, made him silent the noblest voice that had
+      spoken in his soul for many a long day. So, with his head proudly erect,
+      he went off, twirling his mustaches and followed by the whispers of the
+      servants&mdash;whispers which were ready to change into hisses at any
+      moment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But what did he care for the opinion of these plebeians! Before he was a
+      hundred paces from the house his emotion had vanished, and he was thinking
+      how he could most agreeably spend the time until the hour appointed for
+      his second interview with M. de Valorsay. He had not breakfasted, but &ldquo;his
+      stomach was out of sorts,&rdquo; as he said to himself, and it would really have
+      been impossible for him to swallow a morsel. Thus not caring to return
+      home, he started in quest of one of his former intimates, with the
+      generous intention of overpowering him with the great news. Unfortunately
+      he failed to find this friend, and eager to vent the pride that was
+      suffocating him, in some way or other, he entered the shop of an engraver,
+      whom he crushed by his importance, and ordered some visiting cards bearing
+      the inscription W. de Gordon-Chalusse, with a count&rsquo;s coronet in one of
+      the corners.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus occupied, time flew by so quickly that he was a trifle late in
+      keeping his appointment with his dear friend the marquis. Wilkie found M.
+      de Valorsay as he had left him&mdash;in his smoking-room, talking with the
+      Viscount de Coralth. Not that the marquis had been idle, but it had barely
+      taken him an hour to set in motion the machinery which he had had in
+      complete readiness since the evening before. &ldquo;Victory!&rdquo; cried Wilkie, as
+      he appeared on the threshold. &ldquo;It was a hard battle, but I asserted my
+      rights. I am the acknowledged heir! the millions are mine!&rdquo; And without
+      giving his friends time to congratulate him, he began to describe his
+      interview with Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, presenting his conduct in the most odious
+      light possible, pretending he had indulged in all sorts of harsh
+      rejoinders, and making himself out to be &ldquo;a man of bronze,&rdquo; or &ldquo;a block of
+      marble,&rdquo; as he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are certainly more courageous than I fancied,&rdquo; said M. de Valorsay
+      gravely, when the narrative was ended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is that really so?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is, indeed. Now the world is before you. Let your story be noised
+      abroad&mdash;and it will be noised abroad&mdash;and you will become a
+      hero. Imagine the amazement of Paris when it learns that Lia d&rsquo;Argeles was
+      a virtuous woman, who sacrificed her reputation for the sake of her son&mdash;a
+      martyr, whose disgrace was only a shameful falsehood invented by two men
+      of rank to increase the attractions of their gambling-den! It will take
+      the newspapers a month to digest this strange romance. And whom will all
+      this notoriety fall upon? Upon you, my dear sir; and as your millions will
+      lend an additional charm to the romance, you will become the lion of the
+      season.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie was really too much overwhelmed to feel elated. &ldquo;Upon my word,
+      you overpower me, my dear marquis&mdash;you quite overpower me,&rdquo; he
+      stammered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I too have been at work,&rdquo; resumed the marquis. &ldquo;And I have made numerous
+      inquiries, in accordance with my promise. I almost regret it, for what I
+      have discovered is&mdash;very singular, to say the least. I was just
+      saying so to Coralth when you came in. What I have learned makes it
+      extremely unpleasant for me, to find myself mixed up in the affair;
+      accordingly, I have requested the persons who gave me this information to
+      call here. You shall hear their story, and then you must decide for
+      yourself.&rdquo; So saying, he rang the bell, and as soon as a servant answered
+      the summons, he exclaimed: &ldquo;Show M. Casimir in.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      When the lackey had retired to carry out this order, the marquis remarked:
+      &ldquo;Casimir was the deceased count&rsquo;s valet. He is a clever fellow, honest,
+      intelligent, and well up in his business&mdash;such a man as you will
+      need, in fact, and I won&rsquo;t try to conceal the fact that the hope of
+      entering your service has aided considerably in unloosening his tongue.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Casimir, who was irreproachably clad in black, with a white cambric tie
+      round his neck, entered the room at this very moment, smiling and bowing
+      obsequiously. &ldquo;This gentleman, my good fellow,&rdquo; said M. de Valorsay,
+      pointing to Wilkie, &ldquo;is your former master&rsquo;s only heir. A proof of
+      devotion might induce him to keep you with him. What you told me a little
+      while ago is of great importance to him; see if you can repeat it now for
+      his benefit.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      In his anxiety to secure a good situation, M. Casimir had ventured to
+      apply to the Marquis de Valorsay; he had talked a good deal, and the
+      marquis had conceived the plan of making him an unsuspecting accomplice.
+      &ldquo;I never deny my words,&rdquo; replied the valet, &ldquo;and since monsieur is the
+      heir to the property, I won&rsquo;t hesitate to tell him that immense sums have
+      been stolen from the late count&rsquo;s estate.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie bounded from his chair. &ldquo;Immense sums!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Is it
+      possible!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Monsieur shall judge. On the morning preceding his death, the count had
+      more than two millions in bank-notes and bonds stowed away in his
+      escritoire, but when the justice of the peace came to take the inventory,
+      the money could not be found. We servants were terribly alarmed, for we
+      feared that suspicion would fall upon us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ah! if Wilkie had only been alone he would have given vent to his true
+      feelings. But here, under the eyes of the marquis and M. de Coralth, he
+      felt that he must maintain an air of stoical indifference. He ALMOST
+      succeeded in doing so, and in a tolerably firm voice he remarked: &ldquo;This is
+      not very pleasant news. Two millions! that&rsquo;s a good haul. Tell me, my
+      friend, have you any clue to the thief?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The valet&rsquo;s troubled glance betrayed an uneasy conscience, but he had gone
+      too far to draw back. &ldquo;I shouldn&rsquo;t like to accuse an innocent person,&rdquo; he
+      replied, &ldquo;but there was some one who constantly had access to that
+      escritoire.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And who was that?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mademoiselle Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know the lady.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She&rsquo;s a young girl who is&mdash;at least people say&mdash;the count&rsquo;s
+      illegitimate daughter. Her word was law in the house.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What has become of her?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She has gone to live with General de Fondege, one of the count&rsquo;s friends.
+      She wouldn&rsquo;t take her jewels and diamonds away with her, which seemed very
+      strange, for they are worth more than a hundred thousand francs. Even
+      Bourigeau said to me: &lsquo;That&rsquo;s unnatural, M. Casimir.&rsquo; Borigeau is the
+      concierge of the house, a very worthy man. Monsieur will not find his
+      equal.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Unfortunately, this tribute to the merits of the valet&rsquo;s friend was
+      interrupted by the arrival of a footman, who, after tapping respectfully
+      at the door, entered the room and exclaimed: &ldquo;The doctor is here, and
+      desires to speak with Monsieur le Marquis.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well,&rdquo; replied M. de Valorsay, &ldquo;ask him to wait. When I ring, you
+      can usher him in.&rdquo; Then addressing M. Casimir, he added:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You may retire for the present, but don&rsquo;t leave the house. M. Wilkie will
+      acquaint you with his intentions by and by.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The valet thereupon backed out of the room, bowing profoundly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There is a story for you!&rdquo; exclaimed M. Wilkie as soon as the door was
+      closed. &ldquo;A robbery of two millions!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis shook his head, and remarked, gravely: &ldquo;That&rsquo;s a mere nothing.
+      I suspect something far more terrible.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, pray? Upon my word! you frighten me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Wait! I may be mistaken. Even the doctor may lie deceived. But you shall
+      judge for yourself.&rdquo; As he spoke, he pulled the bell-rope, and an instant
+      after, the servant announced: &ldquo;Dr. Jodon.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was, indeed, the same physician who had annoyed Mademoiselle Marguerite
+      by his persistent curiosity and impertinent questions, at the Count de
+      Chalusse&rsquo;s bedside; the same crafty and ambitious man, constantly
+      tormented by covetousness, and ready to do anything to gratify it&mdash;the
+      man of the period, in short, who sacrificed everything to the display by
+      which he hoped to deceive other people, and who was almost starving in the
+      midst of his mock splendor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Casimir was an innocent accomplice, but the doctor knew what he was
+      doing. Interviewed on behalf of the Marquis de Valorsay by Madame Leon, he
+      had fathomed the whole mystery at once. These two crafty natures had read
+      and understood each other. No definite words had passed between them&mdash;they
+      were both too shrewd for that; and yet, a compact had been concluded by
+      which each had tacitly agreed to serve the other according to his need.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As soon as the physician appeared, M. de Valorsay rose and shook hands
+      with him; then, offering him an arm-chair, he remarked: &ldquo;I will not
+      conceal from you, doctor, that I have in some measure prepared this
+      gentleman&rdquo;&mdash;designating M. Wilkie&mdash;&ldquo;for your terrible
+      revelation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By the doctor&rsquo;s attitude, a keen observer might have divined the secret
+      trepidation that always precedes a bad action which has been conceived and
+      decided upon in cold blood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To tell the truth,&rdquo; he began, speaking slowly, and with some difficulty,
+      &ldquo;now that the moment for speaking has come, I almost hesitate. Our
+      profession has painful exigencies. Perhaps it is now too late. If there
+      had been any of the count&rsquo;s relatives in the house, or even an heir at the
+      time, I should have insisted upon an autopsy. But now&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On hearing the word &ldquo;autopsy,&rdquo; M. Wilkie looked round with startled eyes.
+      He opened his lips to interrupt the speaker, but the physician had already
+      resumed his narrative. &ldquo;Besides, I had only suspicions,&rdquo; he said,
+      &ldquo;suspicions based, it is true, upon strange and alarming circumstances. I
+      am a man, that is to say, I am liable to error. In the kingdom of science
+      it would be unpardonable temerity on my part to affirm&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To affirm what?&rdquo; interrupted M. Wilkie.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The physician did not seem to hear him, but continued in the same dogmatic
+      tone. &ldquo;The count apparently died from an attack of apoplexy, but certain
+      poisons produce similar and even identical symptoms which are apt to
+      deceive the most experienced medical men. The persistent efforts of the
+      count&rsquo;s intellect, his muscular rigidity alternating with utter
+      relaxation, the dilation of the pupils of his eyes, and more than aught
+      else the violence of his last convulsions, have led me to ask myself if
+      some criminal had not hastened his end.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Whiter than his shirt, and trembling like a leaf, M. Wilkie sprang from
+      his chair. &ldquo;I understand!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;The count was murdered&mdash;poisoned.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the physician replied with an energetic protest. &ldquo;Oh, not so fast!&rdquo;
+       said he. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t mistake my conjectures for assertions. Still, I ought not
+      to conceal the circumstances which awakened my suspicions. On the morning
+      preceding his attack, the count took two spoonfuls of the contents of a
+      vial which the people in charge could not or would not produce. When I
+      asked what this vial contained, the answer was: &lsquo;A medicine to prevent
+      apoplexy.&rsquo; I don&rsquo;t say that this is false, but prove it. As for the motive
+      that led to the crime, it is apparent at once. The escritoire contained
+      two millions of francs, and the money has disappeared. Show me the vial,
+      find the money, and I will admit that I am wrong. But until then, I shall
+      have my suspicions.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He did not speak like a physician but like an examining magistrate, and
+      his alarming deductions found their way even to M. Wilkie&rsquo;s dull brain.
+      &ldquo;Who could have committed the crime?&rdquo; he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It could only have been the person likely to profit by it; and only one
+      person besides the count knew that the money was in the house, and had
+      possession of the key of this escritoire.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And this person?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is the count&rsquo;s illegitimate daughter, who lived in the house with him&mdash;Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Wilkie sank into his chair again, completely overwhelmed. The
+      coincidence between the doctor&rsquo;s deposition and M. Casimir&rsquo;s testimony was
+      too remarkable to pass unnoticed. Further doubt seemed impossible. &ldquo;Ah!
+      this is most unfortunate!&rdquo; faltered Wilkie. &ldquo;What a pity! Such
+      difficulties never assail any one but me! What am I to do?&rdquo; And in his
+      distress he glanced from the doctor to the Marquis de Valorsay, and then
+      at M. de Coralth, as if seeking inspiration from each of them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My profession forbids my acting as an adviser in such cases,&rdquo; replied the
+      physician, &ldquo;but these gentlemen have not the same reasons for keeping
+      silent.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me,&rdquo; interrupted the marquis quickly; &ldquo;but this is one of those
+      cases in which a man must be left to his own inspirations. The most I can
+      do, is to say what course I should pursue if I were one of the deceased
+      count&rsquo;s relatives or heirs.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pray tell me, my dear marquis,&rdquo; sighed Wilkie. &ldquo;You would render me an
+      immense service by doing so.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay seemed to reflect for a moment; and then he solemnly
+      exclaimed: &ldquo;I should feel that my honor required me to investigate every
+      circumstance connected with this mysterious affair. Before receiving a
+      man&rsquo;s estate, one must know the cause of his death, so as to avenge him if
+      he has been foully murdered.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For M. Wilkie the oracle had spoken. &ldquo;Such is my opinion exactly,&rdquo; he
+      declared. &ldquo;But what course would you pursue, my dear marquis? How would
+      you set about solving this mystery?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I should appeal to the authorities.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And this very day, this very hour, without losing a second, I should
+      address a communication to the public prosecutor, informing him of the
+      robbery which is patent to any one, and referring to the possibility of
+      foul play.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, that would be an excellent idea; but there is one slight drawback&mdash;I
+      don&rsquo;t know how to draw up such a communication.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I know no more about it than you do yourself; but any lawyer or notary
+      will give you the necessary information. Are you acquainted with any such
+      person? Would you like me to give you the address of my business man? He
+      is a very clever fellow, who has almost all the members of my club as his
+      clients.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This last reason was more than sufficient to fix M. Wilkie&rsquo;s choice.
+      &ldquo;Where can I find him?&rdquo; he inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;At his house&mdash;he is always there at this hour. Come! here is a scrap
+      of paper and a pencil. You had better make a note of his address. Write:
+      &lsquo;Maumejan, Route de la Revolte.&rsquo; Tell him that I sent you, and he will
+      treat you with the same consideration as he would show to me. He lives a
+      long way off, but my brougham is standing in the courtyard; so take it,
+      and when your consultation is over, come back and dine with me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! you are too kind!&rdquo; exclaimed M. Wilkie. &ldquo;You overpower me, my dear
+      marquis, you do, upon my word! I shall fly and be back in a moment.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He went off looking radiant; and a moment later the carriage which was to
+      take him to M. Maumejan&rsquo;s was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The doctor had already taken up his hat and cane.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You will excuse me for leaving you so abruptly, Monsieur le Marquis,&rdquo;
+       said he, &ldquo;but I have an engagement to discuss a business matter.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Indeed!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am negotiating for the purchase of a dentist&rsquo;s establishment.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What, you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, I. You may tell me that this is a downfall, but I will answer, &lsquo;It
+      will give me a living.&rsquo; Medicine is becoming a more and more
+      unremunerative profession. However hard a physician may work, he can
+      scarcely pay for the water he uses in washing his hands. I have an
+      opportunity of purchasing the business of a well-established and
+      well-known dentist, in an excellent neighborhood. Why not avail myself of
+      it? Only one thing worries me&mdash;the lack of funds.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis had expected the doctor would require remuneration for his
+      services. Before compromising himself any further, M. Jodon wished to knew
+      what compensation he was to receive. The marquis was so sure of this, that
+      he quickly exclaimed: &ldquo;Ah, my dear doctor, if you have need of twenty
+      thousand francs, I shall be only too happy to offer them to you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Really?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Upon my honor!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And when can you let me have the money?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In three or four days&rsquo; time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The bargain was concluded. The doctor was now ready to find traces of any
+      poison whatsoever in the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s exhumed remains. He pressed
+      the marquis&rsquo;s hand and then went off, exclaiming: &ldquo;Whatever happens you
+      can count upon me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Left alone with the Viscount de Coralth, and consequently freed from all
+      restraint, M. de Valorsay rose with a long-drawn sigh of relief. &ldquo;What an
+      interminable seance!&rdquo; he growled. And, approaching his acolyte, who was
+      sitting silent and motionless in an arm-chair, he slapped him on the
+      shoulder, exclaiming: &ldquo;Are you ill that you sit there like that, as still
+      as a mummy?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount turned as if he had been suddenly aroused from slumber. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m
+      well enough,&rdquo; he answered somewhat roughly. &ldquo;I was only thinking.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Your thoughts are not very pleasant, to judge from the look on your
+      face.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No. I was thinking of the fate that you are preparing for us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh! A truce to disagreeable prophecies, please! Besides, it&rsquo;s too late to
+      draw back, or to even think of retreat. The Rubicon is passed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! that is the cause of my anxiety. If it hadn&rsquo;t been for my wretched
+      past, which you have threatened me with like a dagger, I should long ago
+      have left you to incur this danger alone. You were useful to me in times
+      past, I admit. You presented me to the Baroness Trigault, to whose
+      patronage I owe my present means, but I am paying too dearly for your
+      services in allowing myself to be made the instrument of your dangerous
+      schemes. Who aided you in defrauding Kami-Bey? Who bet for you against
+      your own horse Domingo? Who risked his life in slipping those cards in the
+      pack which Pascal Ferailleur held? It was Coralth, always Coralth.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A gesture of anger escaped the marquis, but resolving to restrain himself,
+      he made no rejoinder. It was not until after he had walked five or six
+      times round the smoking-room and grown more calm that he returned to the
+      viscount&rsquo;s side. &ldquo;Really, I don&rsquo;t recognize you,&rdquo; he began. &ldquo;Is it really
+      you who have turned coward? And at what a moment, pray? Why, on the very
+      eve of success.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I wish I could believe you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Facts shall convince you. This morning I might have doubted, but now,
+      thanks to that vain idiot who goes by the name of Wilkie, I am sure,
+      perfectly, mathematically sure of success. Maumejan, who is entirely
+      devoted to me, and who is the greediest, most avaricious scoundrel alive,
+      will draw up such a complaint that Marguerite will sleep in prison.
+      Moreover, other witnesses will be summoned. By what Casimir has said, you
+      can judge what the other servants will say. This testimony will be
+      sufficient to convict her of the robbery. As for the poisoning, you heard
+      Dr. Jodon. Can I depend upon him? Evidently, if I pay without haggling.
+      Very well; I shall pay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But all this did not reassure M. de Coralth. &ldquo;The accusation will fall to
+      the ground,&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;as soon as the famous vial from which M. de
+      Chalusse took two spoonfuls is found.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me; it won&rsquo;t be found.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But why?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because I know where it is, my dear friend. It is in the count&rsquo;s
+      escritoire, but it won&rsquo;t be there any longer on the day after to-morrow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who will remove it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A skilful fellow whom Madame Leon has found for me. Everything has been
+      carefully arranged. To-morrow night at the latest Madame Leon will let
+      this man into the Hotel de Chalusse by the garden gate, which she has kept
+      the key of. Vantrasson, as the man is called, knows the management of the
+      house, and he will break open the escritoire and take the vial away. You
+      may say that there are seals upon the furniture, placed there by the
+      justice of the peace. That&rsquo;s true, but this man tells me that he can
+      remove and replace them in such a way as to defy detection; and as the
+      lock has been forced once already&mdash;the day after the count&rsquo;s death&mdash;a
+      second attempt to break the escritoire open will not be detected.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount remarked, with an ironical air: &ldquo;All that is perfect; but the
+      autopsy will reveal the falseness of the accusation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Naturally&mdash;but an autopsy will require time, and that will suit my
+      plans admirably. After eight or ten days&rsquo; solitary confinement and several
+      rigid examinations, Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s energy and courage will
+      flag. What do you think she will reply to the man who says to her: &lsquo;I love
+      you, and for your sake I will attempt the impossible. Swear to become my
+      wife and I will establish your innocence?&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I think she will say: &lsquo;Save me and I will marry you!&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay clapped his hands. &ldquo;Bravo!&rdquo; he exclaimed; &ldquo;you have spoken
+      the truth. Remember, now, that your dark forebodings are only chimeras!
+      Yes, she will swear it, and I know she is the woman to keep her vow, even
+      if she died of sorrow. And the very next day I will go to the examining
+      magistrate and say to him: &lsquo;Marguerite a thief! Ah, what a frightful
+      mistake. A robbery has been committed, it&rsquo;s true; but I know the real
+      culprit&mdash;a scoundrel who fancied that by destroying a single letter
+      he would annihilate all traces of the breach of fidelity he had committed.
+      Fortunately, the Count de Chalusse distrusted this man, and proof of his
+      breach of trust is in existence. I have this proof in my hands.&rsquo; And I
+      will show a letter establishing the truth of my assertion.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      No forebodings clouded the marquis&rsquo;s joy; he saw no obstacles; it seemed
+      to him as if he had already triumphed. &ldquo;And the day following,&rdquo; he
+      resumed, &ldquo;when Marguerite becomes my wife, I shall take from a certain
+      drawer a certain document, given to me by M. de Chalusse when I was on the
+      point of becoming his son-in-law, and in which he recognizes Marguerite as
+      his daughter, and makes her his sole legatee. And this document is
+      perfectly en regle, and unattackable. Maumejan, who has examined it,
+      guarantees that the value of the count&rsquo;s estate cannot be less than ten
+      millions. Five will go to Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, or her son Wilkie, as their
+      share of the property. The remaining five will be mine. Come, confess that
+      the plan is admirable!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Admirable, undoubtedly; but terribly complicated. When there are so many
+      wheels within wheels, one of them is always sure to get out of order.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nonsense!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Besides, you have I don&rsquo;t know how many accomplices&mdash;Maumejan, the
+      doctor, Madame Leon, and Vantrasson, not counting myself. Will all these
+      people perform their duties satisfactorily?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Each of them is as much interested in my success as I am myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But we have enemies&mdash;Madame d&rsquo;Argeles, Fortunat&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Madame d&rsquo;Argeles is about to leave Paris. If Fortunat is troublesome I
+      will purchase his silence; Maumejan has promised me money.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But M. de Coralth had kept his strongest argument until the last. &ldquo;And
+      Pascal Ferailleur?&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;You have forgotten him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      No; M. de Valorsay had not forgotten him. You do not forget the man you
+      have ruined and dishonored. Still, it was in a careless tone that ill
+      accorded with his state of mind that the marquis replied: &ldquo;The poor devil
+      must be en route for America by this time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The viscount shook his head. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what I&rsquo;ve in vain been trying to
+      convince myself of,&rdquo; said he. &ldquo;Do you know that Pascal was virtually
+      expelled from the Palais de Justice, and that his name has been struck off
+      the list of advocates? If he hasn&rsquo;t blown his brains out, it is only
+      because he hopes to prove his innocence. Ah! if you knew him as well as I
+      do, you wouldn&rsquo;t be so tranquil in mind!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He stopped short for the door had suddenly opened. The interruption made
+      the marquis frown, but anger gave way to anxiety when he perceived Madame
+      Leon, who entered the room out of breath and extremely red in the face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;There wasn&rsquo;t a cab to be had!&rdquo; she groaned. &ldquo;Just my luck. I came on
+      foot, and ran the whole way. I&rsquo;m utterly exhausted;&rdquo; and so saying, she
+      sank into an arm-chair.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay had turned very pale. &ldquo;Defer your complaints until another
+      time,&rdquo; he said, harshly. &ldquo;What has happened? Tell me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The estimable woman raised her hands to heaven, as she plaintively
+      replied: &ldquo;There is so much to tell? First, Mademoiselle Marguerite has
+      written two letters, but I have failed to discover to whom they were sent.
+      Secondly, she remained for more than an hour yesterday evening in the
+      drawing-room with the General&rsquo;s son, Lieutenant Gustave, and, on parting,
+      they shook hands like a couple of friends, and said, &lsquo;It is agreed.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And is that all?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;One moment and you&rsquo;ll see. This morning Mademoiselle went out with Madame
+      de Fondege to call on the Baroness Trigault. I do not know what took place
+      there, but there must have been a terrible scene; for they brought
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite back unconscious, in one of the baron&rsquo;s
+      carriages.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Do you hear that, viscount?&rdquo; exclaimed M. de Valorsay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes! You shall have the explanation to-morrow,&rdquo; answered M. de Coralth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And last, but not least,&rdquo; resumed Madame Leon, &ldquo;on returning home this
+      evening at about five o&rsquo;clock, I fancied I saw Mademoiselle Marguerite
+      leave the house and go up the Rue Pigalle. I had thought she was ill and
+      in bed, and I said to myself, &lsquo;This is very strange.&rsquo; So I hastened after
+      her. It was indeed she. Of course, I followed her. And what did I see?
+      Why, Mademoiselle paused to talk with a vagabond, clad in a blouse. They
+      exchanged notes, and Mademoiselle Marguerite returned home. And here I am.
+      She must certainly suspect something. What is to be done?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      If M. de Valorsay were frightened, he did not show it. &ldquo;Many thanks for
+      your zeal, my dear lady,&rdquo; he replied, &ldquo;but all this is a mere nothing.
+      Return home at once; you will receive my instructions to-morrow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0017" id="link2H_4_0017">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XVII.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite had been greatly surprised on the occasion of her
+      visit to M. Fortunat when she saw Victor Chupin suddenly step forward and
+      eagerly exclaim: &ldquo;I shall be unworthy of the name I bear if I do not find
+      M. Ferailleur for you in less than a fortnight.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It is true that M. Fortunat&rsquo;s clerk did not appear to the best advantage
+      on this occasion. In order to watch M. de Coralth, he had again arrayed
+      himself in his cast-off clothes, and with his blouse and his worn-out
+      shoes, his &ldquo;knockers&rdquo; and his glazed cap, he looked the vagabond to
+      perfection. Still, strange as it may seem, Mademoiselle Marguerite did not
+      once doubt the devotion of this strange auxiliary. Without an instant&rsquo;s
+      hesitation she replied, &ldquo;I accept your services, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin felt at least a head taller as he heard this beautiful young girl
+      speak to him in a voice as clear and as sonorous as crystal. &ldquo;Ah! you are
+      right to trust me,&rdquo; he rejoined, striking his chest with his clinched
+      hand, &ldquo;for I have a heart&mdash;but&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But what, monsieur?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am wondering if you would consent to do what I wish. It would be a very
+      good plan, but if it displeases you, we will say no more about it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And what do you wish?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To see you every day, so as to tell you what I&rsquo;ve done, and to obtain
+      such directions as I may require. I&rsquo;m well aware that I can&rsquo;t go to M. de
+      Fondege&rsquo;s door and ask to speak to you; but there are other ways of seeing
+      each other. For instance, every evening at five o-clock precisely, I might
+      pass along the Rue Pigalle, and warn you of my presence by such a signal
+      as this: &lsquo;Pi-ouit!&rsquo;&rdquo; So saying he gave vent to the peculiar call, half
+      whistle, half ejaculation, which is familiar to the Parisian
+      working-classes. &ldquo;Then,&rdquo; he resumed, &ldquo;you might come down and I would tell
+      you the news; besides, I might often help you by doing errands.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite reflected for a moment, and then bowing her head,
+      she replied:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What you suggest is quite practicable. On and after to-morrow evening I
+      will watch for you; and if I don&rsquo;t come down at the end of half an hour,
+      you will know that I am unavoidably detained.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin ought to have been satisfied. But no, he had still another request
+      to make; and instinct, supplying the lack of education, told him that it
+      was a delicate one. Indeed, he dared not present his petition; but his
+      embarrassment was so evident, and he twisted his poor cap so despairingly,
+      that at last the young girl gently asked him: &ldquo;Is there anything more?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He still hesitated, but eventually, mustering all his courage, he replied:
+      &ldquo;Well, yes, mademoiselle. I&rsquo;ve never seen Monsieur Ferailleur. Is he tall
+      or short, light or dark, stout or thin? I do not know. I might stand face
+      to face with him without being able to say, &lsquo;It&rsquo;s he.&rsquo; But it would be
+      quite a different thing if I only had a photograph of him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A crimson flush spread over Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s face. Still she
+      answered, unaffectedly, &ldquo;I will give you M. Ferailleur&rsquo;s photograph
+      to-morrow, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then I shall be all right!&rdquo; exclaimed Chupin. &ldquo;Have no fears,
+      mademoiselle, we shall outwit these scoundrels!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      So far a silent witness of this scene, M. Fortunat now felt it his duty to
+      interfere. He was not particularly pleased by his clerk&rsquo;s suddenly
+      increased importance; and yet it mattered little to him, for his only
+      object was to revenge himself on Valorsay. &ldquo;Victor is a capable and
+      trustworthy young fellow, mademoiselle,&rdquo; he declared; &ldquo;he has grown up
+      under my training, and I think you will find him a faithful servant.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A &ldquo;have you finished, you old liar?&rdquo; rose to Chupin&rsquo;s lips, but respect
+      for Mademoiselle Marguerite prevented him from uttering the words. &ldquo;Then
+      everything is decided,&rdquo; she said, pleasantly. And with a smile she offered
+      her hand to Chupin as one does in concluding a bargain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If he had yielded to his first impulse he would have thrown himself on his
+      knees and kissed this hand of hers, the whitest and most beautiful he had
+      ever seen. As it was, he only ventured to touch it with his finger-tips,
+      and yet he changed color two or three times. &ldquo;What a woman!&rdquo; he exclaimed,
+      when she had left them. &ldquo;A perfect queen! A man would willingly allow
+      himself to be chopped in pieces for her sake; and she&rsquo;s as good and as
+      clever as she&rsquo;s handsome. Did you notice, monsieur, that she did not offer
+      to pay me. She understood that I offered to work for her for my own
+      pleasure, for my own satisfaction and honor. Heavens! how I should have
+      chafed if she had offered me money. How provoked I should have been!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin was so fascinated that he wished no reward for his toil! This was
+      so astonishing that M. Fortunat remained for a moment speechless with
+      surprise. &ldquo;Have you gone mad, Victor?&rdquo; he inquired at last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mad! I?&mdash;not at all; I&rsquo;m only becoming&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; He stopped
+      short. He was going to add: &ldquo;an honest man.&rdquo; But it is scarcely proper to
+      talk about the rope in the hangman&rsquo;s house, and there are certain words
+      which should never be pronounced in the presence of certain people. Chupin
+      knew this, and so he quickly resumed: &ldquo;When I become rich, when I&rsquo;m a
+      great banker, and have a host of clerks who spend their time in counting
+      my gold behind a grating, I should like to have a wife of my own like
+      that. But I must be off about my business now, so till we meet again,
+      monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The foregoing conversation will explain how it happened that Madame Leon
+      chanced to surprise her dear young lady in close conversation with a
+      vagabond clad in a blouse. Victor Chupin was not a person to make promises
+      and then leave them unfulfilled. Though he was usually unimpressionable,
+      like all who lead a precarious existence, still, when his emotions were
+      once aroused, they did not spend themselves in empty protestations. It
+      became his fixed determination to find Pascal Ferailleur, and the
+      difficulties of the task in no wise weakened his resolution. His starting
+      point was that Pascal had lived in the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm, and had suddenly gone
+      off with his mother, with the apparent intention of sailing for America.
+      This was all he knew positively, and everything else was mere conjecture.
+      Still Mademoiselle Marguerite had convinced him that instead of leaving
+      Paris, Pascal was really still there, only waiting for an opportunity to
+      establish his innocence, and to wreak his vengeance upon M. de Coralth and
+      the Marquis de Valorsay. On the other hand, with such a slight basis to
+      depend upon, was it not almost madness to hope to discover a man who had
+      such strong reasons for concealing himself? Chupin did not think so in
+      fact, when he declared his determination to perform this feat, his plan
+      was already perfected.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On leaving M. Fortunat&rsquo;s office, he hastened straight to the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm, at
+      the top of his speed. The concierge of the house where Pascal had formerly
+      resided was by no means a polite individual. He was the very same man who
+      had answered Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s questions so rudely; but Chupin had
+      a way of conciliating even the most crabbish doorkeeper, and of drawing
+      from him such information as he desired. He learned that at nine o&rsquo;clock
+      on the sixteenth of October Madame Ferailleur, after seeing her trunks
+      securely strapped on to a cab had entered the vehicle, ordering the driver
+      to take her to the Railway Station in the Place du Havre! Chupin wished to
+      ascertain the number of the cab, but the concierge could not give it. He
+      mentioned, however, that this cab had been procured by Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s
+      servant-woman, who lived only a few steps from the house. A moment later
+      Chupin was knocking at this woman&rsquo;s door. She was a very worthy person,
+      and bitterly regretted the misfortunes which had befallen her former
+      employers. She confirmed the doorkeeper&rsquo;s story, but unfortunately she,
+      too, had quite forgotten the number of the vehicle. All she could say was
+      that she had hired it at the cab stand in the Rue Soufflot, and that the
+      driver was a portly, pleasant-faced man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin repaired at once to the Rue Soufflot, where he found the man in
+      charge of the stand in the most savage mood imaginable. He began by asking
+      Chupin what right he had to question him, why he wished to do so, and if
+      he took him for a spy. He added that his duty only consisted in noting the
+      arrivals and departures of the drivers, and that he could give no
+      information whatever. There was evidently nothing to be gained from this
+      ferocious personage; and yet Chupin bowed none the less politely as he
+      left the little office. &ldquo;This is bad,&rdquo; he growled, as he walked away, for
+      he was really at a loss what to do next; and if not discouraged, he was at
+      least extremely disconcerted and perplexed. Ah! if he had only had a card
+      from the prefecture of police in his pocket, or if he had been more
+      imposing in appearance, he would have encountered no obstacles; he might
+      then have tracked this cab through the streets of Paris as easily as he
+      could have followed a man bearing a lighted lantern through the darkness.
+      But poor and humble, without letters of recommendation, and with no other
+      auxiliaries than his own shrewdness and experience, he had a great deal to
+      contend against. Pausing in his walk, he had taken off his cap and was
+      scratching his head furiously, when suddenly he exclaimed: &ldquo;What an ass I
+      am!&rdquo; in so loud a tone that several passers-by turned to see who was
+      applying this unflattering epithet to himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin had just remembered one of M. Isidore Fortunat&rsquo;s debtors, a man
+      whom he often visited in the hope of extorting some trifling amount from
+      him, and who was employed in the Central office of the Paris Cab Company.
+      &ldquo;If any one can help me out of this difficulty, it must be that fellow,&rdquo;
+       he said to himself. &ldquo;I hope I shall find him at his desk! Come, Victor, my
+      boy, you must look alive!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      However, he could not present himself at the office in the garb he then
+      wore, and so, much against his will, he went home and changed his clothes.
+      Then he took a cab at his own expense, and drove with all possible speed
+      to the main office of the Cab Company, in the Avenue de Segur.
+      Nevertheless it was already ten o&rsquo;clock when he arrived there. He was more
+      fortunate than he had dared to hope. The man he wanted had charge of a
+      certain department, and was compelled to return to the office every
+      evening after dinner. He was there now.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was a poor devil who, while receiving a salary of fifteen hundred
+      francs a year, spent a couple of thousand, and utilized his wits in
+      defending his meagre salary from his creditors. On perceiving Chupin, he
+      made a wrathful gesture, and his first words were: &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t got a
+      penny.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Chupin smiled his most genial smile. &ldquo;What!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;do you fancy
+      I&rsquo;ve come to collect money from you here, and at this hour? You don&rsquo;t know
+      me. I merely came to ask a favor of you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The clerk&rsquo;s clouded face brightened. &ldquo;Since that is the case, pray take a
+      seat, and tell me how I can serve you,&rdquo; he replied.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well. At nine o&rsquo;clock in the evening, on the sixteenth of October, a
+      lady living in the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm sent to the stand in the Rue Soufflot for a
+      cab. Her baggage was placed upon it, and she went away no one knows where.
+      However, this lady is a relative of my employer, and he so much wishes to
+      find her that he would willingly give a hundred francs over and above the
+      amount you owe him, to ascertain the number of the vehicle. He pretends
+      that you can give him this number if you choose; and it isn&rsquo;t an
+      impossibility, is it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;On the contrary, nothing could be easier,&rdquo; replied the clerk, glad of an
+      opportunity to explain the ingenious mechanism of the office to an
+      outsider. &ldquo;Have you ten minutes to spare?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ten days, if necessary,&rdquo; rejoined Chupin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then you shall see.&rdquo; So saying the clerk rose and went into the adjoining
+      room, whence a moment later he returned carrying a large green box. &ldquo;This
+      contains the October reports sent in every evening by the branch offices,&rdquo;
+       he remarked in explanation. He next opened the box, glanced over the
+      documents it contained, and joyfully exclaimed: &ldquo;Here we have it. This is
+      the report sent in by the superintendent of the cab-stand in the Rue
+      Soumot on the 16th October. Here is a list of the vehicles that arrived or
+      left from a quarter to nine o&rsquo;clock till a quarter past nine. Five cabs
+      came in, but we need not trouble ourselves about them. Three went out
+      bearing the numbers 1781, 3025, and 2140. One of these three must have
+      taken your employer&rsquo;s relative.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then I must question the three drivers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The clerk shrugged his shoulders. &ldquo;What is the use of doing that?&rdquo; he
+      said, disdainfully. &ldquo;Ah! you don&rsquo;t understand the way in which we manage
+      our business! The drivers are artful, but the company isn&rsquo;t a fool. By
+      expending a hundred and fifty thousand francs on its detective force every
+      year, it knows what each cab is doing at each hour of the day. I will now
+      look for the reports sent in respecting these three drivers. One of the
+      three will give us the desired information.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This time the search was a considerably longer one, and Chupin was
+      beginning to grow impatient, when the clerk waved a soiled and crumpled
+      sheet of paper triumphantly in the air, and cried: &ldquo;What did I tell you?
+      This is the report concerning the driver of No. 2140. Listen: Friday, at
+      ten minutes past nine, sent to the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm&mdash;&mdash; do you think of
+      that?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It&rsquo;s astonishing! But where can I find this driver?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t say, just at this moment; he&rsquo;s on duty now. But as he belongs to
+      this division he will be back sooner or later, so you had better wait.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will wait then; only as I&rsquo;ve had no dinner, I&rsquo;ll go out and get a
+      mouthful to eat. I can promise you that M. Fortunat will send you back
+      your note cancelled.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin was really very hungry, and so he rushed off to a little
+      eating-house which he had remarked on his way to the office. There for
+      eighteen sous he dined, or rather supped, like a prince; and as he
+      subsequently treated himself to a cup of coffee and a glass of brandy, as
+      a reward for his toil, some little time had elapsed when he returned to
+      the office. However, No. 2140 had not returned in his absence, so he
+      stationed himself at the door to wait for it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His patience was severely tried, for it was past midnight when Chupin saw
+      the long-looked-for vehicle enter the courtyard. The driver slowly
+      descended from his box and then went into the cashier&rsquo;s office to pay over
+      his day&rsquo;s earnings, and hand in his report. Then he came out again
+      evidently bound for home. As the servant-woman had said, he was a stout,
+      jovial-faced man, and he did not hesitate to accept a glass of &ldquo;no matter
+      what&rdquo; in a wine-shop that was still open. Whether he believed the story
+      that Chupin told to excuse his questions or not, at all events he answered
+      them very readily. He perfectly remembered having been sent to the Rue
+      d&rsquo;Ulm, and spoke of his &ldquo;fare&rdquo; as a respectable-looking old lady,
+      enumerated the number of her trunks, boxes, and packages, and even
+      described their form. He had taken her to the railway station, stopping at
+      the entrance in the Rue d&rsquo;Amsterdam; and when the porters inquired, as
+      usual, &ldquo;Where is this baggage to go?&rdquo; the old lady had answered, &ldquo;To
+      London.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin felt decidedly crestfallen on hearing this. He had fancied that
+      Madame Ferailleur had merely announced her intention of driving to the
+      Havre railway station so as to set possible spies on the wrong track, and
+      he would have willingly wagered anything, that after going a short
+      distance she had given the cabman different instructions. Not so, however,
+      he had taken her straight to the station. Was Mademoiselle Marguerite
+      deceived then? Had Pascal really fled from his enemies without an attempt
+      at resistance? Such a course seemed impossible on his part. Thinking over
+      all this, Chupin slept but little that night, and the next morning, before
+      five o&rsquo;clock, he was wandering about the Rue d&rsquo;Amsterdam peering into the
+      wine-shops in search of some railway porter. It did not take him long to
+      find one, and having done so, he made him the best of friends in less than
+      no time. Although this porter knew nothing about the matter himself, he
+      took Chupin to a comrade who remembered handling the baggage of an old
+      lady bound for London, on the evening of the sixteenth. However, this
+      baggage was not put into the train after all; the old lady had left it in
+      the cloak-room, and the next day a fat woman of unprepossessing appearance
+      had called for the things, and had taken them away, after paying the
+      charges for storage. This circumstance had been impressed on the porter&rsquo;s
+      mind by the fact that the woman had not given him a farthing gratuity,
+      although he had been much more obliging than the regulations required.
+      However, when she went off, she remarked in a honeyed voice, but with an
+      exceedingly impudent air: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll repay you for your kindness, my lad. I
+      keep a wine-shop on the Route d&rsquo;Asnieres, and if you ever happen to pass
+      that way with one of your comrades, come in, and I&rsquo;ll reward you with a
+      famous drink!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      What had exasperated the porter almost beyond endurance, was the certainty
+      he felt that she was mocking him. &ldquo;For she didn&rsquo;t give me her name or
+      address, the old witch!&rdquo; he growled. &ldquo;She had better look out, if I ever
+      get hold of her again!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Chupin had already gone off, unmoved by his informant&rsquo;s grievances.
+      Now that he had discovered the stratagem which Madame Ferailleur had
+      employed to elude her pursuers, his conjectures were changed into
+      certainties. This information proved that Pascal WAS concealed somewhere
+      in Paris; but where? If he could only find out this woman who had called
+      for the trunks, it would lead to the discovery of Madame Ferailleur and
+      her son but how was he to ascertain the woman&rsquo;s whereabouts? She had said
+      that she kept a wine-shop on the Route d&rsquo;Asnieres. Was this true? Was it
+      not more likely that this vague direction was only a fresh precaution?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This much was certain: Chupin, who knew every wine-shop on the Route
+      d&rsquo;Asnieres, did not remember any such powerful matron as the porter had
+      described. He had not forgotten Madame Vantrasson. But to imagine any bond
+      of interest between Pascal and such a woman as she was, seemed absurd in
+      the extreme. However, as he found himself in such a plight and could not
+      afford to let any chance escape, he repaired merely for form&rsquo;s sake to the
+      Vantrasson establishment. It had not changed in the least since the
+      evening he visited it in company with M. Fortunat&mdash;but seen in the
+      full light of day, it appeared even more dingy and dilapidated. Madame
+      Vantrasson was not in her accustomed place, behind the counter, between
+      her black cat&mdash;her latest idol&mdash;and the bottles from which she
+      prepared her ratafia, now her supreme consolation here below. There was no
+      one in the shop but the landlord. Seated at a table, with a lighted candle
+      near him, he was engaged in an occupation which would have set Chupin&rsquo;s
+      mind working if he had noticed it. Vantrasson had taken some wax from a
+      sealed bottle, and, after melting it at the flame of the candle, he let it
+      drop slowly on to the table. He then pressed a sou upon it, and when the
+      wax had become sufficiently cool and stiff, he removed it from the table
+      without destroying the impression, by means of a thin bladed knife similar
+      to those which glaziers use. However, Chupin did not remark this singular
+      employment. He was engaged in mentally ejaculating, &ldquo;Good! the old woman
+      isn&rsquo;t here.&rdquo; And as his plan of campaign was already prepared, he entered
+      without further hesitation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As Vantrasson heard the door turn upon its hinges, he rose so awkwardly,
+      or rather so skilfully, as to let all his implements, wax, knife, and
+      impressions, fall on the floor behind the counter. &ldquo;What can I do to serve
+      you?&rdquo; he asked, in a husky voice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nothing. I wished to speak with your wife.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She has gone out. She works for a family in the morning.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was a gleam of light. Chupin had not thought of the only hypothesis
+      that could explain what seemed inexplicable to him. However, he knew how
+      to conceal his satisfaction, and so with an air of disappointment, he
+      remarked: &ldquo;That&rsquo;s too bad! I shall be obliged to call again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So you have a secret to tell my wife?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not at all.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Won&rsquo;t I do as well, then?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll tell you how it is. I&rsquo;m employed in the baggage room of the western
+      railway station, and I wanted to know if your wife didn&rsquo;t call there a few
+      days ago for some trunks?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The landlord&rsquo;s features betrayed the vague perturbation of a person who
+      can count the days by his mistakes, and it was with evident hesitation
+      that he replied:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, my wife went to the Havre station for some baggage last Sunday.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I thought so. Well, this is my errand: either the clerk forgot to ask her
+      for her receipt, or else he lost it. He can&rsquo;t find it anywhere. I came to
+      ask your wife if she hadn&rsquo;t kept it. When she returns, please deliver my
+      message; and if she has the receipt, pray send it to me through the post.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The ruse was not particularly clever, but it was sufficiently so to
+      deceive Vantrasson. &ldquo;To whom am I to send this receipt?&rdquo; he asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To me, Victor Chupin, Faubourg Saint Denis,&rdquo; was the reply.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Imprudent youth! alas, he little suspected what a liberty M. Fortunat had
+      taken with his name on the evening he visited the Vantrassons. But on his
+      side the landlord of the Model Lodging House had not forgotten the name
+      mentioned by the agent. He turned pale with anger on beholding his
+      supposed creditor, and quickly slipping between the visitor and the door,
+      he said: &ldquo;So your name is Victor Chupin?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, certainly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And you are in the employment of the Railway Company?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;As I just told you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That doesn&rsquo;t prevent you from acting as a collector, does it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin instinctively recoiled, convinced that he had betrayed himself by
+      some blunder, but unable to discover in what he had erred. &ldquo;I did do
+      something in that line formerly,&rdquo; he faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Vantrasson doubted no longer. &ldquo;So you confess that you are a vile
+      scoundrel!&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;You confess that you purchased an old
+      promissory note of mine for fourpence, and then sent a man here to seize
+      my goods! Ah! you&rsquo;d like to trample the poor under foot, would you! Very
+      well. I have you now, and I&rsquo;ll settle your account! Take that!&rdquo; And so
+      saying, he dealt his supposed creditor a terrible blow with his clinched
+      fist that sent him reeling to the other end of the shop.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately, Chupin was very nimble. He did not lose his footing, but
+      sprung over a table and used it as a rampart to shield himself from his
+      dangerous assailant. In the open field, he could easily have protected
+      himself; but here in this narrow space, and hemmed in a corner, he felt
+      that despite this barrier he was lost. &ldquo;What a devil of a mess!&rdquo; he
+      thought, as with wonderful agility he avoided Vantrasson&rsquo;s fist, a fist
+      that would have felled an ox. He had an idea of calling for assistance.
+      But would any one hear him? Would any one reply? And if help came, would
+      not the police be sure to hear of the broil? And if they did, would there
+      not be an investigation which would perhaps disturb Pascal&rsquo;s plans?
+      Fearing to injure those whom he wished to serve, he resolved to let
+      himself be hacked to pieces rather than allow a cry to escape him; but he
+      changed his tactics, and instead of attempting to parry the blows as he
+      had done before, he now only thought of gaining the door, inch by inch.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had almost reached it, not without suffering considerable injury, when
+      it suddenly opened, and a young man clad in black, with a smooth shaven
+      face, entered the shop, and sternly exclaimed: &ldquo;Why! what&rsquo;s all this?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The sight of the newcomer seemed to stupefy Vantrasson. &ldquo;Ah! it is you,
+      Monsieur Maumejan?&rdquo; he faltered, with a crestfallen air. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s nothing; we
+      were only in fun.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. Maumejan seemed perfectly satisfied with this explanation; and in the
+      indifferent tone of a man who is delivering a message, the meaning of
+      which he scarcely understood, he said: &ldquo;A person who knows that your wife
+      is in my employ requested me to ask you if you would be ready to attend to
+      that little matter she spoke of.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly. I was preparing for it a moment ago.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin heard no more. He had hurried out, his clothes in disorder, and
+      himself not a little hurt; but his delight made him lose all thought of
+      his injuries. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s M. Ferailleur,&rdquo; he muttered, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m sure of it, and
+      I&rsquo;m going to prove it.&rdquo; So saying he hid himself in the doorway of a
+      vacant house a few paces distant from the Vantrassons&rsquo;, and waited.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then as soon as M. Maumejan emerged from the Model Lodging House, he
+      followed him. The young man with the clean shaven face walked up the Route
+      d&rsquo;Asnieres, turned to the right into the Route de la Revolte, and at last
+      paused before a house of humble aspect. At that moment Chupin darted
+      toward him, and softly called, &ldquo;M&rsquo;sieur Ferailleur!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The young man turned instinctively. Then seeing his mistake, and feeling
+      that he had betrayed himself, he sprang upon Chupin, and caught him by the
+      wrists: &ldquo;Scoundrel! who are you?&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;Who has hired you to
+      follow me! What do you want of me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not so fast, m&rsquo;sieur! Don&rsquo;t be so rough! You hurt me. I&rsquo;m sent by
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0018" id="link2H_4_0018">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XVIII.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;O God! send Pascal to my aid,&rdquo; prayed Mademoiselle Marguerite, as she
+      left M. Fortunat&rsquo;s house. Now she understood the intrigue she had been the
+      victim of; but, instead of reassuring her the agent had frightened her, by
+      revealing the Marquis de Valorsay&rsquo;s desperate plight. She realized what
+      frenzied rage must fill this man&rsquo;s heart as he felt himself gradually
+      slipping from the heights of opulence, down into the depths of poverty and
+      crime. What might he not dare, in order to preserve even the semblance of
+      grandeur for a year, or a month, or a day longer! Had they measured the
+      extent of his villainy? Would he even hesitate at murder? And the poor
+      girl asked herself with a shudder if Pascal were still living; and a
+      vision of his bleeding corpse, lying lifeless in some deserted street,
+      rose before her. And who could tell what dangers threatened her
+      personally? For, though she knew the past, she could not read the future.
+      What did M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s letter mean? and what was the fate that he held
+      in reserve for her, and that made him so sanguine of success? The
+      impression produced upon her mind was so terrible that for a moment she
+      thought of hastening to the old justice of the peace to ask for his
+      protection and a refuge. But this weakness did not last long. Should she
+      lose her energy? Should her will fail her at the decisive moment? &ldquo;No, a
+      thousand times no!&rdquo; she said to herself again and again. &ldquo;I will die if
+      needs be, but I will die fighting!&rdquo; And the nearer she approached the Rue
+      Pigalle, the more energetically she drove away her apprehension, and
+      sought for an excuse calculated to satisfy any one who might have noticed
+      her long absence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      An unnecessary precaution. She found the house as when she left it,
+      abandoned to the mercy of the servants&mdash;the strangers sent the
+      evening before from the employment office. Important matters still kept
+      the General and his wife from home. The husband had to show his horses;
+      and the wife was intent upon shopping. As for Madame Leon, most of her
+      time seemed to be taken up by the family of relatives she had so suddenly
+      discovered. Alone, free from all espionage, and wishing to ward off
+      despondency by occupation, Mademoiselle Marguerite was just beginning a
+      letter to her friend the old magistrate, when a servant entered and
+      announced that her dressmaker was there and wished to speak with her. &ldquo;Let
+      her come in,&rdquo; replied Marguerite, with unusual vivacity. &ldquo;Let her come in
+      at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A lady who looked some forty years of age, plainly dressed, but of
+      distinguished appearance, was thereupon ushered into the room. Like any
+      well-bred modiste, she bowed respectfully while the servant was present,
+      but as soon as he had left the room she approached Mademoiselle Marguerite
+      and took hold of her hands: &ldquo;My dear young lady,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;I am the
+      sister-in-law of your old friend, the magistrate. Having an important
+      message to send to you, he was trying to find a person whom he could trust
+      to play the part of a dressmaker, as had been agreed upon between you,
+      when I offered my services, thinking he could find no one more trusty than
+      myself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Tears glittered in Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s eyes. The slightest token of
+      sympathy is so sweet to the heart of the lonely and unfortunate! &ldquo;How can
+      I ever thank you, madame?&rdquo; she faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By not attempting to thank me at all, and by reading this letter as soon
+      as possible.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The note she now produced ran as follows:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;MY DEAR CHILD&mdash;At last I am on the track of the thieves. By
+      conferring with the people from whom M. de Chalusse received the money a
+      couple of days before his death, I have been fortunate enough to obtain
+      from them some minute details respecting the missing bonds, as well as the
+      numbers of the bank-notes which were deposited in the escritoire. With
+      this information, we cannot fail to prove the guilt of the culprits sooner
+      or later. You write me word that the Fondeges are spending money lavishly;
+      try and find out the names of the people they deal with, and communicate
+      them to me. Once more, I tell you that I am sure of success. Courage!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well!&rdquo; said the spurious dressmaker, when she saw that Marguerite had
+      finished reading the letter. &ldquo;What answer shall I take my brother-in-law?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Tell him that he shall certainly have the information he requires
+      to-morrow. To-day, I can only give him the name of the carriage builder,
+      from whom M. de Fondege has purchased his new carriages.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Give it to me in writing, it is much the safest way.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite did so, and her visitor who, as a woman, was
+      delighted to find herself mixed up in an intrigue, then went off repeating
+      the old magistrate&rsquo;s advice: &ldquo;Courage!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But it was no longer necessary to encourage Mademoiselle Marguerite. The
+      assurance of being so effectually helped, had already increased her
+      courage an hundredfold. The future that had seemed so gloomy only a moment
+      before, had now suddenly brightened. By means of the negative in the
+      keeping of the photographer, Carjat, she had the Marquis de Valorsay in
+      her power, and the magistrate, thanks to the numbers of the bank-notes,
+      could soon prove the guilt of the Fondeges. The protection of Providence
+      was made evident in an unmistakable manner. Thus it was with a placid and
+      almost smiling face that she successively greeted Madame Leon, who
+      returned home quite played out, then Madame de Fondege, who made her
+      appearance attended by two shop-boys overladen with packages, and finally
+      the General, who brought his son, Lieutenant Gustave, with him to dinner.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The lieutenant was a good-looking fellow of twenty-seven, or thereabouts,
+      with laughing eyes and a heavy mustache. He made a great clanking with his
+      spurs, and wore the somewhat theatrical uniform of the 13th Hussars rather
+      ostentatiously. He bowed to Mademoiselle Marguerite with a smile that was
+      too becoming to be displeasing; and he offered her his arm with an air of
+      triumph to lead her to the dining-room, as soon as the servant came to
+      announce that &ldquo;Madame la Comtesse was served.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Seated opposite to him at table, the young girl could not refrain from
+      furtively watching the man whom they wished to compel her to marry. Never
+      had she seen such intense self-complacency coupled with such utter
+      mediocrity. It was evident that he was doing his best to produce a
+      favorable impression; but as the dinner progressed, his conversation
+      became rather venturesome. He gradually grew extremely animated; and three
+      or four adventures of garrison life which he persisted in relating despite
+      his mother&rsquo;s frowns, were calculated to convince his hearers that he was a
+      great favorite with the fair sex. It was the good cheer that loosened his
+      tongue. There could be no possible doubt on that score; and, indeed, while
+      drinking a glass of the Chateau Laroze, to which Madame Leon had taken
+      such a liking, he was indiscreet enough to declare that if his mother had
+      always kept house in this fashion, he should have been inclined to ask for
+      more frequent leaves of absence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, strange to say, after the coffee was served, the conversation
+      languished till at last it died out almost entirely. Madame de Fondege was
+      the first to disappear on the pretext that some domestic affairs required
+      her attention. The General was the next to rise and go out, in order to
+      smoke a cigar; and finally Madame Leon made her escape without saying a
+      word. So Mademoiselle Marguerite was left quite alone with Lieutenant
+      Gustave. It was evident enough to the young girl that this had been
+      preconcerted; and she asked herself what kind of an opinion M. and Madame
+      de Fondege could have of her delicacy. The proceeding made her so
+      indignant that she was on the point of rising from the table and of
+      retiring like the others, when reason restrained her. She said to herself
+      that perhaps she might gain some useful information from this young man,
+      and so she remained.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His face was crimson, and he seemed by far the more embarrassed of the
+      two. He sat with one elbow resting on the table, and with his gaze
+      persistently fixed upon a tiny glass half full of brandy which he held in
+      his hand, as if he hoped to gain some sublime inspiration from it. At
+      last, after an interval of irksome silence, he ventured to exclaim:
+      &ldquo;Mademoiselle, should you like to be an officer&rsquo;s wife?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know,&rdquo; answered Marguerite.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Really! But at least you understand my motive in asking this question?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Any one but the complacent lieutenant would have been disconcerted by
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s dry tone; but he did not even notice it. The
+      effort that he was making in his intense desire to be eloquent and
+      persuasive absorbed the attention of all his faculties. &ldquo;Then permit me to
+      explain, mademoiselle,&rdquo; he resumed. &ldquo;We meet this evening for the first
+      time, but our acquaintance is not the affair of a day. For I know not how
+      long my father and mother have continually been chanting your praises.
+      &lsquo;Mademoiselle Marguerite does this; Mademoiselle Marguerite does that.&rsquo; 
+      They never cease talking of you, declaring that heart, wit, talent,
+      beauty, all womanly charms are united in your person. And they have never
+      wearied of telling me that the man whom you honored with your preference
+      would be the happiest of mortals. However, so far I had no desire to
+      marry, and I distrusted them. In fact, I had conceived a most violent
+      prejudice against you. Yes, upon my honor! I felt sure that I should
+      dislike you; but I have seen you and all is changed. As soon as my eyes
+      fell upon you, I experienced a powerful revulsion of feeling. I was never
+      so smitten in my life&mdash;and I said to myself, &lsquo;Lieutenant, it is all
+      over&mdash;you are caught at last!&rsquo;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pale with anger, astonished and humiliated beyond measure, the young girl
+      listened with her head lowered, vainly trying to find words to express the
+      feelings which disturbed her; but M. Gustave, misunderstanding her
+      silence, and congratulating himself upon the effect he had produced, grew
+      bolder, and with the tenderest and most impassioned inflection he could
+      impart to his voice, continued: &ldquo;Who could fail to be impressed as I have
+      been? How could one behold, without rapturous admiration, such beautiful
+      eyes, such glorious black hair, such smiling lips, such a graceful mien,
+      such wonderful charms of person and of mind? How would it be possible to
+      listen, unmoved, to a voice which is clearer and purer than crystal? Ah!
+      my mother&rsquo;s descriptions fell far short of the truth. But how can one
+      describe the perfections of an angel? To any one who has the happiness or
+      the misfortune of knowing you, there can only be one woman in the world!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had gradually approached her chair, and now extended his hand to take
+      hold of Marguerite&rsquo;s, and probably raise it to his lips. But she shrank
+      from the contact as from red-hot iron, and rising hurriedly, with her eyes
+      flashing, and her voice quivering with indignation: &ldquo;Monsieur!&rdquo; she
+      exclaimed, &ldquo;Monsieur!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was so surprised that he stood as if petrified, with his eyes wide open
+      and his hand still extended. &ldquo;Permit me&mdash;allow me to explain,&rdquo; he
+      stammered. But she declined to listen. &ldquo;Who has told you that you could
+      address such words to me with impunity?&rdquo; she continued. &ldquo;Your parents, I
+      suppose; I daresay they told you to be bold. And that is why they have
+      left us, and why no servant has appeared. Ah! they make me pay dearly for
+      the hospitality they have given me!&rdquo; As she spoke the tears started from
+      her eyes and glistened on her long lashes. &ldquo;Whom did you fancy you were
+      speaking to?&rdquo; she added. &ldquo;Would you have been so audacious if I had a
+      father or a brother to resent your insults?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The lieutenant started as if he had been lashed with a whip. &ldquo;Ah! you are
+      severe!&rdquo; he exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And a happy inspiration entering his mind, he continued: &ldquo;A man does not
+      insult a woman, mademoiselle, when, while telling her that he loves her
+      and thinks her beautiful, he offers her his name and life.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite shrugged her shoulders ironically, and remained
+      for a moment silent. She was very proud, and her pride had been cruelly
+      wounded; but reason told her that a continuation of this scene would
+      render a prolonged sojourn in the General&rsquo;s house impossible; and where
+      could she go, without exciting malevolent remarks? Whom could she ask an
+      asylum of? Still this consideration alone would not have sufficed to
+      silence her. But she remembered that a quarrel and a rupture with the
+      Fondeges would certainly imperil the success of her plans. &ldquo;So I will
+      swallow even this affront,&rdquo; she said to herself; and then in a tone of
+      melancholy bitterness, she remarked, aloud: &ldquo;A man cannot set a very high
+      value on his name when he offers it to a woman whom he knows absolutely
+      nothing about.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me&mdash;you forget that my mother&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Your mother has only known me for a week.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      An expression of intense surprise appeared on the lieutenant&rsquo;s face. &ldquo;Is
+      it possible?&rdquo; he murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Your father has met me five or six times at the table of the Count de
+      Chalusse, who was his friend&mdash;but what does he know of me?&rdquo; resumed
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite. &ldquo;That I came to the Hotel de Chalusse a year ago,
+      and that the count treated me like a daughter&mdash;that is all! Who I am,
+      where I was reared, and how, and what my past life has been, these are
+      matters that M. de Fondege knows nothing whatever about.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My parents told me that you were the daughter of the Count de Chalusse,
+      mademoiselle.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What proof have they of it? They ought to have told you that I was an
+      unfortunate foundling, with no other name than that of Marguerite.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They ought to have told you that I am poor, very poor, and that I should
+      probably have been reduced to the necessity of toiling for my daily bread,
+      if it had not been for them.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      An incredulous smile curved the lieutenant&rsquo;s lips. He fancied that
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite only wished to prove his disinterestedness, and
+      this thought restored his assurance. &ldquo;Perhaps you are exaggerating a
+      little, mademoiselle,&rdquo; he replied.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am not exaggerating&mdash;I possess but ten thousand francs in the
+      world&mdash;I swear it by all that I hold sacred.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That would not even be the dowry required of an officer&rsquo;s wife by law,&rdquo;
+       muttered the lieutenant.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Was his incredulity sincere or affected? What had his parents really told
+      him? Had they confided everything to him, and was he their accomplice? or
+      had they told him nothing? All these questions flashed rapidly through
+      Marguerite&rsquo;s mind. &ldquo;You suppose that I am rich, monsieur,&rdquo; she resumed at
+      last. &ldquo;I understand that only too well. If I was, you ought to shun me as
+      you would shun a criminal, for I could only be wealthy through a crime.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mademoiselle&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, through a crime. After M. de Chalusse&rsquo;s death, two million francs
+      that had been placed in his escritoire for safe keeping, could not be
+      found. Who stole the money? I myself have been accused of the theft. Your
+      father must have told you of this, as well as of the cloud of suspicion
+      that is still hanging over me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She paused, for the lieutenant had become whiter than his shirt. &ldquo;Good
+      God!&rdquo; he exclaimed in a tone of horror, as if a terrible light had
+      suddenly broken upon his mind. He made a movement as if to leave the room,
+      but suddenly changing his mind, he bowed low before Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite, and said, in a husky voice: &ldquo;Forgive me, mademoiselle, I did
+      not know what I was doing. I have been misinformed. I have been beguiled
+      by false hopes. I entreat you to say that you forgive me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I forgive you, monsieur.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But still he lingered. &ldquo;I am only a poor devil of a lieutenant,&rdquo; he
+      resumed, &ldquo;with no other fortune than my epaulettes, no other prospects
+      than an uncertain advancement. I have been foolish and thoughtless. I have
+      committed many acts of folly; but there is nothing in my past life for
+      which I have cause to blush.&rdquo; He looked fixedly at Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite, as if he were striving to read her inmost soul; and in a
+      solemn tone, that contrasted strangely with his usual levity of manner, he
+      added: &ldquo;If the name I bear should ever be compromised, my prospects would
+      be blighted forever! The only course left for me would be to tender my
+      resignation. I will leave nothing undone to preserve my honor in the eyes
+      of the world, and to right those who have been wronged. Promise me not to
+      interfere with my plans.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite trembled like a leaf. She now realized her
+      terrible imprudence. He had divined everything. As she remained silent, he
+      continued wildly: &ldquo;I entreat you. Do you wish me to beg you at your feet?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ah! it was a terrible sacrifice that he demanded of her. But how could she
+      remain obdurate in the presence of such intense anguish? &ldquo;I will remain
+      neutral,&rdquo; she replied, &ldquo;that is all I can promise. Providence shall
+      decide.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thank you,&rdquo; he said, sadly, suspecting that perhaps it was already too
+      late&mdash;&ldquo;thank you.&rdquo; Then he turned to go, and, in fact, he had already
+      opened the door, when a forlorn hope brought him back to Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite, whose hand he took, timidly faltering, &ldquo;We are friends, are we
+      not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She did not withdraw her icy hand, and in a scarcely audible voice, she
+      repeated: &ldquo;We are friends?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Convinced that he could obtain nothing more from her than her promised
+      neutrality, the lieutenant thereupon hastily left the room, and she sank
+      back in her chair more dead than alive. &ldquo;Great God! what is coming now?&rdquo;
+       she murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She thought she could understand the unfortunate young man&rsquo;s intentions,
+      and she listened with a throbbing heart, expecting to hear a stormy
+      explanation between his parents and himself. In point of fact, she almost
+      immediately afterward heard the lieutenant inquire in a stern, imperious
+      voice: &ldquo;Where is my father?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The General has just gone to his club.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And my mother?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A friend of hers called a few moments ago to take her to the opera.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What madness!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      That was all. The outer door opened and closed again with extreme
+      violence, and then Marguerite heard nothing save the sneering remarks of
+      the servants.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was, indeed, madness on the part of M. and Madame de Fondege not to
+      have waited to learn the result of this interview, planned by themselves,
+      and upon which their very lives depended. But delirium seemed to have
+      seized them since, thanks to a still inexplicable crime, they had suddenly
+      found themselves in possession of an immense fortune. Perhaps in this wild
+      pursuit of pleasure, in the haste they displayed to satisfy their covetous
+      longings, they hoped to forget or silence the threatening voice of
+      conscience. Such was Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s conclusion; but she was not
+      long left to undisturbed meditation. By the lieutenant&rsquo;s departure the
+      restrictions which had been placed upon the servants&rsquo; movements had
+      evidently been removed, for they came in to clear the table.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having with some little difficulty obtained a candle from one of these
+      model servants, Mademoiselle Marguerite now retired to her own room. In
+      her anxiety, she forgot Madame Leon, but the latter had not forgotten her;
+      she was even now listening at the drawing-room door, inconsolable to think
+      that she had not succeeded in hearing at least part of the conversation
+      between the lieutenant and her dear young lady. Marguerite had no wish to
+      reflect over what had occurred. As she was determined to keep the promise
+      which Lieutenant Gustave had wrung from her, it mattered little whether
+      she had committed a great mistake in allowing him to discover her
+      knowledge of his parent&rsquo;s guilt, and in listening to his entreaties. A
+      secret presentiment warned her that the punishment which would overtake
+      the General and his wife would be none the less terrible, despite her own
+      forbearance, and that they would find their son more inexorable than the
+      severest judge.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The essential thing was to warn the old magistrate; and so in a couple of
+      pages she summarized the scene of the evening, feeling sure that she would
+      find an opportunity to post her letter on the following day. This duty
+      accomplished, she took a book and went to bed, hoping to drive away her
+      gloomy thoughts by reading. But the hope was vain. Her eyes read the
+      words, followed the lines and crossed the pages, but her mind utterly
+      refused to obey her will, and in spite of all her efforts persisted in
+      turning to the shrewd youth who had solemnly sworn to find Pascal for her.
+      A little after midnight Madame de Fondege returned from the opera, and at
+      once proceeded to reprimand her maid for not having lighted a fire. The
+      General returned some time afterward, and he was evidently in the best of
+      spirits.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They have not seen their son,&rdquo; said Mademoiselle Marguerite to herself,
+      and this anxiety, combined with many others, tortured her so cruelly, that
+      she did not fall asleep until near daybreak. Even then she did not slumber
+      long. It was scarcely half-past seven when she was aroused by a strange
+      commotion and a loud sound of hammering. She was trying to imagine the
+      cause of all this uproar, when Madame de Fondege, already arrayed in a
+      marvellous robe composed of three skirts and an enormous puff, entered the
+      room. &ldquo;I have come to take you away, my dear child,&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;The
+      owner of the house has decided to make some repairs, and the workmen have
+      already invaded our apartments. The General has taken flight, let us
+      follow his example&mdash;so make yourself beautiful and we&rsquo;ll go at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Without a word, the young girl hastened to obey, while Madame de Fondege
+      expiated on the delightful drive they would take together in the wonderful
+      brougham which the General had purchased a couple of days before. As for
+      Lieutenant Gustave, she did not even mention his name.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accustomed to the superb equipages of the Chalusse establishment,
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite did not consider the much-lauded brougham at all
+      remarkable. At the most, it was very showy, having apparently been
+      selected with a view to attracting as much attention as possible. Madame
+      de Fondege was not in a mood to consider an objection that morning. She
+      was evidently in a nervous state of mind, extremely restless and excited
+      indeed, it seemed impossible for her to keep still. In default of
+      something better to do, she visited at least a dozen shops, asking to see
+      everything, finding everything frightful, and purchasing without regard to
+      price. It might have been fancied that she wished to buy all Paris. About
+      ten o&rsquo;clock she dragged Marguerite to Van Klopen&rsquo;s. Received as a habituee
+      of the establishment, thanks to the numerous orders she had given within
+      the past few days, she was even allowed to enter the mysterious saloon in
+      which the illustrious ruler of Fashion served such of his clients as had a
+      predilection for absinthe or madeira. On leaving the place, and before
+      entering the carriage again, Madame de Fondege turned to Marguerite and
+      inquired: &ldquo;Where shall we go now? I have given the servants an &lsquo;outing&rsquo; on
+      account of the workmen, and we cannot breakfast at home. Why can&rsquo;t we go
+      to a restaurant, we two? Many of the most distinguished ladies are in the
+      habit of doing so. You will see how people will look at us! I am sure it
+      will amuse you immensely.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! madame, you forget that it is not a fortnight since the count&rsquo;s
+      death!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame de Fondege was about to make an impatient reply, but she mastered
+      the impulse, and in a tone of hypocritical compassion, exclaimed: &ldquo;Poor
+      child! poor, dear child! that&rsquo;s true. I had forgotten. Well, such being
+      the case, we&rsquo;ll go and ask Baroness Trigault to give us our breakfast. You
+      will see a lovely woman.&rdquo; And addressing the coachman she instructed him
+      to drive to the Trigault mansion in the Rue de la Ville l&rsquo;Eveque.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Madame de Fondege&rsquo;s brougham drew up before the door, the baron was
+      standing in the courtyard with a cigar between his teeth, examining a pair
+      of horses which had been sent him on approbation. He did not like his
+      wife&rsquo;s friend, and he usually avoided her. But precisely because he was
+      acquainted with the General&rsquo;s crime and Pascal&rsquo;s plans, he thought it
+      politic to seem amiable. So, on recognizing Madame de Fondege through the
+      carriage window, he hastened forward with outstretched hand to assist her
+      in alighting. &ldquo;Did you come to take breakfast with us?&rdquo; he asked. &ldquo;That
+      would be a most delightful&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The remainder of the sentence died unuttered upon his lips. His face
+      became crimson, and the cigar he was holding slipped from his fingers. He
+      had just perceived Mademoiselle Marguerite, and his consternation was so
+      apparent that Madame de Fondege could not fail to remark it; however, she
+      attributed it to the girl&rsquo;s remarkable beauty. &ldquo;This is Mademoiselle de
+      Chalusse, my dear baron,&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;the daughter of the noble and
+      esteemed friend whom we so bitterly lament.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ah! it was not necessary to tell the baron who this young girl was; he
+      knew it only too well. He was not overcome for long; a thought of
+      vengeance speedily flashed through his mind. It seemed to him that
+      Providence itself offered him the means of putting an end to an
+      intolerable situation. Regaining his self-control by a powerful effort, he
+      preceded Madame de Fondege through the magnificent apartments of the
+      mansion, lightly saying: &ldquo;My wife is in her boudoir. She will be delighted
+      to see you. But first of all, I have a good secret to confide to you. So
+      let me take this young lady to the baroness, and you and I can join them
+      in a moment!&rdquo; Thereupon, without waiting for any rejoinder, he took
+      Marguerite&rsquo;s arm and led her toward the end of the hall. Then opening a
+      door, he exclaimed in a mocking voice: &ldquo;Madame Trigault, allow me to
+      present to you the daughter of the Count de Chalusse.&rdquo; And adding in a
+      whisper: &ldquo;This is your mother, young girl,&rdquo; he pushed the astonished
+      Marguerite into the room, closed the door, and returned to Madame de
+      Fondege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paler than her white muslin wrapper, the Baroness Trigault sprang from her
+      chair. This was the woman who, while her husband was braving death to win
+      fortune for her, had been dazzled by the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s wealth, and
+      who, later in life, when she was the richest of the rich, had sunk into
+      the very depths of degradation&mdash;had stooped, indeed, to a Coralth!
+      The baroness had once been marvellously beautiful, and even now, many
+      murmurs of admiration greeted her when she dashed through the Champs
+      Elysees in her magnificent equipage, attired in one of those eccentric
+      costumes which she alone dared to wear. She was a type of the wife created
+      by the customs of fashionable society; the woman who feels elated when her
+      name appears in the newspapers and in the chronicles of Parisian &ldquo;high
+      life&rdquo;; who has no thought of her deserted fireside, but is ever tormented
+      by a terrible thirst for bustle and excitement; whose head is empty, and
+      whose heart is dry&mdash;the woman who only exists for the world; and who
+      is devoured by unappeasable covetousness, and who, at times, envies an
+      actress&rsquo;s liberty, and the notoriety of the leaders of the demi-monde; the
+      woman who is always in quest of fresh excitement, and fails to find it;
+      the woman who is blase, and prematurely old in mind and body, and who yet
+      still clings despairingly to her fleeting youth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Inaccessible to any emotion but vanity, the baroness had never shed a tear
+      over her husband&rsquo;s sufferings. She was sure of her absolute power over
+      him. What did the rest matter? She even gloried in her knowledge that she
+      could make this man&mdash;who loved her in spite of everything&mdash;at
+      one moment furious with rage or wild with grief, and then an instant
+      afterward plunge him into the rapture of a senseless ecstasy by a word, a
+      smile, or a caress. For such was her power, and she often exercised it
+      mercilessly. Even after the frightful scene that Pascal had witnessed, she
+      had made another appeal to the baron, and he had been weak enough to give
+      her the thirty thousand francs which M. de Coralth needed to purchase his
+      wife&rsquo;s silence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, this time the baroness trembled. Her usual shrewdness had not
+      deserted her, and she perfectly understood all that Marguerite&rsquo;s presence
+      in that house portended. Since her husband brought this young girl&mdash;her
+      daughter&mdash;to her he must know everything, and have taken some fatal
+      resolution. Had she, indeed, exhausted the patience which she had fancied
+      inexhaustible? She was not ignorant of the fact that her husband had
+      disposed of his immense fortune in a way that would enable him to say and
+      prove that he was insolvent whenever occasion required; and if he found
+      courage to apply for a legal separation, what could she hope to obtain
+      from the courts? A bare living, almost nothing. In such a case, how could
+      she exist? She would be compelled to spend her last years in the same
+      poverty that had made her youth so wretched. She saw herself&mdash;ah!
+      what a frightful misfortune&mdash;turfed out of her princely home, and
+      reduced to furnished apartments rented for five hundred francs a year!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite was no less startled and horror-stricken than
+      Madame Trigault, and she stood rooted to the spot, exactly where the baron
+      had left her. Silent and motionless, they confronted each other for a
+      moment which seemed a century to both of them. The resemblance&mdash;which
+      had astonished Pascal could not fail to strike them, for it was still more
+      noticeable now that they stood face to face. But anything was preferable
+      to this torturing suspense, and so, summoning all her courage, the
+      baroness broke the silence by saying: &ldquo;You are the daughter of the Count
+      de Chalusse?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I think so, but I have no proofs of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And&mdash;your mother?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know her; madame, and I have no desire to know her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Disconcerted by this brief but implacable reply, Madame Trigault hung her
+      head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What could I have to say to my mother?&rdquo; continued Marguerite. &ldquo;That I
+      hate her? My courage would fail me to do so. And yet, how can I think
+      without bitterness of the woman who, after abandoning me herself,
+      endeavored to deprive me of my father&rsquo;s love and protection? I could have
+      forgiven anything but that. Ah! I have not always been so patient and
+      resigned! The laws of our country do not forbid illigitimate children to
+      search for their parents, and more than once I have said to myself that I
+      would discover my mother, and have my revenge.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you have no means of discovering her?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In this you are greatly mistaken, madame. After the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s
+      death, a package of letters, a glove and some withered flowers were found
+      in one of the drawers of his escritoire.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The baroness started back as if a yawning chasm had suddenly opened at her
+      feet. &ldquo;My letters!&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;Ah! wretched woman that I am, he kept
+      them. It is all over! I am lost, for of course, they have been read?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The ribbon securing them together has never been untied.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is that true? Don&rsquo;t deceive me! Where are they, then&mdash;where are
+      they?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Under the protection of the seals affixed by the justice of the peace.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame Trigault tottered, as if she were about to fall. &ldquo;Then it is only a
+      reprieve,&rdquo; she moaned, &ldquo;and I am none the less ruined. Those cursed
+      letters will necessarily be read, and all will be discovered. They will
+      see&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo; The thought of what they would see endowed her with the
+      energy of despair, and clutching hold of Marguerite&rsquo;s wrists: &ldquo;Listen!&rdquo;
+       said she, approaching so near that her hot breath scorched the girl&rsquo;s
+      cheeks, &ldquo;no one must be allowed to see those letters!&mdash;it must not
+      be! I will tell you what they contain. I hated my husband; I loved the
+      Count de Chalusse madly, and he had sworn that he would marry me if ever I
+      became a widow. Do you understand now? The name of the poison I obtained&mdash;how
+      I proposed to administer it, and what its effects would be&mdash;all this
+      is plainly written in my own handwriting and signed&mdash;yes, signed&mdash;with
+      my own name. The plot failed, but it was none the less real, positive,
+      palpable&mdash;and those letters are a proof of it. But they shall never
+      be read&mdash;no&mdash;not if I am obliged to set fire to the Hotel de
+      Chalusse with my own hand.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now the count&rsquo;s constant terror, the fear with which this woman had
+      inspired him, were explained. He was an accomplice&mdash;he also had
+      written no doubt, and she had preserved his letters as he had preserved
+      hers. Crime had bound them indissolubly together.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Horrified beyond expression, Marguerite freed herself from Madame
+      Trigault&rsquo;s grasp. &ldquo;I swear to you, madame, that everything any human being
+      can do to save your letters shall be done by me,&rdquo; she exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And have you any hope of success?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes,&rdquo; replied the girl, remembering her friend, the magistrate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Moved by a far more powerful emotion than any she had ever known before,
+      the baroness uttered an exclamation of joy. &ldquo;Ah! how good you are!&rdquo; she
+      exclaimed&mdash;&ldquo;how generous! how noble! You take your revenge in giving
+      me back life, honor, everything&mdash;for you are my daughter; do you not
+      know it? Did they not tell you, before bringing you here, that I was the
+      hated and unnatural mother who abandoned you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She advanced with tearful eyes and outstretched arms, but Marguerite
+      sternly waved her back. &ldquo;Spare yourself, madame, and spare me, the
+      humiliation of an unnecessary explanation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Marguerite! Good God! you repulse me. After all you have promised to do
+      for me, will you not forgive me?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will try to forget, madame,&rdquo; replied the girl and she was already
+      stepping toward the door when the baroness threw herself at her feet,
+      crying, in a heart-rending tone: &ldquo;Have pity, Marguerite, I am your mother.
+      One has no right to deny one&rsquo;s own mother.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But the young girl passed on. &ldquo;My mother is dead, madame; I do not know
+      you!&rdquo; And she left the room without even turning her head, without even
+      glancing at the baroness, who had fallen upon the floor in a deep swoon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0019" id="link2H_4_0019">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XIX
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Baron Trigault still held Madame de Fondege a prisoner in the hall. What
+      did he say to her in justification of the expedient he had improvised? His
+      own agitation was so great that he scarcely knew, and it mattered but
+      little after all, for the good lady did not even pretend to listen to his
+      apologies. Although by no means overshrewd, she suspected some great
+      mystery, some bit of scandal, perhaps, and her eyes never once wandered
+      from the door leading to the boudoir. At last this door opened and
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite reappeared. &ldquo;Great heavens!&rdquo; exclaimed Madame de
+      Fondege; &ldquo;what has happened to my poor child?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For the unfortunate girl advanced with an automatic tread, her eyes fixed
+      on vacancy, and her hands outstretched, as if feeling her way. It indeed
+      seemed to her as if the floor swayed to and fro under her feet, as if the
+      walls tottered, as if the ceiling were about to fall and crush her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame de Fondege sprang forward. &ldquo;What is the matter, my dearest?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Alas! the poor girl was utterly overcome. &ldquo;It is but a trifle,&rdquo; she
+      faltered. But her eyes closed, her hands clutched wildly for some support,
+      and she would have fallen to the ground if the baron had not caught her in
+      his arms and carried her to a sofa. &ldquo;Help!&rdquo; cried Madame de Fondege,
+      &ldquo;help, she is dying!&mdash;a physician!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But there was no need of a physician. One of the maids came with some
+      fresh water and a bottle of smelling salts, and Marguerite soon recovered
+      sufficiently to sit up, and cast a frightened glance around her, while she
+      mechanically passed her hand again and again over her cold forehead. &ldquo;Do
+      you feel better my darling?&rdquo; inquired Madame de Fondege at last.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! you gave me a terrible fright; see how I tremble.&rdquo; But the worthy
+      lady&rsquo;s fright was as nothing in comparison with the curiosity that
+      tortured her. It was so powerful, indeed, that she could not control it.
+      &ldquo;What has happened?&rdquo; she asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nothing, madame, nothing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am subject to such attacks. I was very cold, and the heat of the room
+      made me feel faint.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Although she could only speak with the greatest difficulty, the baron
+      realized by her tone that she would never reveal what had taken place, and
+      his attitude and relief knew no bounds. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t tire the poor child,&rdquo; he
+      said to Madame de Fondege. &ldquo;The best thing you can do would be to take her
+      home and put her to bed.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I agree with you; but unfortunately, I have sent away my brougham with
+      orders not to return for me until one o&rsquo;clock.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is that the only difficulty? If so, you shall have a carriage at once, my
+      dear madame.&rdquo; So saying, the baron made a sign to one of the servants, and
+      the man started on his mission at once.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Madame de Fondege was silent but furious. &ldquo;He is actually putting me out
+      of doors,&rdquo; she thought. &ldquo;This is a little too much! And why doesn&rsquo;t the
+      baroness make her appearance&mdash;she must certainly have heard my voice?
+      What does it all mean? However, I&rsquo;m sure Marguerite will tell me when we
+      are alone.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame de Fondege was wrong, for she vainly plied the girl with
+      questions all the way from the Rue de la Ville l&rsquo;Eveque to the Rue
+      Pigalle. She could only obtain this unvarying and obstinate reply:
+      &ldquo;Nothing has happened. What do you suppose could have happened?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Never in her whole life had Madame de Fondege been so incensed. &ldquo;The
+      blockhead!&rdquo; she mentally exclaimed. &ldquo;Who ever saw such obstinacy! Hateful
+      creature!&mdash;I could beat her!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She did not beat her, but on reaching the house she eagerly asked: &ldquo;Do you
+      feel strong enough to go up stairs alone?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, madame.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then I will leave you. You know Van Klopen expects me again at one
+      o&rsquo;clock precisely; and I have not breakfasted yet. Remember that my
+      servants are at your disposal, and don&rsquo;t hesitate to call them. You are at
+      home, recollect.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not without considerable difficulty&mdash;not without being
+      compelled to stop and rest several times on her way up stairs&mdash;that
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite succeeded in reaching the apartments of the
+      Fondege family. &ldquo;Where is madame?&rdquo; inquired the servant who opened the
+      door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She is still out.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Will she return to dinner?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;M. Gustave has been here three times already; he was very angry when he
+      found that there was no one at home&mdash;he went on terribly. Besides,
+      the workmen have turned everything topsy-turvy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      However, Marguerite had already reached her own room, and thrown herself
+      on the bed. She was suffering terribly. Her brave spirit still retained
+      its energy; but the flesh had succumbed. Every vein and artery throbbed
+      with violence, and while a chill seemed to come to her heart, her head
+      burned as if it had been on fire. &ldquo;My Lord,&rdquo; she thought, &ldquo;am I going to
+      fall ill at the last moment, just when I have most need of all my
+      strength?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She tried to sleep, but was unable to do so. How could she free herself
+      from the thought that haunted her? Her mother! To think that such a woman
+      was her mother! Was it not enough to make her die of sorrow and shame? And
+      yet this woman must be saved&mdash;the proofs of her crime must be
+      annihilated with her letters. Marguerite asked herself whether the old
+      magistrate would have it in his power to help her in this respect. Perhaps
+      not, and then what could she do? She asked herself if she had not been too
+      cruel, too severe. Guilty or not, the baroness was still her mother. Had
+      she the right to be pitiless, when by stretching out her hand she might,
+      perhaps, have rescued the wretched woman from her terrible life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus thinking, the young girl sat alone and forgotten in her little room.
+      The hours went by, and daylight had begun to wane, when suddenly a shrill
+      whistle resounded in the street, under her windows. &ldquo;Pi-ouit.&rdquo; It came
+      upon her like an electric shock, and with a bound she sprang to her feet.
+      For this cry was the signal that had been agreed upon between herself and
+      the young man who had so abruptly offered to help her on the occasion of
+      her visit to M. Fortunat&rsquo;s office. Was she mistaken? No&mdash;for on
+      listening she heard the cry resound a second time, even more shrill and
+      prolonged than before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was no time for hesitation, and so she went down-stairs at once. Hope
+      sent new blood coursing through her veins and endowed her with invincible
+      energy. On reaching the street-door, she paused and looked around her. At
+      a short distance off she perceived a young fellow clad in a blouse, who
+      was apparently engaged in examining the goods displayed in a shop window.
+      Despite his position, he hurriedly exclaimed: &ldquo;Follow me at a little;
+      distance in the rear until I stop.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite, obeyed him in breathless suspense. The young fellow was our
+      friend Victor Chupin, now somewhat the worse for his encounter with
+      Vantrasson that same morning. His face was considerably disfigured, and
+      one of his eyes was black and swollen; nevertheless he was in a state of
+      ecstatic happiness. Happy, and yet anxious; for, as he preceded
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite, he said to himself: &ldquo;How shall I tell her that I
+      have succeeded? There must be no folly. If I tell her the news suddenly,
+      she will most likely faint, so I must break the news gently.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      On reaching the Rue Boursault, he turned the corner, and paused, waiting
+      for Mademoiselle Marguerite to join him. &ldquo;What is the news?&rdquo; she anxiously
+      asked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Everything is progressing finely&mdash;slowly, but finely.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You know something, monsieur! Speak! Don&rsquo;t you see how anxious I am?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He did see it only too well; and his embarrassment increased to such a
+      pitch that he began to scratch his head furiously. At last he decided on a
+      plan. &ldquo;First of all, mademoiselle, brace yourself against the wall, and
+      now stand firm. Yes, like that. Now, are you all right? Well, I have found
+      M. Ferailleur!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin&rsquo;s precaution was a wise one, for Marguerite tottered. Such a
+      success, so quickly gained, was indeed astounding. &ldquo;Is it possible?&rdquo; she
+      murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So possible that I have a letter for you from M. Ferailleur in my pocket
+      mademoiselle. Here it is&mdash;I am to wait for an answer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She took the note he handed her, broke the seal with trembling hand, and
+      read as follows:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We are approaching the end, my dearest. One step more and we shall
+      triumph. But I must see you to-day at any risk. Leave the house this
+      evening at eight o&rsquo;clock. My mother will be waiting for you in a cab, at
+      the corner of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue Boursault. Come, and let no fear
+      of arousing suspicions of the Fondeges deter you. They are henceforth
+      powerless to injure you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;PASCAL&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will go!&rdquo; replied Marguerite at once, careless of the obstacles that
+      might impede the fulfilment of her promise. For it was quite possible that
+      serious difficulties might arise. Madame Leon, who had been invisible
+      since the morning, might suddenly reappear, or the General and his wife
+      might return to dinner. And what could Marguerite answer if they asked her
+      where she wanted to go alone, and at such an hour of the evening? And if
+      they attempted to prevent her from keeping her appointment, how could she
+      resist? All these were weighty questions and yet she did not hesitate.
+      Pascal had spoken, that sufficed, and she was determined to obey him
+      implicitly, cost what it might. If he advised such a step, it was because
+      he deemed it best and necessary; and she willingly submitted to the
+      instructions of the man in whom she felt such unbounded confidence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having told Chupin that she might be relied upon for the evening, she was
+      retracing her way home, when suddenly the thought occurred to her that she
+      ought not to neglect this opportunity to place a decisive weapon in
+      Pascal&rsquo;s hands. She was close to the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette and so
+      without more ado she hurried to the establishment of Carjat the
+      photographer. He was fortunately disengaged, and she at once obtained from
+      him a proof of the compromising letter written by the Marquis de Valorsay
+      to Madame Leon. She placed it carefully in her pocket, thanked the
+      photographer, and then hurried back to the Rue Pigalle to wait for the
+      hour appointed in Pascal&rsquo;s letter. Fortunately none of her unpleasant
+      apprehensions were realized. The dinner-hour came and passed, and still
+      the house remained deserted. The workmen had gone off and the laughter and
+      chatter of the servants in the kitchen were the only sounds that broke the
+      stillness. Faint for want of food&mdash;for she had taken no nourishment
+      during the day&mdash;Marguerite had considerable difficulty in obtaining
+      something to eat from the servants. At last, however, they gave her some
+      soup and cold meat, served on a corner of the bare table in the
+      dining-room. It was half-past seven when she finished this frugal meal.
+      She waited a moment, and then fearing she might keep Madame Ferailleur
+      waiting, she went down into the street.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A cab was waiting at the corner of the Rue Boursault, as indicated. Its
+      windows were lowered, and in the shade one could discern the face and
+      white hair of an elderly lady. Glancing behind her to assure herself that
+      she had not been followed, Marguerite eagerly approached the vehicle,
+      whereupon a kindly voice exclaimed: &ldquo;Jump in quickly, mademoiselle.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite obeyed, and the door was scarcely closed behind her before the
+      driver had urged his horse into a gallop. He had evidently received his
+      instructions in advance, as well as the promise of a magnificent gratuity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Sitting side by side on the back seat, the old lady and the young girl
+      remained silent, but this did not prevent them from casting stealthy
+      glances at each other, and striving to distinguish one another&rsquo;s features
+      whenever the vehicle passed in front of some brilliantly lighted shop.
+      They had never met before, and their anxiety to become acquainted was
+      intense, for they each felt that the other would exert a decisive
+      influence upon her life. All of Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s friends would
+      undoubtedly have been surprised at the step she had taken, and yet it was
+      quite in accordance with her character. As long as she had entertained any
+      hope of preventing this marriage she had not hesitated to express and even
+      exaggerate her objections and repugnance. But her point of view was
+      entirely changed when conquered by the strength of her son&rsquo;s passion, she
+      at last yielded a reluctant consent. The young girl who was destined to be
+      her daughter-in-law at once became sacred in her eyes; and it seemed to
+      her an act of duty to watch over Marguerite, and shield her reputation.
+      Having considered the subject, she had decided that it was not proper for
+      her son&rsquo;s betrothed to run about the streets alone in the evening. Might
+      it not compromise her honor? and later on might it not furnish venomous
+      Madame de Fondege with an opportunity to exercise her slanderous tongue?
+      Thus the puritanical old lady had come to fetch Marguerite, so that
+      whenever occasion required she might be able to say: &ldquo;I was there!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      As for Marguerite, after the trials of the day, she yielded without
+      reserve to the feeling of rest and happiness that now filled her heart.
+      Again and again had Pascal spoken of his mother&rsquo;s prejudices and the
+      inflexibility of her principles. But he had also spoken of her dauntless
+      energy, the nobility of her nature, and of her love and devotion to him.
+      With Marguerite, moreover, one consideration&mdash;one which she would
+      scarcely have admitted, perhaps&mdash;outweighed all others: Madame
+      Ferailleur was Pascal&rsquo;s mother. For that reason alone, if for no other,
+      she was prepared to worship her. How fervently she blessed this noble
+      woman, who, a widow, and ruined in fortune by an unprincipled scoundrel,
+      had bravely toiled to educate her son, making him the man whom Marguerite
+      had freely chosen from among all others. She would have knelt before this
+      grand but simple-hearted mother had she dared; she would have kissed her
+      hands. And a poignant regret came to her heart when she remembered her own
+      mother, Baroness Trigault, and compared her with this matchless woman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile the cab had passed the outer boulevards, and was now whirling
+      along the Route d&rsquo;Asnieres, as fast as the horse could drag it. &ldquo;We are
+      almost there,&rdquo; remarked Madame Ferailleur, speaking for the first time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite&rsquo;s response was inaudible, she was so overcome with emotion. The
+      driver had just turned the corner of the Route de la Revolte; and it was
+      not long before he checked his panting horse. &ldquo;Look, mademoiselle,&rdquo; said
+      Madame Ferailleur again, &ldquo;this is our home.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Upon the threshold, bareheaded, and breathless with impatience and hope,
+      stood a man who was counting the seconds with the violent throbbings of
+      his heart. He did not wait for the cab to stop, but springing to the door,
+      he opened it; and then, catching Marguerite in his arms, he carried her
+      into the house with a cry of joy. She had not even time to look around
+      her, ere he had placed her in an arm-chair, and fallen on his knees before
+      her. &ldquo;At last I see you again, my beloved Marguerite,&rdquo; he exclaimed. &ldquo;You
+      are mine&mdash;nothing shall part us again!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      They sobbed in each other&rsquo;s arms. They could bear adversity unmoved; but
+      their composure deserted them in this excess of happiness; and standing in
+      the door-way, Madame Ferailleur felt the tears come to her eyes as she
+      stood watching them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How can I tell you all that I have suffered!&rdquo; said Pascal, whose voice
+      was hoarse with feeling. &ldquo;The papers have told you all the details, I
+      suppose. How I was accused of cheating at cards; how the vile epithet
+      &lsquo;thief&rsquo; was cast in my face; how they tried to search me; how my most
+      intimate friends deserted me; how I was virtually expelled from the Palais
+      de Justice. All this is terrible, is it not? Ah, well! it is nothing in
+      comparison with the intense, unendurable anguish I experienced in thinking
+      that you believed the infamous calumny which disgraced me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite rose to her feet. &ldquo;You thought that!&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;You
+      believed that I doubted you? I! Like you, I have been accused of robbery
+      myself. Do you believe me guilty?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good God! I suspect you!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then why&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I was mad, Marguerite, my only love, I was mad! But who would not have
+      lost his senses under such circumstances? It was the very day after this
+      atrocious conspiracy. I had seen Madame Leon, and had trusted her with a
+      letter for you in which I entreated you to grant me five minutes&rsquo; 
+      Conversation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Alas! I never received it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I know that now; but then I was deceived. I went to the little garden
+      gate to await your coming, but it was Madame Leon who appeared. She
+      brought me a note written in pencil and signed with your name, bidding me
+      an eternal farewell. And, fool that I was, I did not see that the note was
+      a forgery!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite was amazed. The veil was now torn aside, and the
+      truth revealed to her. Now she remembered Madame Leon&rsquo;s embarrassment when
+      she met her returning from the garden on the night following the count&rsquo;s
+      death. &ldquo;Ah, well! Pascal,&rdquo; she said, &ldquo;do you know what I was doing at
+      almost the same moment? Alarmed at having received no news from you, I
+      hastened to the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm, where I learned that you had sold your
+      furniture and started for America. Any other woman might have believed
+      herself deserted under such circumstances, but not I. I felt sure that you
+      had not fled in ignominious fashion. I was convinced that you had only
+      concealed yourself for a time in order to strike your enemies more
+      surely.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Do not shame me, Marguerite. It is true that of us two I showed myself
+      the weaker.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Lost in the rapture of the present moment, they had forgotten the past and
+      the future, the agony they had endured, the dangers that still threatened
+      them, and even the existence of their enemies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But Madame Ferailleur was watching. She pointed to the clock, and
+      earnestly exclaimed: &ldquo;Time is passing, my son. Each moment that is wasted
+      endangers our success. Should any suspicion bring Madame Vantrasson here,
+      all would be lost.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She cannot come upon us unawares, my dear mother. Chupin has promised not
+      to lose sight of her. If she stirs from her shop, he will hasten here and
+      throw a stone against the shutters to warn us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But even this did not satisfy Madame Ferailleur.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You forget, Pascal.&rdquo; she insisted, &ldquo;that Mademoiselle Marguerite must be
+      at home again by ten o&rsquo;clock, if she consents to the ordeal you feel
+      obliged to impose upon her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the voice of duty recalling Pascal to the stern realities of
+      life. He slowly rose, conquered his emotion, and, after reflecting for a
+      moment, said: &ldquo;First of all, Marguerite, I owe you the truth and an exact
+      statement of our situation. Circumstances have compelled me to act without
+      consulting you. Have I done right or wrong? You shall judge.&rdquo; And without
+      stopping to listen to the girl&rsquo;s protestations, he rapidly explained how
+      he had managed to win M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s confidence, discover his plans, and
+      become his trusted accomplice. &ldquo;This scoundrel&rsquo;s plan is very simple,&rdquo; he
+      continued. &ldquo;He is determined to marry you. Why? Because, though you are
+      not aware of it, you are rich, and the sole heiress to the fortune of the
+      Count de Chalusse, your father. This surprises you, does it not? Very
+      well! listen to me. Deceived by the Marquis de Valorsay, the Count de
+      Chalusse had promised him your hand. These arrangements were nearly
+      completed, though you had not been informed of them. In fact, everything
+      had been decided. At the outset, however, a grave difficulty had presented
+      itself. The marquis wished your father to acknowledge you before your
+      marriage, but this he refused to do. &lsquo;It would expose me to the most
+      frightful dangers,&rsquo; he declared. &lsquo;However, I will recognize Marguerite as
+      my daughter in my will, and, at the same time, leave all my property to
+      her.&rsquo; But the marquis would not listen to this proposal. &lsquo;I don&rsquo;t doubt
+      your good intentions, my dear count,&rsquo; said he,&rsquo; but suppose this will
+      should be contested, your property might pass into other hands.&rsquo; This
+      difficulty put a stop to the proceedings for some time. The marquis asked
+      for guarantees; the other refused to give them&mdash;until, at last, M. de
+      Chalusse discovered an expedient which would satisfy both parties. He
+      confided to M. de Valorsay&rsquo;s keeping a will in which he recognized you as
+      his daughter, and bequeathed you his entire fortune. This document, the
+      validity of which is unquestionable, has been carefully preserved by the
+      marquis. He has not spoken of its existence; and he would destroy it
+      rather than restore it to you at present. But as soon as you became his
+      wife, he intended to produce it and thus obtain possession of the count&rsquo;s
+      millions.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! the old justice of the peace was not mistaken,&rdquo; murmured Mademoiselle
+      Marguerite.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal did not hear her. All his faculties were absorbed in the attempt he
+      was making to give a clear and concise explanation, for he had much to
+      say, and it was growing late. &ldquo;As for the enormous sum you have been
+      accused of taking,&rdquo; he continued, &ldquo;I know what has become of it; it is in
+      the hands of M. de Fondege.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I know that, Pascal&mdash;I&rsquo;m sure of it; but the proof, the proof!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The proof exists, and, like the will, it is in the hands of the Marquis
+      de Valorsay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is it possible! Great Heavens! You are sure you are not deceived?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have seen the proof, and it is overpowering, irrefutable! I have
+      touched it&mdash;I have held it in my hands. And it explains everything
+      which may have seemed strange and incomprehensible to you. The letter
+      which M. de Chalusse received on the day of his death was written by his
+      sister. She asked in it for her share of the family estate, threatening
+      him with a terrible scandal if he refused to comply with her request. Had
+      the count decided to brave this scandal rather than yield? We have good
+      reason to suppose so. However, this much is certain: he had a terrible
+      hatred, not so much for his sister, perhaps, as for the man who had
+      seduced her, and afterward married her, actuated by avaricious motives
+      alone. He had sworn thousands of times that neither husband nor wife
+      should ever have a penny of the large fortune which really belonged to
+      them. Believing that a lawsuit was now inevitable, and wishing to conceal
+      his wealth, he was greatly embarrassed by the large amount of money he had
+      on hand. What should he do with it? Where could he hide it? He finally
+      decided to intrust it to the keeping of M. de Fondege, who was known as an
+      eccentric man, but whose honesty seemed to be above suspicion. So, when he
+      left home, on the afternoon of his illness, he took the package of
+      bank-notes and bonds, which you had noticed in the escritoire that
+      morning, away with him. We shall never know what passed between your
+      father and the General&mdash;we can only surmise. But what I do know, and
+      what I shall be able to prove, is that M. de Fondege accepted the trust,
+      and that he gave an acknowledgment of it in the form of a letter, which
+      read as follows:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+   &ldquo;&lsquo;MY DEAR COUNT DE CHALUSSE&mdash;I hereby acknowledge the receipt, on
+   Thursday, October 15, 186-, of the sum of two millions, two
+   hundred and fifty thousand francs, which I shall deposit, in my
+   name, at the Bank of France, subject to the orders of Mademoiselle
+   Marguerite, your daughter, on the day she presents this letter.
+   And believe, my dear count, in the absolute devotion of your old
+   comrade,
+
+                                &ldquo;GENERAL DE FONDEGE.&rsquo;&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite was thunderstruck. &ldquo;Who can have furnished you
+      with these particulars?&rdquo; she inquired.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Marquis de Valorsay, my dearest; and I will explain how he was
+      enabled to do so. M. de Fondege wrote the address of his &lsquo;old comrade&rsquo; on
+      this letter, which was folded and sealed, but not enclosed in an envelope.
+      M. de Chalusse proposed to post it himself, so that the official stamp
+      might authenticate its date. But on reflection, he became uneasy. He felt
+      that this tiny, perishable scrap of paper would be the only proof of the
+      deposit which he had confided to M. de Fondege&rsquo;s honor. This scrap might
+      be lost, burned, or stolen. Then what would happen? He had so often seen
+      trustees betray the confidence of which they had seemed worthy. So M. de
+      Chalusse racked his brains to discover a means of protection from an
+      improbable but possible misfortune. He found it. Passing a stationer&rsquo;s
+      shop, he went in, purchased one of those letter-presses which merchants
+      use in their correspondence, and, under pretext of trying it, took a copy
+      of M. de Fondege&rsquo;s letter. Having done this, he placed the copy in an
+      envelope addressed to the Marquis de Valorsay, and, with his heart
+      relieved of all anxiety, posted it at the same time as the original
+      letter. A few moments later he got into the cab in which he was stricken
+      down with apoplexy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Extraordinary as Pascal&rsquo;s explanations must have seemed to her, Marguerite
+      did not doubt their accuracy in the least. &ldquo;Then it is the copy of this
+      letter which you saw in the possession of the Marquis de Valorsay?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the original?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;M. de Fondege alone can tell what has become of that. It is evident that
+      he has somehow succeeded in obtaining possession of it. Would he have
+      dared to squander money as he has done if he had not been convinced that
+      there was no proof of his guilt in existence? Perhaps on hearing of the
+      count&rsquo;s sudden death he bribed the concierge at the Hotel de Chalusse to
+      watch for this letter and return it to him. But on this subject I have
+      only conjectures to offer. If they wish you to marry their son, it is
+      probably because it seems too hard that you should be left in abject
+      poverty while they are enjoying the fortune they have stolen from you. The
+      vilest scoundrels have their scruples. Besides, a marriage with their son
+      would protect them against any possible mischance in the future.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was silent for a moment, and then more slowly resumed: &ldquo;You see,
+      Marguerite, we have clear, palpable, and irrefutable proofs of YOUR
+      innocence; but in my efforts to clear my own name of disgrace, I have been
+      far less fortunate. I have tried in vain to collect material proofs of the
+      conspiracy against me. It is only by proving the guilt of the Marquis de
+      Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth that I can establish my innocence,
+      and so far I am powerless to do so.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s face brightened with supreme joy. &ldquo;Then I can
+      serve you, in my turn, my only love,&rdquo; she exclaimed. &ldquo;Ah! blessed be God
+      who inspired me, and who thus rewards me for an hour of courage. My poor
+      father&rsquo;s plan also occurred to me, Pascal. Was it not strange? The
+      material proof of your innocence which you have sought for in vain, is in
+      my possession, written and signed by the Marquis de Valorsay. Like M. de
+      Fondege, he believes that the letter which proves his guilt is
+      annihilated. He burned it himself, and yet it exists.&rdquo; So saying, she drew
+      from her bosom one of the copies which she had received from Carjat the
+      photographer, and handed it to Pascal, adding, &ldquo;Look!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal eagerly perused the marvellous facsimile of the letter which the
+      marquis had written to Madame Leon. &ldquo;Ah! this is the scoundrel&rsquo;s death
+      warrant.&rdquo; he exclaimed, exultantly. And approaching Madame Ferailleur, who
+      still stood leaning against the door, silent and motionless: &ldquo;Look,
+      mother,&rdquo; he repeated, &ldquo;look!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And he pointed to this paragraph which was so convincing and so explicit,
+      that the most exacting jury would have asked for no further evidence. &ldquo;I
+      have formed a plan which will completely efface all remembrance of that
+      cursed P. F., in case any one could condescend to think of him, after the
+      disgrace we fastened upon him the other evening at the house of Madame d&rsquo;A&mdash;&mdash;.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nor is this all,&rdquo; resumed Mademoiselle Marguerite. &ldquo;There are other
+      letters which will prove that this plot was the marquis&rsquo;s work and which
+      give the name of his accomplice, Coralth. And these letters are in the
+      possession of a man of dubious integrity, who was once the marquis&rsquo;s ally,
+      but who has now become his enemy. He is known as Isidore Fortunat, and
+      lives in the Place de la Bourse.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite felt that Madame Ferailleur&rsquo;s keen glance was riveted upon her.
+      She intuitively divined what was passing in the mind of the puritanical
+      old lady, and realized that her whole future, and the happiness of her
+      entire wedded life, depended upon her conduct at that moment. So, desirous
+      of making a full confession, she hastily exclaimed: &ldquo;My conduct may have
+      seemed strange in a young girl, Pascal. A timid, inexperienced girl, who
+      had been carefully kept from all knowledge of life and evil, would have
+      been crushed by such a burden of disgrace, and could only have wept and
+      prayed. I did weep and pray; but I also struggled and fought. In the hour
+      of peril I found myself endowed with some of the courage and energy which
+      distinguished the poor women of the people among whom I formerly earned my
+      bread. The teachings and miseries of the past were not lost to me!&rdquo; And as
+      simply as if she were telling the most natural thing in the world, she
+      described the struggle she had undertaken against the world, strong in her
+      faith in Pascal and in his love.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, you are a noble and courageous girl!&rdquo; exclaimed Madame Ferailleur.
+      &ldquo;You are worthy of my son, and you will proudly guard our honest name!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      For some little time already the obstinate old lady had been struggling
+      against the sympathetic emotion that filled her heart, and big tears were
+      coursing down her wrinkled cheeks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Unable to restrain herself any longer, she now threw both arms around
+      Marguerite&rsquo;s neck, and drew her toward her in a long embrace, murmuring:
+      &ldquo;Marguerite, my daughter! Ah! how unjust my prejudices were!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It might be thought that Pascal was transported with joy on hearing this,
+      but no: the lines of care on his forehead deepened, as he said: &ldquo;Happiness
+      is so near! Why must a final test, another humiliation, separate us from
+      it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Marguerite now felt strong enough to meet even martyrdom with a smile.
+      &ldquo;Speak, Pascal!&rdquo; said she, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t you see that it is almost ten o&rsquo;clock?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He hesitated; there was grief in his eyes and his breath came quick and
+      hard, as he resumed: &ldquo;For your sake and mine, we must conquer, at any
+      price. This is the only reason that can justify the horrible expedient I
+      have to suggest. M. de Valorsay, as you know, has boasted of his power to
+      overcome your resistance, and he really believes that he possesses this
+      power. Why I have not killed him again and again when he has been at my
+      mercy, I can scarcely understand. The only thing that gave me power to
+      restrain myself was my desire for as sure, as terrible, and as public a
+      revenge as the humiliation he inflicted on me. His plan for your ruin is
+      such as only a scoundrel like himself could conceive. With the assistance
+      of his vile tool, Coralth, he has formed a league, offensive and
+      defensive, with the son of the Count de Chalusse&rsquo;s sister, who is the only
+      acknowledged heir at this moment&mdash;a young man destitute of heart and
+      intelligence, and inordinately vain, but neither better nor worse than
+      many others who figure respectably in society. His name is Wilkie Gordon.
+      The marquis has acquired great influence over him, and has persuaded him
+      that it is his duty to denounce you to the authorities. He has, in short,
+      accused you of defrauding the heirs of the Chalusse estate of two millions
+      of francs and also of poisoning the count.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The girl shrugged her shoulders disdainfully. &ldquo;As for the robbery, we have
+      an answer to that,&rdquo; she answered, &ldquo;and as regards the poisoning&mdash;really
+      the accusation is too absurd!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Pascal still looked gloomy. &ldquo;The matter is more serious than you
+      suppose,&rdquo; he replied. &ldquo;They have found a physician&mdash;a vile, cowardly
+      scoundrel&mdash;who for a certain sum has consented to appear in support
+      of the accusation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Dr. Jodon, I presume!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; and this is not all. The count&rsquo;s escritoire contains the vial of
+      medicine of which he drank a portion on the day of his death. Well,
+      to-morrow night, Madame Leon will open the garden gate of the Hotel de
+      Chalusse and admit a rascal who will abstract the vial.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marguerite shuddered. Now she understood the fiendish cunning of the plot.
+      &ldquo;It might ruin me!&rdquo; she murmured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal nodded affirmatively. &ldquo;M. de Valorsay wishes you to consider
+      yourself as irretrievably lost, and then he intends to offer to save you
+      on condition that you consent to marry him. I should say, however, that M.
+      Wilkie is ignorant of the atrocious projects he is abetting. They are
+      known only to the marquis and M. de Coralth; and it is I who, under the
+      name of Maumejan, act as their adviser. It was to me that the marquis sent
+      M. Wilkie for assistance in drawing up this accusation. I myself wrote out
+      the denunciation, which was as terrible and as formidable as our bitterest
+      enemy could possibly desire, combining, as it did, with perfidious art,
+      the reports of the valets and the suspicions of the physician, and
+      establishing the connection between the robbery and the murder. It
+      finished by demanding a thorough investigation. And M. Wilkie copied and
+      signed this document, and carried it to the prosecution office himself.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite sank half-fainting into an arm-chair. &ldquo;You have
+      done this!&rdquo; she faltered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was necessary, my daughter,&rdquo; whispered Madame Ferailleur.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, it was necessary, absolutely necessary,&rdquo; repeated Pascal, &ldquo;as you
+      will see. Justice, which is a human institution, and limited in its
+      powers, cannot fathom motives, read thoughts, or interfere with plans,
+      however abominable they may be, or however near realization. Before it can
+      interfere, the law must have material, tangible proof, convincing to the
+      senses. Until you are arrested, the crimes committed by M. de Valorsay,
+      and those associated with him, do not come within the reach of human
+      justice; but as soon as you are in prison, I can hasten to our friend the
+      justice of the peace, and we shall go at once to the investigating
+      magistrate and explain everything. Now, when your innocence and the guilt
+      of your accusers have been established, what do you fancy the authorities
+      will do? They will wait until your enemies declare themselves, in order to
+      capture them all at once, and prevent the escape of a single one.
+      To-morrow night some clever detectives will watch the Hotel de Chalusse,
+      and just as Madame Leon and the wretch with her think themselves sure of
+      success, they will be caught in the very act and arrested. When they are
+      examined by a magistrate, who is conversant with the whole affair, can
+      they deny their guilt? No; certainly not. Acting upon their confession,
+      the authorities will force an entrance into Valorsay&rsquo;s house, where they
+      will find your father&rsquo;s will and the receipt given by M. de Fondege&mdash;in
+      a word, all the proofs of their guilt. And while this search is going on,
+      all your enemies, reassured by your arrest, will be at a grand soiree
+      given by Baron Trigault. I shall be there as well.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mademoiselle Marguerite had mastered her momentary weakness. She rose to
+      her feet, and in a firm voice exclaimed: &ldquo;You have acted rightly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah! there was no other way. And yet I wished to see you, to learn if this
+      course were too repugnant to you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She interrupted him with a gesture. &ldquo;When shall I be arrested?&rdquo; she asked,
+      quietly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This evening or to-morrow.&rdquo; was his answer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Very well! I have only one request to make. The Fondeges have a son who
+      has no hand in the affair, but who will be more severely punished than his
+      parents, if we do not spare them. Could you not&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I can do nothing, Marguerite. I am powerless now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Everything was soon arranged. Marguerite raised her forehead to Pascal for
+      his parting kiss, and went away accompanied by Madame Ferailleur, who
+      escorted her to the corner of the Rue Boursault. The General and his wife
+      had returned home in advance of Marguerite. She found them sitting in the
+      drawing-room, with distorted faces and teeth chattering with fear. With
+      them was a bearded man who, as soon as she appeared, exclaimed:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are Mademoiselle Marguerite, are you not? I arrest you in the name of
+      the law. There is my warrant.&rdquo; And without more ado he led her away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0020" id="link2H_4_0020">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      XX.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Money, which nowadays has taken the place of the good fairies of former
+      times, had gratified M. Wilkie&rsquo;s every longing in a single night. Without
+      any period of transition, dreamlike as it were, he had passed from what he
+      called &ldquo;straitened circumstances&rdquo; to the splendid enjoyment of a princely
+      fortune. Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s renunciation had been so correctly drawn up,
+      that as soon as he presented his claims and displayed his credentials he
+      was placed in possession of the Chalusse estate. It is true that a few
+      trifling difficulties presented themselves. For instance, the old justice
+      of the peace who had affixed the seals refused to remove them from certain
+      articles of furniture, especially from the late count&rsquo;s escritoire,
+      without an order from the court, and several days were needed to obtain
+      this. But what did that matter to M. Wilkie? The house, with its splendid
+      reception-rooms, pictures, statuary and gardens, was at his disposal, and
+      he installed himself therein at once. Twenty horses neighed and stamped in
+      his stables; there were at least a dozen carriages in the coach-house. He
+      devoted his attention exclusively to the horses and vehicles; but acting
+      upon the advice of Casimir, who had become his valet and oracle, he
+      retained all the former servants of the house, from Bourigeau the
+      concierge down to the humblest scullery maid. Still, he gave them to
+      understand that this was only a temporary arrangement. A man like himself,
+      living in this progressive age, could scarcely be expected to content
+      himself with what had satisfied the Count de Chalusse. &ldquo;For I have my
+      plans,&rdquo; he remarked to Casimir, &ldquo;but let Paris wait awhile.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He repudiated his former friends. Costard and Serpillon, pretended
+      viscounts though they were, were quite beneath the notice of a
+      Gordon-Chalusse, as M. Wilkie styled himself on his visiting cards.
+      However, he purchased their share of Pompier de Nanterre, feeling
+      convinced that this remarkable steeplechaser had a brilliant future before
+      him. He did not trouble himself to any great extent about his mother. Like
+      every one else, he knew that she had disappeared, but nothing further. On
+      the other hand, the thought of his father, the terrible chevalier
+      d&rsquo;industrie, hung over his joy like a pall; and each time the great
+      entrance bell announced a visitor, he trembled, turned pale, and muttered:
+      &ldquo;Perhaps it&rsquo;s he!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Tortured by this fear, he clung closely to the Marquis de Valorsay as if
+      he felt that this distinguished friend was a powerful support. Besides,
+      people of rank and distinction naturally exercised a powerful attraction
+      over him, and he fancied he grew several inches taller when, in some
+      public place, in the street, or a restaurant, he was able to call out, &ldquo;I
+      say, Valorsay, my good friend,&rdquo; or, &ldquo;Upon my word! my dear marquis!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay received these effusions graciously enough, although, in
+      point of fact, he was terribly bored by the platitudes of his new
+      acquaintance. He intended to send him to Coventry later on, but just now
+      M. Wilkie was too useful to be ignored. So he had introduced him to his
+      club, and was seen with him everywhere&mdash;in the Bois, at the
+      restaurants, and the theatres. At times, some of his friends inquired:
+      &ldquo;Who is that queer little fellow?&rdquo; with a touch of irony in their tone,
+      but when the marquis carelessly answered: &ldquo;A poor devil who has just come
+      into possession of a property worth twenty millions!&rdquo; they became serious,
+      and requested the pleasure and honor of an introduction to this fortunate
+      young man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So M. de Valorsay had invited Gordon-Chalusse to accompany him to Baron
+      Trigault&rsquo;s approaching fete. It was to be an entertainment for gentlemen
+      only, a monster card-party; but every one knew the wealthy baron, and no
+      doubt with a view of stimulating curiosity he had declared, and the Figaro
+      had repeated, that he had a great surprise in store for his guests. Oh!
+      such a surprise! They could have no idea what it was! This fete was to
+      take place on the second day after Mademoiselle Marguerite&rsquo;s arrest; and
+      on the appointed evening, between nine and ten o&rsquo;clock, M. de Valorsay and
+      his friend Coralth sat together in the former&rsquo;s smoking-room waiting for
+      Wilkie to call for them, as had been agreed upon. They were both in the
+      best of spirits. The viscount&rsquo;s apprehensions had been entirely dispelled;
+      and the marquis had quite forgotten the twinges of pain in his injured
+      limb. &ldquo;Marguerite will only leave prison to marry me,&rdquo; said M. de
+      Valorsay, triumphantly; and he added: &ldquo;What a willing tool this Wilkie is!
+      A single word sufficed to make him give all his servants leave of absence.
+      The Hotel de Chalusse will be deserted, and Madame Leon and Vantrasson can
+      operate at their leisure.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was ten o&rsquo;clock when M. Wilkie made his appearance. &ldquo;Come, my good
+      friends!&rdquo; said he, &ldquo;my carriage is below.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      They started off at once, and five minutes later they were ushered into
+      the presence of Baron Trigault, who received M. Wilkie as if he had never
+      seen him before. There was quite a crowd already. At least three or four
+      hundred people had assembled in the Baron&rsquo;s reception-rooms, and among
+      them were several former habitues of Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s house; one could
+      also espy M. de Fondege ferociously twirling his mustaches as usual,
+      together with Kami-Bey, who was conspicuous by reason of his portly form
+      and eternal red fez. However, among these men, all noticeable for their
+      studied elegance of attire and manner, and all of them known to M. de
+      Valorsay, there moved numerous others of very different appearance. Their
+      waistcoats were less open, and their clothes did not fit them as
+      perfectly; on the other hand, there was something else than a look of
+      idiotic self-complacency on their faces. &ldquo;Who can these people be?&rdquo;
+       whispered the marquis to M. de Coralth. &ldquo;They look like lawyers or
+      magistrates.&rdquo; But although he said this he did not really believe it, and
+      it was without the slightest feeling of anxiety that he strolled from
+      group to group, shaking hands with his friends and introducing M. Wilkie.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A strange rumor was in circulation among the guests. Many of them declared&mdash;where
+      could they have heard such a thing?&mdash;that in consequence of a quarrel
+      with her husband, Madame Trigault had left Paris the evening before. They
+      even went so far as to repeat her parting words to the Baron: &ldquo;You will
+      never see me again,&rdquo; she had said. &ldquo;You are amply avenged. Farewell!&rdquo;
+       However, the best informed among the guests, the folks who were thoroughly
+      acquainted with all the scandals of the day, declared the story false, and
+      said that if the baroness had really fled, handsome Viscount de Coralth
+      would not appear so calm and smiling.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The report WAS true, however. But M. de Coralth did not trouble himself
+      much about the baroness now. Had he not got in his pocket M. Wilkie&rsquo;s
+      signature insuring him upward of half a million? Standing near one of the
+      windows in the main reception-room, between the Marquis de Valorsay and M.
+      Wilkie, the brilliant viscount was gayly chatting with them, when a
+      footman, in a voice loud enough to interrupt all conversation, suddenly
+      announced: &ldquo;M. Maumejan!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed such a perfectly natural thing to M. de Valorsay that Maumejan,
+      as one of the baron&rsquo;s business agents, should be received at his house,
+      that he was not in the least disturbed. But M. de Coralth, having heard
+      the name, wished to see the man who had aided and advised the marquius so
+      effectually. He abruptly turned, and as he did so the words he would have
+      spoken died upon his lips. He became livid, his eyes seemed to start from
+      their sockets, and it was with difficulty that he ejaculated: &ldquo;He!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who?&rdquo; inquired the astonished marquis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Look!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      M. de Valorsay did so, and to his utter amazement he perceived a numerous
+      party in the rear of the man announced under the name of Maumejan. First
+      came Mademoiselle Marguerite, leaning on the arm of the white-haired
+      magistrate, and then Madame Ferailleur; next M. Isidore Fortunat, and
+      finally Chupin&mdash;Victor Chupin, resplendent in a handsome, bran-new,
+      black dress-suit.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis could no longer fail to understand the truth. He realized who
+      Maumejan really was, and the audacious comedy he had been duped by. He was
+      so frightfully agitated that five or six persons sprang forward
+      exclaiming: &ldquo;What is the matter, marquis? Are you ill?&rdquo; But he made no
+      reply. He felt that he was caught in a trap, and he glanced wildly around
+      him seeking for some loophole of escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, the word of command had evidently been given. Suddenly all the
+      guests scattered about the various drawing-rooms poured into the main
+      hall, and the doors were closed. Then, with a solemnity of manner which no
+      one had ever seen him display before, Baron Trigault took the so-called
+      Maumejan by the hand and led him into the centre of the apartment opposite
+      the lofty chimney-piece. &ldquo;Gentlemen,&rdquo; he began, in a commanding tone,
+      &ldquo;this is M. Pascal Ferailleur, the honorable man who was falsely accused
+      of cheating at cards at Madame d&rsquo;Argeles&rsquo;s house. You owe him a hearing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal was greatly agitated. The strangeness of the situation, the
+      certainty of speedy and startling rehabilitation, perhaps the joy of
+      vengeance, the silence, which was so profound that he could hear his own
+      panting breath, and the many eyes riveted upon him, all combined to
+      unnerve him. But only for a moment. He swiftly conquered his weakness, and
+      surveying his audience with flashing eyes, he explained, in a clear and
+      ringing voice, the shameful conspiracy to obtain possession of the count&rsquo;s
+      millions, and the abominable machinations by which Mademoiselle Marguerite
+      and himself had been victimized. Then when he had finished his
+      explanations he added, in a still more commanding voice, &ldquo;Now look; you
+      can read the culprits&rsquo; guilt on their faces. One is the scoundrel known to
+      you as the Viscount de Coralth, but Paul Violaine is his true name. He was
+      formerly an accomplice of the notorious Mascarot; he is a cowardly
+      villain, for he is married, and leaves his wife and children to die of
+      starvation!&rdquo; The Viscount de Coralth fairly bellowed with rage. But Pascal
+      did not heed him. &ldquo;The other criminal is the Marquis de Valorsay,&rdquo; he
+      added, in the same ringing tone. There was, moreover, a third culprit who
+      would have inspired mingled pity and disgust if any one had noticed him
+      shrinking into a corner, terrified and muttering: &ldquo;It wasn&rsquo;t my fault, my
+      wife compelled me to do it!&rdquo; This was General de Fondege.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Pascal did not mention his name. But it was not absolutely necessary he
+      should do so, and besides, he remembered Marguerite&rsquo;s entreaty respecting
+      the son.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      However, while the young lawyer was speaking, the marquis had summoned all
+      his energy and assurance to his aid. Desperate as his plight might be, he
+      would not surrender. &ldquo;This is an infamous conspiracy,&rdquo; he exclaimed.
+      &ldquo;Baron, you shall atone for this. The man&rsquo;s an impostor!&mdash;he lies!&mdash;all
+      that he says is false!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, it is false!&rdquo; echoed M. de Coralth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But a clamor arose, drowning these protestations, and the most opprobrious
+      epithets could be heard on every side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How will you prove your assertion?&rdquo; cried M. de Valorsay.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t try that dodge on us!&rdquo; shouted Chupin. &ldquo;Vantrasson and mother Leon
+      have confessed everything.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who defrauded us all with Domingo?&rdquo; cried several people; and, loud above
+      all the others, Kami-Bey bawled out: &ldquo;To say nothing of the fact that the
+      sale of your racing stud was a complete swindle!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Meanwhile, Pascal&rsquo;s former friends and associates, his brother advocates
+      and the magistrates who had listened to his first efforts at the bar,
+      crowded round him, pressing his hands, embracing him almost to
+      suffocation, censuring themselves for having suspected him, the very soul
+      of honor, and pleading in self-justification the degenerate age in which
+      we live&mdash;an age in which we daily see those whom we had considered
+      immaculate suddenly yield to temptation. And a murmur of respectful
+      admiration rose from the throng when the excitement had subsided a little,
+      and the guests had an opportunity to observe Mademoiselle Marguerite,
+      whose eyes sparkled more brightly than ever through her happy tears; and
+      whose beauty acquired an almost sublime expression from her deep emotion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The wretched Valorsay felt that all was over&mdash;that he was
+      irretrievably lost. Seized by a blind fury like that which impels a hunted
+      animal to turn and face the hounds that pursue him, and bid them defiance,
+      he confronted the throng with his face distorted with passion, his eyes
+      bloodshot, and foam upon his lips; he was absolutely frightful in his
+      cynicism, hatred, and scorn. &ldquo;Ah! well, yes!&rdquo; he exclaimed&mdash;&ldquo;yes, all
+      that you have just heard is true. I was sinking, and I tried to save
+      myself as best I could. Beggars cannot be choosers; I staked my all upon a
+      single die. If I had won, you would have been at my feet; but I have lost
+      and you spurn me. Cowards! hypocrites! that you are, insult me if you
+      like, but tell me how many among you all are sufficiently pure and upright
+      to have a right to despise me! Are there a hundred among you? are there
+      even fifty?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A tempest of hisses momentarily drowned his voice, but as soon as the
+      uproar had ceased, he resumed, sneeringly: &ldquo;Ah! the truth wounds you, my
+      dear friends. Pray, don&rsquo;t pretend to be so distressingly virtuous! I was
+      ruined&mdash;that is the long and short of it. But what man of you is not
+      embarrassed? Who among you finds his income sufficient? Which one of you
+      is not encroaching upon his capital? And when you have come to your last
+      louis, you will do what I have done, or something worse. Do not deny it,
+      for not one among you has a more uncompromising conscience, more moral
+      firmness, or more generous aspirations than I once possessed. You are
+      pursuing what I pursued. You desire what I desired&mdash;a life of luxury,
+      brief if it must be, but happy&mdash;a life of gayety, wild excitement,
+      and dissipation. You, too, have a passion for pleasure and gambling,
+      race-horses, and notorious women, a table always bountifully spread,
+      glasses ever overflowing with wine, all the delights of luxury, and
+      everything that gratifies your vanity! But an abyss of shame awaits you at
+      the end of it all. I am in it now. I await you there, for there you will
+      surely, necessarily, inevitably come. Ah, ha! you will not then think my
+      downfall so very strange. Let me pass! make way! if you please.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He advanced with his head haughtily erect, and would actually have made
+      his escape if a frightened servant had not at that moment appeared crying:
+      &ldquo;Monsieur&mdash;Monsieur le Baron! a commissary of police is downstairs.
+      He is coming up. He has a warrant!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The marquis&rsquo;s frenzied assurance deserted him. He turned even paler than
+      he already was if that were possible, and reeled like an ox but partially
+      stunned by the butcher&rsquo;s hammer. Suddenly a desperate resolution could be
+      read in his eyes, the resolution of the condemned criminal, who, knowing
+      that he cannot escape the scaffold, ascends it with a firm step.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He hastily approached Baron Trigault, and asked in a husky voice: &ldquo;Will
+      you allow me to be arrested in your house, baron? me&mdash;a Valorsay!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It might have been supposed that the baron had expected this reproach, for
+      without a word he led the marquis and M. de Coralth to a little room at
+      the end of the hall, pushed them inside, and closed the door again.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was time he did so, for the commissary of police was already upon the
+      threshold. &ldquo;Which of you gentlemen is the Marquis de Valorsay?&rdquo; he asked.
+      &ldquo;Which of you is Paul Violaine, alias the Viscount de&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The sharp report of firearms suddenly interrupted him. Every one at once
+      rushed to the little room, where the wretched men had been conducted.
+      There extended, face upward, on the floor, lay the Marquis de Valorsay,
+      with his brains oozing from his fractured skull, and his right hand still
+      clutching a revolver. He was dead. &ldquo;And the other!&rdquo; cried the throng; &ldquo;the
+      other!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The open window, and a curtain rudely torn from its fastenings and secured
+      to the balustrade, told how M. de Coralth had made his escape. It was not
+      till later that people learned what precautions the baron had taken. On
+      the table in that room he had laid two revolvers, and two packages
+      containing ten thousand francs each. The viscount had not hesitated.
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse were married at
+      the church of Saint Etienne du Mont, only a few steps from the Rue d&rsquo;Ulm.
+      Those who knew the mystery connected with the bride&rsquo;s parentage were
+      greatly astonished when they saw Baron Trigault act as a witness on this
+      occasion, in company with the venerable justice of the peace. But such was
+      the fact, nevertheless. Treated more and more outrageously by his daughter
+      and her husband, separated from his wife, who had nearly lost her reason,
+      although her letters were saved, the baron has nowadays found affection
+      and a home with Pascal and his wife. He plays cards but seldom now&mdash;only
+      an occasional game of piquet with Madame Ferailleur, and he amuses himself
+      by making her start when she is too long in discarding, by ejaculating, in
+      a stentorian voice: &ldquo;We are wasting precious time!&rdquo; Sometimes they go out
+      together, to the great astonishment of such as chance to meet the
+      puritanical old lady leaning on the baron&rsquo;s arm. She often goes to visit
+      and console the widow Gordon, formerly known as Lia d&rsquo;Argeles, who now
+      keeps an establishment near Montrouge, where she provides poor, betrayed
+      and forsaken girls with a home and employment. She has yet to receive any
+      token of remembrance from her son. As for her husband, she supposes he is
+      dead or incarcerated in some prison.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It is to Madame Gordon that the Fondeges are often indebted for bread.
+      Obliged to disgorge their plunder, and left with no resources save the
+      fifty francs a month allowed them by their son, who has been promoted to
+      the rank of captain, their poverty is necessarily extreme. Oh! those
+      Fondeges! M. Fortunat only speaks of them with horror. But he is loud in
+      his praises of Madame Marguerite, who repaid him the forty thousand francs
+      he had advanced to M. de Valorsay. He speaks in the highest terms of
+      Chupin also; but in this, he is scarcely sincere, for Victor, who has been
+      set up in business by Pascal, told him very plainly that he was determined
+      not to put his hand to any more dirty work, and that expression, &ldquo;dirty
+      work,&rdquo; rankles in M. Fortunat&rsquo;s heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Chupin&rsquo;s resolution did not, however, prevent him from attending the trial
+      of Vantrasson and Madame Leon&mdash;the former of whom was sentenced to
+      hard labor for life, and the latter to ten years&rsquo; imprisonment. Nothing is
+      known concerning M. de Coralth; but his wife has disappeared, to the great
+      disappointment of M. Mouchon. As a dentist, Dr. Jodon is successful. As
+      for M. Wilkie, you can learn anything you wish to know concerning him in
+      the newspapers, for his sayings, doings, and movements, are constantly
+      being chronicled. The reporters exhaust all the resources of their
+      vocabulary in describing his horses, carriages, and stables, and the
+      gorgeous liveries of his servants. His changes of residence are always
+      mentioned; his brilliant sayings are quoted. He is a social success; he is
+      admired, fondled, and flattered. He makes a great stir in the fashionable
+      world&mdash;in fact, he reigns over it like a king. After all, assurance
+      is the winning card in the game of life!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
+
+
+
+
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+</pre>
+  </body>
+</html>
diff --git a/547.txt b/547.txt
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--- /dev/null
+++ b/547.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,12852 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Baron Trigault's Vengeance, by Emile Gaboriau
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Baron Trigault's Vengeance
+       Volume 2 (of 2)
+
+Author: Emile Gaboriau
+
+Release Date: July 1, 2008 [EBook #547]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BARON TRIGAULT'S VENGEANCE ***
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+BARON TRIGAULT'S VENGEANCE
+
+by Emile Gaboriau
+
+
+
+A Sequel to "The Count's Millions"
+
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+
+Vengeance! that is the first, the only thought, when a man finds himself
+victimized, when his honor and fortune, his present and future,
+are wrecked by a vile conspiracy! The torment he endures under such
+circumstances can only be alleviated by the prospect of inflicting them
+a hundredfold upon his persecutors. And nothing seems impossible at the
+first moment, when hatred surges in the brain, and the foam of anger
+rises to the lips; no obstacle seems insurmountable, or, rather,
+none are perceived. But later, when the faculties have regained their
+equilibrium, one can measure the distance which separates the dream from
+reality, the project from execution. And on setting to work, how many
+discouragements arise! The fever of revolt passes by, and the victim
+wavers. He still breathes bitter vengeance, but he does not act. He
+despairs, and asks himself what would be the good of it? And in this way
+the success of villainy is once more assured.
+
+Similar despondency attacked Pascal Ferailleur when he awoke for the
+first time in the abode where he had hidden himself under the name of
+Maumejan. A frightful slander had crushed him to the earth--he could
+kill his slanderer, but afterward--? How was he to reach and stifle the
+slander itself? As well try to hold a handful of water; as well try to
+stay with extended arms the progress of the poisonous breeze which wafts
+an epidemic on its wings. So the hope that had momentarily lightened
+his heart faded away again. Since he had received that fatal letter from
+Madame Leon the evening before, he believed that Marguerite was lost to
+him forever, and in this case, it was useless to struggle against fate.
+What would be the use of victory even if he conquered? Marguerite lost
+to him--what did the rest matter? Ah! if he had been alone in the world.
+But he had his mother to think of;--he belonged to this brave-hearted
+woman, who had saved him from suicide already. "I will not yield, then;
+I will struggle on for her sake," he muttered, like a man who foresees
+the futility of his efforts.
+
+He rose, and had nearly finished dressing, when he heard a rap at his
+chamber door. "It is I, my son," said Madame Ferailleur outside.
+
+Pascal hastened to admit her. "I have come for you because the woman you
+spoke about last evening is already here, and before employing her, I
+want your advice."
+
+"Then the woman doesn't please you, mother?"
+
+"I want you to see her."
+
+On entering the little parlor with his mother, Pascal found himself in
+the presence of a portly, pale-faced woman, with thin lips and restless
+eyes, who bowed obsequiously. It was indeed Madame Vantrasson, the
+landlady of the model lodging-house, who was seeking employment for the
+three or four hours which were at her disposal in the morning, she said.
+It certainly was not for pleasure that she had decided to go out to
+service again; her dignity suffered terribly by this fall--but then
+the stomach has to be cared for. Tenants were not numerous at the model
+lodging-house, in spite of its seductive title; and those who slept
+there occasionally, almost invariably succeeded in stealing something.
+Nor did the grocery store pay; the few half-pence which were left
+there occasionally in exchange for a glass of liquor were pocketed by
+Vantrasson, who spent them at some neighboring establishment; for it is
+a well-known fact that the wine a man drinks in his own shop is always
+bitter in flavor. So, having no credit at the butcher's or the baker's,
+Madame Vantrasson was sometimes reduced to living for days together upon
+the contents of the shop--mouldy figs or dry raisins--which she washed
+down with torrents of ratafia, her only consolation here below.
+
+But this was not a satisfying diet, as she was forced to confess; so she
+decided to find some work, that would furnish her with food and a little
+money, which she vowed she would never allow her worthy husband to see.
+
+"What would you charge per month?" inquired Pascal.
+
+She seemed to reflect, and after a great deal of counting on her
+fingers, she finally declared that she would be content with breakfast
+and fifteen francs a month, on condition she was allowed to do the
+marketing. The first question of French cooks, on presenting themselves
+for a situation, is almost invariably, "Shall I do the marketing?"
+which of course means, "Shall I have any opportunities for stealing?"
+Everybody knows this, and nobody is astonished at it.
+
+"I shall do the marketing myself," declared Madame Ferailleur, boldly.
+
+"Then I shall want thirty francs a month," replied Madame Vantrasson,
+promptly.
+
+Pascal and his mother exchanged glances. They were both unfavorably
+impressed by this woman, and were equally determined to rid themselves
+of her, which it was easy enough to do. "Too dear!" said Madame
+Ferailleur; "I have never given over fifteen francs."
+
+But Madame Vantrasson was not the woman to be easily discouraged,
+especially as she knew that if she failed to obtain this situation, she
+might have considerable difficulty in finding another one. She could
+only hope to obtain employment from strangers and newcomers, who were
+ignorant of the reputation of the model lodging-house. So in view of
+softening the hearts of Pascal and his mother, she began to relate the
+history of her life, skilfully mingling the false with the true, and
+representing herself as an unfortunate victim of circumstances, and the
+inhuman cruelty of relatives. For she belonged, like her husband, to
+a very respectable family, as the Maumejans might easily ascertain by
+inquiry. Vantrasson's sister was the wife of a man named Greloux, who
+had once been a bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis, but who had now
+retired from business with a competency. "Why had this Greloux refused
+to save them from bankruptcy? Because one could never hope for a favor
+from relatives," she groaned; "they are jealous if you succeed; and if
+you are unfortunate, they cast you off."
+
+However, these doleful complaints, far from rendering Madame Vantrasson
+interesting, imparted a deceitful and most disagreeable expression to
+her countenance. "I told you that I could only give fifteen francs,"
+interrupted Madame Ferailleur--"take it or leave it."
+
+Madame Vantrasson protested. She expressed her willingness to deduct
+five francs from the sum she had named, but more--it was impossible!
+Would they haggle over ten francs to secure such a treasure as herself,
+an honest, settled woman, who was entirely devoted to her employers?
+"Besides, I have been a grand cook in my time," she added, "and I have
+not lost all my skill. Monsieur and madame would be delighted with my
+cooking, for I have seen more than one fine gentleman smack his lips
+over my sauces when was in the employment of the Count de Chalusse."
+
+Pascal and his mother could not repress a start on hearing this name;
+but it was in a tone of well-assumed indifference that Madame Ferailleur
+repeated, "M. de Chalusse?"
+
+"Yes, madame--a count--and so rich that he didn't know how much he was
+worth. If he were still alive I shouldn't be compelled to go out to
+service again. But he's dead and he's to be buried this very day." And
+with an air of profound secrecy, she added: "On going yesterday to
+the Hotel de Chalusse to ask for a little help, I heard of the great
+misfortune. Vantrasson, my husband, accompanied me, and while we were
+talking with the concierge, a young woman passed through the hall, and
+he recognized her as a person who some time ago was--well--no better
+than she should be. Now, however, she's a young lady as lofty as the
+clouds, and the deceased count has been passing her off as his daughter.
+Ah! this is a strange world."
+
+Pascal had become whiter than the ceiling. His eyes blazed; and Madame
+Ferailleur trembled. "Very well," she said, "I will give you twenty-five
+francs--but on condition you come without complaining if I sometimes
+require your services of an evening. On these occasions I will give you
+your dinner." And taking five francs from her pocket she placed them in
+Madame Vantrasson's hand, adding: "Here is your earnest money."
+
+The other quickly pocketed the coin, not a little surprised by this
+sudden decision which she had scarcely hoped for, and which she by no
+means understood. Still she was so delighted with this denouement that
+she expressed her willingness to enter upon her duties at once; and to
+get rid of her Madame Ferailleur was obliged to send her out to purchase
+the necessary supplies for breakfast. Then, as soon as she was alone
+with her son, she turned to him and asked: "Well, Pascal?"
+
+But the wretched man seemed turned to stone, and seeing that he neither
+spoke nor moved, she continued in a severe tone: "Is this the way you
+keep your resolutions and your oaths! You express your intention
+of accomplishing a task which requires inexhaustible patience and
+dissimulation, and at the very first unforeseen circumstance your
+coolness deserts you, and you lose your head completely. If it had not
+been for me you would have betrayed yourself in that woman's presence.
+You must renounce your revenge, and tamely submit to be conquered by the
+Marquis de Valorsay if your face is to be an open book in which any one
+may read your secret plans and thoughts."
+
+Pascal shook his head dejectedly. "Didn't you hear, mother?" he
+faltered.
+
+"Hear what?"
+
+"What that vile woman said? This young lady whom she spoke of, whom her
+husband recognized, can be none other than Marguerite."
+
+"I am sure of it."
+
+He recoiled in horror. "You are sure of it!" he repeated; "and you can
+tell me this unmoved--coldly, as if it were a natural, a possible thing.
+Didn't you understand the shameful meaning of her insinuations? Didn't
+you see her hypocritical smile and the malice gleaming in her eyes?" He
+pressed his hands to his burning brow, and groaned "And I did not crush
+the infamous wretch! I did not fell her to the ground!"
+
+Ah! if she had obeyed the impulse of her heart. Madame Ferailleur would
+have thrown her arms round her son's neck, and have mingled her tears
+with his, but reason prevailed. The worthy woman's heart was pervaded
+with that lofty sentiment of duty which sustains the humble heroines
+of the fireside, and lends them even more courage than the reckless
+adventurers whose names are recorded by history could boast of. She felt
+that Pascal must not be consoled, but spurred on to fresh efforts;
+and so mustering all her courage, she said: "Are you acquainted with
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's past life? No. You only know that hers has
+been a life of great vicissitudes--and so it is not strange that she
+should be slandered."
+
+"In that case, mother," said Pascal, "you were wrong to interrupt Madame
+Vantrasson. She would probably have told us many things."
+
+"I interrupted her, it is true, and sent her away--and you know why. But
+she is in our service now; and when you are calm, when you have regained
+your senses, nothing will prevent you from questioning her. It may be
+useful for you to know who this man Vantrasson is, and how and where he
+met Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+Shame, sorrow, and rage, brought tears to Pascal's eyes. "My God!" he
+exclaimed, "to be reduced to the unspeakable misery of hearing my mother
+doubt Marguerite!" He did not doubt her. HE could have listened to the
+most infamous accusations against her without feeling a single doubt.
+However, Madame Ferailleur had sufficient self-control to shrug her
+shoulders. "Ah, well! silence this slander," she exclaimed. "I wish for
+nothing better; but don't forget that we have ourselves to rehabilitate.
+To crush your enemies will be far more profitable to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite than vain threats and weak lamentations. It seemed to me that
+you had sworn to act, not to complain."
+
+This ironical thrust touched Pascal's sensitive mind to the quick; he
+rose at once to his feet, and coldly said, "That's true. I thank you for
+having recalled me to myself."
+
+She made no rejoinder, but mentally thanked God. She had read her son's
+heart, and perceiving his hesitation and weakness she had supplied the
+stimulus he needed. Now she saw him as she wished to see him. Now he was
+ready to reproach himself for his lack of courage and his weakness in
+displaying his feelings. And as a test of his powers of endurance, he
+decided not to question Madame Vantrasson till four or five days had
+elapsed. If her suspicions had been aroused, this delay would suffice to
+dispel them.
+
+He said but little during breakfast; for he was now eager to commence
+the struggle. He longed to act, and yet he scarcely knew how to begin
+the campaign. First of all, he must study the enemy's position--gain
+some knowledge of the men he had to deal with, find out exactly who the
+Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth were. Where could he
+obtain information respecting these two men? Should he be compelled to
+follow them and to gather up here and there such scraps of intelligence
+as came in his way? This method of proceeding would be slow and
+inconvenient in the extreme. He was revolving the subject in his mind
+when he suddenly remembered the man who, on the morning that followed
+the scene at Madame d'Argeles's house, had come to him in the Rue d'Ulm
+to give him a proof of his confidence. He remembered that this strange
+man had said: "If you ever need a helping hand, come to me." And at the
+recollection he made up his mind. "I am going to Baron Trigault's," he
+remarked to his mother; "if my presentiments don't deceive me, he will
+be of service to us."
+
+In less than half an hour he was on his way. He had dressed himself in
+the oldest clothes he possessed; and this, with the change he had made
+by cutting off his hair and beard, had so altered his appearance that
+it was necessary to look at him several times, and most attentively, to
+recognize him. The visiting cards which he carried in his pocket bore
+the inscription: "P. Maumejan, Business Agent, Route de la Revolte." His
+knowledge of Parisian life had induced him to choose the same profession
+as M. Fortunat followed--a profession which opens almost every door.
+"I will enter the nearest cafe and ask for a directory," he said to
+himself. "I shall certainly find Baron Trigault's address in it."
+
+The baron lived in the Rue de la Ville-l'Eveque. His mansion was one
+of the largest and most magnificent in the opulent district of the
+Madeleine, and its aspect was perfectly in keeping with its owner's
+character as an expert financier, and a shrewd manufacturer, the
+possessor of valuable mines. The marvellous luxury so surprised Pascal,
+that he asked himself how the owner of this princely abode could find
+any pleasure at the gaming table of the Hotel d'Argeles. Five or six
+footmen were lounging about the courtyard when he entered it. He walked
+straight up to one of them, and with his hat in his hand, asked: "Baron
+Trigault, if you please?"
+
+If he had asked for the Grand Turk the valet would not have looked at
+him with greater astonishment. His surprise, indeed, seemed so profound
+that Pascal feared he had made some mistake and added: "Doesn't he live
+here?"
+
+The servant laughed heartily. "This is certainly his house," he replied,
+"and strange to say, by some fortunate chance, he's here."
+
+"I wish to speak with him on business."
+
+The servant called one of his colleagues. "Eh! Florestan--is the baron
+receiving?"
+
+"The baroness hasn't forbidden it."
+
+This seemed to satisfy the footman; for, turning to Pascal he said: "In
+that case, you can follow me."
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+
+The sumptuous interior of the Trigault mansion was on a par with its
+external magnificence. Even the entrance bespoke the lavish millionaire,
+eager to conquer difficulties, jealous of achieving the impossible, and
+never haggling when his fancies were concerned. The spacious hall, paved
+with costly mosaics, had been transformed into a conservatory full of
+flowers, which were renewed every morning. Rare plants climbed the walls
+up gilded trellis work, or hung from the ceiling in vases of rare old
+china, while from among the depths of verdure peered forth exquisite
+statues, the work of sculptors of renown. On a rustic bench sat a couple
+of tall footmen, as bright in their gorgeous liveries as gold coins
+fresh from the mint; still, despite their splendor, they were stretching
+and yawning to such a degree, that it seemed as if they would ultimately
+dislocate their jaws and arms.
+
+"Tell me," inquired the servant who was escorting Pascal, "can any one
+speak to the baron?"
+
+"Why?"
+
+"This gentleman has something to say to him."
+
+The two valets eyed the unknown visitor, plainly considering him to
+be one of those persons who have no existence for the menials of
+fashionable establishments, and finally burst into a hearty laugh. "Upon
+my word!" exclaimed the eldest, "he's just in time. Announce him,
+and madame will be greatly obliged to you. She and monsieur have
+been quarrelling for a good half-hour. And, heavenly powers, isn't he
+tantalizing!"
+
+The most intense curiosity gleamed in the eyes of Pascal's conductor,
+and with an airy of secrecy, he asked: "What is the cause of the rumpus?
+That Fernand, no doubt--or some one else?"
+
+"No; this morning it's about M. Van Klopen."
+
+"Madame's dressmaker?"
+
+"The same. Monsieur and madame were breakfasting together--a most
+unusual thing--when M. Van Klopen made his appearance. I thought to
+myself, when I admitted him: 'Look out for storms!' I scented one in
+the air, and in fact the dressmaker hadn't been in the room five minutes
+before we heard the baron's voice rising higher and higher. I said to
+myself: 'Whew! the mantua-maker is presenting his bill!' Madame cried
+and went on like mad; but, pshaw! when the master really begins, there's
+no one like him. There isn't a cab-driver in Paris who's his equal for
+swearing."
+
+"And M. Van Klopen?"
+
+"Oh, he's used to such scenes! When gentlemen abuse him he does the same
+as dogs do when they come up out of the water; he just shakes his head
+and troubles himself no more about it. He has decidedly the best of the
+row. He has furnished the goods, and he'll have to be paid sooner or
+later----"
+
+"What! hasn't he been paid then?"
+
+"I don't know; he's still here."
+
+A terrible crash of breaking china interrupted this edifying
+conversation. "There!" exclaimed one of the footmen, "that's monsieur;
+he has smashed two or three hundred francs' worth of dishes. He MUST be
+rich to pay such a price for his angry fits."
+
+"Well," observed the other, "if I were in monsieur's place I should be
+angry too. Would you let your wife have her dresses fitted on by a man?
+I says that it's indecent. I'm only a servant, but----"
+
+"Nonsense, it's the fashion. Besides, monsieur does not care about that.
+A man who----"
+
+He stopped short; in fact, the others had motioned him to be silent.
+The baron was surrounded by exceptional servants, and the presence of a
+stranger acted as a restraint upon them. For this reason, one of them,
+after asking Pascal for his card, opened a door and ushered him into a
+small room, saying: "I will go and inform the baron. Please wait here."
+
+"Here," as he called it, was a sort of smoking-room hung with cashmere
+of fantastic design and gorgeous hues, and encircled by a low, cushioned
+divan, covered with the same material. A profusion of rare and costly
+objects was to be seen on all sides, armor, statuary, pictures,
+and richly ornamented weapons. But Pascal, already amazed by the
+conversation of the servants, did not think of examining these objects
+of virtu. Through a partially open doorway, directly opposite the one he
+had entered by, came the sound of loud voices in excited conversation.
+Baron Trigault, the baroness, and the famous Van Klopen were evidently
+in the adjoining room. It was a woman, the baroness, who was speaking,
+and the quivering of her clear and somewhat shrill voice betrayed
+a violent irritation, which was only restrained with the greatest
+difficulty. "It is hard for the wife of one of the richest men in Paris
+to see a bill for absolute necessities disputed in this style," she was
+saying.
+
+A man's voice, with a strong Teutonic accent, the voice of Van Klopen,
+the Hollander, caught up the refrain. "Yes, strict necessities, one can
+swear to that. And if, before flying into a passion, Monsieur le Baron
+had taken the trouble to glance over my little bill, he would have
+seen----"
+
+"No more! You bore me to death. Besides I haven't time to listen to your
+nonsense; they are waiting for me to play a game of whist at the club."
+
+This time it was the master of the house, Baron Trigault, who spoke, and
+Pascal recognized his voice instantly.
+
+"If monsieur would only allow me to read the items. It will take but a
+moment," rejoined Van Klopen. And as if he had construed the oath
+that answered him as an exclamation of assent, he began: "In June, a
+Hungarian costume with jacket and sash, two train dresses with upper
+skirts and trimmings of lace, a Medicis polonaise, a jockey costume, a
+walking costume, a riding-habit, two morning-dresses, a Velleda costume,
+an evening dress."
+
+"I was obliged to attend the races very frequently during the month of
+June," remarked the baroness.
+
+But the illustrious adorner of female loveliness had already resumed his
+reading. "In July we have: two morning-jackets, one promenade costume,
+one sailor suit, one Watteau shepherdess costume, one ordinary
+bathing-suit, with material for parasol and shoes to match, one
+Pompadour bathing-suit, one dressing-gown, one close-fitting Medicis
+mantle, two opera cloaks----"
+
+"And I was certainly not the most elegantly attired of the ladies at
+Trouville, where I spent the month of July," interrupted the baroness.
+
+"There are but few entries in the month of August," continued
+Van Klopen. "We have: a morning-dress, a travelling-dress, with
+trimmings----" And he went on and on, gasping for breath, rattling off
+the ridiculous names which he gave to his "creations," and interrupted
+every now and then by the blow of a clinched fist on the table, or by a
+savage oath.
+
+Pascal stood in the smoking-room, motionless with astonishment. He did
+not know what surprised him the most, Van Klopen's impudence in daring
+to read such a bill, the foolishness of the woman who had ordered all
+these things, or the patience of the husband who was undoubtedly going
+to pay for them. At last, after what seemed an interminable enumeration,
+Van Klopen exclaimed: "And that's all!"
+
+"Yes, that's all," repeated the baroness, like an echo.
+
+"That's all!" exclaimed the baron--"that's all! That is to say, in four
+months, at least seven hundred yards of silk, velvet, satin, and muslin,
+have been put on this woman's back!"
+
+"The dresses of the present day require a great deal of material.
+Monsieur le Baron will understand that flounces, puffs, and ruches----"
+
+"Naturally! Total, twenty-seven thousand francs!"
+
+"Excuse me! Twenty-seven thousand nine hundred and thirty-three francs,
+ninety centimes."
+
+"Call it twenty-eight thousand francs then. Ah, well, M. Van Klopen, if
+you are ever paid for this rubbish it won't be by me."
+
+If Van Klopen was expecting this denouement, Pascal wasn't; in fact,
+he was so startled, that an exclamation escaped him which would have
+betrayed his presence under almost any other circumstances. What amazed
+him most was the baron's perfect calmness, following, as it did, such
+a fit of furious passion, violent enough even to be heard in the
+vestibule. "Either he has extraordinary control over himself or this
+scene conceals some mystery," thought Pascal.
+
+Meanwhile, the man-milliner continued to urge his claims--but the baron,
+instead of replying, only whistled; and wounded by this breach of good
+manners, Van Klopen at last exclaimed: "I have had dealings with all the
+distinguished men in Europe, and never before did one of them refuse to
+pay me for his wife's toilettes."
+
+"Very well--I don't pay for them--there's the difference. Do you suppose
+that I, Baron Trigault, that I've worked like a negro for twenty years
+merely for the purpose of aiding your charming and useful branch of
+industry? Gather up your papers, Mr. Ladies' Tailor. There may
+be husbands who believe themselves responsible for their wives'
+follies--it's quite possible there are--but I'm not made of that kind
+of stuff. I allow Madame Trigault eight thousand francs a month for
+her toilette--that is sufficient--and it is a matter for you and her to
+arrange together. What did I tell you last year when I paid a bill of
+forty thousand francs? That I would not be responsible for any more of
+my wife's debts. And I not only said it, I formally notified you through
+my private secretary."
+
+"I remember, indeed----"
+
+"Then why do you come to me with your bill? It is with my wife that you
+have opened an account. Apply to her, and leave me in peace."
+
+"Madame promised me----"
+
+"Teach her to keep her promises."
+
+"It costs a great deal to retain one's position as a leader of fashion;
+and many of the most distinguished ladies are obliged to run into debt,"
+urged Van Klopen.
+
+"That's their business. But my wife is not a fine lady. She is simply
+Madame Trigault, a baroness, thanks to her husband's gold and the
+condescension of a worthy German prince, who was in want of money. SHE
+is not a person of consequence--she has no rank to keep up."
+
+The baroness must have attached immense importance to the satisfying of
+Van Klopen's demands, for concealing the anger this humiliating scene
+undoubtedly caused her, she condescended to try and explain, and even to
+entreat. "I have been a little extravagant, perhaps," she said; "but I
+will be more prudent in future. Pay, monsieur--pay just once more."
+
+"No!"
+
+"If not for my sake, for your own."
+
+"Not a farthing."
+
+By the baron's tone, Pascal realized that his wife would never shake
+his fixed determination. Such must also have been the opinion of the
+illustrious ruler of fashion, for he returned to the charge with an
+argument he had held in reserve. "If this is the case, I shall, to my
+great regret, be obliged to fail in the respect I owe to Monsieur le
+Baron, and to place this bill in the hands of a solicitor."
+
+"Send him along--send him along."
+
+"I cannot believe that monsieur wishes a law-suit."
+
+"In that you are greatly mistaken. Nothing would please me better. It
+would at last give me an opportunity to say what I think about your
+dealings. Do you think that wives are to turn their husbands into
+machines for supplying money? You draw the bow-string too tightly, my
+dear fellow--it will break. I'll proclaim on the house-top what others
+dare not say, and we'll see if I don't succeed in organizing a little
+crusade against you." And animated by the sound of his own words,
+his anger came back to him, and in a louder and ever louder voice he
+continued: "Ah! you prate of the scandal that would be created by my
+resistance to your demands. That's your system; but, with me, it won't
+succeed. You threaten me with a law-suit; very good. I'll take it upon
+myself to enlighten Paris, for I know your secrets, Mr. Dressmaker. I
+know the goings on in your establishment. It isn't always to talk about
+dress that ladies stop at your place on returning from the Bois. You
+sell silks and satins no doubt; but you sell Madeira, and excellent
+cigarettes as well, and there are some who don't walk very straight
+on leaving your establishment, but smell suspiciously of tobacco and
+absinthe. Oh, yes, let us go to law, by all means! I shall have an
+advocate who will know how to explain the parts your customers pay, and
+who will reveal how, with your assistance, they obtain money from other
+sources than their husband's cash-box."
+
+When M. Van Klopen was addressed in this style, he was not at all
+pleased. "And I!" he exclaimed, "I will tell people that Baron Trigault,
+after losing all his money at play, repays his creditors with curses."
+
+The noise of an overturned chair told Pascal that the baron had sprung
+up in a furious passion "You may say what you like, you rascally fool!
+but not in my house," he shouted. "Leave--leave, or I will ring----"
+
+"Monsieur----"
+
+"Leave, leave, I tell you, or I sha'n't have the patience to wait for a
+servant!"
+
+He must have joined action to word, and have seized Van Klopen by
+the collar to thrust him into the hall, for Pascal heard a sound of
+scuffling, a series of oaths worthy of a coal-heaver, two or three
+frightened cries from the baroness, and several guttural exclamations
+in German. Then a door closed with such violence that the whole house
+shook, and a magnificent clock, fixed to the wall of the smoking-room,
+fell on to the floor.
+
+If Pascal had not heard this scene, he would have deemed it incredible.
+How could one suppose that a creditor would leave this princely mansion
+with his bill unpaid? But more and more clearly he understood that there
+must be some greater cause of difference between husband and wife than
+this bill of twenty-eight thousand francs. For what was this amount to
+a confirmed gambler who, without as much as a frown, gained or lost a
+fortune every evening of his life. Evidently there was some skeleton in
+this household--one of those terrible secrets which make a man and his
+wife enemies, and all the more bitter enemies as they are bound together
+by a chain which it is impossible to break. And undoubtedly, a good many
+of the insults which the baron had heaped upon Van Klopen must have been
+intended for the baroness. These thoughts darted through Pascal's mind
+with the rapidity of lightning, and showed him the horrible position
+in which he was placed. The baron, who had been so favorably disposed
+toward him, and from whom he was expecting a great service, would
+undoubtedly hate him, undoubtedly become his enemy, when he learned
+that he had been a listener, although an involuntary one, to this
+conversation with Van Klopen. How did it happen that he had been placed
+in this dangerous position? What had become of the footman who had taken
+his card? These were questions which he was unable to answer. And what
+was he to do? If he could have retired noiselessly, if he could have
+reached the courtyard and have made his escape without being observed he
+would not have hesitated. But was this plan practicable? And would not
+his card betray him? Would it not be discovered sooner or later that he
+had been in the smoking-room while M. Van Klopen was in the dining-room?
+In any case, delicacy of feeling as well as his own interest forbade him
+to remain any longer a listener to the private conversation of the baron
+and his wife.
+
+He therefore noisily moved a chair, and coughed in that affected style
+which means in every country: "Take care--I'm here!" But he did not
+succeed in attracting attention. And yet the silence was profound; he
+could distinctly hear the creaking of the baron's boots, as he paced
+to and fro, and the sound of fingers nervously beating a tattoo on the
+table. If he desired to avoid hearing the confidential conversation,
+which would no doubt ensue between the baron and his wife, there was
+but one course for him to pursue, and that was to reveal his presence at
+once. He was about to do so, when some one opened a door which must have
+led from the hall into the dining-room. He listened attentively, but
+only heard a few confused words, to which the baron replied: "Very well.
+That's sufficient. I will see him in a moment."
+
+Pascal breathed freely once more. "They have just given him my card," he
+thought. "I can remain now; he will come here in a moment."
+
+The baron must really have started to leave the room, for his wife
+exclaimed: "One word more: have you quite decided?"
+
+"Oh, fully!"
+
+"You are resolved to leave me exposed to the persecutions of my
+dressmaker?"
+
+"Van Klopen is too charming and polite to cause you the least worry."
+
+"You will brave the disgrace of a law-suit?"
+
+"Nonsense! You know very well that he won't bring any action against
+me--unfortunately. And, besides, pray tell me where the disgrace
+would be? I have a foolish wife--is that my fault? I oppose her absurd
+extravagance--haven't I a right to do so? If all husbands were as
+courageous, we should soon close the establishments of these artful men,
+who minister to your vanity, and use you ladies as puppets, or living
+advertisements, to display the absurd fashions which enrich them."
+
+The baron took two or three more steps forward, as if about to leave the
+room, but his wife interposed: "The Baroness Trigault, whose husband
+has an income of seven or eight hundred thousand francs a year, can't go
+about clad like a simple woman of the middle classes."
+
+"I should see nothing so very improper in that."
+
+"Oh, I know. Only your ideas don't coincide with mine. I shall never
+consent to make myself ridiculous among the ladies of my set--among my
+friends."
+
+"It would indeed be a pity to arouse the disapproval of your friends."
+
+This sneering remark certainly irritated the baroness, for it was with
+the greatest vehemence that she replied: "All my friends are ladies of
+the highest rank in society--noble ladies!"
+
+The baron no doubt shrugged his shoulders, for in a tone of crushing
+irony and scorn, he exclaimed: "Noble ladies! whom do you call
+noble ladies, pray? The brainless fools who only think of displaying
+themselves and making themselves notorious?--the senseless idiots who
+pique themselves on surpassing lewd women in audacity, extravagance, and
+effrontery, who fleece their husbands as cleverly as courtesans fleece
+their lovers? Noble ladies! who drink, and smoke, and carouse, who
+attend masked balls, and talk slang! Noble ladies! the idiots who long
+for the applause of the crowd, and consider notoriety to be desirable
+and flattering. A woman is only noble by her virtues--and the chief
+of all virtues, modesty, is entirely wanting in your illustrious
+friends----"
+
+"Monsieur," interrupted the baroness, in a voice husky with anger, "you
+forget yourself--you----"
+
+But the baron was well under way. "If it is scandal that crowns one
+a great lady, you ARE one--and one of the greatest; for you are
+notorious--almost as notorious as Jenny Fancy. Can't I learn from
+the newspapers all your sayings and gestures, your amusements, your
+occupations, and the toilettes you wear? It is impossible to read of a
+first performance at a theatre, or of a horse-race, without finding
+your name coupled with that of Jenny Fancy, or Cora Pearl, or Ninette
+Simplon. I should be a very strange husband indeed, if I wasn't proud
+and delighted. Ah! you are a treasure to the reporters. On the day
+before yesterday the Baroness Trigault skated in the Bois. Yesterday she
+was driving in her pony-carriage. To-day she distinguished herself by
+her skill at pigeon-shooting. To-morrow she will display herself half
+nude in some tableaux vivants. On the day after to-morrow she will
+inaugurate a new style of hair-dressing, and take part in a comedy. It
+is always the Baroness Trigault who is the observed of all observers at
+Vincennes. The Baroness Trigault has lost five hundred louis in betting.
+The Baroness Trigault uses her lorgnette with charming impertinence.
+It is she who has declared it proper form to take a 'drop' on returning
+from the Bois. No one is so famed for 'form,' as the baroness--and
+silk merchants have bestowed her name upon a color. People rave of the
+Trigault blue--what glory! There are also costumes Trigault, for
+the witty, elegant baroness has a host of admirers who follow her
+everywhere, and loudly sing her praises. This is what I, a plain, honest
+man, read every day in the newspapers. The whole world not only knows
+how my wife dresses, but how she looks en dishabille, and how she
+is formed; folks are aware that she has an exquisite foot, a
+divinely-shaped leg, and a perfect hand. No one is ignorant of the fact
+that my wife's shoulders are of dazzling whiteness, and that high on
+the left shoulder there is a most enticing little mole. I had the
+satisfaction of reading this particular last evening. It is charming,
+upon my word! and I am truly a fortunate man!"
+
+In the smoking-room, Pascal could hear the baroness angrily stamp her
+foot, as she exclaimed: "It is an outrageous insult--your journalists
+are most impertinent."
+
+"Why? Do they ever trouble honest women?"
+
+"They wouldn't trouble me if I had a husband who knew how to make them
+treat me with respect!"
+
+The baron laughed a strident, nervous laugh, which it was not pleasant
+to hear, and which revealed the fact that intense suffering was hidden
+beneath all this banter. "Would you like me to fight a duel then? After
+twenty years has the idea of ridding yourself of me occurred to you
+again? I can scarcely believe it. You know too well that you would
+receive none of my money, that I have guarded against that. Besides, you
+would be inconsolable if the newspapers ceased talking about you for a
+single day. Respect yourself, and you will be respected. The publicity
+you complain of is the last anchor which prevents society from drifting
+one knows not where. Those who would not listen to the warning voice of
+honor and conscience are restrained by the fear of a little paragraph
+which might disclose their shame. Now that a woman no longer has a
+conscience, the newspapers act in place of it. And I think it quite
+right, for it is our only hope of salvation."
+
+By the stir in the adjoining room, Pascal felt sure that the baroness
+had stationed herself before the door to prevent her husband from
+leaving her. "Ah! well, monsieur," she exclaimed, "I declare to you
+that I must have Van Klopen's twenty-eight thousand francs before this
+evening. I will have them, too; I am resolved to have them, and you will
+give them to me."
+
+"Oh!" thundered the baron, "you WILL have them--you will----" He paused,
+and then, after a moment's reflection, he said: "Very well. So be it! I
+will give you this amount, but not just now. Still if, as you say, it is
+absolutely necessary that you should have it to-day, there is a means of
+procuring it. Pawn your diamonds for thirty thousand francs--I authorize
+you to do so; and I give you my word of honor that I will redeem them
+within a week. Say, will you do this?" And, as the baroness made no
+reply, he continued: "You don't answer! shall I tell you why? It is
+because your diamonds were long since sold and replaced by imitation
+ones; it is because you are head over heels in debt; it is because you
+have stooped so low as to borrow your maid's savings; it is because you
+already owe three thousand francs to one of my coachmen; it is because
+our steward lends you money at the rate of thirty or forty per cent."
+
+"It is false!"
+
+The baron sneered. "You certainly must think me a much greater fool than
+I really am!" he replied. "I'm not often at home, it's true--the sight
+of you exasperates me; but I know what's going on. You believe me your
+dupe, but you are altogether mistaken. It is not twenty-seven thousand
+francs you owe Van Klopen, but fifty or sixty thousand. However, he is
+careful not to demand payment. If he brought me a bill this morning, it
+was only because you had begged him to do so, and because it had been
+agreed he should give you the money back if I paid him. In short, if you
+require twenty-eight thousand francs before to-night, it is because M.
+Fernand de Coralth has demanded that sum, and because you have promised
+to give it to him!"
+
+Leaning against the wall of the smoking-room, speechless and motionless,
+holding his breath, with his hands pressed upon his heart, as if to
+stop its throbbings, Pascal Ferailleur listened. He no longer thought
+of flying; he no longer thought of reproaching himself for his enforced
+indiscretion. He had lost all consciousness of his position. The name of
+the Viscount de Coralth, thus mentioned in the course of this frightful
+scene, came as a revelation to him. He now understood the meaning of the
+baron's conduct. His visit to the Rue d'Ulm, and his promises of help
+were all explained. "My mother was right," he thought; "the baron hates
+that miserable viscount mortally. He will do all in his power to assist
+me."
+
+Meanwhile, the baroness energetically denied her husband's charges. She
+swore that she did not know what he meant. What had M. de Coralth to
+do with all this? She commanded her husband to speak more plainly--to
+explain his odious insinuations.
+
+He allowed her to speak for a moment, and then suddenly, in a harsh,
+sarcastic voice, he interrupted her by saying: "Oh! enough! No more
+hypocrisy! Why do you try to defend yourself? What matters one crime
+more? I know only too well that what I say is true; and if you desire
+proofs, they shall be in your hands in less than half an hour. It is a
+long time since I was blind--full twenty years! Nothing concerning you
+has escaped my knowledge and observation since the cursed day when I
+discovered the depths of your disgrace and infamy--since the terrible
+evening when I heard you plan to murder me in cold blood. You had grown
+accustomed to freedom of action; while I, who had gone off with the
+first gold-seekers, was braving a thousand dangers in California, so as
+to win wealth and luxury for you more quickly. Fool that I was! No task
+seemed too hard or too distasteful when I thought of you--and I was
+always thinking of you. My mind was at peace--I had perfect faith in
+you. We had a daughter; and if a fear or a doubt entered my mind, I told
+myself that the sight of her cradle would drive all evil thoughts
+from your heart. The adultery of a childless wife may be forgiven or
+explained; but that of a mother, never! Fool! idiot! that I was! With
+what joyous pride, on my return after an absence of eighteen months, I
+showed you the treasures I had brought back with me! I had two hundred
+thousand francs! I said to you as I embraced you: 'It is yours, my
+well-beloved, the source of all my happiness!' But you did not care for
+me--I wearied you! You loved another! And while you were deceiving
+me with your caresses, you were, with fiendish skill, preparing a
+conspiracy which, if it had succeeded, would have resulted in my death!
+I should consider myself amply revenged if I could make you suffer for a
+single day all the torments that I endured for long months. For this was
+not all! You had not even the excuse, if excuse it be, of a powerful,
+all-absorbing passion. Convinced of your treachery, I resolved to
+ascertain everything, and I discovered that in my absence you had become
+a mother. Why didn't I kill you? How did I have the courage to remain
+silent and conceal what I knew? Ah! it was because, by watching you, I
+hoped to discover the cursed bastard and your accomplice. It was because
+I dreamed of a vengeance as terrible as the offence. I said to myself
+that the day would come when, at any risk, you would try to see your
+child again, to embrace her, and provide for her future. Fool! fool
+that I was! You had already forgotten her! When you received news of my
+intended return, she was sent to some foundling asylum, or left to die
+upon some door-step. Have you ever thought of her? Have you ever asked
+what has become of her? ever asked yourself if she had needed bread
+while you have been living in almost regal luxury? ever asked yourself
+into what depths of vice she may have fallen?"
+
+"Always the same ridiculous accusation!" exclaimed the baroness.
+
+"Yes, always!"
+
+"You must know, however, that this story of a child is only a vile
+slander. I told you so when you spoke of it to me a dozen years
+afterward. I have repeated it a thousand times since."
+
+The baron uttered a sigh that was very like a sob, and without paying
+any heed to his wife's words, he continued: "If I consented to allow
+you to remain under my roof, it was only for the sake of our daughter.
+I trembled lest the scandal of a separation should fall upon her. But it
+was useless suffering on my part. She was as surely lost as you yourself
+were; and it was your work, too!"
+
+"What! you blame me for that?"
+
+"Whom ought I to blame, then? Who took her to balls, and theatres and
+races--to every place where a young girl ought NOT to be taken? Who
+initiated her into what you call high life? and who used her as a
+discreet and easy chaperon? Who married her to a wretch who is a
+disgrace to the title he bears, and who has completed the work of
+demoralization you began? And what is your daughter to-day? Her
+extravagance has made her notorious even among the shameless women who
+pretend to be leaders of society. She is scarcely twenty-two, and there
+is not a single prejudice left for her to brave! Her husband is the
+companion of actresses and courtesans; her own companions are no
+better--and in less than two years the million of francs which
+I bestowed on her as a dowry has been squandered, recklessly
+squandered--for there isn't a penny of it left. And, at this very hour,
+my daughter and my son-in-law are plotting to extort money from me. On
+the day before yesterday--listen carefully to this--my son-in-law came
+to ask me for a hundred thousand francs, and when I refused them, he
+threatened if I did not give them to him that he would publish some
+letters written by my daughter--by his wife--to some low scoundrel.
+I was horrified and gave him what he asked. But that same evening I
+learned that the husband and wife, my daughter and my son-in-law, had
+concocted this vile conspiracy together. Yes, I have positive proofs
+of it. Leaving here, and not wishing to return home that day, he
+telegraphed the good news to his wife. But in his delight he made a
+mistake in the address, and the telegram was brought here. I opened it,
+and read: 'Papa has fallen into the trap, my darling. I beat my drum,
+and he surrendered at once.' Yes, that is what he dared to write, and
+sign with his own name, and then send to his wife--my daughter!"
+
+Pascal was absolutely terrified. He wondered if he were not the victim
+of some absurd nightmare--if his senses were not playing him false.
+He had little conception of the terrible dramas which are constantly
+enacted in these superb mansions, so admired and envied by the passing
+crowd. He thought that the baroness would be crushed--that she would
+fall on her knees before her husband. What a mistake! The tone of
+her voice told him that, instead of yielding, she was only bent on
+retaliation.
+
+"Does your son-in-law do anything worse than you?" she exclaimed. "How
+dare you censure him--you who drag your name through all the gambling
+dens of Europe?"
+
+"Wretch!" interrupted the baron, "wretch!" But quickly mastering
+himself, he remarked: "Yes, it's true that I gamble. People say, 'That
+great Baron Trigault is never without cards in his hands!' But you know
+very well that I really hold gambling in horror--that I loathe it. But
+when I play, I sometimes forget--for I must forget. I tried drink, but
+it wouldn't drown thought, so I had recourse to cards; and when the
+stakes are large, and my fortune is imperilled, I sometimes lose
+consciousness of my misery!"
+
+The baroness gave vent to a cold, sneering laugh, and, in a tone of
+mocking commiseration, she said: "Poor baron! It is no doubt in the hope
+of forgetting your sorrows that you spend all your time--when you are
+not gambling--with a woman named Lia d'Argeles. She's rather pretty. I
+have seen her several times in the Bois----"
+
+"Be silent!" exclaimed the baron, "be silent! Don't insult an
+unfortunate woman who is a thousand times better than yourself." And,
+feeling that he could endure no more--that he could no longer restrain
+his passion, he cried: "Out of my sight! Go! or I sha'n't be responsible
+for my acts!"
+
+Pascal heard a chair move, the floor creak, and a moment afterward a
+lady passed quickly through the smoking-room. How was it that she did
+not perceive him? No doubt, because she was greatly agitated, in spite
+of her bravado. And, besides, he was standing a little back in the
+shade. But he saw her, and his brain reeled. "Good Lord! what a
+likeness!" he murmured.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+
+It was as if he had seen an apparition, and he was vainly striving to
+drive away a terrible, mysterious fear, when a heavy footfall made
+the floor of the dining-room creak anew. The noise restored him to
+consciousness of his position. "It is the baron!" he thought; "he is
+coming this way! If he finds me here I am lost; he will never consent to
+help me. A man would never forgive another man for hearing what I have
+just heard."
+
+Why should he not try to make his escape? The card, bearing the name
+of Maumejan, would be no proof of his visit. He could see the baron
+somewhere else some other day--elsewhere than at his own house, so that
+he need not fear the recognition of the servants. These thoughts flashed
+through his mind, and he was about to fly, when a harsh cry held him
+spell-bound. Baron Trigault was standing on the threshold. His emotion,
+as is almost always the case with corpulent people, was evinced by a
+frightful distortion of his features. His face was transformed, his
+lips had become perfectly white, and his eyes seemed to be starting from
+their sockets. "How came you here?" he asked, in a husky voice.
+
+"Your servants ushered me into this room."
+
+"Who are you?"
+
+"What! monsieur, don't you recognize me?" rejoined Pascal, who in his
+agitation forgot that the baron had seen him only twice before. He
+forgot the absence of his beard, his almost ragged clothing, and all the
+precautions he had taken to render recognition impossible.
+
+"I have never met any person named Maumejan," said the baron.
+
+"Ah! monsieur, that's not my name. Have you forgotten the innocent man
+who was caught in that infamous snare set for him by the Viscount de
+Coralth?"
+
+"Yes, yes," replied the baron, "I remember you now." And then
+recollecting the terrible scene that had just taken place in the
+adjoining room: "How long have you been here?" he asked.
+
+Should Pascal tell a falsehood, or confess the truth? He hesitated, but
+his hesitation lasted scarcely the tenth part of a second. "I have been
+here about half an hour," he replied.
+
+The baron's livid cheeks suddenly became purple, his eyes glittered, and
+it seemed by his threatening gesture as if he were strongly tempted to
+murder this man, who had discovered the terrible, disgraceful secrets
+of his domestic life. But it was a mere flash of energy. The terrible
+ordeal which he had just passed through had exhausted him mentally and
+physically, and it was in a faltering voice that he resumed: "Then you
+have not lost a word--a word of what was said in the other room?"
+
+"Not a word."
+
+The baron sank on to the divan. "So the knowledge of my disgrace is
+no longer confined to myself!" he exclaimed. "A stranger's eye has
+penetrated the depths of misery I have fallen into! The secret of my
+wretchedness and shame is mine no longer!"
+
+"Oh, monsieur, monsieur!" interrupted Pascal. "Before I recross the
+threshold of your home, all shall have been forgotten. I swear it by all
+that is most sacred!"
+
+He had raised his hand as if to take a solemn oath, when the baron
+caught hold of it, and, pressing it with sorrowful gratitude, exclaimed:
+"I believe you! You are a man of honor--I only needed to see your home
+to be convinced of that. You will not laugh at my misfortunes or my
+misery!" He must have been suffering frightfully, for big tears rolled
+slowly down his cheeks. "What have I done, my God! that I should be
+so cruelly punished?" he continued. "I have always been generous and
+charitable, and ready to help all who applied to me. I am utterly alone!
+I have a wife and a daughter--but they hate me. They long for my death,
+which would give them possession of my wealth. What torture! For months
+together I dared not eat a morsel of food, either in my own house, or
+in the house of my son-in-law. I feared poison; and I never partook of a
+dish until I had seen my daughter or my wife do so. To prevent a crime,
+I was obliged to resort to the strangest expedients. I made a will, and
+left my property in such a way that if I die, my family will not receive
+one penny. So, they now have an interest in prolonging my life." As he
+spoke he sprang up with an almost frenzied air, and, seizing Pascal by
+the arm, again continued. "Nor is this all! This woman--my wife--you
+know--you have heard the extent of her shame and degradation. Ah, well!
+I--love her!"
+
+Pascal recoiled with an exclamation of mingled horror and consternation.
+
+"This amazes you, eh?" rejoined the baron. "It is indeed
+incomprehensible, monstrous--but it is the truth. It is to gratify her
+desire for luxury that I have toiled to amass millions. If I purchased
+a title, which is absurd and ridiculous, it was only because I wished
+to satisfy her vanity. Do what she may, I can only see in her the chaste
+and beautiful wife of our early married life. It is cowardly, absurd,
+ridiculous--I realize it; but my love is stronger than my reason or my
+will. I love her madly, passionately; I cannot tear her from my heart!"
+
+So speaking, he sank sobbing on to the divan again. Was this, indeed,
+the frivolous and jovial Baron Trigault whom Pascal had seen at Madame
+d'Argeles's house--the man of self-satisfied mien and superb assurance,
+the good-natured cynic, the frequenter of gambling-dens? Alas, yes! But
+the baron whom the world knew was only a comedian; this was the real
+man.
+
+After a little while he succeeded in controlling his emotion, and in a
+comparatively calm voice he exclaimed: "But it is useless to distract
+one's mind with an incurable evil. Let us speak of yourself, M.
+Ferailleur. To what do I owe the honor of this visit?"
+
+"To your own kind offer, monsieur, and the hope that you will help me in
+refuting this slander, and wreaking vengeance upon those who have ruined
+me."
+
+"Oh! yes, I will help you in that to the full extent of my power,"
+exclaimed the baron. But experience reminded him that confidential
+disclosures ought not to be made with the doors open, so he rose, shut
+them, and returning to Pascal, said: "Explain in what way I can be of
+service to you, monsieur."
+
+It was not without many misgivings that Pascal had presented himself
+at the baron's house, but after what he had heard he felt no further
+hesitation; he could speak with perfect freedom. "It is quite
+unnecessary for me to tell you, Monsieur le Baron," he began, "that the
+cards which made me win were inserted in the pack by M. de Coralth--that
+is proven beyond question, and whatever the consequences may be, I shall
+have my revenge. But before striking him, I wish to reach the man whose
+instrument he was."
+
+"What! you suppose----"
+
+"I don't suppose--I am sure that M. de Coralth acted in obedience to the
+instructions of some other scoundrel whose courage does not equal his
+meanness."
+
+"Perhaps so! I think he would shrink from nothing in the way of
+rascality. But who could have employed him in this vile work of
+dishonoring an honest man?"
+
+"The Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+On hearing this name, the baron bounded to his feet. "Impossible!" he
+exclaimed; "absolutely impossible! M. de Valorsay is incapable of the
+villainy you ascribe to him. What do I say?--he is even above suspicion.
+I have known him for years, and I have never met a more loyal, more
+honorable, or more courageous man. He is one of my few trusted friends;
+we see each other almost every day. I am expecting a visit from him even
+now."
+
+"Still it was he who incited M. de Coralth to do the deed."
+
+"But why? What could have been his object?"
+
+"To win a young girl whom I love. She--loved me, and he saw that I
+was an obstacle. He put me out of the way more surely than if he had
+murdered me. If I died, she might mourn for me--dishonored, she would
+spurn me----"
+
+"Is Valorsay so madly in love with the girl, then?"
+
+"I think he cares but very little for her."
+
+"Then why----"
+
+"She is the heiress of several millions."
+
+It was evident that this explanation did not shake Baron Trigault's
+faith in his friend. "But the marquis has an income of a hundred
+and fifty or two hundred thousand francs," said he; "that is an
+all-sufficient justification. With his fortune and his name, he is in a
+position to choose his wife from among all the heiresses of France. Why
+should he address his attentions in particular to the woman you love?
+Ah! if he were poor--if his fortune were impaired--if he felt the need
+of regilding his escutcheon, like my son-in-law----"
+
+He paused; there was a rap at the door. The baron called out: "Come
+in," and a valet appeared, and informed his master that the Marquis de
+Valorsay wished to speak with him.
+
+It was the enemy! Pascal's features were distorted with rage; but he did
+not stir--he did not utter a word. "Ask the marquis into the next room,"
+said the baron. "I will join him there at once." Then as the servant
+retired, the baron turned to Pascal and said: "Well, M. Ferailleur, do
+you divine my intentions?"
+
+"I think so, monsieur. You probably intend me to hear the conversation
+you are going to have with M. de Valorsay."
+
+"Exactly. I shall leave the door open, and you can listen."
+
+This word, "listen," was uttered without bitterness, or even reproach;
+and yet Pascal could not help blushing and hanging his head. "I wish to
+prove to you that your suspicions are without foundation," pursued
+the baron. "Rest assured that I shall prove this conclusively. I will
+conduct the conversation in the form of a cross-examination, and after
+the marquis's departure, you will be obliged to confess that you were
+wrong."
+
+"Or you, that I am right?"
+
+"So be it. Any one is liable to be mistaken, and I am not obstinate."
+
+He was about to leave the room, when Pascal detained him. "I scarcely
+know how to testify my gratitude even now, monsieur, and yet--if I
+dared--if I did not fear to abuse your kindness, I should ask one more
+favor."
+
+"Speak, Monsieur Ferailleur."
+
+"It is this, I do not know the Marquis de Valorsay; and if, instead of
+leaving the door wide open, you would partially close it, I should hear
+as distinctly, and I could also see him."
+
+"Agreed," replied the baron. And, opening the door, he passed into the
+dining-room, with his right hand cordially extended, and saying, in his
+most genial tones: "Excuse me, my dear friend, for keeping you waiting.
+I received your letter this morning, and I was expecting you, but some
+unexpected business required my attention just now. Are you quite well?"
+
+As the baron entered the room, the marquis had stepped quickly forward
+to meet him. Either he was inspired with fresh hope, or else he
+had wonderful powers of self-control, for never had he looked more
+calm--never had his face evinced haughtier indifference, more complete
+satisfaction with himself, and greater contempt for others. He was
+dressed with even more than usual care, and in perfect taste as well;
+moreover, his valet had surpassed himself in dressing his hair--for one
+would have sworn that his locks were still luxuriant. If he experienced
+any secret anxiety, it only showed itself in a slightly increased
+stiffness of his right leg--the limb broken in hunting. "I ought rather
+to inquire concerning your own health," he remarked. "You seem greatly
+disturbed; your cravat is untied." And, pointing to the broken china
+scattered about the floor, he added: "On seeing this, I asked myself if
+an accident had not happened."
+
+"The baroness was taken suddenly ill at the breakfast table. Her
+fainting fit startled me a little. But it was a mere trifle. She has
+quite recovered already, and you may rely upon her applauding your
+victory at Vincennes to-day. She has I don't know how many hundred louis
+staked upon your horses."
+
+The marquis's countenance assumed an expression of cordial regret. "I am
+very sorry, upon my word!" he exclaimed. "But I sha'n't take part in the
+races at Vincennes. I have withdrawn my horses. And, in future, I shall
+have nothing to do with racing."
+
+"Nonsense!"
+
+"It is the truth, however. I have been led to this determination by the
+infamous slander which has been circulated respecting me."
+
+This answer was a mere trifle, but it somewhat shook Baron Trigault's
+confidence. "You have been slandered!" he muttered.
+
+"Abominably. Last Sunday the best horse in my stables, Domingo, came in
+third. He was the favorite in the ring. You can understand the rest. I
+have been accused of manoeuvering to have my own horse beaten. People
+have declared that it was my interest he should be beaten, and that I
+had an understanding with my jockey to that effect. This is an every-day
+occurrence, I know very well; but, as regards myself, it is none the
+less an infamous lie!"
+
+"Who has dared to circulate such a report?"
+
+"Oh, how can I tell? It is a fact, however, that the story has been
+circulated everywhere, but in such a cautious manner that there is no
+way of calling the authors to account. They have even gone so far as to
+say that this piece of knavery brought me in an enormous sum, and that I
+used Rochecotte's, Kervaulieu's, and Coralth's names in betting against
+my own horse."
+
+The baron's agitation was so great that M. de Valorsay observed it,
+though he did not understand the cause. Living in the same society with
+the Baroness Trigault, and knowing her story, he thought that Coralth's
+name might, perhaps, have irritated the baron. "And so," he quickly
+continued, "don't be surprised if, during the coming week, you see the
+sale of my horses announced."
+
+"What! you are going to sell----"
+
+"All my horses--yes, baron. I have nineteen; and it will be very strange
+if I don't get eight or ten thousand louis for the lot. Domingo alone is
+worth more than forty thousand francs."
+
+To talk of selling--of realizing something you possess--rings ominously
+in people's ears. The person who talks of selling proclaims his need
+of money--and often his approaching ruin. "It will save you at least a
+hundred and fifty or sixty thousand francs a year," observed the baron.
+
+"Double it and you won't come up to the mark. Ah! my dear baron, you
+have yet to learn that there is nothing so ruinous as a racing stable.
+It's worse than gambling; and women, in comparison, are a real economy.
+Ninette costs me less than Domingo, with his jockey, his trainer, and
+his grooms. My manager declares that the twenty-three thousand francs I
+won last year, cost me at least fifty thousand."
+
+Was he boasting, or was he speaking the truth? The baron was engaged in
+a rapid calculation. "What does Valorsay spend a year?" he was saying
+to himself. "Let us say two hundred and fifty thousand francs for his
+stable; forty thousand francs for Ninette Simplon; eighty thousand
+for his household expenses, and at least thirty thousand for personal
+matters, travelling, and play. All this amounts to something like four
+hundred and thirty thousand francs a year. Does his income equal that
+sum? Certainly not. Then he must have been living on the principal--he
+is ruined."
+
+Meanwhile the marquis gayly continued: "You see, I'm going to make a
+change in my mode of life. Ah! it surprises you! But one must make an
+end of it, sooner or later. I begin to find a bachelor life not so very
+pleasant after all; there is rheumatism in prospect, and my digestion is
+becoming impaired--in short, I feel that it is time for marriage, baron;
+and--I am about to marry."
+
+"You!"
+
+"Yes, I. What, haven't you heard of it, yet? It has been talked of at
+the club for three days or more."
+
+"No, this is the first intimation I have received of it. It is true,
+however, that I have not been to the club for three days. I have made a
+wager with Kami-Bey, you know--that rich Turk--and as our sittings are
+eight or ten hours long, we play in his apartments at the Grand Hotel.
+And so you are to be married," the baron continued, after a slight
+pause. "Ah, well! I know one person who won't be pleased."
+
+"Who, pray?"
+
+"Ninette Simplon."
+
+M. de Valorsay laughed heartily. "As if that would make any difference
+to me!" he exclaimed. And then in a most confidential manner he resumed:
+"She will soon be consoled. Ninette Simplon is a shrewd girl--a girl
+whom I have always suspected of having an account book in place of a
+heart. I know she has at least three hundred thousand francs safely
+invested; her furniture and diamonds are worth as much more. Why should
+she regret me? Add to this that I have promised her fifty thousand
+francs to dry her tears with on my wedding-day, and you will understand
+that she really longs to see me married."
+
+"I understand," replied the baron; "Ninette Simplon won't trouble you.
+But I can't understand why you should talk of economy on the eve of a
+marriage which will no doubt double your fortune; for I'm sure you won't
+surrender your liberty without good and substantial reasons."
+
+"You are mistaken."
+
+"How mistaken?"
+
+"Well, I won't hesitate to confess to you, my dear baron, that the girl
+I am about to marry hasn't a penny of her own. My future wife has no
+dowry save her black eyes--but they are certainly superb ones."
+
+This assertion seemed to disprove Pascal's statements. "Can it really be
+you who are talking in this strain?" cried the baron. "You, a practical,
+worldly man, give way to such a burst of sentiment?"
+
+"Well, yes."
+
+The baron opened his eyes in astonishment. "Ah! then you adore your
+future bride!"
+
+"Adore only feebly expresses my feelings."
+
+"I must be dreaming."
+
+Valorsay shrugged his shoulders with the air of a man who has made up
+his mind to accept the banter of his friends; and in a tone of mingled
+sentimentality and irony, he said: "I know that it's absurd, and that
+I shall be the laughing-stock of my acquaintances. Still it doesn't
+matter; I have never been coward enough to hide my feelings. I'm in
+love, my dear baron, as madly in love as a young collegian--sufficiently
+in love to watch my lady's house at night even when I have no possible
+hope of seeing her. I thought myself blase, I boasted of being
+invulnerable. Well, one fine morning I woke up with the heart of a youth
+of twenty beating in my breast--a heart which trembled at the slightest
+glance from the girl I love, and sent purple flushes to my face.
+Naturally I tried to reason with myself. I was ashamed of my weakness;
+but the more clearly I showed myself my folly, the more obstinate my
+heart became. And perhaps my folly is not such a great one after all.
+Such perfect beauty united with such modesty, grace, and nobility
+of soul, such passion, candor and talent, cannot be met twice in a
+lifetime. I intend to leave Paris. We shall first of all go to Italy,
+my wife and I. After a while we shall return and install ourselves at
+Valorsay, like two turtle-doves. Upon my word, my imagination paints a
+charming picture of the calm and happy life we shall lead there! I don't
+deserve such good fortune. I must have been born under a lucky star!"
+
+Had he been less engrossed in his narrative, he would have heard the
+sound of a stifled oath in the adjoining room; and had he been less
+absorbed in the part he was playing, he would have observed a cloud on
+his companion's brow. The baron was a keen observer, and he had detected
+a false ring in this apparently vehement outburst of passion. "I
+understand it now, my dear marquis," said he; "you have met the
+descendant of some illustrious but impoverished family."
+
+"You are wrong. My future bride has no other name than her Christian
+name of Marguerite."
+
+"It is a regular romance then!"
+
+"You are quite right; it is a romance. Were you acquainted with the
+Count de Chalusse, who died a few days ago?"
+
+"No; but I have often heard him spoken of."
+
+"Well, it is his daughter whom I am about to marry--his illegitimate
+daughter."
+
+The baron started. "Excuse me," said he; "M. de Chalusse was immensely
+rich, and he was a bachelor. How does it happen then that his daughter,
+even though she be his illegitimate child, should find herself
+penniless?"
+
+"A mere chance--a fatality. M. de Chalusse died very suddenly; he had no
+time to make a will or to acknowledge his daughter."
+
+"But why had he not taken some precautions?"
+
+"A formal recognition of his daughter was attended by too many
+difficulties, and even dangers. Mademoiselle Marguerite had been
+abandoned by her mother when only five or six months old; it is only a
+few years since M. de Chalusse, after a thousand vain attempts, at last
+succeeded in finding her."
+
+It was no longer on Pascal's account, but on his own, that Baron
+Trigault listened with breathless attention. "How very strange," he
+exclaimed, in default of something better to say. "How very strange!"
+
+"Isn't it? It is as good as a novel."
+
+"Would it be--indiscreet----"
+
+"To inquire? Certainly not. The count told me the whole story, without
+entering into particulars--you understand. When he was quite young, M.
+de Chalusse became enamoured of a charming young lady, whose husband had
+gone to tempt fortune in America. Being an honest woman, she resisted
+the count's advances for awhile--a very little while; but in less than
+a year after her husband's departure, she gave birth to a pretty little
+daughter, Mademoiselle Marguerite. But then why had the husband gone to
+America?"
+
+"Yes," faltered the baron; "why--why, indeed?"
+
+"Everything was progressing finely, when M. de Chalusse was in his turn
+obliged to start for Germany, having been informed that a sister of his,
+who had fled from the paternal roof with nobody knows who, had been seen
+there. He had been absent some four months or so, when one morning the
+post brought him a letter from his pretty mistress, who wrote: 'We are
+lost! My husband is at Marseilles: he will be here to-morrow. Never
+attempt to see me again. Fear everything from him. Farewell.' On
+receiving this letter, M. de Chalusse flung himself into a postchaise,
+and returned to Paris. He was determined, absolutely determined, to
+have his daughter. But he arrived too late. On hearing of her husband's
+return, the young wife had lost her head. She had but one thought--to
+conceal her fault, at any cost; and one night, being completely
+disguised, she left her child on a doorstep in the vicinity of the
+central markets----"
+
+The marquis suddenly paused in his story to exclaim: "Why, what is the
+matter with you, my dear baron? What is the matter? Are you ill? Shall I
+ring?"
+
+The baron was as pale as if the last drop of blood had been drawn from
+his veins, and there were dark purple circles about his eyes. Still,
+on being questioned, he managed to answer in a choked voice, but not
+without a terrible effort: "Nothing! It is nothing. A mere trifle! It
+will be over in a moment. It IS over!" Still his limbs trembled so
+much that he could not stand, and he sank on to a chair, murmuring: "I
+entreat you, marquis--continue. It is very interesting--very interesting
+indeed."
+
+M. de Valorsay resumed his narrative. "The husband was incontestably an
+artless fellow: but he was also, it appears, a man of remarkable energy
+and determination. Having somehow ascertained that his wife had given
+birth to a child in his absence, he moved heaven and earth not only to
+discover the child, but its father also. He had sworn to kill them both;
+and he was a man to keep his vow unmoved by a thought of the guillotine.
+And if you require a proof of his strength of character, here it is:
+He said nothing to his wife on the subject, he did not utter a single
+reproach; he treated her exactly as he had done before his absence.
+But he watched her, or employed others to watch her, both day and night,
+convinced that she would finally commit some act of imprudence which
+would give him the clue he wanted. Fortunately, she was very shrewd. She
+soon discovered that her husband knew everything, and she warned M. de
+Chalusse, thus saving his life."
+
+It is not at all remarkable that the Marquis de Valorsay should have
+failed to see any connection between his narrative and the baron's
+agitation. What possible connection could there be between opulent Baron
+Trigault and the poor devil who went to seek his fortune in America?
+What imaginable connection could there be between the confirmed gambler,
+who was Kami-Bey's companion, Lia d'Argeles's friend, and the husband
+who for ten long years had pursued the man who, by seducing his wife,
+had robbed him of all the happiness of life? Another point that would
+have dispelled any suspicions on the marquis's part was that he had
+found the baron greatly agitated on arriving, and that he now seemed to
+be gradually regaining his composure. So he continued his story in his
+customary light, mocking tone. It is the perfection of good taste and
+high breeding--"proper form," indeed, not to be astonished or moved
+by anything, in fact to sneer at everything, and hold one's self quite
+above the emotions which disturb the minds of plebeians.
+
+Thus the marquis continued: "I am necessarily compelled to omit many
+particulars, my dear baron. The count was not very explicit when he
+reached this part of his story; but, in spite of his reticence, I
+learned that he had been tricked in his turn, that certain papers had
+been stolen from him, and that he had been defrauded in many ways by his
+inamorata. I also know that M. de Chalusse's whole life was haunted by
+the thought of the husband he had wronged. He felt a presentiment that
+he would die by this man's hand. He saw danger on every side. If he went
+out alone in the evening, which was an exceedingly rare occurrence, he
+turned the street corners with infinite caution; it seemed to him that
+he could always see the gleam of a poniard or a pistol in the shade.
+I should never have believed in this constant terror on the part of a
+really brave man, if he had not confessed it to me with his own lips.
+Ten or twelve years passed before he dared to make the slightest
+attempt to find his daughter, so much did he fear to arouse his enemy's
+attention. It was not until he had discovered that the husband had
+become discouraged and had discontinued his search, that the count began
+his. It was a long and arduous one, but at last it succeeded, thanks to
+the assistance of a clever scoundrel named Fortunat."
+
+The baron with difficulty repressed a movement of eager curiosity, and
+remarked: "What a peculiar name!"
+
+"And his first name is Isidore. Ah! he's a smooth-tongued scoundrel, a
+rascal of the most dangerous kind, who richly deserves to be in jail.
+How it is that he is allowed to prosecute his dishonorable calling I
+can't understand; but it is none the less true that he does follow it,
+and without the slightest attempt at concealment, at an office he has on
+the Place de la Bourse."
+
+This name and address were engraved upon the baron's memory, never to be
+effaced.
+
+"However," resumed M. de Valorsay, "the poor count was fated to have no
+peace. The husband had scarcely ceased to torment him, he had scarcely
+begun to breathe freely, when the wife attacked him in her turn. She
+must have been one of those vile and despicable women who make a man
+hate the entire sex. Pretending that the count had turned her from
+the path of duty, and destroyed her life and happiness, she lost no
+opportunity of tormenting him. She would not allow M. de Chalusse to
+keep the child with him, nor would she consent to his adopting the girl.
+She declared it an act of imprudence, which would surely set her husband
+upon the track, sooner or later. And when the count announced his
+intention of legally adopting the child, in spite of her protests, she
+declared that, rather than allow it, she would confess everything to her
+husband."
+
+"The count was a patient man," sneered the baron.
+
+"Not so patient as you may suppose. His submission was due to some
+secret cause which he never confided to me. There must have been
+some great crime under all this. In any case, the poor count found it
+impossible to escape this terrible woman. He took refuge at Cannes; but
+she followed him. He travelled through Italy, for I don't know how many
+months under an assumed name, but all in vain. He was at last compelled
+to conceal his daughter in some provincial convent. During the last few
+months of his life he obtained peace--that is to say, he bought it. This
+lady's husband must either be very poor or exceedingly stingy; and as
+she was exceedingly fond of luxury, M. de Chalusse effected a compromise
+by giving her a large sum monthly, and also by paying her dress-maker's
+bills."
+
+The baron sprang to his feet with a passionate exclamation. "The vile
+wretch!" he said.
+
+But he quickly reseated himself, and the exclamation astonished M. de
+Valorsay so little that he quietly concluded by saying: "And this is
+the reason, baron, why my beloved Marguerite, the future Marquise de
+Valorsay, has no dowry."
+
+The baron cast a look of positive anguish at the door of the
+smoking-room. He had heard a slight movement there; and he trembled with
+fear lest Pascal, maddened with anger and jealousy, should rush in and
+throw himself upon the marquis. Plainly enough, this perilous situation
+could not last much longer. The baron's own powers of self-control and
+dissimulation were almost exhausted, and so postponing until another
+time the many questions he still wished to ask M. de Valorsay, he
+made haste to check these confidential disclosures. "Upon my word,"
+he exclaimed, with a forced laugh, "I was expecting something quite
+different. This affair begins like a genuine romance, and ends, as
+everything ends nowadays, in money!"
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+
+As a millionaire and a gambler, Baron Trigault enjoyed all sorts of
+privileges. He assumed the right to be brutal, ill-bred, cynical and
+bold; to be one of those persons who declare that folks must take them
+as they find them. But his rudeness now was so thoroughly offensive
+that under any other circumstances the marquis would have resented it.
+However, he had special reasons for preserving his temper, so he decided
+to laugh.
+
+"Yes, these stories always end in the same way, baron," said he. "You
+haven't touched a card this morning, and I know your hands are itching.
+Excuse me for making you waste precious time, as you say; but what you
+have just heard was only a necessary preface."
+
+"Only a preface?"
+
+"Yes; but don't be discouraged. I have arrived at the object of my visit
+now."
+
+As Baron Trigault was supposed to enjoy an income of at least eight
+hundred thousand francs a year, he received in the course of a
+twelvemonth at least a million applications for money or help, and for
+this reason he had not an equal for detecting a coming appeal. "Good
+heavens!" he thought, "Valorsay is going to ask me for money." In fact,
+he felt certain that the marquis's pretended carelessness concealed real
+embarrassment, and that it was difficult for him to find the words he
+wanted.
+
+"So I am about to marry," M. de Valorsay resumed--"I wish to break off
+my former life, to turn over a new leaf. And now the wedding gifts,
+the two fetes that I propose giving, the repairs at Valorsay, and the
+honeymoon with my wife--all these things will cost a nice little sum."
+
+"A nice little sum, indeed!"
+
+"Ah, well! as I'm not going to wed an heiress, I fear I shall run a
+trifle short. The matter was worrying me a little, when I thought of
+you. I said to myself: 'The baron, who always has money at his disposal,
+will no doubt let me have the use of five thousand louis for a year.'"
+
+The baron's eyes were fixed upon his companion's face. "Zounds!" he
+exclaimed in a half-grieved, half-petulant tone; "I haven't the amount!"
+
+It was not disappointment that showed itself on the marquis's face; it
+was absolute despair, quickly concealed.
+
+But the baron had detected it; and he realized his applicant's urgent
+need. He felt certain that M. de Valorsay was financially ruined--and
+yet, as it did not suit his plans to refuse, he hastily added: "When I
+say I haven't that amount, I mean that I haven't got it on hand just at
+this moment. But I shall have it within forty-eight hours; and if you
+are at home at this time on the day after to-morrow, I will send you one
+of my agents, who will arrange the matter with you."
+
+A moment before, the marquis had allowed his consternation to show
+itself; but this time he knew how to conceal the joy that filled his
+soul. So it was in the most indifferent manner, as if the affair were
+one of trivial importance, that he thanked the baron for being so
+obliging. Plainly enough, he now longed to make his escape, and indeed,
+after rattling off a few commonplace remarks, he rose to his feet and
+took his leave, exclaiming: "Till the day after to-morrow, then!"
+
+The baron sank into an arm-chair, completely overcome. A martyr to a
+passion that was stronger than reason itself, the victim of a fatal love
+which he had not been able to drive from his heart, Baron Trigault had
+passed many terrible hours, but never had he been so completely crushed
+as at this moment when chance revealed the secret which he had vainly
+pursued for years. The old wounds in his heart opened afresh, and his
+sufferings were poignant beyond description. All his efforts to
+save this woman whom he at once loved and hated from the depths of
+degradation, had proved unavailing. "And she has extorted money from the
+Count de Chalusse," he thought; "she sold him the right to adopt their
+own daughter." And so strange are the workings of the human heart, that
+this circumstance, trivial in comparison with many others, drove the
+unfortunate baron almost frantic with rage. What did it avail him that
+he had become one of the richest men in Paris? He allowed his wife eight
+thousand francs a month, almost one hundred thousand francs a year,
+merely for her dresses and fancies. Not a quarter-day passed, but what
+he paid her debts to a large amount, and in spite of all this, she had
+sunk so low as to extort money from a man who had once loved her. "What
+can she do with it all?" muttered the baron, overcome with sorrow and
+indignation. "How can she succeed in spending the income of several
+millions?"
+
+A name, the name of Ferdinand de Coralth, rose to his lips; but he did
+not pronounce it. He saw Pascal emerging from the smoking-room; and
+though he had forgotten the young advocate's very existence, his
+appearance now restored him to a consciousness of reality. "Ah, well!
+M. Ferailleur?" he said, like a man suddenly aroused from some terrible
+nightmare. Pascal tried to make some reply, but he was unable to do
+so--such a flood of incoherent thoughts was seething and foaming in
+his brain. "Did you hear, M. de Valorsay?" continued the baron. "Now
+we know, beyond the possibility of doubt, who Mademoiselle Marguerite's
+mother is. What is to be done? What would you do in my place?"
+
+"Ah, monsieur! how can I tell?"
+
+"Wouldn't your first thought be of vengeance! It is mine. But upon whom
+can I wreak my vengeance? Upon the Count de Chalusse? He is dead.
+Upon my wife? Yes, I might do so; but I lack the courage--Mademoiselle
+Marguerite remains."
+
+"But she is innocent, monsieur; she has never wronged you."
+
+The baron did not seem to hear this exclamation. "And to make
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's life one long misery," said he, "I need only
+favor her marriage with the marquis. Ah, he would make her cruelly
+expiate the crime of her birth."
+
+"But you won't do so!" cried Pascal, in a transport, "it would be
+shameful; I won't allow it. Never, I swear before high Heaven! never,
+while I live, shall Valorsay marry Marguerite. He may perhaps vanquish
+me in the coming struggle; he may lead her to the threshold of the
+church, but there he will find me--armed--and I will have justice--human
+justice in default of legal satisfaction. And, afterward, the law may
+take its course!"
+
+The baron looked at him with deep emotion. "Ah, you know what it is to
+love!" he exclaimed; and in a hollow voice, he added: "and thus it was
+that I loved Marguerite's mother."
+
+The breakfast-table had not been cleared, and a large decanter of water
+was still standing on it. The baron poured out two large glasses, which
+he drained with feverish avidity, and then he began to walk aimlessly
+about the room.
+
+Pascal held his peace. It seemed to him that his own destiny was being
+decided in this man's mind, that his whole future depended upon the
+determination he arrived at. A prisoner awaiting the verdict of the jury
+could not have suffered more intense anxiety. At last, when a minute,
+which seemed a century, had elapsed, the baron paused. "Now as before,
+M. Ferailleur," he said, roughly, "I'm for you and with you. Give me
+your hand--that's right. Honest people ought to protect and assist one
+another when scoundrels assail them. We will reinstate you in public
+esteem, monsieur. We will unmask Coralth, and we will crush Valorsay
+if we find that he is really the instigator of the infamous plot that
+ruined you."
+
+"What, monsieur! Can you doubt it after your conversation with him?"
+
+The baron shook his head. "I've no doubt but what Valorsay is ruined
+financially," said he. "I am certain that my hundred thousand francs
+will be lost forever if I lend them to him. I would be willing to swear
+that he bet against his own horse and prevented the animal from winning,
+as he is accused of doing."
+
+"You must see, then--"
+
+"Excuse me--all this does NOT explain the great discrepancy between your
+allegations and his story. You assure me that he cares nothing whatever
+for Mademoiselle Marguerite; he pretends that he adores her."
+
+"Yes, monsieur, yes--the scoundrel dared to say so. Ah! if I had not
+been deterred by a fear of losing my revenge!"
+
+"I understand; but allow me to conclude. According to you, Mademoiselle
+Marguerite possesses several millions. According to him, she hasn't a
+penny of her own. Which is right? I believe he is. His desire to borrow
+a hundred thousand francs of me proves it; and, besides, he wouldn't
+have come this morning to tell me a falsehood, which would be discovered
+to-morrow. Still, if he is telling the truth, it is impossible to
+explain the foul conspiracy you have suffered by."
+
+This objection had previously presented itself to Pascal's mind, and
+he had found an explanation which seemed to him a plausible one. "M. de
+Chalusse was not dead," said he, "when M. de Coralth and M. de Valorsay
+decided on this plan of ridding themselves of me. Consequently,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was still an heiress."
+
+"That's true; but the very day after the commission of the crime, the
+accomplices must have discovered that it could do them no good; so, why
+have they still persisted in their scheme?"
+
+Pascal tried to find a satisfactory answer, but failed.
+
+"There must be some iniquitous mystery in this affair, which neither you
+nor I suspect," remarked the baron.
+
+"That is exactly what my mother told me."
+
+"Ah! that's Madame Ferailleur's opinion? Then it is a good one. Come,
+let us reason a little. Mademoiselle Marguerite loved you, you say?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And she has suddenly broken off the engagement?"
+
+"She wrote to me that the Count de Chalusse extorted from her a promise
+on his death-bed, that she would marry the Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+The baron sprang to his feet. "Stop," he cried--"stop! We now have a
+clue to the truth, perhaps. Ah! so Mademoiselle Marguerite has written
+to you that M. de Chalusse commanded her to marry the marquis! Then the
+count must have been fully restored to consciousness before he breathed
+his last. On the other hand, Valorsay pretends that Mademoiselle
+Marguerite is left without resources, simply because the count died
+too suddenly to be able to write or to sign a couple of lines. Can you
+reconcile these two versions of the affair, M. Ferailleur? Certainly
+not. Then which version is false? We must ascertain that point. When
+shall you see Mademoiselle Marguerite again?"
+
+"She has requested me NEVER to try to see her again."
+
+"Very well! She must be disobeyed. You must discover some way of seeing
+her without anyone's knowledge. She is undoubtedly watched, so don't
+write on any account." He reflected for a moment, and then added: "We
+shall, perhaps, become morally certain of Valorsay's and Coralth's
+guilt, but there's a wide difference between this and the establishment
+of their guilt by material proofs. Two scoundrels who league to ruin an
+honest man don't sign a contract to that effect before a notary. Proofs!
+Ah! where shall we find them? We must gain an intimate knowledge of
+Valorsay's private life. The best plan would be to find some man devoted
+to our interests who would watch him, and insinuate himself into his
+confidence."
+
+Pascal interrupted the baron with an eager gesture. Hope glittered in
+his eyes. "Yes!" he exclaimed, "yes; it is necessary that M. de Valorsay
+should be watched by a man of quick perception--a man clever enough
+to make himself useful to the marquis, and capable of rendering him an
+important service in case of need. I will be the man, monsieur, if you
+will allow me. The thought occurred to me just now while I was listening
+to you. You promised to send some one to Valorsay's house with money.
+I entreat you to allow me to take the place of the man you intended to
+send. The marquis doesn't know me, and I am sufficiently sure of myself
+to promise you that I will not betray my identity. I will present myself
+as your agent; he will give me his confidence. I shall take him money or
+fair promises, I shall be well received, and I have a plan----"
+
+He was interrupted by a rap at the door. The next moment a footman
+entered, and informed his master that a messenger wished to speak to him
+on urgent business. "Let him come in," said the baron.
+
+It was Job, Madame Lia d'Argeles's confidential servant, who entered
+the room. He bowed respectfully, and, with an air of profound mystery
+exclaimed: "I have been looking for the baron everywhere. I was ordered
+by madame not to return without him."
+
+"Very well," said M. Trigault. "I will go with you at once."
+
+
+
+
+V.
+
+
+How was it that a clever man like M. Fortunat made such a blunder as
+to choose a Sunday, and a racing Sunday too, to call on M. Wilkie. His
+anxiety might explain the mistake, but it did not justify it. He felt
+certain, that under any other circumstances he would not have been
+dismissed so cavalierly. He would at least have been allowed to develop
+his proposals, and then who knows what might have happened?
+
+But the races had interfered with his plans. M. Wilkie had been
+compelled to attend to Pompier de Nanterre, that famous steeplechaser,
+of which he owned one-third part, and he had, moreover, to give orders
+to the jockey, whose lord and master he was to an equal extent. These
+were sacred duties, since Wilkie's share in a race-horse constituted
+his only claim to a footing in fashionable society. But it was a strong
+claim--a claim that justified the display of whips and spurs that
+decorated his apartments in the Rue du Helder, and allowed him to aspire
+to the character of a sporting man. Wilkie really imagined that folks
+were waiting for him at Vincennes; and that the fete would not be
+complete without his presence.
+
+Still, when he presented himself inside the enclosure, a cigar in his
+mouth, and his racing card dangling from his button-hole, he was obliged
+to confess that his entrance did not create much of a sensation. An
+astonishing bit of news had imparted unusual excitement to the ring.
+People were eagerly discussing the Marquis de Valorsay's sudden
+determination to pay forfeit and withdraw his horses from the contest;
+and the best informed declared that in the betting-rooms the evening
+before he had openly announced his intention of selling his racing
+stable. If the marquis had hoped that by adopting this course he would
+silence the suspicions which had been aroused, he was doomed to grievous
+disappointment. The rumor that he had secretly bet against his own
+horse, Domingo, on the previous Sunday, and that he had given orders not
+to let the animal win the race, was steadily gaining credence.
+
+Large sums had been staked on Domingo's success. He had been the
+favorite in the betting ring and the losers were by no means pleased.
+Some declared that they had seen the jockey hold Domingo back; and they
+insisted that it was necessary to make an example, and disqualify both
+the marquis and his jockey. Still one weighty circumstance pleaded in
+M. de Valorsay's favor--his fortune, or, at least, the fortune he was
+supposed to possess. "Why should such a rich man stoop to cheat?" asked
+his defenders. "To put money into one's pocket in this way is even worse
+than to cheat at cards! Besides, it's impossible! Valorsay is above such
+contemptible charges. He is a perfect gentleman."
+
+"Perhaps so," replied the skeptical bystanders. "But people said exactly
+the same of Croisenois, of the Duc de H., and Baron P., who were finally
+convicted of the same rascality that Valorsay is accused of."
+
+"It's an infamous slander! If he had been inclined to cheat, he could
+have easily diverted suspicion. He would have let Domingo come in
+second, not third!"
+
+"If he were not guilty, and afraid of detection, he wouldn't pay forfeit
+to-day nor sell his horses."
+
+"He only retires from the turf because he's going to marry----"
+
+"Nonsense! That's no reason whatever."
+
+Like all gamblers, the frequenters of the turf are distrustful and
+inclined to be quarrelsome. No one is above their suspicions when they
+lose nor above their wrath when they are duped. And this Domingo affair
+united all the losers against Valorsay; they formed a little battalion
+of enemies who were no doubt powerless for the time being, but who were
+ready to take a startling revenge whenever a good opportunity presented
+itself. Naturally enough, M. Wilkie sided with the marquis, whom he had
+heard his friend, M. de Coralth, speak of on several occasions. "Accuse
+the dear marquis!" he exclaimed. "It's contemptible, outrageous. Why,
+only last evening he said to me, 'My good friend, Domingo's defeat cost
+me two thousand louis!'" M. de Valorsay had said nothing of the kind,
+for the very good reason that he did not even know Wilkie by sight;
+still, no one paid much heed to the assertion, whereat Wilkie felt
+vexed, and resolved to turn his attention to his jockey.
+
+The latter was a lazy, worthless fellow, who had been dismissed from
+every stable he had previously served in, and who swindled and robbed
+the young gentlemen who employed him without either limit or shame.
+Although he made them pay him a very high salary--something like eight
+thousand francs a year--on the plea that it was most repugnant to his
+feelings to act as a groom, trainer, and jockey at the same time, he
+regularly every month presented them with fabulous bills from the grain
+merchant, the veterinary surgeon, and the harness-maker. In addition, he
+regularly sold Pompier's oats in order to obtain liquor, and in fact the
+poor animal was so nearly starved that he could scarcely stand on his
+legs. The jockey ascribed the horse's extreme thinness to a system of
+rigorous training; and the owners did not question the statement in the
+least. He had made them believe, and they in turn had made many others
+believe, that Pompier de Nanterre would certainly win such and such a
+race; and, trusting in this fallacious promise, they risked their money
+on the poor animal--and lost it.
+
+In point of fact, this jockey would have been the happiest mortal in the
+world if such things as steeple-chases had never existed. In the first
+place, he judged, with no little reason, that it was dangerous to leap
+hurdles on such an animal as Pompier; and, secondly, nothing irritated
+him so much as to be obliged to promenade with his three employers in
+turn. But how could he refuse, since he knew that if these young men
+hired him, it was chiefly, or only in view of, displaying themselves
+in his company. It afforded them untold satisfaction to walk to and fro
+along the course in front of the grand stand, with their jockey in his
+orange jacket with green sleeves. They were firmly convinced that he
+reflected enormous credit upon them, and their hearts swelled with joy
+at the thought of the envy they no doubt inspired. This conviction gave
+rise indeed to terrible quarrels, in which each of the three owners was
+wont to accuse the others of monopolizing the jockey.
+
+On this occasion, M. Wilkie--being fortunate enough to arrive the
+first--immediately repaired to Pompier de Nanterre's stall. Never had
+circumstances been more favorable for a display of the animal's speed.
+The day was magnificent; the stands were crowded, and thousands of eager
+spectators were pushing and jostling one another beyond the ropes which
+limited the course. M. Wilkie seemed to be everywhere; he showed himself
+in a dozen different places at once, always followed by his jockey, whom
+he ordered about in a loud voice, with many excited gesticulations. And
+how great his delight was when, as he passed through the crowd, he heard
+people exclaim: "That gentleman has a racing stable. His horses are
+going to compete!" What bliss thrilled his heart when he overheard the
+admiring exclamation of some worthy shopkeeper who was greatly impressed
+by the gay silk jacket and the top-boots!
+
+But, unfortunately, this happiness could not last forever. His partners
+arrived, and claimed the jockey in their turn. So M. Wilkie left the
+course and strolled about among the carriages, until at last he found
+an equipage which was occupied by the young ladies who had accepted
+his invitation to supper the evening before, and who were now making a
+profuse display of the very yellowest hair they possessed. This afforded
+him another opportunity of attracting public attention, and to giving
+proofs of his "form," for he had not filled the box of his carriage with
+champagne for nothing. At last the decisive moment came, and he made
+himself conspicuous by shouting. "Now! Now! Here he is! Look! Bravo,
+Pompier! One hundred on Pompier!"
+
+But, alas! poor Pompier de Nanterre fell exhausted before half the
+distance was accomplished; and that evening Wilkie described his defeat,
+with a profusion of technical terms that inspired the uninitiated with
+the deepest awe. "What a disaster, my friends," he exclaimed. "Pompier
+de Nanterre, an incomparable steeplechaser, to break down in such a
+fashion! And beaten by whom? My Mustapha, an outsider, without any
+record whatever! The ring was intensely excited--and I was simply
+crazed."
+
+However, his defeat did not affect him very deeply. It was forgotten at
+thought of the inheritance which his friend Coralth had spoken to him
+about. And to-morrow M. de Coralth would tell him the secret. He had
+only twenty hours longer to wait! "To-morrow! to-morrow!" he said to
+himself again and again, with a thrill of mingled joy and impatience.
+And what bright visions of future glory haunted him! He saw himself the
+possessor of a magnificent stud, of sufficient wealth to gratify every
+fancy; he would splash mud upon all the passers-by, and especially upon
+his former acquaintances, as he dashed past them in his superb equipage;
+the best tailor should invent astonishing garments for him; he would
+make himself conspicuous at all the first performances in a stage-box,
+with the most notorious women in Paris; his fetes would be described in
+the papers; he would be the continual subject of comment; he would be
+credited with splendid, perfect "form."
+
+It is true that M. de Coralth had promised him all this, without a word
+of explanation; but what did that matter? Should he doubt his friend's
+word? Never! The viscount was not merely his model, but his oracle as
+well. By the way in which he spoke of him, it might have been supposed
+that they had been friends from their childhood, or, at least, that they
+had known each other for years. Such was not the case, however. Their
+acquaintance dated only seven or eight months back, and their first
+meeting had apparently been the result of chance; though it is needless
+to say, perhaps, that this chance had been carefully prepared by M. de
+Coralth. Having discovered Madame Lia d'Argeles's secret, the viscount
+watched Wilkie, ascertained where he spent his evenings, contrived a way
+of introducing himself into his society, and on their third meeting was
+skilful enough to render him a service--in other words, to lend him
+some money. From that moment the conquest was assured; for M. de Coralth
+possessed in an eminent degree all the attributes that were likely to
+dazzle and charm the gifted owner of Pompier de Nanterre. First of
+all, there was his title, then his impudent assurance and his apparent
+wealth, and last, but by no means least, his numerous and fashionable
+acquaintances. He was not long in discovering his advantage, and in
+profiting by it. And without giving M. Wilkie an inkling of the truth,
+he succeeded in obtaining from him as accurate a knowledge of his past
+career as the young fellow himself possessed.
+
+M. Wilkie did not know much concerning his origin or his early life; and
+his history, so far as he was acquainted with it, could be told in a
+few words. His earliest recollection was of the ocean. He was sure,
+perfectly sure, that he had made a very long sea voyage when only a
+little child, and he looked upon America as his birthplace. The French
+language was certainly not the first he had learned, for he still
+remembered a limited number of English phrases. The English word
+"father" was among those that lingered in his memory; and now, after
+a lapse of twenty years, he pronounced it without the least foreign
+accent. But while he remembered the word perfectly well, no recollection
+remained to him of the person he had called by that name. His first
+sensations were those of hunger, weariness, and cold. He recollected,
+and very distinctly too, how on one long winter night, a woman had
+dragged him after her through the streets of Paris, in an icy rain. He
+could still see himself as he wandered on, crying with weariness, and
+begging for something to eat. And then the poor woman who held him by
+the hand lifted him in her arms and carried him on--on, until her own
+strength failed, and she was obliged to set him on the ground again. A
+vague portrait of this woman, who was most probably his mother, still
+lingered in his memory. According to his description, she was extremely
+handsome, tall, and very fair. He had been particularly impressed with
+the pale tint and profusion of her beautiful hair.
+
+Their poverty had not lasted long. He remembered being installed with
+his mother in a very handsome suite of rooms. A man, who was still
+young, and whom he called "Monsieur Jacques," came every day, and
+brought him sweetmeats and playthings. He thought he must have been
+about four years old at that time. However, he had enjoyed this
+comfortable state of things scarcely a month, when one morning a
+stranger presented himself. The visitor held a long conference with his
+mother, or, at least, with the person whom he called by that name. He
+did not understand what they were talking about, but he was none the
+less very uneasy. The result of the interview must have justified his
+instinctive fear, for his mother took him on her lap, and embraced him
+with convulsive tenderness. She sobbed violently, and repeated again
+and again in a faltering voice: "Poor child! my beloved Wilkie! I
+shall never kiss you again--never, never! 'Alas! It must be so! Give me
+courage, my God!"
+
+Those were the exact words; Wilkie was sure on that point. It seemed to
+him he could still hear that despairing farewell. For it was indeed a
+farewell. The stranger took him in his arms and carried him away, in
+spite of his cries and struggles to escape. This person to whose care he
+was confined was the master of a small boarding-school, and his wife
+was the kindest and most patient of women. However, this did not prevent
+Wilkie from crying and begging for his mother at first; but gradually he
+forgot her. He was not unhappy, for he was petted and indulged more than
+any of the other pupils, and he spent most of his time playing on the
+terrace or wandering about the garden. But this charming life could not
+last for ever. According to his calculation, he was just ten years
+old when, one Sunday, toward the end of October, a grave-looking,
+red-whiskered gentleman, clad in solemn black with a white necktie,
+presented himself at the school, and declared that he had been
+instructed by Wilkie's relatives to place him in a college to continue
+his education.
+
+Young Wilkie's lamentations were long and loud; but they did not prevent
+M. Patterson--for that was the gentleman's name--from taking him to the
+college of Louis-the-Great, where he was entered as a boarder. As he
+did not study, and as he was only endowed with a small amount of
+intelligence, he learned scarcely anything during the years he remained
+there. Every Sunday and every fete day, M. Patterson made his appearance
+at ten o'clock precisely, took Wilkie for a walk in Paris or the
+environs, gave him his breakfast and dinner at some of the best
+restaurants, bought everything he expressed a desire to have, and at
+nine o'clock precisely took him back to the college again. During the
+holidays M. Patterson kept the boy with him, refusing him nothing in the
+way of pleasure, granting all his wishes, but never losing sight of him
+for a moment. And if Wilkie complained of this constant watchfulness,
+M. Patterson always replied, "I must obey orders;" and this answer
+invariably put an end to the discussion.
+
+So things went on until it became time for Wilkie to take his degree.
+He presented himself for examination; and, of course, he failed.
+Fortunately, however, M. Patterson was not at a loss for an expedient.
+He placed his charge in a private school; and the following year, at a
+cost of five thousand francs, he beguiled a poor devil into running the
+risk of three years' imprisonment, by assuming M. Wilkie's name, and
+passing the examination in his place. In possession of the precious
+diploma which opens the door of every career, M. Wilkie now hoped that
+his pockets would be filled, and that he would then be set at liberty.
+But the hope was vain! M. Patterson placed him in the hands of an old
+tutor who had been engaged to travel with him through Europe; and as
+this tutor held the purse-strings, Wilkie was obliged to follow him
+through Germany, England, and Italy.
+
+When he returned to Paris he was just twenty years old, and the very
+next day M. Patterson conducted him to the suite of rooms which he
+still occupied in the Rue du Helder. "You are now in your own home, M.
+Wilkie," said M. Patterson in his most impressive manner. "You are now
+old enough to be responsible for your own actions, and I hope you will
+conduct yourself like an honest man. From this moment you are your own
+master. Those who gave you your education desire you to study law. If I
+were in your place, I should obey them. If you wish to be somebody, and
+to acquire a fortune, work, for you have no property, nor anything
+to expect from any one. The allowance which is granted you, a far too
+liberal one in my opinion, may be cut off at any moment. I don't think
+it right to conceal this fact from you. But at all events until then.
+I am instructed to pay you five thousand francs quarterly. Here is the
+amount for the first quarter, and in three months' time I shall send you
+a similar amount. I say 'shall SEND,' because my business compels me
+to return to England, and take up my abode there. Here is my London
+address; and if any serious trouble befalls you, write to me. Now, my
+duty being fulfilled, farewell."
+
+"Go to the devil, you old preacher!" growled Wilkie, as he saw the door
+close on the retreating figure of M. Patterson, who had acted as his
+guardian for ten years. None of M. Patterson's wise advice lingered
+in the young fellow's mind. To use a familiar expression, "It went in
+through one ear and came out through the other." Only two facts had made
+an impression upon him: that he was to be his own master henceforth, and
+that he had a fortune at his command. There it lay upon the table, five
+thousand francs in glittering gold.
+
+If M. Wilkie had taken the trouble to attentively examine the rooms
+which had suddenly become his own, he would perhaps have recognized the
+fact that a loving hand had prepared them for his reception. Countless
+details revealed the delicate taste of a woman, and the thoughtful
+tenderness of a mother. None of those little superfluities which delight
+a young man had been forgotten. There was a box of choice cigars upon
+the table, and a jar of tobacco on the mantel-shelf. But Wilkie did not
+take time to discover this. He hastily slipped five hundred francs into
+his pocket, locked the rest of his money in a drawer, and went out with
+as lofty an air as if all Paris belonged to him, or as if he had enough
+money to purchase it.
+
+He had resolved to give a fete in honor of his deliverance, and so he
+hurried off in search of some of his old college chums. He found two of
+them; and, although it was very wounding to his self-love, M. Wilkie was
+obliged to confess to them that this was his first taste of liberty,
+and that he scarcely knew what to do with himself. Of course his friends
+assured him that they could quickly make him acquainted with the only
+life that it was worth while living; and, to prove it, they accepted
+the invitation to dinner which he immediately offered them. It was a
+remarkable repast. Other acquaintances dropped in, the wine flowed in
+rivers; and after dinner they danced. And at day-break, having served
+his apprenticeship at baccarat, M. Wilkie found himself without a penny
+in his pocket, and face to face with a bill of four hundred francs, for
+which amount he was obliged to go to his rooms, under the escort of one
+of the waiters. This first experiment ought to have disgusted him, or at
+least have made him reflect. But no. He felt quite in his element in the
+society of dissipated young men and enamelled women. He swore that he
+would win a place in their midst, and an influential place too. But
+it was easier to form this plan than to carry it into execution, as he
+discovered when, at the end of the month, he counted his money to see
+what remained of the five thousand francs that had been given him for
+his quarterly allowance. He had just three hundred francs left.
+
+Twenty thousand francs a year is what one chooses to make it--wealth or
+poverty. Twenty thousand francs a year represents about sixty francs a
+day; but what are sixty francs to a high liver, who breakfasts and dines
+at the best restaurants, whose clothes are designed by an illustrious
+tailor, who declines to make a pair of trousers for less than a hundred
+francs? What are three louis a day to a man who hires a box for first
+performances at the opera, to a man who gambles and gives expensive
+suppers, to a man who drives out with yellow-haired demoiselles, and
+who owns a race-horse? Measuring his purse and his ambition, M. Wilkie
+discovered that he should never succeed in making both ends meet. "How
+do other people manage?" he wondered. A puzzling question! Every evening
+a thousand gorgeously apparelled gentlemen, with a cigar in their mouth
+and a flower in their button-hole, may be seen promenading between the
+Chaussee d'Antin and the Faubourg Montmartre. Everybody knows them,
+and they know everybody, but how they exist is a problem which it
+is impossible to solve. How do they live, and what do they live on?
+Everybody knows that they have no property; they do nothing, and yet
+they are reckless in their expenditures, and rail at work and jeer at
+economy. What source do they derive their money from? What vile business
+are they engaged in?
+
+However, M. Wilkie did not devote much time to solving this question.
+"My relatives must wish me to starve," he said to himself. "Not I--I'm
+not that sort of a person, as I'll soon let them know." And thereupon
+he wrote to M. Patterson. By return of post that gentleman sent him a
+cheque for one thousand francs--a mere drop in the bucket. M. Wilkie
+felt indignant and so he wrote again. This time he was obliged to wait
+for a reply. Still at last it came. M. Patterson sent him two thousand
+francs, and an interminable epistle full of reproaches. The interesting
+young man threw the letter into the fire, and went out to hire a
+carriage by the month and a servant.
+
+From that day forward, his life was spent in demanding money and waiting
+for it. He employed in quick succession every pretext that could soften
+the hearts of obdurate relatives, or find the way to the most closely
+guarded cash-box. He was ill--he had contracted a debt of honor--he had
+imprudently lent money to an unscrupulous friend--he was about to be
+arrested for debt. And in accordance with the favorable or unfavorable
+character of the replies his manner became humble or impertinent, so
+that his friends soon learned to judge very accurately of the condition
+of his purse by the way he wore his mustaches. He became wise with
+experience, however; and on adding all the sums he had received
+together, he decided that his family must be very rich to allow him so
+much money. And this thought made him anxious to fathom the mystery of
+his birth and his infancy. He finally persuaded himself that he was the
+son of a great English nobleman--a member of the House of Lords, who was
+twenty times a millionaire. And he more than half believed it when he
+told his creditors that his lordship, his father, would some day or
+other come to Paris and pay all his debts. Unfortunately it was not
+M. Wilkie's noble father that arrived, but a letter from M. Patterson,
+which was couched as follows:
+
+
+"MY DEAR SIR, a considerable sum was placed in my hands to meet your
+unexpected requirements; and in compliance with your repeated appeals,
+I have remitted the entire amount to you. Not a penny remains in my
+possession--so that my instructions have been fulfilled. Spare yourself
+the trouble of making any fresh demands; they will meet with no reply.
+In future you will not receive a penny above your allowance, which in my
+opinion is already too large a one for a young man of your age."
+
+
+This letter proved a terrible blow to Wilkie. What should he do? He felt
+that M. Patterson would not revoke his decision; and indeed he wrote him
+several imploring letters, in vain. Yet never had his need of money been
+so urgent. His creditors were becoming uneasy; bills actually rained in
+upon his concierge; his next quarterly allowance was not due for some
+time to come, and it was only through the pawnbroker that he could
+obtain money for his more pressing requirements. He had begun to
+consider himself ruined. He saw himself reduced to dismissing his
+carriage, to selling his third share of Pompier de Nanterre and losing
+the esteem of all his witty friends.
+
+He was in the depths of despair, when one morning his servant woke
+him up with the announcement that the Viscount de Coralth was in the
+sitting-room and wished to speak with him on very important business. It
+was not usually an easy task to entice M. Wilkie from his bed, but the
+name his servant mentioned seemed to have a prodigious effect upon
+him. He bounded on to the floor, and as he hastily dressed himself, he
+muttered: "The viscount here, at this hour! It's astonishing! What if
+he's going to fight a duel and wishes me to be his second? That would be
+a piece of grand good luck and no mistake. It would assure my position
+at once. Certainly something must have happened!"
+
+This last remark was by no means a proof of any remarkable perspicuity
+on M. Wilkie's part. As M. de Coralth never went to bed until two or
+three o'clock in the morning, he was by no means an early riser,
+and only some very powerful reason could explain the presence of his
+blue-lined brougham in the street before nine o'clock A.M. And the
+influence that had made him rise betimes in the present case had indeed
+been extremely powerful. Although the brilliant viscount had discovered
+Madame d'Argeles's secret, several months previously, he had so far
+disclosed it to no one. It was certainly not from any delicacy of
+feeling that he had held his peace; but only because it had not been for
+his interest to speak. Now, however, the sudden death of the Count de
+Chalusse changed the situation. He heard of the catastrophe at his club
+on the evening after the count's death, and his emotion was so great
+that he actually declined to take part in a game of baccarat that was
+just beginning. "The devil!" he exclaimed. "Let me think a moment.
+Madame d'Argeles is the heiress of all these millions--will she come
+forward and claim them? From what I know of her, I am inclined to think
+that she won't. Will she ever go to Wilkie and confess that she, Lia
+d'Argeles, is a Chalusse, and that he is her illegitimate son? Never!
+She would rather relinquish her millions, both for herself and for
+him, than take such a step. She is so ridiculously antiquated in her
+notions." And then he began to study what advantages he might derive
+from his knowledge of the situation.
+
+M. de Coralth, like all persons whose present is more or less uncertain,
+had great misgivings concerning his future. Just now he was cunning
+enough to find a means of procuring the thirty or forty thousand francs
+a year that were indispensable to his comfort; but he had not a farthing
+laid by, and the vein of silver he was now working might fail him at any
+moment. The slightest indiscretion, the least blunder, might hurl him
+from his splendor into the mire. The perspiration started out on his
+forehead when he thought of his peril. He passionately longed for a more
+assured position--for a little capital that would insure him his bread
+until the end of his days, and rid him of the grim phantom of poverty
+forever. And it was this desire which inspired him with the same plan
+that M. Fortunat had formed. "Why shouldn't I inform Wilkie?" he said to
+himself. "If I present him with a fortune, the simpleton ought certainly
+to give me some reward." But to carry this plan into execution it would
+be necessary to brave Madame d'Argeles's anger; and that was attended by
+no little danger. If he knew something about her, she on her side knew
+everything connected with his past life. She had only to speak to
+ruin him forever. Still, after weighing all the advantages and all the
+dangers, he decided to act, convinced that Madame d'Argeles might
+be kept ignorant of his treason, providing he only played his cards
+skilfully. And his matutinal visit to M. Wilkie was caused by a fear
+that he might not be the only person knowing the truth, and that some
+one else might forestall him.
+
+"You here, at sunrise, my friend!" exclaimed Wilkie, as he entered the
+room where the viscount was seated. "What has happened?"
+
+"To me?--nothing," replied the viscount. "It was solely on your account
+that I deviated from my usual habits."
+
+"What is it? You frighten me."
+
+"Oh! don't be alarmed. I have only some good news to communicate," and
+in a careless tone which cleverly concealed his anxiety, the viscount
+added: "I have come, my dear Wilkie, to ask you what you would be
+willing to give the man who put you in possession of a fortune of
+several millions?"
+
+M. Wilkie's face turned from white to purple at least three times in ten
+seconds; and it was in a strangely altered voice that he replied: "Ah!
+that's good--very good--excellent!" He tried his best to laugh, but
+he was completely overcome; and, in fact, he had cherished so many
+extravagant hopes that nothing seemed impossible to him.
+
+"Never in all my life have I spoken more seriously," insisted the
+viscount.
+
+His companion at first made no reply. It was easy to divine the conflict
+that was raging in his mind, between the hope that the news was true
+and the fear of being made the victim of a practical joke. "Come, my
+friend," he said at last, "do you want to poke fun at me? That wouldn't
+be polite. A debtor is always sacred, and I owe you twenty-five louis.
+This is scarcely the time to talk of millions. My relatives have cut off
+my supplies; and my creditors are overwhelming me with their bills----"
+
+But M. de Coralth checked him, saying gravely: "Upon my honor, I am not
+jesting. What would you give a man who--"
+
+"I would give him half of the fortune he gave me."
+
+"That's too much!"
+
+"No, no!"
+
+He was in earnest, certainly. What wouldn't a man promise in all
+sincerity of soul to a fellow mortal who gave him money when he had
+none--when he needed it urgently and must have it to save himself from
+ruin?
+
+At such a moment no commission, however large, seems exorbitant. It is
+afterward, when the day of settlement comes, that people begin to find
+fault with the rate of interest.
+
+"If I tell you that one-half is too much, it is because such is really
+the case. And I am the best judge of the matter, since I am the man who
+can put you in possession of this enormous fortune."
+
+M. Wilkie started back in speechless amazement.
+
+"This astonishes you!" said the viscount; "and why, pray? Is it because
+I ask for a commission?"
+
+"Oh! not at all!"
+
+"It is not perhaps a very gentlemanly proceeding, but it is a sensible
+one. Business is business. In the afternoon, when I am in a restaurant,
+at the club, or in a lady's boudoir, I am merely the viscount and the
+grand seigneur. All money questions sicken me. I am careless, liberal,
+and obliging to a fault. But in the morning I am simply Coralth, a man
+of the middle classes who doesn't pay his bills without examining them,
+and who watches his money, because he doesn't wish to be ruined and end
+his brilliant career as a common soldier in some foreign legion."
+
+M. Wilkie did not allow him to continue. He believed, and his joy was
+wild--delirious. "Enough, enough!" he interrupted. "A difficulty between
+us! Never! I am yours without reserve! Do you understand me? How much
+must you have? Do you wish for it all?"
+
+But the viscount was unmoved. "It is not fitting that I should fix upon
+the indemnity which is due to me. I will consult a man of business; and
+I will decide upon this point on the day after to-morrow, when I shall
+explain everything to you."
+
+"On the day after to-morrow! You won't leave me in suspense for
+forty-eight hours?"
+
+"It is unavoidable. I have still some important information to procure.
+I lost no time in coming to you, so that I might put you on your guard.
+If any scoundrel comes to you with proposals, be extremely careful.
+Some agents, when they obtain a hold on an estate, leave nothing for the
+rightful owner. So don't treat with any one."
+
+"Oh, no! You may rest assured I won't."
+
+"I should be quieter in mind if I had your promise in writing."
+
+Without a word, Wilkie darted to a table, and wrote a short contract by
+which he bound himself to give M. Ferdinand de Coralth one-half of the
+inheritance which the aforesaid Coralth might prove him to be entitled
+to. The viscount read the document, placed it in his pocket, and then
+said, as he took up his hat:
+
+"Very well. I will see you again on Monday."
+
+But M. Wilkie's doubts were beginning to return. "Monday, so be it!"
+said he; "but swear that you are not deceiving me."
+
+"What, do you still doubt me?"
+
+M. Wilkie reflected for a moment; and suddenly a brilliant inspiration
+darted through his brain. "If you are speaking the truth, I shall soon
+be rich," said he. "But, in the meantime, life is hard. I haven't a
+penny, and it isn't a pleasant situation. I have a horse entered for the
+race to-morrow, Pompier de Nanterre. You know the animal very well. The
+chances are enormously in his favor. So, if it wouldn't inconvenience
+you to lend me fifty louis."
+
+"Certainly," interrupted the viscount, cordially. "Certainly; with the
+greatest pleasure."
+
+And drawing a beautiful little notebook from his pocket he took from it
+not one, but two bank-notes of a thousand francs, and handed them to M.
+Wilkie, saying: "Monsieur believes me now, does he not?"
+
+As will be readily believed, it was not for his own pleasure that M. de
+Coralth postponed his confidential disclosures for a couple of days. He
+knew Wilkie perfectly well, and felt that it was dangerous to let
+him roam about Paris with half of an important secret. Postponement
+generally furnishes fate with weapons against oneself. But it was
+impossible for the viscount to act otherwise. He had not seen the
+Marquis de Valorsay since the Count de Chalusse's death and he dared not
+conclude the contract with Wilkie before he had conferred with him,
+for he was completely in the marquis's power. At the least suspicion of
+treason, M. de Valorsay would close his hand, and he, Coralth, would
+be crushed like an egg-shell. It was to the house of his formidable
+associate that he repaired on leaving M. Wilkie; and in a single breath
+he told the marquis all that he knew, and the plans that he had formed.
+
+M. de Valorsay's astonishment must have been intense when he heard that
+Lia d'Argeles was a Chalusse, but he knew how to maintain his composure.
+He listened quietly, and when the viscount had completed his story, he
+asked: "Why did you wait so long before telling me all this?"
+
+"I didn't see how it could interest you in the least."
+
+The marquis looked at him keenly, and then calmly said: "In other words,
+you were waiting to see whether it would be most advantageous to you to
+be with me or against me."
+
+"How can you think----"
+
+"I don't think, I'm sure of it. As long as I was strong support for you,
+you were devoted to me. But now I am tottering, and you are ready to
+betray me."
+
+"Excuse me! The step I am about to take----"
+
+"What, haven't you taken it already?" interrupted the marquis, quickly.
+And shrugging his shoulders, he added: "Observe that I don't reproach
+you in the least. Only remember this: we survive or we perish together."
+
+By the angry gleam in M. de Coralth's eyes, the marquis must have
+realized that his companion was disposed to rebel; still this knowledge
+did not seem to disquiet him, for it was in the same icy tone that he
+continued: "Besides, your plans, far from conflicting with mine, will
+be of service to me. Yes, Madame d'Argeles must lay claim to the count's
+estate. If she hesitates, her son will compel her to urge her claims,
+will he not?"
+
+"Oh, you may rest assured of that."
+
+"And when he becomes rich, will you be able to retain your influence
+over him?"
+
+"Rich or poor, I can mould him like wax."
+
+"Very good. Marguerite was escaping me, but I shall soon have her in
+my power. I have a plan. The Fondeges think they can outwit me, but
+we shall soon see about that." The viscount was watching his companion
+stealthily; as the latter perceived, and so in a tone of brusque
+cordiality, he resumed: "Excuse me for not keeping you to breakfast,
+but I must go out immediately--Baron Trigault is waiting for me at his
+house. Let us part friends--au revoir--and, above all, keep me well
+posted about matters in general."
+
+M. de Coralth's temper was already somewhat ruffled when he entered
+Valorsay's house; and he was in a furious passion when he left it.
+"So we are to survive or perish together," he growled. "Thanks for the
+preference you display for my society. Is it my fault that the fool
+has squandered his fortune? I fancy I've had enough of his threats and
+airs."
+
+Still his wrath was not so violent as to make him forget his own
+interests. He at once went to inquire if the agreement which M. Wilkie
+had just signed would be binding. The lawyer whom he consulted replied
+that, at all events, a reasonable compensation would most probably be
+granted by the courts, in case of any difficulty; and he suggested
+a little plan which was a chef d'oeuvre in its way, at the same time
+advising his client to strike the iron while it was hot.
+
+It was not yet noon, and the viscount determined to act upon the
+suggestion at once; he now bitterly regretted the delay he had
+specified. "I must find Wilkie at once," he said to himself. But he did
+not succeed in meeting him until the evening, when he found him at the
+Cafe Riche--and in what a condition too! The two bottles of wine which
+the young fool had drank at dinner had gone to his head, and he was
+enumerating, in a loud voice, the desires he meant to gratify as soon
+as he came into possession of his millions. "What a brute!" thought the
+enraged viscount. "If I leave him to himself, no one knows what foolish
+thing he may do or say. I must remain with him until he becomes sober
+again."
+
+So he followed him to the theatre, and thence to Brebant's, where he was
+sitting feeling terribly bored, when M. Wilkie conceived the unfortunate
+idea of inviting Victor Chupin to come up and take some refreshment. The
+scene which followed greatly alarmed the viscount. Who could this young
+man be? He did not remember having ever seen him before, and yet the
+young scamp was evidently well acquainted with his past life, for he had
+cast the name of Paul in his face, as a deadly insult. Surely this was
+enough to make the viscount shudder! How did it happen that this young
+man had been just on the spot ready to pick up Wilkie's hat? Was it mere
+chance? Certainly not. He could not believe it. Then why was the
+fellow there? Evidently to watch somebody. And whom? Why,
+him--Coralth--undoubtedly.
+
+In going through life as he had done, a man makes enemies at every step;
+and he had an imposing number of foes, whom he only held in check by
+his unbounded impudence and his renown as a duellist. Thus it was not
+strange if some one had set a snare for him; it was rather a miracle
+that he had not fallen into one before. The dangers that threatened him
+were so formidable that he was almost tempted to relinquish his attack
+on Madame d'Argeles. Was it prudent to incur the risk of making this
+woman an enemy? All Sunday he hesitated. It would be very easy to get
+out of the scrape. He could concoct some story for Wilkie's benefit,
+and that would be the end of it. But on the other hand, there was the
+prospect of netting at least five hundred thousand francs--a fortune--a
+competency, and the idea was too tempting to be relinquished.
+
+So on Monday morning, at about ten o'clock, he presented himself at
+Wilkie's house, looking pale with anxiety, and far more solemn in manner
+than usual. "Let us say but little, and that to the point," he remarked
+on entering. "The secret I am about to reveal to you will make you rich;
+but it might ruin me if it were known that you obtained this information
+through me. You will therefore swear, upon your honor as a gentleman,
+never to betray me, under any circumstances, or for any reason."
+
+M. Wilkie extended his hand and solemnly exclaimed: "I swear!"
+
+"Very well, then. Now my mind is at rest. It is scarcely necessary for
+me to add that if you break your faith you are a dead man. You know me.
+You know how I handle a sword; and don't forget it." His manner was so
+threatening that Wilkie shuddered. "You will certainly be questioned,"
+continued M. de Coralth; "but you must reply that you received the
+information through one of Mr. Patterson's friends. Now let us sign our
+formal contract in lieu of the temporary one you gave me the other day."
+
+It is needless to say that Wilkie signed it eagerly. Not so the
+viscount; he read the document through carefully, before appending his
+signature, and then exclaimed: "The estate that belongs to you is that
+of the Count de Chalusse, your uncle. He leaves, I am informed, at least
+eight or ten millions of property."
+
+By M. Wilkie's excited gestures, by the glitter in his eyes, it might
+have been supposed that this wonderful good fortune was too much for
+him, and that he was going mad. "I knew that I belonged to a noble
+family," he began. "The Count de Chalusse my uncle! I shall have a
+coronet on the corner of my visiting cards."
+
+But with a gesture M. de Coralth silenced him. "Wait a little before
+you rejoice," said he. "Yes, your mother is the sister of the Count
+de Chalusse, and it is through her that you are an heir to the estate.
+But--don't grieve too much--there are similar misfortunes in many of our
+most distinguished families--circumstances--the obstinacy of parents--a
+love more powerful than reason----" The viscount paused, certainly he
+had no prejudices; but at the moment of telling this interesting young
+man who his mother really was, he hesitated.
+
+"Go on," insisted M. Wilkie.
+
+"Well--when your mother was a young girl, about twenty, she fled from
+her paternal home with a man she loved. Forsaken afterward, she found
+herself in the depths of poverty. She was obliged to live. You
+were starving. So she changed her name, and now she is known as Lia
+d'Argeles."
+
+M. Wilkie sprang to his feet. "Lia d'Argeles!" he exclaimed. Then, with
+a burst of laughter, he added: "Nevertheless, I think it a piece of
+grand good luck!"
+
+
+
+
+VI.
+
+
+"This man carries away your secret; you are lost." A sinister voice
+whispered these words in Madame Lia d'Argeles's heart when M. Isidore
+Fortunat, after being rudely dismissed, closed the door of her
+drawing-room behind him. This man had addressed her by the ancient and
+illustrious name of Chalusse which she had not heard for twenty years,
+and which she had forbidden her own lips to pronounce. This man knew
+that she, Lia d'Argeles, was really a Durtal de Chalusse.
+
+This frightful certainty overwhelmed her. It is true this man Fortunat
+had declared that his visit was entirely disinterested. He had pretended
+that his regard for the Chalusse family, and the compassion aroused in
+his heart by the unfortunate plight of Mademoiselle Marguerite, were
+the only motives that has influenced him in taking this step. However,
+Madame d'Argeles's experience in life had left her but limited faith
+in apparent or pretended disinterestedness. This is a practical age;
+chivalrous sentiments are expensive--as she had learned conclusively.
+"If the man came here," she murmured, "it was only because he thought
+he might derive some benefit from the prosecution of my claim to my
+poor brother's estate. In refusing to listen to his entreaties, I have
+deprived him of this expected profit and so I have made him my enemy.
+Ah! I was foolish to send him away like that! I ought to have pretended
+to listen--I ought to have bound him by all sorts of promises."
+
+She suddenly paused. It occurred to her that M. Fortunat could not have
+gone very far; so that, if she sent for him to come back, she might
+perhaps be able to repair her blunder. Without losing a second, she
+rushed downstairs, and ordered her concierge and a servant to run after
+the gentleman who had just left the house, and ask him to return; to
+tell him that she had reflected, and wished to speak to him again. They
+rushed out in pursuit, and she remained in the courtyard, her heart
+heavy with anxiety. Too late! About a quarter of an hour afterward
+her emissaries returned. They had made all possible haste in contrary
+directions, but they had seen no one in the street who at all resembled
+the person they were looking for. They had questioned the shopkeepers,
+but no one had seen him pass. "It doesn't matter," faltered Madame
+d'Argeles, in a tone that belied her words. And, anxious to escape
+the evident curiosity of her servants, she hastened back to the little
+boudoir where she usually spent her mornings.
+
+M. Fortunat had left his card--that is to say, his address--and it
+would have been an easy matter to send a servant to his house. She was
+strongly tempted to do so; but she ultimately decided that it would
+be better to wait--that an hour more or less would make but little
+difference. She had sent her trusty servant, Job, for Baron Trigault; he
+would probably return with the baron at any moment; and the baron would
+advise her. He would know at once what was the best course for her to
+pursue. And so she waited for his coming in breathless anxiety; and the
+more she reflected, the more imminent her peril seemed, for she realized
+that M. Fortunat must be a very dangerous and cunning man. He had set a
+trap for her, and she had allowed herself to be caught. Perhaps he had
+only suspected the truth when he presented himself at the house. He had
+suddenly announced the death of the Count de Chalusse; she had betrayed
+herself; and any doubts he might have entertained were dispelled. "If I
+had only had sufficient presence of mind to deny it," she murmured.
+"If I had only been courageous enough to reply that I knew absolutely
+nothing about the person he spoke of. Ah! then he would have gone away
+convinced that he was mistaken."
+
+But would the smooth-spoken visitor have declared that he knew
+everything, if he had not really penetrated the mystery of her life? It
+was scarcely probable. He had implored her to accept the property, if
+not for her own sake at least for the sake of another. And when she
+asked him whom he meant he had answered, "Mademoiselle Marguerite,"
+but he was undoubtedly thinking of Wilkie. So this man, this Isidore
+Fortunat, knew that she had a son. Perhaps he was even acquainted with
+him personally. In his anger he would very likely hasten to Wilkie's
+rooms and tell him everything. This thought filled the wretched woman's
+heart with despair. What! Had she not yet expiated her fault? Must she
+suffer again?
+
+For the first time a terrible doubt came over her. What she had formerly
+regarded as a most sublime effort of maternal love, was, perhaps, even a
+greater crime than the first she had committed. She had given her honor
+as the price of her son's happiness and prosperity. Had she a right to
+do so? Did not the money she had lavished upon him contain every germ of
+corruption, misfortune, and shame? How terrible Wilkie's grief and rage
+would be if he chanced to hear the truth!
+
+Alas! he would certainly pay no heed to the extenuating circumstances;
+he would close his ears to all attempts at justification. He would be
+pitiless. He would have naught but hatred and scorn to bestow upon
+a mother who had fallen from the highest rank in society down to
+everlasting infamy. She fancied she heard him saying in an indignant
+voice, "It would have been better to have allowed me to die of
+starvation than to have given me bread purchased at such a price! Why
+have you dishonored me by your ill-gotten wealth? Fallen, you might have
+raised yourself by honest toil. You ought to have made me a laborer, and
+not a spoiled idler, incapable of earning an honest livelihood. As the
+son of a poor, betrayed, and deserted woman, with whom I could have
+shared my scanty earnings, I might have looked the world proudly in the
+face. But where can the son of Lia d'Argeles hide his disgrace after
+playing the gentleman for twenty years with Lia d'Argeles's money?" Yes,
+Wilkie would certainly say this if he ever learned the truth; and he
+would learn it--she felt sure of it. How could she hope to keep a
+secret which was known to Baron Trigault, M. Patterson, the Viscount de
+Coralth, and M. Fortunat--four persons! She had confidence in the first
+two; she believed she had a hold on the third, but the fourth--Fortunat!
+
+The hours went by; and still Job did not return. What was the meaning
+of this delay? Had he failed to find the baron? At last the sound of
+carriage-wheels in the courtyard made her start. "That's Job!" she said
+to herself. "He brings the baron."
+
+Alas! no. Job returned alone. And yet the honest fellow had spared
+neither pains nor horseflesh. He had visited every place where there was
+the least probability of finding the baron, and he was everywhere told
+that Baron Trigault had not been seen for several days. "In that case,
+you ought to have gone to his house. Perhaps he is there," remarked
+Madame d'Argeles.
+
+"Madame knows that the baron is never at home. I did go there, however,
+but in vain."
+
+This chanced to be one of three consecutive days which Baron Trigault
+had spent with Kami-Bey, the Turkish ambassador. It had been agreed
+between them that they should play until one or the other had lost five
+hundred thousand francs; and, in order to prevent any waste of "precious
+time," as the baron was wont to remark, they neither of them stirred
+from the Grand Hotel, where Kami-Bey had a suite of rooms. They ate and
+slept there. By some strange chance, Madame d'Argeles had not heard of
+this duel with bank-notes, although nothing else was talked of at the
+clubs; indeed, the Figaro had already published a minute description of
+the apartment where the contest was going on; and every evening it
+gave the results. According to the latest accounts, the baron had the
+advantage; he had won about two hundred and eighty thousand francs.
+
+"I only returned to inform madame that I had so far been unsuccessful,"
+said Job. "But I will recommence the search at once."
+
+"That is unnecessary," replied Madame d'Argeles. "The baron will
+undoubtedly drop in this evening, after dinner, as usual."
+
+She said this, and tried her best to believe it; but in her secret heart
+she felt that she could no longer depend upon the baron's assistance. "I
+wounded him this morning," she thought. "He went away more angry than I
+had ever seen him before. He is incensed with me; and who knows how long
+it will be before he comes again?"
+
+Still she waited, with feverish anxiety, listening breathlessly to every
+sound in the street, and trembling each time she heard or fancied
+she heard a carriage stop at the door. However, at two o'clock in the
+morning the baron had not made his appearance. "It is too late--he won't
+come!" she murmured.
+
+But now her sufferings were less intolerable, for excess of wretchedness
+had deadened her sensibility. Utter prostration paralyzed her energies
+and benumbed her mind. Ruin seemed so inevitable that she no longer
+thought of avoiding it; she awaited it with that blind resignation
+displayed by Spanish women, who, when they hear the roll of thunder,
+fall upon their knees, convinced that lightning is about to strike their
+defenceless heads. She tottered to her room, flung herself on the bed,
+and instantly fell asleep. Yes, she slept the heavy, leaden slumber
+which always follows a great mental crisis, and which falls like God's
+blessing upon a tortured mind. On waking up, her first act was to ring
+for her maid, in order to send a message to Job, to go out again in
+search of the baron. But the faithful servant had divined his mistress's
+wishes, and had already started off of his own accord. It was past
+mid-day when he returned, but his face was radiant; and it was in a
+triumphant voice that he announced: "Monsieur le Baron Trigault."
+
+Madame d'Argeles sprang up, and greeted the baron with a joyful
+exclamation. "Ah! how kind of you to come!" she exclaimed. "You are most
+welcome. If you knew how anxiously I have been waiting for you!" He made
+no reply. "If you knew," continued Madame d'Argeles, "if you only knew."
+But she paused, for in spite of her own agitation, she was suddenly
+struck by the peculiar expression on her visitor's face. He was standing
+silent and motionless in the centre of the room, and his eyes were fixed
+upon her with a strange, persistent stare in which she could read
+all the contradictory feelings which were battling for mastery in his
+mind--anger, hatred, pity, and forgiveness. Madame d'Argeles shuddered.
+So her cup of sorrow was not yet full. A new misfortune was about to
+fall upon her. She had hoped that the baron would be able to alleviate
+her wretchedness, but it seemed as if he were fated to increase it. "Why
+do you look at me like that?" she asked, anxiously. "What have I done?"
+
+"You, my poor Lia--nothing!"
+
+"Then--what is it? Oh, my God! you frighten me."
+
+"What is it? Well, I am going to tell you," he said, as he stepped
+forward and took her hand in his own. "You know that I have been
+infamously duped and deceived, that the happiness of my life has been
+destroyed by a scoundrel who tempted the wife I so fondly loved to
+forget her duty, and trample her honor under foot. You have heard my
+vows of vengeance if I ever succeeded in discovering him. Ah, well, Lia,
+I have discovered him. The man who stole my share of earthly happiness
+was the Count de Chalusse, your brother."
+
+With a sudden gesture Madame d'Argeles freed her hand from the baron's
+grasp, and recoiled as terrified as if she had seen a spectre rise up
+before her. Then with her hands extended as if to ward off the horrible
+apparition, she exclaimed: "O, my God!"
+
+A bitter smile curved the baron's lips. "What do you fear?" he asked.
+"Isn't your brother dead? He has defrauded me alike of happiness and
+vengeance!"
+
+If her son's life had depended on a single word, Madame d'Argeles could
+not have uttered it. She knew what mental agony had urged the baron to
+a sort of moral suicide, and led him to contract the vice in which he
+wasted his life and squandered, or, at least risk, his millions.
+
+"Nor is this all," he continued. "Listen. As I have often told you, I
+was sure that my wife became a mother in my absence. I sought the
+child for years, hoping that through the offspring I might discover the
+father. Ah, well! I've found what I sought, at last. The child is now
+a beautiful young girl. She lives at the Hotel de Chalusse as your
+brother's daughter. She is known as Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+Madame d'Argeles listened, leaning against the wall for support, and
+trembling like a leaf. Her reason was shaken by so many repeated blows,
+and her son, her brother, Marguerite, Pascal Ferailleur, Coralth,
+Valorsay--all those whom she loved or feared, or hated--rose like
+spectres before her troubled brain. The horror of the truth exceeded her
+most frightful apprehensions. The strangeness of the reality surpassed
+every flight of fancy. And, moreover, the baron's calmness increased her
+stupor. She so often had heard him give vent to his rage and despair in
+terrible threats, that she could not believe he would be thus resigned.
+But was his calmness real? Was it not a mask, would not his fury
+suddenly break forth?
+
+However, he continued, "It is thus that destiny makes us its sport--it
+is thus that it laughs at our plans. Do you remember, Lia, the day when
+I met you wandering through the streets of Paris--with your child in
+your arms--pale and half dead with fatigue, faint for want of food,
+homeless and penniless? You saw no refuge but in death, as you have
+since told me. How could I imagine when I rescued you that I was saving
+my greatest enemy's sister from suicide--the sister of the man whom I
+was vainly pursuing? And yet this might not be the end, if I chose
+to have it otherwise. The count is dead, but I can still return him
+disgrace for disgrace. He dishonored me. What prevents me from casting
+ineffaceable opprobrium upon the great name of Chalusse, of which he
+was so proud? He seduced my wife. To-day I can tell all Paris what his
+sister has been and what she is to-day."
+
+Ah! it was this--yes, it was this that Madame d'Argeles had dreaded. She
+fell upon her knees, and, with clasped hands she entreated: "Pity!--oh!
+have pity--forgive me! Have mercy! Have I not always been a faithful
+and devoted friend to you? Think of the past you have just invoked! Who
+helped you then to bear your intolerable sufferings? Don't you remember
+the day when you, yourself, had determined to die by your own hand?
+There was a woman who persuaded you to abandon the thought of suicide.
+It was I!"
+
+He looked at her for a moment with a softer expression, tears came to
+his eyes, and rolled down his cheeks. Then suddenly he raised her, and
+placed her in an arm-chair, exclaiming: "Ah! you know very well that I
+shall not do what I said. Don't you know me better than that? Are you
+not sure of my affection, are you not aware that you are sacred in my
+eyes?" He was evidently striving hard to master his emotion. "Besides,"
+he added, "I had already pardoned before coming here. It was foolish on
+my part, perhaps, and for nothing in the world would I confess it to my
+acquaintances, but it is none the less true. I shall have my revenge in
+a certain fashion, however. I need only hold my peace, and the daughter
+of M. de Chalusse and Madame Trigault would become a lost woman. Is this
+not so? Very well, I shall offer her my assistance. It may, or may not,
+be another absurd and ridiculous fancy added to the many I have been
+guilty of. But no matter. I have promised. And why, indeed, should this
+poor girl be held responsible for the sins of her parents? I--I declare
+myself on her side against the world!"
+
+Madame d'Argeles rose, her face radiant with joy and hope. "Then perhaps
+we are saved!" she exclaimed. "Ah! I knew when I sent for you that I
+should not appeal to your heart in vain!"
+
+She took hold of his hand as if to raise it to her lips; but he gently
+withdrew it, and inquired, with an air of astonishment: "What do you
+mean?"
+
+"That I have been cruelly punished for not wishing you to assist that
+unfortunate man who was dishonored here the other evening."
+
+"Pascal Ferailleur?"
+
+"Yes, he is innocent. The Viscount de Coralth is a scoundrel. It was he
+who slipped the cards which made M. Ferailleur win, into the pack, and
+he did it at the Marquis de Valorsay's instigation."
+
+The baron looked at Madame d'Argeles with pro-found amazement. "What!"
+said he; "you knew this and you allowed it? You were cruel enough to
+remain silent when that innocent man entreated you to testify on his
+behalf! You allowed this atrocious crime to be executed under your own
+roof, and under your very eyes?"
+
+"I was then ignorant of Mademoiselle Marguerite's existence. I did not
+know that the young man was beloved by my brother's daughter--I did not
+know--"
+
+The baron interrupted her, and exclaimed, indignantly: "Ah! what does
+that matter? It was none the less an abominable action."
+
+She hung her head, and in a scarcely audible voice replied: "I was not
+free. I submitted to a will that was stronger than my own. If you had
+heard M. de Coralth's threats you would not censure me so severely.
+He has discovered my secret; he knows Wilkie--I am in his power. Don't
+frown--I make no attempt to excuse myself--I am only explaining the
+position in which I was placed. My peril is imminent; I have only
+confidence in you--you alone can aid me; listen!"
+
+Thereupon she hastily explained M. de Coralth's position respecting
+herself, what she had been able to ascertain concerning the Marquis de
+Valorsay's plans, the alarming visit she had received from M. Fortunat,
+his advice and insinuations, the dangers she apprehended, and her firm
+determination to deliver Mademoiselle Marguerite from the machinations
+of her enemies. Madame d'Argeles's disclosures formed, as it were, a
+sequel to the confidential revelations of Pascal Ferailleur, and the
+involuntary confession of the Marquis de Valorsay; and the baron could
+no longer doubt the existence of the shameful intrigue which had been
+planned in view of obtaining possession of the count's millions. And
+if he did not, at first, understand the motives, he at least began to
+discern what means had been employed. He now understood why Valorsay
+persisted in his plan of marrying Mademoiselle Marguerite, even without
+a fortune. "The wretch knows through Coralth that Madame d'Argeles is
+a Chalusse," he said to himself; "and when Mademoiselle Marguerite has
+become his wife, he intends to oblige Madame d'Argeles to accept her
+brother's estate and share it with him."
+
+At that same moment Madame d'Argeles finished her narrative. "And now,
+what shall I do?" she added.
+
+The baron was stroking his chin, as was his usual habit when his mind
+was deeply exercised. "The first thing to be done," he replied, "is to
+show Coralth in his real colors, and prove M. Ferailleur's innocence.
+It will probably cost me a hundred thousand francs to do so, but I shall
+not grudge the money. I should probably spend as much or even more in
+play next summer; and the amount had better be spent in a good cause
+than in swelling the dividends of my friend Blanc, at Baden."
+
+"But M. de Coralth will speak out as soon as he finds that I have
+revealed his shameful past."
+
+"Let him speak."
+
+Madame d'Argeles shuddered. "Then the name of Chalusse will be
+disgraced," said she; "and Wilkie will know who his mother is."
+
+"No."
+
+"But----"
+
+"Ah! allow me to finish, my dear friend. I have my plan, and it is
+as plain as daylight. This evening you will write to your London
+correspondent. Request M. Patterson to summon your son to England, under
+any pretext whatever; let him pretend that he wishes to give him some
+money, for instance. He will go there, of course, and then we will keep
+him there. Coralth certainly won't run after him, and we shall have
+nothing more to fear on that score."
+
+"Great heavens!" murmured Madame d'Argeles, "why did this idea never
+occur to me?"
+
+The baron had now completely recovered his composure. "As regards
+yourself," said he, "the plan you ought to adopt is still more simple.
+What is your furniture worth? About a hundred thousand francs, isn't it?
+Very well, then. You will sign me notes, dated some time back, to the
+amount of a hundred thousand francs. On the day these notes fall due,
+on Monday, for instance, they will be presented for payment. You will
+refuse to pay them. A writ will be served, and an attachment placed
+upon your furniture; but you will offer no resistance. I don't know if I
+explain my meaning very clearly."
+
+"Oh, very clearly!"
+
+"So your property is seized. You make no opposition, and next week we
+shall have flaming posters on all the walls, telling Paris that the
+furniture, wardrobe, cashmeres, laces, and diamonds of Madame Lia
+d'Argeles will be sold without reserve, at public auction, in the Rue
+Drouot, with the view of satisfying the claims of her creditors. You
+can imagine the sensation this announcement will create. I can see your
+friends and the frequenters of your drawing-room meeting one another in
+the street, and saying: 'Ah, well! what's this about poor d'Argeles?'
+'Pshaw!--no doubt it's a voluntary sale.' 'Not at all; she's really
+ruined. Everything is mortgaged above its value.' 'Indeed, I'm very
+sorry to hear it. She was a good creature.' 'Oh, excellent; a deal of
+amusement could be found at her house,--only between you and me----'
+'Well?' 'Well, she was no longer young.' 'That's true. However, I
+shall attend the sale, and I think I shall bid.' And, in fact, your
+acquaintances won't fail to repair to the Hotel Drouot, and maybe your
+most intimate friends will yield to their generous impulses sufficiently
+to offer twenty sous for one of the dainty trifles on your etageres."
+
+Overcome with shame, Madame d'Argeles hung her head. She had never
+before so keenly felt the disgrace of her situation. She had never
+so clearly realized what a deep abyss she had fallen into. And
+this crushing humiliation came from whom? From the only friend she
+possessed--from the man who was her only hope, Baron Trigault.
+
+And what made it all the more frightful was, that he did not seem to be
+in the least degree conscious of the cruelty of his words. Indeed,
+he continued, in a tone of bitter irony: "Of course, you will have
+an exhibition before the sale, and you will see all the dolls that
+hairdressers, milliners and fools call great ladies, come running to
+the show. They will come to see how a notorious woman lives, and to
+ascertain if there are any good bargains to be had. This is the
+right form. These great ladies would be delighted to display diamonds
+purchased at the sale of a woman of the demi monde. Oh! don't fear--your
+exhibition will be visited by my wife and daughter, by the Viscountess
+de Bois d'Ardon, by Madame de Rochecote, her five daughters, and a great
+many more. Then the papers will take up the refrain; they will give an
+account of your financial difficulties, and tell the public what you
+paid for your pictures."
+
+It was with a sort of terror-stricken curiosity that Madame d'Argeles
+watched the baron. It had been many years since she had seen him in such
+a frame of mind--since she had heard him talk in such a cynical fashion.
+"I am ready to follow your advice," said she, "but afterward?"
+
+"What, don't you understand the object I have in view? Afterward you
+will disappear. I know five or six journalists; and it would be very
+strange if I could not convince one of them that you had died upon an
+hospital pallet. It will furnish the subject of a touching, and what
+is better, a moral article. The papers will say, 'Another star has
+disappeared. This is the miserable end of all the poor wretches whose
+passing luxury scandalizes honest women.'"
+
+"And what will become of me?"
+
+"A respected woman, Lia. You will go to England, install yourself in
+some pretty cottage near London, and create a new identity for yourself.
+The proceeds of your sale will supply your wants and Wilkie's for more
+than a year. Before that time has elapsed you will have succeeded in
+accumulating the necessary proofs of your identity, and then you can
+assert your claims and take possession of your brother's estate."
+
+Madame d'Argeles sprang to her feet. "Never never!" she exclaimed,
+vehemently.
+
+The baron evidently thought he must have misunderstood her. "What!" he
+stammered; "you will relinquish the millions that are legally yours, to
+the government?"
+
+"Yes--I am resolved--it must be so."
+
+"Will you sacrifice your son's future in this style?"
+
+"No, it isn't in my power to do that; but Wilkie will do so, later, on,
+I'm sure of it."
+
+"But this is simply folly."
+
+A feverish agitation had now succeeded Madame d'Argeles's torpor; there
+was an expression of scorn and anger on her rigid features, and her
+eyes, usually so dull and lifeless, fairly blazed. "It is not folly,"
+she exclaimed, "but vengeance!" And as the astonished baron opened his
+lips to question her: "Let me finish," she said imperiously, "and then
+you shall judge me. I have told you with perfect frankness everything
+concerning my past life, save this--this--that I am married, Monsieur
+le Baron, legally married. I am bound by a chain that nothing can break,
+and my husband is a scoundrel. You would be frightened if you knew half
+the extent of his villainy. Oh! do not shake your head. I ought not to
+be suspected of exaggeration when I speak in this style of a man whom I
+once loved so devotedly. For I loved him, alas!--even to madness--loved
+him so much that I forgot self, family, honor, and all the most sacred
+duties. I loved him so madly that I was willing to follow him, while his
+hands were still wet with my brother's blood. Ah! chastisement could not
+fail to come, and it was terrible, like the sin. This man for whom I had
+abandoned everything--whom I had made my idol--do you know what he said
+to me the third day after my flight from home? 'You must be more stupid
+than an owl to have forgotten to take your jewels.' Yes, those were the
+very words he said to me, with a furious air. And then I could measure
+the depths of the abyss into which I had plunged. This man, with whom I
+had been so infatuated, did not love me at all, he had never loved me.
+It had only been cold calculation on his part. He had devoted months to
+the task of winning my heart, just as he would have devoted them to
+some business transaction. He only saw in me the fortune that I was
+to inherit. Oh! he didn't conceal it from me. 'If your parents are not
+monsters,' he was always saying, 'they will finally become reconciled to
+our marriage. They will give you a handsome fortune and we will divide
+it. I will give you back your liberty, and then we can each of us be
+happy in our own way.' It was for this reason that he wished to marry
+me. I consented on account of my unborn child. My father and mother had
+died, and he hoped to prevail upon me to claim my share of the paternal
+fortune. As for claiming it himself, he dared not. He was a coward, and
+he was afraid of my brother. But I took a solemn oath that he should
+never have a farthing of the wealth he coveted, and neither threats nor
+BLOWS could compel me to assert my claim. God only knows how much I had
+suffered from his brutality when I at last succeeded in making my escape
+with Wilkie. He has sought us everywhere for fifteen years, but he has
+not yet succeeded in finding a trace of us. Still he has not ceased to
+watch my brother. I am sure of that, my presentiments never deceive me.
+So, if I followed your advice--if I claimed possession of my brother's
+fortune--my husband would instantly appear with our marriage contract in
+his hands, and demand everything. Shall I enrich him? No, never, never!
+I would rather die of want! I would rather see Wilkie die of starvation
+before my very eyes!"
+
+Madame d'Argeles spoke in that tone of concentrated rage which betrays
+years of repressed passion and unflinching resolution. One could
+scarcely hope to modify her views even by the wisest and most practical
+advice. The baron did not even think of attempting to do so. He had
+known Madame d'Argeles for years; he had seen so many proofs of her
+invincible energy and determination. She possessed the distinguishing
+characteristic of her family in a remarkable degree--that proverbial
+Chalusse obstinacy which Madame Vantrasson had alluded to in her
+conversation with M. Fortunat.
+
+She was silent for a moment, and then, in a firm tone she said: "Still,
+I will follow your advice in part, baron. This evening I will write
+to M. Patterson and request him to send for Wilkie. In less than a
+fortnight I shall have sold my furniture and disappeared. I shall remain
+poor. My fortune is not so large as people suppose. No matter. My son is
+a man; he must learn to earn his own living."
+
+"My banking account is always at your disposal, Lia."
+
+"Thanks, my friend, thanks a thousand times; but it will not be
+necessary for me to accept your kind offer. When Wilkie was a child I
+did not refuse. But now I would dig the ground with my own hands,
+rather than give him a louis that came from you. You think me full of
+contradictions! Perhaps I am. It is certain that I am no longer what I
+was yesterday. This trouble has torn away the bandage that covered my
+eyes. I can see my conduct clearly now, and I condemn it. I sinned for
+my son's sake, more than for my own. But I might have rehabilitated
+myself through him, and now he will perhaps be dishonored through me."
+Her breathing came short and hard, and it was in a choked voice that she
+continued: "Wilkie shall work for me and for himself. If he is strong,
+he will save us. If he is weak--ah, well! we shall perish. But there
+has been cowardice and shame enough! It shall never be said that I
+sacrificed the honor of a noble name and the happiness of my brother's
+child to my son. I see what my duty is, and I shall do it."
+
+The baron nodded approvingly. "That's no doubt right," said he. "Only
+allow me to tell you that all is not lost yet. The code has a weapon for
+every just cause. Perhaps there will be a way for you to obtain and hold
+your fortune independent of your husband."
+
+"Alas! I made inquiries on the subject years ago, and I was told that
+it would be impossible. Still, you might investigate the matter. I have
+confidence in you. I know that you would not advise me rashly;--but
+don't delay. The worst misfortune would be less intolerable than this
+suspense."
+
+"I will lose no time. M. Ferailleur is a very clever lawyer, I am told.
+I will consult him."
+
+"And what shall I do about this man Fortunat, who called upon me?"
+
+The baron reflected for a moment. "The safest thing would be to take no
+action whatever at present," he replied. "If he has any evil designs, a
+visit or a letter from you would only hasten them."
+
+By the way Madame d'Argeles shook her head, it was easy to see that she
+had very little hope. "All this will end badly," she murmured.
+
+The baron shared her opinion, but he did not think it wise or kind to
+discourage her. "Nonsense!" he said lightly, "luck is going to change;
+it is always changing."
+
+Then as he heard the clock strike, he sprang from his arm-chair in
+dismay. "Two o'clock," he exclaimed, "and Kami-Bey is waiting for me.
+I certainly haven't been wasting time here, but I ought to have been at
+the Grand Hotel at noon. Kami is quite capable of suspecting a man of
+any knavery. These Turks are strange creatures. It's true that I am
+now a winner to the tune of two hundred and eighty thousand francs."
+He settled his hat firmly on his head, and opening the door, he added:
+"Good-by, my dear madame, I will soon see you again, and in the meantime
+don't deviate in the least from your usual habits. Our success depends,
+in a great measure, upon the fancied security of our enemies!"
+
+Madame d'Argeles considered this advice so sensible that half an hour
+later she went out for her daily drive in the Bois, little suspecting
+that M. Fortunat's spy, Victor Chupin, was dogging her carriage. It was
+most imprudent on her part to have gone to Wilkie's house on her return.
+She incurred such a risk of awakening suspicion by wandering about
+near her son's home that she seldom allowed herself that pleasure, but
+sometimes her anxiety overpowered her reason. So, on this occasion, she
+ordered the coachman to stop near the Rue du Helder, and she reached the
+street just in time to betray her secret to Victor Chupin, and receive a
+foul insult from M. Wilkie. The latter's cruel words stabbed her to the
+heart, and yet she tried to construe them as mere proofs of her son's
+honesty of feeling--as proof of his scorn for the depraved creatures
+who haunt the boulevards each evening. But though her energy was
+indomitable, her physical strength was not equal to her will. On
+returning home, she felt so ill that she was obliged to go to bed. She
+shivered with cold, and yet the blood that flowed in her veins seemed to
+her like molten lead. The physician who was summoned declared that her
+illness was a mere trifle, but prescribed rest and quiet. And as he was
+a very discerning man, he added, not without a malicious smile, that any
+excess is injurious--excess of pleasure as well as any other. As it
+was Sunday, Madame d'Argeles was able to obey the physician, and so she
+closed her doors against every one, the baron excepted. Still, fearing
+that this seclusion might seem a little strange, she ordered her
+concierge to tell any visitors that she had gone into the country,
+and would not return until her usual reception-day. She would then be
+compelled to open her doors as usual. For what would the habitues of the
+house, who had played there every Monday for years, say if they found
+the doors closed? She was less her own mistress than an actress--she had
+no right to weep or suffer in solitude.
+
+So, at about seven o'clock on Monday evening, although still grievously
+suffering both in mind and body, she arranged herself to receive her
+guests. From among all her dresses, she chose the same dark robe she had
+worn on the night when Pascal Ferailleur was ruined at her house; and
+as she was even paler than usual, she tried to conceal the fact by a
+prodigal use of rouge. At ten o'clock, when the first arrivals entered
+the brilliantly lighted rooms, they found her seated as usual on the
+sofa, near the fire, with the same eternal, unchangeable smile upon her
+lips. There were at least forty persons in the room, and the gambling
+had become quite animated when the baron entered. Madame d'Argeles read
+in his eyes that he was the bearer of good news. "Everything is going
+on well," he whispered, as he shook hands with her. "I have seen M.
+Ferailleur--I wouldn't give ten sous for Valorsay's and Coralth's
+chances."
+
+This intelligence revived Madame d'Argeles's drooping spirits, and she
+received M. de Coralth with perfect composure when he came to pay his
+respects to her soon afterward. For he had the impudence to come, in
+order to dispel any suspicions that might have been aroused anent his
+complicity in the card-cheating affair. The hostess's calmness amazed
+him. Was she still ignorant of her brother's death and the complications
+arising from it, or was she only acting a part? He was so anxious and
+undecided, that instead of mingling with the groups of talkers, he
+at once took a seat at the card-table, whence he could watch the poor
+woman's every movement.
+
+Both rooms were full, and almost everybody was engaged in play, when,
+shortly after midnight, a servant entered the room, whispered a few
+words in his mistress's ear, and handed her a card. She took it, glanced
+at it, and uttered so harsh, so terrible, so heart-broken a cry, that
+several of the guests sprang to their feet. "What is it? What is it?"
+they asked. She tried to reply, but could not. Her lips parted, she
+opened her mouth, but no sound came forth. She turned ghastly white
+under her rouge, and a wild, unnatural light gleamed in her eyes. One
+curious guest, without a thought of harm, tried to take the card, which
+she still held in her clinched hand; but she repulsed him with such an
+imperious gesture that he recoiled in terror. "What is it? What is the
+matter with her?" was the astonished query on every side.
+
+At last, with a terrible effort, she managed to reply, "Nothing." And
+then, after clinging for a moment to the mantel-shelf, in order to
+steady herself, she tottered out of the room.
+
+
+
+
+VII.
+
+
+It was not enough to tell M. Wilkie the secret of his birth. He must
+be taught how to utilize the knowledge. The Viscount de Coralth
+devoted himself to this task, and burdened Wilkie with such a host of
+injunctions, that it was quite evident he had but a poor opinion of his
+pupil's sagacity. "That woman d'Argeles," he thought, "is as sharp as
+steel. She will deceive this young idiot completely, if I don't warn
+him."
+
+So he did warn him; and Wilkie was instructed exactly what to do and
+say, how to answer any questions, and what position to take up according
+to circumstances. Moreover, he was especially enjoined to distrust
+tears, and not to let himself be put out of countenance by haughty airs.
+The Viscount spent at least an hour in giving explanations and advice,
+to the great disgust of M. Wilkie, who, feeling that he was being
+treated like a child, somewhat testily declared that he was no fool, and
+that he knew how to take care of himself as well as any one else. Still,
+this did not prevent M. de Coralth from persisting in his instructions
+until he was persuaded that he had prepared his pupil for all possible
+emergencies. He then rose to depart. "That's all, I think," he remarked,
+with a shade of uneasiness. "I've traced the plan--you must execute it,
+and keep cool, or the game's lost."
+
+His companion rose proudly. "If it fails, it won't be from any fault of
+mine," he answered with unmistakable petulance.
+
+"Lose no time."
+
+"There's no danger of that."
+
+"And understand, that whatever happens, my name is not to be mentioned."
+
+"Yes, yes."
+
+"If there should be any new revelations, I will inform you."
+
+"At the club?"
+
+"Yes, but don't be uneasy; the affair is as good as concluded."
+
+"I hope so, indeed."
+
+Wilkie gave a sigh of relief as he saw his visitor depart. He wished to
+be alone, so as to brood over the delights that the future had in store
+for him. He was no longer to be limited to a paltry allowance of twenty
+thousand francs! No more debts, no more ungratified longings. He would
+have millions at his disposal! He seemed to see them, to hold them, to
+feel them gliding in golden waves between his fingers! What horses he
+would have! what carriages! what mistresses! And a gleam of envy that
+he had detected in M. de Coralth's eyes put the finishing touch to his
+bliss. To be envied by this brilliant viscount, his model and his ideal,
+what happiness it was!
+
+The reputation that Madame d'Argeles bore had at first cast a shadow
+over his joy; but this shadow had soon vanished. He was troubled by no
+foolish prejudices, and personally he cared little or nothing for his
+mother's reputation. The prejudices of society must, of course, be
+considered. But nonsense! society has no prejudices nowadays when
+millionaires are concerned, and asks no questions respecting their
+parents. Society only requires passports of the indigent. Besides, no
+matter what Madame d'Argeles might have done, she was none the less a
+Chalusse, the descendant of one of the most aristocratic families in
+France.
+
+Such were Wilkie's meditations while he was engaged in dressing himself
+with more than usual care. He had been quite shocked by the suggestion
+that Madame d'Argeles might try to deny him, and he wished to appear
+before her in the most advantageous light. His toilette was consequently
+a lengthy operation. However, shortly after twelve o'clock he was ready.
+He cast a last admiring glance at himself in the mirror, twirled his
+mustaches, and departed on his mission. He even went on foot, which was
+a concession to what he considered M. de Coralth's absurd ideas. The
+aspect of the Hotel d'Argeles, in the Rue de Berry, impressed him
+favorably, but, at the same time, it somewhat disturbed his superb
+assurance. "Everything is very stylish here," he muttered.
+
+A couple of servants--the concierge and Job--were standing at the door
+engaged in conversation. M. Wilkie approached them, and in his most
+imposing manner, but not without a slight tremble in his voice,
+requested to see Madame d'Argeles. "Madame is in the country," replied
+the concierge; "she will not return before this evening. If monsieur
+will leave his card."
+"Oh! that's quite unnecessary. I shall be passing again."
+
+This, too, was in obedience to the instructions of M. de Coralth, who
+had advised him not to send in his name, but to gain admission into
+Madame d'Argeles's presence as speedily as possible, without giving her
+time to prepare herself for the interview; and Wilkie had ultimately
+decided that these precautions might not prove as superfluous as he had
+at first supposed. But this first mishap annoyed him extremely. What
+should he do? how should he kill time till the evening? A cab was
+passing. He hired it for a drive to the Bois, whence he returned to the
+boulevards, played a game of billiards with one of the co-proprietors
+of Pompier de Nanterre, and finally dined at the Cafe Riche, devoting as
+much time as possible to the operation. He was finishing his coffee when
+the clock struck eight. He caught up his hat, drew on his gloves, and
+hastened to the Hotel d'Argeles again.
+
+"Madame has not yet returned," said the concierge, who knew that his
+mistress had only just risen from her bed, "but I don't think it will be
+long. And if monsieur wishes--"
+
+"No," replied M. Wilkie brusquely, and he was going off in a furious
+passion, when, on crossing the street, he chanced to turn his head and
+notice that the reception rooms were brilliantly lighted up. "Ah! I
+think that a very shabby trick!" grumbled the intelligent youth. "They
+won't succeed in playing that game on me again. Why, she's there now!"
+
+It occurred to him that Madame d'Argeles had perhaps described him to
+her servants, and had given them strict orders not to admit him.
+"I'll find out if that is the case, even if I have to wait here until
+to-morrow morning," he thought, angrily. However, he had not been on
+guard very long, when he saw a brougham stop in front of the mansion,
+whereupon the gate opened, as if by enchantment. The vehicle entered the
+courtyard, deposited its occupants, and drove away. A second carriage
+soon appeared, then a third, and then five or six in quick succession.
+"And does she think I'll wear out my shoe-leather here, while everybody
+else is allowed to enter?" he grumbled. "Never!--I've an idea." And,
+without giving himself time for further deliberation, he returned to his
+rooms, arrayed himself in evening-dress, and sent for his carriage. "You
+will drive to No.--in the Rue de Berry," he said. "There is a soiree
+there, and you can drive directly into the courtyard." The coachman
+obeyed, and M. Wilkie realized that his idea was really an excellent
+one.
+
+As soon as he alighted, the doors were thrown open, and he ascended
+a handsome staircase, heavily carpeted, and adorned with flowers. Two
+liveried footmen were standing at the door of the drawing-room, and one
+of them advanced to relieve Wilkie of his overcoat, but his services
+were declined. "I don't wish to go in," said the young man roughly.
+"I wish to speak with Madame d'Argeles in private. She is expecting
+me--inform her. Here is my card."
+
+The servant was hesitating, when Job, suspecting some mystery perhaps,
+approached. "Take in the gentleman's card," he said, with an air of
+authority; and, opening the door of a small room on the left-hand side
+of the staircase, he invited Wilkie to enter, saying, "If monsieur will
+be kind enough to take a seat, I will summon madame at once."
+
+M. Wilkie sank into an arm-chair, considerably overcome. The air of
+luxury that pervaded the entire establishment, the liveried servants,
+the lights and flowers, all impressed him much more deeply than he would
+have been willing to confess. And in spite of his affected arrogance,
+he felt that the superb assurance which was the dominant trait in his
+character was deserting him. In his breast, moreover, in the place where
+physiologists locate the heart, he felt certain extraordinary movements
+which strongly resembled palpitations. For the first time it occurred
+to him that this woman, whose peace he had come to destroy, was not only
+the heiress of the Count de Chalusse's millions, but also his mother,
+that is to say, the good fairy whose protection had followed him
+everywhere since he entered the world. The thought that he was about to
+commit an atrocious act entered his mind, but he drove it away. It was
+too late now to draw back, or even to reflect.
+
+Suddenly a door opposite the one by which he had entered opened, and
+Madame d'Argeles appeared on the threshold. She was no longer the woman
+whose anguish and terror had alarmed her guests. During the brief moment
+of respite which fate had granted her, she had summoned all her energy
+and courage, and had mastered her despair. She felt that her salvation
+depended upon her calmness, and she had succeeded in appearing calm,
+haughty, and disdainful--as impassive as if she had been a statue. "Was
+it you, sir, who sent me this card?" she inquired.
+
+Greatly disconcerted, M. Wilkie could only bow and stammer out an almost
+unintelligible answer. "Excuse me! I am much grieved, upon my word! I
+disturb you, perhaps----"
+
+"You are Monsieur Wilkie!" interrupted Madame d'Argeles, in a tone of
+mingled irony and disdain.
+
+"Yes," he replied, drawling out the name affectedly, "I am M. Wilkie."
+
+"Did you desire to speak with me?" inquired Madame d'Argeles, dryly.
+
+"In fact--yes. I should like----"
+
+"Very well. I will listen to you, although your visit is most
+inopportune, for I have eighty guests or more in my drawing-room. Still,
+speak!"
+
+It was very easy to say "speak," but unfortunately for M. Wilkie he
+could not articulate a syllable. His tongue was as stiff, and as dry, as
+if it had been paralyzed. He nervously passed and repassed his fingers
+between his neck and his collar, but although this gave full play to his
+cravat, his words did not leave his throat any more readily. For he had
+imagined that Madame d'Argeles would be like other women he had known,
+but not at all. He found her to be an extremely proud and awe-inspiring
+creature, who, to use his own vocabulary, SQUELCHED him completely. "I
+wished to say to you," he repeated, "I wished to say to you----" But
+the words he was seeking would not come; and, so at last, angry with
+himself, he exclaimed: "Ah! you know as well as I, why I have come. Do
+you dare to pretend that you don't know?"
+
+She looked at him with admirably feigned astonishment, glanced
+despairingly at the ceiling, shrugged her shoulders, and replied: "Most
+certainly I don't know--unless indeed it be a wager."
+
+"A wager!" M. Wilkie wondered if he were not the victim of some
+practical joke, and if there were not a crowd of listeners hidden
+somewhere, who, after enjoying his discomfiture, would suddenly make
+their appearance, holding their sides. This fear restored his presence
+of mind. "Well, then," he replied, huskily, "this is my reason. I know
+nothing respecting my parents. This morning, a man with whom you are
+well acquainted, assured me that I was--your son. I was completely
+stunned at first, but after a while I recovered sufficiently to call
+here, and found that you had gone out."
+
+He was interrupted by a nervous laugh from Madame d'Argeles. For she was
+heroic enough to laugh, although death was in her heart, and although
+the nails of her clinched hands were embedded deep in her quivering
+flesh. "And you believed him, monsieur?" she exclaimed. "Really, this is
+too absurd! I--your mother! Why, look at me----"
+
+He was doing nothing else, he was watching her with all the powers of
+penetration he possessed. Madame d'Argeles's laugh had an unnatural
+ring that awakened his suspicions. All Coralth's recommendations buzzed
+confusedly in his ears, and he judged that the moment had come "to do
+the sentimental," as he would have expressed it. So he lowered his head,
+and in an aggrieved tone, exclaimed: "Ah! you think it very amusing, I
+don't. Do you realize how wretched it makes one to live as utterly alone
+as a leper, without a soul to love or care for you? Other young men have
+a mother, sisters, relatives. I have no one! Ah! if---- But I only have
+friends while my money lasts." He wiped his eyes, dry as they were, with
+his handkerchief, and in a still more pathetic tone, resumed: "Not that
+I want for anything; I receive a very handsome allowance. But when my
+relatives have given me the wherewithal to keep me from starving, they
+imagine their duty is fulfilled. I think this very hard. I didn't come
+into the world at my own request, did I? I didn't ask to be born. If
+I was such an annoyance to them when I came into existence, why didn't
+they throw me into the river? Then they would have been well rid of me,
+and I should be out of my misery!"
+
+He stopped short, struck dumb with amazement, for Madame d'Argeles had
+thrown herself on her knees at his feet. "Have mercy!" she faltered;
+"Wilkie; my son, forgive me!" Alas! the unfortunate woman had failed in
+playing a part which was too difficult for a mother's heart. "You have
+suffered cruelly, my son," she continued; "but I--I--Ah! you can't
+conceive the frightful agony it costs a mother to separate from her
+child! But you were not deserted, Wilkie; don't say that. Have you not
+felt my love in the air around you? YOU forgotten? Know, then, that for
+years and years I have seen you every day, and that all my thoughts and
+all my hopes are centered in you alone! Wilkie!"
+
+She dragged herself toward him with her hands clasped in an agony of
+supplication, while he recoiled, frightened by this outburst of
+passion, and utterly amazed by his easily won victory. The poor woman
+misunderstood this movement. "Great God!" she exclaimed, "he spurns me;
+he loathes me. Ah! I knew it would be so. Oh! why did you come? What
+infamous wretch sent you here? Name him, Wilkie! Do you understand, now,
+why I concealed myself from you? I dreaded the day when I should blush
+before you, before my own son. And yet it was for your sake. Death would
+have been a rest, a welcome release for me. But your breath was ebbing
+away, your poor little arms no longer had strength to clasp me round the
+neck. And then I cried: 'Perish my soul and body, if only my child can
+be saved!' I believed such a sacrifice permissible in a mother. I am
+punished for it as if it were a crime. I thought you would be happy, my
+Wilkie. I said to myself that you, my pride and joy, would move freely
+and proudly far above me and my shame. I accepted ignominy, so that your
+honor might be preserved intact. I knew the horrors of abject poverty,
+and I wished to save my son from it. I would have licked up the very
+mire in your pathway to save you from a stain. I renounced all hope for
+myself, and I consecrated all that was noble and generous in my nature
+to you. Oh! I will discover the vile coward who sent you here, who
+betrayed my secret. I will discover him and I will have my revenge! You
+were never to know this, Wilkie. In parting from you, I took a solemn
+oath never to see you again, and to die without the supreme consolation
+of feeling your lips upon my forehead."
+
+She could not continue; sobs choked her utterance. And for more than a
+minute the silence was so profound that one could hear the sound of low
+conversation in the hall outside, the exclamations of the players as
+they greeted each unexpected turn of luck, and occasionally a cry of
+"Banco!" or "I stake one hundred louis!" Standing silent and motionless
+near the window, Wilkie gazed with consternation at Madame d'Argeles,
+his mother, who was crouching in the middle of the room with her face
+hidden in her hands, and sobbing as if her heart would break. He would
+willingly have given his third share in Pompier de Nanterre to have
+made his escape. The strangeness of the scene appalled him. It was
+not emotion that he felt, but an instinctive fear mingled with
+commiseration. And he was not only ill at ease, but he was angry
+with himself for what he secretly styled his weakness. "Women are
+incomprehensible," he thought. "It would be so easy to explain things
+quietly and properly, but they must always cry and have a sort of
+melodrama."
+
+Suddenly the sound of footsteps near the door roused him from his
+stupor. He shuddered at the thought that some one might come in. He
+hated the very idea of ridicule. So summoning all his courage he went
+toward Madame d'Argeles, and, raising her from the floor, he exclaimed:
+"Don't cry so. You grieve me, upon my word! Pray get up. Some one is
+coming. Do you hear me? Some one is coming." Thereupon, as she offered
+no resistance, he half led, half carried her to an arm-chair, into
+which she sank heavily. "Now she is going to faint!" thought Wilkie,
+in despair. What should he do? Call for help? He dared not. However,
+necessity inspired him. He knelt at Madame d'Argeles's feet, and gently
+said: "Come, come, be reasonable! Why do you give way like this? I don't
+reproach you!"
+
+Slowly, with an air of humility which was indescribably touching,
+she took her hands from her face, and for the first time raised her
+tear-stained eyes to her son's. "Wilkie," she murmured.
+
+"Madame!"
+
+She heaved a deep sigh, and in a half-stifled voice:
+
+"MADAME!" she repeated. "Will you not call me mother?"
+
+"Yes, of course--certainly. But--only you know it will take me some time
+to acquire the habit. I shall do so, of course; but I shall have to get
+used to it, you know."
+
+"True, very true!--but tell me it is not mere pity that leads you to
+make this promise? If you should hate me--if you should curse me--how
+should I bear it! Ah! when a woman reaches the years of understanding
+one should never cease repeating to her: 'Take care! Your son will be
+twenty some day, and you will have to meet his searching gaze. You
+will have to render an account of your honor to him!' My God! If women
+thought of this, they would never sin. To be reduced to such a state of
+abject misery that one dares not lift one's head before one's own son!
+Alas! Wilkie, I know only too well that you cannot help despising me."
+
+"No, indeed. Not at all! What an idea!"
+
+"Tell me that you forgive me!"
+
+"I do, upon my word I do."
+
+Poor woman, her face brightened. She so longed to believe him! And her
+son was beside her, so near that she felt his breath upon her cheek. It
+was he indeed. Had they ever been separated? She almost doubted it, she
+had lived so near him in thought. It was with a sort of ecstasy that she
+looked at him. There was a world of entreaty in her eyes; they seemed
+to be begging a caress; she raised her quivering lips to his, but he did
+not observe it. For a long time she hesitated, fearing he might spurn
+her; but at last, yielding to a supreme impulse, she threw her arms
+around his neck, drew him toward her, and pressed him to her heart in
+a close embrace. "My son! my son!" she repeated; "to have you with me
+again, after all these years!"
+
+Unfortunately, no whirlwind of passion was capable of carrying M. Wilkie
+beyond himself. His emotion was now spent and his mind had regained
+its usual indifference. He flattered himself that he was a man of
+mettle--and he remained as cold as ice beneath his mother's kisses.
+Indeed, he barely tolerated them; and if he did allow her to embrace
+him, it was only because he did not know how to refuse. "Will she never
+have done?" he thought. "This is a pretty state of things! I must be
+very attractive. How Costard and Serpillon would laugh if they saw
+me now." Costard and Serpillon were his intimate friends, the
+co-proprietors of the famous steeplechaser.
+
+In her rapture, however, Madame d'Argeles did not observe the peculiar
+expression on her son's face. She had compelled him to take a chair
+opposite her, and, with nervous volubility, she continued: "If I don't
+deny myself the happiness of embracing you again, it is because I have
+not broken the vow I took never to make myself known to you. When I
+entered this room, I was firmly resolved to convince you, no matter how,
+that you had been deceived. God knows that it was not my fault if I did
+not succeed. There are some sacrifices that are above human strength."
+
+M. Wilkie deigned to smile. "Oh! yes, I saw your little game," he said,
+with a knowing air. "But I had been well posted, and besides, it is not
+very easy to fool me."
+
+Madame d'Argeles did not even hear him. "Perhaps destiny is weary of
+afflicting us," she continued; "perhaps a new life is about to begin.
+Through you, Wilkie. I can again be happy. I, who for years have lived
+without even hope. But will you have courage to forget?"
+
+"What?"
+
+She hung her head, and in an almost inaudible voice replied, "The past,
+Wilkie."
+
+But with an air of the greatest indifference, he snapped his fingers,
+and exclaimed: "Nonsense! What is past is past. Such things are soon
+forgotten. Paris has known many such cases. You are my mother; I care
+very little for public opinion. I begin by pleasing myself, and I
+consult other people afterward; and when they are dissatisfied, I tell
+them to mind their own business."
+
+The poor woman listened to these words with a joy bordering on rapture.
+One might have supposed that the strangeness of her son's expressions
+would have surprised her--have enlightened her in regard to his true
+character--but no. She only saw and understood one thing--that he had no
+intention of casting her off, but was indeed ready to devote himself to
+her. "My God!" she faltered, "is this really true? Will you allow me
+to remain with you? Oh, don't reply rashly! Consider well, before you
+promise to make such a sacrifice. Think how much sorrow and pain it will
+cost you."
+
+"I have considered. It is decided--mother."
+
+She sprang up, wild with hope and enthusiasm. "Then we are saved!"
+she cried. "Blessed be he who betrayed my secret! And I doubted your
+courage, my Wilkie! At last I can escape from this hell! This very night
+we will fly from this house, without one backward glance. I will never
+set foot in these rooms again--the detested gamblers who are sitting
+here shall never see me again. From this moment Lia d'Argeles is dead."
+
+M. Wilkie positively felt like a man who had just fallen from the
+clouds. "What, fly?" he stammered. "Where shall we go, then?"
+
+"To a country where we are unknown, Wilkie--to a land where you will not
+have to blush for your mother."
+
+"But--"
+
+"Trust yourself to me, my son. I know a pleasant village near London
+where we can find a refuge. My connections in England are such that you
+need not fear the obstacles one generally meets with among foreigners.
+M. Patterson, who manages a large manufacturing establishment, will, I
+know, be happy to be of service to us--but we shall not be indebted to
+any one for long, now that you have resolved to work."
+
+On hearing these words, M. Wilkie sprang up in dismay. "Excuse me,"
+he said, "I don't understand you. You propose to set me to work in M.
+Patterson's factory? Well, to tell the truth, that doesn't suit me at
+all."
+
+It was impossible to mistake M. Wilkie's manner, his tone, or gesture.
+They revealed him in his true character. Madame d'Argeles saw her
+terrible mistake at once. The bandage fell from her eyes. She had taken
+her dreams for realities, and the desires of her own heart for those of
+her son. She rose, trembling with sorrow and with indignation. "Wilkie!"
+she exclaimed, "Wilkie, wretched boy! what did you dare to hope?"
+
+And, without giving him time to reply, she continued: "Then it was only
+idle curiosity that brought you here. You wished to know the source
+of the money which you spend like water. Very well, you may see
+for yourself. This is a gambling house; one of those establishments
+frequented by distinguished personages, which the police ignore, or
+which they cannot suppress. The hubbub you hear is made by the players.
+Men are ruined here. Some poor wretches have blown their brains out on
+leaving the house; others have parted with the last vestige of honor
+here. And the business pays me well. One louis out of every hundred that
+change hands falls to my share. This is the source of your wealth, my
+son."
+
+This anger, which succeeded such deep grief--this outburst of disdain,
+following such abject humility--considerably astonished M. Wilkie.
+"Allow me to ask----" he began.
+
+But he was not allowed a hearing. "Fool!" continued Madame d'Argeles,
+"did nothing warn you that in coming here you would deprive yourself
+forever of the income you received? Did no inward voice tell you that
+all would be changed when you compelled me, Lia d'Argeles, to say,
+'Well, yes, it is true; you are my son?' So long as you did not know
+who and what I was, I had a mother's right to watch over you. I could
+help you without disgracing you, without despising you. But now that you
+know me, and know what I am, I can do nothing more for you--nothing! I
+would rather let you starve than succor you, for I would rather see you
+dead than dishonored by my money."
+
+"But--"
+
+"What! would you still consent to receive the allowance I have made you,
+even if I consented to continue it?"
+
+Had a viper raised its head in M. Wilkie's path he would not have
+recoiled more quickly. "Never!" he exclaimed. "Ah, no! What do you take
+me for?"
+
+This repugnance was sincere; there could be no doubt of that, and it
+seemed to give Madame d'Argeles a ray of hope. "I have misjudged him,"
+she thought. "Poor Wilkie! Evil advice has led him astray; but he is not
+bad at heart. In that case, my poor child," she said aloud, "you must
+see that a new life is about to commence for you. What do you intend to
+do? How will you gain a livelihood? People must have food, and clothes,
+and a roof to shelter them. These things cost money. And where will
+you obtain it--you who rebel at the very word work? Ah! if I had only
+listened to M. Patterson. He was not blind like myself. He was always
+telling me that I was spoiling you, and ruining your future by giving
+you so much money. Do you know that you have spent more than fifty
+thousand francs during the past two years? How have you squandered them?
+Have you been to the law-school a dozen times? No. But you can be seen
+at the races, at the opera, in the fashionable restaurants, and at every
+place of amusement where a young man can squander money. And who are
+your associates? Dissipated and heartless idlers, grooms, gamblers, and
+abandoned women."
+
+A sneer from M. Wilkie interrupted her. To think that any one should
+dare to attack his friends, his tastes, and his pleasures. Such a thing
+was not to be tolerated. "This is astonishing--astonishing, upon my
+word!" said he. "You moralizing! that's really too good! I should like a
+few minutes to laugh; it is too ridiculous!"
+
+Was he really conscious of the cruelty of his ironical words? The blow
+was so terrible that Madame d'Argeles staggered beneath it. She was
+prepared for anything and everything except this insult from her son.
+Still, she accepted it without rebellion, although it was in a tone of
+heart-broken anguish that she replied: "Perhaps I have no right to tell
+you the truth. I hope the future will prove that I am wrong. However,
+you are without resources, and you have no profession. Pray Heaven that
+you may never know what it is to be hungry and to have no bread."
+
+For some time already the ingenious young man had shown unmistakable
+signs of impatience. This gloomy prediction irritated him beyond
+endurance.
+
+"All this is empty talk," he interrupted. "I don't mean to work, for
+it's not at all in my line. Still, I don't expect to want for anything!
+That's plain enough, I hope."
+
+Madame d'Argeles did not wince. "What do you mean to do then?" she
+asked, coldly. "I don't understand you."
+
+He shrugged his shoulders impatiently. "Are we to keep up this farce for
+ever?" he petulantly exclaimed. "It doesn't take with me. You know what
+I mean as well as I do. Why do you talk to me about dying of starvation?
+What about the fortune?"
+
+"What fortune?"
+
+"Eh? why, my uncle's, of course! Your brother's, the Count de Chalusse."
+
+Now M. Wilkie's visit, manner, assurance, wheedling, and contradictions
+were all explained. That maternal confidence which is so strong in the
+hearts of mothers vanished from Madame d'Argeles's for ever. The depths
+of selfishness and cunning she discerned in Wilkie's mind appalled her.
+She now understood why he had declared himself ready to brave public
+opinion--why he had proved willing to accept his share of the past
+ignominy. It was not his mother's, but the Count de Chalusse's estate
+that he claimed. "Ah! so you've heard of that," she said, in a tone
+of bitter irony. And then, remembering M. Isidore Fortunat, she asked:
+"Some one has sold you this valuable secret. How much have you promised
+to pay him in case of success?"
+
+Although Wilkie prided himself on being very clever, he did not pretend
+to be a diplomatist, and, indeed, he was greatly disconcerted by this
+question; still, recovering himself, he replied: "It doesn't matter how
+I obtained the information--whether I paid for it, or whether it cost
+me nothing--but I know that you are a Chalusse, and that you are
+the heiress of the count's property, which is valued at eight or ten
+millions of francs. Do you deny it?"
+
+Madame d'Argeles sadly shook her head. "I deny nothing," she replied,
+"but I am about to tell you something which will destroy all your plans
+and extinguish your hopes. I am resolved, understand, and my resolution
+is irrevocable, never to assert my rights. To receive this fortune, I
+should be obliged to confess that Lia d'Argeles is a Chalusse--and that
+is a confession which no consideration whatever will wring from me."
+
+She imagined that this declaration would silence and discomfit Wilkie,
+but she was mistaken. If he had been obliged to depend upon himself he
+would perhaps have been conquered by it; but he was armed with weapons
+which had been furnished by the cunning viscount. So he shrugged his
+shoulders, and coolly replied: "In that case we should remain poor, and
+the government would take possession of our millions. One moment. I
+have something to say in this matter. You may renounce your claim, but I
+shall not renounce mine. I am your son, and I shall claim the property."
+
+"Even if I entreated you on my knees not to do so?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+Madame d'Argeles's eyes flashed. "Very well. I will show you that this
+estate can never be yours. By what right will you lay claim to it?
+Because you are my son? But I will deny that you are. I will declare
+upon oath that you are nothing to me, and that I don't even know you."
+
+But even this did not daunt Wilkie. He drew from his pocket a scrap
+of paper, and flourishing it triumphantly, he exclaimed: "It would
+be extremely cruel on your part to deny me, but I foresaw such a
+contingency, and here is my answer, copied from the civil code: 'Article
+341. Inquiry as to maternity allowed, etc., etc.'"
+
+What the exact bearing of Wilkie's threat might be Madame d'Argeles did
+not know. But she felt that this Article 341 would no doubt destroy her
+last hope; for the person who had chosen this weapon from the code to
+place it in Wilkie's hand must have chosen it carefully. She understood
+the situation perfectly. With her experience of life, she could not fail
+to understand the despicable part Wilkie was playing. And though it was
+not her son who had conceived this odious plot, it was more than enough
+to know that he had consented to carry it into execution. Should she try
+to persuade Wilkie to abandon this shameful scheme? She might have done
+so if she had not been so horrified by the utter want of principle which
+she had discovered in his character. But, under the circumstances, she
+realized that any effort in this direction would prove unavailing. So
+it was purely from a sense of duty and to prevent her conscience from
+reproaching her that she exclaimed: "So you will apply to the courts in
+order to constrain me to acknowledge you as my son?"
+
+"If you are not reasonable----"
+
+"That is to say, you care nothing for the scandal that will be created
+by such a course. In order to prove yourself a member of the Chalusse
+family you will begin by disgracing the name and dragging it through the
+mire."
+
+Wilkie had no wish to prolong this discussion. So much talk about an
+affair, which, in his opinion, at least, was an extremely simple one,
+seemed to him utterly ridiculous, and irritated him beyond endurance.
+"It strikes me this is much ado about nothing," he remarked. "One would
+suppose, to hear you talk, that you were the greatest criminal in the
+world. Goodness is all very well in its way, but there is such a thing
+as having too much of it! Break loose from this life to-morrow, assume
+your rightful name, install yourself at the Hotel de Chalusse, and in
+a week from now no one will remember that you were once known as Lia
+d'Argeles. I wager one hundred louis on it. Why, if people attempted to
+rake up the past life of their acquaintances, they should have far too
+much to do. Folks do not trouble themselves as to whether a person has
+done this or that; the essential thing is to have plenty of money. And
+if any fool speaks slightingly of you, you can reply: 'I have an income
+of five hundred thousand francs,' and he'll say no more."
+
+Madame d'Argeles listened, speechless with horror and disgust. Was it
+really her son who was speaking in this style, and to her of all people
+in the world? M. Wilkie misunderstood her silence. He had an excellent
+opinion of himself, but he was rather surprised at the effect of his
+eloquence. "Besides, I'm tired of vegetating, and having only one name,"
+he continued. "I want to be on the move. Even with the small allowance
+I've had, I have gained a very good position in society; and if I had
+plenty of money I should be the most stylish man in Paris. The count's
+estate belongs to me, and so I must have it--in fact, I will have it.
+So believe me when I tell you that it will be much better for you if you
+acknowledge me without any fuss! Now, will you do so? No? Once, twice,
+three times? Is it still no? Very well then; to-morrow, then, you may
+expect an official notice. I wish you good-evening."
+
+He bowed; he was really going, for his hand was already on the
+door-knob. But Madame d'Argeles detained him with a gesture. "One word
+more," she said, in a voice hoarse with emotion.
+
+He scarcely deigned to come back, and he made no attempt to conceal his
+impatience. "Well, what is it?" he asked, hastily.
+
+"I wish to give you a bit of parting advice. The court will undoubtedly
+decide in your favor; I shall be placed in possession of my brother's
+estate; but neither you nor I will have the disposal of these millions."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because, though this fortune belongs to me, the control of it belongs
+to your father."
+
+M. Wilkie was thunderstruck. "To my father?" he exclaimed. "Impossible!"
+
+"It is so, however; and you would not have been ignorant of the fact, if
+your greed for money had not made you forget to question me. You believe
+yourself an illegitimate child. Wilkie, you are mistaken. You are my
+legitimate child. I am a married woman----"
+
+"Bah!"
+
+"And my husband--your father--is not dead. If he is not here now,
+threatening our safety, it is because I have succeeded in eluding him.
+He lost all trace of us eighteen years ago. Since then he has been
+constantly striving to discover us, but in vain. He is still watching,
+you may be sure of that; and as soon as there is any talk of a law-suit
+respecting the Chalusse property, you will see him appear, armed with
+his rights. He is the head of the family--your master and mine. Ah! this
+seems to disturb you. You will find him full of insatiable greed for
+wealth, a greed which has been whetted by twenty years' waiting. You may
+yet see the day when you will regret the paltry twenty thousand francs a
+year formerly given you by your poor mother."
+
+Wilkie's face was whiter than his shirt. "You are deceiving me," he
+stammered.
+
+"To-morrow I will show you my marriage certificate."
+
+"Why not this evening?"
+
+"Because it is locked up in a room which is now full of people."
+
+"And what was my father's name?"
+
+"Arthur Gordon--he is an American."
+
+"Then my name is Wilkie Gordon?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And---is my father rich?" he inquired.
+
+"No."
+
+"What does he do?"
+
+"Everything that a man can do when he has a taste for luxury and a
+horror for work."
+
+This reply was so explicit in its brevity, and implied so many terrible
+accusations, that Wilkie was dismayed. "The devil!" he exclaimed, "and
+where does he live!"
+
+"He lives at Baden or Homburg in the summer; in Paris or at Monaco in
+the winter."
+
+"Oh! oh! oh!" ejaculated Wilkie, in three different tones. He knew
+what he had to expect from such a father as that. Anger now followed
+stupor--one of those terrible, white rages which stir the bile and not
+the blood. He saw his hopes and his cherished visions fade. Luxury and
+notoriety, high-stepping horses, yellow-haired mistresses, all vanished.
+He pictured himself reduced to a mere pittance, and held in check and
+domineered over by a brutal father. "Ah! I understand your game," he
+hissed through his set teeth. "If you would only quietly assert your
+rights, everything could be arranged privately, and I should have time
+to put the property out of my father's reach before he could claim it.
+Instead of doing that--as you hate me--you compel me to make the affair
+public, so that my father will hear of it and defraud me of everything.
+But you won't play this trick on me. You are going to write at once, and
+make known your claim to your brother's estate."
+
+"No."
+
+"Ah! you won't? You refuse----" He approached threateningly, and
+caught hold of her arm. "Take care!" he vociferated; "take care! Do not
+infuriate me beyond endurance----"
+
+As cold and rigid as marble, Madame d'Argeles faced him with the
+undaunted glance of a martyr whose spirit no violence can subdue. "You
+will obtain nothing from me," she said, firmly; "nothing, nothing,
+nothing!"
+
+Maddened with rage and disappointment, M. Wilkie dared to lift his hand
+as if about to strike her. But at this moment the door was flung open,
+and a man sprang upon him. It was Baron Trigault.
+
+Like the other guests, the baron had seen the terrible effect produced
+upon Madame d'Argeles by a simple visiting card. But he had this
+advantage over the others: he thought he could divine and explain the
+reason of this sudden, seemingly incomprehensible terror. "The poor
+woman has been betrayed," he thought; "her son is here!" Still, while
+the other players crowded around their hostess, he did not leave the
+card-table. He was sitting opposite M. de Coralth, and he had seen the
+dashing viscount start and change color. His suspicions were instantly
+aroused, and he wished to verify them. He therefore pretended to be more
+than ever absorbed in the cards, and swore lustily at the deserters who
+had broken up the game. "Come back, gentleman, come back," he cried,
+angrily. "We are wasting precious time. While you have been trifling
+there, I might have gained--or lost--a hundred louis."
+
+He was nevertheless greatly alarmed, and the prolonged absence of Madame
+d'Argeles increased his fears each moment. At the end of an hour he
+could restrain himself no longer. So taking advantage of a heavy loss,
+he rose from the table, swearing that the beastly turmoil of a few
+moments before had changed the luck. Then passing into the adjoining
+drawing-room, he managed to make his escape unobserved. "Where is
+madame?" he inquired of the first servant he met.
+
+"In the little sitting-room."
+
+"Alone?"
+
+"No; a young gentleman is with her."
+
+The baron no longer doubted the correctness of his conjectures, and his
+disquietude increased. Quickly, and as if he had been in his own house,
+he hastened to the door of the little sitting-room and listened. At that
+moment rage was imparting a truly frightful intonation to M. Wilkie's
+voice. The baron really felt alarmed. He stooped, applied his eye to the
+keyhole, and seeing M. Wilkie with his hand uplifted, he burst open the
+door and went in. He arrived only just in time to fell Wilkie to
+the floor, and save Madame d'Argeles from that most terrible of
+humiliations: the degradation of being struck by her own son. "Ah, you
+rascal!" cried the worthy baron, transported with indignation, "you
+beggarly rascal! you brigand! Is this the way you treat an unfortunate
+woman who has sacrificed herself for you--your mother? You try to strike
+your mother, when you ought to kiss her very footprints!"
+
+As livid as if his blood had been suddenly turned to gall--with
+quivering lips and eyes starting from their sockets--M. Wilkie rose,
+with difficulty, to his feet, at the same time rubbing his left elbow
+which had struck against the corner of a piece of furniture, in his
+fall. "Scoundrel! You brutal scoundrel!" he growled, ferociously. And
+then, retreating a step: "Who gave you permission to come in here?" he
+added. "Who are you? By what right do you meddle with my affairs?"
+
+"By the right that every honest man possesses to chastise a cowardly
+rascal."
+
+M. Wilkie shook his fist at the baron. "You are a coward yourself," he
+retorted. "You had better learn who you are talking to! You must mend
+your manners a little, you old----"
+
+The word he uttered was so vile that no man could fail to resent it,
+much less the baron, who was already frantic with passion. His faced
+turned as purple as if he were stricken with apoplexy, and such furious
+rage gleamed in his eyes that Madame d'Argeles was frightened. She
+feared she should see her son butchered before her very eyes, and
+she extended her arms as if to protect him. "Jacques," she said
+beseechingly, "Jacques!"
+
+This was the name which was indelibly impressed upon Wilkie's
+memory--the name he had heard when he was but a child. Jacques--that
+was the name of the man who had brought him cakes and toys in the
+comfortable rooms where he had remained only a few days. He understood,
+or at least he thought he understood, everything. "Ah, ha!" he
+exclaimed, with a laugh that was at once both ferocious and idiotic.
+"This is very fine--monsieur is the lover. He has the say here--he--"
+
+He did not have time to finish his sentence, for quick as thought
+the baron caught him by the collar, lifted him from the ground with
+irresistible strength, and flung him on his knees at Madame d'Argeles's
+feet, exclaiming: "Ask her pardon, you vile wretch! Ask her pardon,
+or----" "Or" meant the baron's clinched fist descending like a
+sledge-hammer on M. Wilkie's head.
+
+The worthy youth was frightened--so terribly frightened that his teeth
+chattered. "Pardon!" he faltered.
+
+"Louder--speak up better than that. Your mother must answer you!"
+
+Alas! the poor woman could no longer hear. She had endured so much
+during the past hour that her strength was exhausted, and she had fallen
+back in her arm-chair in a deep swoon. The baron waited for a moment,
+and seeing that her eyes remained obstinately closed, he exclaimed:
+"This is your work, wretch!"
+
+And lifting him again, as easily as if he had been a child, he set him
+on his feet, saying in a calmer tone, but in one that admitted of no
+reply: "Arrange your clothes and go."
+
+This advice was not unnecessary. Baron Trigault had a powerful hand;
+and M. Wilkie's attire was decidedly the worse for the encounter. He
+had lost his cravat, his shirt-front was crumpled and torn, and his
+waistcoat--one of those that open to the waist and are fastened by a
+single button--hung down in the most dejected manner. He obeyed the
+baron's order without a word, but not without considerable difficulty,
+for his hands trembled like a leaf. When he had finished, the baron
+exclaimed: "Now be off; and never set foot here again--understand
+me--never set foot here again, never!"
+
+M. Wilkie made no reply until he reached the door leading into the hall.
+But when he had opened it, he suddenly regained his powers of speech.
+"I'm not afraid of you," he cried, with frantic violence. "You have
+taken advantage of your superior strength--you are a coward. But this
+shall not end here. No!--you shall answer for it. I shall find your
+address, and to-morrow you will receive a visit from my friends M.
+Costard and M. Serpillon. I am the insulted party--and I choose swords!"
+
+A frightful oath from the baron somewhat hastened M. Wilkie's exit. He
+went out into the hall, and holding the door open, in a way that would
+enable him to close it at the shortest notice, he shouted back, so as to
+be heard by all the servants: "Yes; I will have satisfaction. I will not
+stand such treatment. Is it any fault of mine that Madame d'Argeles is a
+Chalusse, and that she wishes to defraud me of my fortune. To-morrow, I
+call you all to witness, there will be a lawyer here. You don't frighten
+me. Here is my card!" And actually, before he closed the door, he threw
+one of his cards into the middle of the room.
+
+The baron did not trouble himself to pick it up; his attention was
+devoted to Madame d'Argeles. She was lying back in her arm-chair, white,
+motionless and rigid, to all appearance dead. What should the baron
+do? He did not wish to call the servants; they had heard too much
+already--but he had almost decided to do so, when his eyes fell upon a
+tiny aquarium, in a corner of the room. He dipped his handkerchief in
+it; and alternately bathed Madame d'Argeles's temples and chafed her
+hands. It was not long before the cold water revived her. She trembled,
+a convulsive shudder shook her from head to foot, and at last she opened
+her eyes, murmuring: "Wilkie!"
+
+"I have sent him away," replied the baron.
+
+Poor woman! with returning life came the consciousness of the terrible
+reality. "He is my son!" she moaned, "my son, my Wilkie!" Then with a
+despairing gesture she pressed her hands to her forehead as if to calm
+its throbbings. "And I believed that my sin was expiated," she pursued.
+"I thought I had been sufficiently punished. Fool that I was! This is my
+chastisement, Jacques. Ah! women like me have no right to be mothers!"
+
+A burning tear coursed down the baron's cheek; but he concealed his
+emotion as well as he could, and said, in a tone of assumed gayety:
+"Nonsense! Wilkie is young--he will mend his ways! We were all
+ridiculous when we were twenty. We have all caused our mothers many
+anxious nights. Time will set everything to rights, and put some ballast
+in this young madcap's brains. Besides, your friend Patterson doesn't
+seem to me quite free from blame. In knowledge of books, he may have
+been unequalled; but as a guardian for youth, he must have been the
+worst of fools. After keeping your son on a short allowance for years,
+he suddenly gorges him with oats--or I should say, money--lets him
+loose; and then seems surprised because the boy is guilty of acts of
+folly. It would be a miracle if he were not. So take courage, and hope
+for the best, my dear Lia."
+
+She shook her head despondingly. "Do you suppose that my heart hasn't
+pleaded for him?" she said. "I am his mother; I can never cease to love
+him, whatever he may do. Even now I am ready to give a drop of blood for
+each tear I can save him. But I am not blind; I have read his nature.
+Wilkie has no heart."
+
+"Ah! my dear friend, how do you know what shameful advice he may have
+received before coming to you?"
+
+Madame d'Argeles half rose, and said, in an agitated voice: "What! you
+try to make me believe that? 'Advice!' Then he must have found a man
+who said to him: 'Go to the house of this unfortunate woman who gave you
+birth, and order her to publish her dishonor and yours. If she refuses,
+insult and beat her! 'You know, even better than I, baron, that this
+is impossible. In the vilest natures, and when every other honorable
+feeling has been lost, love for one's mother survives. Even convicts
+deprive themselves of their wine, and sell their rations, in order to
+send a trifle now and then to their mothers--while he----"
+
+She paused, not because she shrunk from what she was about to say, but
+because she was exhausted and out of breath. She rested for a moment,
+and then resumed in a calmer tone: "Besides, the person who sent him
+here had counselled coolness and prudence. I discovered this at once.
+It was only toward the close of the interview, and after an unexpected
+revelation from me, that he lost all control over himself. The thought
+that he would lose my brother's millions crazed him. Oh! that fatal and
+accursed money! Wilkie's adviser wished him to employ legal means to
+obtain an acknowledgment of his parentage; and he had copied from the
+Code a clause which is applicable to this case. By this one circumstance
+I am convinced that his adviser is a man of experience in such
+matters--in other words, the business agent----"
+
+"What business agent?" inquired the baron.
+
+"The person who called here the other day, M. Isidore Fortunat. Ah! why
+didn't I not bribe him to hold his peace?"
+
+The baron had entirely forgotten the existence of Victor Chupin's
+honorable employer. "You are mistaken, Lia," he replied. "M. Fortunat
+has had no hand in this."
+
+"Then who could have betrayed my secret?"
+
+"Why, your former ally, the rascal for whose sake you allowed Pascal
+Ferailleur to be sacrificed--the Viscount de Coralth!"
+
+The bare supposition of such treachery on the viscount's part brought a
+flush of indignant anger to Madame d'Argeles's cheek. "Ah! if I thought
+that!" she exclaimed. And then, remembering what reasons the baron had
+for hating M. de Coralth, she murmured: "No! Your animosity misleads
+you--he wouldn't dare!"
+
+The baron read her thoughts. "So you are persuaded that it is personal
+vengeance that I am pursuing?" said he. "You think that fear of ridicule
+and public odium prevents me from striking M. de Coralth in my own name,
+and that I am endeavoring to find some other excuse to crush him. This
+might have been so once; but it is not the case now. When I promised
+M. Ferailleur to do all in my power to save the young girl he loves,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, my wife's daughter, I renounced all thought of
+self, all my former plans. And why should you doubt Coralth's treachery?
+You, yourself, promised me to unmask HIM. If he has betrayed YOU, my
+poor Lia, he has only been a little in advance of you."
+
+She hung her head and made no reply. She had forgotten this.
+
+"Besides," continued the baron, "you ought to know that when I make such
+a statement I have some better foundation for it than mere conjecture.
+It was to some purpose that I watched M. de Coralth during your absence.
+When the servant handed you that card he turned extremely pale. Why?
+Because he knew whose card it was. After you left the room his hands
+trembled like leaves, and his mind was no longer occupied with the game.
+He--who is usually such a cautious player--risked his money recklessly.
+When the cards came to him he did still worse; and though luck favored
+him, he made the strangest blunders, and lost. His agitation and
+preoccupation were so marked as to attract attention; and one
+acquaintance laughingly inquired if he were ill, while another jestingly
+remarked that he had dined and wined a little too much. The traitor
+was evidently on coals of fire. I could see the perspiration on his
+forehead, and each time the door opened or shut, he changed color, as if
+he expected to see you and Wilkie enter. A dozen times I surprised him
+listening eagerly, as if by dint of attention, or by the magnetic force
+of his will, he hoped to hear what you and your son were saying. With a
+single word I could have wrung a confession from him."
+
+This explanation was so plausible that Madame d'Argeles felt half
+convinced. "Ah! if you had only spoken that word!" she murmured. The
+baron smiled a crafty and malicious smile, which would have chilled
+M. de Coralth's very blood if he had chanced to see it. "I am not so
+stupid!" he replied. "We mustn't frighten the fish till we are quite
+ready. Our net is the Chalusse estate, and Coralth and Valorsay will
+enter it of their own accord. It is not my plan, but M. Ferailleur's.
+There's a man for you! and if Mademoiselle Marguerite is worthy of him
+they will make a noble pair. Without suspecting it, your son has perhaps
+rendered us an important service this evening--"
+
+"Alas!" faltered Madame d'Argeles, "I am none the less ruined--the name
+of Chalusse is none the less dishonored!"
+
+She wanted to return to the drawing-room; but she was compelled to
+relinquish this idea. The expression of her face betrayed too plainly
+the terrible ordeal she had passed through. The servants had heard
+M. Wilkie's parting words; and news of this sort flies about with
+the rapidity of lightning. That very night, indeed, it was currently
+reported at the clubs that there would be no more card-playing at the
+d'Argeles establishment, as that lady was a Chalusse, and consequently
+the aunt of the beautiful young girl whom M. and Madame de Fondege had
+taken under their protection.
+
+
+
+
+VIII.
+
+
+Unusual strength of character, unbounded confidence in one's own energy,
+with thorough contempt of danger, and an invincible determination to
+triumph or perish, are all required of the person who, like Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, intrusts herself to the care of strangers--worse yet, to the
+care of actual enemies. It is no small matter to place yourself in the
+power of smooth-tongued hypocrites and impostors, who are anxious for
+your ruin, and whom you know to be capable of anything. And the task is
+a mighty one--to brave unknown dangers, perilous seductions, perfidious
+counsels, and perhaps even violence, at the same time retaining a calm
+eye and smiling lips. Yet such was the heroism that Marguerite, although
+scarcely twenty, displayed when she left the Hotel de Chalusse to accept
+the hospitality of the Fondege family. And, to crown all, she took
+Madame Leon with her--Madame Leon, whom she knew to be the Marquis de
+Valorsay's spy.
+
+But, brave as she was, when the moment of departure came her heart
+almost failed her. There was despair in the parting glance she cast upon
+the princely mansion and the familiar faces of the servants. And there
+was no one to encourage or sustain her. Ah, yes! standing at a window
+on the second floor, with his forehead pressed close against the pane of
+glass, she saw the only friend she had in the world--the old magistrate
+who had defended, encouraged, and sustained her--the man who had
+promised her his assistance and advice, and prophesied ultimate success.
+
+"Shall I be a coward?" she thought; "shall I be unworthy of Pascal?" And
+she resolutely entered the carriage, mentally exclaiming: "The die is
+cast!"
+
+The General insisted that she should take a place beside Madame de
+Fondege on the back seat; while he found a place next to Madame Leon on
+the seat facing them. The drive was a silent and tedious one. The night
+was coming on; it was a time when all Paris was on the move, and
+the carriage was delayed at each street corner by a crowd of passing
+vehicles. The conversation was solely kept alive by the exertions of
+Madame de Fondege, whose shrill voice rose above the rumble of the
+wheels, as she chronicled the virtues of the late Count de Chalusse, and
+congratulated Mademoiselle Marguerite on the wisdom of her decision. Her
+remarks were of a commonplace description, and yet each word she uttered
+evinced intense satisfaction, almost delight, as if she had won some
+unexpected victory. Occasionally, the General leaned from the carriage
+window to see if the vehicle laden with Mademoiselle Marguerite's trunks
+was following them, but he said nothing.
+
+At last they reached his residence in the Rue Pigalle. He alighted
+first, offered his hand successively to his wife, Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, and Madame Leon, and motioned the coachman to drive away.
+
+But the man did not stir. "Pardon--excuse me, monsieur," he said, "but
+my employers bade--requested me----"
+
+"What?"
+
+"To ask you--you know, for the fare--thirty-five francs--not counting
+the little gratuity."
+
+"Very well!--I will pay you to-morrow."
+
+"Excuse me, monsieur; but if it is all the same to you, would you do so
+this evening? My employer said that the bill had been standing a long
+time already."
+
+"What, scoundrel!"
+
+But Madame de Fondege, who was on the point of entering the house,
+suddenly stepped back, and drawing out her pocketbook, exclaimed:
+"That's enough! Here are thirty-five francs."
+
+The man went to his carriage lamp to count the money, and seeing that he
+had the exact amount--"And my gratuity?" he asked.
+
+"I give none to insolent people," replied the General.
+
+"You should take a cab if you haven't money enough to pay for coaches,"
+replied the driver with an oath. "I'll be even with you yet."
+
+Marguerite heard no more, for Madame de Fondege caught her by the arm
+and hurried her up the staircase, saying: "Quick! we must make haste.
+Your baggage is here already, and we must see if the rooms I intended
+for you--for you and your companion--suit you."
+
+When Marguerite reached the second floor, Madame de Fondege hunted
+in her pocket for her latch-key. Not finding it, she rang. A tall
+man-servant of impudent appearance and arrayed in a glaring livery
+opened the door, carrying an old battered iron candlestick, in which
+a tiny scrap of candle was glaring and flickering. "What!" exclaimed
+Madame de Fondege, "the reception-room not lighted yet? This is
+scandalous! What have you been doing in my absence? Come, make haste.
+Light the lamp. Tell the cook that I have some guests to dine with me.
+Call my maid. See that M. Gustave's room is in order. Go down and see if
+the General doesn't need your assistance about the baggage."
+
+Finding it difficult to choose between so many contradictory orders, the
+servant did not choose at all. He placed his rusty candlestick on one
+of the side-tables in the reception-room, and gravely, without saying
+a single word, went out into the passage leading to the kitchen.
+"Evariste!" cried Madame de Fondege, crimson with anger, "Evariste, you
+insolent fellow!"
+
+As he deigned no reply, she rushed out in pursuit of him. And soon the
+sound of a violent altercation arose; the servant lavishing insults upon
+his mistress, and she unable to find any response, save, "I dismiss you;
+you are an insolent scamp--I dismiss you."
+
+Madame Leon, who was standing near Mademoiselle Marguerite in the
+reception-room, seemed greatly amused. "This is a strange household,"
+said she. "A fine beginning, upon my word."
+
+But the worthy housekeeper was the last person on earth to whom
+Mademoiselle Marguerite wished to reveal her thoughts. "Hush, Leon," she
+replied. "We are the cause of all this disturbance, and I am very sorry
+for it."
+
+The retort that rose to the housekeeper's lips was checked by the return
+of Madame de Fondege, followed by a servant-girl with a turn-up nose, a
+pert manner, and who carried a lighted candle in her hand.
+
+"How can I apologize, madame," began Mademoiselle Marguerite, "for all
+the trouble I am giving you?"
+
+"Ah! my dear child, I've never been so happy. Come, come, and see your
+room." And while they crossed several scantily-furnished apartments,
+Madame de Fondege continued: "It is I who ought to apologize to you. I
+fear you will pine for the splendors of the Hotel de Chalusse. We
+are not millionaires like your poor father. We have only a modest
+competence, no more. But here we are!"
+
+The maid had opened a door, and Mademoiselle Marguerite entered a
+good-sized room lighted by two windows, hung with soiled wall paper, and
+adorned with chintz curtains, from which the sun had extracted most of
+the coloring. Everything was in disorder here, and in fact, the whole
+room was extremely dirty. The bed was not made, the washstand was dirty,
+some woollen stockings were hanging over the side of the rumpled bed,
+and on the mantel-shelf stood an ancient clock, an empty beer bottle,
+and some glasses. On the floor, on the furniture, in the corners,
+everywhere in fact, stumps of cigars were scattered in profusion, as if
+they had positively rained down.
+
+"What!" gasped Madame de Fondege, "you haven't put this room in order,
+Justine?"
+
+"Indeed, madame, I haven't had time."
+
+"But it's more than a month since M. Gustave slept here?"
+
+"I know it; but madame must remember that I have been very much hurried
+this last month, having to do all the washing and ironing since the
+laundress----"
+
+"That's sufficient," interrupted Madame de Fondege. And turning to
+Marguerite, she said: "You will, I am sure, excuse this disorder, my
+dear child. By this time to-morrow the room shall be transformed into
+one of those dainty nests of muslin and flowers which young girls
+delight in."
+
+Connected with this apartment, which was known to the household as the
+lieutenant's room, there was a much smaller chamber lighted only by a
+single window, and originally intended for a dressing-room. It had two
+doors, one of them communicating with Marguerite's room, and the
+other with the passage; and it was now offered to Madame Leon, who
+on comparing these quarters with the spacious suite of rooms she had
+occupied at the Hotel de Chalusse, had considerable difficulty in
+repressing a grimace. Still she did not hesitate nor even murmur. M. de
+Valorsay's orders bound her to Marguerite, and she deemed it fortunate
+that she was allowed to follow her. And whether the marquis succeeded or
+not, he had promised her a sufficiently liberal reward to compensate
+for all personal discomfort. So, in the sweetest of voices, and with
+a feigned humility of manner, she declared this little room to be even
+much too good for a poor widow whose misfortunes had compelled her to
+abdicate her position in society.
+
+The attentions which M. and Madame de Fondege showed her contributed not
+a little to her resignation. Without knowing exactly what the General
+and his wife expected from Mademoiselle Marguerite, she was shrewd
+enough to divine that they hoped to gain some important advantage.
+Now her "dear child" had declared her to be a trusted friend, who was
+indispensable to her existence and comfort. "So these people will pay
+assiduous court to me," she thought. And being quite ready to play
+a double part as the spy of the Marquis de Valorsay, and the Fondege
+family, and quite willing to espouse the latter's cause should that
+prove to be the more remunerative course, she saw a long series of
+polite attentions and gifts before her.
+
+That very evening her prophecies were realized; and she received a proof
+of consideration which positively delighted her. It was decided that
+she should take her meals at the family table, a thing which had never
+happened at the Hotel de Chalusse. Mademoiselle Marguerite raised a few
+objections, which Madame Leon answered with a venomous look, but Madame
+de Fondege insisted upon the arrangement, not understanding, she said,
+graciously, why they need deprive themselves of the society of such an
+agreeable and distinguished person. Madame Leon in no wise doubted but
+this favor was due to her merit alone, but Mademoiselle Marguerite, who
+was more discerning, saw that their hostess was really furious at the
+idea, but was compelled to submit to it by the imperious necessity of
+preventing Madame Leon from coming in contact with the servants, who
+might make some decidedly compromising disclosures. For there were
+evidently many little mysteries and make-shifts to be concealed in this
+household. For instance, while the servants were carrying the luggage
+upstairs, Marguerite discovered Madame de Fondege and her maid in
+close consultation, whispering with that volubility which betrays an
+unexpected and pressing perplexity. What were they talking about? She
+listened without any compunctions of conscience, and the words "a pair
+of sheets," repeated again and again, furnished her with abundant food
+for reflection. "Is it possible," she thought, "that they have no sheets
+to give us?"
+
+It did not take her long to discover the maid's opinion of the
+establishment in which she served; for while she brandished her broom
+and duster, this girl, exasperated undoubtedly by the increase of work
+she saw in store for her, growled and cursed the old barrack where one
+was worked to death, where one never had enough to eat, and where the
+wages were always in arrears. Mademoiselle Marguerite was doing her
+best to aid the maid, who was greatly surprised to find this handsome,
+queenly young lady so obliging, when Evariste, the same who had received
+warning an hour before, made his appearance, and announced in an
+insolent tone that "Madame la Comtesse was served."
+
+For Madame de Fondege exacted this title. She had improvised it, as
+her husband had improvised his title of General, and without much more
+difficulty. By a search in the family archives she had discovered--so
+she declared to her intimate friends--that she was the descendant of a
+noble family, and that one of her ancestors had held a most important
+position at the court of Francis I. or of Louis XII. Indeed, she
+sometimes confounded them. However, people who had not known her father,
+the wood merchant, saw nothing impossible in the statements.
+
+Evariste was dressed as a butler should be dressed when he announces
+dinner to a person of rank. In the daytime when he discharged the duties
+of footman, he was gorgeous in gold lace; but in the evening, he arrayed
+himself in severe black, such as is appropriate to the butler of an
+aristocratic household. Immediately after his announcement everybody
+repaired to the sumptuous dining-room which, with its huge side-boards,
+loaded with silver and rare china, looked not unlike a museum. Such was
+the display, indeed, that when Mademoiselle Marguerite took a seat at
+the table, between the General and his wife, and opposite Madame Leon,
+she asked herself if she had not been the victim of that dangerous
+optical delusion known as prejudice. She noticed that the supply of
+knives and forks was rather scanty; but many economical housewives keep
+most of their silver under lock and key; besides the china was very
+handsome and marked with the General's monogram, surmounted by his
+wife's coronet.
+
+However, the dinner was badly cooked and poorly served. One might have
+supposed it to be a scullery maid's first attempt. Still the General
+devoured it with delight. He partook ravenously of every dish, a flush
+rose to his cheeks, and an expression of profound satisfaction was
+visible upon his countenance. "From this," thought Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, "I must infer that he usually goes hungry, and that this
+seems a positive feast to him." In fact, he seemed bubbling over with
+contentment. He twirled his mustaches a la Victor Emmanuel, and rolled
+his "r," as he said, "Sacr-r-r-r-r-e bleu!" even more ferociously than
+usual. It was only by a powerful effort that he restrained himself from
+indulging in various witticisms which would have been most unseemly in
+the presence of a poor girl who had just lost her father and all her
+hopes of fortune. But he did forget himself so much as to say that the
+drive to the cemetery had whetted his appetite, and to address his wife
+as Madame Range-a-bord, a title which had been bestowed upon her by a
+sailor brother.
+
+Crimson with anger to the very roots of her coarse, sandy hair--amazed
+to see her husband deport himself in this style, and almost suffocated
+by the necessity of restraining her wrath, Madame de Fondege was heroic
+enough to smile, though her eyes flashed ominously. But the General was
+not at all dismayed. On the contrary, he cared so little for his wife's
+displeasure that, when the dessert was served, he turned to the servant,
+and, with a wink that Mademoiselle Marguerite noticed, "Evariste," he
+ordered, "go to the wine-cellar, and bring me a bottle of old Bordeaux."
+
+The valet, who had just received a week's notice, was only too glad of
+an opportunity for revenge. So with a malicious smile, and in a drawling
+tone, he replied: "Then monsieur must give me the money. Monsieur knows
+very well that neither the grocer nor the wine-merchant will trust him
+any longer."
+
+M. de Fondege rose from the table, looking very pale; but before he had
+time to utter a word, his wife came to the rescue. "You know, my dear,
+that I don't trust the key of my cellar to this lad. Evariste, call
+Justine."
+
+The pert-looking chambermaid appeared, and her mistress told her where
+she would find the key of the famous cellar. About a quarter of an hour
+afterward, one of those bottles which grocers and wine-merchants prepare
+for the benefit of credulous customers was brought in--a bottle duly
+covered with dust and mould to give it a venerable appearance, and
+festooned with cobwebs, such as the urchins of Paris collect and sell at
+from fifteen sous to two francs a pound, according to quality. But the
+Bordeaux did not restore the General's equanimity. He was silent and
+subdued; and his relief was evident when, after the coffee had been
+served, his wife exclaimed: "We won't keep you from your club, my dear.
+I want a chat with our dear child."
+
+Since she dismissed the General so unceremoniously, Madame de Fondege
+evidently wished for a tete-a-tete with Mademoiselle Marguerite. At
+least Madame Leon thought so, or feigned to think so, and addressing the
+young girl, she said: "I shall be obliged to leave you for a couple of
+hours, my dear young lady. My relatives would never forgive me if I did
+not inform them of my change of residence."
+
+This was the first time since she had been engaged by the Count de
+Chalusse, that the estimable "companion" had ever made any direct
+allusion to her relatives, and what is more, to relatives residing in
+Paris. She had previously only spoken of them in general terms, giving
+people to understand that her relatives had not been unfortunate like
+herself--that they still retained their exalted rank, though she had
+fallen, and that she found it difficult to decline the favors they
+longed to heap upon her.
+
+However, Mademoiselle Marguerite evinced no surprise. "Go at once and
+inform your relatives, my dear Leon," she said, without a shade of
+sarcasm in her manner. "I hope they won't be offended by your devotion
+to me." But in her secret heart, she thought: "This hypocrite is going
+to report to the Marquis de Valorsay, and these relatives of hers will
+furnish her with excuses for future visits to him."
+
+The General went off, the servants began to clear the table, and
+Mademoiselle Marguerite followed her hostess to the drawing-room. It was
+a lofty and spacious apartment, lighted by three windows, and even more
+sumptuous in its appointments than the dining-room. Furniture, carpets,
+and hangings, were all in rather poor taste, perhaps, but costly, very
+costly. As the evening was a cold one, Madame de Fondege ordered the
+fire to be lighted. She seated herself on a sofa near the mantelpiece,
+and when Mademoiselle Marguerite had taken a chair opposite her, she
+began, "Now, my dear child, let us have a quiet talk."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite expected some important communication, so that
+she was not a little surprised when Madame de Fondege resumed: "Have you
+thought about your mourning?"
+
+"About my mourning, madame?"
+
+"Yes. I mean, have you decided what dresses you will purchase? It is
+an important matter, my dear--more important than you suppose. They are
+making costumes entirely of crepe now, puffed and plaited, and extremely
+stylish. I saw one that would suit you well. You may think that a
+costume for deep mourning made with puffs would be a trifle LOUD, but
+that depends upon tastes. The Duchess de Veljo wore one only eleven days
+after her husband's death; and she allowed some of her hair, which is
+superb, to fall over her shoulders, a la pleureuse, and the effect was
+extremely touching." Was Madame de Fondege speaking sincerely? There
+could be no doubt of it. Her features, which had been distorted with
+anger when the General took it into his head to order the bottle of
+Bordeaux, had regained their usual placidity of expression, and had even
+brightened a little. "I am entirely at your service, my dear, if you
+wish any shopping done," she continued. "And if you are not quite
+pleased with your dressmaker, I will take you to mine, who works like an
+angel. But how absurd I am. You will of course employ Van Klopen. I go
+to him occasionally myself, but only on great occasions. Between you and
+me, I think him a trifle too high in his charges."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite could scarcely repress a smile. "I must confess,
+madame, that from my infancy I have been in the habit of making almost
+all my dresses myself."
+
+The General's wife raised her eyes to Heaven in real or feigned
+astonishment. "Yourself!" she repeated four or five times, as if to make
+sure that she had heard aright. "Yourself! That is incomprehensible!
+You, the daughter of a man who possessed an income of five or six
+hundred thousand francs a year! Still I know that poor M. de Chalusse,
+though unquestionably a very worthy and excellent man, was peculiar in
+some of his ideas."
+
+"Excuse me, madame. What I did, I did for my own pleasure."
+
+But this assertion exceeded Madame de Fondege's powers of comprehension.
+"Impossible!" she murmured, "impossible! But, my poor child, what did
+you do for fashions--for patterns?"
+
+The immense importance she attached to the matter was so manifest that
+Marguerite could not refrain from smiling. "I was probably not a very
+close follower of the fashions," she replied. "The dress that I am
+wearing now----."
+
+"Is very pretty, my child, and it becomes you extremely; that's the
+truth. Only, to be frank, I must confess that this style is no longer
+worn--no--not at all. You must have your new dresses made in quite a
+different way."
+
+"But I already have more dresses than I need, madame."
+
+"What! black dresses?"
+
+"I seldom wear anything but black."
+
+Evidently her hostess had never heard anything like this before. "Oh!
+all right," said she, "these dresses will doubtless do very well for
+your first months of mourning--but afterward? Do you suppose, my poor
+dear, that I'm going to allow you to shut yourself up as you did at the
+Hotel de Chalusse? Good heavens! how dull it must have been for you,
+alone in that big house, without society or friends."
+
+A tear fell from Marguerite's long lashes. "I was very happy there,
+madame," she murmured.
+
+"You think so; but you will change your mind. When one has never tasted
+real pleasure, one cannot realize how gloomy one's life really is. No
+doubt, you were very unhappy alone with M. de Chalusse."
+
+"Oh! madame----"
+
+"Tut! tut! my dear, I know what I am talking about. Wait until you have
+been introduced into society before you boast of the charms of solitude.
+Poor dear! I doubt if you have ever attended a ball in your whole life.
+No! I was sure of it, and you are twenty! Fortunately, I am here. I will
+take your mother's place, and we will make up for lost time! Beautiful
+as you are, my child--for you are divinely beautiful--you will reign as
+a queen wherever you appear. Doesn't that thought make that cold little
+heart of yours throb more quickly? Ah! fetes and music, wonderful
+toilettes and the flashing of diamonds, the admiration of gentlemen,
+the envy of rivals, the consciousness of one's own beauty, are these
+delights not enough to fill any woman's life? It is intoxication,
+perhaps, but an intoxication which is happiness."
+
+Was she sincere, or did she hope to dazzle this lonely girl, and then
+rule her through the tastes she might succeed in giving her? As is not
+unfrequently the case with callous natures, Madame de Fondege was a
+compound of frankness and cunning. What she was saying now she really
+meant; and as it was to her interest to say it, she urged her opinions
+boldly and even eloquently. Twenty-four hours earlier, proud and
+truthful Marguerite would have silenced her at once. She would have told
+her that such pleasures could never have any charm for her, and that she
+felt only scorn and disgust for such worthless aims and sordid desires.
+But having resolved to appear a dupe, she concealed her real feelings
+under an air of surprise, and was astonished and even ashamed to find
+that she could dissemble so well.
+
+"Besides," continued Madame de Fondege, "a marriageable young girl
+should never shut herself up like a nun. She will never find a husband
+if she remains at home--and she must marry. Indeed, marriage is a
+sensible woman's only object in life, since it is her emancipation."
+
+Was Madame de Fondege going to plead her son's cause? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite almost believed it--but the lady was too shrewd for that. She
+took good care not to mention as much as Lieutenant Gustave's name.
+
+"The season will certainly be unusually brilliant," she said, "and
+it will begin very early. On the fifth of November, the Countess de
+Commarin will give a superb fete; all Paris will be there. On the
+seventh, there will be a ball at the house of the Viscountess de Bois
+d'Ardon. On the eleventh, there will be a concert, followed by a ball,
+at the superb mansion of the Baroness Trigault--you know--the wife of
+that strange man who spends all his time in playing cards."
+
+"This is the first time I ever heard the name mentioned."
+
+"Really! and you have been living in Paris for years. It seems
+incomprehensible. You must know then, my dear little ignoramus, that the
+Baroness Trigault is one of the most distinguished ladies in Paris, and
+certainly the best dressed. I am sure her bill at Van Klopen's is not
+less than a hundred thousand francs a year--and that is saying enough,
+is it not?" And with genuine pride, she added: "The baroness is my
+friend. I will introduce you to her."
+
+Having once started on this theme, Madame de Fondege was not easily
+silenced. It was evidently her ambition to be considered a woman of the
+world, and to be acquainted with all the leaders of fashionable society;
+and, in fact, if one listened to her conversation for an hour one could
+learn all the gossip of the day. Though she was unable to interest
+herself in this tittle-tattle, Marguerite was pretending to listen to it
+with profound attention when the drawing-room door suddenly opened and
+Evariste appeared with an impudent smile on his face. "Madame Landoire,
+the milliner, is here, and desires to speak with Madame la Comtesse," he
+said.
+
+On hearing this name, Madame de Fondege started as if she had been
+stung by a viper. "Let her wait," she said quickly. "I will see her in a
+moment."
+
+The order was useless, for the visitor was already on the threshold.
+She was a tall, dark-haired, ill-mannered woman. "Ah! I've found you
+at last," she said, rudely, "and I'm not sorry. This is the fourth time
+I've come here with my bill."
+
+Madame de Fondege pointed to Mademoiselle Marguerite, and exclaimed:
+"Wait, at least, until I am alone before you speak to me on business."
+
+Madame Landoire shrugged her shoulders. "As if you were ever alone," she
+growled. "I wish to put an end to this."
+
+"Step into my room then, and we will put an end to it, and at once."
+
+This opportunity to escape from Madame de Fondege must not be allowed
+to pass; so Marguerite asked permission to withdraw, declaring, what was
+really the truth, that she felt completely tired out. After receiving
+a maternal kiss from her hostess, accompanied by a "sleep well, my dear
+child," she retired to her own room. Thanks to Madame Leon's absence,
+she found herself alone, and, drawing a blotting-pad from one of her
+trunks, she hastily wrote a note to M. Isidore Fortunat, telling him
+that she would call upon him on the following Tuesday. "I must be very
+awkward," she thought, "if to-morrow, on going to mass, I can't find
+an opportunity to throw this note into a letter-box without being
+observed."
+
+It was fortunate that she had lost no time, for her writing-case was
+scarcely in its place again before Madame Leon entered, evidently out of
+sorts. "Well," asked Marguerite, "did you see your friends?"
+
+"Don't speak of it, my dear young lady; they were all of them away from
+home--they had gone to the play."
+
+"Ah?"
+
+"So I shall go again early to-morrow morning; you must realize how
+important it is."
+
+"Yes, I understand."
+
+But Madame Leon, who was usually so loquacious, did not seem to be in a
+talkative mood that evening, and, after kissing her dear young lady, she
+went into her own room.
+
+"She did not succeed in finding the Marquis de Valorsay," thought
+Marguerite, "and being in doubt as to the part she is to play, she feels
+furious."
+
+The young girl tried to sum up the impressions of the evening, and to
+decide upon a plan of conduct, but she felt sad and very weary. She said
+to herself that rest would be more beneficial than anything else, and
+that her mind would be clearer on the morrow; so after a fervent prayer
+in which Pascal Ferailleur's name was mentioned several times, she
+prepared for bed. But before she fell asleep she was able to collect
+another bit of evidence. The sheets on her bed were new.
+
+If Marguerite had been born in the Hotel de Chalusse, if she had known a
+father's and a mother's tender care from her infancy, if she had always
+been protected by a large fortune from the stern realities of life,
+there would have been no hope for her now that she was left poor and
+alone--for how can a girl avoid dangers she is ignorant of? But from her
+earliest childhood Marguerite had studied the difficult science of real
+life under the best of teachers--misfortune. Cast upon her own resources
+at the age of thirteen, she had learned to look upon everybody and
+everything with distrust; and by relying only on herself, she had become
+strangely cautious and clear-sighted. She knew how to watch and how
+to listen, how to deliberate and how to act. Two men, the Marquis de
+Valorsay and M. de Fondege's son, coveted her hand; and one of the two,
+the marquis, so she believed, was capable of any crime. Still she felt
+no fears. She had been in danger once before when she was little more
+than a child, when the brother of her employer insulted her with his
+attentions, but she had escaped unharmed.
+
+Deceit was certainly most repugnant to her truth-loving nature; but it
+was the only weapon of defence she possessed. And so on the following
+day she carefully studied the abode of her entertainers. And certainly
+the study was instructive. The General's household was truly Parisian
+in character; or, at least, it was what a Parisian household inevitably
+becomes when its inmates fall a prey to the constantly increasing
+passion for luxury and display, to the furore for aping the habits and
+expenditure of millionaires, and to the noble and elevated desire of
+humiliating and outshining their neighbors. Ease, health, and comfort
+had been unscrupulously sacrificed to show. The dining-room was
+magnificent, the drawing-room superb; but these were the only
+comfortably furnished apartments in the establishment. The other rooms
+were bare and desolate. It is true that Madame de Fondege had a handsome
+wardrobe with glass doors in her own room, but this was an article
+which the friend of the fashionable Baroness Trigault could not possibly
+dispense with. On the other hand, her bed had no curtains.
+
+The aspect of the place fittingly explained the habits and manners of
+the inmates. What sinister fears must have haunted them! for how could
+this extreme destitution in one part of the establishment be reconciled
+with the luxury noticeable in the other, except by the fact that a
+desperate struggle to keep up appearances was constantly going on? And
+this constant anxiety made out-door noise, excitement, and gayety a
+necessity of their existence, and caused them to welcome anything that
+took them from the home where they had barely sufficient to deceive
+society, and not enough to impose upon their creditors. "And they keep
+three servants," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite--"three enemies who
+spend their time in ridiculing them, and torturing their vanity."
+
+Thus, on the very first day after her arrival, she realized the real
+situation of the General and his wife. They were certainly on the
+verge of ruin when Mademoiselle Marguerite accepted their hospitality.
+Everything went to prove this: the coachman's insolent demand, the
+servants' impudence, the grocer's refusal to furnish a single bottle of
+wine on credit, the milliner's persistence, and, lastly, the new
+sheets on the visitors' beds. "Yes," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite to
+herself, "the Fondeges were ruined when I came here. They would never
+have sunk so low if they had not been utterly destitute of resources.
+So, if they rise again, if money and credit come back again, then the
+old magistrate is right--they have obtained possession of the Chalusse
+millions!"
+
+
+
+
+IX
+
+
+On this side, at least, Mademoiselle Marguerite had no very wide field
+of investigation to explore. Her common sense told her that her task
+would merely consist in carefully watching the behavior of the General
+and his wife, in noting their expenditure, and so on. It was a matter
+of close attention, and of infinitesimal trifles. Nor was she much
+encouraged by her first success. It was, perhaps, important; and yet
+it might be nothing. For she felt that the real difficulties would not
+begin until she became morally certain that the General had stolen the
+millions that were missing from the count's escritoire. Even then it
+would remain for her to discover how he had obtained possession of
+this money. And when she had succeeded in doing this, would her task be
+ended? Certainly not. She must obtain sufficient evidence to give her
+the right of accusing the General openly, and in the face of every one.
+She must have material and indisputable proofs before she could say: "A
+robbery has been committed. I was accused of it. I was innocent. Here is
+the culprit!"
+
+What a long journey must be made before this goal was reached! No
+matter! Now that she had a positive and fixed point of departure, she
+felt that she possessed enough energy to sustain her in her endeavors
+for years, if need be. What troubled her most was that she could not
+logically explain the conduct of her enemies from the time M. de Fondege
+had asked her hand for his son up to the present moment. And first, why
+had they been so audacious or so imprudent as to bring her to their own
+home if they had really stolen one of those immense amounts that are
+sure to betray their possessors? "They are mad," she thought, "or else
+they must deem me blind, deaf, and more stupid than mortal ever was!"
+Secondly, why should they be so anxious to marry her to their son,
+Lieutenant Gustave? This also was a puzzling question. However, she was
+fully decided on one point: the suspicions of the Fondege family must
+not be aroused. If they were on their guard, it would be the easiest
+thing in the world for them to pay their debts quietly, and increase
+their expenditure so imperceptibly that she would not be able to prove a
+sudden acquisition of wealth.
+
+But the events of the next few days dispelled these apprehensions. That
+very afternoon, although it was Sunday, it became evident that a
+shower of gold had fallen on the General's abode. The door-bell rang
+incessantly for several hours, and an interminable procession of
+tradesmen entered. It looked very much as if M. de Fondege had called a
+meeting of his creditors. They came in haughty and arrogant, with their
+hats upon their heads, and surly of speech, like people who have made
+up their minds to accept their loss, but who intend to pay themselves in
+rudeness. They were ushered into the drawing-room where the General was
+holding his levee; they remained there from five to ten minutes,
+and then, bowing low with hat in hand, they retired with radiant
+countenances, and an obsequious smile on their lips. So they had been
+paid. And as if to prove to Mademoiselle Marguerite that her suspicions
+were correct, she chanced to be present when the livery stable-keeper
+presented his bill.
+
+Madame de Fondege received him very haughtily. "Ah! here you are!"
+she exclaimed, rudely, as soon as he appeared. "So you are the man who
+teaches his drivers to insult his customers? That is an excellent way to
+gain patronage. What! I hire a one-horse carriage from you by the month,
+and because I happen to wish for a two-horse vehicle for a single day,
+you make me pay the difference. You should demand payment in advance if
+you are so suspicious."
+
+The stable-keeper, who had a bill for nearly four thousand francs in
+his pocket, stood listening with the air of a man who is meditating some
+crushing reply; but she did not give him time to deliver it. "When
+I have cause to complain of the people I employ, I dismiss them and
+replace them by others. Insolence is one of those things that I never
+forgive. Give me your bill."
+
+The man, in whose face doubt, fear, and hope had succeeded each other in
+swift succession, thereupon drew an interminable bill from his pocket.
+And when he saw the bank-notes, when he saw the bill paid without
+dispute or even examination, he was seized with a wondering respect, and
+his voice became sweeter than honey. They say the payment of a bad debt
+delights a merchant a thousand times more than the settlement of fifty
+good ones. The truth of this assertion became apparent in the present
+case. Mademoiselle Marguerite thought the man was going to beg "Madame
+la Comtesse to do him the favor to withhold a portion of the small
+amount." For the Parisian tradesman is so constituted that very
+frequently it is not necessary to pay him money, but only to show it.
+
+However, this creditor's abnegation did not extend so far; still he did
+entreat Madame la Comtesse not to leave him on account of a blunder--for
+it was a blunder--he swore it on his children's heads. His coachman was
+only a fool and a drunkard, who had misunderstood him entirely, and whom
+he should ignominiously dismiss on returning to his establishment.
+But "Madame la Comtesse" was inflexible. She sent the man about his
+business, saying, "I never place myself in a position to be treated with
+disrespect a second time."
+
+This probably accounted for the fact that Evariste, the footman, who had
+been so wanting in respect the previous evening, had been sent away that
+very morning. Mademoiselle Marguerite did not see him again. Dinner was
+served by a new servant, who had been sent by an Employment Office, and
+engaged without a question, no doubt because Evariste's livery fitted
+him like a glove. Had the cook also been replaced? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite thought so, though she had no means of convincing herself on
+this point. It was certain, however, that the Sunday dinner was utterly
+unlike that of the evening before. Quality had replaced quantity, and
+care, profusion. It was not necessary to send to the cellar for a bottle
+of Chateau-Laroze; it made its appearance at the proper moment, warmed
+to the precise degree of temperature, and seemed quite to the taste of
+excellent Madame Leon.
+
+In twenty-four hours the Fondege family had been raised to such
+affluence that they must have asked themselves if it were possible they
+had ever known the agonies of that life of false appearances and sham
+luxury which is a thousand times worse than an existence of abject
+poverty. "Is it possible that I am deceived?" Marguerite said to
+herself, on retiring to her room that evening. For it surprised her that
+a keen-sighted person like Madame Leon should not have remarked this
+revolution; but the worthy companion merely declared the General and his
+wife to be charming people, and did not cease to congratulate her dear
+young lady upon having accepted their hospitality. "I feel quite at home
+here," said she; "and though my room is a trifle small, I shall have
+nothing to wish for when it has been refurnished."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite spent a restless and uncomfortable night. In
+spite of her reason, in spite of the convincing proofs she had seen, the
+most disturbing doubts returned. Might she not have judged the situation
+with a prejudiced mind? Had the Fondeges really been as reduced in
+circumstances as she supposed? Like every one who has been unfortunate,
+she feared illusions, and was extremely distrustful of everything
+that seemed to favor her hopes and wishes. The only thing that
+really encouraged her was the thought that she could consult the old
+magistrate, and that M. de Chalusse's former agent might succeed in
+finding Pascal Ferailleur. M. Fortunat must have received her letter
+by this time: he would undoubtedly expect her on Tuesday, and it only
+remained for her to invent some excuse which would give her a couple of
+hours' liberty without awakening suspicion.
+
+She rose early the next morning, and had almost completed her toilette,
+when she heard some one in the passage outside rapping at the door of
+Madame Leon's room. "Who's there?" inquired that worthy lady.
+
+It was Justine, Madame de Fondege's maid, who answered in a pert voice,
+"Here is a letter, madame, which has just been sent up by the concierge.
+It is addressed to Madame Leon. That is your name, is it not?"
+
+Marguerite staggered as if she had received a heavy blow. "My God! a
+letter from the Marquis de Valorsay!" she thought.
+
+It was evident that the estimable lady was expecting this missive by
+the eagerness with which she sprang out of bed and opened the door.
+And Marguerite heard her say to the servant in her sweetest voice: "A
+thousand thanks, my child! Ah! this is a great relief, I have heard from
+my brother-in-law at last. I recognize his hand-writing." And then the
+door closed again.
+
+Standing silent and motionless in the middle of her room, Marguerite
+listened with that feverish anxiety that excites the perceptive
+faculties to the utmost degree. An inward voice, stronger than reason,
+told her that this letter threatened her happiness, her future, perhaps
+her life! But how could she convince herself of the truth of this
+presentiment? If she had followed her first impulse, she would have
+rushed into Madame Leon's room and have snatched the letter from her
+hands. But if she did this, she would betray herself, and prove that she
+was not the dupe they supposed her to be, and this supposition on the
+part of her enemies constituted her only chance of salvation.
+
+If she could only watch Madame Leon as she read the letter, and gain
+some information from the expression of her face; but this seemed
+impossible, for the keyhole was blocked up by the key, which had been
+left in the lock on the other side. Suddenly a crack in the partition
+attracted her attention, and finding that it extended through the wall,
+she realized she might watch what was passing in the adjoining room. So
+she approached the spot on tiptoe, and, with bated breath, stooped and
+looked in.
+
+In her impatience to learn the contents of her letter, Madame Leon
+had not gone back to bed. She had broken the seal, and was reading the
+missive, standing barefooted in her night-dress, directly opposite the
+little crevice. She read line after line, and word after word, and
+her knitted brows and compressed lips suggested deep concentration of
+thought mingled with discontent. At last she shrugged her shoulders,
+muttered a few inaudible words, and laid the open letter upon the
+rickety chest of drawers, which, with two chairs and a bed, constituted
+the entire furniture of her apartment.
+
+"My God!" exclaimed Marguerite, with bated breath, "if she would only
+forget it!"
+
+But she did not forget it. She began to dress, and when she had finished
+she read the letter again, and then placed it carefully in one of the
+drawers, which she locked, putting the key in her pocket.
+
+"I shall never know, then," thought Marguerite; "no, I shall never know.
+But I must know--and I will!" she added vehemently.
+
+From that moment a firm determination to obtain that letter took
+possession of her mind; and so deeply was she occupied in seeking for
+some means to surmount the difficulties which stood in her way that she
+did not say a dozen words during breakfast. "I must be a fool if I can't
+find some way of gaining possession of that letter," she said to herself
+again and again. "I'm sure I could find in it the explanation of the
+abominable intrigue which Pascal and I are the victims of."
+
+Happily, her preoccupation was not remarked. Each person present was too
+deeply engrossed in his or her own concerns to notice the behavior of
+the others. Madame Leon's mind was occupied with the news she had just
+received; and, besides, her attention was considerably attracted by some
+partridges garnished with truffles, and a bottle of Chateau-Laroze.
+For she was rather fond of good living, the dear lady, as she confessed
+herself, adding that no one is perfect. The General talked of nothing
+but a certain pair of horses which he was to look at that afternoon, and
+which he thought of buying--being quite disgusted with job-masters, so
+he declared. Besides, he expected to get the animals at a bargain, as
+they were the property of a young gentleman who had been led to commit
+certain misdemeanors by his love of gambling and his passion for a
+notorious woman who was addicted with an insatiable desire for jewelry.
+
+As for Madame de Fondege, her head seemed to have been completely turned
+by the prospect of the approaching fete at the Countess de Commarin's.
+She had only a fortnight left to make her preparations. All the evening
+before, through part of the night, and ever since she had been awake
+that morning, she had been racking her brain to arrive at an effective
+combination of colors and materials. And at the cost of a terrible
+headache, she had at last conceived one of those toilettes which are
+sure to make a sensation, and which the newspaper reporters will mention
+as noticeable for its "chic." "Picture to yourself," she said, all
+ablaze with enthusiasm, "picture to yourself a robe of tea-flower silk,
+trimmed with bands of heavy holland-tinted satin, thickly embroidered
+with flowers. A wide flounce of Valenciennes at the bottom of the skirt.
+Over this, I shall wear a tunic of pearl-gray crepe, edged with a fringe
+of the various shades in the dress, and forming a panier behind."
+
+But how much trouble, time and labor must be expended before such an
+elaborate chef-d'oeuvre could be completed! How many conferences with
+the dressmaker, with the florist, and the embroiderer! How many doubts,
+how many inevitable mistakes! Ah! there was not a moment to lose! Madame
+de Fondege, who was dressed to go out, and who had already sent for a
+carriage, insisted that Mademoiselle Marguerite should accompany her.
+And certainly, the General's wife deemed the proposal a seductive one.
+It is a very fashionable amusement to run from one shop to another,
+even when one cannot, or will not, buy. It is a custom, which some
+noble ladies have imported from America, to the despair of the poor
+shopkeepers. And thus every fine afternoon, the swell shops are filled
+to overflowing with richly-attired dames and damsels, who ask to see all
+the new goods. It is far more amusing than remaining at home. And when
+they return to dinner in the evening, after inspecting hundreds of yards
+of silk and satin, they are very well pleased with themselves, for they
+have not lost the day. Nor do the shrewdest always return from these
+expeditions empty-handed. A dozen gloves or a piece of lace can be
+hidden so easily in the folds of a mantle!
+
+And yet, to Madame de Fondege's great surprise, Marguerite declined the
+invitation. "I have so many things to put in order," she added, feeling
+that an excuse was indispensable.
+
+But Madame Leon, who had not the same reasons as her dear child
+for wishing to remain at home, kindly offered her services. She was
+acquainted with several of the best shops, she declared, particularly
+with the establishment of a dealer in laces, in the Rue de Mulhouse, and
+thanks to an introduction from her, Madame de Fondege could not fail to
+conclude a very advantageous bargain there. "Very well," replied Madame
+de Fondege, "I will take you with me, then; but make haste and dress
+while I put on my bonnet."
+
+They left the breakfast-room at the same time, closely followed by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, who was disturbed by a hope which she scarcely
+dared confess to herself. With her forehead resting against the wall,
+and her eye peering through the tiny crack, she watched her governess
+change her dress, throw a shawl over her shoulders, put on her best
+bonnet, and, after a glance at the looking-glass, rush from the room,
+exclaiming: "Here I am, my dear countess. I'm ready."
+
+And a few moments afterward they left the house together.
+
+As the outer door closed after them, Marguerite's brain whirled. If she
+were not deceived, Madame Leon had left the key of the drawers in the
+pocket of the dress she had just taken off. So it was with a wildly
+throbbing heart that she opened the communicating door and entered her
+"companion's" room. She hastily approached the bed on which the dress
+was lying, and, with a trembling hand, she began to search for the
+pocket. Fortune favored her! The key was there. The letter was within
+her reach. But she was about to do a deed against which her whole nature
+revolted. To steal a key, to force an article of furniture open, and
+violate the secret of a private correspondence, these were actions so
+repugnant to her sense of honor, and her pride, that for some time she
+stood irresolute. At last the instinct of self-preservation overpowered
+her scruples. Was not her honor, and Pascal's honor also, at stake--as
+well as their mutual love and happiness? "It would be folly to
+hesitate." she murmured. And with a firm hand she placed the key in the
+lock.
+
+The latter was out of order and the drawer was only opened with
+difficulty. But there, on some clothes which Madame Leon had not yet
+found time to arrange, Marguerite saw the letter. She eagerly snatched
+it up, unfolded it, and read: "Dear Madame Leon--" "Dear me," she
+muttered, "here is the name in full. This is an indiscretion which will
+render denial difficult." And she resumed her perusal: "Your letter,
+which I have just received, confirms what my servants had already
+told me: that twice during my absence--on Saturday evening and Sunday
+morning--you called at my house to see me." So Mademoiselle Marguerite's
+penetration had served her well. All this talk about anxious relatives
+had only been an excuse invented by Madame Leon to enable her to absent
+herself whenever occasion required. "I regret," continued the letter,
+"that you did not find me at home, for I have instructions of the
+greatest importance to give you. We are approaching the decisive moment.
+I have formed a plan which will completely, and forever, efface all
+remembrance of that cursed P. F., in case any one condescended to think
+of him after the disgrace we fastened upon him the other evening at the
+house of Madame d'Argeles." P. F.--these initials of course meant
+Pascal Ferailleur. Then he was innocent, and she held an undeniable,
+irrefutable proof of his innocence in her hands. How coolly and
+impudently Valorsay confessed his atrocious crime! "A bold stroke is in
+contemplation which, if no unfortunate and well-nigh impossible accident
+occur, will throw the girl into my arms." Marguerite shuddered. "The
+girl" referred to her, of course. "Thanks to the assistance of one of my
+friends," added the letter "I can place this proud damsel in a perilous,
+terribly perilous position, from which she cannot possibly extricate
+herself unaided. But, just as she gives herself up for lost, I shall
+interpose. I shall save her; and it will be strange if gratitude does
+not work the necessary miracle in my favor. The plan is certain to
+succeed. Still, it will be all the better if the physician who attended
+M. de C---- in his last moments, and whom you spoke to me about (Dr.
+Jodon, if I remember rightly), will consent to lend us a helping hand.
+What kind of a man is he? If he is accessible to the seductive influence
+of a few thousand francs, I shall consider the business as good as
+concluded. Your conduct up to the present time has been a chef-d'oeuvre,
+for which you shall be amply compensated. You have cause to know that
+I am not ungrateful. Let the F's continue their intrigues, and even
+pretend to favor them. I am not afraid of these people. I understand
+their game perfectly, and know why they wish my little one to marry
+their son. But when they become troublesome, I shall crush them like
+glass. In spite of these explanations, which I have just given you for
+your guidance, it is very necessary that I should see you. I shall look
+for you on Tuesday afternoon, between three and four o'clock. Above all,
+don't fail to bring me the desired information respecting Dr. Jodon. I
+am, my dear madame, devotedly yours--V." Below ran a postscript which
+read as follows: "When you come on Tuesday bring this letter with you.
+We will burn it together. Don't imagine that I distrust you--but there
+is nothing so dangerous as letters."
+
+For some time Marguerite stood, stunned and appalled by the Marquis de
+Valorsay's audacity, and by the language of this letter, which was at
+once so obscure and so clear, every line of it threatening her future.
+The reality surpassed her worst apprehensions, but realizing the gravity
+of the situation, she shook off the torpor stealing over her. She felt
+that every second was precious, and that she must act, and act at once.
+But what should she do? Simply return the letter to its place, and
+continue to act the role of a dupe, as if nothing had happened? No; that
+must not be. It would be madness not to seize this flagrant proof of
+the Marquis de Valorsay's infamy. But on the other hand, if she kept
+the letter, Madame Leon would immediately discover its loss, and an
+explanation would be unavoidable. M. de Valorsay would be worsted, but
+not annihilated, and the plans which made the physician's intervention
+a necessity would never be revealed. She thought of hastening to her
+friend the old magistrate; but he lived a long way off, and time was
+pressing. Besides she might not find him at home. Then she thought of
+going to a notary, to a judge. She would show them the letter, and they
+could take a copy of it. But no--this would do no good--the marquis
+could still deny it. She was becoming desperate, and was accusing
+herself of stupidity, when a sudden inspiration illumined her mind,
+turning night into day, as it were. "Oh, Pascal, we are saved!" she
+exclaimed. And without pausing to deliberate any longer, she threw a
+mantle over her shoulders, hastily tied on her bonnet, and hurried from
+the house, without saying a word to any one.
+
+Unfortunately she was not acquainted with this part of Paris, and on
+reaching the Rue Pigalle she was at a loss for her way. Unwilling to
+waste any more time, she hastily entered a grocer's shop at the corner
+of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette, and anxiously
+inquired: "Do you know any photographer in this neighborhood, monsieur?"
+
+Her agitation made this question seem so singular that the grocer
+looked at her closely for a moment, as if to make sure that she was not
+jesting. "You have only to go down the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette," he
+replied, "and on the left-hand side, at the foot of the hill, you will
+find the photographer Carjat."
+
+"Thank you."
+
+The grocer stepped to the door to watch her. "That girl's certainly
+light-headed," he thought.
+
+Her demeanor was really so extraordinary that it attracted the attention
+of the passers-by. She saw this, and slackening her pace, tried
+to become more composed. At the spot the grocer had indicated, she
+perceived several show frames filled with photographs hanging on either
+side of a broad, open gateway, above which ran the name, "E. Carjat."
+She went in, and seeing a man standing at the door of an elegant
+pavilion on the right-hand side of a large courtyard, she approached
+him, and asked for his employer.
+
+"He is here," replied the man. "Does madame come for a photograph?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Then will madame be so kind as to pass in. She will not be obliged to
+wait long. There are only four or five persons before her."
+
+Four or five persons! How long would she be obliged to wait?--half an
+hour--two hours? She had not the slightest idea. But she DID know that
+she had not a second to lose, that Madame Leon might return at any
+moment, and find the letter missing; and, to crown all, she remembered
+now that she had not even locked the drawer again. "I cannot wait," she
+said, imperiously. "I must speak to M. Carjat at once."
+
+"But----"
+
+"At once, I tell you. Go and tell him that he must come."
+
+Her tone was so commanding, and there was so much authority in her
+glance, that the servant hesitated no longer. He ushered her into a
+little sitting-room, and said, "If madame will take a seat, I will call
+monsieur."
+
+She sank on to a chair, for her limbs were failing her. She was
+beginning to realize the strangeness of the step she had taken--to fear
+the result it might lead to--and to be astonished at her own boldness.
+But she had no time to prepare what she wished to say, for a man of
+five-and-thirty, wearing a mustache and imperial, and clad in a velvet
+coat, entered the room, and bowing with an air of surprise, exclaimed:
+"You desire to speak with me, madame?"
+
+"I have a great favor to ask of you, monsieur."
+
+"Of me?"
+
+She drew M. de Valorsay's letter from her pocket, and, showing it to
+the photographer, she said, "I have come to you, monsieur, to ask you
+to photograph this letter--but at once--before me--and quickly--very
+quickly. The honor of two persons is imperilled by each moment I lose
+here."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's embarrassment was extreme. Her cheeks were
+crimson, and she trembled like a leaf. Still her attitude was proud,
+generous enthusiasm glowed in her dark eyes, and her tone of voice
+revealed the serenity of a lofty soul ready to dare anything for a just
+and noble cause. This striking contrast--this struggle between girlish
+timidity and a lover's virgil energy, endowed her with a strange and
+powerful charm, which the photographer made no attempt to resist.
+Unusual as was the request, he did not hesitate. "I am ready to do what
+you desire, madame," he replied, bowing again.
+
+"Oh! monsieur, how can I ever thank you?"
+
+He did not stop to listen to her thanks. Not wishing to return to the
+reception-room, where five or six clients were impatiently awaiting
+their turn, he called one of his subordinates, and ordered him to bring
+the necessary apparatus at once. While he was speaking, Mademoiselle
+Marguerite paused; but, as soon as his instructions were concluded, she
+remarked: "Perhaps you are too hasty, sir. You have not allowed me to
+explain; and perhaps what I desire is impossible. I came on the impulse
+of the moment, without any knowledge on the subject. Before you set to
+work, I must know if what you can do will answer my purpose."
+
+"Speak, madame."
+
+"Will the copy you obtain be precisely like the original in every
+particular?"
+
+"In every particular."
+
+"The writing will be the same--exactly the same?"
+
+"Absolutely the same."
+
+"So like, that if one of your photographs should be presented to the
+person who wrote this letter----"
+
+"He could no more deny his handwriting than he could if some one handed
+him the letter itself."
+
+"And the operation will leave no trace on the original?"
+
+"None."
+
+A smile of triumph played upon Mademoiselle Marguerite's lips. It was as
+she had thought; the defensive plan which she had suddenly conceived was
+a good one. "One more question, sir," she resumed. "I am only a poor,
+ignorant girl: excuse me, and give me the benefit of your knowledge.
+This letter will be returned to its author to-morrow, and he will burn
+it. But afterward, in case of any difficulty--in case of a law-suit--or
+in case it should be necessary for me to prove certain things which one
+might establish by means of this letter, would one of your photographs
+be admitted as evidence?"
+
+The photographer did not answer for a moment. Now he understood
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's motive, and the importance she attached to a
+facsimile. But this imparted an unexpected gravity to the service he was
+called upon to perform. He therefore wished some time for reflection,
+and he scrutinized Mademoiselle Marguerite as if he were trying to read
+her very soul. Was it possible that this young girl, with such a pure
+and noble brow, and with such frank, honest eyes, could be meditating
+any cowardly, dishonorable act? No, he could not believe it. In whom,
+or in what, could he trust if such a countenance deceived him? "My
+facsimile would certainly be admitted as evidence," he replied at last;
+"and this would not be the first time that the decision of a court has
+depended on proofs which have been photographed by me."
+
+Meanwhile, his assistant had returned, bringing the necessary apparatus
+with him. When all was ready, the photographer asked her, "Will you give
+me the letter, madame?"
+
+She hesitated for a second--only for a second. The man's honest, kindly
+face told her that he would not betray her, that he would rather give
+her assistance. So she handed him the Marquis de Valorsay's letter,
+saying, with melancholy dignity, "It is my happiness and my future that
+I place in your hands--and I have no fears."
+
+He read her thoughts, and understood that she either dared not ask for a
+pledge of secrecy, or else that she thought it unnecessary. He took pity
+on her, and his last doubt fled. "I shall read this letter, madame,"
+said he, "but I am the only person who will read it. I give you my word
+on that! No one but myself will see the proofs."
+
+Greatly moved, she offered him her hand, and simply said, "Thanks; I am
+more than repaid."
+
+To obtain an absolutely perfect facsimile of a letter is a delicate
+and sometimes lengthy operation. However, at the end of about twenty
+minutes, the photographer possessed two negatives that promised him
+perfect proofs. He looked at them with a satisfied air; and then
+returning the letter to Mademoiselle Marguerite, he said, "In less than
+three days the facsimiles will be ready, madame; and if you will tell me
+to what address I ought to send them----"
+
+She trembled on hearing these words, and quickly answered, "Don't send
+them, sir--keep them carefully. Great heavens! all would be lost if it
+came to the knowledge of any one. I will send for them, or come myself."
+And, feeling the extent of her obligation, she added, "But I will not go
+without introducing myself--I am Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse."
+And, thereupon, she went off, leaving the photographer surprised at the
+adventure and dazzled by his strange visitor's beauty.
+
+Rather more than an hour had elapsed since Marguerite left M. de
+Fondege's house. "How time flies!" she murmured, quickening her pace
+as much as she could without exciting remark--"how time flies!" But,
+hurried as she was, she stopped and spent five minutes at a shop in the
+Rue Notre Dame de Lorette where she purchased some black ribbon and a
+few other trifles. How else could she explain and justify her absence,
+if the servants, who had probably discovered she had gone out, chanced
+to speak of it?
+
+But her heart throbbed as if it would burst as she ascended the
+General's staircase, and anxiety checked her breathing as she rang the
+bell. "What if Madame de Fondege and Madame Leon had returned, and
+the abstraction of the letter been discovered!" Fortunately, Madame de
+Fondege required more than an hour to purchase the materials for the
+elaborate toilette she had dreamt of. The ladies were still out, and
+Mademoiselle Marguerite found everything in the same condition as she
+had left it. She carefully placed the letter in the drawer again, locked
+it, and put the key in the pocket of Madame Leon's dress. Then she
+breathed freely once more; and, for the first time in six days, she felt
+something very like joy in her heart. Now she had no fear of the Marquis
+de Valorsay. She had him in her power. He would destroy his letter the
+next day, and think that he was annihilating all proofs of his infamy.
+Not so. At the decisive moment, at the very moment of his triumph,
+she would produce the photograph of this letter, and crush him. And
+she--only a young girl--had outwitted this consummate scoundrel! "I
+have not been unworthy of Pascal," she said to herself, with a flash of
+pride.
+
+However, her nature was not one of those weak ones which are become
+intoxicated by the first symptom of success, and then relax in their
+efforts. When her excitement had abated a little, she was inclined to
+disparage rather than to exaggerate the advantage she had gained. What
+she desired was a complete, startling, incontestable victory. It was
+not enough to prove Valorsay's GUILT--she was resolved to penetrate his
+designs, to discover why he pursued her so desperately. And, though she
+felt that she possessed a formidable weapon of defence, she could
+not drive away her gloomy forebodings when she thought of the threats
+contained in the marquis's letter. "Thanks to the assistance of one
+of my friends," he wrote, "I can place this proud girl in a perilous,
+terribly perilous, position, from which she cannot possibly extricate
+herself unaided."
+
+These words persistently lingered in Mademoiselle Marguerite's mind.
+What was the danger hanging over her? whence would it come? and in what
+form? What abominable machination might she not expect from the villain
+who had deliberately dishonored Pascal? How would he attack her? Would
+he strive to ruin her reputation, or did he intend to forcibly abduct
+her? Would he attempt to decoy her into a trap where she would be
+subjected to the insults of the vilest wretches? A thousand frightful
+memories of the time when she was an apprentice drove her nearly
+frantic. "I will never go out unarmed," she thought, "and woe to the man
+who raises his hand against me!"
+
+The vagueness of the threat increased her fears. No one is courageous
+enough to confront an unknown, mysterious, and always imminent danger
+without sometimes faltering. Nor was this all. The marquis was not
+her only enemy. She had the Fondege family to dread--these dangerous
+hypocrites, who had taken her to their home so that they might ruin
+her the more surely. M. de Valorsay wrote that he had no fears of the
+Fondeges--that he understood their little game. What was their little
+game? No doubt they were resolved that she should become their son's
+wife, even if they were obliged to use force to win her consent. At this
+thought a sudden terror seized her soul, so full of peace and hope an
+instant before. When she was attacked, would she have time to produce
+and use the facsimile of Valorsay's letter? "I must reveal my secret to
+a friend--to a trusty friend--who will avenge me!" she muttered.
+
+Fortunately she had a friend in whom she could safely confide--the old
+magistrate who had given her such proofs of sympathy. She felt that she
+needed the advice of a riper experience than her own, and the thought of
+consulting him at once occurred to her. She was alone; she had no spy to
+fear; and it would be folly not to profit by the few moments of liberty
+that remained. So she drew her writing-case from her trunk, and, after
+barricading her door to prevent a surprise, she wrote her friend an
+account of the events which had taken place since their last interview.
+She told him everything with rare precision and accuracy of detail,
+sending him a copy of Valorsay's letter, and informing him that, in case
+any misfortune befell her, he could obtain the facsimiles from Carjat.
+She finished her letter, but did not seal it. "If anything should happen
+before I have an opportunity to post it, I will add a postscript," she
+said to herself.
+
+She had made all possible haste, fearing that Madame de Fondege and
+Madame Leon might return at any moment. But this was truly a chimerical
+apprehension. It was nearly six o'clock when the two shoppers made their
+appearance, wearied with the labors of the day, but in fine spirits.
+Besides purchasing every requisite for that wonderful costume of hers,
+the General's wife had found some laces of rare beauty, which she had
+secured for the mere trifle of four thousand francs. "It was one of
+those opportunities one ought always to profit by," she said, as she
+displayed her purchase. "Besides, it is the same with lace as with
+diamonds, you should purchase them when you can--then you have them.
+It isn't an outlay--it's an investment." Subtle reasoning that has cost
+many a husband dear!
+
+On her side, Madame Leon proudly showed her dear young lady a very
+pretty present which Madame de Fondege had given her. "So money is no
+longer lacking in this household," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite, all
+the more confirmed in her suspicions.
+
+The General came in a little later, accompanied by a friend, and
+Marguerite soon discovered that the worthy man had spent the day as
+profitably as his wife. He too was quite tired out; and he had reason to
+be fatigued. First, he had purchased the horses belonging to the ruined
+spendthrift, and he had paid five thousand francs for them, a mere
+trifle for such animals. Less than an hour after the purchase he had
+refused almost double that amount from a celebrated connoisseur in
+horse-flesh, M. de Breulh-Faverlay. This excellent speculation had put
+him in such good humor that he had been unable to resist the temptation
+of purchasing a beautiful saddle-horse, which they let him have for a
+hundred louis. He had not been foolish, for he was sure that he could
+sell the animal again at an advance of a thousand francs whenever he
+wished to do so. "So," remarked his friend, "if you bought such a horse
+every day, you would make three hundred and sixty-five thousand francs a
+year."
+
+Was this only a jest--one of those witticisms which people who boast
+of wonderful bargains must expect to parry, or had the remark a more
+serious meaning? Marguerite could not determine. One thing is certain,
+the General did not lose his temper, but gayly continued his account of
+the way in which he had spent his time. Having purchased the horses, his
+next task was to find a carriage, and he had heard of a barouche which
+a Russian prince had ordered but didn't take, so that the builder was
+willing to sell it at less than cost price; and to recoup this worthy
+man, the General had purchased a brougham as well. He had, moreover,
+hired stabling in the Rue Pigalle, only a few steps from the house, and
+he expected a coachman and a groom the following morning.
+
+"And all this will cost us less than the miserable vehicle we have been
+hiring by the year," observed Madame de Fondege, gravely. "Oh, I know
+what I say. I've counted the cost. What with gratuities and extras, it
+costs us now fully a thousand francs a month, and three horses and a
+coachman won't cost you more. And what a difference! I shall no longer
+be obliged to blush for the skinny horses the stable-keeper sends me,
+nor to endure the insolence of his men. The first outlay frightened me
+a little; but that is made now, and I am delighted. We will save it in
+something else."
+
+"In laces, no doubt," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite. She was intensely
+exasperated, and on regaining her chamber she said to herself, for the
+tenth time, "What do they take me for? Do they think me an idiot to
+flaunt the millions they have stolen from my father--that they have
+stolen from me--before my eyes in this fashion? A common thief would
+take care not to excite suspicion by a foolish expenditure of the fruits
+of his knavery, but they--they have lost their senses."
+
+Madame Leon was already in bed, and when Mademoiselle Marguerite was
+satisfied that she was asleep, she took her letter from her trunk, and
+added this post-script: "P. S.--It is impossible to retain the shadow of
+a doubt, M. and Madame de Fondege have spent certainly twenty thousand
+francs to-day. This audacity must arise from a conviction that no proofs
+of the crime they have committed exist. Still they continue to talk
+to me about their son, Lieutenant Gustave. He will be presented to me
+to-morrow. To-morrow, also, between three and four, I shall be at
+the house of a man who can perhaps discover Pascal's hiding-place for
+me,--the house of M. Isidore Fortunat. I hope to make my escape easily
+enough, for at that same hour, Madame Leon has an appointment with the
+Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+
+
+
+X.
+
+
+The old legend of Achilles's heel will be eternally true. A man may be
+humble or powerful, feeble or strong, but there are none of us without
+some weak spot in our armor, a spot vulnerable beyond all others, a
+certain place where wounds prove most dangerous and painful. M. Isidore
+Fortunat's weak place was his cash-box. To attack him there was to
+endanger his life--to wound him at a point where all his sensibility
+centred. For it was in this cash-box and not in his breast that his
+heart really throbbed. His safe made him happy or dejected. Happy when
+it was filled to overflowing by some brilliant operation, and dejected
+when he saw it become empty as some imprudent transaction failed.
+
+This then explains his frenzy on that ill-fated Sunday, when, after
+being brutally dismissed by M. Wilkie, he returned to his rooms in the
+company of his clerk, Victor Chupin. This explains, too, the intensity
+of the hatred he now felt for the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount
+de Coralth. The former, the marquis, had defrauded him of forty thousand
+francs in glittering gold. The other, the viscount, had suddenly sprung
+up out of the ground, and carried off from under his very nose that
+magnificent prize, the Chalusse inheritance, which he had considered as
+good as won. And he had not only been defrauded and swindled--such
+were his own expressions--but he had been tricked, deceived, duped, and
+outwitted, and by whom? By people who did not make it their profession
+to be shrewd, like he did himself. Just fancy, his business was to
+outwit others, and a couple of mere amateurs had outgeneraled him. He
+had not only suffered in pocket, he had been humiliated as well, and so
+he indulged in threats of such terrible import.
+
+However, at the very moment when he was dreaming of wreaking vengeance
+on the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth, his housekeeper,
+austere Madame Dodelin, handed him Mademoiselle Marguerite's letter.
+He read it with intense astonishment, rubbing his eyes as if to assure
+himself that he were really awake. "Tuesday," he repeated, "the day
+after to-morrow--at your house--between three and four o'clock--I must
+speak with you."
+
+His manner was so strange, and his usually impassive face so disturbed
+by conflicting feelings, that Madame Dodelin's curiosity overcame her
+prudence, and she remained standing in front of him with open mouth,
+staring with all her eyes and listening with all her ears. He perceived
+this, and angrily exclaimed: "What are you doing here? You are watching
+me, I do believe. Get back to your kitchen, or----"
+
+She fled in alarm, and he then entered his private office. His heart
+was leaping with joy, and he laughed wickedly at the hope of a speedy
+revenge. "She's on the scent," he muttered; "and she has luck in
+her favor. She has chanced to apply to me on the very day that I had
+resolved to defend and rehabilitate her lover, the honest fool who
+allowed himself to be dishonored by those unscrupulous blackguards. Just
+as I was thinking of going in search of her, she comes to me. As I was
+about to write to her, she writes to me. Who can deny the existence
+of Providence after this?" Like many other people, M. Fortunat piously
+believed in Providence when things went to his liking, but it is sad to
+add that in the contrary case he denied its existence. "If she has any
+courage," he resumed, "and she seems to have plenty of it, Valorsay
+and Coralth will be in a tight place soon. And if it takes ten thousand
+francs to put them there, and if neither Mademoiselle Marguerite nor M.
+Ferailleur has the amount--ah, well! I'll advance--well, at least
+five thousand--without charging them any commission. I'll even pay the
+expenses out of my own pocket, if necessary. Ah, my fine fellows, you've
+laughed too soon. In a week's time we'll see who laughs last."
+
+He paused, for Victor Chupin, who had lingered behind to pay the driver,
+had just entered the room. "You gave me twenty francs, m'sieur," he
+remarked to his employer. "I paid the driver four francs and five sous,
+here's the change."
+
+"Keep it yourself, Victor," said M. Fortunat.
+
+What! keep fifteen francs and fifteen sous? Under any other
+circumstances such unusual generosity would have drawn a grimace of
+satisfaction from young Chupin. But to-day he did not even smile; he
+slipped the money carelessly into his pocket, and scarcely deigned to
+say "thanks," in the coldest possible tone.
+
+Absorbed in thought, M. Fortunat did not remark this little
+circumstance. "We have them, Victor," he resumed. "I told you that
+Valorsay and Coralth should pay me for their treason. Vengeance is near.
+Read this letter." Victor read it slowly, and as soon as he had finished
+his employer ejaculated, "Well?"
+
+But Chupin was not a person to give advice lightly. "Excuse me,
+m'sieur," said he, "but in order to answer you, I must have some
+knowledge of the affair. I only know what you've told me--which is
+little enough--and what I've guessed. In fact, I know nothing at all."
+
+M. Fortunat reflected for a moment. "You are right, Victor," he said, at
+last. "So far the explanation I gave you was all that was necessary; but
+now that I expect more important services from you, I ought to tell
+you the whole truth, or at least all I know about the affair. This will
+prove my great confidence in you." Whereupon, he acquainted Chupin with
+everything he knew concerning the history of M. de Chalusse, the Marquis
+de Valorsay, and Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+
+However, if he expected these disclosures to elevate him in his
+subordinate's estimation he was greatly mistaken. Chupin had sufficient
+experience and common sense to read his master's character and discern
+his motives. He saw plainly enough that this honest impulse on M.
+Fortunat's part came from disappointed avarice and wounded vanity, and
+that the agent would have allowed the Marquis de Valorsay to carry out
+his infamous scheme without any compunctions of conscience, providing
+he, himself, had not been injured by it. Still, the young fellow did
+not allow his real feelings to appear on his face. First, it was not
+his business to tell M. Fortunat his opinion of him; and in the second
+place, he did not deem it an opportune moment for a declaration of his
+sentiments. So, when his employer paused, he exclaimed: "Well, we must
+outwit these scoundrels--for I'll join you, m'sieur; and I flatter
+myself that I can be very useful to you. Do you want the particulars of
+the viscount's past life? If so, I can furnish them. I know the brigand.
+He's married, as I told you before, and I'll find his wife for you in a
+few days. I don't know exactly where she lives, but she keeps a tobacco
+store, somewhere, and that's enough. She'll tell you how much he's a
+viscount. Ha! ha! Viscount just as much as I am--and no more. I can tell
+you the scrapes he has been in."
+
+"No doubt; but the most important thing is to know how he's living now,
+and on what!"
+
+"Not by honest work, I can tell you. But give me a little time, and
+I'll find out for sure. As soon as I can go home, change my clothes,
+and disguise myself, I'll start after him; and may I be hung, if I don't
+return with a complete report before Tuesday."
+
+A smile of satisfaction appeared on M. Fortunat's face. "Good, Victor!"
+he said, approvingly, "very good! I see that you will serve me with your
+usual zeal and intelligence. Rest assured that you will be rewarded as
+you have never been rewarded before. As long as you are engaged in this
+affair, you shall have ten francs a day; and I'll pay your board, your
+cab-hire, and all your expenses."
+
+This was a most liberal offer, and yet, far from seeming delighted,
+Chupin gravely shook his head. "You know how I value money, m'sieur," he
+began.
+
+"Too much, Victor, my boy, too much----"
+
+"Excuse me, it's because I have responsibilities, m'sieur. You know my
+establishment"--he spoke this word with a grandiloquent air--"you have
+seen my good mother--my expenses are heavy----"
+
+"In short, you don't think I offer you enough?"
+
+"On the contrary, sir--but you don't allow me to finish. I love money,
+don't I? But no matter, I don't want to be paid for this business. I
+don't want either my board or my expenses, not a penny--nothing. I'll
+serve you, but for my own sake, for my own pleasure--gratis."
+
+M. Fortunat could not restrain an exclamation of astonishment. Chupin,
+who was as eager for gain as an old usurer--Chupin, as grasping as
+avarice itself, refuse money! This was something which he had never seen
+before, and which he would no doubt never see again.
+
+Victor had become very much excited; his usually pale cheeks were
+crimson, and in a harsh voice, he continued: "It's a fancy of
+mine--that's all. I have eight hundred francs hidden in my room, the
+fruit of years of work. I'll spend the last penny of it if need be; and
+if I can see Coralth in the mire, I shall say, 'My money has been well
+expended.' I'd rather see that day dawn than be the possessor of a
+hundred thousand francs. If a horrible vision haunted you every night,
+and prevented you from sleeping, wouldn't you give something to get rid
+of it? Very well! that brigand's my nightmare. There must be an end to
+it."
+
+M. de Coralth, who was a man of wide experience, would certainly have
+felt alarmed if he had seen his unknown enemy at the present moment, for
+Victor's eyes, usually a pale and undecided blue, were glittering like
+steel, and his hands were clinched most threateningly. "For he was the
+cause of all my trouble," he continued, gloomily. "I've told you, sir,
+that I was guilty of an infamous deed once upon a time. If it hadn't
+been for a miracle I should have killed a man--the king of men.
+Ah, well! if Monsieur Andre had broken his back by falling from a
+fifth-floor window, my Coralth would be the Duc de Champdoce to-day. And
+shall he be allowed to ride about in his carriage, and deceive and ruin
+honest people? No--there are too many such villains at large for public
+safety. Wait a little, Coralth--I owe you something, and I always pay
+my debts. When M. Andre saved me, though I richly deserved to have
+my throat cut, he made no conditions. He only said, 'If you are not
+irredeemably bad you will be honest after this.' And he said these words
+as he was lying there as pale as death with his shoulder broken, and
+his body mangled from his fall. Great heavens! I felt smaller
+than--than nothing before him. But I swore that I would do honor to
+his teachings--and when evil thoughts enter my mind, and when I feel a
+thirst for liquor, I say to myself, 'Wait a bit, and--and M. Andre will
+take a glass with you.' And that quenches my thirst instantly. I have
+his portrait at home, and every night, before going to bed, I tell him
+the history of the day--and sometimes I fancy that he smiles at me. All
+this is very absurd, perhaps, but I'm not ashamed of it. M. Andre and
+my good mother, they are my supports, my crutches, and with them I'm not
+afraid of making a false step." Schebel, the German philosopher, who has
+written a treatise on Volition, in four volumes, was no greater a man
+than Chupin. "So you may keep your money, sir," he resumed. "I'm an
+honest fellow, and honest men ought to ask no reward for the performance
+of a duty. Coralth mustn't be allowed to triumph over the innocent chap
+he ruined. What did you call him? Ferailleur? It's an odd name. Never
+mind--we'll get him out of this scrape; he shall marry his sweetheart
+after all; and I'll dance at the wedding."
+
+As he finished speaking he laughed a shrill, dangerous laugh, which
+revealed his sharp teeth--but such invincible determination was apparent
+on his face, that M. Fortunat felt no misgivings. He was sure that this
+volunteer would be of more service than the highest-priced hireling. "So
+I can count on you, Victor?" he inquired.
+
+"As upon yourself."
+
+"And you hope to have some positive information by Tuesday?"
+
+"Before then, I hope, if nothing goes amiss."
+
+"Very well; I will devote my attention to Ferailleur then. As to
+Valorsay's affairs, I am better acquainted with them than he is himself.
+We must be prepared to enter upon the campaign when Mademoiselle
+Marguerite comes, and we will act in accordance with her instructions."
+
+Chupin had already caught up his hat; but just as he was leaving the
+room, he paused abruptly. "How stupid!" he exclaimed. "I had forgotten
+the principal thing. Where does Coralth live?"
+
+"Unfortunately, I don't know."
+
+According to his habit when things did not go to his liking, Chupin
+began to scratch his head furiously. "That's bad," growled he.
+"Viscounts of his stamp don't parade their addresses in the directory.
+Still, I shall find him." However, although he expressed this conviction
+he went off decidedly out of temper.
+
+"I shall lose the entire evening hunting up the rascal's address," he
+grumbled, as he hastened homeward. "And whom shall I ask for it?--Madame
+d'Argeles's concierge? Would he know it--M. Wilkie's servant? That
+would be dangerous." He thought of roaming sound about M. de Valorsay's
+residence, and of bribing one of the valets; but while crossing the
+boulevard, the sight of Brebant's Restaurant put a new idea into his
+head. "I have it!" he muttered; "my man's caught!" And he darted into
+the nearest cafe where he ordered some beer and writing materials.
+
+Under other circumstances, he would have hesitated to employ so
+hazardous an expedient as the one he was about to resort to, but the
+character of his adversaries justified any course; besides, time was
+passing, and he had no choice of resources. As soon as the waiter served
+him, he drained his glass of beer to give himself an inspiration, and
+then, in his finest hand, he wrote:
+
+     "MY DEAR VISCOUNT--Here's the amount--one hundred francs--that I
+     lost to you last evening at piquet.  When shall I have my revenge?
+     Your friend,
+                                              "VALORSAY."
+
+When he had finished this letter he read it over three or four
+times, asking himself if this were the style of composition that very
+fashionable folks employ in repaying their debts. To tell the truth, he
+doubted it. In the rough draft which he penned at first, he had written
+bezique, but in the copy he wrote piquet, which he deemed a more
+aristocratic game. "However," said he, "no one will examine it closely!"
+
+Then, as soon as the ink was dry, he folded the letter and slipped it
+into an envelope with a hundred franc-note which he drew from an old
+pocketbook. He next addressed the envelope as follows: "Monsieur le
+Vicomte de Coralth, En Ville," and having completed his preparations, he
+paid his score, and hastened to Brebant's. Two waiters were standing at
+the doorway, and, showing them the letter, he politely asked: "Do you
+happen to know this name? A gentleman dropped this letter on leaving
+your place last evening. I ran after him to return it; but I couldn't
+overtake him."
+
+The waiters examined the address. "Coralth!" they replied. "We scarcely
+know him. He isn't a regular customer, but he comes here occasionally."
+
+"And where does he live?"
+
+"Why do you wish to know?"
+
+"So as to take him this letter, to be sure!"
+
+The waiters shrugged their shoulders. "Let the letter go; it is not
+worth while to trouble yourself."
+
+Chupin had foreseen this objection, and was prepared for it. "But
+there's money in the letter," he remonstrated. And opening the envelope,
+he showed the bank-note which he had taken from his own pocket-book.
+
+This changed the matter entirely. "That is quite a different thing,"
+remarked one of the waiters. "If you find money, you are, of course,
+responsible for it. But just leave it here at the desk, and the next
+time the viscount comes in, the cashier will give it to him."
+
+A cold chill crept over Chupin at the thought of losing his bank-note in
+this way. "Ah! I don't fancy that idea!" he exclaimed. "Leave it here?
+Never in life! Who'd get the reward? A viscount is always generous;
+it is quite likely he would give me twenty francs as a reward for my
+honesty. And that's why I want his address."
+
+The argument was of a nature to touch the waiters; they thought the
+young man quite right; but they did not know M. de Coralth's address,
+and they saw no way of procuring it. "Unless perhaps the porter knows,"
+observed one of them.
+
+The porter, on being called, remembered that he had once been sent to
+M. de Coralth's house for an overcoat. "I've forgotten his number," he
+declared; "but he lives in the Rue d'Anjou, near the corner of the Rue
+de la Ville l'Eveque."
+
+This direction was not remarkable for its precision, but it was more
+than sufficient for a pure-blooded Parisian like Victor Chupin. "Many
+thanks for your kindness," he said to the porter. "A blind man, perhaps,
+might not be able to go straight to M. de Coralth's house from your
+directions, but I have eyes and a tongue as well. And, believe me, if
+there's any reward, you shall see that I know how to repay a good turn."
+
+"And if you don't find the viscount," added the waiters, "bring the
+money here, and it will be returned to him."
+
+"Naturally!" replied Chupin. And he strode hurriedly away. "Return!"
+he muttered; "not I! I thought for a moment they had their hands on my
+precious bank-note."
+
+But he had already recovered from his fright, and as he turned his steps
+homeward he congratulated himself on the success of his stratagem.
+"For my viscount is caught," he said to himself. "The Rue d'Anjou Saint
+Honore hasn't a hundred numbers in it, and even if I'm compelled to go
+from door to door, my task will soon be accomplished."
+
+On reaching home he found his mother engaged in knitting, as usual. This
+was the only avocation that her almost complete blindness allowed her
+to pursue; and she followed it constantly. "Ah! here you are, Toto,"
+she exclaimed, joyously. "I didn't expect you so soon. Don't you scent a
+savory smell? As you must be greatly tired after being up all night, I'm
+making you a stew."
+
+As customary when he returned, Chupin embraced the good woman with
+the respectful tenderness which had so surprised M. Fortunat. "You are
+always kind," said he, "but, unfortunately, I can't remain to dine with
+you."
+
+"But you promised me."
+
+"That's true, mamma; but business, you see--business."
+
+The worthy woman shook her head. "Always business!" she exclaimed.
+
+"Yes--when a fellow hasn't ten thousand francs a year."
+
+"You have become a worker, Toto, and that makes me very happy; but you
+are too eager for money, and that frightens me."
+
+"That's to say, you fear I shall do something dishonest. Ah! mother! do
+you think I can forget you and Monsieur Andre?"
+
+His mother said no more, and he entered the tiny nook which he so
+pompously styled his chamber, and quickly changed the clothes he was
+wearing (his Sunday toggery) for an old pair of checked trousers, a
+black blouse, and a glazed cap. And when he had finished, and given a
+peculiar turn to his hair, no one would have recognized him. In place of
+M. Fortunat's respectable clerk, there appeared one of those vagabonds
+who hang about cafes and theatres from six in the evening till midnight,
+and spend the rest of their time playing cards in the low drinking dens
+near the barrieres. It was the old Chupin come to life once more--Toto
+Chupin as he had appeared before his conversion. And as he took a
+last look in the little glass hanging over the table, he was himself
+astonished at the transformation. "Ah!" he muttered, "I was a sorry
+looking devil in those days."
+
+Although he had cautiously avoided making any noise in dressing, his
+mother, with the wonderfully acute hearing of the blind, had followed
+each of his movements as surely as if she had been standing near
+watching him. "You have changed your clothes, Toto," she remarked.
+
+"Yes, mother."
+
+"But why have you put on your blouse, my son?"
+
+Although accustomed to his mother's remarkable quickness of perception,
+he was amazed. Still he did not think of denying it. She would only have
+to extend her hand to prove that he was telling a falsehood. The blind
+woman's usually placid face had become stern. "So it is necessary to
+disguise yourself," she said, gravely.
+
+"But, mother----"
+
+"Hush, my son! When a man doesn't wish to be recognized, he's evidently
+doing something he's ashamed of. Ever since your employer came here, you
+have been concealing something from me. Take care, Toto! Since I heard
+that man's voice, I'm sure that he is quite as capable of urging you to
+commit a crime as others were in days gone by."
+
+The blind woman was preaching to a convert; for during the past three
+days, M. Fortunat had shown himself in such a light that Chupin had
+secretly resolved to change his employer. "I promise you I'll leave him,
+mother," he declared, "so you may be quite easy in mind."
+
+"Very well; but now, at this moment, where are you going?"
+
+There was only one way of completely reassuring the good woman, and that
+was to tell her all. Chupin did so with absolute frankness. "Ah, well!"
+she said, when the narrative was finished. "You see now how easy it is
+to lead you astray! How could you be induced to play the part of a spy,
+when you know so well what it leads to? It's only God's protecting care
+that has saved you again from an act which you would have reproached
+yourself for all your life. Your employer's intentions are good now; but
+they WERE criminal when he ordered you to follow Madame d'Argeles. Poor
+woman! She had sacrificed herself for her son, she had concealed herself
+from him, and you were working to betray her. Poor creature! how she
+must have suffered, and how much I pity her! To be what she is, and to
+see herself denounced by her own son! I, who am only a poor plebeian,
+should die of shame under such circumstances."
+
+Chupin blew his nose so loudly that the window-panes rattled; this was
+his way of repressing his emotion whenever it threatened to overcome
+him. "You speak like the good mother that you are," he exclaimed at
+last, "and I'm prouder of you than if you were the handsomest and
+richest lady in Paris, for you're certainly the most honest and
+virtuous; and I should be a thorough scoundrel if I caused you a
+moment's sorrow. And if ever I set my foot in such a mess again, I hope
+some one will cut it off. But for this once----"
+
+"For this once, you may go, Toto; I give my consent."
+
+He went off with a lighter heart; and on reaching the Rue d'Anjou he
+immediately began his investigations. They were not successful at first.
+At every house where he made inquiries nobody had any knowledge of the
+Viscount de Coralth. He had visited half the buildings in the street,
+when he reached one of the handsomest houses, in front of which stood
+a cart laden with plants and flowers. An old man, who seemed to be the
+concierge, and a valet in a red waistcoat, were removing the plants from
+the vehicle and arranging them in a line under the porte cochere. As
+soon as the cart was emptied, it drove away, whereupon Chupin stepped
+forward, and addressing the concierge, asked: "Does the Viscount de
+Coralth live here?"
+
+"Yes. What do you want with him?"
+
+Having foreseen this question, Chupin had prepared a reply. "I certainly
+don't come to call on him," he answered. "My reason for inquiring is
+this: just now, as I passed near the Madeleine, a very elegant lady
+called me, and said: 'M. de Coralth lives in the Rue d'Anjou, but
+I've forgotten the number. I can't go about from door to door making
+inquiries, so if you'll go there and ascertain his address for me, I'll
+give you five francs for yourself,' so my money's made."
+
+Profiting by his old Parisian experience, Chupin had chosen such a
+clever excuse that both his listeners heartily laughed. "Well, Father
+Moulinet," cried the servant in the red waistcoat, "what do you say
+to that? Are there any elegant ladies who give five francs for YOUR
+address?"
+
+"Is there any lady who's likely to send such flowers as these to YOU?"
+was the response.
+
+Chupin was about to retire with a bow, when the concierge stopped him.
+"You accomplish your errands so well that perhaps you'd be willing to
+take these flower-pots up to the second floor, if we gave you a glass of
+wine!"
+
+No proposal could have suited Chupin better. Although he was prone to
+exaggerate his own powers and the fecundity of his resources, he had not
+flattered himself with the hope that he should succeed in crossing
+the threshold of M. de Coralth's rooms. For, without any great mental
+effort, he had realized that the servant arrayed in the red waistcoat
+was in the viscount's employ, and these flowers were to be carried to
+his apartments. However any signs of satisfaction would have seemed
+singular under the circumstances, and so he sulkily replied: "A glass of
+wine! you had better say two."
+
+"Well, I'll say a whole bottleful, my boy, if that suits you any
+better," replied the servant, with the charming good-nature so often
+displayed by people who are giving other folk's property away.
+
+"Then I'm at your service!" exclaimed Chupin. And, loading himself
+with a host of flower-pots as skilfully as if he had been accustomed to
+handling them all his life, he added: "Now, lead the way."
+
+The valet and the concierge preceded him with empty hands, of course;
+and, on reaching the second floor, they opened a door, and said: "This
+is the place. Come in."
+
+Chupin had expected to find that M. de Coralth's apartments were
+handsomer than his own in the Faubourg Saint Denis; but he had scarcely
+imagined such luxury as pervaded this establishment. The chandeliers
+seemed marvels in his eyes; and the sumptuous chairs and couches
+eclipsed M. Fortunat's wonderful sofa completely. "So he no longer
+amuses himself with petty rascalities," thought Chupin, as he surveyed
+the rooms. "Monsieur's working on a grand scale now. Decidedly this
+mustn't be allowed to continue."
+
+Thereupon he busied himself placing the flowers in the numerous
+jardinieres scattered about the rooms, as well as in a tiny
+conservatory, cleverly contrived on the balcony, and adjoining a little
+apartment with silk hangings, that was used as a smoking-room. Under the
+surveillance of the concierge and the valet he was allowed to visit the
+whole apartments. He admired the drawing-room, filled to overflowing
+with costly trifles; the dining-room, furnished in old oak; the
+luxurious bed-room with its bed mounted upon a platform, as if it were a
+throne, and the library filled with richly bound volumes. Everything was
+beautiful, sumptuous and magnificent, and Chupin admired, though he did
+not envy, this luxury. He said to himself that, if ever he became rich,
+his establishment should be quite different. He would have preferred
+rather more simplicity, a trifle less satin, velvet, hangings, mirrors
+and gilding. Still this did not prevent him from going into ecstasies
+over each room he entered; and he expressed his admiration so artlessly
+that the valet, feeling as much flattered as if he were the owner of the
+place, took a sort of pride in exhibiting everything.
+
+He showed Chupin the target which the viscount practised at with
+pistols for an hour every morning; for Monsieur le Vicomte was a capital
+marksman, and could lodge eight balls out of ten in the neck of a bottle
+at a distance of twenty paces. He also displayed his master's swords;
+for Monsieur le Vicomte handled side arms as adroitly as pistols. He
+took a lesson every day from one of the best fencing-masters in Paris;
+and his duels had always terminated fortunately. He also showed the
+viscount's blue velvet dressing-gown, his fur-trimmed slippers, and even
+his elaborately embroidered night-shirts. But it was the dressing-room
+that most astonished and stupefied Chupin. He stood gazing in
+open-mouthed wonder at the immense white marble table, with its water
+spigots and its basins, its sponges and boxes, its pots and vials and
+cups; and he counted the brushes by the dozen--brushes hard and soft,
+brushes for the hair, for the beard, for the hands, and the application
+of cosmetic to the mustaches and eyebrows. Never had he seen in one
+collection such a variety of steel and silver instruments, knives,
+pincers, scissors, and files. "One might think oneself in a
+chiropodist's, or a dentist's establishment," remarked Chupin to the
+servant. "Does your master use all these every day?"
+
+"Certainly, or rather twice a day--morning and evening--at his
+toilette."
+
+Chupin expressed his feelings with a grimace and an exclamation of
+mocking wonder. "Ah, well! he must have a clean skin," he said.
+
+His listeners laughed heartily; and the concierge, after exchanging a
+significant glance with the valet, said sotto voce, "Zounds! it's his
+business to be a handsome fellow!" The mystery was solved.
+
+While Chupin changed the contents of the jardinieres, and remained
+upstairs in the intervals between the nine or ten journeys he made
+to the porte-cochere for more flowers, he listened attentively to the
+conversation between the concierge and the valet, and heard snatches
+of sentences that enlightened him wonderfully. Moreover, whenever a
+question arose as to placing a plant in one place rather than another,
+the valet stated as a conclusive argument that the baroness liked it in
+such or such a place, or that she would be better pleased with this or
+that arrangement, or that he must comply with the instructions she had
+given him. Chupin was therefore obliged to conclude that the flowers
+had been sent here by a baroness who possessed certain rights in the
+establishment. But who was she?
+
+He was manoeuvering cleverly in the hope of ascertaining this point,
+when a carriage was heard driving into the courtyard below. "Monsieur
+must have returned!" exclaimed the valet, darting to the window.
+
+Chupin also ran to look out, and saw a very elegant blue-lined brougham,
+drawn by a superb horse, but he did not perceive the viscount. In point
+of fact, M. de Coralth was already climbing the stairs, four at a time,
+and, a moment later, he entered the room, angrily exclaiming, "Florent,
+what does this mean? Why have you left all the doors open?"
+
+Florent was the servant in the red waistcoat. He slightly shrugged his
+shoulders like a servant who knows too many of his master's secrets to
+have anything to fear, and in the calmest possible tone replied, "If
+the doors are open, it is only because the baroness has just sent some
+flowers. On Sunday, too, what a funny idea! And I have been treating
+Father Moulinet and this worthy fellow" (pointing to Chupin) "to a glass
+of wine, to acknowledge their kindness in assisting me."
+
+Fearing recognition, Chupin hid his face as much as possible; but M.
+de Coralth did not pay the slightest attention to him. There was a dark
+frown on his handsome, usually smiling countenance, and his hair was in
+great disorder. Evidently enough, something had greatly annoyed him. "I
+am going out again," he remarked to his valet, "but first of all I must
+write two letters which you must deliver immediately."
+
+He passed into the drawing-room as he spoke, and Florent scarcely waited
+till the door was closed before uttering an oath. "May the devil
+take him!" he exclaimed. "Here he sets me on the go again. It is five
+o'clock, too, and I have an appointment in half an hour."
+
+A sudden hope quickened the throbbings of Chupin's heart. He touched the
+valet's arm, and in his most persuasive tone remarked: "I've nothing
+to do, and as your wine was so good, I'll do your errands for you, if
+you'll pay me for the wear and tear of shoe-leather."
+
+Chupin's appearance must have inspired confidence, for the servant
+replied:--"Well--I don't refuse--but we'll see."
+
+The viscount did not spend much time in writing; he speedily reappeared
+holding two letters which he flung upon the table, saying: "One of these
+is for the baroness. You must deliver it into HER hands or into the
+hands of her maid--there will be no answer. You will afterward take the
+other to the person it is addressed to, and you must wait for an answer
+which you will place on my writing-table--and make haste." So saying,
+the viscount went off as he had entered--on the run--and a moment later,
+his brougham was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+
+Florent was crimson with rage. "There," said he, addressing Chupin
+rather than the concierge, "what did I tell you? A letter to be placed
+in madame's own hands or in the hands of her maid, and to be concealed
+from the baron, who is on the watch, of course. Naturally no one can
+execute that commission but myself."
+
+"That's true!" replied Chupin; "but how about the other?"
+
+The valet had not yet examined the second letter. He now took it from
+the table, and glanced at the address. "Ah," said he, "I can confide
+this one to you, my good fellow, and it's very fortunate, for it is
+to be taken to a place on the other side of the river. Upon my word!
+masters are strange creatures! You manage your work so as to have a
+little leisure, and the moment you think yourself free, pouf!--they
+send you anywhere in creation without even asking if it suits your
+convenience. If it hadn't been for you, I should have missed a dinner
+with some very charming ladies. But, above all, don't loiter on the way.
+I don't mind paying your omnibus fare if you like. And you heard him say
+there would be an answer. You can give it to Moulinet, and in exchange,
+he'll give you fifteen sous for your trouble, and six sous for your
+omnibus fare. Besides, if you can extract anything from the party the
+letter's intended for, you are quite welcome to it."
+
+"Agreed, sir! Grant me time enough to give an answer to the lady who is
+waiting at the Madeleine, and I'm on my way. Give me the letter."
+
+"Here it is," said the valet, handing it to Chupin. But as the latter
+glanced at the address he turned deadly pale, and his eyes almost
+started from their sockets. For this is what he read: "Madame Paul.
+Dealer in Tobacco. Quai de la Seine." Great as was his self-control, his
+emotion was too evident to escape notice. "What's the matter with you?"
+asked the concierge and the valet in the same breath. "What has happened
+to you?"
+
+A powerful effort of will restored this young fellow's coolness, and
+ready in an instant with an excuse for his blunder, he replied, "I have
+changed my mind. What! you'd only give me fifteen sous to measure such a
+distance as that! Why, it isn't a walk--it's a journey!"
+
+His explanation was accepted without demur. His listeners thought he
+was only taking advantage of the need they had of his services--as
+was perfectly natural under the circumstances. "What! So you are
+dissatisfied!" cried the valet. "Very well! you shall have thirty
+sous--but be off!"
+
+"So I will, at once," replied Chupin. And, imitating the whistle of a
+locomotive with wonderful perfection, he darted away at a pace which
+augured a speedy return.
+
+However, when he was some twenty yards from the house he stopped short,
+glanced around him, and espying a dark corner slipped into it. "That
+fool in the red waistcoat will be coming out to take the letter to that
+famous baroness," he thought. "I'm here, and I'll watch him and see
+where he goes. I should like to find out the name of the kind and
+charitable lady who watches over his brigand of a master with such
+tender care."
+
+The day and the hour were in his favor. Night was coming on, hastened by
+a thick fog; the street lamps were not yet lighted, and as it was Sunday
+most of the shops were closed. It grew dark so rapidly that Chupin was
+scarcely able to recognize Florent when he at last emerged from the
+house. It is true that he looked altogether unlike the servant in
+the red waist-coat. As he had the key to the wardrobe containing
+his master's clothes, he did not hesitate to use them whenever an
+opportunity offered. On this occasion he had appropriated a pair of
+those delicately tinted trousers which were M. de Coralth's specialty,
+with a handsome overcoat, a trifle too small for him, and a very elegant
+hat.
+
+"Fine doings, indeed!" growled Chupin as he started in pursuit. "My
+servants sha'n't serve me in that way if I ever have any."
+
+But he paused in his soliloquy, and prudently hid himself under a
+neighboring gateway. The gorgeous Florent was ringing at the door of one
+of the most magnificent mansions in the Rue de la Ville l'Eveque. The
+door was opened, and he went in. "Ah! ah!" thought Chupin, "he hadn't
+far to go. The viscount and the baroness are shrewd. When you have
+flowers to send to anybody it's convenient to be neighbors!"
+
+He glanced round, and seeing an old man smoking his pipe on the
+threshold of a shop, he approached him and asked politely "Can you tell
+me whom that big house belongs to?"
+
+"To Baron Trigault," replied the man, without releasing his hold on his
+pipe.
+
+"Thank you, monsieur," replied Chupin, gravely. "I inquired, because
+I think of buying a house." And repeating the name of Trigault several
+times to impress it upon his memory he darted off on his errand.
+
+It might be supposed that his unexpected success had delighted him,
+but, on the contrary, it rendered him even more exacting. The letter
+he carried burned his pocket like a red-hot iron. "Madame Paul," he
+muttered, "that must be the rascal's wife. First, Paul is his Christian
+name; secondly, I've been told that his wife keeps a tobacco shop--so
+the case is plain. But the strangest thing about it is that this husband
+and wife should write to each other, when I fancied them at dagger's
+ends." Chupin would have given a pint of his own blood to know the
+contents of the missive. The idea of opening it occurred to him, and it
+must be confessed that it was not a feeling of delicacy that prevented
+him. He was deterred by a large seal which had been carefully affixed,
+and which would plainly furnish evidence if the letter were tampered
+with. Thus Chupin was punished for Florent's faults, for this seal
+was the viscount's' invariable precaution against his servant's prying
+curiosity. So our enterprising youth could only read and re-read the
+superscription and smell the paper, which was strongly scented with
+verbena. He fancied that there was some mysterious connection between
+this letter intended for M. de Coralth's wife and the missive sent
+to the baroness. And why should it not be so? Had they not both been
+written under the influence of anger? Still he failed to perceive any
+possible connection between the rich baroness and the poor tobacco
+dealer, and his cogitations only made him more perplexed than ever.
+However, his efforts to solve the mystery did not interfere with the
+free use of his limbs, and he soon found himself on the Quai de la
+Seine. "Here I am," he muttered. "I've come more quickly than an
+omnibus."
+
+The Quai de la Seine is a broad road, connecting the Rue de Flandres
+with the canal de l'Ourcq. On the left-hand side it is bordered with
+miserable shanties interspersed with some tiny shops, and several huge
+coal depots. On the right-hand side--that next to the canal--there are
+also a few provision stores. In the daytime there is no noisier nor
+livelier place than this same Quai; but nothing could be more gloomy
+at night-time when the shops are closed, when the few gas-lamps only
+increase the grimness of the shadows, and when the only sound that
+breaks the silence is the rippling of the water as its smooth surface is
+ruffled by some boatman propelling his skiff through the canal.
+
+"The Viscount must certainly have made a mistake," thought Chupin;
+"there is no such shop on the Quai." He was wrong, however; for after
+passing the Rue de Soissons he espied the red lantern of a tobacco-shop,
+glimmering through the fog.
+
+
+
+
+XI.
+
+
+Having almost reached the goal, Chupin slackened his pace. He approached
+the shop very cautiously and peered inside, deeming it prudent to
+reconnoitre a little before he went in. And certainly there was nothing
+to prevent a prolonged scrutiny. The night was very dark, the quay
+deserted. No one was to be seen; not a sound broke the stillness. The
+darkness, the surroundings, and the silence were sinister enough to make
+even Chupin shudder, though he was usually as thoroughly at home in the
+loneliest and most dangerous by-ways of Paris as an honest man of
+the middle classes would be in the different apartments of his modest
+household. "That scoundrel's wife must have less than a hundred thousand
+a year if she takes up her abode here!" thought Chupin.
+
+And, in fact, nothing could be more repulsive than the tenement in which
+Madame Paul had installed herself. It was but one story high, and built
+of clay, and it had fallen to ruin to such an extent that it had been
+found necessary to prop it up with timber, and to nail some old boards
+over the yawning fissures in the walls. "If I lived here, I certainly
+shouldn't feel quite at ease on a windy day," continued Chupin, sotto
+voce.
+
+The shop itself was of a fair size, but most wretched in its
+appointments, and disgustingly dirty. The floor was covered with that
+black and glutinous coal-dust which forms the soil of the Quai de la
+Seine. An auctioneer would have sold the entire stock and fixtures for
+a few shillings. Four stone jars, and a couple of pairs of scales, a
+few odd tumblers, filled with pipes and packets of cigarettes, some
+wine-glasses, and three or four labelled bottles, five or six boxes of
+cigars, and as many packages of musty tobacco, constituted the entire
+stock in trade.
+
+As Chupin compared this vile den with the viscount's luxurious abode,
+his blood fairly boiled in his veins. "He ought to be shot for this, if
+for nothing else," he muttered through his set teeth. "To let his wife
+die of starvation here!" For it was M. de Coralth's wife who kept this
+shop. Chupin, who had seen her years before, recognized her now as she
+sat behind her counter, although she was cruelly changed. "That's her,"
+he murmured. "That's certainly Mademoiselle Flavie."
+
+He had used her maiden name in speaking of her. Poor woman! She was
+undoubtedly still young--but sorrow, regret, and privations, days
+spent in hard work to earn a miserable subsistence, and nights spent in
+weeping, had made her old, haggard, and wrinkled before her time. Of
+her once remarkable beauty naught remained but her hair, which was still
+magnificent, though it was in wild disorder, and looked as if it had not
+been touched by a comb for weeks; and her big black eyes, which gleamed
+with the phosphorescent and destructive brilliancy of fever. Everything
+about her person bespoke terrible reverses, borne without dignity. Even
+if she had struggled at first, it was easy to see that she struggled
+no longer. Her attire--her torn and soiled silk dress, and her dirty
+cap--revealed thorough indolence, and that morbid indifference which at
+times follows great misfortunes with weak natures.
+
+"Such is life," thought Chupin, philosophically. "Here's a girl who was
+brought up like a queen and allowed to have her own way in everything!
+If any one had predicted this in those days, how she would have sneered!
+I can see her now as she looked that day when I met her driving her gray
+ponies. If people didn't clear the road it was so much the worse for
+them! In those times Paris was like some great shop where she could
+select whatever she chose. She said: 'I want this,' and she got it. She
+saw a handsome young fellow and wanted him for her husband; her father,
+who could refuse her nothing, consented, and now behold the result!"
+
+He had lingered longer at the window than he had meant to do, perhaps
+because he could see that the young woman was talking with some person
+in a back room, the door of which stood open. Chupin tried to find out
+who this person was, but he did not succeed; and he was about to go in
+when suddenly he saw Madame Paul rise from her seat and say a few words
+with an air of displeasure. And this time her eyes, instead of turning
+to the open door, were fixed on a part of the shop directly opposite
+her. "Is there some one there as well, then?" Chupin wondered.
+
+He changed his post of observation, and, by standing on tiptoe, he
+succeeded in distinguishing a puny little boy, some three or four years
+old, and clad in rags, who was playing with the remnants of a toy-horse.
+The sight of this child increased Chupin's indignation. "So there's a
+child?" he growled. "The rascal not only deserts his wife, but he leaves
+his child to starve! We may as well make a note of that: and when we
+settle up our accounts, he shall pay dearly for his villainy." With this
+threat he brusquely entered the shop.
+
+"What do you wish, sir?" asked the woman.
+
+"Nothing; I bring you a letter, madame."
+
+"A letter for me! You must be mistaken."
+
+"Excuse me; aren't you Madame Paul?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Then this is for you." And he handed her the missive which Florent had
+confided to his care.
+
+Madame Paul took hold of it with some hesitation, eying the messenger
+suspiciously meanwhile; but, on seeing the handwriting, she uttered
+a cry of surprise. And, turning toward the open door, she called, "M.
+Mouchon! M. Mouchon! It's from him--it's from my husband; from Paul.
+Come, come!"
+
+A bald-headed, corpulent man, who looked some fifty years of age, now
+timidly emerged from the room behind the shop with a cap in his hand.
+"Ah, well! my dear child," he said, in an oily voice, "what was I
+telling you just now? Everything comes to those who know how to wait."
+
+However she had already broken the seal, and she was now reading the
+letter eagerly, clapping her hands with delight as she finished its
+perusal. "He consents!" she exclaimed. "He's frightened--he begs me to
+wait a little--look--read!"
+
+But M. Mouchon could not read without his spectacles, and he lost at
+least two minutes in searching his pockets before he found them. And
+when they were adjusted, the light was so dim that it took him at least
+three minutes more to decipher the missive. Chupin had spent this
+time in scrutinizing--in appraising the man, as it were. "What is this
+venerable gentleman doing here?" he thought. "He's a middle class man,
+that's evident from his linen. He's married--there's a wedding-ring
+on his finger; he has a daughter, for the ends of his necktie are
+embroidered. He lives in the neighborhood, for, well dressed as he is,
+he wears a cap. But what was he doing there in that back room in the
+dark?"
+
+Meanwhile M. Mouchon had finished reading the letter. "What did I tell
+you?" he said complacently.
+
+"Yes, you were right!" answered Madame Paul as she took up the letter
+and read it again with her eyes sparkling with joy. "And now what shall
+I do?" she asked. "Wait, shall I not?"
+
+"No, no!" exclaimed the elderly gentleman, in evident dismay. "You must
+strike the iron while it's hot."
+
+"But he promises me----"
+
+"To promise and to keep one's promises are two different things."
+
+"He wants a reply."
+
+"Tell him----" But he stopped short, calling her attention with a
+gesture to the messenger, whose eyes were glittering with intense
+curiosity.
+
+She understood. So filling a glass with some liquor, she placed it
+before Chupin, and offered him a cigar, saying: "Take a seat--here's
+something to keep you from feeling impatient while you wait here."
+Thereupon she followed the old gentleman into the adjoining room, and
+closed the door.
+
+Even if Chupin had not possessed the precocious penetration he owed to
+his life of adventure, the young woman and the old gentleman had said
+enough to enable him to form a correct estimate of the situation. He was
+certain now that he knew the contents of the letter as perfectly as if
+he had read it. M. de Coralth's anger, and his order to make haste, were
+both explained. Moreover, Chupin distinctly saw what connection there
+was between the letter to the baroness and the letter to Madame Paul. He
+understood that one was the natural consequence of the other. Deserted
+by her husband, Madame Paul had at last become weary of poverty and
+privations. She had instituted a search for her husband, and, having
+found him, she had written to him in this style: "I consent to abstain
+from interfering with you, but only on conditions that you provide means
+of subsistence for me, your lawfully wedded wife, and for your child. If
+you refuse, I shall urge my claims, and ruin you. The scandal won't be
+of much use to me, it's true, but at least I shall no longer be obliged
+to endure the torture of knowing that you are surrounded by every luxury
+while I am dying of starvation."
+
+Yes, she had evidently written that. It might not be the precise text;
+but no doubt it was the purport of her letter. On receiving it, Coralth
+had become alarmed. He knew only too well that if his wife made herself
+known and revealed his past, it would be all over with him. But he had
+no money. Charming young men like the Viscount de Coralth never have
+any money on hand. So, in this emergency, the dashing young fellow had
+written to his wife imploring her to have patience, and to the baroness,
+entreating, or rather commanding her to advance him a certain sum at
+once.
+
+This was no doubt the case, and yet there was one circumstance which
+puzzled Chupin exceedingly. In former years, he had heard it asserted
+that Mademoiselle Flavie was the very personification of pride, and that
+she adored her husband even to madness. Had this great love vanished?
+Had poverty and sorrow broken her spirit to such a degree that she was
+willing to stoop to such shameful concessions! If she were acquainted
+with her husband's present life, how did it happen that she did not
+prefer starvation, or the alms-house and a pauper's grave to his
+assistance? Chupin could understand how, in a moment of passion,
+she might be driven to denounce her husband in the presence of his
+fashionable acquaintances, how she might be impelled to ruin him so as
+to avenge herself; but he could not possibly understand how she could
+consent to profit by the ignominy of the man she loved. "The plan
+isn't hers," said Chupin to himself, after a moment's reflection. "It's
+probably the work of that stout old gentleman."
+
+There was a means of verifying his suspicions, for on returning into the
+adjoining room, Madame Paul had not taken her son with her. He was still
+sitting on the muddy floor of the shop, playing with his dilapidated
+horse. Chupin called him. "Come here, my little fellow," said he.
+
+The child rose, and timidly approached, his eyes dilating with distrust
+and astonishment. The poor boy's repulsive uncleanliness was a terrible
+charge against the mother. Did she no longer love her own offspring? The
+untidiness of sorrow and poverty has its bounds. A long time must have
+passed since the child's face and hands had been washed, and his soiled
+clothes were literally falling to rags. Still, he was a handsome little
+fellow, and seemed fairly intelligent, in spite of his bashfulness.
+He was very light-haired, and in features he was extremely like M. de
+Coralth. Chupin took him on his knees, and, after looking to see if the
+door communicating with the inner room were securely closed, he asked:
+"What's your name, little chap?"
+
+"Paul."
+
+"Do you know your father?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Doesn't your mother ever talk to you about him?"
+
+"Oh, yes!"
+
+"And what does she say?"
+
+"That he's rich--very rich."
+
+"And what else?"
+
+The child did not reply; perhaps his mother had forbidden him to
+say anything on the subject--perhaps that instinct which precedes
+intelligence, just as the dawn precedes daylight, warned him to be
+prudent with a stranger. "Doesn't your papa ever come to see you?"
+insisted Chupin.
+
+"Never."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Mamma is very poor."
+
+"And wouldn't you like to go and see him?"
+
+"I don't know. But he'll come some day, and take us away with him to a
+large house. We shall be all right, then; and he will give us a deal of
+money and pretty dresses, and I shall have plenty of toys."
+
+Satisfied on this point, Chupin, pushed his investigations farther.
+"And do you know this old gentleman who is with your mamma in the other
+room?"
+
+"Oh, yes!--that's Mouchon."
+
+"And who's Mouchon?"
+
+"He's the gentleman who owns that beautiful garden at the corner of the
+Rue Riquet, where there are such splendid grapes. I'm going with him to
+get some."
+
+"Does he often come to see you?"
+
+"Every evening. He always has goodies in his pocket for mamma and me."
+
+"Why does he sit in that back room without any light?"
+
+"Oh, he says that the customers mustn't see him."
+
+It would have been an abominable act to continue this examination, and
+make this child the innocent accuser of his own mother. Chupin felt
+conscience-smitten even now. So he kissed the cleanest spot he could
+find on the boy's face, and set him on the floor again, saying, "Go and
+play."
+
+The child had revealed his mother's character with cruel precision. What
+had she told him about his father? That he was rich, and that, in case
+he returned, he would give them plenty of money and fine clothes. The
+woman's nature stood revealed in all its deformity. Chupin had good
+cause to feel proud of his discernment--all his suppositions had
+been confirmed. He had read Mouchon's character at a glance. He had
+recognized him as one of those wily evil-minded men who employ their
+leisure to the profit of their depravity--one of those patient,
+cold-blooded hypocrites who make poverty their purveyor, and whose
+passion is prodigal only in advice. "So he's paying his court to Madame
+Paul," thought Chupin. "Isn't it shameful? The old villain! he might at
+least give her enough to eat!"
+
+So far his preoccupation had made him forget his wine and his cigar. He
+emptied the glass at a single draught, but it proved far more difficult
+to light the cigar. "Zounds! this is a non-combustible," he growled.
+"When I arrive at smoking ten sous cigars, I sha'n't come here to buy
+them."
+
+However, with the help of several matches and a great deal of drawing,
+he had almost succeeded, when the door opened, and Madame Paul
+reappeared with a letter in her hand. She seemed greatly agitated; her
+anxiety was unmistakable. "I can't decide," she was saying to Mouchon,
+whose figure Chupin could only dimly distinguish in the darkness. "No,
+I can't. If I send this letter, I must forever renounce all hope of my
+husband's return. Whatever happens, he will never forgive me."
+
+"He can't treat you worse than he does now, at all events," replied the
+old gentleman. "Besides, a gloved cat has never caught a mouse yet."
+
+"He'll hate me."
+
+"The man who wants his dog to love him, beats it; and, besides, when the
+wine is drawn, one must drink it."
+
+This singular logic seemed to decide her. She handed the letter to
+Chupin, and drawing a franc from her pocket she offered it to him. "This
+is for your trouble," she said.
+
+He involuntarily held out his hand to take the money, but quickly
+withdrew it, exclaiming: "No, thank you; keep it. I've been paid
+already." And, thereupon, he left the shop.
+
+Chupin's mother--his poor good mother, as he called her--would certainly
+have felt proud and delighted at her son's disinterestedness. That
+very morning, he had refused the ten francs a day that M. Fortunat had
+offered him, and this evening he declined the twenty sous proffered him
+by Madame Paul. This was apparently a trifle, and yet in reality it was
+something marvellous, unprecedented, on the part of this poor lad, who,
+having neither trade nor profession, was obliged to earn his daily bread
+through the medium of those chance opportunities which the lower classes
+of Paris are continually seeking. As he returned to the Rue de Flandres,
+he muttered: "Take twenty sous from that poor creature, who hasn't had
+enough to satisfy her hunger for heaven knows how long! That would be
+altogether unworthy of a man."
+
+It is only just to say that money had never given him a feeling of
+satisfaction at all comparable with that which he now experienced.
+He was impressed, too, with a sense of vastly-increased importance on
+thinking that all the faculties, and all the energy he had once employed
+in the service of evil, were now consecrated to the service of good. By
+becoming the instrument of Pascal Ferailleur's salvation he would, in
+some measure, atone for the crime he had committed years before.
+
+Chupin's mind was so busily occupied with these thoughts that he reached
+the Rue d'Anjou and M. de Coralth's house almost before he was aware of
+it. To his great surprise, the concierge and his wife were not alone.
+Florent was there, taking coffee with them. The valet had divested
+himself of his borrowed finery, and had donned his red waistcoat again.
+He seemed to be in a savage humor; and his anger was not at all strange
+under the circumstances. There was but a step from M. de Coralth's house
+to the baroness's residence, but fatalities may attend even a step! The
+baroness, on receiving the letter from her maid, had sent a message to
+Florent requesting him to wait, as she desired to speak with him! and
+she had been so inconsiderate as to keep him waiting for more than an
+hour, so that he had missed his appointment with the charming ladies he
+had spoken of. In his despair he had returned home to seek consolation
+in the society of his friend the concierge. "Have you the answer?" he
+asked.
+
+"Yes, here it is," replied Chupin, and Florent had just slipped the
+letter into his pocket, and was engaged in counting out the thirty
+sous which he had promised his messenger, when the familiar cry, "Open,
+please," was heard outside.
+
+M. de Coralth had returned. He sprang to the ground as soon as the
+carriage entered the courtyard, and on perceiving his servant, he
+exclaimed: "Have you executed my commissions?"
+
+"They have been executed, monsieur."
+
+"Did you see the baroness?"
+
+"She made me wait two hours to tell me that the viscount need not be
+worried in the least; that she would certainly be able to comply with
+his request to-morrow."
+
+M. de Coralth seemed to breathe more freely. "And the other party?" he
+inquired.
+
+"Gave me this for monsieur."
+
+The viscount seized the missive, with an eager hand, tore it open, read
+it at one glance, and flew into such a paroxysm of passion that he
+quite forgot those around him, and began to tear the letter, and utter
+a string of oaths which would have astonished a cab-driver. But suddenly
+realizing his imprudence, he mastered his rage, and exclaimed, with a
+forced laugh: "Ah! these women! they are enough to drive one mad!" And
+deeming this a sufficient explanation, he added, addressing Florent.
+"Come and undress me; I must be up early to-morrow morning."
+
+This remark was not lost upon Chupin, and at seven o'clock the next
+morning he mounted guard at M. de Coralth's door. All through the day he
+followed the viscount about, first to the Marquis de Valorsay's, then
+to the office of a business agent, then to M. Wilkie's, then, in the
+afternoon, to Baroness Trigault's, and finally, in the evening, to
+the house of Madame d'Argeles. Here, by making himself useful to the
+servants, by his zeal in opening and shutting the doors of the carriages
+that left the house, he succeeded in gathering some information
+concerning the frightful scene which had taken place between the mother
+and the son. He perceived M. Wilkie leave the house with his clothes in
+disorder, and subsequently he saw the viscount emerge. He followed
+him, first to the house of the Marquis de Valorsay, and afterward to M.
+Wilkie's rooms, where he remained till nearly daybreak.
+
+Thus, when Chupin presented himself in M. Fortunat's office at two
+o'clock on the Tuesday afternoon, he felt that he held every possible
+clue to the shameful intrigue which would ruin the viscount as soon as
+it was made public.
+
+M. Fortunat knew that his agent was shrewd, but he had not done justice
+to his abilities; and it was, indeed, with something very like envy that
+he listened to Chupin's clear and circumstantial report. "I have not
+been as successful," he remarked, when Chupin's story was ended. But he
+had not time to explain how or why, for just as he was about to do so,
+Madame Dodelin appeared, and announced that the young lady he expected
+was there. "Let her come in!" exclaimed M. Fortunat, eagerly--"let her
+come in!"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had not been compelled to resort to any
+subterfuge to make her escape from Madame de Fondege's house. The
+General had decamped early in the morning to try his horses and his
+carriages, announcing, moreover, that he would breakfast at the club.
+And as soon as her breakfast was concluded, Madame de Fondege had
+hurried off to her dressmaker's, warning the household that she would
+not return before dinner-time. A little while later, Madame Leon had
+suddenly remembered that her noble relative would certainly be expecting
+a visit from her, and so she dressed herself in haste, and went off,
+first to Dr. Jodon's and thence to the Marquis de Valorsay's.
+
+Thus, Mademoiselle Marguerite had been able to make her escape without
+attracting any one's attention, and she would be able to remain away as
+many hours as she chose, since the servants would not know how long she
+had been absent even if they saw her when she returned. An empty cab was
+passing as she left the house, so she hailed it and got in. The step she
+was about to take cost her a terrible effort. It was a difficult task
+for her, a girl naturally so reserved, to confide in a stranger, and
+open to him her maidenly heart, filled with love for Pascal Ferailleur!
+Still, she was much calmer than she had been on the previous evening,
+when she called on the photographer for a facsimile of M. de Valorsay's
+letter. Several circumstances combined to reassure her. M. Fortunat
+knew her already, since he was the agent whom the Count de Chalusse
+had employed to carry on the investigations which had resulted in her
+discovery at the foundling asylum. A vague presentiment told her that
+this man was better acquainted with her past life than she was herself,
+and that he could, if he chose, tell her her mother's name--the name of
+the woman whom the count so dreaded, and who had so pitilessly deserted
+her. However, her heart beat more quickly, and she felt that she was
+turning pale when, at Madame Dodelin's invitation, she at last entered
+M. Fortunat's private office. She took in the room and its occupants
+with a single glance. The handsome appointments of the office surprised
+her, for she had expected to see a den. The agent's polite manner and
+rather elegant appearance disconcerted her, for she had expected to
+meet a coarse and illiterate boor; and finally, Victor Chupin, who was
+standing twisting his cap near the fireplace, attired in a blouse and
+a pair of ragged trousers, fairly alarmed her. Still, no sign of her
+agitation was perceptible on her countenance. Not a muscle of her
+beautiful, proud face moved--her glance remained clear and haughty, and
+she exclaimed in a ringing voice: "I am the late Count de Chalusse's
+ward, Mademoiselle Marguerite. You have received my letter, I suppose?"
+
+M. Fortunat bowed with all the grace of manner he was wont to display in
+the circles where he went wife-hunting, and with a somewhat pretentious
+gesture he advanced an arm-chair, and asked his visitor to sit down.
+"Your letter reached me, mademoiselle," he replied, "and I was expecting
+you--flattered and honored beyond expression by your confidence. My
+door, indeed, was closed to any one but you."
+
+Marguerite took the proffered seat, and there was a moment's silence.
+M. Fortunat found it difficult to believe that this beautiful, imposing
+young girl could be the poor little apprentice whom he had seen in
+the book-bindery, years before, clad in a coarse serge frock, with
+dishevelled hair covered with scraps of paper. In the meantime,
+Marguerite was regretting the necessity of confiding in this man, for
+the more she looked at him, the more she was convinced that he was
+not an honest, straightforward person; and she would infinitely have
+preferred a cynical scoundrel to this plausible and polite gentleman,
+whom she strongly suspected of being a hypocrite. She remained silent,
+waiting for M. Fortunat to dismiss the young man in the blouse, whose
+presence she could not explain, and who stood in a sort of mute ecstasy,
+staring at her with eyes expressive of the most intense surprise and
+the liveliest admiration. But weary at last of this fruitless delay, she
+exclaimed: "I have come, monsieur, to confer with you respecting certain
+matters which require the most profound secrecy."
+
+Chupin understood her, for he blushed to the tips of his ears, and
+started as if to leave the room. But his employer detained him with a
+gesture.
+
+"Remain, Victor," he said kindly, and, turning to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, he added: "You have no indiscretion to fear from this worthy
+fellow, mademoiselle. He knows everything, and he has already been
+actively at work--and with the best result--on your behalf."
+
+"I don't understand you, sir," replied the girl.
+
+M. Fortunat smiled sweetly. "I have already taken your business in hand,
+mademoiselle," said he. "An hour after the receipt of your letter I
+began the campaign."
+
+"But I had not told you----"
+
+"What you wished of me--that's true. But I allowed myself to
+suspect----"
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"I fancied I might conclude that you wished the help of my experience
+and poor ability in clearing an innocent man who has been vilely
+slandered, M. Pascal Ferailleur."
+
+Marguerite sprang to her feet, at once agitated and alarmed. "How did
+you know this?" she exclaimed.
+
+M. Fortunat had left his arm-chair, and was now leaning against the
+mantel-shelf, in what he considered a most becoming and awe-inspiring
+attitude, with his thumb in the armhole of his waistcoat. "Ah! nothing
+could be more simple," he answered, in much the same tone as a conqueror
+might assume to explain his feat. "It is part of my profession to
+penetrate the intentions of persons who deign to honor me with their
+confidence. So my surmises are correct; at least you have not said the
+contrary?"
+
+She had said nothing. When her first surprise was over, she vainly
+endeavored to find a plausible explanation of M. Fortunat's acquaintance
+with her affairs, for she was not at all deceived by his pretended
+perspicacity. Meanwhile, delighted by the supposed effect he had
+produced, he recklessly continued: "Reserve your amazement for what I
+am about to disclose, for I have made several important discoveries. It
+must have been your good angel who inspired you with the idea of coming
+to me. You would have shuddered if you had realized the dangers that
+threatened you. But now you have nothing to fear; I am watching. I am
+here, and I hold in my hand all the threads of the abominable intrigue
+for ruining you. For it is you, your person, and your fortune that
+are imperilled. It was solely on your account that M. Ferailleur was
+attacked. And I can tell you the names of the scoundrels who ruined him.
+The crime originated with the person who had the most powerful interest
+in the matter--the Marquis de Valorsay. His agent was a scoundrel who is
+generally known as the Viscount de Coralth; but Chupin here can tell you
+his real name and his shameful past. You preferred M. Ferailleur, hence
+it was necessary to put him out of the way. M. de Chalusse had promised
+your hand to the Marquis de Valorsay. This marriage was Valorsay's only
+resource--the plank that might save the drowning man. People fancy he is
+rich; but he is ruined. Yes, ruined completely, irretrievably. He was in
+such desperate straits that he had almost determined to blow his brains
+out before the hope of marrying you entered his mind."
+
+"Ah!" thought Chupin, "my employer is well under way."
+
+This was indeed the case. The name of Valorsay was quite sufficient
+to set all M. Fortunat's bile in motion. All thought of his ex-client
+irritated him beyond endurance. Unfortunately for him, however, his
+anger in the present instance had ruined his plans. He had intended to
+take Mademoiselle Marguerite by surprise, to work upon her imagination,
+to make her talk without saying anything himself, and to remain master
+of the situation. But on the contrary he had revealed everything; and
+he did not discover this until it was too late to retrieve his blunder.
+"How the Marquis de Valorsay has kept his head above water is a wonder
+to me," he continued. "His creditors have been threatening to sue him
+for more than six months. How he has been able to keep them quiet since
+M. de Chalusse's death, I cannot understand. However, this much is
+certain, mademoiselle: the marquis has not renounced his intention of
+becoming your husband; and to attain that object he won't hesitate to
+employ any means that may promise to prove effectual."
+
+Completely mistress of herself, Mademoiselle Marguerite listened with an
+impassive face. "I know all this," she replied, in a frigid tone.
+
+"What! you know----"
+
+"Yes; but there is one thing that baffles my powers of comprehension. My
+dowry was the only temptation to M. de Valorsay, was it not? Why does he
+still wish to marry me, now that I have no fortune?"
+
+M. Fortunat had gradually lost all his advantage. "I have asked myself
+the same question," he replied, "and I think I have found an answer. I
+believe that the marquis has in his possession a letter, or a will, or a
+document of some sort, written by M. de Chalusse--in fact an instrument
+in which the count acknowledges you as his daughter, and which
+consequently establishes; your right to his property."
+
+"And the marquis could urge this claim if he became my husband?"
+
+"Certainly he could."
+
+M. Fortunat explained M. de Valorsay's conduct exactly as the old
+magistrate had done. However, Mademoiselle Marguerite discreetly
+refrained from committing herself. The great interest that M. Fortunat
+seemed to take in her affairs aroused her distrust; and she decided
+to do what he had attempted in vain--that is, allow him to do all the
+talking, and to conceal all that she knew herself. "Perhaps you are
+right," she remarked, "but it is necessary to prove the truth of your
+assertion."
+
+"I can prove that Valorsay hasn't a shilling, and that he has lived for
+a year by expedients which render him liable to arrest and prosecution
+at any time. I can prove that he deceived M. de Chalusse as to his
+financial position. I can prove that he conspired with M. de Coralth to
+ruin your lover. Wouldn't this be something?"
+
+She smiled in a way that was exceedingly irritating to his vanity, and
+in a tone of good-natured incredulity, she remarked: "It is easy to SAY
+these things."
+
+"And to do them," rejoined M. Fortunat, quickly. "I never promise what I
+cannot perform. A man should never touch a pen when he is meditating any
+evil act. Of course, no one is fool enough to write down his infamy in
+detail. But a man cannot always be on the qui vive. There will be a word
+in one letter, a sentence in another, an allusion in a third. And by
+combining these words, phrases, and allusions, one may finally discover
+the truth."
+
+He suddenly checked himself, warned of his fresh imprudence by the
+expression on Mademoiselle Marguerite's face. She drew back, and looking
+him full in the eyes, she exclaimed: "Then you have been in M. de
+Valorsay's confidence, sir? Would you be willing to swear that you never
+helped him in his designs?"
+
+A silent and ignored witness of this scene, Victor Chupin was secretly
+delighted. "Hit!" he thought--"hit just in the bull's-eye. Zounds!
+there's a woman for you! She has beaten the guv'nor on every point."
+
+M. Fortunat was so taken by surprise that he made no attempt to deny
+his guilt. "I confess that I acted as M. de Valorsay's adviser for some
+time," he replied, "and he frequently spoke to me of his intention of
+marrying a rich wife in order to retrieve his shattered fortunes. Upon
+my word, I see nothing so very bad about that! It is not a strictly
+honest proceeding, perhaps, but it is done every day. What is marriage
+in this age? Merely a business transaction, is it not? Perhaps it would
+be more correct to say that it is a transaction in which one person
+tries to cheat the other. The fathers-in-law are deceived, or the
+husband, or the wife, and sometimes all of them together. But when I
+discovered this scheme for mining M. Ferailleur, I cried 'halt!' My
+conscience revolted at that. Dishonor an innocent man! It was base,
+cowardly, outrageous! And not being able to prevent this infamous act, I
+swore that I would avenge it."
+
+Would Mademoiselle Marguerite accept this explanation? Chupin feared so,
+and accordingly turning quickly to his employer, he remarked: "To
+say nothing of the fact that this fine gentleman has swindled you
+outrageously, shrewd as you are--cheating you out of the forty thousand
+francs you lent him, and which he was to pay you eighty thousand for."
+
+M. Fortunat cast a withering look at his clerk, but the mischief was
+done: denial was useless. He seemed fated to blunder in this affair.
+"Well, yes," he declared, "it's true. Valorsay HAS defrauded me, and I
+have sworn to have my revenge. I won't rest until I see him ruined."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was partially reassured, for she understood
+his zeal now. Her scorn for the man was only increased; but she was
+convinced that he would serve her faithfully. "I like this much better,"
+said she. "It is better to have no concealment. You desire M. de
+Valorsay's ruin. I desire the rehabilitation of M. Ferailleur. So our
+interests are in common. But before acting in this matter, we must know
+M. Ferailleur's wishes."
+
+"They cannot be considered."
+
+"And why?"
+
+"Because no one knows what has become of him. When the desire for
+revenge first took possession of me, I at once thought of him. I
+procured his address, and went to the Rue d'Ulm. But he had gone away.
+The very day after his misfortune, M. Ferailleur sold his furniture and
+went away with his mother."
+
+"I am aware of that, and I have come to ask you to search for him. To
+discover his hiding-place will be only child's play to you."
+
+"Do you suppose I haven't thought of this?" replied M. Fortunat. "Why, I
+spent all day yesterday searching for him. By questioning the people
+in the neighborhood I finally succeeded in ascertaining that Madame
+Ferailleur left her home in a cab several hours after her son, and took
+a very large quantity of baggage with her. Well, do you know where she
+drove? To the Western railway station. I am sure of this, and I know she
+told a porter there that her destination was London. M. Ferailleur is
+now en route for America, and we shall never hear of him again!"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite shook her head. "You are mistaken, sir," said
+she.
+
+"There can be no mistake about what I have just told you."
+
+"I don't question the result of your investigations, but appearances are
+deceitful. I thoroughly understand M. Ferailleur's character, and he is
+not the man to be crushed by an infamous calumny. He may seem to fly, he
+may disappear, he may conceal himself for a time, but it is only to
+make his vengeance more certain. What! Pascal, who is energy itself, who
+possesses an iron will, and invincible determination, would he renounce
+his honor, his future, and the woman he loves without a struggle? If he
+had felt that his case was hopeless, he would have destroyed himself,
+and as he has not done so, he is not without hope. He has not left
+Paris; I am sure of it."
+
+M. Fortunat was not convinced. In his opinion this was only sentiment
+and rubbish. Still there was one person present who was deeply impressed
+by the confidence of this young girl, who was the most beautiful
+creature he had ever seen, and whose devotion and energy filled his
+heart with admiration, and this person was Chupin. He stepped forward
+with his eyes sparkling with enthusiasm, and in a feeling voice he
+exclaimed: "I understand your idea! Yes, M. Ferailleur is in Paris. And
+I shall be unworthy of the name of Chupin, if I don't find him for you
+in less than a fortnight!"
+
+
+
+
+XII.
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite knew Pascal Ferailleur. Suddenly struck down in
+the full sunlight of happiness by a terrible misfortune, he, of course,
+experienced moments of frenzy and terrible depression; but he was
+incapable of the cowardice which M. Fortunat had accused him of.
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite only did him justice when she said that the sole
+condition on which he could consent to live was that of consecrating his
+life, and all his strength, intelligence and will to confounding this
+infamous calumny. And still she did not know the extent of Pascal's
+misfortune. How could she suppose that he believed himself deserted by
+her? How could she know the doubts and fears and the anguish that had
+been roused in his heart by the note which Madame Leon had given him at
+the garden gate? What did she know of the poignant suspicions that
+had rent his mind, after listening to Madame Vantrasson's disparaging
+insinuations?
+
+It must be admitted that he was indebted to his mother alone for his
+escape from suicide--that grim madness that seizes hold of so many
+desperate, despairing men. And it was still to his mother--the
+incomparable guardian of his honor--that he owed his resolution on the
+morning he applied to Baron Trigault. And his courage met with its first
+reward.
+
+He was no longer the same man when he left the princely mansion which
+he had entered with his heart so full of anguish. He was still somewhat
+bewildered with the strange scenes which he had involuntarily witnessed,
+the secrets he had overheard, and the revelations which had been made to
+him; but a light gleamed on the horizon--a fitful and uncertain light,
+it is true, but nevertheless a hopeful gleam. At least, he would no
+longer have to struggle alone. An honest and experienced man, powerful
+by reason of his reputation, his connections and his fortune, had
+promised him his help. Thanks to this man whom misfortune had made a
+truer friend than years could have done, he would have access to the
+wretch who had deprived him both of his honor and of the woman he loved.
+He knew the weak spot in the marquis's armor now; he knew where and how
+to strike, and he felt sure that he should succeed in winning Valorsay's
+confidence, and in obtaining irrefutable proofs of his villainy.
+
+Pascal was eager to inform his mother of the fortunate result of his
+visit, but certain arrangements which were needful for the success of
+his plans required his attention, and it was nearly five o'clock when
+he reached the Route de la Revolte. Madame Ferailleur was just returning
+home when he arrived, which surprised him considerably, for he had not
+known that she had intended going out. The cab she had used was still
+standing before the door, and she had not had time to take off her
+shawl and bonnet when he entered the house. She uttered a joyful cry on
+perceiving her son. She was so accustomed to read his secret thoughts on
+his face, that it was unnecessary for him to say a word; before he had
+even opened his lips, she cried: "So you have succeeded?"
+
+"Yes, mother, beyond my hopes."
+
+"I was not deceived, then, in the worthy man who came to offer us his
+assistance?"
+
+"No, certainly not. Do what I may, I can never repay him for his
+generosity and self-denial. If you knew, my dear mother, if you only
+knew----"
+
+"What?"
+
+He kissed her as if he wished to apologize for what he was about to say,
+and then he quickly replied: "Marguerite is the daughter of Baroness
+Trigault."
+
+Madame Ferailleur started back, as if she had seen a reptile spring up
+in her pathway. "The daughter of the baroness!" she faltered. "Great
+Heavens!"
+
+"It is the truth, mother; listen to me." And in a voice that trembled
+with emotion, he rapidly related all he had learned by his visit to the
+baron, softening the truth as much as he could without concealing it.
+But prevarication was useless. Madame Ferailleur's indignation
+and disgust were none the less evident. "That woman is a shameless
+creature," she said, coldly, when her son's narrative was concluded.
+
+Pascal made no reply. He knew only too well that his mother was right,
+and yet it wounded him cruelly to hear her speak in this style. For the
+baroness was Marguerite's mother after all.
+
+"So," continued Madame Ferailleur, with increasing indignation,
+"creatures do exist who are destitute even of the maternal instincts
+of animals. I am an honest woman myself; I don't say it in
+self-glorification, it's no credit to me; my mother was a saint, and I
+loved my husband; what some people call duty was my happiness, so I may
+be allowed to speak on this subject. I don't excuse infidelity, but I
+can understand how such a thing is possible. Yes, I can understand how a
+beautiful young woman, who is left alone in a city like Paris, may lose
+her senses, and forget the worthy man who has exiled himself for her
+sake, and who is braving a thousand dangers to win a fortune for her.
+The husband who exposes his honor and happiness to such terrible risk,
+is an imprudent man. But when this woman has erred, when she has given
+birth to a child, how she can abandon it, how she can cast it off as
+if it were a dog, I cannot comprehend. I could imagine infanticide more
+easily. No, such a woman has no heart, no bowels of compassion. There is
+nothing human in her! For how could she live, how could she sleep with
+the thought that somewhere in the world her own child, the flesh of her
+flesh, was exposed to all the temptations of poverty, and the horrors of
+shame and vice? And she, the possessor of millions, she, the inmate of a
+palace, thinking only of dress and pleasure! How was it that she didn't
+ask herself every minute, 'Where is my daughter now, and what is she
+doing? What is she living on? Has she shelter, clothes and food? To what
+depths of degradation she may have sunk? Perhaps she has so far lived by
+honest toil, and perhaps at this very moment this support fails her, and
+she is abandoning herself to a life of infamy.' Great God! how does this
+woman dare to step out of doors? On seeing the poor wretches who have
+been driven to vice by want, how can she fail to say to herself: 'That,
+perhaps, is my daughter!'"
+
+Pascal turned pale, moved to the depths of his soul by his mother's
+extraordinary vehemence. He trembled lest she should say: "And you,
+my son, would you marry the child of such a mother?" For he knew his
+mother's prejudices, and the great importance she attached to a
+spotless reputation transmitted from parent to child, from generation to
+generation. "The baroness knew that her husband adored her, and hearing
+of his return she became terrified; she lost her senses," he ventured to
+say in extenuation.
+
+"Would you try to defend her?" exclaimed Madame Ferailleur. "Do you
+really think one can atone for a fault by a crime?"
+
+"No, certainly not, but----"
+
+"Perhaps you would censure the baroness more severely if you knew what
+her daughter has suffered--if you knew the perils and miseries she has
+been exposed to from the moment her mother left her on a door-step, near
+the central markets, till the day when her father found her. It is a
+miracle that she did not perish."
+
+Where had Madame Ferailleur learned these particulars? Pascal asked
+himself this question without being able to answer it. "I don't
+understand you, mother," he faltered.
+
+"Then you know nothing of Mademoiselle Marguerite's past life. Is it
+possible she never told you anything about it?"
+
+"I only know that she has been very unhappy."
+
+"Has she never alluded to the time when she was an apprentice?"
+
+"She has only told me that she earned her living with her own hands at
+one time of her life."
+
+"Well, I am better informed on the subject."
+
+Pascal's amazement was changed to terror. "You, mother, you!"
+
+"Yes; I--I have been to the asylum where she was received and educated.
+I have had a conversation with two Sisters of Charity who remember
+her, and it is scarcely an hour since I left the people to whom she was
+formerly bound as an apprentice."
+
+Standing opposite his mother with one hand convulsively clutching the
+back of the chair he was leaning on, Pascal tried to nerve himself for
+some terrible blow. For was not his life at stake? Did not his whole
+future depend upon the revelations Madame Ferailleur was about to make?
+"So this was your object in going out, mother?" he faltered.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And you went without warning me?"
+
+"Was it necessary? What! you love a young girl, you swear in my presence
+that she shall be your wife, and you think it strange that I should
+try to ascertain whether she is worthy of you or not? It would be very
+strange if I did not do so."
+
+"This idea occurred to you so suddenly!"
+
+Madame Ferailleur gave an almost imperceptible shrug of the shoulders,
+as if she were astonished to have to answer such puerile objections.
+"Have you already forgotten the disparaging remarks made by our new
+servant, Madame Vantrasson?"
+
+"Good Heavens!"
+
+"I understood her base insinuations as well as you did, and after your
+departure I questioned her, or rather I allowed her to tell her
+story, and I ascertained that Mademoiselle Marguerite had once been an
+apprentice of Vantrasson's brother-in-law, a man named Greloux, who was
+formerly a bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis, but who has now retired
+from business. It was there that Vantrasson met Mademoiselle Marguerite,
+and this is why he was so greatly surprised to see her doing the
+mistress at the Hotel de Chalusse."
+
+It seemed to Pascal that the throbbing of his heart stopped his breath.
+
+"By a little tact I obtained the Greloux's address from Madame
+Vantrasson," resumed his mother. "Then I sent for a cab and drove there
+at once."
+
+"And you saw them?"
+
+"Yes; thanks to a falsehood which doesn't trouble my conscience much, I
+succeeded in effecting an entrance, and had an hour's conversation with
+them." His mother's icy tones frightened Pascal. Her slowness tortured
+him, and still he dared not press her. "The Greloux family," she
+continued, "seem to be what are called worthy people, that is, incapable
+of committing any crime that is punishable by the code, and very proud
+of their income of seven thousand francs a year. They must have been
+very much attached to Mademoiselle Marguerite, for they were lavish in
+their protestations of affection when I mentioned her name. The husband
+in particular seemed to regard her with a feeling of something like
+gratitude."
+
+"Ah! you see, mother, you see!"
+
+"As for the wife, it was easy to see that she had sincerely regretted
+the loss of the best apprentice, the most honest servant, and the best
+worker she had ever seen in her life. And yet, from her own story, I
+should be willing to swear that she had abused the poor child, and had
+made a slave of her." Tears glittered in Pascal's eyes, but he breathed
+freely once more. "As for Vantrasson," resumed Madame Ferailleur, "it
+is certain that he took a violent fancy to his sister's apprentice. This
+man, who has since become an infamous scoundrel, was then only a rake,
+an unprincipled drunkard and libertine. He fancied the poor little
+apprentice--she was then but thirteen years old--would be only too glad
+to become the mistress of her employer's brother; but she scornfully
+repulsed him, and his vanity was so deeply wounded that he persecuted
+the poor girl to such an extent that she was obliged to complain, first
+to Madame Greloux, who--to her shame be it said--treated these insults
+as mere nonsense; and afterward to Greloux himself, who was probably
+delighted to have an opportunity of ridding himself of his indolent
+brother-in-law, for he turned him out of the house."
+
+The thought that so vile a rascal as this man Vantrasson should have
+dared to insult Marguerite made Pascal frantic with indignation. "The
+wretch!" he exclaimed; "the wretch!" But without seeming to notice her
+son's anger, Madame Ferailleur continued: "They pretended they had not
+seen their former apprentice since she had been living in grandeur,
+as they expressed it. But in this they lied to me. For they saw her at
+least once, and that was on the day she brought them twenty thousand
+francs, which proved the nucleus of their fortune. They did not mention
+this fact, however."
+
+"Dear Marguerite!" murmured Pascal, "dear Marguerite!" And then aloud:
+"But where did you learn these last details, mother?" he inquired.
+
+"At the asylum where Mademoiselle Marguerite was brought up, and there,
+too, I only heard words of praise. 'Never,' said the superior, 'have I
+had a more gifted, sweeter-tempered or more attractive charge.' They had
+reproached her sometimes for being too reserved, and her self-respect
+had often been mistaken for inordinate pride; but she had not forgotten
+the asylum any more than she had forgotten her former patrons. On one
+occasion the superior received from her the sum of twenty-five thousand
+francs, and a year ago she presented the institution with one hundred
+thousand francs, the yearly income of which is to constitute the
+marriage dowry of some deserving orphan."
+
+Pascal was greatly elated. "Well, mother!" he exclaimed, "well, is
+it strange that I love her?" Madame Ferailleur made no reply, and a
+sorrowful apprehension seized hold of him. "You are silent," said he,
+"and why? When the blessed day that will allow me to wed Marguerite
+arrives, you surely won't oppose our marriage?"
+
+"No, my son, nothing that I have learned gives me the right to do so."
+
+"The right! Ah, you are unjust, mother."
+
+"Unjust! Haven't I faithfully reported all that was told me, although I
+knew it would only increase your passion?"
+
+"That's true, but----"
+
+Madame Ferailleur sadly shook her head. "Do you think," she interrupted,
+"that I can, without sorrow, see you choose a girl of no family, a girl
+who is outside the pale of social recognition? Don't you understand
+my disquietude when I think that the girl that you will marry is the
+daughter of such a woman as Baroness Trigault, an unfortunate girl
+whom her mother cannot even recognize, since her mother is a married
+woman----"
+
+"Ah! mother, is that Marguerite's fault?"
+
+"Did I say it was her fault? No--I only pray God that you may never
+have to repent of choosing a wife whose past life must ever remain an
+impenetrable mystery!"
+
+Pascal had become very pale. "Mother!" he said in a quivering voice,
+"mother!"
+
+"I mean that you will only know so much of Mademoiselle Marguerite's
+past life as she may choose to tell you," continued the obdurate old
+lady. "You heard Madame Vantrasson's ignoble allegations. It has been
+said that she was the mistress, not the daughter, of the Count de
+Chalusse. Who knows what vile accusations you may be forced to meet?
+And what is your refuge, if doubts should ever assail you? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite's word! Will this be sufficient? It is now, perhaps; but will
+it suffice in years to come? I would have my son's wife above suspicion;
+and she--why, there is not a single episode in her life that does not
+expose her to the most atrocious calumny."
+
+"What does calumny matter? it will never shake my faith in her. The
+misfortunes which you reproach Marguerite for sanctify her in my eyes."
+
+"Pascal!"
+
+"What! Am I to scorn her because she has been unfortunate? Am I to
+regard her birth as a crime? Am I to despise her because her MOTHER is
+a despicable woman? No--God be praised! the day when illegitimate
+children, the innocent victims of their mother's faults, were branded as
+outcasts, is past."
+
+But Madame Ferailleur's prejudices were too deeply rooted to be shaken
+by these arguments. "I won't discuss this question, my son," she
+interrupted, "but take care. By declaring children irresponsible for
+their mother's faults, you will break the strongest tie that binds a
+woman to duty. If the son of a pure and virtuous wife, and the son of
+an adulterous woman meet upon equal ground, those who are held in check
+only by the thought of their children will finally say to themselves,
+what does it matter?"
+
+It was the first time that a cloud had ever arisen between mother and
+son. On hearing his dearest hopes thus attacked, Pascal was tempted
+to rebel, and a flood of bitter words rose to his lips. However he had
+strength enough to control himself. "Marguerite alone can triumph over
+these implacable prejudices," he thought; "when my mother knows her, she
+will feel how unjust they are!"
+
+And as he found it difficult to remain master of himself, he stammered
+some excuse, and abruptly retired to his own room, where he threw
+himself on his bed. He felt that it was not his place to reproach his
+mother or censure her for her opinions. What mother had ever been so
+devoted as she had been? And who knows?--it was, perhaps, from these
+same rigid prejudices that this simple-minded and heroic woman had
+derived her energy, her enthusiastic love of God, her hatred of evil,
+and that virility of spirit which misfortune had been powerless to
+daunt. Besides, had she not promised to offer no opposition to his
+marriage! And was not this a great concession, a sacrifice which must
+have cost her a severe struggle? And where can one find the mother
+who does not count as one of the sublime joys of maternity the task of
+seeking a wife for her son, of choosing from among all others the young
+girl who will be the companion of his life, the angel of his dark and of
+his prosperous days? His mind was occupied with these thoughts when his
+door suddenly opened, and he sprang up, exclaiming: "Who is it?"
+
+It was Madame Vantrasson, who came to announce that dinner was
+ready--a dinner which she had herself prepared, for on going out Madame
+Ferailleur had left her in charge of the household. On seeing this
+woman, Pascal was overcome with rage and indignation, and felt a wild
+desire to annihilate her. He knew that she was only a vile slanderer,
+but she might meet other beings as vile as herself who would be only too
+glad to believe her falsehoods. And to think that he was powerless to
+punish her! He now realized the suffering his mother had spoken of--the
+most atrocious suffering which the lover can endure--powerlessness to
+protect the object of his affections, when she is assailed. Engrossed
+in these gloomy thoughts, Pascal preserved a sullen silence during the
+repast. He ate because his mother filled his plate; but if he had been
+questioned, he could scarcely have told what he was eating. And yet, the
+modest dinner was excellent. Madame Vantrasson was really a good cook,
+and in this first effort in her new situation she had surpassed herself.
+Her vanity as a cordon-bleu was piqued because she did not receive the
+compliments she expected, and which she felt she deserved. Four or five
+times she asked impatiently, "Isn't that good?" and as the only reply
+was a scarcely enthusiastic "Very good," she vowed she would never again
+waste so much care and talent upon such unappreciative people.
+
+Madame Ferailleur was as silent as her son, and seemed equally anxious
+to finish with the repast. She evidently wanted to get rid of Madame
+Vantrasson, and in fact as soon as the simple dessert had been placed
+on the table, she turned to her, and said: "You may go home now. I will
+attend to the rest."
+
+Irritated by the taciturnity of these strange folks, the landlady of the
+Model Lodging House withdrew, and they soon heard the street door close
+behind her with a loud bang as she left the house. Pascal drew a long
+breath as if relieved of a heavy weight. While Madame Vantrasson had
+been in the room he had scarcely dared to raise his eyes, so great was
+his dread of encountering the gaze of this woman, whose malignity was
+but poorly veiled by her smooth-tongued hypocrisy. He really feared he
+should not be able to resist his desire to strangle her. However, Madame
+Ferailleur must have understood her son's agitation, for as soon as
+they were alone, she said: "So you have not forgiven me for my plain
+speaking?"
+
+"How can I be angry with you, mother, when I know that you are thinking
+only of my happiness? But how sorry I shall be if your prejudices----"
+
+Madame Ferailleur checked him with a gesture. "Let us say no more on the
+subject," she remarked. "Mademoiselle Marguerite will be the innocent
+cause of one of the greatest disappointments of my life; but I have no
+reason to hate her--and I have always been able to show justice even to
+the persons I loved the least. I have done so in this instance, and I am
+going perhaps to give you a convincing proof of it."
+
+"A proof?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+She reflected for a moment and then she asked: "Did you not tell me,
+my son, that Mademoiselle Marguerite's education has not suffered on
+account of her neglected childhood?"
+
+"And it's quite true, mother."
+
+"She worked diligently, you said, so as to improve herself?"
+
+"Marguerite knows all that an unusually talented girl can learn in four
+years, when she finds herself very unhappy, and study proves her only
+refuge and consolation."
+
+"If she wrote you a note would it be written grammatically, and be free
+from any mistakes in spelling?"
+
+"Oh, certainly!" exclaimed Pascal, and a sudden inspiration made
+him pause abruptly. He darted to his own room, and a minute later he
+returned with a package of letters, which he laid on the table, saying:
+"Here, mother, read and see for yourself."
+
+Madame Ferailleur drew her spectacles from their case, and, after
+adjusting them, she began to read.
+
+With his elbows on the table, and his head resting upon his hands,
+Pascal eagerly watched his mother, anxious to read her impressions
+on her face. She was evidently astonished. She had not expected these
+letters would express such nobility of sentiment, an energy no whit
+inferior to her own, and even an echo of her own prejudices. For this
+strange young girl shared Madame Ferailleur's rather bigoted opinions.
+Again and again she asked herself if her birth and past had not created
+an impassable abyss between Pascal and herself. And she had not felt
+satisfied on this point until the day when the gray-haired magistrate,
+after hearing her story, said: "If I had a son, I should be proud to
+have him beloved by you!"
+
+It soon became apparent that Madame Ferailleur was deeply moved, and
+once she even raised her glasses to wipe away a furtive tear which made
+Pascal's heart leap with very joy. "These letters are admirable," she
+said at last; "and no young girl, reared by a virtuous mother, could
+have given better expression to nobler sentiments; but----" She paused,
+not wishing to wound her son's feelings, and as he insisted, she added:
+
+"But, these letters have the irreparable fault of being addressed to
+you, Pascal!"
+
+This, however, was the expiring cry of her intractable obstinacy. "Now,"
+she resumed, "wait before you censure your mother." So saying, she rose,
+opened a drawer, and taking from it a torn and crumpled scrap of paper,
+she handed it to her son, exclaiming: "Read this attentively."
+
+This proved to be the note in pencil which Madame Leon had given to
+Pascal, and which he had divined rather than read by the light of the
+street-lamp; he had handed it to his mother on his return, and she had
+kept it. He had scarcely been in his right mind the evening he received
+it, but now he was enjoying the free exercise of all his faculties.
+He no sooner glanced at the note than he sprang up, and in an excited
+voice, exclaimed, "Marguerite never wrote this!"
+
+The strange discovery seemed to stupefy him. "I was mad, raving mad!" he
+muttered. "The fraud is palpable, unmistakable. How could I have failed
+to discover it?" And as if he felt the need of convincing himself that
+he was not deceived, he continued, speaking to himself rather than to
+his mother: "The hand-writing is not unlike Marguerite's, it's true; but
+it's only a clever counterfeit. And who doesn't know that all writings
+in pencil resemble each other more or less? Besides, it's certain that
+Marguerite, who is simplicity itself, would not have made use of such
+pretentious melodramatic phrases. How could I have been so stupid as to
+believe that she ever thought or wrote this: 'One cannot break a promise
+made to the dying; I shall keep mine even though my heart break.' And
+again: 'Forget, therefore, the girl who has loved you so much: she is
+now the betrothed of another, and honor requires she should forget even
+your name!'" He read these passages with an extravagant emphasis, which
+heightened their absurdity. "And what shall I say of these mistakes in
+spelling?" he resumed. "You noticed them, of course, mother?--command
+is written with a single 'm,' and supplicate with one 'p.' These are
+certainly not mistakes that we can attribute to haste! Ignorance is
+proved since the blunder is always the same. The forger is evidently in
+the habit of omitting one of the double letters."
+
+Madame Ferailleur listened with an impassive face. "And these mistakes
+are all the more inexcusable since this letter is only a copy," she
+observed, quietly.
+
+"What?"
+
+"Yes; a verbatim copy. Yesterday evening, while I was examining it for
+the twentieth time, it occurred to me that I had read some portions of
+it before. Where, and under what circumstances? It was a puzzle which
+kept me awake most of the night. But this morning I suddenly remembered
+a book which I had seen in the hands of the workmen at the factory,
+and which I had often laughed over. So, while I was out this morning I
+entered a book-shop, and purchased the volume. That's it, there on the
+corner of the mantel-shelf. Take it and see."
+
+Pascal obeyed, and noticed with surprise that the work was entitled,
+"The Indispensable and Complete Letter-writer, for Both Sexes, in Every
+Condition of Life."
+
+"Now turn to the page I have marked," said Madame Ferailleur.
+
+He did so, and read: "(Model 198). Letter from a young lady who has
+promised her dying father to renounce the man she loves, and to bestow
+her hand upon another." Doubt was no longer possible. Line for line and
+word for word, the mistakes in spelling excepted, the note was an exact
+copy of the stilted prose of the "Indispensable Letter-writer."
+
+It seemed to Pascal as if the scales had suddenly fallen from his eyes,
+and that he could now understand the whole intrigue which had been
+planned to separate him from Marguerite. His enemies had dishonored him
+in the hope that she would reject and scorn him, and, disappointed
+in their expectations, they had planned this pretended rupture of the
+engagement to prevent him from making any attempt at self-justification.
+So, in spite of some short-lived doubts, his love had been more
+clear-sighted than reason, and stronger than appearances. He had been
+quite right, then, in saying to his mother: "I can never believe that
+Marguerite deserts me at a moment when I am so wretched--that she
+condemns me unheard, and has no greater confidence in me than in my
+accusers. Appearances may indicate the contrary, but I am right."
+Certain circumstances, which had previously seemed contradictory,
+now strengthened this belief. "How is it," he said to himself, "that
+Marguerite writes to me that her father, on his death-bed, made her
+promise to renounce me, while Valorsay declares the Count de Chalusse
+died so suddenly, that he had not even time to acknowledge his daughter
+or to bequeath her his immense fortune? One of these stories must be
+false; and which of them? The one in this note most probably. As for the
+letter itself, it must have been the work of Madame Leon."
+
+If he had not already possessed irrefutable proofs of this, the
+"Indispensable Letter-writer" would have shown it. The housekeeper's
+perturbation when she met him at the garden gate was now explained. She
+was shuddering at the thought that she might be followed and watched,
+and that Marguerite might appear at any moment, and discover everything.
+
+"I think it would be a good plan to let this poor young girl know that
+her companion is Valorsay's spy," remarked Madame Ferailleur.
+
+Pascal was about to approve this suggestion, when a sudden thought
+deterred him. "They must be watching Marguerite very closely," he
+replied, "and if I attempt to see her, if I even venture to write to
+her, our enemies would undoubtedly discover it. And then, farewell to
+the success of my plans."
+
+"Then you prefer to leave her exposed to these dangers?"
+
+"Yes, even admitting there is danger, which is by no means certain.
+Owing to her past life, Marguerite's experience is far in advance of
+her years, and if some one told me that she had fathomed Madame Leon's
+character, I should not be at all surprised."
+
+It was necessary to ascertain what had become of Marguerite; and Pascal
+was puzzling his brain to discover how this might be done, when suddenly
+he exclaimed: "Madame Vantrasson! We have her; let us make use of her.
+It will be easy to find some excuse for sending her to the Hotel de
+Chalusse: she will gossip with the servants there, and in that way we
+can discover the changes that have taken place."
+
+This was a heroic resolution on Pascal's part, and one which he would
+have recoiled from the evening before. But it is easy to be brave when
+one is hopeful; and he saw his chances of success increase so rapidly
+that he no longer feared the obstacles that had once seemed almost
+insurmountable. Even his mother's opposition had ceased to alarm him.
+For why should he fear after the surprising proof she had given him of
+her love of justice, proving that the pretended letter from Mademoiselle
+Marguerite was really a forgery?
+
+He slept but little that night and did not stir from the house on the
+following day. He was busily engaged in perfecting his plan of attack
+against the marquis. His advantages were considerable, thanks to Baron
+Trigault, who had placed a hundred thousand francs at his disposal;
+but the essential point was to use this amount in such a way as to win
+Valorsay's confidence, and induce him to betray himself. Pascal's hours
+of meditation were not spent in vain, and when it became time for him to
+repair to his enemy's house, he said to his mother: "I've found a plan;
+and if the baron will let me follow it out, Valorsay is mine!"
+
+
+
+
+XIII.
+
+
+It was pure childishness on Pascal's part to doubt Baron Trigault's
+willingness to agree even with closed eyes to any measures he might
+propose. He ought to have recollected that their interests were
+identical, that they hated the same men with equal hatred, and that they
+were equally resolved upon vengeance. And certainly the events which had
+occurred since their last interview had not been of a nature to modify
+the baron's intentions. However, misfortune had rendered Pascal timid
+and suspicious, and it was not until he reached the baron's house that
+his fears vanished. The manner in which the servants received him proved
+that the baron greatly esteemed him: for the man must be stupid indeed
+who does not know that the greeting of the servants is ever in harmony
+with the feelings of the master of the house. "Will you be kind enough
+to follow me?" said the servant to whom he handed his card. "The baron
+is very busy, but that doesn't matter. He gave orders that monsieur
+should be shown up as soon as he arrived."
+
+Pascal followed without a word. The elegance of this princely abode
+never varied. The same careless, prodigal, regal luxury was apparent
+everywhere. The servants--whose name was legion--were always passing
+noiselessly to and fro. A pair of horses, worth at least a thousand
+louis, and harnessed to the baroness's brougham, were stamping and
+neighing in the courtyard; and the hall was, as usual, fragrant with the
+perfume of rare flowers, renewed every morning.
+
+On his first visit Pascal had only seen the apartments on the ground
+floor. This time his guide remarked that he would take him upstairs
+to the baron's private room. He was slowly ascending the broad marble
+staircase and admiring the bronze balustrade, the rich carpet, the
+magnificent frescoes, and the costly statuary, when a rustle of silk
+resounded near him. He had only time to step aside, and a lady passed
+him rapidly, without turning her head, or even deigning to look at him.
+She did not appear more than forty, and she was still very beautiful,
+with her golden hair dressed high on the back of her head. Her costume,
+brilliant enough in hue to frighten a cab horse, was extremely eccentric
+in cut; but it certainly set off her peculiar style of beauty to
+admirable advantage.
+
+"That's the baroness," whispered the servant, after she had passed.
+
+Pascal did not need to be told this. He had seen her but once, and then
+only for a second; but it had been under such circumstances that he
+should never forget her so long as he lived. And now he understood the
+strange and terrible impression which had been produced upon him when he
+saw her first. Mademoiselle Marguerite was the living prototype of this
+lady, save as regards the color of her hair. And there would have been
+no difference in this respect had the baroness allowed her locks to
+retain their natural tint. Her hair had been black, like Marguerite's,
+and black it had remained until she was thirty-five, when she bleached
+it to the fashionable color of the time. And every fourth day even now
+her hairdresser came to apply a certain compound to her head, after
+which she remained in the bright sunlight for several hours, so as to
+impart a livelier shade of gold to her dyed locks.
+
+Pascal had scarcely regained his composure, when the servant opened the
+door of an immense apartment as large as a handsome suite of rooms,
+and magnificently furnished. Here sat the baron, surrounded by several
+clerks, who were busily engaged in putting a pile of papers and
+documents in order.
+
+But as soon as Pascal entered, the baron rose, and cordially holding out
+his hand, exclaimed, "Ah! here you are at last, Monsieur Maumejan!"
+
+So he had not forgotten the name which Pascal had assumed. This was a
+favorable omen. "I called, monsieur----" began the young man.
+
+"Yes--I know--I know!" interrupted the baron. "Come, we must have a
+talk."
+
+And, taking Pascal's arm, he led him into his private sanctum, separated
+from the large apartment by folding-doors, which had been removed, and
+replaced by hangings. Once there he indicated by a gesture that they
+could be heard in the adjoining room, and that it was necessary to
+speak in a low tone. "You have no doubt come," said he, "for the money
+I promised that dear Marquis de Valorsay--I have it all ready for you;
+here it is." So saying, he opened an escritoire, and took out a large
+roll of bank-notes, which he handed to Pascal. "Here, count it," he
+added, "and see if the amount is correct."
+
+But Pascal, whose face had suddenly become as red as fire, did not utter
+a word in reply. On receiving this money a new but quite natural thought
+had entered his mind for the first time. "What is the matter?" inquired
+the baron, surprised by this sudden embarrassment. "What has happened to
+you?"
+
+"Nothing, monsieur, nothing! Only I was asking myself--if I ought--if I
+can accept this money."
+
+"Bah! and why not?"
+
+"Because if you lend it to M. de Valorsay, it is perhaps lost."
+
+"PERHAPS! You are polite----"
+
+"Yes, monsieur, you are right. I ought to have said that it is sure to
+be lost; and hence my embarrassment. Is it not solely on my account
+that you sacrifice a sum which would be a fortune to many men? Yes. Very
+well, then. I am asking myself if it is right for me to accept such a
+sacrifice, when it is by no means certain that I shall ever be able to
+requite it. Shall I ever have a hundred thousand francs to repay you?"
+
+"But isn't this money absolutely necessary to enable you to win
+Valorsay's confidence?"
+
+"Yes, and if it belonged to me I should not hesitate."
+
+Though the baron had formed a high estimate of Pascal's character, he
+was astonished and deeply touched by these scruples, and this excessive
+delicacy of feeling. Like most opulent men, he knew few poor people who
+wore their poverty with grace and dignity, and who did not snatch at a
+twenty-franc piece wherever they chanced to find it. "Ah, well, my dear
+Ferailleur," he said, kindly, "don't trouble yourself on this score.
+It's not at your request nor solely on your account that I make this
+sacrifice."
+
+"Oh!"
+
+"No; I give you my word of honor it isn't. Leaving you quite out of the
+question, I should still have lent Valorsay this money; and if you do
+not wish to take it to him, I shall send it by some one else."
+
+After that, Pascal could not demur any further. He took the baron's
+proffered hand and pressed it warmly, uttering only this one word, made
+more eloquent than any protestations by the fervor with which it was
+spoken: "Thanks!"
+
+The baron shrugged his shoulders good-naturedly, like a man who fails to
+see that he has done anything at all meritorious, or even worthy of the
+slightest acknowledgment. "And you must understand, my dear sir," he
+resumed, "that you can employ this sum as you choose, in advancing your
+interests, which are identical with mine. You can give the money to
+Valorsay at such a time and under such conditions as will best serve
+your plans. Give it to him in an hour or in a month, all at once or in
+fifty different instalments, as you please. Only use it like the rope
+one ties round a dog's neck before drowning him."
+
+The keenest penetration was concealed beneath the baron's careless
+good-nature. Pascal knew this, and feeling that his protector understood
+him, he said: "You overpower me with kindness."
+
+"Nonsense!"
+
+"You offer me just what I came to ask for."
+
+"So much the better."
+
+"But you will allow me to explain my intentions?"
+
+"It is quite unnecessary, my dear sir."
+
+"Excuse me; if I follow my present plan, I shall be obliged to ascribe
+certain sentiments, words, and even acts, to you, which you might
+perhaps disavow, and--"
+
+With a careless toss of the head, accompanied by a disdainful snap of
+the fingers, the baron interrupted him. "Set to work, and don't give
+yourself the slightest uneasiness about that. You may do whatever you
+like, if you only succeed in unmasking this dear marquis, and Coralth,
+his worthy acolyte. Show me up in whatever light you choose. Who will
+you be in Valorsay's eyes? Why, Maumejan, one of my business agents,
+and I can always throw the blame on you." And as if to prove that he had
+divined even the details of the scheme devised by his young friend, he
+added: "Besides, every one knows that a millionaire's business agent is
+anything but a pleasant person to deal with. A millionaire, who is not
+a fool, must always smile, and no matter how absurd the demands upon him
+may be, he must always answer: 'Yes, certainly, certainly--I should be
+only too happy!' But then he adds: 'You must arrange the matter with my
+agent. Confer with him.' And it is the unlucky agent who must object,
+declare that his employer has no money at his disposal just now, and
+finally say, 'No.'"
+
+Pascal was still disposed to insist, but the baron was obdurate. "Oh!
+enough, enough!" he exclaimed. "Don't waste precious time in idle
+discussion. The days are only twenty-four hours long: and as you see,
+I'm very busy, so busy that I've not touched a card since the day before
+yesterday. I am preparing a delightful surprise for Madame Trigault, my
+daughter, and my son-in-law. It has been rather a delicate operation,
+but I flatter myself that I have succeeded finely." And he laughed a
+laugh that was not pleasant to hear. "You see, I've had enough of
+paying several hundred thousand francs a year for the privilege of
+being sneered at by my wife, scorned by my daughter, swindled by my
+son-in-law, and vilified and anathematized by all three of them. I am
+still willing to go on paying, but only on conditions that they give
+me in return for my money, if not the reality, at least a show of love,
+affection, and respect. I'm determined to have the semblance of these
+things; I'm quite resolved on that. Yes, I will have myself treated with
+deference. I'll be petted and coddled and made much of, or else I'll
+suspend payment. It was one of my old friends, a parvenu like myself--a
+man whose domestic happiness I have envied for many years--who gave me
+this receipt: 'At home,' said he, 'with my wife, my daughters, and my
+sons-in-law, I'm like a peer of England at an hotel. I order first-class
+happiness at so much a month. If I get it I pay for it; if I don't get
+it, I cut off the supplies. When I get extras I pay for them cheerfully,
+without haggling. Follow my example, my old friend, and you'll have a
+comfortable life.' And I shall follow his advice, M. Ferailleur, for I
+am convinced that his theory is sound and practicable. I have led this
+life long enough. I'll spend my last days in peace, or, as God hears me,
+I'll let my family die of starvation!"
+
+His face was purple, and the veins on his forehead stood out like
+whipcords, but not so much from anger as from the constraint he imposed
+upon himself by speaking in a whisper. He drew a long breath, and then
+in a calmer tone, resumed: "But you must make haste and succeed, M.
+Ferailleur, if you don't want the young girl you love to be deprived
+of her rightful heritage. You do not know into what unworthy hands the
+Chalusse property is about to fall." He was on the point of telling
+Pascal the story of Madame d'Argeles and M. Wilkie, when he was
+interrupted by the sound of a lively controversy in the hall.
+
+"Who's taking such liberty in my house?" the baron began. But the
+next instant he heard some one fling open the door of the large room
+adjoining, and then a coarse, guttural voice called out: "What! he isn't
+here! This is too much!"
+
+The baron made an angry gesture. "That's Kami-Bey," said he, "the Turk
+whom I am playing that great game of cards with. The devil take him! He
+will be sure to force his way in here--so we may as well join him, M.
+Ferailleur."
+
+On reentering the adjoining apartment Pascal beheld a very corpulent
+man, with a very red face, a straggling beard, a flat nose, small,
+beadlike eyes, and sensual lips. He was clad in a black frock-coat,
+buttoned tight to the throat, and he wore a fez. This costume gave him
+the appearance of a chunky bottle, sealed with red wax. Such, indeed,
+was Kami-Bey, a specimen of those semi-barbarians, loaded with gold who
+are not attracted to Paris by its splendors and glories, but rather by
+its corruption--people who come there persuaded that money will purchase
+anything and everything, and who often return home with the same
+conviction. Kami was no doubt more impudent, more cynical and more
+arrogant than others of his class. As he was more wealthy, he had more
+followers; he had been more toadied and flattered, and victimized to
+a greater extent by the host of female intriguers, who look upon every
+foreigner as their rightful prey.
+
+He spoke French passably well, but with an abominable accent. "Here
+you are at last!" he exclaimed, as the baron entered the room. "I was
+becoming very anxious."
+
+"About what, prince?"
+
+Why Kami-Bey was called prince no one knew, not even the man himself.
+Perhaps it was because the lackey who opened his carriage door on his
+arrival at the Grand Hotel had addressed him by that title.
+
+"About what!" he repeated. "You have won more than three hundred
+thousand francs from me, and I was wondering if you intended to give me
+the slip."
+
+The baron frowned, and this time he omitted the title of prince
+altogether. "It seems to me, sir, that according to our agreement, we
+were to play until one of us had won five hundred thousand francs," he
+said haughtily.
+
+"That's true--but we ought to play every day."
+
+"Possibly: but I'm very busy just now. I wrote to you explaining this,
+did I not? If you are at all uneasy, tear up the book in which the
+results of our games are noted, and that shall be the end of it. You
+will gain considerably by the operation."
+
+Kami-Bey felt that the baron would not tolerate his arrogance, and so
+with more moderation he exclaimed: "It isn't strange that I've become
+suspicious. I'm so victimized on every side. Because I'm a foreigner
+and immensely rich, everybody fancies he has a right to plunder me. Men,
+women, hotel-keepers and merchants, all unite in defrauding me. If I
+buy pictures, they sell me vile daubs at fabulous prices. They ask
+ridiculous amounts for horses, and then give me worthless, worn-out
+animals. Everybody borrows money from me--and I'm never repaid. I shall
+be ruined if this sort of thing goes on much longer."
+
+He had taken a seat, and the baron saw that he was not likely to get
+rid of his guest very soon; so approaching Pascal he whispered: "You had
+better go off, or you may miss Valorsay. And be careful, mind; for he is
+exceedingly shrewd. Courage and good luck!"
+
+Courage! It was not necessary to recommend that to Pascal. He who had
+triumphed over his despair in the terrible hours, when he had reason to
+suppose that Marguerite believed him guilty and had abandoned him, could
+scarcely lack courage. While he was condemned to inaction, his mind had
+no doubt been assailed by countless doubts and fears; but now that he
+knew whom he was to attack--now that the decisive moment had come, he
+was endowed with indomitable energy; he had turned to bronze, and he
+felt sure that nothing could disconcert or even trouble him in future.
+The weapons he had to use were not at all to his taste, but he had not
+been allowed a choice in the matter; and since his enemies had decided
+on a warfare of duplicity, he was resolved to surpass them in cunning,
+and vanquish them by deception.
+
+So, while hastening to the Marquis de Valorsay's residence, he took
+stock of his chances, and recapitulated his resources, striving to
+foresee and remember everything. Thus if he failed--for he admitted the
+possibility of defeat, without believing in it--he would have no cause
+to reproach himself. Only fools find consolation in saying: "Who could
+have foreseen that?" Great minds do foresee. And Pascal felt almost
+certain that he was fully prepared for any emergency.
+
+That morning, before leaving home, he had dressed with extreme care,
+realizing that the shabby clothes he had worn on his first visit to the
+Trigault mansion would not be appropriate on such an occasion as this.
+The baron's agent could scarcely have a poverty-stricken appearance,
+for contact with millionaires is supposed to procure wealth as surely
+as proximity to fire insures warmth. So he arrayed himself in a suit
+of black, which was neither too elegant nor too much worn, and donned
+a broad white necktie. He could see only one immediate, decisive chance
+against him. M. de Valorsay might possibly recognize him. He thought
+not, but he was not sure; and anxious on this account, he at first
+decided to disguise himself. However, on reflection, he concluded not
+to do so. An imperfect disguise would attract attention and awaken
+suspicion; and could he really disguise his physiognomy? He was certain
+he could not. Very few men are capable of doing so successfully, even
+after long experience. Only two or three detectives and half a dozen
+actors possess the art of really changing their lineaments. Thus after
+weighing the pros and cons, Pascal determined to present himself as he
+was at the marquis's house.
+
+On approaching M. de Valorsay's residence in the Avenue des Champs
+Elysees, he slackened his pace. The mansion, which stood between a
+courtyard and a garden, was very large and handsome. The stables and
+carriage-house--really elegant structures--stood on either side of the
+courtyard, near the half-open gate of which five or six servants were
+amusing themselves by teasing a large dog. Pascal was just saying to
+himself that the coast was clear, and that he should incur no danger by
+going in, when he saw the servants step aside, the gate swing back, and
+M. de Coralth emerged, accompanied by a young, fair-haired man, whose
+mustaches were waxed and turned up in the most audacious fashion. They
+were arm in arm, and turned in the direction of the Arc de Triomphe.
+Pascal's heart thrilled with joy. "Fate favors me!" he said to himself.
+"If it hadn't been for Kami-Bey, who detained me a full quarter of an
+hour at Baron Trigault's, I should have found myself face to face with
+that miserable viscount, and then all would have been lost. But now I'm
+safe!"
+
+It was with this encouraging thought that he approached the house.
+
+"The marquis is very busy this morning," said the servant to whom Pascal
+addressed himself at the gate. "I doubt if he can see you." But when
+Pascal handed him one of his visiting cards, bearing the name of
+Maumejan, with this addition in pencil: "Who calls as the representative
+of Baron Trigault," the valet's face changed as if by enchantment.
+"Oh!" said he, "that's quite a different matter. If you come from Baron
+Trigault, you will be received with all the respect due to the Messiah.
+Come in. I will announce you myself."
+
+Everything in M. de Valorsay's house, as at the baron's residence,
+indicated great wealth, and yet a close observer would have detected a
+difference. The luxury of the Rue de la Ville-l'Eveque was of a real and
+substantial character, which one did not find in the Avenue des Champs
+Elysees. Everything in the marquis's abode bore marks of the haste which
+mars the merest trifle produced at the present age. "Take a seat here,
+and I will see where the marquis is," said the servant, as he ushered
+Pascal into a large drawing-room. The apartment was elegantly furnished,
+but had somewhat lost its freshness; the carpet, which had once been a
+marvel of beauty, was stained in several places, and as the servants had
+not always been careful to keep the shutters closed, the sunlight had
+perceptibly faded the curtains. The attention of visitors was at once
+attracted by the number of gold and silver cups, vases, and statuettes
+scattered about on side-tables and cheffoniers. Each of these objects
+bore an inscription, setting forth that it had been won at such a race,
+in such a year, by such a horse, belonging to the Marquis de Valorsay.
+These were indeed the marquis's chief claims to glory, and had cost him
+at least half of the immense fortune he had inherited. However, Pascal
+did not take much interest in these trophies, so the time of waiting
+seemed long. "Valorsay is playing the diplomat," he thought. "He doesn't
+wish to appear to be anxious. Unfortunately, his servant has betrayed
+him."
+
+At last the valet returned. "The marquis will see you now, monsieur,"
+said he.
+
+This summons affected Pascal's heart like the first roll of a drum
+beating the charge. But his coolness did not desert him. "Now is the
+decisive moment," he thought. "Heaven grant that he may not recognize
+me!" And with a firm step he followed the valet.
+
+M. de Valorsay was seated in the apartment he usually occupied when he
+remained at home--a little smoking-room connected with his bedroom. He
+was to all intents busily engaged in examining some sporting journals.
+A bottle of Madeira and a partially filled glass stood near him. As the
+servant announced "Monsieur Maumejan!" he looked up and his eyes met
+Pascal's. But his glance did not waver; not a muscle of his face moved;
+his countenance retained its usually cold and disdainful expression.
+Evidently he had not the slightest suspicion that the man he had tried
+to ruin--his mortal enemy--was standing there before him.
+
+"M. Maumejan," said he, "Baron Trigault's agent?"
+
+"Yes, monsieur----"
+
+"Pray be seated. I am just finishing here; I shall be at leisure in a
+moment."
+
+Pascal took a chair. He had feared that he might not be able to retain
+his self-control when he found himself in the presence of the scoundrel
+who, after destroying his happiness, ruining his future, and depriving
+him of his honor--dearer than life itself--was at that moment
+endeavoring, by the most infamous manoeuvres, to rob him of the woman
+he loved. "If my blood mounted to my brain," he had thought, "I should
+spring upon him and strangle him!" But no. His arteries did not throb
+more quickly; it was with perfect calmness--the calmness of a strong
+nature--that he stealthily watched M. de Valorsay. If he had seen him a
+week before he would have been startled by the change which the past few
+days had wrought in this brilliant nobleman's appearance. He was little
+more than a shadow of his former self. And seen at this hour, before
+placing himself in his valet's hands, before his premature decrepitude
+had been concealed by the artifices of the toilet, he was really
+frightful. His face was haggard, and his red and swollen eyelids
+betrayed a long-continued want of sleep.
+
+The fact is, he had suffered terribly during the past week. A man may
+be a scapegrace and a spendthrift and may boast of it; he may have no
+principle and no conscience; he may be immoral, he may defy God and the
+devil, but it is nevertheless true that he suffers fearful anguish
+of mind when he is guilty, for the first time, of a positive crime,
+forbidden by the laws and punishable with the galleys. And who can say
+how many crimes the Marquis de Valorsay had committed since the day
+he provided his accomplice, the Viscount de Coralth, with those fatal
+cards? And apart from this there was something extremely appalling in
+the position of this ruined millionaire, who was contending desperately
+against his creditors for the vain appearance of splendor, with
+the despairing energy of a ship-wrecked mariner struggling for the
+possession of a floating spar. Had he not confessed to M. Fortunat that
+he had suffered the tortures of the damned in his struggle to maintain
+a show of wealth, while he was often without a penny in his pocket, and
+was ever subject to the pitiless surveillance of thirty servants?
+His agony, when he thought of his precarious condition, could only be
+compared to that of a miner, who, while ascending from the bowels of
+the earth, finds that the rope, upon which his life depends, is slowly
+parting strand by strand, and who asks himself, in terror, if the few
+threads that still remain unsevered will be strong enough to raise him
+to the mouth of the pit.
+
+However, the moment which M. de Valorsay had asked for had lengthened
+into a quarter of an hour, and he had not yet finished his work. "What
+the devil is he doing?" wondered Pascal, who was following his enemy's
+slightest movement with eager curiosity.
+
+Countless sporting newspapers were strewn over the table, the chairs,
+and the floor around the marquis, who took them up one after another,
+glanced rapidly through their columns, and threw them on the floor
+again, or placed them on a pile before him, first marking certain
+passages with a red pencil. At last, probably fearing that Pascal was
+growing impatient, he looked up and said:
+
+"I am really very sorry to keep you waiting so long, but some one is
+waiting for this work to be completed."
+
+"Oh! pray continue, Monsieur le Marquis," interrupted Pascal. "Strange
+to say, I have a little leisure at my command just now."
+
+The marquis seemed to feel that it was necessary to make some remark
+in acknowledgment of this courtesy on his visitor's part, and so, as
+he continued his work, he condescended to explain its purpose. "I am
+playing the part of a commentator," he remarked. "I sold seven of my
+horses a few days ago, and the purchaser, before paying the stipulated
+price, naturally required an exact and authentic statement of each
+animal's performances. However, even this does not seem to have
+satisfied the gentleman, for he has now taken it into his head to ask
+for such copies of the sporting journals as record the victories or
+defeats of the animals he has purchased. A gentleman is not so exacting
+generally. It is true, however, that I have a foreigner to deal
+with--one of those half-civilized nabobs who come here every year to
+astonish the Parisians with their wealth and display, and who, by their
+idiotic prodigality, have so increased the price of everything that life
+has become well-nigh an impossibility to such of us as don't care to
+squander an entire fortune in a couple of years. These folks are the
+curse of Paris, for, with but few exceptions, they only use their
+millions to enrich notorious women, scoundrels, hotel-keepers, and
+jockeys."
+
+Pascal at once thought of the foreigner, Kami-Bey, whom he had met at
+Baron Trigault's half an hour before, and who had complained so bitterly
+of having had worthless scrubs palmed off upon him when he fancied
+he had purchased valuable animals. "Kami-Bey must be this exacting
+purchaser," thought Pascal, "and it's probable that the marquis,
+desperately straitened as he is, has committed one of those frauds
+which lead their perpetrator to prison?" The surmise was by no means
+far-fetched, for in sporting matters, at least, there was cause to
+suspect Valorsay of great elasticity of conscience. Had he not already
+been accused of defrauding Domingo's champions by a conspiracy?
+
+At last the marquis heaved a sigh of relief. "I've finished," he
+muttered, as he tied up the bundle of papers he had laid aside, and
+after ringing the bell, he said to the servant who answered the summons:
+"Here, take this package to Prince Kami at the Grand Hotel."
+
+Pascal's presentiments had not deceived him, and he said to himself:
+"This is a good thing to know. Before this evening I shall look into
+this affair a little."
+
+A storm was decidedly gathering over the Marquis de Valorsay's head. Did
+he know it? Certainly he must have expected it. Still he had sworn to
+stand fast until the end. Besides, he would not concede that all was
+lost; and, like most great gamblers, he told himself that since he
+had so much at stake, he might reasonably hope to succeed. He rose,
+stretched himself, as a man is apt to do after the conclusion of a
+tiresome task, and then, leaning against the mantel-shelf, he exclaimed:
+"Now, Monsieur Maumejan, let us speak of the business that brings you
+here." His negligent attitude and his careless tone were admirably
+assumed, but a shrewd observer would not have been deceived by them, or
+by the indifferent manner in which he added: "You bring me some money
+from Baron Trigault?"
+
+Pascal shook his head, as he replied: "I regret to say that I don't,
+Monsieur le Marquis."
+
+This response had the same effect as a heavy rock falling upon M.
+de Valorsay's bald pate. He turned whiter than his linen, and even
+tottered, as if his lame leg, which was so much affected by sudden
+changes in the weather, had utterly refused all service. "What! You
+haven't--this is undoubtedly a joke."
+
+"It is only too serious!"
+
+"But I had the baron's word."
+
+"Oh! his word!"
+
+"I had his solemn promise."
+
+"It is sometimes impossible to keep one's promises, sir."
+
+The consequences of this disappointment must have been terrible, for the
+marquis could not maintain his self-control. Still he strove valiantly
+to conceal his emotion. He thought to himself that if he allowed this
+man to see what a terrible blow this really was, he would virtually
+confess his absolute ruin, and have to renounce the struggle, and own
+himself vanquished and lost. So, summoning all his energy, he mastered
+his emotion in some degree, and, instead of appearing desperate,
+succeeded in looking only irritated and annoyed. "In short," he resumed,
+angrily, "you have brought no money! I counted on a hundred thousand
+francs this morning. Nothing! This is kind on the baron's part! But
+probably he doesn't understand the embarrassing position in which he
+places me."
+
+"Excuse me, Monsieur le Marquis, he understands it so well that, instead
+of informing you by a simple note, he sent me to acquaint you with his
+sincere regret. When I left him an hour ago, he was really disconsolate.
+He was particularly anxious I should tell you that it was not his fault.
+He counted upon the payment of two very large amounts, and both of these
+have failed him."
+
+The marquis had now recovered a little from the shock, though he was
+still very pale. He looked at Pascal with evident distrust, for he knew
+with what sweet excuses well-bred people envelope their refusals. "So
+the baron is disconsolate," he remarked, in a tone of perceptible irony.
+
+"He is indeed!"
+
+"Poor baron! Ah! I pity him--pity him deeply."
+
+As cold and as unmoved as a statue, Pascal seemed quite unconscious
+of the effect of the message he had brought--quite unconscious of
+Valorsay's sufferings and self-constraint. "You think I am jesting,
+monsieur," he said, quietly, "but I assure you that the baron is very
+short of money just now."
+
+"Nonsense! a man worth seven or eight millions of francs."
+
+"I should say ten millions, at least."
+
+"Then the excuse is all the more absurd."
+
+Pascal shrugged his shoulders disdainfully. "It astonishes me, Monsieur
+le Marquis, to hear YOU speak in this way. It is not the magnitude of
+a man's income that constitutes affluence, but rather the way in which
+that income is spent. In this foolish age, almost all rich people are
+in arrears. What income does the baron derive from his ten millions of
+francs? Not more than five hundred thousand. A very handsome fortune, no
+doubt, and I should be more than content with it. But the baron
+gambles, and the baroness is the most elegant--in other words, the most
+extravagant--woman in Paris. They both of them love luxury, and their
+establishment is kept up in princely style. What are five hundred
+thousand francs under such circumstances as those? Their situation must
+be something like that of several millionaires of my acquaintance, who
+are obliged to take their silver to the pawn-broker's while waiting for
+their rents to fall due."
+
+This excuse might not be true, but it was certainly a very plausible
+one. Had not a recent lawsuit revealed the fact that certain rich folks,
+who had an income of more than a hundred thousand francs a year, had
+kept a thieving coachman for six months, simply because, in all that
+time, they were not able to raise the eight hundred francs they owed
+him, and which must be paid before he was dismissed? M. de Valorsay knew
+this, but a terrible disquietude seized him. Had people begun to suspect
+HIS embarrassment? Had any rumor of it reached Baron Trigault's ears?
+This was what he wished to ascertain. "Let us understand each other,
+Monsieur Maumejan," said he; "the baron was unable to procure this money
+he had promised me to-day--but when will he let me have it?"
+
+Pascal opened his eyes in pretended astonishment, and it was with an air
+of the utmost simplicity that he replied, "I concluded the baron would
+take no further action in the matter. I judged so from his parting
+words: 'It consoles me a little,' he said, 'to think that the Marquis
+de Valorsay is very rich and very well known, and that he has a dozen
+friends who will be delighted to do him this trifling service.'"
+
+Until now, M. de Valorsay had cherished a hope that the loan was only
+delayed, and the certainty that the decision was final, crushed him. "My
+ruin's known," he thought, and feeling that his strength was deserting
+him, he poured out a brimming glass of Madeira, which he emptied at a
+single draught. The wine lent him fictitious energy. Fury mounted to his
+brain; he lost all control over himself, and springing up, with his face
+purple with rage, he exclaimed: "It's a shame! an infamous shame! and
+Trigault deserves to be severely punished. He has no business to keep a
+man in hot water for three days about such a trifle. If he had said
+'No' in the first place, I should have made other arrangements, and I
+shouldn't now find myself in a dilemma from which I see no possible way
+of escape. No gentleman would have been guilty of such a contemptible
+act--no one but a shopkeeper or a thief would have stooped to such
+meanness! This is the result of admitting these ridiculous parvenus into
+society, just because they happen to have money."
+
+It certainly hurt Pascal to hear these insults heaped upon the baron,
+and it hurt him all the more since they were entirely due to the course
+he had personally adopted.
+
+However, a gesture, even a frown, might endanger the success of his
+undertaking, so he preserved an impassive countenance. "I must say that
+I don't understand your indignation, Monsieur le Marquis," he said,
+coldly. "I can see why you might feel annoyed, but why you should fly
+into a passion--"
+
+"Ah! you don't know----" began M. de Valorsay, but he stopped short. It
+was time. The truth had almost escaped his lips.
+
+"Know what?" inquired Pascal.
+
+But the marquis was again upon his guard. "I have a debt that must be
+paid this evening, at all hazards--a sacred obligation--in short, a debt
+of honor."
+
+"A debt of one hundred thousand francs?"
+
+"No, it is only twenty-five thousand."
+
+"Is it possible that a rich man like you can be troubled about such a
+trifling sum, which any one would lend you?"
+
+M. de Valorsay interrupted him with a contemptuous sneer. "Didn't you
+just tell me that we were living in an age when no one has any money
+except those who are in business? The richest of my friends have
+only enough for themselves, even if they have enough. The time of old
+stockings, stuffed full of savings, is past! Shall I apply to a banker?
+He would ask two days for reflection, and he would require the names of
+two or three of my friends on the note. If I go to my notary, there will
+be endless forms to be gone through, and remonstrances without number."
+
+For a moment or more already, Pascal had been moving about uneasily
+on his chair, like a man who is waiting for an opportunity to make a
+suggestion, and as soon as M. de Valorsay paused to take breath, he
+exclaimed: "Upon my word! if I dared----"
+
+"Well?"
+
+"I would offer to obtain you these twenty-five thousand francs."
+
+"You?"
+
+"Yes, I."
+
+"Before six o'clock this evening?"
+
+"Certainly."
+
+A glass of ice-water presented to a parched traveller while journeying
+over the desert sands of Sahara could not impart greater relief and
+delight than the marquis experienced on hearing Pascal's offer. He
+literally felt that he was restored to life.
+
+For ruin was inevitable if he did not succeed in obtaining twenty-five
+thousand francs that day. If he could procure that amount he might
+obtain a momentary respite, and to gain time was the main thing.
+Moreover, the offer was a sufficient proof that his financial
+difficulties were not known. "Ah! I have had a fortunate escape," he
+thought. "What if I had revealed the truth!"
+
+But he was careful to conceal the secret joy that filled his heart. He
+feared lest he might say "Yes" too quickly, so betray his secret, and
+place himself at the mercy of the baron's envoy. "I would willingly
+accept your offer," he exclaimed, "if----"
+
+"If what?"
+
+"Would it be proper for me, after the baron has treated me in such a
+contemptible manner, to have any dealings with one of his subordinates?"
+
+Pascal protested vigorously. "Allow me to say," he exclaimed, "that I am
+not any one's subordinate. Trigault is my client, like thirty or forty
+others--nothing more. He employs me in certain difficult and delicate
+negotiations, which I conduct to the best of my ability. He pays me, and
+we are each of us perfectly independent of the other."
+
+From the look which Valorsay gave Pascal, one would have sworn that he
+suspected who his visitor really was. But such was not the case. It was
+simply this: a strange, but by no means impossible, idea had flashed
+through the marquis's mind--"Oh!" thought he, "this unknown party with
+whom Maumejan offers to negotiate the loan, is probably none other
+than the baron himself. That worthy gambler has invented this ingenious
+method of obliging me so as to extort a rate of interest which he would
+not dare to demand openly. And why not? There have been plenty of such
+instances. Isn't it a well-known fact that the N---- Brothers, the
+most rigidly honest financiers in the world, have never under any
+circumstances directly obliged one of their friends? If their own
+father, of whom they always speak with the greatest veneration, asked
+them to lend him fifty francs for a month, they would say to him as
+they do to every one else: 'We are rather cramped just now; but see that
+rascal B----.' And that rascal B----, who is the most pliable tool in
+existence, will, providing father N---- offers unquestionable security,
+lend the old gentleman his son's money at from twelve to fifteen per
+cent. interest, plus a small commission."
+
+These ideas and recollections were of considerable assistance in
+restoring Valorsay's composure. "Enough said, then," he answered,
+lightly. "I accept with pleasure. But----"
+
+"Ah! so there is a but!"
+
+"There is always one. I must warn you that it will be difficult for me
+to repay this loan in less than two months."
+
+This, then, was the time he thought necessary for the accomplishment of
+his designs.
+
+"That does not matter," replied Pascal, "and even if you desire a longer
+delay."
+"That will be unnecessary, thank you! But there is one thing more."
+
+"What is that?"
+
+"What will this negotiation cost me?"
+
+Pascal had expected this question, and he had prepared a reply which was
+in perfect keeping with the spirit of the role he had assumed. "I shall
+charge you the ordinary rates," he answered, "six per cent. interest,
+plus one-and-a-half per cent. commission."
+
+"Bah!"
+
+"Plus the remuneration for my trouble and services."
+
+"And what remuneration will satisfy you?"
+
+"One thousand francs. Is it too much?"
+
+If the marquis had retained the shadow of a doubt, it vanished now.
+"Ah!" he sneered, "that strikes me as a very liberal compensation for
+your services!"
+
+But he would gladly have recalled the sneer when he saw how the agent
+received it. Pascal drew up his head with a deeply injured air, and
+remarked in the chilling tone of a person who is strongly tempted to
+retract his word, "Then there is nothing more to be said, M. le Marquis;
+and since you find the conditions onerous----"
+
+"I did not say so," interrupted M. de Valorsay, quickly--"I did not even
+think it!"
+
+This gave Pascal an opportunity to present his programme, and he availed
+himself of it. "Others may pretend to oblige people merely from motives
+of friendship," he remarked. "But I am more honest. If I do anything
+in the way of business, I expect to be paid for it; and I vary my terms
+according to my clients' need. It would be impossible to have a fixed
+price for services like mine. When, on two different occasions, I saved
+a gentleman of your acquaintance from bankruptcy, I asked ten thousand
+francs the first time, and fifteen thousand the second. Was that an
+exaggerated estimate of my services? I might boast with truth that
+I once assured the marriage of a brilliant viscount by keeping his
+creditors quiet while his courtship was in progress. The day after the
+wedding he paid me twenty thousand francs. Didn't he owe them to me? If,
+instead of being a trifle short of money, you happened to be ruined,
+I should not ask you merely for a thousand francs. I should study your
+position, and fix my terms according to the magnitude of the peril from
+which I rescued you."
+
+There was not a sentence, not a word of this cynical explanation which
+had not been carefully studied beforehand. There was not an expression
+which was not a tempting bait to the marquis's evil instincts. But M
+de Valorsay made no sign. "I see that you are a shrewd man, Monsieur
+Maumejan," said he, "and if I am ever in difficulty I shall apply to
+you."
+
+Pascal bowed with an air of assumed modesty; but he was inwardly
+jubilant, for he felt that his enemy would certainly fall into the trap
+which had been set for him. "And now, when shall I have this money?"
+inquired the marquis.
+
+"By four o'clock."
+
+"And I need fear no disappointment as in the baron's case?"
+
+"Certainly not. What interest would M. Trigault have in lending you a
+hundred thousand francs? None whatever. With me it is quite a different
+thing. The profit I'm to realize is your security. In business matters
+distrust your friends. Apply to usurers rather than to them. Question
+people who are in difficulties, and ninety-five out of a hundred will
+tell you that their worst troubles have been caused by those who called
+themselves their best friends."
+
+He had risen to take leave, when the door of the smoking-room opened,
+and a servant appeared and said in an undertone: "Madame Leon is in the
+drawing-room with Dr. Jodon. They wish to see you, monsieur."
+
+Though Pascal had armed himself well against any unexpected mischance,
+he changed color on hearing the name of the worthy housekeeper. "All is
+lost if this creature sees and recognizes me!" he thought.
+
+Fortunately the Marquis was too much engrossed in his own affairs to
+note the momentary agitation of Baron Trigault's envoy. "It is strange
+that I can't have five minutes' peace and quietness," he said. "I told
+you that I was at home to no one."
+
+"But----"
+
+"Enough! Let the lady and gentleman wait."
+
+The servant withdrew.
+
+The thought of passing out through the drawing-room filled Pascal with
+consternation. How could he hope to escape Madame Leon's keen eyes?
+Fortunately M. de Valorsay came to his relief, for as Pascal was about
+to open the same door by which he had entered, the marquis exclaimed:
+"Not that way! Pass out here--this is the shortest way."
+
+And leading him through his bedroom the marquis conducted him to the
+staircase, where he even feigned to offer him his hand, saying: "A
+speedy return, dear M. Maumejan."
+
+It is not at the moment of peril that people endure the worst agony; it
+is afterward, when they have escaped it. As he went down the staircase,
+Pascal wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "Ah! it was a narrow
+escape!" he exclaimed, under his breath.
+
+He felt proud of the manner in which he had sustained a part so
+repugnant to his nature. He was amazed to find that he could utter
+falsehoods with such a calm, unblushing face--he was astonished at his
+own audacity. And what a success he had achieved! He felt certain that
+he had just slipped round M. de Valorsay's neck the noose which would
+strangle him later on. Still he was considerably disturbed by Madame
+Leon's visit to the marquis. "What is she doing here with this
+physician?" he asked himself again and again. "Who is this man? What new
+piece of infamy are they plotting to require his services?" One of those
+presentiments which are prompted by the logic of events, told him that
+this physician had been, or would be, one of the actors in the vile
+conspiracy of which he and Mademoiselle Marguerite were the victims.
+But he had no leisure to devote to the solution of this enigma. Time
+was flying, and before returning to the marquis's house he must find out
+what had aroused the suspicions of the purchaser of those horses, the
+biographies of which had been so rigidly exacted. Through the baron, he
+might hope to obtain an interview with Kami-Bey--and so it was to the
+baron's house that Pascal directed his steps.
+
+After the more than cordial reception which the baron had granted him
+that morning, it was quite natural that the servants should receive him
+as a friend of the household. They would scarcely allow him to explain
+what he desired. It was the pompous head valet in person who ushered him
+into one of the small reception-rooms, exclaiming: "The baron's engaged,
+but I'm sure he would be annoyed if he failed to see you; and I will
+inform him at once."
+
+A moment later, the baron entered quite breathless from his hurried
+descent of the staircase. "Ah! you have been successful," he exclaimed,
+on seeing Pascal's face.
+
+"Everything is progressing as favorably as I could wish, Monsieur
+le Baron, but I must speak with that foreigner whom I met here this
+morning."
+
+"Kami-Bey?"
+
+"Yes." And in a few words, Pascal explained the situation.
+
+"Providence is certainly on our side," said the baron, thoughtfully.
+"Kami is still here."
+
+"Is it possible?"
+
+"It's a fact. Did you think it would be easy to get rid of this
+confounded Turk! He invited himself to breakfast without the slightest
+ceremony, and would give me no peace until I promised to play with him
+for two hours. I was closeted with him, cards in hand, when they told me
+you were here. Come, we'll go and question him."
+
+They found the interesting foreigner in a savage mood. He had been
+winning when the servant came for the baron, and he feared that an
+interruption would change the luck. "What the devil took you away?" he
+exclaimed, with that coarseness of manner which was habitual with him,
+and which the flatterers around him styled "form." "A man should no more
+be disturbed when he's playing than when he's eating."
+
+"Come, come, prince," said the baron, good-naturedly, "don't be angry,
+and I'll give you three hours instead of two. But I have a favor to ask
+of you."
+
+The foreigner at once thrust his hand into his pocket, with such a
+natural gesture, that neither the baron nor Pascal could repress a
+smile, and he himself understanding the cause of their merriment broke
+into a hearty laugh. "It's purely from force of habit," said he. "Ah!
+since I've been in Paris---- But what do you wish?"
+
+The baron sat down, and gravely replied: "You told us scarcely an hour
+ago that you had been cheated in the purchase of some horses."
+
+"Cheated! it was worse than highway robbery."
+
+"Would it be indiscreet to ask you by whom you have been defrauded?"
+
+Kami-Bey's purple cheeks became a trifle pale. "Hum!" said he, in
+an altered tone of voice, "that is a delicate question. My defrauder
+appears to be a dangerous fellow--a duellist--and if I disclose his
+knavery, he is quite capable of picking a quarrel with me--not that I am
+afraid of him, I assure you, but my principles don't allow me to fight.
+When a man has an income of a million, he doesn't care to expose himself
+to the dangers of a duel."
+
+"But, prince, in France folks don't do a scoundrel the honor to cross
+swords with him."
+
+"That's just what my steward, who is a Frenchman, told me; but no
+matter. Besides, I am not sufficiently sure of the man's guilt to noise
+it abroad. I have no positive proofs as yet."
+
+He was evidently terribly frightened, and the first thing to be done was
+to reassure him. "Come," insisted the baron, "tell us the man's name.
+This gentleman here"--pointing to Pascal--"is one of my most esteemed
+friends. I will answer for him as I would for myself; and we will swear
+upon our honor not to reveal the secret we ask you for, without your
+permission."
+
+"Truly?"
+
+"You have our word of honor," replied both the baron and Pascal in a
+breath.
+
+After casting a half-frightened glance around him, the worthy Turk
+seemed to gather courage. But no! He deliberated some time, and then
+rejoined: "Really, I'm not sufficiently convinced of the accuracy of my
+suspicions to incur the risk of accusing a man who belongs in the very
+best society; a man who is very rich and very highly respected, and who
+would tolerate no imputations upon his character."
+
+It was plain that he would not speak. The baron shrugged his shoulders,
+but Pascal stepped bravely forward. "Then I will tell you, prince," he
+said, "the name that you are determined to hide from us."
+
+"Oh!"
+
+"But you must allow me to remark that the baron and myself retract the
+promise we made you just now."
+
+"Naturally."
+
+"Then, your defrauder is the Marquis de Valorsay!"
+
+If Kami-Bey had seen an emissary of his sovereign enter the
+room carrying the fatal bow-string he would not have seemed more
+terror-stricken. He sprang nervously on to his short, fat legs, his eyes
+wildly dilating and his hands fluttering despairingly. "Don't speak so
+loud! don't speak so loud!" he exclaimed, imploringly.
+
+As he did not even attempt to deny it, the truth of the assertion might
+be taken for granted. But Pascal was not content with this. "Now that we
+know the fact, I hope, Prince, that you will be sufficiently obliging to
+tell us how it all happened," he remarked.
+
+Poor Kami. He was in despair. "Alas!" he replied, reluctantly, "nothing
+could be more simple. I wanted to set up a racing stable. Not that I
+care much for sport. I can scarcely distinguish a horse from a mule--but
+morning and evening, everybody says to me: 'Prince, a man like you ought
+to make your name celebrated on the turf.' Besides I never open a paper
+without reading: 'Such a man ought to be a patron of the noblest of
+sports.' At last, I said to myself: 'Yes, they are right. I ought to
+take part in racing.' So I began to look about for some horses. I had
+purchased several, when the Marquis de Valorsay proposed to sell me
+some of his, some that were very well known, and that had--so he assured
+me--won at least ten times the amount they had cost him. I accepted
+his offer, and visited his stables, where I selected seven of his best
+horses and paid for them; and I paid a good round price, I assure you.
+Now comes the knavery. He has not given me the horses I purchased. The
+real animals, the valuable ones--have been sold in England under false
+names, and although the horses sent to me may be like the others in
+appearance, they are really only common animals, wanting both in blood
+and speed."
+
+Pascal and the baron exchanged astonished glances. It must be confessed
+that frauds of every description are common enough in the racing world,
+and a great deal of dishonest manoeuvring results from greed for gain
+united with the fever of gambling. But never before had any one been
+accused of such an audacious and impudent piece of rascality as that
+which Kami-Bey imputed to Valorsay.
+
+"How did you fail to discover this at the outset, prince?" inquired
+Pascal in an incredulous tone.
+
+"Because my time was so much occupied."
+
+"But your servants?"
+
+"Ah! that's another thing. I shouldn't be at all surprised if it were
+proved that the man who has charge of my stables had been bribed by the
+marquis."
+
+"Then, how were your suspicions aroused?"
+
+"It was only by the merest chance. A jockey whom I thought of employing
+had often ridden one of the animals which I fancied myself the owner of.
+Naturally, I showed him the horse, but he had no sooner set eyes on it
+than he exclaimed: 'That the horse! Never! You've been cheated, prince!'
+Then we examined the others, and the fraud became apparent."
+
+Knowing Kami's character better than Pascal, the baron had good
+reason to distrust the accuracy of these statements. For the Turkish
+millionaire's superb contempt of money was only affected. Vanity alone
+unloosed his purse-strings. He was quite capable of presenting Jenny
+Fancy with a necklace costing five-and-twenty thousand francs for the
+sake of seeing his generosity recorded in the Gaulois or the Figaro
+the next day; but he would refuse to give a trifle to the mother of a
+starving family. Besides, it was his ambition to be regarded as the most
+swindled man in Europe. But though he was shamefully imposed upon, it
+was not voluntarily--for there was a strong dose of Arabian avarice and
+distrust in his composition.
+
+"Frankly, prince," said the baron, "your story sounds like one of the
+wild legends of your native land. Valorsay is certainly no fool. How is
+it possible that he could have been guilty of so gross a fraud--a fraud
+which might be, which could not fail to be discovered in twenty-four
+hours--and which, once proven, would dishonor him forever?"
+
+"Before perpetrating such a piece of deception upon any one else,
+he would have thought twice; but upon me it's different. Isn't it an
+established fact that a person incurs no risk in robbing Kami-Bey?"
+
+"Had I been in your place I should have quietly instituted an
+investigation."
+
+"What good would that have done? Besides, the sale was only conditional,
+and took place under the seal of secrecy. The marquis reserved the right
+to take his horses back on payment of a stipulated sum, and the time he
+was to have for consideration only expired on the day before yesterday."
+
+"Eh! why didn't you tell us that at first?" cried the baron.
+
+The marquis's rascality was now easily explained. Finding himself in a
+desperate strait, and feeling that his salvation was certain if he
+could only gain a little time, he had yielded to temptation, saying
+to himself, like unfaithful cashiers when they first appropriate their
+employers' money: "I will pay it back, and no one will ever know it!"
+However, when the day of settlement came he had found himself in as
+deplorable a plight as on the day of the robbery, and he had been
+compelled to yield to the force of circumstances.
+
+"And what do you intend to do, prince?" asked Pascal.
+
+"Ah! I am still in doubt. I have compelled the marquis to give me
+the papers in which the exploits of these horses are recorded. These
+statements will be of service in case of a law-suit. But shall I or
+shall I not enter a complaint against him? If it were a mere question of
+money I should let the matter drop; but he has defrauded and deceived me
+so outrageously that it annoys me. On the other hand, to confess that
+he has cheated me in this fashion would cover me with ridicule. Besides,
+the man is a dangerous enemy. And what would become of me if I happened
+to side against him? I should be compelled to leave Paris. Ah! I'd give
+ten thousand francs to any one who'd settle this cursed affair for me!"
+
+His perplexity was so great, and his anger so intense, for that once he
+tore off his eternal fez and flung it on to the table, swearing like a
+drayman. However, controlling himself at last, he exclaimed in a tone
+of assumed indifference: "No matter, there's been enough said on this
+subject for one day--I'm here to play--so let us begin, baron. For we
+are wasting precious time, as you so often remark."
+
+Pascal had nothing more to learn; so he shook hands with the baron, made
+an appointment with him for the same evening, and went away.
+
+It was only half-past two; a good hour and a half remained at his
+disposal. "I will profit by this opportunity to eat something," he
+thought; a sudden faintness reminding him that he had taken nothing but
+a cup of chocolate that day. Thereupon perceiving a cafe near by, he
+entered it, ordered breakfast, and lingered there until it was time to
+return to the Marquis de Valorsay's. He would have gone there before
+the appointed time if he had merely listened to the promptings of his
+impatience, so thoroughly was he persuaded that this second interview
+would be decisive. But prudence advised him not to expose himself to the
+danger of an encounter with Madame Leon and Dr. Jodon.
+
+"Well! Monsieur Maumejan," cried the marquis, as soon as Pascal made his
+appearance. He had been counting the seconds with intense anxiety, as
+his tone of voice unmistakably revealed.
+
+In reply Pascal gravely drew from his pocket twenty-four bank-notes, of
+a thousand francs each, and he placed them upon the table, saying:
+"Here is the amount, Monsieur le Marquis. I have, of course, deducted
+my commission. Now, if you will write and sign a note for twenty-five
+thousand francs, payable to my order two months hence, our business for
+to-day will be concluded."
+
+M. de Valorsay's hand trembled nervously as he penned the desired note,
+for, until the very last moment, he had doubted the promises of this
+unknown agent who had made his appearance so opportunely Then, when the
+document was signed, he carelessly slipped the money into a drawer
+and exclaimed: "So here's the needful to pay my debt of honor; but my
+embarrassment is none the less great. These twenty-four thousand francs
+won't take the place of the hundred thousand which Baron Trigault
+promised me."
+
+And, as Pascal made no reply, the marquis began a desultory tramp up and
+down the smoking-room. He was very pale, his brows were knit; he looked
+like a man who was meditating a decisive step, and who was calculating
+the consequences. But having no time to waste in hesitation, he soon
+paused in front of Pascal, and exclaimed: "Since you have just lent me
+twenty-four thousand francs, why won't you lend me the rest?"
+
+But Pascal shook his head. "One risks nothing by advancing twenty-five
+thousand francs to a person in your position, Monsieur le Marquis.
+Whatever happens, such a sum as that can always be gathered from
+the wreck. But double or triple the amount! The deuce! that requires
+reflection, and I must understand the situation thoroughly."
+
+"And if I told you that I am--almost ruined, what would you reply?"
+
+"I shouldn't be so very much surprised."
+
+M. de Valorsay had now gone too far to draw back. "Ah, well!" he
+resumed, "the truth is this--my affairs are terribly involved."
+
+"The devil! You should have told me that sooner."
+
+"Wait; I am about to retrieve my fortune--to make it even larger than
+it has ever been. I am on the point of contracting a marriage which will
+make me one of the richest men in Paris; but I must have a little time
+to bring the affair to a successful termination, and I need money--and
+my creditors are pressing me unmercifully. You told me this morning that
+you once assisted a man who was in a similar position. Will you help me?
+You can set your own price on your services."
+
+More easily overcome by joy than by sorrow, Pascal almost betrayed
+himself. He had attained his object. Still, he succeeded in conquering
+his emotion, and it was in a perfectly calm voice that he replied:
+"I can promise nothing until I understand the situation, Monsieur le
+Marquis. Will you explain it to me? I am listening."
+
+
+
+
+XIV.
+
+
+It was nearly midnight when M. Wilkie left the Hotel d'Argeles after the
+terrible scene in which he had revealed his true character. On seeing
+him pass out with haggard eyes, colorless lips, and disordered clothing,
+the servants gathered in the vestibule took him at first for another of
+those ruined gamblers who not unfrequently left the house with despair
+in their hearts.
+
+"Another fellow who's had bad luck!" they remarked sneeringly to one
+another.
+
+"No doubt about that. He is pretty effectually used up, judging from
+appearances," one of them remarked.
+
+It was not until some moments later that they learned a portion of the
+truth through the servants who had been on duty upstairs, and who now
+ran down in great terror, crying that Madame d'Argeles was dying, and
+that a physician must be summoned at once.
+
+M. Wilkie was already far away, hastening up the boulevard with an agile
+step. Any one else would have been overcome with shame and sorrow--would
+have been frightened by the thought of what he had done, and have
+striven to find some way to conceal his disgrace; but he, not in the
+least. In this frightful crisis, he was only conscious of one fact--that
+just as he raised his hand to strike Madame Lia d'Argeles, his mother, a
+big, burly individual had burst into the room, like a bombshell, caught
+him by the throat, forced him upon his knees, and compelled him to ask
+the lady's pardon. He, Wilkie, to be humiliated in this style! He would
+never endure that. This was an affront he could not swallow, one of
+those insults that cry out for vengeance and for blood. "Ah! the great
+brute shall pay for it," he repeated, again and again, grinding his
+teeth. And if he hastened up the boulevard, it was only because he
+hoped to meet his two chosen friends, M. Costard and the Viscount de
+Serpillon, the co-proprietors of Pompier de Nanterre.
+
+For he intended to place his outraged honor in their care. They should
+be his seconds, and present his demand for satisfaction to the man
+who had insulted him. A duel was the only thing that could appease his
+furious anger and heal his wounded pride. And a great scandal, which he
+would be the hero of, was not without a certain charm for him. What a
+glorious chance to win notoriety at an epoch when newspapers have become
+public laundries, in which every one washes his soiled linen and dries
+it in the glare of publicity! He saw his already remarkable reputation
+enhanced by the interest that always attaches to people who are talked
+about, and he could hear in advance the flattering whisper which would
+greet his appearance everywhere: "You see that young man?--he is the
+hero of that famous adventure," etc. Moreover, he was already twisting
+and turning the terms of the notice which his seconds must have inserted
+in the Figaro, hesitating between two or three equally startling
+beginnings: "Another famous duel," or "Yesterday, after a scandalous
+scene, an encounter," etc., etc.
+
+Unfortunately, he did not meet either M. Costard or the Viscount de
+Serpillon. Strange to say, they were not in any of the cafes, where
+the flower of French chivalry usually congregates, in the company of
+golden-haired young women, from nine in the evening until one o'clock in
+the morning. This disappointment grieved M. Wilkie sorely, although
+he derived some benefit from it, for his disordered attire attracted
+attention at each place he entered, and acquaintances eagerly inquired:
+"Where have you come from, and what has happened to you?" Whereupon
+he replied with an air of profound secrecy: "Pray don't speak of it. A
+shocking affair! If it were noised abroad I should be inconsolable."
+
+At last the cafes began to close, and promenaders became rare. M.
+Wilkie, much to his regret, was obliged to go home. When he had locked
+his door and donned his dressing-gown, he sat down to think over the
+events of the day, and collect his scattered wits. What most troubled
+and disquieted him was not the condition in which he had left Madame Lia
+d'Argeles, his mother, who was, perhaps, dying, through his fault! It
+was not the terrible sacrifice that this poor woman had made for him in
+a transport of maternal love! It was not the thought of the source from
+which the money he had squandered for so many years had been derived.
+No, M. Wilkie was quite above such paltry considerations--good enough
+for commonplace and antiquated people. "He was too clever for that. Ah!
+yes. He had a stronger stomach, and was up with the times!" If he
+were sorely vexed in spirit it was because he thought that the immense
+property which he had believed his own had slipped, perhaps for ever,
+from his grasp. For rising threateningly between the Chalusse millions
+and himself, he pictured the form of his father, this man whom he did
+not know, but whose very name had made Madame d'Argeles shudder.
+
+M. Wilkie was seized with terror when he looked his actual situation
+in the face. What was to become of him? He was certain that Madame
+d'Argeles would not give him another sou. She could not--he recognized
+that fact. His intelligence was equal to that. On the other hand, if
+he ever obtained anything from the count's estate, which was more than
+doubtful, would he not be obliged to wait a long time for it? Yes, in
+all probability such would be the case. Then how should he live, how
+would he be able to obtain food in the meantime? His despair was so
+poignant that tears came to his eyes; and he bitterly deplored the step
+he had taken. Yes, he actually sighed for the past; he longed to live
+over again the very years in which he had so often complained of his
+destiny. Then, though not a millionaire by any means, he at least
+wanted for nothing. Every quarter-day a very considerable allowance
+was promptly paid him, and, in great emergencies, he could apply to
+Mr. Patterson, who always sent a favorable answer if not drawn upon too
+heavily. Yes, he sighed for that time! Ah! if he had only then realized
+how fortunate he was! Had he not been one of the most opulent members
+of the society in which he moved? Had he not been flattered and admired
+more than any of his companions? Had he not found the most exquisite
+happiness in his part ownership of Pompier de Nanterre!
+
+Now, what remained? Nothing, save anxiety concerning the future, and all
+sorts of uncertainties and terrors! What a mistake! What a blunder he
+had made! Ah! if he could only begin again. He sincerely wished that the
+great adversary of mankind had the Viscount de Coralth in his clutches.
+For, in his despair, it was the once dear viscount that he blamed,
+accused, and cursed.
+
+He was in this ungrateful frame of mind when a loud, almost savage, ring
+came at his door. As his servant slept in an attic upstairs, Wilkie was
+quite alone in his rooms, so he took the lamp and went to open the door
+himself. At this hour of the night, the visitor could only be M. Costard
+or the Viscount de Serpillon, or perhaps both of them. "They have
+heard that I was looking for them, and so they have hastened here," he
+thought.
+
+But he was mistaken. The visitor was neither of these gentlemen, but M.
+Ferdinand de Coralth in person. Prudence had compelled the viscount to
+leave Madame d'Argeles's card-party one of the last, but as soon as he
+was out of the house he had rushed to the Marquis de Valorsay's to hold
+a conference with him, far from suspecting that he was followed, and
+that an auxiliary of Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite
+was even then waiting for him below--an enemy as formidable as he was
+humble--Victor Chupin.
+
+At sight of the man who had so long been his model--the friend who had
+advised what he styled his blunder--Wilkie was so surprised that he
+almost dropped his lamp. Then as his wrath kindled, "Ah! so it's you!"
+he exclaimed, angrily. "You come at a good time!"
+
+But M. de Coralth was too much exasperated to notice Wilkie's strange
+greeting. Seizing him roughly by the arm, and closing the door with a
+kick, he dragged Wilkie back into the little drawing-room. "Yes, it's
+I," he said, curtly. "It's I--come to inquire if you have gone mad?"
+
+"Viscount!"
+
+"I can find no other explanation of your conduct! What! You choose
+Madame d'Argeles's reception day, and an hour when there are fifty
+guests in her drawing-room to present yourself!"
+
+"Ah, well! it wasn't from choice. I had been there twice before, and had
+the doors shut in my face."
+
+"You ought to have gone back ten times, a hundred times, a thousand
+times, rather than have accomplished such an idiotic prank as this."
+
+"Excuse me."
+
+"What did I recommend? Prudence, calmness and moderation, persuasive
+gentleness, sentiments of the loftiest nature, tenderness, a shower of
+tears----"
+
+"Possibly, but----"
+
+"But instead of that, you fall upon this woman like a thunderbolt, and
+set the whole household in the wildest commotion. What could you be
+thinking of, to make such an absurd and frightful scene? For you
+howled and shrieked like a street hawker, and we could hear you in the
+drawing-room. If all is not irretrievably lost, there must be a special
+Providence for the benefit of fools!"
+
+In his dismay, Wilkie endeavored to falter some excuses, but he was
+only able to begin a few sentences which died away, uncompleted in his
+throat. The violence shown by M. de Coralth, who was usually as cold and
+as polished as marble, quieted his own wrath. Still toward the last he
+felt disposed to rebel against the insults that were being heaped upon
+him. "Do you know, viscount, that I begin to think this very strange,"
+he exclaimed. "If any one else had led me into such a scrape, I should
+have called him to account in double-quick time."
+
+M. de Coralth shrugged his shoulders with an air of contempt, and
+threateningly replied: "Understand, once for all, that you had better
+not attempt to bully me! Now, tell me what passed between your mother
+and yourself?"
+
+"First I should like----"
+
+"Dash it all! Do you suppose that I intend to remain here all night?
+Tell me what occurred, and be quick about it. And try to speak the
+truth."
+
+It was one of M. Wilkie's greatest boasts that he had an indomitable
+will--an iron nature. But the viscount exercised powerful influence over
+him, and, to tell the truth, inspired him with a form of emotion which
+was nearly akin to fear. Moreover, a glimmer of reason had at last
+penetrated his befogged brain: he saw that M. de Coralth was right--that
+he had acted like a fool, and that, if he hoped to escape from the
+dangers that threatened him, he must take the advice of more experienced
+men than himself. So, ceasing his recriminations, he began to describe
+what he styled his explanation with Madame d'Argeles. All went well at
+first; for he dared not misrepresent the facts.
+
+But when he came to the intervention of the man who had prevented him
+from striking his mother, he turned crimson, and rage again filled his
+heart. "I'm sorry I let myself get into such a mess!" he exclaimed. "You
+should have seen my condition. My shirt-collar was torn, and my
+cravat hung in tatters. He was much stronger than I--the contemptible
+scoundrel!--ah! if it hadn't been for that---- But I shall have my
+revenge. Yes, he shall learn that he can't trample a man under foot
+with impunity. To-morrow two of my friends will call upon him; and if he
+refuses to apologize or to give me satisfaction, I'll cane him."
+
+It was evident enough that M. de Coralth had to exercise considerable
+constraint to listen to these fine projects. "I must warn you that you
+ought to speak in other terms of an honorable and honored gentleman," he
+interrupted, at last.
+
+"Eh! what! You know him then?"
+
+"Yes, Madame d'Argeles's defender is Baron Trigault."
+
+M. Wilkie's heart bounded with joy, as he heard this name. "Ah! this
+is capital!" he exclaimed. "What! So it was Baron Trigault--the noted
+gambler--who owns such a magnificent house in the Rue de la Ville
+l'Eveque, the husband of that extremely stylish lady, that notorious
+cocotte----"
+
+The viscount sprang from his chair, and interrupting M. Wilkie: "I
+advise you, for the sake of your own safety," he said, measuring his
+words to give them greater weight, "never to mention the Baroness
+Trigault's name except in terms of the most profound respect."
+
+There was no misunderstanding M. de Coralth's tone, and his glance said
+plainly that he would not allow much time to pass before putting his
+threat into execution. Having always lived in a lower circle to that in
+which the baroness sparkled with such lively brilliancy, M. Wilkie was
+ignorant of the reasons that induced his distinguished friend to defend
+her so warmly; but he DID understand that it would be highly imprudent
+to insist, or even to discuss the matter. So, in his most persuasive
+manner, he resumed: "Let us say no more about the wife, but give our
+attention to the husband. So it was the baron who insulted me! A duel
+with him--what good luck! Well! he may sleep in peace to-night, but as
+soon as he is up in the morning he will find Costard and Serpillon on
+hand. Serpillon has not an equal as a second. First, he knows the best
+places for a meeting; then he lends the combatants weapons when they
+have none; he procures a physician; and he is on excellent terms with
+the journalists, who publish reports of these encounters."
+
+The viscount had never had a very exalted opinion of Wilkie's
+intelligence, but now he was amazed to see how greatly he had
+overestimated it. "Enough of such foolishness," he interrupted, curtly.
+"This duel will never take place."
+
+"I should like to know who will prevent it?"
+
+"I will, if you persist in such an absurd idea. You ought to have sense
+enough to know that the baron would kick Serpillon out of the house, and
+that you would only cover yourself with ridicule. So, between your duel
+and my help make your choice, and quickly."
+
+The prospect of sending his seconds to demand satisfaction from Baron
+Trigault was certainly a very attractive one. But, on the other hand,
+Wilkie could not afford to dispense with M. de Coralth's services. "But
+the baron has insulted me," he urged.
+
+"Well, you can demand satisfaction when you obtain possession of your
+property: but the least scandal now would spoil your last chances."
+
+"I will abandon the project, then," sighed Wilkie, despondently; "but
+pray advise me. What do you think of my situation?"
+
+M. de Coralth seemed to consider a moment, and then gravely replied:
+"I think that, UNASSISTED, you have no chance whatever. You have no
+standing, no influential connections, no position--you are not even a
+Frenchman."
+
+"Alas! that is precisely what I have said to myself."
+
+"Still, I am convinced that with some assistance you might overcome your
+mother's resistance, and even your father's pretentions."
+
+"Yes, but where could I find protectors?"
+
+The viscount's gravity seemed to increase. "Listen to me," said he; "I
+will do for you what I would not do for any one else. I will endeavor to
+interest in your cause one of my friends, who is all powerful by reason
+of his name, his fortune, and his connections--the Marquis de Valorsay,
+in fact."
+
+"The one who is so well known upon the turf?"
+
+"The same."
+
+"And you will introduce me to him?"
+
+"Yes. Be ready to-morrow at eleven o'clock, and I will call for you and
+take you to his house. If he interests himself in your cause, it is as
+good as gained." And as his companion overwhelmed him with thanks,
+he rose, and said: "I must go now. No more foolishness, and be ready
+to-morrow at the appointed time."
+
+Thanks to the surprising mutability of temper which was the most
+striking characteristic of his nature, M. Wilkie was already consoled
+for his blunder.
+
+He had received M. de Coralth as an enemy; but he now escorted him to
+the door with every obsequious attention--in fact, just as if he looked
+upon him as his preserver. A word which the viscount had dropped during
+the conversation had considerably helped to bring about this sudden
+revulsion of feelings. "You cannot fail to understand that if the
+Marquis de Valorsay espouses your cause, you will want for nothing. And
+if a lawsuit is unavoidable, he will be perfectly willing to advance the
+necessary funds." How could M. Wilkie lack confidence after that? The
+brightest hopes, the most ecstatic visions had succeeded the gloomy
+forebodings of a few hours before. The mere thought of being presented
+to M. de Valorsay, a nobleman celebrated for his adventures, his horses,
+and his fortune, more than sufficed to make him forget his troubles.
+What rapture to become that illustrious nobleman's acquaintance,
+perhaps his friend! To move in the same orbit as this star of the first
+magnitude which would inevitably cast some of its lustre upon him! Now
+he would be a somebody in the world. He felt that he had grown a
+head taller, and Heaven only knows with what disdain poor Costard
+and Serpillon would have been received had they chanced to present
+themselves at that moment.
+
+It is needless to say that Wilkie dressed with infinite care on the
+following morning, no doubt in the hope of making a conquest of the
+marquis at first sight. He tried his best to solve the problem of
+appearing at the same time most recherche but at ease, excessively
+elegant and yet unostentatious; and he devoted himself to the task so
+unreservedly that he lost all conception of the flight of time: so
+that on seeing M. de Coralth enter his rooms, he exclaimed in unfeigned
+astonishment: "You here already?"
+
+It seemed to him that barely five minutes had elapsed since he took his
+place before the looking-glass to study attitudes and gestures, with
+a new and elegant mode of bowing and sitting down, like an actor
+practising the effects which are to win him applause.
+
+"Why do you say 'already?'" replied the viscount. "I am a quarter of an
+hour behind time. Are you not ready?"
+
+"Yes, certainly."
+
+"Let us start at once, then; my brougham is outside."
+
+The drive was a silent one. M. Ferdinand de Coralth, whose smooth white
+skin would ordinarily have excited the envy of a young girl, did not
+look like himself. His face was swollen and covered with blotches, and
+there were dark blue circles round his eyes. He seemed, moreover, to be
+in a most savage humor. "He hasn't had sleep enough," thought M. Wilkie,
+with his usual discernment; "he hasn't a bronze constitution like
+myself."
+
+M. Wilkie himself was insensible to fatigue, and although he had
+not closed his eyes the previous night, he only felt that nervous
+trepidation which invariably attacks debutants, and makes the throat so
+marvellously dry. For the first, and probably the last time in his life,
+M. Wilkie distrusted his own powers, and feared that he was not "quite
+up to the mark," as he elegantly expressed it.
+
+The sight of the Marquis de Valorsay's handsome mansion was not likely
+to restore his assurance. When he entered the courtyard, where the
+master's mail-phaeton stood in waiting; when through the open doors
+of the handsome stables he espied the many valuable horses neighing in
+their stalls, and the numerous carriages shrouded in linen covers; when
+he counted the valets on duty in the vestibule, and when he ascended the
+staircase behind a lackey attired in a black dress-coat, and as serious
+in mien as a notary; when he passed through the handsome drawing-rooms,
+filled to overflowing with pictures, armor, statuary, and all the
+trophies gained by the marquis's horses upon the turf, M. Wilkie
+mentally acknowledged that he knew nothing of high life, and that what
+he had considered luxury was scarcely the shadow of the reality. He
+felt actually ashamed of his own ignorance. This feeling of inferiority
+became so powerful that he was almost tempted to turn and fly, when the
+man clothed in black opened the door and announced, in a clear voice:
+"M. le Vicomte de Coralth!--M. Wilkie."
+
+With a most gracious and dignified air--the air of a true GRAND
+seigneur--the only portion of his inheritance which he had preserved
+intact, the marquis rose to his feet, and, offering his hand to M. de
+Coralth, exclaimed: "You are most welcome, viscount. This gentleman is
+undoubtedly the young friend you spoke of in the note I received from
+you this morning?"
+
+"The same; and really he stands greatly in need of your kindness. He
+finds himself in an extremely delicate position, and knows no one who
+can lend him a helping hand."
+
+"Ah, well, I will lend him one with pleasure, since he is your friend.
+But I must know the circumstances before I can act. Sit down, gentlemen,
+and enlighten me."
+
+M. Wilkie had prepared his story in advance, a touching and witty
+narrative; but when the moment came to begin it, he found himself unable
+to speak. He opened his mouth, but no sound issued from his lips, and it
+seemed as if he had been stricken dumb. Accordingly it was M. de Coralth
+who made a statement of the case, and he did it well. The narrative
+thus gained considerably in clearness and precision; and even M. Wilkie
+noticed that his friend understood how to present the events in their
+most favorable light, and how to omit them altogether when his heartless
+conduct would have appeared too odious. He also noticed--and he
+considered it an excellent omen--that M. de Valorsay was listening with
+the closest attention.
+
+Worthy marquis! if his own interests had been in jeopardy he could not
+have appeared more deeply concerned. When the viscount had concluded
+his story, he gravely exclaimed: "Your young friend is indeed in a most
+critical position, a position from which he cannot escape without being
+terribly victimized, if he's left dependent on his own resources."
+
+"But it is understood that you will help him, is it not?"
+
+M. de Valorsay reflected for a little, and then, addressing M. Wilkie,
+replied: "Yes, I consent to assist you, monsieur. First, because your
+cause seems to me just, and, also, because you are M. de Coralth's
+friend. I promise you my aid on one condition--that you will follow my
+advice implicitly."
+
+The interesting young man lifted his hand, and, by dint of a powerful
+effort, he succeeded in articulating: "Anything you wish!--upon my
+sacred word!"
+
+"You must understand that when I engage in an enterprise, it must
+not fail. The eye of the public is upon me, and I have my PRESTIGE to
+maintain. I have given you a great mark of confidence, for in lending
+you my influence I become, in some measure at least, your sponsor. But
+I cannot accept this great responsibility unless I am allowed absolute
+control of the affair."
+
+"And I think that we ought to begin operations this very day. The main
+thing is to circumvent your father, the terrible man with whom your
+mother has threatened you."
+
+"Ah! but how?"
+
+"I shall dress at once and go to the Hotel de Chalusse, in order to
+ascertain what has occurred there. You on your side must hasten to
+Madame d'Argeles and request her politely, but firmly, to furnish you
+with the necessary proofs to assert your rights. If she consents, well
+and good! If she refuses, we will consult some lawyer as to the next
+step. In any case, call here again at four o'clock."
+
+But the thought of meeting Madame d'Argeles again was anything but
+pleasing to Wilkie. "I would willingly yield that undertaking to some
+one else," said he. "Cannot some one else go in my place?"
+
+Fortunately M. de Coralth knew how to encourage him. "What! are you
+afraid?" he asked.
+
+Afraid! he?--never! It was easy to see that by the way he settled his
+hat on his head and went off, slamming the door noisily behind him.
+
+"What an idiot!" muttered M. de Coralth. "And to think that there are
+ten thousand in Paris built upon the very same plan!"
+
+M. de Valorsay gravely shook his head. "Let us thank fortune that he is
+as he is. No youth who possessed either heart or intelligence would play
+the part that I intend for him, and enable me to obtain proud Marguerite
+and her millions. But I fear he won't go to Madame d'Argeles's house.
+You noticed his repugnance!"
+
+"Oh, you needn't trouble yourself in the least on that account--he'll
+go. He would go to the devil if the noble Marquis de Valorsay ordered
+him to do so."
+
+M. de Coralth understood Wilkie perfectly. The fear of being considered
+a coward by a nobleman like the Marquis de Valorsay was more than
+sufficient, not only to divest him of all his scruples, but even to
+induce him to commit any act of folly, or actually a crime. For if he
+had looked upon M. de Coralth as an oracle, he considered the marquis to
+be a perfect god.
+
+Accordingly, as he hastened toward Madame d'Argeles's residence, he said
+to himself: "Why shouldn't I go to her house? I've done her no injury.
+Besides, she won't eat me." And remembering that he should be obliged to
+render a report of this interview, he resolved to assert his superiority
+and to remain cool and unmoved, as he had seen M. de Coralth do so
+often.
+
+However, the unusual aspect of the house excited his surprise, and
+puzzled him not a little. Three huge furniture vans, heavily laden, were
+standing outside the gate. In the courtyard there were two more vehicles
+of the same description, which a dozen men or so were busily engaged
+in loading. "Ah, ha!" muttered M. Wilkie, "it was fortunate that
+I came--very fortunate; so she was going to run away!" Thereupon,
+approaching a group of servants who were in close conference in the
+hall, he demanded, in his most imperious manner: "Madame d'Argeles!"
+
+The servants remembered the visitor perfectly; they now knew who
+he really was, and they could not understand how he could have the
+impudence and audacity to come there again so soon after the shameful
+scene of the previous evening. "Madame is at home," replied one of the
+men, in anything but a polite tone; "and I will go and see if she will
+consent to see you. Wait here."
+
+He went off, leaving M. Wilkie in the vestibule to settle his collar and
+twirl his puny mustaches, with affected indifference; but in reality he
+was far from comfortable. For the servants did not hesitate to stare
+at him, and it was quite impossible not to read their contempt in their
+glances. They even sneered audibly and pointed at him; and he heard five
+or six epithets more expressive than elegant which could only have been
+meant for himself. "The fools!" thought he, boiling with anger. "The
+scoundrels! Ah! if I dared. If a gentleman like myself was allowed to
+notice such blackguards, how I'd chastise them!"
+
+But the valet who had gone to warn Madame d'Argeles soon reappeared
+and put an end to his sufferings. "Madame will see you," said the man,
+impudently. "Ah! if I were in her place----"
+
+"Come, make haste," rejoined Wilkie, indignantly, and following the
+servant, he was ushered into a room which had already been divested of
+its hangings, curtains, and furniture. He here found Madame d'Argeles
+engaged in packing a large trunk with household linen and sundry
+articles of clothing.
+
+By a sort of miracle the unfortunate woman had survived the terrible
+shock which had at first threatened to have an immediately fatal
+effect. Still she had none the less received her death-blow. It was
+only necessary to look at her to be assured of that. She was so greatly
+changed that when M. Wilkie's eyes first fell on her, he asked himself
+if this were really the same person whom he had met on the previous
+evening. Henceforth she would be an old woman. You would have taken her
+for over fifty, so terrible had been the sufferings caused her by the
+shameful conduct of her son. In this sad-eyed, haggard-faced woman, clad
+in black, no one would have recognized the notorious Lia d'Argeles, who,
+only the evening before, had driven round the lake, reclining on the
+cushions of her victoria, and eclipsing all the women around her by the
+splendor of her toilette. Nothing now remained of the gay worldling but
+the golden hair which she was condemned to see always the same, since
+its tint had been fixed by dyes as indelible as the stains upon her
+past.
+
+She rose with difficulty when M. Wilkie entered, and in the
+expressionless voice of those who are without hope, she asked: "What do
+you wish of me?"
+
+As usual, when the time came to carry out his happiest conceptions, his
+courage failed him. "I came to talk about our affairs, you know," he
+replied, "and I find you moving."
+
+"I am not moving."
+
+"Nonsense! you can't make me believe that! What's the meaning of these
+carts in the courtyard?"
+
+"They are here to convey all the furniture in the house to the
+auction-rooms."
+
+Wilkie was struck dumb for a moment, but eventually recovering himself a
+little, he exclaimed: "What! you are going to sell everything?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Astonishing, upon my honor! But afterward?"
+
+"I shall leave Paris."
+
+"Bah! and where are you going?"
+
+With a gesture of utter indifference, she gently replied: "I don't know;
+I shall go where no one will know me, and where it will be possible for
+me to hide my shame."
+
+A terrible disquietude seized hold of Wilkie. This sudden change of
+residence, this departure which so strongly resembled flight, this cold
+greeting when he expected passionate reproaches, seemed to indicate that
+Madame d'Argeles's resolution would successfully resist any amount of
+entreaty on his part. "The devil," he remarked, "I don't think this at
+all pleasant! What is to become of me? How am I to obtain possession of
+the Count de Chalusse's estate? That's what I am after! It's rightfully
+mine, and I'm determined to have it, as I told you once before. And when
+I've once taken anything into my head----"
+
+He paused, for he could no longer face the scornful glances that Madame
+d'Argeles was giving him. "Don't be alarmed," she replied bitterly,
+"I shall leave you the means of asserting your right to my parents'
+estate."
+
+"Ah--so----"
+
+"Your threats obliged me to decide contrary to my own wishes. I felt
+that no amount of slander or disgrace would daunt you."
+
+"Of course not, when so many millions are at stake."
+
+"I reflected, and I saw that nothing would arrest you upon your downward
+path except a large fortune. If you were poor and compelled to earn your
+daily bread--a task which you are probably incapable of performing--who
+can tell what depths of degradation you might descend to? With your
+instincts and your vices, who knows what crime you wouldn't commit to
+obtain money? It wouldn't be long before you were in the dock, and I
+should hear of you only through your disgrace. But, on the other hand,
+if you were rich, you would probably lead an honest life, like many
+others, who, wanting for nothing, are not tempted to do wrong, who, in
+fact, show virtue in which there is nothing worthy of praise. For real
+virtue implies temptation--a struggle and victory."
+
+Although he did not understand these remarks very well, M. Wilkie
+evinced a desire to offer some objections; but Madame d'Argeles had
+already resumed: "So I went to my notary this morning. I told him
+everything; and by this time my renunciation of my rights to the estate
+of the Count de Chalusse is already recorded."
+
+"What! your renunciation. Oh! no."
+
+"Allow me to finish since you don't understand me. As soon as I renounce
+the inheritance it becomes yours."
+
+"Truly?"
+
+"I have no wish to deceive you. I only desire that the name of Lia
+d'Argeles should not be mentioned. I will give you the necessary proofs
+to establish your identity; my marriage contract and your certificate of
+birth."
+
+It was joy that made M. Wilkie speechless now. "And when will you give
+me these documents?" he faltered, after a short pause.
+
+"You shall have them before you leave this house; but first of all I
+must talk with you."
+
+
+
+
+XV.
+
+
+Agitated and excited though he was, M. Wilkie had not once ceased to
+think of M. de Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay. What would they
+do in such a position, and how should he act to conform himself to the
+probable example of these models of deportment? Manifestly he ought to
+assume that stolid and insolent air of boredom which is considered a
+sure indication of birth and breeding. Convinced of this, and seized
+with a laudable desire to emulate such distinguished examples, he had
+perched himself upon a trunk, where he still sat with his legs crossed.
+He now pretended to suppress a yawn, as he growled, "What! some more
+long phrases--and another melodramatic display?"
+
+Absorbed in the memories she had invoked, Madame d'Argeles paid no heed
+to Wilkie's impertinence. "Yes, I must talk with you," she said, "and
+more for your sake than for my own. I must tell you who I am, and
+through what strange vicissitudes I have passed. You know what family
+I belong to. I will tell you, however--for you may be ignorant of the
+fact--that our house is the equal of any in France in lineage, splendor
+of alliance, and fortune. When I was a child, my parents lived at the
+Hotel de Chalusse, in the Faubourg Saint Germain, a perfect palace,
+surrounded by one of those immense gardens, which are no longer seen in
+Paris--a real park, shaded with century-old trees. Certainly everything
+that money could procure, or vanity desire, was within my reach; and
+yet my youth was wretchedly unhappy. I scarcely knew my father, who
+was devoured by ambition, and had thrown himself body and soul into
+the vortex of politics. Either my mother did not love me, or thought
+it beneath her dignity to make any display of sensibility; but at all
+events her reserve had raised a wall of ice between herself and me. As
+for my brother he was too much engrossed in pleasure to think of a
+mere child. So I lived quite alone, too proud to accept the love and
+friendship of my inferiors--abandoned to the dangerous inspirations of
+solitude, and with no other consolation than my books--books which had
+been chosen for me by my mother's confessor, and which were calculated
+to fill my imagination with visionary and romantic fancies. The only
+conversation I heard dealt with the means of leaving all the family
+fortune to my brother, so that he might uphold the splendor of the name,
+and with the necessity of marrying me to some superannuated nobleman who
+would take me without a dowry, or of compelling me to enter one of those
+aristocratic convents, which are the refuge, and often the prison, of
+poor girls of noble birth.
+
+"I do not pretend to justify my fault, I am only explaining it. I
+thought myself the most unfortunate being in the world--and such I
+really was, since I honestly believed it--when I happened to meet Arthur
+Gordon, your father. I saw him for the first time at a fete given at the
+house of the Comte de Commarin. How he, a mere adventurer, had succeeded
+in forcing his way into the most exclusive society in the world, is a
+point which I have never been able to explain. But, alas! it is only too
+true that when our glances met for the first time, my heart was stirred
+to its inmost depths; I felt that it was no longer mine--that I was no
+longer free! Ah! why does not God allow a man's face to reflect at
+least something of his nature? This man, who was a corrupt and audacious
+hypocrite, had that air of apparent nobility and frankness which
+inspires you with unlimited confidence, and the melancholy expression on
+his features seemed to indicate that he had known sorrow, and had good
+cause to rail at destiny. In his whole appearance there was certainly
+a mysterious and fatal charm. I afterward learned that this was only a
+natural result of the wild life he had led. He was only twenty-six, and
+he had already been the commander of a slave ship, and had fought in
+Mexico at the head of one of those guerilla bands which make politics an
+excuse for pillage and murder. He divined only too well the impression
+he had made upon my heart. I met him twice afterward in society. He did
+not speak to me; he even pretended to avoid me, but standing a little
+on one side, he watched my every movement with burning eyes in which
+I fancied I could read a passion as absorbing as my own. At last he
+ventured to write to me. The moment a letter addressed to me in an
+unknown hand was covertly handed me by my maid, I divined that it came
+from him. I was frightened, and my first impulse was to take it, not
+to my mother--whom I regarded as my natural enemy--but to my father.
+However, he chanced to be absent; I kept the letter, I read it, I
+answered it--and he wrote again.
+
+"Alas! from that moment my conduct was inexcusable. I knew that it was
+worse than a fault to continue this clandestine correspondence. I knew
+my parents would never give my hand in marriage to a man who was not of
+noble birth. I knew that I was risking my reputation, the spotless honor
+of our house, my happiness, and life! Still I persisted--I was possessed
+with a strange madness that made me ready to brave every danger.
+Besides, he gave me no time to breathe, or reflect. Everywhere,
+constantly, every instant, he compelled me to think of him. By some
+miracle of address and audacity, he had discovered a means of intruding
+upon my presence, even in my father's house. For instance, every morning
+I found the vases in my room full of choice flowers, though I was never
+able to discover what hands had placed them there. Ah! how can one help
+believing in an omnipresent passion which one inhales with the very air
+one breathes! How can one resist it?
+
+"I only discovered Arthur Gordon's object when it was too late. He
+had come to Paris with the fixed determination of trapping some rich
+heiress, and forcing her family to give her to him with a large
+dowry, after one of those disgraceful scandals which render a marriage
+inevitable. At the very same time he was pursuing two other rich young
+girls, persuaded that one of the three would certainly become his
+victim.
+
+"I was the first to yield. One of those unforeseen events which are
+the work of Providence, was destined to decide my fate. Several times,
+already, in compliance with Arthur's urgent entreaties, I had met him at
+night time in a little pavilion in our garden. This pavilion contained
+a billiard-room and a spacious gallery in which my brother practised
+fencing and pistol shooting with his masters and friends. There, thanks
+to the liberty I enjoyed, we thought ourselves perfectly secure from
+observation, and we were imprudent enough to light the candles. One
+night when I had just joined Arthur in the pavilion, I thought I heard
+the sound of hoarse, heavy breathing behind me. I turned round in a
+fright and saw my brother standing on the threshold. Oh! then I realized
+how guilty I had been! I felt that one or the other of these two men--my
+lover or my brother--would not leave that room alive.
+
+"I tried to speak, to throw myself between them, but I found I could
+neither speak nor move; it was as if I had been turned to stone. Nor did
+they exchange a word at first. But at last my brother drew two swords
+from their scabbards, and throwing one at Arthur's feet, exclaimed: 'I
+have no wish to assassinate you. Defend yourself, and save your life if
+you can!' And as Arthur hesitated, and seemed to be trying to gain time
+instead of picking up the weapon that was lying on the floor near him,
+my brother struck him in the face with the flat side of his sword, and
+cried: 'Now will you fight, you coward! In an instant it was all over.
+Arthur caught up the sword, and springing upon my brother, disarmed him,
+and wounded him in the breast. I saw this. I saw the blood spurt out
+upon my lover's hands. I saw my brother stagger, beat the air wildly
+with his hands, and fall apparently lifeless to the floor. Then I, too,
+lost consciousness and fell!"
+
+Any one who had seen Madame d'Argeles as she stood there recoiling in
+horror, with her features contracted, and her eyes dilated, would
+have realized that by strength of will she had dispelled the mists
+enshrouding the past, and distinctly beheld the scene she was
+describing. She seemed to experience anew the same agony of terror she
+had felt twenty years before; and this lent such poignant intensity to
+the interest of her narrative that if M. Wilkie's heart was not exactly
+touched, he was, as he afterward confessed, at least rather interested.
+But Madame d'Argeles seemed to have forgotten his existence. She wiped
+away the foam-flecked blood which had risen to her lips, and in the same
+mournful voice resumed her story.
+
+"When I regained my senses it was morning, and I was lying, still
+dressed, on a bed in a strange room. Arthur Gordon was standing at the
+foot of the bed anxiously watching my movements. He did not give me time
+to question him. 'You are in my house,' said he. 'Your brother is dead!'
+Almighty God! I thought I should die as well. I hoped so. I prayed
+for death. But, in spite of my sobs, he pitilessly continued: 'It is a
+terrible misfortune which I shall never cease to regret. And yet, it was
+his own fault. You, who witnessed the scene, know that it was so.
+You can still see on my face the mark of the blow he dealt me. I only
+defended myself and you.' I was ignorant then of the accepted code of
+duelling. I did not know that by throwing himself upon my brother before
+he was on guard, Arthur Gordon had virtually assassinated him. He relied
+upon my ignorance for the success of the sinister farce he was playing.
+'When I saw your brother fall,' he continued, 'I was wild with terror;
+and not knowing what I did, I caught you up in my arms and brought you
+here. But don't tremble, I know that you are not in my house of your own
+free will. A carriage is below and awaits your orders to convey you
+to your parents' home. It will be easy to find an explanation for last
+night's catastrophe. Slander will not venture to attack such a family
+as yours.' He spoke in the constrained tone, and with that air which a
+brave man, condemned to death, would assume in giving utterance to his
+last wishes. I felt as if I were going mad. 'And you!' I exclaimed,
+'you! What will become of you?' He shook his head, and with a look
+of anguish, replied: 'Me! What does it matter about me! I am ruined
+undoubtedly. So much the better. Nothing matters now that I must live
+apart from you'! Ah! he knew my heart. He knew his power! Swayed by an
+emotion which was madness rather than heroism, I sprang toward him, and
+clasped him in my arms: 'Then I, too, am lost!' I cried. 'Since fate
+united us, nothing but death shall separate us. I love you. I am your
+accomplice. Let the curse fall upon both!'
+
+"A keen observer would certainly have detected a gleam of fiendish joy
+in his eyes. But he protested, or pretended to protest. With feigned
+energy he refused to accept such a sacrifice. He could not link my
+destiny to his, for misery had ever been his lot; and now that this last
+and most terrible misfortune had overtaken him, he was more than ever
+convinced that there was a curse hanging over him! He would not suffer
+me to bring misery upon myself, and eternal remorse upon him. But the
+more he repulsed me, the more obstinately I clung to him. The more
+forcibly he showed the horror of the sacrifice, the more I was convinced
+that my honor compelled me to make it. So at last he yielded, or seemed
+to yield, with transports of gratitude and love. 'Well! yes, I accept
+your sacrifice, my darling!' he exclaimed. 'I accept it; and before the
+God who is looking down upon us, I swear that I will do all that is in
+human power to repay such sublime and marvellous devotion.' And, bending
+over me, he printed a kiss upon my forehead. 'But we must fly!' he
+resumed, quickly. 'I have my happiness to defend now! I will not suffer
+any one to discover us and separate us now. We must start at once,
+without losing a moment, and gain my native land, America. There, we
+shall be safe. For rest assured they will search for us. Who knows but
+even now the officers of the law are upon our track? Your family is
+all-powerful--I am a mere nobody--we should be crushed if they discover
+us. They would bury you in a gloomy cloister, and I should be tried as
+a common thief, or as a vile assassin.' My only answer was: 'Let us go!
+Let us go at once!'
+
+"It had been easy for him to foresee what the result of this interview
+would be. A vehicle was indeed waiting at the door, but not for
+the purpose of conveying me to the Hotel de Chalusse--as was proved
+conclusively by the fact that his trunks were already strapped upon it.
+Besides, the coachman must have received his instructions in advance for
+he drove us straight to the Havre Railway station without a word. It
+was not until some months afterward that these trifles, which entirely
+escaped my notice at the time, opened my eyes to the truth. When we
+reached the station we found a train ready to start, and we took our
+places in it. I tried to quiet my conscience with miserable sophistries.
+Remembering that God has said to woman: To follow thy husband thou shalt
+abandon all else, native land, paternal home, parents and friends, I
+told myself that this was the husband whom my heart had instinctively
+chosen, and that it was my duty to follow him and share his destiny. And
+thus I fled with him, although I thought I left a corpse behind me--the
+corpse of my only brother."
+
+M. Wilkie was actually so much interested that he forgot his anxiety
+concerning his attitude, and no longer thought of M. de Coralth and the
+Marquis de Valorsay. He even sprang up, and exclaimed: "Amazing!"
+
+But Madame d'Argeles had already resumed: "Such was my great,
+inexcusable, irreparable fault. I have told you the whole truth, without
+trying either to conceal or justify anything. Listen to my chastisement!
+On our arrival at Le Havre the next day, Arthur confessed that he was
+greatly embarrassed financially. Owing to our precipitate flight, he had
+not had time to realize the property he possessed--at least so he told
+me--a banker, on whom he had depended, had moreover failed him, and he
+had not sufficient money to pay our passage to New York. This amazed
+me. My education had been absurd, like that of most young girls in
+my station. I knew nothing of real life, of its requirements and
+difficulties. I knew, of course, that there were rich people and poor
+people, that money was a necessity, and that those who did not possess
+it would stoop to any meanness to obtain it. But all this was not very
+clear in my mind, and I never suspected that a few francs more or
+less would be a matter of vital importance. So I was not in the least
+prepared for the request to which this confession served as preface, and
+Arthur Gordon was obliged to ask me point-blank if I did not happen to
+have some money about me, or some jewelry which could be converted into
+money. I gave him all I had, my purse containing a few louis, a ring and
+a necklace, with a handsome diamond cross attached to it. However,
+the total value was comparatively small, and such was Arthur's
+disappointment that he made a remark which frightened me even then,
+though I did not fully understand its shameful meaning until afterward:
+'A woman who repairs to a rendezvous should always have all the
+valuables she possesses about her. One never knows what may happen.'
+
+"Want of money was keeping us prisoners at Le Havre, when Arthur Gordon
+chanced to meet an old acquaintance, who was the captain of an American
+sailing vessel. He confided his embarrassment to his friend, and the
+latter, whose vessel was to sail at the end of the same week, kindly
+offered us a free passage. The voyage was one long torture to me, for it
+was then that I first served my apprenticeship in shame and disgrace.
+By the captain's offensive gallantry, the lower officers' familiarity of
+manner, and the sailors' ironical glances whenever I appeared on deck, I
+saw that my position was a secret for no one. Everybody knew that I was
+the mistress and not the wife of the man whom I called my husband: and,
+without being really conscious of it, perhaps, they made me cruelly
+expiate my fault. Moreover, reason had regained its ascendency, my eyes
+were gradually opening to the truth, and I was beginning to learn the
+real character of the scoundrel for whom I had sacrificed all that makes
+life desirable.
+
+"Not that he had wholly ceased to practise dissimulation. But after the
+evening meal he often lingered at table smoking and drinking with
+his friend the captain, and when he joined me afterward, heated with
+alcohol, he shocked me by advocating theories which were both novel
+and repulsive to me. Once, after drinking more than usual, he entirely
+forgot his assumed part, and revealed himself in his true character.
+He declared he bitterly regretted that our love affair had ended so
+disastrously. It was deplorable to think that so happily conceived and
+so skilfully conducted a scheme should have terminated in bloodshed. And
+the blow had fallen just as he fancied he had reached the goal; just as
+he thought he would reap the reward of his labor. In a few weeks' more
+time he would undoubtedly have gained sufficient influence over me to
+persuade me to elope with him. This would, of course, have caused a
+great scandal; the next day there would have been a family conclave; a
+compromise would have been effected, and finally, a marriage arranged
+with a large dowry, to hush up the affair. 'And I should now be a
+rich man,' he added, 'a very rich man--I should be rolling through the
+streets of Paris in my carriage, instead of being on board this cursed
+ship, eating salt cod twice a day, and living on charity.'
+
+"Ah! it was no longer possible to doubt. The truth was as clear as
+daylight. I had never been loved, not even an hour, not even a moment.
+The loving letters which had blinded me, the protestations of affection
+which had deceived me, had been addressed to my father's millions, not
+to myself. And not unfrequently I saw Arthur Gordon's face darken, as he
+talked with evident anxiety about what he could do to earn a living for
+himself and me in America. 'I have had trouble enough to get on alone,'
+he grumbled. 'What will it be now? To burden myself with a penniless
+wife! What egregious folly! And yet I couldn't have acted differently--I
+was compelled to do it.' Why had he been compelled to do it? why had
+he not acted differently?--that was what I vainly puzzled my brain
+to explain. However, his gloomy fears of poverty were not realized. A
+delightful surprise awaited him at New York. A relative had recently
+died, leaving him a legacy of fifty thousand dollars--a small fortune.
+I hoped that he would now cease his constant complaints, but he seemed
+even more displeased than before. 'Such is the irony of fate,' he
+repeated again and again. 'With this money, I might easily have married
+a wife worth a hundred thousand dollars, and then I should be rich at
+last!' After that, I had good reason to expect that I should soon be
+forsaken--but no, shortly after our arrival, he married me. Had he done
+so out of respect for his word? I believed so. But, alas! this marriage
+was the result of calculation, like everything else he did.
+
+"We were living in New York, when one evening he came home, looking very
+pale and agitated. He had a French newspaper in his hand. 'Read this,'
+he said, handing it to me. I took the paper as he bade me, and read
+that my brother had not been killed, that he was improving, and that
+his recovery was now certain. And as I fell on my knees, bursting into
+tears, and thanking God for freeing me from such terrible remorse, he
+exclaimed: 'We are in a nice fix! I advise you to congratulate yourself!
+'From that time forward, I noticed he displayed the feverish anxiety of
+a man who feels that he is constantly threatened with some great danger.
+A few days afterward, he said to me: 'I cannot endure this! Have our
+trunks ready to-morrow, and we will start South. Instead of calling
+ourselves Gordon, we'll travel under the name of Grant.' I did not
+venture to question him. He had quite mastered me by his cruel tyranny,
+and I was accustomed to obey him like a slave in terror of the lash.
+However, during our long journey, I learned the cause of our flight and
+change of name.
+
+"'Your brother, d--n him,' he said, one day, 'is hunting for me
+everywhere! He wants to kill me or to deliver me up to justice, I don't
+know which. He pretends that I tried to murder him!' It was strange;
+but Arthur Gordon, who was bravery personified, and who exposed himself
+again and again to the most frightful dangers, felt a wild, unreasoning,
+inconceivable fear of my brother. It was this dread that had decided
+him to burden himself with me. He feared that if he left me, lying
+unconscious beside my brother's lifeless form, I might on recovering my
+senses reveal the truth, and unconsciously act as his accuser. You were
+born in Richmond, Wilkie, where we remained nearly a month, during which
+time I saw but little of your father. He had formed the acquaintance
+of several rich planters, and spent his time hunting and gambling with
+them. Unfortunately, fifty thousand dollars could not last long at this
+rate; and, in spite of his skill as a gambler, he returned home one
+morning ruined. A fortnight later when he had sold our effects, and
+borrowed all the money he could, we embarked again for France. It
+was not until we reached Paris that I discovered the reasons that had
+influenced him in returning to Europe. He had heard of my father and
+mother's death, and intended to compel me to claim my share of the
+property. He dared not appear in person on account of my brother. At
+last the hour of my vengeance had arrived; for I had taken a solemn oath
+that this scoundrel who had ruined me should never enjoy the fortune
+which had been his only object in seducing me. I had sworn to die inch
+by inch and by the most frightful tortures rather than give him one
+penny of the Chalusse millions. And I kept my word.
+
+"When I told him that I was resolved not to assert my rights, he seemed
+utterly confounded. He could not understand how the down-trodden slave
+dared to revolt against him. And when he found that my decision was
+irrevocable, I thought he would have an attack of apoplexy. It made him
+wild with rage to think that he was only separated from this immense
+fortune--the dream of his life--by a single word of mine, and to find
+that he had not the power to extort that word from me. Then began a
+struggle between us, which became more and more frightful as the
+money he possessed gradually dwindled away. But it was in vain that he
+resorted to brutal treatment; in vain that he struck me, tortured me,
+and dragged me about the floor by the hair of my head! The thought that
+I was avenged, that his sufferings equalled mine, increased my courage
+a hundredfold, and made me almost insensible to physical pain. He
+would certainly have been the first to grow weary of the struggle, if
+a fiendish plan had not occurred to him. He said to himself that if
+he could not conquer the wife, he COULD conquer the mother and he
+threatened to turn his brutality to you, Wilkie. To save you--for I knew
+what he was capable of--I pretended to waver, and I asked twenty-four
+hours for reflection. He granted them. But the next day I left him
+forever, flying from him with you in my arms."
+
+M. Wilkie turned white, and a cold chill crept up his spine. However,
+it was not pity for his mother's sufferings, nor shame for his father's
+infamy that agitated him, but ever the same terrible fear of incurring
+the enmity of this dangerous coveter of the Chalusse millions. Would
+he be able to hold his father at bay even with the assistance of M. de
+Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay? A thousand questions rose to his
+lips, for he was eager to hear the particulars of his mother's flight;
+but Madame d'Argeles hurried on with her story as if she feared her
+strength would fail before she reached the end.
+
+"I was alone with you, Wilkie, in this great city," she resumed. "A
+hundred francs was all that I possessed. My first care was to find a
+place of shelter. For sixteen francs a month, which I was compelled to
+pay in advance, I found a small, meagrely furnished room in the Faubourg
+Saint Martin. It was badly ventilated and miserably lighted, but still
+it was shelter. I said to myself that we could live there together by my
+work, Wilkie. I was a proficient in feminine accomplishments; I was an
+excellent musician, and I thought I should have no difficulty in earning
+the four or five francs a day which I considered absolutely necessary
+for our subsistence. Alas! I discovered only too soon what chimerical
+hopes I had cherished. To give music lessons it is necessary to obtain
+pupils. Where should I find them? I had no one to recommend me, and I
+scarcely dared show myself in the streets, so great was my fear that
+your father would discover our hiding-place. At last, I decided to try
+to find some employment in needlework, and timidly offered my services
+at several shops. Alas! it is only those who have gone about from door
+to door soliciting work who know the misery of the thing. To ask alms
+would be scarcely more humiliating. People sneered at me, and replied
+(when they deigned to reply at all) that 'there was no business doing,
+and they had all the help they wanted.' My evident inexperience was
+probably the cause of many of these refusals, as well as my attire, for
+I still had the appearance of being a rich woman. Who knows what they
+took me for? Still the thought of you sustained me, Wilkie, and nothing
+daunted me.
+
+"I finally succeeded in obtaining some bands of muslin to embroider, and
+some pieces of tapestry work to fill in. Unremunerative employment, no
+doubt, especially to one ignorant of the art of working quickly, rather
+than well. By rising with daylight, and working until late at night,
+I scarcely succeeded in earning twenty sous a day. And it was not long
+before even this scanty resource failed me. Winter came, and the cold
+weather with it. One morning I changed my last five-franc piece--it
+lasted us a week. Then I pawned and sold everything that was not
+absolutely indispensable until nothing was left me but my patched dress
+and a single skirt. And soon an evening came when the owner of our
+miserable den turned us into the street because I could no longer pay
+the rent.
+
+"This was the final blow! I tottered away, clinging to the walls for
+support; too weak from lack of food to carry you. The rain was falling,
+and chilled us to the bones. You were crying bitterly. And all that
+night and all the next day, aimless and hopeless, we wandered about the
+streets. I must either die of want or return to your father. I preferred
+death. Toward evening--instinct having led me to the Seine--I sat down
+on one of the stone benches of the Point-Neuf, holding you on my knees
+and watching the flow of the dark river below. There was a strange
+fascination--a promise of peace in its depths--that impelled me almost
+irresistibly to plunge into the flood. If I had been alone in the world,
+I should not have stopped to consider a second, but on your account,
+Wilkie, I hesitated."
+
+Moved by the thought of the danger he had escaped, M. Wilkie shuddered.
+"B-r-r-r!" he growled. "You did well to hesitate."
+
+She did not even hear him, but continued: "I at last decided that it
+was best to put an end to this misery, and rising with difficulty, I was
+approaching the parapet, when a gruff voice beside us exclaimed: 'What
+are you doing there?' I turned, thinking some police officer had spoken,
+but I was mistaken. By the light of the street lamp, I perceived a man
+who looked some thirty years of age, and had a frank and rather genial
+face. Why this stranger instantly inspired me with unlimited confidence
+I don't know. Perhaps it was an unconscious horror of death that made me
+long for any token of human sympathy. However it may have been, I told
+him my story, but not without changing the names, and omitting many
+particulars. He had taken a seat beside me on the bench, and I saw big
+tears roll down his cheeks as I proceeded with my narrative. 'It is
+ever so! it is ever so!' he muttered. 'To love is to incur the risk of
+martyrdom. It is to offer one's self as a victim to every perfidy, to
+the basest treason and ingratitude.' The man who spoke in this fashion
+was Baron Trigault. He did not allow me to finish my story. 'Enough!' he
+suddenly exclaimed, 'follow me!' A cab was passing, he made us get in,
+and an hour later we were in a comfortable room, beside a blazing fire,
+with a generously spread table before us. The next day, moreover, we
+were installed in a pleasant home. Alas! why wasn't the baron generous
+to the last? You were saved, Wilkie, but at what a price!"
+
+She paused for a moment, her face redder than fire; but soon mastering
+her agitation, she resumed: "There was one great cause of dissension
+between the baron and myself. I wished you to be educated, Wilkie,
+like the son of a noble family, while he desired you should receive the
+practical training suited to a youth who would have to make his own way
+in the world, and win position, fortune, and even name for himself.
+Ah! he was a thousand times right, as events have since proved only too
+well! But maternal love blinded me, and, after an angry discussion,
+he went away, declaring he would not see me again until I became more
+reasonable. He thought that reflection would cure me of my folly.
+Unfortunately, he was not acquainted with the fatal obstinacy which is
+the distinguishing characteristic of the Chalusse family. While I was
+wondering how I could find the means of carrying the plans I had formed
+for you into execution, two of the baron's acquaintances presented
+themselves, with the following proposal: Aware of the enormous profits
+derived by clandestine gambling dens, they had conceived the project of
+opening a public establishment on a large scale, where any Parisian or
+foreigner, if he seemed to be a gentleman, and possessed of means,
+would find no difficulty in obtaining admission. By taking certain
+precautions, and by establishing this gambling den in a private
+drawing-room, they believed the scheme practicable, and came to suggest
+that I should keep the drawing-room in question, and be their partner
+in the enterprise. Scarcely knowing what I pledged myself to, I accepted
+their offer, influenced--I should rather say decided--by the
+exalted positions which both these gentlemen occupied, by the public
+consideration they enjoyed, and the honored names they bore. And that
+same week this house was rented and furnished, and I was installed in it
+under the name of Lia d'Argeles.
+
+"But this was not all. There still remained the task of creating
+for myself one of those scandalous reputations that attract public
+attention. This proved an easy task, thanks to the assistance of my
+silent partners, and the innocent simplicity of several of their friends
+and certain journalists. As for myself, I did my best to insure the
+success of the horrible farce which was to lend infamous notoriety
+to the name of Lia d'Argeles. I had magnificent equipages and superb
+dresses, and I made myself conspicuous at the theatres and all places of
+public resort. As is generally the case when one is acting contrary to
+conscience, I called the most absurd sophistries to my assistance. I
+tried to convince myself that appearances are nothing, that reality is
+everything, and that it did not matter if I were known as a courtesan
+since rumor lied, and my life WAS really chaste. When the baron hastened
+to me and tried to rescue me from the abyss into which I had flung
+myself; it was too late. I had discovered that the business would prove
+successful; and for your sake, I longed for money as passionately, as
+madly, as any miser. Last year my gaming-room yielded more than one
+hundred and fifty thousand francs clear profit, and I received as my
+share the thirty-five thousand francs which you squandered. Now you know
+me as I really am. My associates, my partners, the men whose secret
+I have faithfully kept, walk the streets with their heads erect. They
+boast of their unsullied honor, and they are respected by every one.
+Such is the truth, and I have no reason to make their disgrace known.
+Besides, if I proclaimed it from the house-tops, no one would believe
+me. But you are my son, and I owe you the truth, the whole truth!"
+
+In any age but the present, Madame d'Argeles's story would have seemed
+absolutely incredible. Nowadays, however, such episodes are by no means
+rare. Two men--two men of exalted rank and highly respected, to use a
+common expression--associate in opening a gaming-house under the very
+eyes of the police, and in coining money out of a woman's supposed
+disgrace. 'Tis after all but an everyday occurrence.
+
+The unhappy woman had told her story with apparent coldness, and yet,
+in her secret heart, she perhaps hoped that by disclosing her terrible
+sacrifice and long martyrdom, she would draw a burst of gratitude and
+tenderness from her son, calculated to repay her for all her sufferings.
+But the hope was vain. It would have been easier to draw water from a
+solid rock than to, extract a sympathetic tear from Wilkie's eyes.
+He was only alive to the practical side of this narrative, and what
+impressed him most was the impudent assurance of Madame d'Argeles's
+business associates. "Not a bad idea; not bad at all," he exclaimed.
+And, boiling over with curiosity, he continued: "I would give something
+handsome to know those men's names. Really you ought to tell me. It
+would be worth one's while to know."
+
+Any other person than this interesting young man would have been
+crushed by the look his mother gave him--a look embodying the deepest
+disappointment and contempt. "I think you must be mad," she remarked
+coldly. And as he sprang up, astonished that any one should doubt his
+abundant supply of good sense, "Let us put an end to this," she sternly
+added.
+
+Thereupon she hastily went into the adjoining room, reappearing a moment
+later with a roll of papers in her hand. "Here," she remarked, "is
+my marriage certificate, your certificate of birth, and a copy of my
+renunciation--a perfectly valid document, since the court has authorized
+it, owing to my husband's absence. All these proofs I am ready and
+willing to place at your disposal, but on one condition."
+
+This last word fell like a cold shower-bath upon Wilkie's exultant joy.
+"What is this condition?" he anxiously inquired.
+
+"It is that you should sign this deed, which has been drawn up by my
+notary--a deed by which you pledge yourself to hand me the sum of two
+million francs on the day you come into possession of the Chalusse
+property."
+
+Two millions! The immensity of the sum struck Wilkie dumb with
+consternation. Nor did he forget that he would be compelled to give
+the Viscount de Coralth the large reward he had promised him--a reward
+promised in writing, unfortunately. "I shall have nothing left," he
+began, piteously.
+
+But with a disdainful gesture Madame d'Argeles interrupted him. "Set
+your mind at rest," said she. "You will still be immensely rich. All the
+estimates which have been made are far below the mark. When I was a girl
+I often heard my father say that his income amounted to more than eight
+hundred thousand francs a year. My brother inherited the whole property,
+and I would be willing to swear that he never spent more than half of
+his income."
+
+Wilkie's nerves had never been subjected to so severe a shock. He
+tottered and his brain whirled. "Oh! oh!" he stammered. This was all he
+could say.
+
+"Only I must warn you of a more than probable deception," pursued Madame
+d'Argeles. "As my brother was firmly resolved to deprive me even of
+my rightful portion of the estate, he concealed his fortune in every
+possible way. It will undoubtedly require considerable time and trouble
+to gain possession of the whole. However I know a man, formerly the
+Count de Chalusse's confidential agent, who might aid you in this task."
+
+"And this man's name?"
+
+"Is Isidore Fortunat. I saved his card for you. Here it is."
+
+M. Wilkie took it up, placed it carefully in his pocket, and then
+exclaimed: "That being the case, I consent to sign, but after this
+you need not complain. Two millions at five per cent. ought to greatly
+alleviate one's sufferings."
+
+Madame d'Argeles did not deign to notice this delicate irony. "I will
+tell you in advance to what purpose I intend to apply this sum," she
+said.
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"I intend one of these two millions to serve as the dowry of a young
+girl who would have been the Count de Chalusse's sole legatee, if his
+death had not been so sudden and so unexpected."
+
+"And the other one?"
+
+"The other I intend to invest for you in such a way that you can only
+touch the interest of it, so that you will not want for bread after you
+have squandered your inheritance, even to the very last penny."
+
+This wise precaution could not fail to shock such a brilliant young man
+as M. Wilkie. "Do you take me for a fool?" he exclaimed. "I may appear
+very generous, but I am shrewd enough, never you fear."
+
+"Sign," interrupted Madame d'Argeles, coldly.
+
+But he attempted to prove that he was no fool by reading and rereading
+the contract before he would consent to append his name to it. At last,
+however, he did so, and stowed away the proofs which insured him the
+much-coveted property.
+
+"Now," said Madame d'Argeles, "I have one request to make of you.
+Whenever your father makes his appearance and lays claim to this
+fortune, I entreat you to avoid a lawsuit, which would only make your
+mother's shame and the disgrace attached to the hitherto stainless name
+of Chalusse still more widely known. Compromise with him. You will be
+rich enough to satisfy his greed without feeling it."
+
+M. Wilkie remained silent for a moment, as if he were deliberating upon
+the course he ought to pursue. "If my father is reasonable, I will be
+the same," he said at last. "I will choose as an arbiter between us one
+of my friends--a man who acts on the square, like myself--the Marquis de
+Valorsay."
+
+"My God! do you know him?"
+
+"He is one of my most intimate friends."
+
+Madame d'Argeles had become very pale. "Wretched boy!" she exclaimed.
+"You don't know that it's the marquis----" She paused abruptly. One word
+more and she would have betrayed Pascal Ferailleur's secret plans, with
+which she had been made acquainted by Baron Trigault. Had she a right
+to do this, even to put her son on his guard against a man whom she
+considered the greatest villain in the world?
+
+"Well?" insisted M. Wilkie, in surprise.
+
+But Madame d'Argeles had recovered her self-possession. "I only wished
+to warn you against too close a connection with the Marquis de Valorsay.
+He has an excellent position in society, but yours will be far more
+brilliant. His star is on the wane; yours is just rising. All that he is
+regretting, you have a right to hope for. Perhaps even now he is jealous
+of you, and wishes to persuade you to take some false step."
+
+"Ah! you little know him!"
+
+"I have warned you."
+
+M. Wilkie took up his hat, but, though he was longing to depart,
+embarrassment kept him to the spot. He vaguely felt that he ought not to
+leave his mother in this style. "I hope I shall soon have some good news
+to bring you," he began.
+
+"Before night I shall have left this house," she answered.
+
+"Of course. But you are going to give me your new address."
+
+"No."
+
+"What?--No!"
+
+She shook her head sadly, and in a scarcely audible voice responded: "It
+is not likely that we shall meet again."
+
+"And the two millions that I am to turn over to you?"
+
+"Mr. Patterson will collect the money. As for me, say to yourself
+that I'm dead. You have broken the only link that bound me to life, by
+proving the futility of the most terrible sacrifices. However, I am a
+mother, and I forgive you." Then as he did not move, and as she felt
+that her strength was deserting her, she dragged herself from the room,
+murmuring, "Farewell!"
+
+
+
+
+XVI.
+
+
+Stupefied with astonishment, M. Wilkie stood for a moment silent and
+motionless. "Allow me," he faltered at last; "Allow me--I wish to
+explain." But Madame d'Argeles did not even turn her head; the door
+closed behind her and he was left alone.
+
+However strong a man's nature may be, he always has certain moments of
+weakness. For instance, at the present moment Wilkie was completely at
+a loss what to do. Not that he repented, he was incapable of that; but
+there are hours when the most hardened conscience is touched, and when
+long dormant instincts at last assert their rights. If he had obeyed his
+first impulse, he would have darted after his mother and thrown himself
+on his knees before her. But reflection, remembrance of the Viscount de
+Coralth, and the Marquis de Valorsay, made him silent the noblest voice
+that had spoken in his soul for many a long day. So, with his head
+proudly erect, he went off, twirling his mustaches and followed by
+the whispers of the servants--whispers which were ready to change into
+hisses at any moment.
+
+But what did he care for the opinion of these plebeians! Before he was
+a hundred paces from the house his emotion had vanished, and he was
+thinking how he could most agreeably spend the time until the hour
+appointed for his second interview with M. de Valorsay. He had not
+breakfasted, but "his stomach was out of sorts," as he said to himself,
+and it would really have been impossible for him to swallow a morsel.
+Thus not caring to return home, he started in quest of one of his former
+intimates, with the generous intention of overpowering him with the
+great news. Unfortunately he failed to find this friend, and eager
+to vent the pride that was suffocating him, in some way or other, he
+entered the shop of an engraver, whom he crushed by his importance,
+and ordered some visiting cards bearing the inscription W. de
+Gordon-Chalusse, with a count's coronet in one of the corners.
+
+Thus occupied, time flew by so quickly that he was a trifle late in
+keeping his appointment with his dear friend the marquis. Wilkie found
+M. de Valorsay as he had left him--in his smoking-room, talking with
+the Viscount de Coralth. Not that the marquis had been idle, but it had
+barely taken him an hour to set in motion the machinery which he had had
+in complete readiness since the evening before. "Victory!" cried Wilkie,
+as he appeared on the threshold. "It was a hard battle, but I asserted
+my rights. I am the acknowledged heir! the millions are mine!" And
+without giving his friends time to congratulate him, he began to
+describe his interview with Madame d'Argeles, presenting his conduct in
+the most odious light possible, pretending he had indulged in all sorts
+of harsh rejoinders, and making himself out to be "a man of bronze," or
+"a block of marble," as he said.
+
+"You are certainly more courageous than I fancied," said M. de Valorsay
+gravely, when the narrative was ended.
+
+"Is that really so?"
+
+"It is, indeed. Now the world is before you. Let your story be noised
+abroad--and it will be noised abroad--and you will become a hero.
+Imagine the amazement of Paris when it learns that Lia d'Argeles was a
+virtuous woman, who sacrificed her reputation for the sake of her son--a
+martyr, whose disgrace was only a shameful falsehood invented by two men
+of rank to increase the attractions of their gambling-den! It will take
+the newspapers a month to digest this strange romance. And whom will all
+this notoriety fall upon? Upon you, my dear sir; and as your millions
+will lend an additional charm to the romance, you will become the lion
+of the season."
+
+M. Wilkie was really too much overwhelmed to feel elated. "Upon my
+word, you overpower me, my dear marquis--you quite overpower me," he
+stammered.
+
+"I too have been at work," resumed the marquis. "And I have made
+numerous inquiries, in accordance with my promise. I almost regret it,
+for what I have discovered is--very singular, to say the least. I was
+just saying so to Coralth when you came in. What I have learned makes
+it extremely unpleasant for me, to find myself mixed up in the affair;
+accordingly, I have requested the persons who gave me this information
+to call here. You shall hear their story, and then you must decide
+for yourself." So saying, he rang the bell, and as soon as a servant
+answered the summons, he exclaimed: "Show M. Casimir in."
+
+When the lackey had retired to carry out this order, the marquis
+remarked: "Casimir was the deceased count's valet. He is a clever
+fellow, honest, intelligent, and well up in his business--such a man
+as you will need, in fact, and I won't try to conceal the fact that the
+hope of entering your service has aided considerably in unloosening his
+tongue."
+
+M. Casimir, who was irreproachably clad in black, with a white cambric
+tie round his neck, entered the room at this very moment, smiling
+and bowing obsequiously. "This gentleman, my good fellow," said M. de
+Valorsay, pointing to Wilkie, "is your former master's only heir. A
+proof of devotion might induce him to keep you with him. What you told
+me a little while ago is of great importance to him; see if you can
+repeat it now for his benefit."
+
+In his anxiety to secure a good situation, M. Casimir had ventured to
+apply to the Marquis de Valorsay; he had talked a good deal, and the
+marquis had conceived the plan of making him an unsuspecting accomplice.
+"I never deny my words," replied the valet, "and since monsieur is the
+heir to the property, I won't hesitate to tell him that immense sums
+have been stolen from the late count's estate."
+
+M. Wilkie bounded from his chair. "Immense sums!" he exclaimed. "Is it
+possible!"
+
+"Monsieur shall judge. On the morning preceding his death, the count
+had more than two millions in bank-notes and bonds stowed away in
+his escritoire, but when the justice of the peace came to take the
+inventory, the money could not be found. We servants were terribly
+alarmed, for we feared that suspicion would fall upon us."
+
+Ah! if Wilkie had only been alone he would have given vent to his true
+feelings. But here, under the eyes of the marquis and M. de Coralth,
+he felt that he must maintain an air of stoical indifference. He ALMOST
+succeeded in doing so, and in a tolerably firm voice he remarked: "This
+is not very pleasant news. Two millions! that's a good haul. Tell me, my
+friend, have you any clue to the thief?"
+
+The valet's troubled glance betrayed an uneasy conscience, but he had
+gone too far to draw back. "I shouldn't like to accuse an innocent
+person," he replied, "but there was some one who constantly had access
+to that escritoire."
+
+"And who was that?"
+
+"Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+"I don't know the lady."
+
+"She's a young girl who is--at least people say--the count's
+illegitimate daughter. Her word was law in the house."
+
+"What has become of her?"
+
+"She has gone to live with General de Fondege, one of the count's
+friends. She wouldn't take her jewels and diamonds away with her, which
+seemed very strange, for they are worth more than a hundred thousand
+francs. Even Bourigeau said to me: 'That's unnatural, M. Casimir.'
+Borigeau is the concierge of the house, a very worthy man. Monsieur will
+not find his equal."
+
+Unfortunately, this tribute to the merits of the valet's friend was
+interrupted by the arrival of a footman, who, after tapping respectfully
+at the door, entered the room and exclaimed: "The doctor is here, and
+desires to speak with Monsieur le Marquis."
+
+"Very well," replied M. de Valorsay, "ask him to wait. When I ring, you
+can usher him in." Then addressing M. Casimir, he added:
+
+"You may retire for the present, but don't leave the house. M. Wilkie
+will acquaint you with his intentions by and by."
+
+The valet thereupon backed out of the room, bowing profoundly.
+
+"There is a story for you!" exclaimed M. Wilkie as soon as the door was
+closed. "A robbery of two millions!"
+
+The marquis shook his head, and remarked, gravely: "That's a mere
+nothing. I suspect something far more terrible."
+
+"What, pray? Upon my word! you frighten me."
+
+"Wait! I may be mistaken. Even the doctor may lie deceived. But you
+shall judge for yourself." As he spoke, he pulled the bell-rope, and an
+instant after, the servant announced: "Dr. Jodon."
+
+It was, indeed, the same physician who had annoyed Mademoiselle
+Marguerite by his persistent curiosity and impertinent questions, at
+the Count de Chalusse's bedside; the same crafty and ambitious man,
+constantly tormented by covetousness, and ready to do anything to
+gratify it--the man of the period, in short, who sacrificed everything
+to the display by which he hoped to deceive other people, and who was
+almost starving in the midst of his mock splendor.
+
+M. Casimir was an innocent accomplice, but the doctor knew what he was
+doing. Interviewed on behalf of the Marquis de Valorsay by Madame Leon,
+he had fathomed the whole mystery at once. These two crafty natures had
+read and understood each other. No definite words had passed between
+them--they were both too shrewd for that; and yet, a compact had been
+concluded by which each had tacitly agreed to serve the other according
+to his need.
+
+As soon as the physician appeared, M. de Valorsay rose and shook hands
+with him; then, offering him an arm-chair, he remarked: "I will not
+conceal from you, doctor, that I have in some measure prepared this
+gentleman"--designating M. Wilkie--"for your terrible revelation."
+
+By the doctor's attitude, a keen observer might have divined the secret
+trepidation that always precedes a bad action which has been conceived
+and decided upon in cold blood.
+
+"To tell the truth," he began, speaking slowly, and with some
+difficulty, "now that the moment for speaking has come, I almost
+hesitate. Our profession has painful exigencies. Perhaps it is now too
+late. If there had been any of the count's relatives in the house, or
+even an heir at the time, I should have insisted upon an autopsy. But
+now----"
+
+On hearing the word "autopsy," M. Wilkie looked round with startled
+eyes. He opened his lips to interrupt the speaker, but the physician
+had already resumed his narrative. "Besides, I had only suspicions,"
+he said, "suspicions based, it is true, upon strange and alarming
+circumstances. I am a man, that is to say, I am liable to error. In
+the kingdom of science it would be unpardonable temerity on my part to
+affirm----"
+
+"To affirm what?" interrupted M. Wilkie.
+
+The physician did not seem to hear him, but continued in the same
+dogmatic tone. "The count apparently died from an attack of apoplexy,
+but certain poisons produce similar and even identical symptoms which
+are apt to deceive the most experienced medical men. The persistent
+efforts of the count's intellect, his muscular rigidity alternating with
+utter relaxation, the dilation of the pupils of his eyes, and more than
+aught else the violence of his last convulsions, have led me to ask
+myself if some criminal had not hastened his end."
+
+Whiter than his shirt, and trembling like a leaf, M. Wilkie sprang
+from his chair. "I understand!" he exclaimed. "The count was
+murdered--poisoned."
+
+But the physician replied with an energetic protest. "Oh, not so fast!"
+said he. "Don't mistake my conjectures for assertions. Still, I ought
+not to conceal the circumstances which awakened my suspicions. On
+the morning preceding his attack, the count took two spoonfuls of the
+contents of a vial which the people in charge could not or would not
+produce. When I asked what this vial contained, the answer was: 'A
+medicine to prevent apoplexy.' I don't say that this is false, but prove
+it. As for the motive that led to the crime, it is apparent at once.
+The escritoire contained two millions of francs, and the money has
+disappeared. Show me the vial, find the money, and I will admit that I
+am wrong. But until then, I shall have my suspicions."
+
+He did not speak like a physician but like an examining magistrate, and
+his alarming deductions found their way even to M. Wilkie's dull brain.
+"Who could have committed the crime?" he asked.
+
+"It could only have been the person likely to profit by it; and only one
+person besides the count knew that the money was in the house, and had
+possession of the key of this escritoire."
+
+"And this person?"
+
+"Is the count's illegitimate daughter, who lived in the house with
+him--Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+M. Wilkie sank into his chair again, completely overwhelmed. The
+coincidence between the doctor's deposition and M. Casimir's testimony
+was too remarkable to pass unnoticed. Further doubt seemed impossible.
+"Ah! this is most unfortunate!" faltered Wilkie. "What a pity! Such
+difficulties never assail any one but me! What am I to do?" And in his
+distress he glanced from the doctor to the Marquis de Valorsay, and then
+at M. de Coralth, as if seeking inspiration from each of them.
+
+"My profession forbids my acting as an adviser in such cases," replied
+the physician, "but these gentlemen have not the same reasons for
+keeping silent."
+
+"Excuse me," interrupted the marquis quickly; "but this is one of those
+cases in which a man must be left to his own inspirations. The most
+I can do, is to say what course I should pursue if I were one of the
+deceased count's relatives or heirs."
+
+"Pray tell me, my dear marquis," sighed Wilkie. "You would render me an
+immense service by doing so."
+
+M. de Valorsay seemed to reflect for a moment; and then he solemnly
+exclaimed: "I should feel that my honor required me to investigate every
+circumstance connected with this mysterious affair. Before receiving a
+man's estate, one must know the cause of his death, so as to avenge him
+if he has been foully murdered."
+
+For M. Wilkie the oracle had spoken. "Such is my opinion exactly," he
+declared. "But what course would you pursue, my dear marquis? How would
+you set about solving this mystery?"
+
+"I should appeal to the authorities."
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"And this very day, this very hour, without losing a second, I should
+address a communication to the public prosecutor, informing him of the
+robbery which is patent to any one, and referring to the possibility of
+foul play."
+
+"Yes, that would be an excellent idea; but there is one slight
+drawback--I don't know how to draw up such a communication."
+
+"I know no more about it than you do yourself; but any lawyer or notary
+will give you the necessary information. Are you acquainted with any
+such person? Would you like me to give you the address of my business
+man? He is a very clever fellow, who has almost all the members of my
+club as his clients."
+
+This last reason was more than sufficient to fix M. Wilkie's choice.
+"Where can I find him?" he inquired.
+
+"At his house--he is always there at this hour. Come! here is a scrap
+of paper and a pencil. You had better make a note of his address. Write:
+'Maumejan, Route de la Revolte.' Tell him that I sent you, and he will
+treat you with the same consideration as he would show to me. He lives a
+long way off, but my brougham is standing in the courtyard; so take it,
+and when your consultation is over, come back and dine with me."
+
+"Ah! you are too kind!" exclaimed M. Wilkie. "You overpower me, my dear
+marquis, you do, upon my word! I shall fly and be back in a moment."
+
+He went off looking radiant; and a moment later the carriage which was
+to take him to M. Maumejan's was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+
+The doctor had already taken up his hat and cane.
+
+"You will excuse me for leaving you so abruptly, Monsieur le Marquis,"
+said he, "but I have an engagement to discuss a business matter."
+
+"Indeed!"
+
+"I am negotiating for the purchase of a dentist's establishment."
+
+"What, you?"
+
+"Yes, I. You may tell me that this is a downfall, but I will answer,
+'It will give me a living.' Medicine is becoming a more and more
+unremunerative profession. However hard a physician may work, he can
+scarcely pay for the water he uses in washing his hands. I have an
+opportunity of purchasing the business of a well-established and
+well-known dentist, in an excellent neighborhood. Why not avail myself
+of it? Only one thing worries me--the lack of funds."
+
+The marquis had expected the doctor would require remuneration for his
+services. Before compromising himself any further, M. Jodon wished to
+knew what compensation he was to receive. The marquis was so sure of
+this, that he quickly exclaimed: "Ah, my dear doctor, if you have need
+of twenty thousand francs, I shall be only too happy to offer them to
+you."
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Upon my honor!"
+
+"And when can you let me have the money?"
+
+"In three or four days' time."
+
+The bargain was concluded. The doctor was now ready to find traces of
+any poison whatsoever in the Count de Chalusse's exhumed remains. He
+pressed the marquis's hand and then went off, exclaiming: "Whatever
+happens you can count upon me."
+
+Left alone with the Viscount de Coralth, and consequently freed from all
+restraint, M. de Valorsay rose with a long-drawn sigh of relief. "What
+an interminable seance!" he growled. And, approaching his acolyte, who
+was sitting silent and motionless in an arm-chair, he slapped him on
+the shoulder, exclaiming: "Are you ill that you sit there like that, as
+still as a mummy?"
+
+The viscount turned as if he had been suddenly aroused from slumber.
+"I'm well enough," he answered somewhat roughly. "I was only thinking."
+
+"Your thoughts are not very pleasant, to judge from the look on your
+face."
+
+"No. I was thinking of the fate that you are preparing for us."
+
+"Oh! A truce to disagreeable prophecies, please! Besides, it's too late
+to draw back, or to even think of retreat. The Rubicon is passed."
+
+"Alas! that is the cause of my anxiety. If it hadn't been for my
+wretched past, which you have threatened me with like a dagger, I should
+long ago have left you to incur this danger alone. You were useful to
+me in times past, I admit. You presented me to the Baroness Trigault, to
+whose patronage I owe my present means, but I am paying too dearly
+for your services in allowing myself to be made the instrument of your
+dangerous schemes. Who aided you in defrauding Kami-Bey? Who bet for you
+against your own horse Domingo? Who risked his life in slipping those
+cards in the pack which Pascal Ferailleur held? It was Coralth, always
+Coralth."
+
+A gesture of anger escaped the marquis, but resolving to restrain
+himself, he made no rejoinder. It was not until after he had walked five
+or six times round the smoking-room and grown more calm that he returned
+to the viscount's side. "Really, I don't recognize you," he began. "Is
+it really you who have turned coward? And at what a moment, pray? Why,
+on the very eve of success."
+
+"I wish I could believe you."
+
+"Facts shall convince you. This morning I might have doubted, but now,
+thanks to that vain idiot who goes by the name of Wilkie, I am sure,
+perfectly, mathematically sure of success. Maumejan, who is entirely
+devoted to me, and who is the greediest, most avaricious scoundrel
+alive, will draw up such a complaint that Marguerite will sleep in
+prison. Moreover, other witnesses will be summoned. By what Casimir has
+said, you can judge what the other servants will say. This testimony
+will be sufficient to convict her of the robbery. As for the poisoning,
+you heard Dr. Jodon. Can I depend upon him? Evidently, if I pay without
+haggling. Very well; I shall pay."
+
+But all this did not reassure M. de Coralth. "The accusation will fall
+to the ground," said he, "as soon as the famous vial from which M. de
+Chalusse took two spoonfuls is found."
+
+"Excuse me; it won't be found."
+
+"But why?"
+
+"Because I know where it is, my dear friend. It is in the count's
+escritoire, but it won't be there any longer on the day after
+to-morrow."
+
+"Who will remove it?"
+
+"A skilful fellow whom Madame Leon has found for me. Everything has been
+carefully arranged. To-morrow night at the latest Madame Leon will let
+this man into the Hotel de Chalusse by the garden gate, which she has
+kept the key of. Vantrasson, as the man is called, knows the management
+of the house, and he will break open the escritoire and take the vial
+away. You may say that there are seals upon the furniture, placed there
+by the justice of the peace. That's true, but this man tells me that he
+can remove and replace them in such a way as to defy detection; and
+as the lock has been forced once already--the day after the count's
+death--a second attempt to break the escritoire open will not be
+detected."
+
+The viscount remarked, with an ironical air: "All that is perfect; but
+the autopsy will reveal the falseness of the accusation."
+
+"Naturally--but an autopsy will require time, and that will suit my
+plans admirably. After eight or ten days' solitary confinement and
+several rigid examinations, Mademoiselle Marguerite's energy and courage
+will flag. What do you think she will reply to the man who says to her:
+'I love you, and for your sake I will attempt the impossible. Swear to
+become my wife and I will establish your innocence?'"
+
+"I think she will say: 'Save me and I will marry you!'"
+
+M. de Valorsay clapped his hands. "Bravo!" he exclaimed; "you have
+spoken the truth. Remember, now, that your dark forebodings are only
+chimeras! Yes, she will swear it, and I know she is the woman to keep
+her vow, even if she died of sorrow. And the very next day I will go to
+the examining magistrate and say to him: 'Marguerite a thief! Ah, what
+a frightful mistake. A robbery has been committed, it's true; but I know
+the real culprit--a scoundrel who fancied that by destroying a single
+letter he would annihilate all traces of the breach of fidelity he had
+committed. Fortunately, the Count de Chalusse distrusted this man, and
+proof of his breach of trust is in existence. I have this proof in
+my hands.' And I will show a letter establishing the truth of my
+assertion."
+
+No forebodings clouded the marquis's joy; he saw no obstacles; it seemed
+to him as if he had already triumphed. "And the day following," he
+resumed, "when Marguerite becomes my wife, I shall take from a certain
+drawer a certain document, given to me by M. de Chalusse when I was
+on the point of becoming his son-in-law, and in which he recognizes
+Marguerite as his daughter, and makes her his sole legatee. And this
+document is perfectly en regle, and unattackable. Maumejan, who has
+examined it, guarantees that the value of the count's estate cannot be
+less than ten millions. Five will go to Madame d'Argeles, or her son
+Wilkie, as their share of the property. The remaining five will be mine.
+Come, confess that the plan is admirable!"
+
+"Admirable, undoubtedly; but terribly complicated. When there are so
+many wheels within wheels, one of them is always sure to get out of
+order."
+
+"Nonsense!"
+
+"Besides, you have I don't know how many accomplices--Maumejan, the
+doctor, Madame Leon, and Vantrasson, not counting myself. Will all these
+people perform their duties satisfactorily?"
+
+"Each of them is as much interested in my success as I am myself."
+
+"But we have enemies--Madame d'Argeles, Fortunat----"
+
+"Madame d'Argeles is about to leave Paris. If Fortunat is troublesome I
+will purchase his silence; Maumejan has promised me money."
+
+But M. de Coralth had kept his strongest argument until the last. "And
+Pascal Ferailleur?" said he. "You have forgotten him."
+
+No; M. de Valorsay had not forgotten him. You do not forget the man you
+have ruined and dishonored. Still, it was in a careless tone that ill
+accorded with his state of mind that the marquis replied: "The poor
+devil must be en route for America by this time."
+
+The viscount shook his head. "That's what I've in vain been trying to
+convince myself of," said he. "Do you know that Pascal was virtually
+expelled from the Palais de Justice, and that his name has been struck
+off the list of advocates? If he hasn't blown his brains out, it is only
+because he hopes to prove his innocence. Ah! if you knew him as well as
+I do, you wouldn't be so tranquil in mind!"
+
+He stopped short for the door had suddenly opened. The interruption
+made the marquis frown, but anger gave way to anxiety when he perceived
+Madame Leon, who entered the room out of breath and extremely red in the
+face.
+
+"There wasn't a cab to be had!" she groaned. "Just my luck. I came on
+foot, and ran the whole way. I'm utterly exhausted;" and so saying, she
+sank into an arm-chair.
+
+M. de Valorsay had turned very pale. "Defer your complaints until
+another time," he said, harshly. "What has happened? Tell me."
+
+The estimable woman raised her hands to heaven, as she plaintively
+replied: "There is so much to tell? First, Mademoiselle Marguerite has
+written two letters, but I have failed to discover to whom they were
+sent. Secondly, she remained for more than an hour yesterday evening
+in the drawing-room with the General's son, Lieutenant Gustave, and,
+on parting, they shook hands like a couple of friends, and said, 'It is
+agreed.'"
+
+"And is that all?"
+
+"One moment and you'll see. This morning Mademoiselle went out with
+Madame de Fondege to call on the Baroness Trigault. I do not know what
+took place there, but there must have been a terrible scene; for they
+brought Mademoiselle Marguerite back unconscious, in one of the baron's
+carriages."
+
+"Do you hear that, viscount?" exclaimed M. de Valorsay.
+
+"Yes! You shall have the explanation to-morrow," answered M. de Coralth.
+
+"And last, but not least," resumed Madame Leon, "on returning home this
+evening at about five o'clock, I fancied I saw Mademoiselle Marguerite
+leave the house and go up the Rue Pigalle. I had thought she was ill
+and in bed, and I said to myself, 'This is very strange.' So I hastened
+after her. It was indeed she. Of course, I followed her. And what did I
+see? Why, Mademoiselle paused to talk with a vagabond, clad in a blouse.
+They exchanged notes, and Mademoiselle Marguerite returned home. And
+here I am. She must certainly suspect something. What is to be done?"
+
+If M. de Valorsay were frightened, he did not show it. "Many thanks for
+your zeal, my dear lady," he replied, "but all this is a mere nothing.
+Return home at once; you will receive my instructions to-morrow."
+
+
+
+
+XVII.
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had been greatly surprised on the occasion
+of her visit to M. Fortunat when she saw Victor Chupin suddenly step
+forward and eagerly exclaim: "I shall be unworthy of the name I bear if
+I do not find M. Ferailleur for you in less than a fortnight."
+
+It is true that M. Fortunat's clerk did not appear to the best advantage
+on this occasion. In order to watch M. de Coralth, he had again arrayed
+himself in his cast-off clothes, and with his blouse and his worn-out
+shoes, his "knockers" and his glazed cap, he looked the vagabond to
+perfection. Still, strange as it may seem, Mademoiselle Marguerite
+did not once doubt the devotion of this strange auxiliary. Without an
+instant's hesitation she replied, "I accept your services, monsieur."
+
+Chupin felt at least a head taller as he heard this beautiful young girl
+speak to him in a voice as clear and as sonorous as crystal. "Ah!
+you are right to trust me," he rejoined, striking his chest with his
+clinched hand, "for I have a heart--but----"
+
+"But what, monsieur?"
+
+"I am wondering if you would consent to do what I wish. It would be a
+very good plan, but if it displeases you, we will say no more about it."
+
+"And what do you wish?"
+
+"To see you every day, so as to tell you what I've done, and to obtain
+such directions as I may require. I'm well aware that I can't go to M.
+de Fondege's door and ask to speak to you; but there are other ways
+of seeing each other. For instance, every evening at five o-clock
+precisely, I might pass along the Rue Pigalle, and warn you of my
+presence by such a signal as this: 'Pi-ouit!'" So saying he gave vent to
+the peculiar call, half whistle, half ejaculation, which is familiar to
+the Parisian working-classes. "Then," he resumed, "you might come down
+and I would tell you the news; besides, I might often help you by doing
+errands."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite reflected for a moment, and then bowing her
+head, she replied:
+
+"What you suggest is quite practicable. On and after to-morrow evening I
+will watch for you; and if I don't come down at the end of half an hour,
+you will know that I am unavoidably detained."
+
+Chupin ought to have been satisfied. But no, he had still another
+request to make; and instinct, supplying the lack of education, told him
+that it was a delicate one. Indeed, he dared not present his petition;
+but his embarrassment was so evident, and he twisted his poor cap so
+despairingly, that at last the young girl gently asked him: "Is there
+anything more?"
+
+He still hesitated, but eventually, mustering all his courage, he
+replied: "Well, yes, mademoiselle. I've never seen Monsieur Ferailleur.
+Is he tall or short, light or dark, stout or thin? I do not know. I
+might stand face to face with him without being able to say, 'It's he.'
+But it would be quite a different thing if I only had a photograph of
+him."
+
+A crimson flush spread over Mademoiselle Marguerite's face. Still she
+answered, unaffectedly, "I will give you M. Ferailleur's photograph
+to-morrow, monsieur."
+
+"Then I shall be all right!" exclaimed Chupin. "Have no fears,
+mademoiselle, we shall outwit these scoundrels!"
+
+So far a silent witness of this scene, M. Fortunat now felt it his duty
+to interfere. He was not particularly pleased by his clerk's suddenly
+increased importance; and yet it mattered little to him, for his only
+object was to revenge himself on Valorsay. "Victor is a capable and
+trustworthy young fellow, mademoiselle," he declared; "he has grown up
+under my training, and I think you will find him a faithful servant."
+
+A "have you finished, you old liar?" rose to Chupin's lips, but respect
+for Mademoiselle Marguerite prevented him from uttering the words.
+"Then everything is decided," she said, pleasantly. And with a smile she
+offered her hand to Chupin as one does in concluding a bargain.
+
+If he had yielded to his first impulse he would have thrown himself on
+his knees and kissed this hand of hers, the whitest and most beautiful
+he had ever seen. As it was, he only ventured to touch it with his
+finger-tips, and yet he changed color two or three times. "What a
+woman!" he exclaimed, when she had left them. "A perfect queen! A man
+would willingly allow himself to be chopped in pieces for her sake; and
+she's as good and as clever as she's handsome. Did you notice, monsieur,
+that she did not offer to pay me. She understood that I offered to work
+for her for my own pleasure, for my own satisfaction and honor. Heavens!
+how I should have chafed if she had offered me money. How provoked I
+should have been!"
+
+Chupin was so fascinated that he wished no reward for his toil! This was
+so astonishing that M. Fortunat remained for a moment speechless with
+surprise. "Have you gone mad, Victor?" he inquired at last.
+
+"Mad! I?--not at all; I'm only becoming----" He stopped short. He was
+going to add: "an honest man." But it is scarcely proper to talk about
+the rope in the hangman's house, and there are certain words which
+should never be pronounced in the presence of certain people. Chupin
+knew this, and so he quickly resumed: "When I become rich, when I'm a
+great banker, and have a host of clerks who spend their time in counting
+my gold behind a grating, I should like to have a wife of my own like
+that. But I must be off about my business now, so till we meet again,
+monsieur."
+
+The foregoing conversation will explain how it happened that Madame Leon
+chanced to surprise her dear young lady in close conversation with
+a vagabond clad in a blouse. Victor Chupin was not a person to make
+promises and then leave them unfulfilled. Though he was usually
+unimpressionable, like all who lead a precarious existence, still, when
+his emotions were once aroused, they did not spend themselves in
+empty protestations. It became his fixed determination to find Pascal
+Ferailleur, and the difficulties of the task in no wise weakened his
+resolution. His starting point was that Pascal had lived in the Rue
+d'Ulm, and had suddenly gone off with his mother, with the apparent
+intention of sailing for America. This was all he knew positively, and
+everything else was mere conjecture. Still Mademoiselle Marguerite had
+convinced him that instead of leaving Paris, Pascal was really still
+there, only waiting for an opportunity to establish his innocence, and
+to wreak his vengeance upon M. de Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay.
+On the other hand, with such a slight basis to depend upon, was it not
+almost madness to hope to discover a man who had such strong reasons for
+concealing himself? Chupin did not think so in fact, when he declared
+his determination to perform this feat, his plan was already perfected.
+
+On leaving M. Fortunat's office, he hastened straight to the Rue d'Ulm,
+at the top of his speed. The concierge of the house where Pascal had
+formerly resided was by no means a polite individual. He was the very
+same man who had answered Mademoiselle Marguerite's questions so rudely;
+but Chupin had a way of conciliating even the most crabbish doorkeeper,
+and of drawing from him such information as he desired. He learned that
+at nine o'clock on the sixteenth of October Madame Ferailleur, after
+seeing her trunks securely strapped on to a cab had entered the vehicle,
+ordering the driver to take her to the Railway Station in the Place
+du Havre! Chupin wished to ascertain the number of the cab, but the
+concierge could not give it. He mentioned, however, that this cab had
+been procured by Madame Ferailleur's servant-woman, who lived only a few
+steps from the house. A moment later Chupin was knocking at this
+woman's door. She was a very worthy person, and bitterly regretted the
+misfortunes which had befallen her former employers. She confirmed the
+doorkeeper's story, but unfortunately she, too, had quite forgotten the
+number of the vehicle. All she could say was that she had hired it at
+the cab stand in the Rue Soufflot, and that the driver was a portly,
+pleasant-faced man.
+
+Chupin repaired at once to the Rue Soufflot, where he found the man
+in charge of the stand in the most savage mood imaginable. He began by
+asking Chupin what right he had to question him, why he wished to do so,
+and if he took him for a spy. He added that his duty only consisted in
+noting the arrivals and departures of the drivers, and that he could
+give no information whatever. There was evidently nothing to be gained
+from this ferocious personage; and yet Chupin bowed none the less
+politely as he left the little office. "This is bad," he growled, as
+he walked away, for he was really at a loss what to do next; and if not
+discouraged, he was at least extremely disconcerted and perplexed. Ah!
+if he had only had a card from the prefecture of police in his pocket,
+or if he had been more imposing in appearance, he would have encountered
+no obstacles; he might then have tracked this cab through the streets
+of Paris as easily as he could have followed a man bearing a lighted
+lantern through the darkness. But poor and humble, without letters of
+recommendation, and with no other auxiliaries than his own shrewdness
+and experience, he had a great deal to contend against. Pausing in his
+walk, he had taken off his cap and was scratching his head furiously,
+when suddenly he exclaimed: "What an ass I am!" in so loud a tone that
+several passers-by turned to see who was applying this unflattering
+epithet to himself.
+
+Chupin had just remembered one of M. Isidore Fortunat's debtors, a man
+whom he often visited in the hope of extorting some trifling amount
+from him, and who was employed in the Central office of the Paris Cab
+Company. "If any one can help me out of this difficulty, it must be that
+fellow," he said to himself. "I hope I shall find him at his desk! Come,
+Victor, my boy, you must look alive!"
+
+However, he could not present himself at the office in the garb he
+then wore, and so, much against his will, he went home and changed
+his clothes. Then he took a cab at his own expense, and drove with all
+possible speed to the main office of the Cab Company, in the Avenue de
+Segur. Nevertheless it was already ten o'clock when he arrived there.
+He was more fortunate than he had dared to hope. The man he wanted
+had charge of a certain department, and was compelled to return to the
+office every evening after dinner. He was there now.
+
+He was a poor devil who, while receiving a salary of fifteen hundred
+francs a year, spent a couple of thousand, and utilized his wits in
+defending his meagre salary from his creditors. On perceiving Chupin,
+he made a wrathful gesture, and his first words were: "I haven't got a
+penny."
+
+But Chupin smiled his most genial smile. "What!" said he, "do you fancy
+I've come to collect money from you here, and at this hour? You don't
+know me. I merely came to ask a favor of you."
+
+The clerk's clouded face brightened. "Since that is the case, pray take
+a seat, and tell me how I can serve you," he replied.
+
+"Very well. At nine o'clock in the evening, on the sixteenth of October,
+a lady living in the Rue d'Ulm sent to the stand in the Rue Soufflot for
+a cab. Her baggage was placed upon it, and she went away no one knows
+where. However, this lady is a relative of my employer, and he so much
+wishes to find her that he would willingly give a hundred francs
+over and above the amount you owe him, to ascertain the number of the
+vehicle. He pretends that you can give him this number if you choose;
+and it isn't an impossibility, is it?"
+
+"On the contrary, nothing could be easier," replied the clerk, glad of
+an opportunity to explain the ingenious mechanism of the office to an
+outsider. "Have you ten minutes to spare?"
+
+"Ten days, if necessary," rejoined Chupin.
+
+"Then you shall see." So saying the clerk rose and went into the
+adjoining room, whence a moment later he returned carrying a large green
+box. "This contains the October reports sent in every evening by the
+branch offices," he remarked in explanation. He next opened the box,
+glanced over the documents it contained, and joyfully exclaimed: "Here
+we have it. This is the report sent in by the superintendent of the
+cab-stand in the Rue Soumot on the 16th October. Here is a list of the
+vehicles that arrived or left from a quarter to nine o'clock till a
+quarter past nine. Five cabs came in, but we need not trouble ourselves
+about them. Three went out bearing the numbers 1781, 3025, and 2140. One
+of these three must have taken your employer's relative."
+
+"Then I must question the three drivers."
+
+The clerk shrugged his shoulders. "What is the use of doing that?" he
+said, disdainfully. "Ah! you don't understand the way in which we manage
+our business! The drivers are artful, but the company isn't a fool. By
+expending a hundred and fifty thousand francs on its detective force
+every year, it knows what each cab is doing at each hour of the day. I
+will now look for the reports sent in respecting these three drivers.
+One of the three will give us the desired information."
+
+This time the search was a considerably longer one, and Chupin was
+beginning to grow impatient, when the clerk waved a soiled and crumpled
+sheet of paper triumphantly in the air, and cried: "What did I tell you?
+This is the report concerning the driver of No. 2140. Listen: Friday, at
+ten minutes past nine, sent to the Rue d'Ulm---- do you think of that?"
+
+"It's astonishing! But where can I find this driver?"
+
+"I can't say, just at this moment; he's on duty now. But as he belongs
+to this division he will be back sooner or later, so you had better
+wait."
+
+"I will wait then; only as I've had no dinner, I'll go out and get a
+mouthful to eat. I can promise you that M. Fortunat will send you back
+your note cancelled."
+
+Chupin was really very hungry, and so he rushed off to a little
+eating-house which he had remarked on his way to the office. There
+for eighteen sous he dined, or rather supped, like a prince; and as he
+subsequently treated himself to a cup of coffee and a glass of brandy,
+as a reward for his toil, some little time had elapsed when he returned
+to the office. However, No. 2140 had not returned in his absence, so he
+stationed himself at the door to wait for it.
+
+His patience was severely tried, for it was past midnight when Chupin
+saw the long-looked-for vehicle enter the courtyard. The driver slowly
+descended from his box and then went into the cashier's office to pay
+over his day's earnings, and hand in his report. Then he came out again
+evidently bound for home. As the servant-woman had said, he was a stout,
+jovial-faced man, and he did not hesitate to accept a glass of "no
+matter what" in a wine-shop that was still open. Whether he believed the
+story that Chupin told to excuse his questions or not, at all events he
+answered them very readily. He perfectly remembered having been sent
+to the Rue d'Ulm, and spoke of his "fare" as a respectable-looking old
+lady, enumerated the number of her trunks, boxes, and packages, and even
+described their form. He had taken her to the railway station, stopping
+at the entrance in the Rue d'Amsterdam; and when the porters inquired,
+as usual, "Where is this baggage to go?" the old lady had answered, "To
+London."
+
+Chupin felt decidedly crestfallen on hearing this. He had fancied that
+Madame Ferailleur had merely announced her intention of driving to the
+Havre railway station so as to set possible spies on the wrong track,
+and he would have willingly wagered anything, that after going a short
+distance she had given the cabman different instructions. Not so,
+however, he had taken her straight to the station. Was Mademoiselle
+Marguerite deceived then? Had Pascal really fled from his enemies
+without an attempt at resistance? Such a course seemed impossible on his
+part. Thinking over all this, Chupin slept but little that night, and
+the next morning, before five o'clock, he was wandering about the
+Rue d'Amsterdam peering into the wine-shops in search of some railway
+porter. It did not take him long to find one, and having done so, he
+made him the best of friends in less than no time. Although this porter
+knew nothing about the matter himself, he took Chupin to a comrade who
+remembered handling the baggage of an old lady bound for London, on the
+evening of the sixteenth. However, this baggage was not put into the
+train after all; the old lady had left it in the cloak-room, and the
+next day a fat woman of unprepossessing appearance had called for the
+things, and had taken them away, after paying the charges for storage.
+This circumstance had been impressed on the porter's mind by the fact
+that the woman had not given him a farthing gratuity, although he had
+been much more obliging than the regulations required. However, when
+she went off, she remarked in a honeyed voice, but with an exceedingly
+impudent air: "I'll repay you for your kindness, my lad. I keep a
+wine-shop on the Route d'Asnieres, and if you ever happen to pass that
+way with one of your comrades, come in, and I'll reward you with a
+famous drink!"
+
+What had exasperated the porter almost beyond endurance, was the
+certainty he felt that she was mocking him. "For she didn't give me her
+name or address, the old witch!" he growled. "She had better look out,
+if I ever get hold of her again!"
+
+But Chupin had already gone off, unmoved by his informant's grievances.
+Now that he had discovered the stratagem which Madame Ferailleur had
+employed to elude her pursuers, his conjectures were changed into
+certainties. This information proved that Pascal WAS concealed somewhere
+in Paris; but where? If he could only find out this woman who had called
+for the trunks, it would lead to the discovery of Madame Ferailleur and
+her son but how was he to ascertain the woman's whereabouts? She had
+said that she kept a wine-shop on the Route d'Asnieres. Was this true?
+Was it not more likely that this vague direction was only a fresh
+precaution?
+
+This much was certain: Chupin, who knew every wine-shop on the Route
+d'Asnieres, did not remember any such powerful matron as the porter had
+described. He had not forgotten Madame Vantrasson. But to imagine any
+bond of interest between Pascal and such a woman as she was, seemed
+absurd in the extreme. However, as he found himself in such a plight and
+could not afford to let any chance escape, he repaired merely for form's
+sake to the Vantrasson establishment. It had not changed in the least
+since the evening he visited it in company with M. Fortunat--but seen
+in the full light of day, it appeared even more dingy and dilapidated.
+Madame Vantrasson was not in her accustomed place, behind the counter,
+between her black cat--her latest idol--and the bottles from which she
+prepared her ratafia, now her supreme consolation here below. There was
+no one in the shop but the landlord. Seated at a table, with a lighted
+candle near him, he was engaged in an occupation which would have set
+Chupin's mind working if he had noticed it. Vantrasson had taken some
+wax from a sealed bottle, and, after melting it at the flame of the
+candle, he let it drop slowly on to the table. He then pressed a sou
+upon it, and when the wax had become sufficiently cool and stiff, he
+removed it from the table without destroying the impression, by means of
+a thin bladed knife similar to those which glaziers use. However, Chupin
+did not remark this singular employment. He was engaged in mentally
+ejaculating, "Good! the old woman isn't here." And as his plan of
+campaign was already prepared, he entered without further hesitation.
+
+As Vantrasson heard the door turn upon its hinges, he rose so awkwardly,
+or rather so skilfully, as to let all his implements, wax, knife, and
+impressions, fall on the floor behind the counter. "What can I do to
+serve you?" he asked, in a husky voice.
+
+"Nothing. I wished to speak with your wife."
+
+"She has gone out. She works for a family in the morning."
+
+This was a gleam of light. Chupin had not thought of the only hypothesis
+that could explain what seemed inexplicable to him. However, he knew how
+to conceal his satisfaction, and so with an air of disappointment, he
+remarked: "That's too bad! I shall be obliged to call again."
+
+"So you have a secret to tell my wife?"
+
+"Not at all."
+
+"Won't I do as well, then?"
+
+"I'll tell you how it is. I'm employed in the baggage room of the
+western railway station, and I wanted to know if your wife didn't call
+there a few days ago for some trunks?"
+
+The landlord's features betrayed the vague perturbation of a person who
+can count the days by his mistakes, and it was with evident hesitation
+that he replied:
+
+"Yes, my wife went to the Havre station for some baggage last Sunday."
+
+"I thought so. Well, this is my errand: either the clerk forgot to ask
+her for her receipt, or else he lost it. He can't find it anywhere. I
+came to ask your wife if she hadn't kept it. When she returns, please
+deliver my message; and if she has the receipt, pray send it to me
+through the post."
+
+The ruse was not particularly clever, but it was sufficiently so to
+deceive Vantrasson. "To whom am I to send this receipt?" he asked.
+
+"To me, Victor Chupin, Faubourg Saint Denis," was the reply.
+
+Imprudent youth! alas, he little suspected what a liberty M. Fortunat
+had taken with his name on the evening he visited the Vantrassons. But
+on his side the landlord of the Model Lodging House had not forgotten
+the name mentioned by the agent. He turned pale with anger on beholding
+his supposed creditor, and quickly slipping between the visitor and the
+door, he said: "So your name is Victor Chupin?"
+
+"Yes, certainly."
+
+"And you are in the employment of the Railway Company?"
+
+"As I just told you."
+
+"That doesn't prevent you from acting as a collector, does it?"
+
+Chupin instinctively recoiled, convinced that he had betrayed himself
+by some blunder, but unable to discover in what he had erred. "I did do
+something in that line formerly," he faltered.
+
+Vantrasson doubted no longer. "So you confess that you are a vile
+scoundrel!" he exclaimed. "You confess that you purchased an old
+promissory note of mine for fourpence, and then sent a man here to seize
+my goods! Ah! you'd like to trample the poor under foot, would you! Very
+well. I have you now, and I'll settle your account! Take that!" And so
+saying, he dealt his supposed creditor a terrible blow with his clinched
+fist that sent him reeling to the other end of the shop.
+
+Fortunately, Chupin was very nimble. He did not lose his footing, but
+sprung over a table and used it as a rampart to shield himself from his
+dangerous assailant. In the open field, he could easily have protected
+himself; but here in this narrow space, and hemmed in a corner, he felt
+that despite this barrier he was lost. "What a devil of a mess!" he
+thought, as with wonderful agility he avoided Vantrasson's fist, a fist
+that would have felled an ox. He had an idea of calling for assistance.
+But would any one hear him? Would any one reply? And if help came, would
+not the police be sure to hear of the broil? And if they did, would
+there not be an investigation which would perhaps disturb Pascal's
+plans? Fearing to injure those whom he wished to serve, he resolved to
+let himself be hacked to pieces rather than allow a cry to escape him;
+but he changed his tactics, and instead of attempting to parry the blows
+as he had done before, he now only thought of gaining the door, inch by
+inch.
+
+He had almost reached it, not without suffering considerable injury,
+when it suddenly opened, and a young man clad in black, with a smooth
+shaven face, entered the shop, and sternly exclaimed: "Why! what's all
+this?"
+
+The sight of the newcomer seemed to stupefy Vantrasson. "Ah! it is you,
+Monsieur Maumejan?" he faltered, with a crestfallen air. "It's nothing;
+we were only in fun."
+
+M. Maumejan seemed perfectly satisfied with this explanation; and in the
+indifferent tone of a man who is delivering a message, the meaning of
+which he scarcely understood, he said: "A person who knows that your
+wife is in my employ requested me to ask you if you would be ready to
+attend to that little matter she spoke of."
+
+"Certainly. I was preparing for it a moment ago."
+
+Chupin heard no more. He had hurried out, his clothes in disorder, and
+himself not a little hurt; but his delight made him lose all thought of
+his injuries. "That's M. Ferailleur," he muttered, "I'm sure of it, and
+I'm going to prove it." So saying he hid himself in the doorway of a
+vacant house a few paces distant from the Vantrassons', and waited.
+
+Then as soon as M. Maumejan emerged from the Model Lodging House, he
+followed him. The young man with the clean shaven face walked up the
+Route d'Asnieres, turned to the right into the Route de la Revolte, and
+at last paused before a house of humble aspect. At that moment Chupin
+darted toward him, and softly called, "M'sieur Ferailleur!"
+
+The young man turned instinctively. Then seeing his mistake, and feeling
+that he had betrayed himself, he sprang upon Chupin, and caught him by
+the wrists: "Scoundrel! who are you?" he exclaimed. "Who has hired you
+to follow me! What do you want of me?"
+
+"Not so fast, m'sieur! Don't be so rough! You hurt me. I'm sent by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite!"
+
+
+
+
+XVIII.
+
+
+"O God! send Pascal to my aid," prayed Mademoiselle Marguerite, as she
+left M. Fortunat's house. Now she understood the intrigue she had been
+the victim of; but, instead of reassuring her the agent had frightened
+her, by revealing the Marquis de Valorsay's desperate plight. She
+realized what frenzied rage must fill this man's heart as he felt
+himself gradually slipping from the heights of opulence, down into
+the depths of poverty and crime. What might he not dare, in order to
+preserve even the semblance of grandeur for a year, or a month, or a
+day longer! Had they measured the extent of his villainy? Would he even
+hesitate at murder? And the poor girl asked herself with a shudder if
+Pascal were still living; and a vision of his bleeding corpse, lying
+lifeless in some deserted street, rose before her. And who could tell
+what dangers threatened her personally? For, though she knew the past,
+she could not read the future. What did M. de Valorsay's letter mean?
+and what was the fate that he held in reserve for her, and that made
+him so sanguine of success? The impression produced upon her mind was so
+terrible that for a moment she thought of hastening to the old justice
+of the peace to ask for his protection and a refuge. But this weakness
+did not last long. Should she lose her energy? Should her will fail her
+at the decisive moment? "No, a thousand times no!" she said to herself
+again and again. "I will die if needs be, but I will die fighting!" And
+the nearer she approached the Rue Pigalle, the more energetically she
+drove away her apprehension, and sought for an excuse calculated to
+satisfy any one who might have noticed her long absence.
+
+An unnecessary precaution. She found the house as when she left it,
+abandoned to the mercy of the servants--the strangers sent the evening
+before from the employment office. Important matters still kept the
+General and his wife from home. The husband had to show his horses; and
+the wife was intent upon shopping. As for Madame Leon, most of her time
+seemed to be taken up by the family of relatives she had so suddenly
+discovered. Alone, free from all espionage, and wishing to ward off
+despondency by occupation, Mademoiselle Marguerite was just beginning
+a letter to her friend the old magistrate, when a servant entered and
+announced that her dressmaker was there and wished to speak with her.
+"Let her come in," replied Marguerite, with unusual vivacity. "Let her
+come in at once."
+
+A lady who looked some forty years of age, plainly dressed, but of
+distinguished appearance, was thereupon ushered into the room. Like any
+well-bred modiste, she bowed respectfully while the servant was
+present, but as soon as he had left the room she approached Mademoiselle
+Marguerite and took hold of her hands: "My dear young lady," said she,
+"I am the sister-in-law of your old friend, the magistrate. Having an
+important message to send to you, he was trying to find a person whom
+he could trust to play the part of a dressmaker, as had been agreed upon
+between you, when I offered my services, thinking he could find no one
+more trusty than myself."
+
+Tears glittered in Mademoiselle Marguerite's eyes. The slightest token
+of sympathy is so sweet to the heart of the lonely and unfortunate! "How
+can I ever thank you, madame?" she faltered.
+
+"By not attempting to thank me at all, and by reading this letter as
+soon as possible."
+
+The note she now produced ran as follows:
+
+
+"MY DEAR CHILD--At last I am on the track of the thieves. By conferring
+with the people from whom M. de Chalusse received the money a couple of
+days before his death, I have been fortunate enough to obtain from them
+some minute details respecting the missing bonds, as well as the numbers
+of the bank-notes which were deposited in the escritoire. With this
+information, we cannot fail to prove the guilt of the culprits sooner or
+later. You write me word that the Fondeges are spending money lavishly;
+try and find out the names of the people they deal with, and communicate
+them to me. Once more, I tell you that I am sure of success. Courage!"
+
+
+"Well!" said the spurious dressmaker, when she saw that Marguerite
+had finished reading the letter. "What answer shall I take my
+brother-in-law?"
+
+"Tell him that he shall certainly have the information he requires
+to-morrow. To-day, I can only give him the name of the carriage builder,
+from whom M. de Fondege has purchased his new carriages."
+
+"Give it to me in writing, it is much the safest way."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite did so, and her visitor who, as a woman,
+was delighted to find herself mixed up in an intrigue, then went off
+repeating the old magistrate's advice: "Courage!"
+
+But it was no longer necessary to encourage Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+The assurance of being so effectually helped, had already increased
+her courage an hundredfold. The future that had seemed so gloomy only a
+moment before, had now suddenly brightened. By means of the negative in
+the keeping of the photographer, Carjat, she had the Marquis de
+Valorsay in her power, and the magistrate, thanks to the numbers of the
+bank-notes, could soon prove the guilt of the Fondeges. The protection
+of Providence was made evident in an unmistakable manner. Thus it was
+with a placid and almost smiling face that she successively greeted
+Madame Leon, who returned home quite played out, then Madame de Fondege,
+who made her appearance attended by two shop-boys overladen with
+packages, and finally the General, who brought his son, Lieutenant
+Gustave, with him to dinner.
+
+The lieutenant was a good-looking fellow of twenty-seven, or
+thereabouts, with laughing eyes and a heavy mustache. He made a great
+clanking with his spurs, and wore the somewhat theatrical uniform of the
+13th Hussars rather ostentatiously. He bowed to Mademoiselle Marguerite
+with a smile that was too becoming to be displeasing; and he offered her
+his arm with an air of triumph to lead her to the dining-room, as soon
+as the servant came to announce that "Madame la Comtesse was served."
+
+Seated opposite to him at table, the young girl could not refrain from
+furtively watching the man whom they wished to compel her to marry.
+Never had she seen such intense self-complacency coupled with such
+utter mediocrity. It was evident that he was doing his best to produce
+a favorable impression; but as the dinner progressed, his conversation
+became rather venturesome. He gradually grew extremely animated; and
+three or four adventures of garrison life which he persisted in relating
+despite his mother's frowns, were calculated to convince his hearers
+that he was a great favorite with the fair sex. It was the good cheer
+that loosened his tongue. There could be no possible doubt on that
+score; and, indeed, while drinking a glass of the Chateau Laroze, to
+which Madame Leon had taken such a liking, he was indiscreet enough to
+declare that if his mother had always kept house in this fashion, he
+should have been inclined to ask for more frequent leaves of absence.
+
+However, strange to say, after the coffee was served, the conversation
+languished till at last it died out almost entirely. Madame de Fondege
+was the first to disappear on the pretext that some domestic affairs
+required her attention. The General was the next to rise and go out, in
+order to smoke a cigar; and finally Madame Leon made her escape without
+saying a word. So Mademoiselle Marguerite was left quite alone with
+Lieutenant Gustave. It was evident enough to the young girl that this
+had been preconcerted; and she asked herself what kind of an opinion M.
+and Madame de Fondege could have of her delicacy. The proceeding made
+her so indignant that she was on the point of rising from the table and
+of retiring like the others, when reason restrained her. She said to
+herself that perhaps she might gain some useful information from this
+young man, and so she remained.
+
+His face was crimson, and he seemed by far the more embarrassed of
+the two. He sat with one elbow resting on the table, and with his gaze
+persistently fixed upon a tiny glass half full of brandy which he held
+in his hand, as if he hoped to gain some sublime inspiration from it.
+At last, after an interval of irksome silence, he ventured to exclaim:
+"Mademoiselle, should you like to be an officer's wife?"
+
+"I don't know," answered Marguerite.
+
+"Really! But at least you understand my motive in asking this question?"
+
+"No."
+
+Any one but the complacent lieutenant would have been disconcerted by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's dry tone; but he did not even notice it.
+The effort that he was making in his intense desire to be eloquent and
+persuasive absorbed the attention of all his faculties. "Then permit
+me to explain, mademoiselle," he resumed. "We meet this evening for the
+first time, but our acquaintance is not the affair of a day. For I know
+not how long my father and mother have continually been chanting your
+praises. 'Mademoiselle Marguerite does this; Mademoiselle Marguerite
+does that.' They never cease talking of you, declaring that heart, wit,
+talent, beauty, all womanly charms are united in your person. And they
+have never wearied of telling me that the man whom you honored with your
+preference would be the happiest of mortals. However, so far I had no
+desire to marry, and I distrusted them. In fact, I had conceived a most
+violent prejudice against you. Yes, upon my honor! I felt sure that I
+should dislike you; but I have seen you and all is changed. As soon as
+my eyes fell upon you, I experienced a powerful revulsion of feeling. I
+was never so smitten in my life--and I said to myself, 'Lieutenant, it
+is all over--you are caught at last!'"
+
+Pale with anger, astonished and humiliated beyond measure, the young
+girl listened with her head lowered, vainly trying to find words
+to express the feelings which disturbed her; but M. Gustave,
+misunderstanding her silence, and congratulating himself upon the
+effect he had produced, grew bolder, and with the tenderest and most
+impassioned inflection he could impart to his voice, continued: "Who
+could fail to be impressed as I have been? How could one behold, without
+rapturous admiration, such beautiful eyes, such glorious black hair,
+such smiling lips, such a graceful mien, such wonderful charms of person
+and of mind? How would it be possible to listen, unmoved, to a voice
+which is clearer and purer than crystal? Ah! my mother's descriptions
+fell far short of the truth. But how can one describe the perfections of
+an angel? To any one who has the happiness or the misfortune of knowing
+you, there can only be one woman in the world!"
+
+He had gradually approached her chair, and now extended his hand to take
+hold of Marguerite's, and probably raise it to his lips. But she shrank
+from the contact as from red-hot iron, and rising hurriedly, with her
+eyes flashing, and her voice quivering with indignation: "Monsieur!" she
+exclaimed, "Monsieur!"
+
+He was so surprised that he stood as if petrified, with his eyes wide
+open and his hand still extended. "Permit me--allow me to explain," he
+stammered. But she declined to listen. "Who has told you that you could
+address such words to me with impunity?" she continued. "Your parents,
+I suppose; I daresay they told you to be bold. And that is why they have
+left us, and why no servant has appeared. Ah! they make me pay dearly
+for the hospitality they have given me!" As she spoke the tears started
+from her eyes and glistened on her long lashes. "Whom did you fancy you
+were speaking to?" she added. "Would you have been so audacious if I had
+a father or a brother to resent your insults?"
+
+The lieutenant started as if he had been lashed with a whip. "Ah! you
+are severe!" he exclaimed.
+
+And a happy inspiration entering his mind, he continued: "A man does not
+insult a woman, mademoiselle, when, while telling her that he loves her
+and thinks her beautiful, he offers her his name and life."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite shrugged her shoulders ironically, and remained
+for a moment silent. She was very proud, and her pride had been cruelly
+wounded; but reason told her that a continuation of this scene would
+render a prolonged sojourn in the General's house impossible; and where
+could she go, without exciting malevolent remarks? Whom could she ask
+an asylum of? Still this consideration alone would not have sufficed to
+silence her. But she remembered that a quarrel and a rupture with the
+Fondeges would certainly imperil the success of her plans. "So I will
+swallow even this affront," she said to herself; and then in a tone of
+melancholy bitterness, she remarked, aloud: "A man cannot set a very
+high value on his name when he offers it to a woman whom he knows
+absolutely nothing about."
+
+"Excuse me--you forget that my mother----"
+
+"Your mother has only known me for a week."
+
+An expression of intense surprise appeared on the lieutenant's face. "Is
+it possible?" he murmured.
+
+"Your father has met me five or six times at the table of the Count
+de Chalusse, who was his friend--but what does he know of me?" resumed
+Mademoiselle Marguerite. "That I came to the Hotel de Chalusse a year
+ago, and that the count treated me like a daughter--that is all! Who I
+am, where I was reared, and how, and what my past life has been, these
+are matters that M. de Fondege knows nothing whatever about."
+
+"My parents told me that you were the daughter of the Count de Chalusse,
+mademoiselle."
+
+"What proof have they of it? They ought to have told you that I was an
+unfortunate foundling, with no other name than that of Marguerite."
+
+"Oh!"
+
+"They ought to have told you that I am poor, very poor, and that I
+should probably have been reduced to the necessity of toiling for my
+daily bread, if it had not been for them."
+
+An incredulous smile curved the lieutenant's lips. He fancied that
+Mademoiselle Marguerite only wished to prove his disinterestedness, and
+this thought restored his assurance. "Perhaps you are exaggerating a
+little, mademoiselle," he replied.
+
+"I am not exaggerating--I possess but ten thousand francs in the
+world--I swear it by all that I hold sacred."
+
+"That would not even be the dowry required of an officer's wife by law,"
+muttered the lieutenant.
+
+Was his incredulity sincere or affected? What had his parents really
+told him? Had they confided everything to him, and was he their
+accomplice? or had they told him nothing? All these questions flashed
+rapidly through Marguerite's mind. "You suppose that I am rich,
+monsieur," she resumed at last. "I understand that only too well. If I
+was, you ought to shun me as you would shun a criminal, for I could only
+be wealthy through a crime."
+
+"Mademoiselle----"
+
+"Yes, through a crime. After M. de Chalusse's death, two million francs
+that had been placed in his escritoire for safe keeping, could not be
+found. Who stole the money? I myself have been accused of the theft.
+Your father must have told you of this, as well as of the cloud of
+suspicion that is still hanging over me."
+
+She paused, for the lieutenant had become whiter than his shirt. "Good
+God!" he exclaimed in a tone of horror, as if a terrible light had
+suddenly broken upon his mind. He made a movement as if to leave the
+room, but suddenly changing his mind, he bowed low before Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, and said, in a husky voice: "Forgive me, mademoiselle, I did
+not know what I was doing. I have been misinformed. I have been beguiled
+by false hopes. I entreat you to say that you forgive me."
+
+"I forgive you, monsieur."
+
+But still he lingered. "I am only a poor devil of a lieutenant," he
+resumed, "with no other fortune than my epaulettes, no other prospects
+than an uncertain advancement. I have been foolish and thoughtless. I
+have committed many acts of folly; but there is nothing in my past life
+for which I have cause to blush." He looked fixedly at Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, as if he were striving to read her inmost soul; and in a
+solemn tone, that contrasted strangely with his usual levity of manner,
+he added: "If the name I bear should ever be compromised, my prospects
+would be blighted forever! The only course left for me would be to
+tender my resignation. I will leave nothing undone to preserve my honor
+in the eyes of the world, and to right those who have been wronged.
+Promise me not to interfere with my plans."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite trembled like a leaf. She now realized her
+terrible imprudence. He had divined everything. As she remained silent,
+he continued wildly: "I entreat you. Do you wish me to beg you at your
+feet?"
+
+Ah! it was a terrible sacrifice that he demanded of her. But how could
+she remain obdurate in the presence of such intense anguish? "I will
+remain neutral," she replied, "that is all I can promise. Providence
+shall decide."
+
+"Thank you," he said, sadly, suspecting that perhaps it was already too
+late--"thank you." Then he turned to go, and, in fact, he had already
+opened the door, when a forlorn hope brought him back to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, whose hand he took, timidly faltering, "We are friends, are
+we not?"
+
+She did not withdraw her icy hand, and in a scarcely audible voice, she
+repeated: "We are friends?"
+
+Convinced that he could obtain nothing more from her than her promised
+neutrality, the lieutenant thereupon hastily left the room, and she sank
+back in her chair more dead than alive. "Great God! what is coming now?"
+she murmured.
+
+She thought she could understand the unfortunate young man's intentions,
+and she listened with a throbbing heart, expecting to hear a stormy
+explanation between his parents and himself. In point of fact, she
+almost immediately afterward heard the lieutenant inquire in a stern,
+imperious voice: "Where is my father?"
+
+"The General has just gone to his club."
+
+"And my mother?"
+
+"A friend of hers called a few moments ago to take her to the opera."
+
+"What madness!"
+
+That was all. The outer door opened and closed again with extreme
+violence, and then Marguerite heard nothing save the sneering remarks of
+the servants.
+
+It was, indeed, madness on the part of M. and Madame de Fondege not
+to have waited to learn the result of this interview, planned by
+themselves, and upon which their very lives depended. But delirium
+seemed to have seized them since, thanks to a still inexplicable crime,
+they had suddenly found themselves in possession of an immense fortune.
+Perhaps in this wild pursuit of pleasure, in the haste they displayed
+to satisfy their covetous longings, they hoped to forget or silence
+the threatening voice of conscience. Such was Mademoiselle Marguerite's
+conclusion; but she was not long left to undisturbed meditation. By the
+lieutenant's departure the restrictions which had been placed upon the
+servants' movements had evidently been removed, for they came in to
+clear the table.
+
+Having with some little difficulty obtained a candle from one of these
+model servants, Mademoiselle Marguerite now retired to her own room. In
+her anxiety, she forgot Madame Leon, but the latter had not forgotten
+her; she was even now listening at the drawing-room door, inconsolable
+to think that she had not succeeded in hearing at least part of the
+conversation between the lieutenant and her dear young lady. Marguerite
+had no wish to reflect over what had occurred. As she was determined
+to keep the promise which Lieutenant Gustave had wrung from her, it
+mattered little whether she had committed a great mistake in allowing
+him to discover her knowledge of his parent's guilt, and in listening
+to his entreaties. A secret presentiment warned her that the punishment
+which would overtake the General and his wife would be none the less
+terrible, despite her own forbearance, and that they would find their
+son more inexorable than the severest judge.
+
+The essential thing was to warn the old magistrate; and so in a couple
+of pages she summarized the scene of the evening, feeling sure that she
+would find an opportunity to post her letter on the following day. This
+duty accomplished, she took a book and went to bed, hoping to drive away
+her gloomy thoughts by reading. But the hope was vain. Her eyes read the
+words, followed the lines and crossed the pages, but her mind utterly
+refused to obey her will, and in spite of all her efforts persisted in
+turning to the shrewd youth who had solemnly sworn to find Pascal for
+her. A little after midnight Madame de Fondege returned from the opera,
+and at once proceeded to reprimand her maid for not having lighted a
+fire. The General returned some time afterward, and he was evidently in
+the best of spirits.
+
+"They have not seen their son," said Mademoiselle Marguerite to herself,
+and this anxiety, combined with many others, tortured her so cruelly,
+that she did not fall asleep until near daybreak. Even then she did not
+slumber long. It was scarcely half-past seven when she was aroused by
+a strange commotion and a loud sound of hammering. She was trying to
+imagine the cause of all this uproar, when Madame de Fondege, already
+arrayed in a marvellous robe composed of three skirts and an enormous
+puff, entered the room. "I have come to take you away, my dear child,"
+she exclaimed. "The owner of the house has decided to make some repairs,
+and the workmen have already invaded our apartments. The General has
+taken flight, let us follow his example--so make yourself beautiful and
+we'll go at once."
+
+Without a word, the young girl hastened to obey, while Madame de
+Fondege expiated on the delightful drive they would take together in
+the wonderful brougham which the General had purchased a couple of days
+before. As for Lieutenant Gustave, she did not even mention his name.
+
+Accustomed to the superb equipages of the Chalusse establishment,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite did not consider the much-lauded brougham at
+all remarkable. At the most, it was very showy, having apparently been
+selected with a view to attracting as much attention as possible. Madame
+de Fondege was not in a mood to consider an objection that morning. She
+was evidently in a nervous state of mind, extremely restless and excited
+indeed, it seemed impossible for her to keep still. In default of
+something better to do, she visited at least a dozen shops, asking to
+see everything, finding everything frightful, and purchasing without
+regard to price. It might have been fancied that she wished to buy
+all Paris. About ten o'clock she dragged Marguerite to Van Klopen's.
+Received as a habituee of the establishment, thanks to the numerous
+orders she had given within the past few days, she was even allowed to
+enter the mysterious saloon in which the illustrious ruler of Fashion
+served such of his clients as had a predilection for absinthe or
+madeira. On leaving the place, and before entering the carriage again,
+Madame de Fondege turned to Marguerite and inquired: "Where shall we go
+now? I have given the servants an 'outing' on account of the workmen,
+and we cannot breakfast at home. Why can't we go to a restaurant, we
+two? Many of the most distinguished ladies are in the habit of doing
+so. You will see how people will look at us! I am sure it will amuse you
+immensely."
+
+"Ah! madame, you forget that it is not a fortnight since the count's
+death!"
+
+Madame de Fondege was about to make an impatient reply, but she mastered
+the impulse, and in a tone of hypocritical compassion, exclaimed: "Poor
+child! poor, dear child! that's true. I had forgotten. Well, such being
+the case, we'll go and ask Baroness Trigault to give us our breakfast.
+You will see a lovely woman." And addressing the coachman she instructed
+him to drive to the Trigault mansion in the Rue de la Ville l'Eveque.
+
+When Madame de Fondege's brougham drew up before the door, the baron was
+standing in the courtyard with a cigar between his teeth, examining a
+pair of horses which had been sent him on approbation. He did not like
+his wife's friend, and he usually avoided her. But precisely because he
+was acquainted with the General's crime and Pascal's plans, he thought
+it politic to seem amiable. So, on recognizing Madame de Fondege through
+the carriage window, he hastened forward with outstretched hand to
+assist her in alighting. "Did you come to take breakfast with us?" he
+asked. "That would be a most delightful----"
+
+The remainder of the sentence died unuttered upon his lips. His face
+became crimson, and the cigar he was holding slipped from his fingers.
+He had just perceived Mademoiselle Marguerite, and his consternation was
+so apparent that Madame de Fondege could not fail to remark it; however,
+she attributed it to the girl's remarkable beauty. "This is Mademoiselle
+de Chalusse, my dear baron," said she, "the daughter of the noble and
+esteemed friend whom we so bitterly lament."
+
+Ah! it was not necessary to tell the baron who this young girl was;
+he knew it only too well. He was not overcome for long; a thought of
+vengeance speedily flashed through his mind. It seemed to him that
+Providence itself offered him the means of putting an end to an
+intolerable situation. Regaining his self-control by a powerful effort,
+he preceded Madame de Fondege through the magnificent apartments of
+the mansion, lightly saying: "My wife is in her boudoir. She will be
+delighted to see you. But first of all, I have a good secret to confide
+to you. So let me take this young lady to the baroness, and you and
+I can join them in a moment!" Thereupon, without waiting for any
+rejoinder, he took Marguerite's arm and led her toward the end of the
+hall. Then opening a door, he exclaimed in a mocking voice: "Madame
+Trigault, allow me to present to you the daughter of the Count de
+Chalusse." And adding in a whisper: "This is your mother, young girl,"
+he pushed the astonished Marguerite into the room, closed the door, and
+returned to Madame de Fondege.
+
+Paler than her white muslin wrapper, the Baroness Trigault sprang from
+her chair. This was the woman who, while her husband was braving death
+to win fortune for her, had been dazzled by the Count de Chalusse's
+wealth, and who, later in life, when she was the richest of the rich,
+had sunk into the very depths of degradation--had stooped, indeed, to
+a Coralth! The baroness had once been marvellously beautiful, and even
+now, many murmurs of admiration greeted her when she dashed through
+the Champs Elysees in her magnificent equipage, attired in one of those
+eccentric costumes which she alone dared to wear. She was a type of the
+wife created by the customs of fashionable society; the woman who feels
+elated when her name appears in the newspapers and in the chronicles of
+Parisian "high life"; who has no thought of her deserted fireside, but
+is ever tormented by a terrible thirst for bustle and excitement; whose
+head is empty, and whose heart is dry--the woman who only exists for
+the world; and who is devoured by unappeasable covetousness, and who, at
+times, envies an actress's liberty, and the notoriety of the leaders of
+the demi-monde; the woman who is always in quest of fresh excitement,
+and fails to find it; the woman who is blase, and prematurely old in
+mind and body, and who yet still clings despairingly to her fleeting
+youth.
+
+Inaccessible to any emotion but vanity, the baroness had never shed a
+tear over her husband's sufferings. She was sure of her absolute power
+over him. What did the rest matter? She even gloried in her knowledge
+that she could make this man--who loved her in spite of everything--at
+one moment furious with rage or wild with grief, and then an instant
+afterward plunge him into the rapture of a senseless ecstasy by a word,
+a smile, or a caress. For such was her power, and she often exercised it
+mercilessly. Even after the frightful scene that Pascal had witnessed,
+she had made another appeal to the baron, and he had been weak enough
+to give her the thirty thousand francs which M. de Coralth needed to
+purchase his wife's silence.
+
+However, this time the baroness trembled. Her usual shrewdness had
+not deserted her, and she perfectly understood all that Marguerite's
+presence in that house portended. Since her husband brought this young
+girl--her daughter--to her he must know everything, and have taken some
+fatal resolution. Had she, indeed, exhausted the patience which she had
+fancied inexhaustible? She was not ignorant of the fact that her husband
+had disposed of his immense fortune in a way that would enable him to
+say and prove that he was insolvent whenever occasion required; and if
+he found courage to apply for a legal separation, what could she hope to
+obtain from the courts? A bare living, almost nothing. In such a case,
+how could she exist? She would be compelled to spend her last years
+in the same poverty that had made her youth so wretched. She saw
+herself--ah! what a frightful misfortune--turfed out of her princely
+home, and reduced to furnished apartments rented for five hundred francs
+a year!
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was no less startled and horror-stricken than
+Madame Trigault, and she stood rooted to the spot, exactly where the
+baron had left her. Silent and motionless, they confronted each
+other for a moment which seemed a century to both of them. The
+resemblance--which had astonished Pascal could not fail to strike them,
+for it was still more noticeable now that they stood face to face. But
+anything was preferable to this torturing suspense, and so, summoning
+all her courage, the baroness broke the silence by saying: "You are the
+daughter of the Count de Chalusse?"
+
+"I think so, but I have no proofs of it."
+
+"And--your mother?"
+
+"I don't know her; madame, and I have no desire to know her."
+
+Disconcerted by this brief but implacable reply, Madame Trigault hung
+her head.
+
+"What could I have to say to my mother?" continued Marguerite. "That I
+hate her? My courage would fail me to do so. And yet, how can I think
+without bitterness of the woman who, after abandoning me herself,
+endeavored to deprive me of my father's love and protection? I could
+have forgiven anything but that. Ah! I have not always been so patient
+and resigned! The laws of our country do not forbid illigitimate
+children to search for their parents, and more than once I have said to
+myself that I would discover my mother, and have my revenge."
+
+"But you have no means of discovering her?"
+
+"In this you are greatly mistaken, madame. After the Count de Chalusse's
+death, a package of letters, a glove and some withered flowers were
+found in one of the drawers of his escritoire."
+
+The baroness started back as if a yawning chasm had suddenly opened at
+her feet. "My letters!" she exclaimed. "Ah! wretched woman that I am,
+he kept them. It is all over! I am lost, for of course, they have been
+read?"
+
+"The ribbon securing them together has never been untied."
+
+"Is that true? Don't deceive me! Where are they, then--where are they?"
+
+"Under the protection of the seals affixed by the justice of the peace."
+
+Madame Trigault tottered, as if she were about to fall. "Then it is only
+a reprieve," she moaned, "and I am none the less ruined. Those cursed
+letters will necessarily be read, and all will be discovered. They will
+see----" The thought of what they would see endowed her with the energy
+of despair, and clutching hold of Marguerite's wrists: "Listen!" said
+she, approaching so near that her hot breath scorched the girl's cheeks,
+"no one must be allowed to see those letters!--it must not be! I will
+tell you what they contain. I hated my husband; I loved the Count de
+Chalusse madly, and he had sworn that he would marry me if ever I became
+a widow. Do you understand now? The name of the poison I obtained--how
+I proposed to administer it, and what its effects would be--all this is
+plainly written in my own handwriting and signed--yes, signed--with
+my own name. The plot failed, but it was none the less real, positive,
+palpable--and those letters are a proof of it. But they shall never be
+read--no--not if I am obliged to set fire to the Hotel de Chalusse with
+my own hand."
+
+Now the count's constant terror, the fear with which this woman had
+inspired him, were explained. He was an accomplice--he also had written
+no doubt, and she had preserved his letters as he had preserved hers.
+Crime had bound them indissolubly together.
+
+Horrified beyond expression, Marguerite freed herself from Madame
+Trigault's grasp. "I swear to you, madame, that everything any human
+being can do to save your letters shall be done by me," she exclaimed.
+
+"And have you any hope of success?"
+
+"Yes," replied the girl, remembering her friend, the magistrate.
+
+Moved by a far more powerful emotion than any she had ever known before,
+the baroness uttered an exclamation of joy. "Ah! how good you are!" she
+exclaimed--"how generous! how noble! You take your revenge in giving me
+back life, honor, everything--for you are my daughter; do you not know
+it? Did they not tell you, before bringing you here, that I was the
+hated and unnatural mother who abandoned you?"
+
+She advanced with tearful eyes and outstretched arms, but Marguerite
+sternly waved her back. "Spare yourself, madame, and spare me, the
+humiliation of an unnecessary explanation."
+
+"Marguerite! Good God! you repulse me. After all you have promised to do
+for me, will you not forgive me?"
+
+"I will try to forget, madame," replied the girl and she was already
+stepping toward the door when the baroness threw herself at her feet,
+crying, in a heart-rending tone: "Have pity, Marguerite, I am your
+mother. One has no right to deny one's own mother."
+
+But the young girl passed on. "My mother is dead, madame; I do not know
+you!" And she left the room without even turning her head, without even
+glancing at the baroness, who had fallen upon the floor in a deep swoon.
+
+
+
+
+XIX
+
+
+Baron Trigault still held Madame de Fondege a prisoner in the hall. What
+did he say to her in justification of the expedient he had improvised?
+His own agitation was so great that he scarcely knew, and it mattered
+but little after all, for the good lady did not even pretend to listen
+to his apologies. Although by no means overshrewd, she suspected some
+great mystery, some bit of scandal, perhaps, and her eyes never once
+wandered from the door leading to the boudoir. At last this door opened
+and Mademoiselle Marguerite reappeared. "Great heavens!" exclaimed
+Madame de Fondege; "what has happened to my poor child?"
+
+For the unfortunate girl advanced with an automatic tread, her eyes
+fixed on vacancy, and her hands outstretched, as if feeling her way. It
+indeed seemed to her as if the floor swayed to and fro under her feet,
+as if the walls tottered, as if the ceiling were about to fall and crush
+her.
+
+Madame de Fondege sprang forward. "What is the matter, my dearest?"
+
+Alas! the poor girl was utterly overcome. "It is but a trifle," she
+faltered. But her eyes closed, her hands clutched wildly for some
+support, and she would have fallen to the ground if the baron had not
+caught her in his arms and carried her to a sofa. "Help!" cried Madame
+de Fondege, "help, she is dying!--a physician!"
+
+But there was no need of a physician. One of the maids came with
+some fresh water and a bottle of smelling salts, and Marguerite soon
+recovered sufficiently to sit up, and cast a frightened glance around
+her, while she mechanically passed her hand again and again over her
+cold forehead. "Do you feel better my darling?" inquired Madame de
+Fondege at last.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Ah! you gave me a terrible fright; see how I tremble." But the worthy
+lady's fright was as nothing in comparison with the curiosity that
+tortured her. It was so powerful, indeed, that she could not control it.
+"What has happened?" she asked.
+
+"Nothing, madame, nothing."
+
+"But----"
+
+"I am subject to such attacks. I was very cold, and the heat of the room
+made me feel faint."
+
+Although she could only speak with the greatest difficulty, the baron
+realized by her tone that she would never reveal what had taken place,
+and his attitude and relief knew no bounds. "Don't tire the poor child,"
+he said to Madame de Fondege. "The best thing you can do would be to
+take her home and put her to bed."
+
+"I agree with you; but unfortunately, I have sent away my brougham with
+orders not to return for me until one o'clock."
+
+"Is that the only difficulty? If so, you shall have a carriage at
+once, my dear madame." So saying, the baron made a sign to one of the
+servants, and the man started on his mission at once.
+
+Madame de Fondege was silent but furious. "He is actually putting me out
+of doors," she thought. "This is a little too much! And why doesn't the
+baroness make her appearance--she must certainly have heard my voice?
+What does it all mean? However, I'm sure Marguerite will tell me when we
+are alone."
+
+But Madame de Fondege was wrong, for she vainly plied the girl with
+questions all the way from the Rue de la Ville l'Eveque to the Rue
+Pigalle. She could only obtain this unvarying and obstinate reply:
+"Nothing has happened. What do you suppose could have happened?"
+
+Never in her whole life had Madame de Fondege been so incensed. "The
+blockhead!" she mentally exclaimed. "Who ever saw such obstinacy!
+Hateful creature!--I could beat her!"
+
+She did not beat her, but on reaching the house she eagerly asked: "Do
+you feel strong enough to go up stairs alone?"
+
+"Yes, madame."
+
+"Then I will leave you. You know Van Klopen expects me again at one
+o'clock precisely; and I have not breakfasted yet. Remember that my
+servants are at your disposal, and don't hesitate to call them. You are
+at home, recollect."
+
+It was not without considerable difficulty--not without being compelled
+to stop and rest several times on her way up stairs--that Mademoiselle
+Marguerite succeeded in reaching the apartments of the Fondege family.
+"Where is madame?" inquired the servant who opened the door.
+
+"She is still out."
+
+"Will she return to dinner?"
+
+"I don't know."
+
+"M. Gustave has been here three times already; he was very angry when he
+found that there was no one at home--he went on terribly. Besides, the
+workmen have turned everything topsy-turvy."
+
+However, Marguerite had already reached her own room, and thrown herself
+on the bed. She was suffering terribly. Her brave spirit still retained
+its energy; but the flesh had succumbed. Every vein and artery throbbed
+with violence, and while a chill seemed to come to her heart, her head
+burned as if it had been on fire. "My Lord," she thought, "am I going
+to fall ill at the last moment, just when I have most need of all my
+strength?"
+
+She tried to sleep, but was unable to do so. How could she free herself
+from the thought that haunted her? Her mother! To think that such a
+woman was her mother! Was it not enough to make her die of sorrow and
+shame? And yet this woman must be saved--the proofs of her crime must be
+annihilated with her letters. Marguerite asked herself whether the
+old magistrate would have it in his power to help her in this respect.
+Perhaps not, and then what could she do? She asked herself if she had
+not been too cruel, too severe. Guilty or not, the baroness was still
+her mother. Had she the right to be pitiless, when by stretching out
+her hand she might, perhaps, have rescued the wretched woman from her
+terrible life.
+
+Thus thinking, the young girl sat alone and forgotten in her little
+room. The hours went by, and daylight had begun to wane, when suddenly a
+shrill whistle resounded in the street, under her windows. "Pi-ouit." It
+came upon her like an electric shock, and with a bound she sprang to
+her feet. For this cry was the signal that had been agreed upon between
+herself and the young man who had so abruptly offered to help her on the
+occasion of her visit to M. Fortunat's office. Was she mistaken? No--for
+on listening she heard the cry resound a second time, even more shrill
+and prolonged than before.
+
+This was no time for hesitation, and so she went down-stairs at once.
+Hope sent new blood coursing through her veins and endowed her with
+invincible energy. On reaching the street-door, she paused and looked
+around her. At a short distance off she perceived a young fellow clad in
+a blouse, who was apparently engaged in examining the goods displayed in
+a shop window. Despite his position, he hurriedly exclaimed: "Follow me
+at a little; distance in the rear until I stop."
+
+Marguerite, obeyed him in breathless suspense. The young fellow was
+our friend Victor Chupin, now somewhat the worse for his encounter with
+Vantrasson that same morning. His face was considerably disfigured, and
+one of his eyes was black and swollen; nevertheless he was in a state
+of ecstatic happiness. Happy, and yet anxious; for, as he preceded
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, he said to himself: "How shall I tell her
+that I have succeeded? There must be no folly. If I tell her the news
+suddenly, she will most likely faint, so I must break the news gently."
+
+On reaching the Rue Boursault, he turned the corner, and paused,
+waiting for Mademoiselle Marguerite to join him. "What is the news?" she
+anxiously asked.
+
+"Everything is progressing finely--slowly, but finely."
+
+"You know something, monsieur! Speak! Don't you see how anxious I am?"
+
+He did see it only too well; and his embarrassment increased to such a
+pitch that he began to scratch his head furiously. At last he decided
+on a plan. "First of all, mademoiselle, brace yourself against the wall,
+and now stand firm. Yes, like that. Now, are you all right? Well, I have
+found M. Ferailleur!"
+
+Chupin's precaution was a wise one, for Marguerite tottered. Such a
+success, so quickly gained, was indeed astounding. "Is it possible?" she
+murmured.
+
+"So possible that I have a letter for you from M. Ferailleur in my
+pocket mademoiselle. Here it is--I am to wait for an answer."
+
+She took the note he handed her, broke the seal with trembling hand, and
+read as follows:
+
+
+"We are approaching the end, my dearest. One step more and we shall
+triumph. But I must see you to-day at any risk. Leave the house this
+evening at eight o'clock. My mother will be waiting for you in a cab,
+at the corner of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue Boursault. Come, and let
+no fear of arousing suspicions of the Fondeges deter you. They are
+henceforth powerless to injure you."
+
+"PASCAL"
+
+
+"I will go!" replied Marguerite at once, careless of the obstacles that
+might impede the fulfilment of her promise. For it was quite possible
+that serious difficulties might arise. Madame Leon, who had been
+invisible since the morning, might suddenly reappear, or the General
+and his wife might return to dinner. And what could Marguerite answer if
+they asked her where she wanted to go alone, and at such an hour of
+the evening? And if they attempted to prevent her from keeping her
+appointment, how could she resist? All these were weighty questions and
+yet she did not hesitate. Pascal had spoken, that sufficed, and she was
+determined to obey him implicitly, cost what it might. If he advised
+such a step, it was because he deemed it best and necessary; and she
+willingly submitted to the instructions of the man in whom she felt such
+unbounded confidence.
+
+Having told Chupin that she might be relied upon for the evening, she
+was retracing her way home, when suddenly the thought occurred to her
+that she ought not to neglect this opportunity to place a decisive
+weapon in Pascal's hands. She was close to the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette
+and so without more ado she hurried to the establishment of Carjat the
+photographer. He was fortunately disengaged, and she at once obtained
+from him a proof of the compromising letter written by the Marquis de
+Valorsay to Madame Leon. She placed it carefully in her pocket, thanked
+the photographer, and then hurried back to the Rue Pigalle to wait
+for the hour appointed in Pascal's letter. Fortunately none of her
+unpleasant apprehensions were realized. The dinner-hour came and passed,
+and still the house remained deserted. The workmen had gone off and the
+laughter and chatter of the servants in the kitchen were the only sounds
+that broke the stillness. Faint for want of food--for she had taken no
+nourishment during the day--Marguerite had considerable difficulty in
+obtaining something to eat from the servants. At last, however, they
+gave her some soup and cold meat, served on a corner of the bare table
+in the dining-room. It was half-past seven when she finished this
+frugal meal. She waited a moment, and then fearing she might keep Madame
+Ferailleur waiting, she went down into the street.
+
+A cab was waiting at the corner of the Rue Boursault, as indicated. Its
+windows were lowered, and in the shade one could discern the face and
+white hair of an elderly lady. Glancing behind her to assure herself
+that she had not been followed, Marguerite eagerly approached the
+vehicle, whereupon a kindly voice exclaimed: "Jump in quickly,
+mademoiselle."
+
+Marguerite obeyed, and the door was scarcely closed behind her before
+the driver had urged his horse into a gallop. He had evidently received
+his instructions in advance, as well as the promise of a magnificent
+gratuity.
+
+Sitting side by side on the back seat, the old lady and the young girl
+remained silent, but this did not prevent them from casting stealthy
+glances at each other, and striving to distinguish one another's
+features whenever the vehicle passed in front of some brilliantly
+lighted shop. They had never met before, and their anxiety to become
+acquainted was intense, for they each felt that the other would exert
+a decisive influence upon her life. All of Madame Ferailleur's friends
+would undoubtedly have been surprised at the step she had taken, and
+yet it was quite in accordance with her character. As long as she had
+entertained any hope of preventing this marriage she had not hesitated
+to express and even exaggerate her objections and repugnance. But her
+point of view was entirely changed when conquered by the strength of her
+son's passion, she at last yielded a reluctant consent. The young girl
+who was destined to be her daughter-in-law at once became sacred in her
+eyes; and it seemed to her an act of duty to watch over Marguerite, and
+shield her reputation. Having considered the subject, she had decided
+that it was not proper for her son's betrothed to run about the streets
+alone in the evening. Might it not compromise her honor? and later on
+might it not furnish venomous Madame de Fondege with an opportunity to
+exercise her slanderous tongue? Thus the puritanical old lady had come
+to fetch Marguerite, so that whenever occasion required she might be
+able to say: "I was there!"
+
+As for Marguerite, after the trials of the day, she yielded without
+reserve to the feeling of rest and happiness that now filled her heart.
+Again and again had Pascal spoken of his mother's prejudices and the
+inflexibility of her principles. But he had also spoken of her dauntless
+energy, the nobility of her nature, and of her love and devotion to
+him. With Marguerite, moreover, one consideration--one which she
+would scarcely have admitted, perhaps--outweighed all others: Madame
+Ferailleur was Pascal's mother. For that reason alone, if for no other,
+she was prepared to worship her. How fervently she blessed this noble
+woman, who, a widow, and ruined in fortune by an unprincipled scoundrel,
+had bravely toiled to educate her son, making him the man whom
+Marguerite had freely chosen from among all others. She would have knelt
+before this grand but simple-hearted mother had she dared; she would
+have kissed her hands. And a poignant regret came to her heart when she
+remembered her own mother, Baroness Trigault, and compared her with this
+matchless woman.
+
+Meanwhile the cab had passed the outer boulevards, and was now whirling
+along the Route d'Asnieres, as fast as the horse could drag it. "We are
+almost there," remarked Madame Ferailleur, speaking for the first time.
+
+Marguerite's response was inaudible, she was so overcome with emotion.
+The driver had just turned the corner of the Route de la Revolte; and it
+was not long before he checked his panting horse. "Look, mademoiselle,"
+said Madame Ferailleur again, "this is our home."
+
+Upon the threshold, bareheaded, and breathless with impatience and hope,
+stood a man who was counting the seconds with the violent throbbings
+of his heart. He did not wait for the cab to stop, but springing to
+the door, he opened it; and then, catching Marguerite in his arms, he
+carried her into the house with a cry of joy. She had not even time to
+look around her, ere he had placed her in an arm-chair, and fallen on
+his knees before her. "At last I see you again, my beloved Marguerite,"
+he exclaimed. "You are mine--nothing shall part us again!"
+
+They sobbed in each other's arms. They could bear adversity unmoved; but
+their composure deserted them in this excess of happiness; and standing
+in the door-way, Madame Ferailleur felt the tears come to her eyes as
+she stood watching them.
+
+"How can I tell you all that I have suffered!" said Pascal, whose voice
+was hoarse with feeling. "The papers have told you all the details, I
+suppose. How I was accused of cheating at cards; how the vile epithet
+'thief' was cast in my face; how they tried to search me; how my most
+intimate friends deserted me; how I was virtually expelled from the
+Palais de Justice. All this is terrible, is it not? Ah, well! it
+is nothing in comparison with the intense, unendurable anguish I
+experienced in thinking that you believed the infamous calumny which
+disgraced me."
+
+Marguerite rose to her feet. "You thought that!" she exclaimed. "You
+believed that I doubted you? I! Like you, I have been accused of robbery
+myself. Do you believe me guilty?"
+
+"Good God! I suspect you!"
+
+"Then why----"
+
+"I was mad, Marguerite, my only love, I was mad! But who would not have
+lost his senses under such circumstances? It was the very day after this
+atrocious conspiracy. I had seen Madame Leon, and had trusted her with
+a letter for you in which I entreated you to grant me five minutes'
+Conversation."
+
+"Alas! I never received it."
+
+"I know that now; but then I was deceived. I went to the little garden
+gate to await your coming, but it was Madame Leon who appeared. She
+brought me a note written in pencil and signed with your name, bidding
+me an eternal farewell. And, fool that I was, I did not see that the
+note was a forgery!"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was amazed. The veil was now torn aside, and the
+truth revealed to her. Now she remembered Madame Leon's embarrassment
+when she met her returning from the garden on the night following the
+count's death. "Ah, well! Pascal," she said, "do you know what I was
+doing at almost the same moment? Alarmed at having received no news from
+you, I hastened to the Rue d'Ulm, where I learned that you had sold your
+furniture and started for America. Any other woman might have believed
+herself deserted under such circumstances, but not I. I felt sure that
+you had not fled in ignominious fashion. I was convinced that you had
+only concealed yourself for a time in order to strike your enemies more
+surely."
+
+"Do not shame me, Marguerite. It is true that of us two I showed myself
+the weaker."
+
+Lost in the rapture of the present moment, they had forgotten the past
+and the future, the agony they had endured, the dangers that still
+threatened them, and even the existence of their enemies.
+
+But Madame Ferailleur was watching. She pointed to the clock, and
+earnestly exclaimed: "Time is passing, my son. Each moment that
+is wasted endangers our success. Should any suspicion bring Madame
+Vantrasson here, all would be lost."
+
+"She cannot come upon us unawares, my dear mother. Chupin has promised
+not to lose sight of her. If she stirs from her shop, he will hasten
+here and throw a stone against the shutters to warn us."
+
+But even this did not satisfy Madame Ferailleur.
+
+"You forget, Pascal." she insisted, "that Mademoiselle Marguerite must
+be at home again by ten o'clock, if she consents to the ordeal you feel
+obliged to impose upon her."
+
+This was the voice of duty recalling Pascal to the stern realities of
+life. He slowly rose, conquered his emotion, and, after reflecting for
+a moment, said: "First of all, Marguerite, I owe you the truth and an
+exact statement of our situation. Circumstances have compelled me to act
+without consulting you. Have I done right or wrong? You shall judge."
+And without stopping to listen to the girl's protestations, he rapidly
+explained how he had managed to win M. de Valorsay's confidence,
+discover his plans, and become his trusted accomplice. "This scoundrel's
+plan is very simple," he continued. "He is determined to marry you.
+Why? Because, though you are not aware of it, you are rich, and the
+sole heiress to the fortune of the Count de Chalusse, your father. This
+surprises you, does it not? Very well! listen to me. Deceived by the
+Marquis de Valorsay, the Count de Chalusse had promised him your hand.
+These arrangements were nearly completed, though you had not been
+informed of them. In fact, everything had been decided. At the outset,
+however, a grave difficulty had presented itself. The marquis wished
+your father to acknowledge you before your marriage, but this he refused
+to do. 'It would expose me to the most frightful dangers,' he declared.
+'However, I will recognize Marguerite as my daughter in my will, and, at
+the same time, leave all my property to her.' But the marquis would not
+listen to this proposal. 'I don't doubt your good intentions, my dear
+count,' said he,' but suppose this will should be contested, your
+property might pass into other hands.' This difficulty put a stop to the
+proceedings for some time. The marquis asked for guarantees; the other
+refused to give them--until, at last, M. de Chalusse discovered an
+expedient which would satisfy both parties. He confided to M. de
+Valorsay's keeping a will in which he recognized you as his daughter,
+and bequeathed you his entire fortune. This document, the validity of
+which is unquestionable, has been carefully preserved by the marquis.
+He has not spoken of its existence; and he would destroy it rather than
+restore it to you at present. But as soon as you became his wife,
+he intended to produce it and thus obtain possession of the count's
+millions."
+
+"Ah! the old justice of the peace was not mistaken," murmured
+Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+
+Pascal did not hear her. All his faculties were absorbed in the attempt
+he was making to give a clear and concise explanation, for he had much
+to say, and it was growing late. "As for the enormous sum you have been
+accused of taking," he continued, "I know what has become of it; it is
+in the hands of M. de Fondege."
+
+"I know that, Pascal--I'm sure of it; but the proof, the proof!"
+
+"The proof exists, and, like the will, it is in the hands of the Marquis
+de Valorsay."
+
+"Is it possible! Great Heavens! You are sure you are not deceived?"
+
+"I have seen the proof, and it is overpowering, irrefutable! I have
+touched it--I have held it in my hands. And it explains everything which
+may have seemed strange and incomprehensible to you. The letter which M.
+de Chalusse received on the day of his death was written by his sister.
+She asked in it for her share of the family estate, threatening him with
+a terrible scandal if he refused to comply with her request. Had the
+count decided to brave this scandal rather than yield? We have good
+reason to suppose so. However, this much is certain: he had a terrible
+hatred, not so much for his sister, perhaps, as for the man who had
+seduced her, and afterward married her, actuated by avaricious motives
+alone. He had sworn thousands of times that neither husband nor wife
+should ever have a penny of the large fortune which really belonged
+to them. Believing that a lawsuit was now inevitable, and wishing to
+conceal his wealth, he was greatly embarrassed by the large amount of
+money he had on hand. What should he do with it? Where could he hide it?
+He finally decided to intrust it to the keeping of M. de Fondege, who
+was known as an eccentric man, but whose honesty seemed to be above
+suspicion. So, when he left home, on the afternoon of his illness, he
+took the package of bank-notes and bonds, which you had noticed in the
+escritoire that morning, away with him. We shall never know what passed
+between your father and the General--we can only surmise. But what I do
+know, and what I shall be able to prove, is that M. de Fondege accepted
+the trust, and that he gave an acknowledgment of it in the form of a
+letter, which read as follows:
+
+   "'MY DEAR COUNT DE CHALUSSE--I hereby acknowledge the receipt, on
+   Thursday, October 15, 186-, of the sum of two millions, two
+   hundred and fifty thousand francs, which I shall deposit, in my
+   name, at the Bank of France, subject to the orders of Mademoiselle
+   Marguerite, your daughter, on the day she presents this letter.
+   And believe, my dear count, in the absolute devotion of your old
+   comrade,
+
+                                "GENERAL DE FONDEGE.'"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was thunderstruck. "Who can have furnished you
+with these particulars?" she inquired.
+
+"The Marquis de Valorsay, my dearest; and I will explain how he was
+enabled to do so. M. de Fondege wrote the address of his 'old comrade'
+on this letter, which was folded and sealed, but not enclosed in an
+envelope. M. de Chalusse proposed to post it himself, so that the
+official stamp might authenticate its date. But on reflection, he became
+uneasy. He felt that this tiny, perishable scrap of paper would be
+the only proof of the deposit which he had confided to M. de Fondege's
+honor. This scrap might be lost, burned, or stolen. Then what would
+happen? He had so often seen trustees betray the confidence of which
+they had seemed worthy. So M. de Chalusse racked his brains to discover
+a means of protection from an improbable but possible misfortune. He
+found it. Passing a stationer's shop, he went in, purchased one of those
+letter-presses which merchants use in their correspondence, and, under
+pretext of trying it, took a copy of M. de Fondege's letter. Having
+done this, he placed the copy in an envelope addressed to the Marquis de
+Valorsay, and, with his heart relieved of all anxiety, posted it at the
+same time as the original letter. A few moments later he got into the
+cab in which he was stricken down with apoplexy."
+
+Extraordinary as Pascal's explanations must have seemed to her,
+Marguerite did not doubt their accuracy in the least. "Then it is the
+copy of this letter which you saw in the possession of the Marquis de
+Valorsay?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And the original?"
+
+"M. de Fondege alone can tell what has become of that. It is evident
+that he has somehow succeeded in obtaining possession of it. Would he
+have dared to squander money as he has done if he had not been convinced
+that there was no proof of his guilt in existence? Perhaps on hearing
+of the count's sudden death he bribed the concierge at the Hotel de
+Chalusse to watch for this letter and return it to him. But on this
+subject I have only conjectures to offer. If they wish you to marry
+their son, it is probably because it seems too hard that you should be
+left in abject poverty while they are enjoying the fortune they have
+stolen from you. The vilest scoundrels have their scruples. Besides,
+a marriage with their son would protect them against any possible
+mischance in the future."
+
+He was silent for a moment, and then more slowly resumed: "You see,
+Marguerite, we have clear, palpable, and irrefutable proofs of YOUR
+innocence; but in my efforts to clear my own name of disgrace, I have
+been far less fortunate. I have tried in vain to collect material proofs
+of the conspiracy against me. It is only by proving the guilt of the
+Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth that I can establish my
+innocence, and so far I am powerless to do so."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's face brightened with supreme joy. "Then I can
+serve you, in my turn, my only love," she exclaimed. "Ah! blessed be God
+who inspired me, and who thus rewards me for an hour of courage. My
+poor father's plan also occurred to me, Pascal. Was it not strange? The
+material proof of your innocence which you have sought for in vain, is
+in my possession, written and signed by the Marquis de Valorsay. Like
+M. de Fondege, he believes that the letter which proves his guilt is
+annihilated. He burned it himself, and yet it exists." So saying, she
+drew from her bosom one of the copies which she had received from Carjat
+the photographer, and handed it to Pascal, adding, "Look!"
+
+Pascal eagerly perused the marvellous facsimile of the letter which the
+marquis had written to Madame Leon. "Ah! this is the scoundrel's death
+warrant." he exclaimed, exultantly. And approaching Madame Ferailleur,
+who still stood leaning against the door, silent and motionless: "Look,
+mother," he repeated, "look!"
+
+And he pointed to this paragraph which was so convincing and so
+explicit, that the most exacting jury would have asked for no further
+evidence. "I have formed a plan which will completely efface all
+remembrance of that cursed P. F., in case any one could condescend to
+think of him, after the disgrace we fastened upon him the other evening
+at the house of Madame d'A----."
+
+"Nor is this all," resumed Mademoiselle Marguerite. "There are other
+letters which will prove that this plot was the marquis's work and which
+give the name of his accomplice, Coralth. And these letters are in the
+possession of a man of dubious integrity, who was once the marquis's
+ally, but who has now become his enemy. He is known as Isidore Fortunat,
+and lives in the Place de la Bourse."
+
+Marguerite felt that Madame Ferailleur's keen glance was riveted
+upon her. She intuitively divined what was passing in the mind of
+the puritanical old lady, and realized that her whole future, and the
+happiness of her entire wedded life, depended upon her conduct at that
+moment. So, desirous of making a full confession, she hastily exclaimed:
+"My conduct may have seemed strange in a young girl, Pascal. A timid,
+inexperienced girl, who had been carefully kept from all knowledge of
+life and evil, would have been crushed by such a burden of disgrace,
+and could only have wept and prayed. I did weep and pray; but I also
+struggled and fought. In the hour of peril I found myself endowed with
+some of the courage and energy which distinguished the poor women of the
+people among whom I formerly earned my bread. The teachings and miseries
+of the past were not lost to me!" And as simply as if she were telling
+the most natural thing in the world, she described the struggle she had
+undertaken against the world, strong in her faith in Pascal and in his
+love.
+
+"Ah, you are a noble and courageous girl!" exclaimed Madame Ferailleur.
+"You are worthy of my son, and you will proudly guard our honest name!"
+
+For some little time already the obstinate old lady had been struggling
+against the sympathetic emotion that filled her heart, and big tears
+were coursing down her wrinkled cheeks.
+
+Unable to restrain herself any longer, she now threw both arms around
+Marguerite's neck, and drew her toward her in a long embrace, murmuring:
+"Marguerite, my daughter! Ah! how unjust my prejudices were!"
+
+It might be thought that Pascal was transported with joy on hearing
+this, but no: the lines of care on his forehead deepened, as he said:
+"Happiness is so near! Why must a final test, another humiliation,
+separate us from it?"
+
+But Marguerite now felt strong enough to meet even martyrdom with a
+smile. "Speak, Pascal!" said she, "don't you see that it is almost ten
+o'clock?"
+
+He hesitated; there was grief in his eyes and his breath came quick and
+hard, as he resumed: "For your sake and mine, we must conquer, at any
+price. This is the only reason that can justify the horrible expedient
+I have to suggest. M. de Valorsay, as you know, has boasted of his power
+to overcome your resistance, and he really believes that he possesses
+this power. Why I have not killed him again and again when he has been
+at my mercy, I can scarcely understand. The only thing that gave me
+power to restrain myself was my desire for as sure, as terrible, and
+as public a revenge as the humiliation he inflicted on me. His plan for
+your ruin is such as only a scoundrel like himself could conceive.
+With the assistance of his vile tool, Coralth, he has formed a league,
+offensive and defensive, with the son of the Count de Chalusse's sister,
+who is the only acknowledged heir at this moment--a young man destitute
+of heart and intelligence, and inordinately vain, but neither better nor
+worse than many others who figure respectably in society. His name is
+Wilkie Gordon. The marquis has acquired great influence over him,
+and has persuaded him that it is his duty to denounce you to the
+authorities. He has, in short, accused you of defrauding the heirs of
+the Chalusse estate of two millions of francs and also of poisoning the
+count."
+
+The girl shrugged her shoulders disdainfully. "As for the robbery,
+we have an answer to that," she answered, "and as regards the
+poisoning--really the accusation is too absurd!"
+
+But Pascal still looked gloomy. "The matter is more serious than you
+suppose," he replied. "They have found a physician--a vile, cowardly
+scoundrel--who for a certain sum has consented to appear in support of
+the accusation."
+
+"Dr. Jodon, I presume!"
+
+"Yes; and this is not all. The count's escritoire contains the vial
+of medicine of which he drank a portion on the day of his death. Well,
+to-morrow night, Madame Leon will open the garden gate of the Hotel de
+Chalusse and admit a rascal who will abstract the vial."
+
+Marguerite shuddered. Now she understood the fiendish cunning of the
+plot. "It might ruin me!" she murmured.
+
+Pascal nodded affirmatively. "M. de Valorsay wishes you to consider
+yourself as irretrievably lost, and then he intends to offer to save you
+on condition that you consent to marry him. I should say, however, that
+M. Wilkie is ignorant of the atrocious projects he is abetting. They are
+known only to the marquis and M. de Coralth; and it is I who, under the
+name of Maumejan, act as their adviser. It was to me that the marquis
+sent M. Wilkie for assistance in drawing up this accusation. I myself
+wrote out the denunciation, which was as terrible and as formidable as
+our bitterest enemy could possibly desire, combining, as it did, with
+perfidious art, the reports of the valets and the suspicions of the
+physician, and establishing the connection between the robbery and the
+murder. It finished by demanding a thorough investigation. And M. Wilkie
+copied and signed this document, and carried it to the prosecution
+office himself."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite sank half-fainting into an arm-chair. "You have
+done this!" she faltered.
+
+"It was necessary, my daughter," whispered Madame Ferailleur.
+
+"Yes, it was necessary, absolutely necessary," repeated Pascal, "as
+you will see. Justice, which is a human institution, and limited in its
+powers, cannot fathom motives, read thoughts, or interfere with plans,
+however abominable they may be, or however near realization. Before it
+can interfere, the law must have material, tangible proof, convincing
+to the senses. Until you are arrested, the crimes committed by M. de
+Valorsay, and those associated with him, do not come within the reach
+of human justice; but as soon as you are in prison, I can hasten to
+our friend the justice of the peace, and we shall go at once to
+the investigating magistrate and explain everything. Now, when your
+innocence and the guilt of your accusers have been established, what
+do you fancy the authorities will do? They will wait until your enemies
+declare themselves, in order to capture them all at once, and prevent
+the escape of a single one. To-morrow night some clever detectives will
+watch the Hotel de Chalusse, and just as Madame Leon and the wretch with
+her think themselves sure of success, they will be caught in the
+very act and arrested. When they are examined by a magistrate, who
+is conversant with the whole affair, can they deny their guilt? No;
+certainly not. Acting upon their confession, the authorities will force
+an entrance into Valorsay's house, where they will find your father's
+will and the receipt given by M. de Fondege--in a word, all the proofs
+of their guilt. And while this search is going on, all your enemies,
+reassured by your arrest, will be at a grand soiree given by Baron
+Trigault. I shall be there as well."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had mastered her momentary weakness. She rose to
+her feet, and in a firm voice exclaimed: "You have acted rightly."
+
+"Ah! there was no other way. And yet I wished to see you, to learn if
+this course were too repugnant to you."
+
+She interrupted him with a gesture. "When shall I be arrested?" she
+asked, quietly.
+
+"This evening or to-morrow." was his answer.
+
+"Very well! I have only one request to make. The Fondeges have a son who
+has no hand in the affair, but who will be more severely punished than
+his parents, if we do not spare them. Could you not----"
+
+"I can do nothing, Marguerite. I am powerless now."
+
+Everything was soon arranged. Marguerite raised her forehead to Pascal
+for his parting kiss, and went away accompanied by Madame Ferailleur,
+who escorted her to the corner of the Rue Boursault. The General and his
+wife had returned home in advance of Marguerite. She found them sitting
+in the drawing-room, with distorted faces and teeth chattering with
+fear. With them was a bearded man who, as soon as she appeared,
+exclaimed:
+
+"You are Mademoiselle Marguerite, are you not? I arrest you in the name
+of the law. There is my warrant." And without more ado he led her away.
+
+
+
+
+XX.
+
+
+Money, which nowadays has taken the place of the good fairies of former
+times, had gratified M. Wilkie's every longing in a single night.
+Without any period of transition, dreamlike as it were, he had passed
+from what he called "straitened circumstances" to the splendid enjoyment
+of a princely fortune. Madame d'Argeles's renunciation had been
+so correctly drawn up, that as soon as he presented his claims and
+displayed his credentials he was placed in possession of the Chalusse
+estate. It is true that a few trifling difficulties presented
+themselves. For instance, the old justice of the peace who had affixed
+the seals refused to remove them from certain articles of furniture,
+especially from the late count's escritoire, without an order from the
+court, and several days were needed to obtain this. But what did that
+matter to M. Wilkie? The house, with its splendid reception-rooms,
+pictures, statuary and gardens, was at his disposal, and he installed
+himself therein at once. Twenty horses neighed and stamped in his
+stables; there were at least a dozen carriages in the coach-house. He
+devoted his attention exclusively to the horses and vehicles; but acting
+upon the advice of Casimir, who had become his valet and oracle, he
+retained all the former servants of the house, from Bourigeau the
+concierge down to the humblest scullery maid. Still, he gave them
+to understand that this was only a temporary arrangement. A man like
+himself, living in this progressive age, could scarcely be expected to
+content himself with what had satisfied the Count de Chalusse. "For I
+have my plans," he remarked to Casimir, "but let Paris wait awhile."
+
+He repudiated his former friends. Costard and Serpillon, pretended
+viscounts though they were, were quite beneath the notice of a
+Gordon-Chalusse, as M. Wilkie styled himself on his visiting cards.
+However, he purchased their share of Pompier de Nanterre, feeling
+convinced that this remarkable steeplechaser had a brilliant future
+before him. He did not trouble himself to any great extent about his
+mother. Like every one else, he knew that she had disappeared, but
+nothing further. On the other hand, the thought of his father, the
+terrible chevalier d'industrie, hung over his joy like a pall; and each
+time the great entrance bell announced a visitor, he trembled, turned
+pale, and muttered: "Perhaps it's he!"
+
+Tortured by this fear, he clung closely to the Marquis de Valorsay as if
+he felt that this distinguished friend was a powerful support. Besides,
+people of rank and distinction naturally exercised a powerful attraction
+over him, and he fancied he grew several inches taller when, in some
+public place, in the street, or a restaurant, he was able to call out,
+"I say, Valorsay, my good friend," or, "Upon my word! my dear marquis!"
+
+M. de Valorsay received these effusions graciously enough, although,
+in point of fact, he was terribly bored by the platitudes of his new
+acquaintance. He intended to send him to Coventry later on, but just now
+M. Wilkie was too useful to be ignored. So he had introduced him to his
+club, and was seen with him everywhere--in the Bois, at the restaurants,
+and the theatres. At times, some of his friends inquired: "Who is that
+queer little fellow?" with a touch of irony in their tone, but when
+the marquis carelessly answered: "A poor devil who has just come into
+possession of a property worth twenty millions!" they became serious,
+and requested the pleasure and honor of an introduction to this
+fortunate young man.
+
+So M. de Valorsay had invited Gordon-Chalusse to accompany him to Baron
+Trigault's approaching fete. It was to be an entertainment for gentlemen
+only, a monster card-party; but every one knew the wealthy baron, and
+no doubt with a view of stimulating curiosity he had declared, and
+the Figaro had repeated, that he had a great surprise in store for his
+guests. Oh! such a surprise! They could have no idea what it was! This
+fete was to take place on the second day after Mademoiselle Marguerite's
+arrest; and on the appointed evening, between nine and ten o'clock,
+M. de Valorsay and his friend Coralth sat together in the former's
+smoking-room waiting for Wilkie to call for them, as had been
+agreed upon. They were both in the best of spirits. The viscount's
+apprehensions had been entirely dispelled; and the marquis had quite
+forgotten the twinges of pain in his injured limb. "Marguerite will only
+leave prison to marry me," said M. de Valorsay, triumphantly; and he
+added: "What a willing tool this Wilkie is! A single word sufficed to
+make him give all his servants leave of absence. The Hotel de Chalusse
+will be deserted, and Madame Leon and Vantrasson can operate at their
+leisure."
+
+It was ten o'clock when M. Wilkie made his appearance. "Come, my good
+friends!" said he, "my carriage is below."
+
+They started off at once, and five minutes later they were ushered into
+the presence of Baron Trigault, who received M. Wilkie as if he had
+never seen him before. There was quite a crowd already. At least three
+or four hundred people had assembled in the Baron's reception-rooms, and
+among them were several former habitues of Madame d'Argeles's house;
+one could also espy M. de Fondege ferociously twirling his mustaches
+as usual, together with Kami-Bey, who was conspicuous by reason of
+his portly form and eternal red fez. However, among these men, all
+noticeable for their studied elegance of attire and manner, and all
+of them known to M. de Valorsay, there moved numerous others of very
+different appearance. Their waistcoats were less open, and their clothes
+did not fit them as perfectly; on the other hand, there was something
+else than a look of idiotic self-complacency on their faces. "Who can
+these people be?" whispered the marquis to M. de Coralth. "They look
+like lawyers or magistrates." But although he said this he did not
+really believe it, and it was without the slightest feeling of anxiety
+that he strolled from group to group, shaking hands with his friends and
+introducing M. Wilkie.
+
+A strange rumor was in circulation among the guests. Many of them
+declared--where could they have heard such a thing?--that in consequence
+of a quarrel with her husband, Madame Trigault had left Paris the
+evening before. They even went so far as to repeat her parting words to
+the Baron: "You will never see me again," she had said. "You are amply
+avenged. Farewell!" However, the best informed among the guests, the
+folks who were thoroughly acquainted with all the scandals of the day,
+declared the story false, and said that if the baroness had really fled,
+handsome Viscount de Coralth would not appear so calm and smiling.
+
+The report WAS true, however. But M. de Coralth did not trouble himself
+much about the baroness now. Had he not got in his pocket M. Wilkie's
+signature insuring him upward of half a million? Standing near one of
+the windows in the main reception-room, between the Marquis de Valorsay
+and M. Wilkie, the brilliant viscount was gayly chatting with them,
+when a footman, in a voice loud enough to interrupt all conversation,
+suddenly announced: "M. Maumejan!"
+
+It seemed such a perfectly natural thing to M. de Valorsay that
+Maumejan, as one of the baron's business agents, should be received at
+his house, that he was not in the least disturbed. But M. de Coralth,
+having heard the name, wished to see the man who had aided and advised
+the marquius so effectually. He abruptly turned, and as he did so the
+words he would have spoken died upon his lips. He became livid, his eyes
+seemed to start from their sockets, and it was with difficulty that he
+ejaculated: "He!"
+
+"Who?" inquired the astonished marquis.
+
+"Look!"
+
+M. de Valorsay did so, and to his utter amazement he perceived a
+numerous party in the rear of the man announced under the name of
+Maumejan. First came Mademoiselle Marguerite, leaning on the arm of the
+white-haired magistrate, and then Madame Ferailleur; next M. Isidore
+Fortunat, and finally Chupin--Victor Chupin, resplendent in a handsome,
+bran-new, black dress-suit.
+
+The marquis could no longer fail to understand the truth. He realized
+who Maumejan really was, and the audacious comedy he had been duped by.
+He was so frightfully agitated that five or six persons sprang forward
+exclaiming: "What is the matter, marquis? Are you ill?" But he made
+no reply. He felt that he was caught in a trap, and he glanced wildly
+around him seeking for some loophole of escape.
+
+However, the word of command had evidently been given. Suddenly all the
+guests scattered about the various drawing-rooms poured into the main
+hall, and the doors were closed. Then, with a solemnity of manner
+which no one had ever seen him display before, Baron Trigault took
+the so-called Maumejan by the hand and led him into the centre of the
+apartment opposite the lofty chimney-piece. "Gentlemen," he began, in
+a commanding tone, "this is M. Pascal Ferailleur, the honorable man who
+was falsely accused of cheating at cards at Madame d'Argeles's house.
+You owe him a hearing."
+
+Pascal was greatly agitated. The strangeness of the situation, the
+certainty of speedy and startling rehabilitation, perhaps the joy of
+vengeance, the silence, which was so profound that he could hear his
+own panting breath, and the many eyes riveted upon him, all combined to
+unnerve him. But only for a moment. He swiftly conquered his weakness,
+and surveying his audience with flashing eyes, he explained, in a clear
+and ringing voice, the shameful conspiracy to obtain possession of the
+count's millions, and the abominable machinations by which Mademoiselle
+Marguerite and himself had been victimized. Then when he had finished
+his explanations he added, in a still more commanding voice, "Now look;
+you can read the culprits' guilt on their faces. One is the scoundrel
+known to you as the Viscount de Coralth, but Paul Violaine is his true
+name. He was formerly an accomplice of the notorious Mascarot; he is a
+cowardly villain, for he is married, and leaves his wife and children to
+die of starvation!" The Viscount de Coralth fairly bellowed with rage.
+But Pascal did not heed him. "The other criminal is the Marquis de
+Valorsay," he added, in the same ringing tone. There was, moreover, a
+third culprit who would have inspired mingled pity and disgust if any
+one had noticed him shrinking into a corner, terrified and muttering:
+"It wasn't my fault, my wife compelled me to do it!" This was General de
+Fondege.
+
+Pascal did not mention his name. But it was not absolutely necessary
+he should do so, and besides, he remembered Marguerite's entreaty
+respecting the son.
+
+However, while the young lawyer was speaking, the marquis had summoned
+all his energy and assurance to his aid. Desperate as his plight
+might be, he would not surrender. "This is an infamous conspiracy," he
+exclaimed. "Baron, you shall atone for this. The man's an impostor!--he
+lies!--all that he says is false!"
+
+"Yes, it is false!" echoed M. de Coralth.
+
+But a clamor arose, drowning these protestations, and the most
+opprobrious epithets could be heard on every side.
+
+"How will you prove your assertion?" cried M. de Valorsay.
+
+"Don't try that dodge on us!" shouted Chupin. "Vantrasson and mother
+Leon have confessed everything."
+
+"Who defrauded us all with Domingo?" cried several people; and, loud
+above all the others, Kami-Bey bawled out: "To say nothing of the fact
+that the sale of your racing stud was a complete swindle!"
+
+Meanwhile, Pascal's former friends and associates, his brother advocates
+and the magistrates who had listened to his first efforts at the
+bar, crowded round him, pressing his hands, embracing him almost to
+suffocation, censuring themselves for having suspected him, the very
+soul of honor, and pleading in self-justification the degenerate age in
+which we live--an age in which we daily see those whom we had considered
+immaculate suddenly yield to temptation. And a murmur of respectful
+admiration rose from the throng when the excitement had subsided a
+little, and the guests had an opportunity to observe Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, whose eyes sparkled more brightly than ever through her
+happy tears; and whose beauty acquired an almost sublime expression from
+her deep emotion.
+
+The wretched Valorsay felt that all was over--that he was irretrievably
+lost. Seized by a blind fury like that which impels a hunted animal
+to turn and face the hounds that pursue him, and bid them defiance, he
+confronted the throng with his face distorted with passion, his eyes
+bloodshot, and foam upon his lips; he was absolutely frightful in his
+cynicism, hatred, and scorn. "Ah! well, yes!" he exclaimed--"yes, all
+that you have just heard is true. I was sinking, and I tried to save
+myself as best I could. Beggars cannot be choosers; I staked my all upon
+a single die. If I had won, you would have been at my feet; but I have
+lost and you spurn me. Cowards! hypocrites! that you are, insult me if
+you like, but tell me how many among you all are sufficiently pure and
+upright to have a right to despise me! Are there a hundred among you?
+are there even fifty?"
+
+A tempest of hisses momentarily drowned his voice, but as soon as the
+uproar had ceased, he resumed, sneeringly: "Ah! the truth wounds you, my
+dear friends. Pray, don't pretend to be so distressingly virtuous! I
+was ruined--that is the long and short of it. But what man of you is not
+embarrassed? Who among you finds his income sufficient? Which one of you
+is not encroaching upon his capital? And when you have come to your last
+louis, you will do what I have done, or something worse. Do not deny it,
+for not one among you has a more uncompromising conscience, more moral
+firmness, or more generous aspirations than I once possessed. You are
+pursuing what I pursued. You desire what I desired--a life of luxury,
+brief if it must be, but happy--a life of gayety, wild excitement,
+and dissipation. You, too, have a passion for pleasure and gambling,
+race-horses, and notorious women, a table always bountifully spread,
+glasses ever overflowing with wine, all the delights of luxury, and
+everything that gratifies your vanity! But an abyss of shame awaits you
+at the end of it all. I am in it now. I await you there, for there you
+will surely, necessarily, inevitably come. Ah, ha! you will not then
+think my downfall so very strange. Let me pass! make way! if you
+please."
+
+He advanced with his head haughtily erect, and would actually have
+made his escape if a frightened servant had not at that moment appeared
+crying: "Monsieur--Monsieur le Baron! a commissary of police is
+downstairs. He is coming up. He has a warrant!"
+
+The marquis's frenzied assurance deserted him. He turned even paler
+than he already was if that were possible, and reeled like an ox
+but partially stunned by the butcher's hammer. Suddenly a desperate
+resolution could be read in his eyes, the resolution of the condemned
+criminal, who, knowing that he cannot escape the scaffold, ascends it
+with a firm step.
+
+He hastily approached Baron Trigault, and asked in a husky voice: "Will
+you allow me to be arrested in your house, baron? me--a Valorsay!"
+
+It might have been supposed that the baron had expected this reproach,
+for without a word he led the marquis and M. de Coralth to a little room
+at the end of the hall, pushed them inside, and closed the door again.
+
+It was time he did so, for the commissary of police was already upon
+the threshold. "Which of you gentlemen is the Marquis de Valorsay?" he
+asked. "Which of you is Paul Violaine, alias the Viscount de----"
+
+The sharp report of firearms suddenly interrupted him. Every one at once
+rushed to the little room, where the wretched men had been conducted.
+There extended, face upward, on the floor, lay the Marquis de Valorsay,
+with his brains oozing from his fractured skull, and his right hand
+still clutching a revolver. He was dead. "And the other!" cried the
+throng; "the other!"
+
+The open window, and a curtain rudely torn from its fastenings and
+secured to the balustrade, told how M. de Coralth had made his escape.
+It was not till later that people learned what precautions the baron
+had taken. On the table in that room he had laid two revolvers, and
+two packages containing ten thousand francs each. The viscount had not
+hesitated.
+
+* * * * *
+
+Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse were married
+at the church of Saint Etienne du Mont, only a few steps from the Rue
+d'Ulm. Those who knew the mystery connected with the bride's parentage
+were greatly astonished when they saw Baron Trigault act as a witness on
+this occasion, in company with the venerable justice of the peace. But
+such was the fact, nevertheless. Treated more and more outrageously by
+his daughter and her husband, separated from his wife, who had nearly
+lost her reason, although her letters were saved, the baron has nowadays
+found affection and a home with Pascal and his wife. He plays cards but
+seldom now--only an occasional game of piquet with Madame Ferailleur,
+and he amuses himself by making her start when she is too long in
+discarding, by ejaculating, in a stentorian voice: "We are wasting
+precious time!" Sometimes they go out together, to the great
+astonishment of such as chance to meet the puritanical old lady leaning
+on the baron's arm. She often goes to visit and console the widow
+Gordon, formerly known as Lia d'Argeles, who now keeps an establishment
+near Montrouge, where she provides poor, betrayed and forsaken girls
+with a home and employment. She has yet to receive any token of
+remembrance from her son. As for her husband, she supposes he is dead or
+incarcerated in some prison.
+
+It is to Madame Gordon that the Fondeges are often indebted for bread.
+Obliged to disgorge their plunder, and left with no resources save the
+fifty francs a month allowed them by their son, who has been promoted
+to the rank of captain, their poverty is necessarily extreme. Oh! those
+Fondeges! M. Fortunat only speaks of them with horror. But he is loud
+in his praises of Madame Marguerite, who repaid him the forty thousand
+francs he had advanced to M. de Valorsay. He speaks in the highest terms
+of Chupin also; but in this, he is scarcely sincere, for Victor, who
+has been set up in business by Pascal, told him very plainly that he
+was determined not to put his hand to any more dirty work, and that
+expression, "dirty work," rankles in M. Fortunat's heart.
+
+Chupin's resolution did not, however, prevent him from attending the
+trial of Vantrasson and Madame Leon--the former of whom was sentenced to
+hard labor for life, and the latter to ten years' imprisonment. Nothing
+is known concerning M. de Coralth; but his wife has disappeared, to
+the great disappointment of M. Mouchon. As a dentist, Dr. Jodon is
+successful. As for M. Wilkie, you can learn anything you wish to
+know concerning him in the newspapers, for his sayings, doings, and
+movements, are constantly being chronicled. The reporters exhaust all
+the resources of their vocabulary in describing his horses, carriages,
+and stables, and the gorgeous liveries of his servants. His changes of
+residence are always mentioned; his brilliant sayings are quoted. He
+is a social success; he is admired, fondled, and flattered. He makes a
+great stir in the fashionable world--in fact, he reigns over it like a
+king. After all, assurance is the winning card in the game of life!
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Baron Trigault's Vengeance, by Emile Gaboriau
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+
+
+
+Baron Trigault's Vengeance
+by Emile Gaboriau
+
+
+
+A Sequel to "The Count's Millions"
+Translated from the French
+
+
+
+
+
+I
+
+
+Vengeance! that is the first, the only thought, when a man finds
+himself victimized, when his honor and fortune, his present and
+future, are wrecked by a vile conspiracy! The torment he endures
+under such circumstances can only be alleviated by the prospect of
+inflicting them a hundredfold upon his persecutors.  And nothing
+seems impossible at the first moment, when hatred surges in the
+brain, and the foam of anger rises to the lips; no obstacle seems
+insurmountable, or, rather, none are perceived.  But later, when
+the faculties have regained their equilibrium, one can measure the
+distance which separates the dream from reality, the project from
+execution.  And on setting to work, how many discouragements
+arise! The fever of revolt passes by, and the victim wavers.  He
+still breathes bitter vengeance, but he does not act.  He
+despairs, and asks himself what would be the good of it? And in
+this way the success of villainy is once more assured.
+
+Similar despondency attacked Pascal Ferailleur when he awoke for
+the first time in the abode where he had hidden himself under the
+name of Maumejan.  A frightful slander had crushed him to the
+earth--he could kill his slanderer, but afterward--? How was he to
+reach and stifle the slander itself? As well try to hold a handful
+of water; as well try to stay with extended arms the progress of
+the poisonous breeze which wafts an epidemic on its wings.  So the
+hope that had momentarily lightened his heart faded away again. 
+Since he had received that fatal letter from Madame Leon the
+evening before, he believed that Marguerite was lost to him
+forever, and in this case, it was useless to struggle against
+fate.  What would be the use of victory even if he conquered?
+Marguerite lost to him--what did the rest matter? Ah! if he had
+been alone in the world.  But he had his mother to think of;--he
+belonged to this brave-hearted woman, who had saved him from
+suicide already.  "I will not yield, then; I will struggle on for
+her sake," he muttered, like a man who foresees the futility of
+his efforts.
+
+He rose, and had nearly finished dressing, when he heard a rap at
+his chamber door.  "It is I, my son," said Madame Ferailleur
+outside.
+
+Pascal hastened to admit her.  "I have come for you because the
+woman you spoke about last evening is already here, and before
+employing her, I want your advice."
+
+"Then the woman doesn't please you, mother?"
+
+"I want you to see her."
+
+On entering the little parlor with his mother, Pascal found
+himself in the presence of a portly, pale-faced woman, with thin
+lips and restless eyes, who bowed obsequiously.  It was indeed
+Madame Vantrasson, the landlady of the model lodging-house, who
+was seeking employment for the three or four hours which were at
+her disposal in the morning, she said.  It certainly was not for
+pleasure that she had decided to go out to service again; her
+dignity suffered terribly by this fall--but then the stomach has
+to be cared for.  Tenants were not numerous at the model lodging-
+house, in spite of its seductive title; and those who slept there
+occasionally, almost invariably succeeded in stealing something. 
+Nor did the grocery store pay; the few half-pence which were left
+there occasionally in exchange for a glass of liquor were pocketed
+by Vantrasson, who spent them at some neighboring establishment;
+for it is a well-known fact that the wine a man drinks in his own
+shop is always bitter in flavor.  So, having no credit at the
+butcher's or the baker's, Madame Vantrasson was sometimes reduced
+to living for days together upon the contents of the shop--mouldy
+figs or dry raisins--which she washed down with torrents of
+ratafia, her only consolation here below.
+
+But this was not a satisfying diet, as she was forced to confess;
+so she decided to find some work, that would furnish her with food
+and a little money, which she vowed she would never allow her
+worthy husband to see.
+
+"What would you charge per month?" inquired Pascal.
+
+She seemed to reflect, and after a great deal of counting on her
+fingers, she finally declared that she would be content with
+breakfast and fifteen francs a month, on condition she was allowed
+to do the marketing.  The first question of French cooks, on
+presenting themselves for a situation, is almost invariably,
+"Shall I do the marketing?" which of course means, "Shall I have
+any opportunities for stealing?" Everybody knows this, and nobody
+is astonished at it.
+
+"I shall do the marketing myself," declared Madame Ferailleur,
+boldly.
+
+"Then I shall want thirty francs a month," replied Madame
+Vantrasson, promptly.
+
+Pascal and his mother exchanged glances.  They were both
+unfavorably impressed by this woman, and were equally determined
+to rid themselves of her, which it was easy enough to do.  "Too
+dear!" said Madame Ferailleur; "I have never given over fifteen
+francs."
+
+But Madame Vantrasson was not the woman to be easily discouraged,
+especially as she knew that if she failed to obtain this
+situation, she might have considerable difficulty in finding
+another one.  She could only hope to obtain employment from
+strangers and newcomers, who were ignorant of the reputation of
+the model lodging-house.  So in view of softening the hearts of
+Pascal and his mother, she began to relate the history of her
+life, skilfully mingling the false with the true, and representing
+herself as an unfortunate victim of circumstances, and the inhuman
+cruelty of relatives.  For she belonged, like her husband, to a
+very respectable family, as the Maumejans might easily ascertain
+by inquiry.  Vantrasson's sister was the wife of a man named
+Greloux, who had once been a bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis,
+but who had now retired from business with a competency.  "Why had
+this Greloux refused to save them from bankruptcy? Because one
+could never hope for a favor from relatives," she groaned; "they
+are jealous if you succeed; and if you are unfortunate, they cast
+you off."
+
+However, these doleful complaints, far from rendering Madame
+Vantrasson interesting, imparted a deceitful and most disagreeable
+expression to her countenance.  "I told you that I could only give
+fifteen francs," interrupted Madame Ferailleur--"take it or leave
+it."
+
+Madame Vantrasson protested.  She expressed her willingness to
+deduct five francs from the sum she had named, but more--it was
+impossible! Would they haggle over ten francs to secure such a
+treasure as herself, an honest, settled woman, who was entirely
+devoted to her employers?" Besides, I have been a grand cook in my
+time," she added, "and I have not lost all my skill.  Monsieur and
+madame would be delighted with my cooking, for I have seen more
+than one fine gentleman smack his lips over my sauces when was in
+the employment of the Count de Chalusse."
+
+Pascal and his mother could not repress a start on hearing this
+name; but it was in a tone of well-assumed indifference that
+Madame Ferailleur repeated, "M. de Chalusse?"
+
+"Yes, madame--a count--and so rich that he didn't know how much he
+was worth.  If he were still alive I shouldn't be compelled to go
+out to service again.  But he's dead and he's to be buried this
+very day." And with an air of profound secrecy, she added: "On
+going yesterday to the Hotel de Chalusse to ask for a little help,
+I heard of the great misfortune.  Vantrasson, my husband,
+accompanied me, and while we were talking with the concierge, a
+young woman passed through the hall, and he recognized her as a
+person who some time ago was--well--no better than she should be. 
+Now, however, she's a young lady as lofty as the clouds, and the
+deceased count has been passing her off as his daughter.  Ah! this
+is a strange world."
+
+Pascal had become whiter than the ceiling.  His eyes blazed; and
+Madame Ferailleur trembled.  "Very well," she said, "I will give
+you twenty-five francs--but on condition you come without
+complaining if I sometimes require your services of an evening. 
+On these occasions I will give you your dinner." And taking five
+francs from her pocket she placed them in Madame Vantrasson's
+hand, adding: ' Here is your earnest money."
+
+The other quickly pocketed the coin, not a little surprised by
+this sudden decision which she had scarcely hoped for, and which
+she by no means understood.  Still she was so delighted with this
+denouement that she expressed her willingness to enter upon her
+duties at once; and to get rid of her Madame Ferailleur was
+obliged to send her out to purchase the necessary supplies for
+breakfast.  Then, as soon as she was alone with her son, she
+turned to him and asked: "Well, Pascal?"
+
+But the wretched man seemed turned to stone, and seeing that he
+neither spoke nor moved, she continued in a severe tone: "Is this
+the way you keep your resolutions and your oaths! You express your
+intention of accomplishing a task which requires inexhaustible
+patience and dissimulation, and at the very first unforeseen
+circumstance your coolness deserts you, and you lose your head
+completely.  If it had not been for me you would have betrayed
+yourself in that woman's presence.  You must renounce your
+revenge, and tamely submit to be conquered by the Marquis de
+Valorsay if your face is to be an open book in which any one may
+read your secret plans and thoughts."
+
+Pascal shook his head dejectedly.  "Didn't you hear, mother?" he
+faltered.
+
+"Hear what?"
+
+"What that vile woman said? This young lady whom she spoke of,
+whom her husband recognized, can be none other than Marguerite."
+
+"I am sure of it."
+
+He recoiled in horror.  "You are sure of it!" he repeated; "and
+you can tell me this unmoved--coldly, as if it were a natural, a
+possible thing.  Didn't you understand the shameful meaning of her
+insinuations? Didn't you see her hypocritical smile and the malice
+gleaming in her eyes?" He pressed his hands to his burning brow,
+and groaned "And I did not crush the infamous wretch! I did not
+fell her to the ground!"
+
+Ah! if she had obeyed the impulse of her heart.  Madame Ferailleur
+would have thrown her arms round her son's neck, and have mingled
+her tears with his, but reason prevailed.  The worthy woman's
+heart was pervaded with that lofty sentiment of duty which
+sustains the humble heroines of the fireside, and lends them even
+more courage than the reckless adventurers whose names are
+recorded by history could boast of.  She felt that Pascal must not
+be consoled, but spurred on to fresh efforts; and so mustering all
+her courage, she said: "Are you acquainted with Mademoiselle
+Marguerite's past life? No.  You only know that hers has been a
+life of great vicissitudes--and so it is not strange that she
+should be slandered."
+
+"In that case, mother," said Pascal, "you were wrong to interrupt
+Madame Vantrasson.  She would probably have told us many things."
+
+"I interrupted her, it is true, and sent her away--and you know
+why.  But she is in our service now; and when you are calm, when
+you have regained your senses, nothing will prevent you from
+questioning her.  It may be useful for you to know who this man
+Vantrasson is, and how and where he met Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+Shame, sorrow, and rage, brought tears to Pascal's eyes.  "My
+God!" he exclaimed, "to be reduced to the unspeakable misery of
+hearing my mother doubt Marguerite!" He did not doubt her.  HE
+could have listened to the most infamous accusations against her
+without feeling a single doubt.  However, Madame Ferailleur had
+sufficient self-control to shrug her shoulders.  "Ah, well!
+silence this slander," she exclaimed. "I wish for nothing better;
+but don't forget that we have ourselves to rehabilitate.  To crush
+your enemies will be far more profitable to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite than vain threats and weak lamentations.  It seemed to
+me that you had sworn to act, not to complain."
+
+This ironical thrust touched Pascal's sensitive mind to the quick;
+he rose at once to his feet, and coldly said, "That's true.  I
+thank you for having recalled me to myself."
+
+She made no rejoinder, but mentally thanked God.  She had read her
+son's heart, and perceiving his hesitation and weakness she had
+supplied the stimulus he needed.  Now she saw him as she wished to
+see him.  Now he was ready to reproach himself for his lack of
+courage and his weakness in displaying his feelings.  And as a
+test of his powers of endurance, he decided not to question Madame
+Vantrasson till four or five days had elapsed.  If her suspicions
+had been aroused, this delay would suffice to dispel them.
+
+He said but little during breakfast; for he was now eager to
+commence the struggle.  He longed to act, and yet he scarcely knew
+how to begin the campaign.  First of all, he must study the
+enemy's position--gain some knowledge of the men he had to deal
+with, find out exactly who the Marquis de Valorsay and the
+Viscount de Coralth were.  Where could he obtain information
+respecting these two men? Should he be compelled to follow them
+and to gather up here and there such scraps of intelligence as
+came in his way? This method of proceeding would be slow and
+inconvenient in the extreme.  He was revolving the subject in his
+mind when he suddenly remembered the man who, on the morning that
+followed the scene at Madame d'Argeles's house, had come to him in
+the Rue d'Ulm to give him a proof of his confidence.  He
+remembered that this strange man had said: "If you ever need a
+helping hand, come to me." And at the recollection he made up his
+mind.  "I am going to Baron Trigault's," he remarked to his
+mother; "if my presentiments don't deceive me, he will be of
+service to us."
+
+In less than half an hour he was on his way.  He had dressed
+himself in the oldest clothes he possessed; and this, with the
+change he had made by cutting off his hair and beard, had so
+altered his appearance that it was necessary to look at him
+several times, and most attentively, to recognize him.  The
+visiting cards which he carried in his pocket bore the
+inscription: "P. Maumejan, Business Agent, Route de la Revolte."
+His knowledge of Parisian life had induced him to choose the same
+profession as M. Fortunat followed--a profession which opens
+almost every door.  "I will enter the nearest cafe and ask for a
+directory," he said to himself.  "I shall certainly find Baron
+Trigault's address in it."
+
+The baron lived in the Rue de la Ville-l'Eveque.  His mansion was
+one of the largest and most magnificent in the opulent district of
+the Madeleine, and its aspect was perfectly in keeping with its
+owner's character as an expert financier, and a shrewd
+manufacturer, the possessor of valuable mines.  The marvellous
+luxury so surprised Pascal, that he asked himself how the owner of
+this princely abode could find any pleasure at the gaming table of
+the Hotel d'Argeles.  Five or six footmen were lounging about the
+courtyard when he entered it.  He walked straight up to one of
+them, and with his hat in his hand, asked: "Baron Trigault, if you
+please?"
+
+If he had asked for the Grand Turk the valet would not have looked
+at him with greater astonishment.  His surprise, indeed, seemed so
+profound that Pascal feared he had made some mistake and added:
+"Doesn't he live here?"
+
+The servant laughed heartily.  "This is certainly his house," he
+replied, "and strange to say, by some fortunate chance, he's
+here."
+
+"I wish to speak with him on business."
+
+The servant called one of his colleagues.  "Eh! Florestan--is the
+baron receiving?"
+
+"The baroness hasn't forbidden it."
+
+This seemed to satisfy the footman; for, turning to Pascal he
+said: "In that case, you can follow me."
+
+
+
+II.
+
+
+The sumptuous interior of the Trigault mansion was on a par with
+its external magnificence.  Even the entrance bespoke the lavish
+millionaire, eager to conquer difficulties, jealous of achieving
+the impossible, and never haggling when his fancies were
+concerned.  The spacious hall, paved with costly mosaics, had been
+transformed into a conservatory full of flowers, which were
+renewed every morning.  Rare plants climbed the walls up gilded
+trellis work, or hung from the ceiling in vases of rare old china,
+while from among the depths of verdure peered forth exquisite
+statues, the work of sculptors of renown.  On a rustic bench sat a
+couple of tall footmen, as bright in their gorgeous liveries as
+gold coins fresh from the mint; still, despite their splendor,
+they were stretching and yawning to such a degree, that it seemed
+as if they would ultimately dislocate their jaws and arms.
+
+"Tell me," inquired the servant who was escorting Pascal, "can any
+one speak to the baron?"
+
+"Why?"
+
+"This gentleman has something to say to him."
+
+The two valets eyed the unknown visitor, plainly considering him
+to be one of those persons who have no existence for the menials
+of fashionable establishments, and finally burst into a hearty
+laugh.  "Upon my word!" exclaimed the eldest, "he's just in time. 
+Announce him, and madame will be greatly obliged to you.  She and
+monsieur have been quarrelling for a good half-hour.  And,
+heavenly powers, isn't he tantalizing!"
+
+The most intense curiosity gleamed in the eyes of Pascal's
+conductor, and with an airy of secrecy, he asked: "What is the
+cause of the rumpus? That Fernand, no doubt--or some one else?"
+
+"No; this morning it's about M. Van Klopen."
+
+"Madame's dressmaker?"
+
+"The same.  Monsieur and madame were breakfasting together--a most
+unusual thing--when M. Van Klopen made his appearance.  I thought
+to myself, when I admitted him: 'Look out for storms!' I scented
+one in the air, and in fact the dressmaker hadn't been in the room
+five minutes before we heard the baron's voice rising higher and
+higher.  I said to myself: 'Whew! the mantua-maker is presenting
+his bill!' Madame cried and went on like mad; but, pshaw! when the
+master really begins, there's no one like him.  There isn't a cab-
+driver in Paris who's his equal for swearing."
+
+"And M. Van Klopen?"
+
+"Oh, he's used to such scenes! When gentlemen abuse him he does
+the same as dogs do when they come up out of the water; he just
+shakes his head and troubles himself no more about it.  He has
+decidedly the best of the row.  He has furnished the goods, and
+he'll have to be paid sooner or later----"
+
+"What! hasn't he been paid then?"
+
+"I don't know; he's still here."
+
+A terrible crash of breaking china interrupted this edifying
+conversation.  "There!" exclaimed one of the footmen, "that's
+monsieur; he has smashed two or three hundred francs' worth of
+dishes.  He MUST be rich to pay such a price for his angry fits."
+
+"Well," observed the other, "if I were in monsieur's place I
+should be angry too.  Would you let your wife have her dresses
+fitted on by a man? I says that it's indecent.  I'm only a
+servant, but----"
+
+"Nonsense, it's the fashion.  Besides, monsieur does not care
+about that.  A man who----"
+
+He stopped short; in fact, the others had motioned him to be
+silent.  The baron was surrounded by exceptional servants, and the
+presence of a stranger acted as a restraint upon them.  For this
+reason, one of them, after asking Pascal for his card, opened a
+door and ushered him into a small room, saying: "I will go and
+inform the baron.  Please wait here."
+
+"Here," as he called it, was a sort of smoking-room hung with
+cashmere of fantastic design and gorgeous hues, and encircled by a
+low, cushioned divan, covered with the same material.  A profusion
+of rare and costly objects was to be seen on all sides, armor,
+statuary, pictures, and richly ornamented weapons.  But Pascal,
+already amazed by the conversation of the servants, did not think
+of examining these objects of virtu.  Through a partially open
+doorway, directly opposite the one he had entered by, came the
+sound of loud voices in excited conversation.  Baron Trigault, the
+baroness, and the famous Van Klopen were evidently in the
+adjoining room.  It was a woman, the baroness, who was speaking,
+and the quivering of her clear and somewhat shrill voice betrayed
+a violent irritation, which was only restrained with the greatest
+difficulty.  "It is hard for the wife of one of the richest men in
+Paris to see a bill for absolute necessities disputed in this
+style," she was saying.
+
+A man's voice, with a strong Teutonic accent, the voice of Van
+Klopen, the Hollander, caught up the refrain.  "Yes, strict
+necessities, one can swear to that.  And if, before flying into a
+passion, Monsieur le Baron had taken the trouble to glance over my
+little bill, he would have seen----"
+
+"No more! You bore me to death.  Besides I haven't time to listen
+to your nonsense; they are waiting for me to play a game of whist
+at the club."
+
+This time it was the master of the house, Baron Trigault, who
+spoke, and Pascal recognized his voice instantly.
+
+"If monsieur would only allow me to read the items.  It will take
+but a moment," rejoined Van Klopen.  And as if he had construed
+the oath that answered him as an exclamation of assent, he began:
+"In June, a Hungarian costume with jacket and sash, two train
+dresses with upper skirts and trimmings of lace, a Medicis
+polonaise, a jockey costume, a walking costume, a riding-habit,
+two morning-dresses, a Velleda costume, an evening dress."
+
+"I was obliged to attend the races very frequently during the
+month of June," remarked the baroness.
+
+But the illustrious adorner of female loveliness had already
+resumed his reading.  "In July we have: two morning-jackets, one
+promenade costume, one sailor suit, one Watteau shepherdess
+costume, one ordinary bathing-suit, with material for parasol and
+shoes to match, one Pompadour bathing-suit, one dressing-gown, one
+close-fitting Medicis mantle, two opera cloaks----"
+
+"And I was certainly not the most elegantly attired of the ladies
+at Trouville, where I spent the month of July," interrupted the
+baroness.
+
+"There are but few entries in the month of August," continued Van
+Klopen.  "We have: a morning-dress, a travelling-dress, with
+trimmings----" And he went on and on, gasping for breath, rattling
+off the ridiculous names which he gave to his "creations," and
+interrupted every now and then by the blow of a clinched fist on
+the table, or by a savage oath.
+
+Pascal stood in the smoking-room, motionless with astonishment. 
+He did not know what surprised him the most, Van Klopen's
+impudence in daring to read such a bill, the foolishness of the
+woman who had ordered all these things, or the patience of the
+husband who was undoubtedly going to pay for them.  At last, after
+what seemed an interminable enumeration, Van Klopen exclaimed:
+"And that's all!"
+
+"Yes, that's all," repeated the baroness, like an echo.
+
+"That's all!" exclaimed the baron--"that's all! That is to say, in
+four months, at least seven hundred yards of silk, velvet, satin,
+and muslin, have been put on this woman's back!"
+
+"The dresses of the present day require a great deal of material. 
+Monsieur le Baron will understand that flounces, puffs, and
+ruches----"
+
+"Naturally! Total, twenty-seven thousand francs!"
+
+"Excuse me! Twenty-seven thousand nine hundred and thirty-three
+francs, ninety centimes."
+
+"Call it twenty-eight thousand francs then.  Ah, well, M. Van
+Klopen, if you are ever paid for this rubbish it won't be by me."
+
+If Van Klopen was expecting this denouement, Pascal wasn't; in
+fact, he was so startled, that an exclamation escaped him which
+would have betrayed his presence under almost any other
+circumstances.  What amazed him most was the baron's perfect
+calmness, following, as it did, such a fit of furious passion,
+violent enough even to be heard in the vestibule.  "Either he has
+extraordinary control over himself or this scene conceals some
+mystery," thought Pascal.
+
+Meanwhile, the man-milliner continued to urge his claims--but the
+baron, instead of replying, only whistled; and wounded by this
+breach of good manners, Van Klopen at last exclaimed: "I have had
+dealings with all the distinguished men in Europe, and never
+before did one of them refuse to pay me for his wife's toilettes."
+
+"Very well--I don't pay for them--there's the difference.  Do you
+suppose that I, Baron Trigault, that I've worked like a negro for
+twenty years merely for the purpose of aiding your charming and 
+useful branch of industry? Gather up your papers, Mr. Ladies'
+Tailor.  There may be husbands who believe themselves responsible
+for their wives' follies--it's quite possible there are--but I'm
+not made of that kind of stuff.  I allow Madame Trigault eight
+thousand francs a month for her toilette--that is sufficient--and
+it is a matter for you and her to arrange together.  What did I
+tell you last year when I paid a bill of forty thousand francs?
+That I would not be responsible for any more of my wife's debts. 
+And I not only said it, I formally notified you through my private
+secretary."
+
+"I remember, indeed----"
+
+"Then why do you come to me with your bill? It is with my wife
+that you have opened an account.  Apply to her, and leave me in
+peace."
+
+"Madame promised me----"
+
+"Teach her to keep her promises."
+
+"It costs a great deal to retain one's position as a leader of
+fashion; and many of the most distinguished ladies are obliged to
+run into debt," urged Van Klopen.
+
+"That's their business.  But my wife is not a fine lady.  She is
+simply Madame Trigault, a baroness, thanks to her husband's gold
+and the condescension of a worthy German prince, who was in want
+of money.  SHE is not a person of consequence--she has no rank to
+keep up."
+
+The baroness must have attached immense importance to the
+satisfying of Van Klopen's demands, for concealing the anger this
+humiliating scene undoubtedly caused her, she condescended to try
+and explain, and even to entreat.  "I have been a little
+extravagant, perhaps," she said; "but I will be more prudent in
+future.  Pay, monsieur--pay just once more."
+
+"No!"
+
+"If not for my sake, for your own."
+
+"Not a farthing."
+
+By the baron's tone, Pascal realized that his wife would never
+shake his fixed determination.  Such must also have been the
+opinion of the illustrious ruler of fashion, for he returned to
+the charge with an argument he had held in reserve.  "If this is
+the case, I shall, to my great regret, be obliged to fail in the
+respect I owe to Monsieur le Baron, and to place this bill in the
+hands of a solicitor."
+
+"Send him along--send him along."
+
+"I cannot believe that monsieur wishes a law-suit."
+
+"In that you are greatly mistaken.  Nothing would please me
+better.  It would at last give me an opportunity to say what I
+think about your dealings.  Do you think that wives are to turn
+their husbands into machines for supplying money? You draw the
+bow-string too tightly, my dear fellow--it will break.  I'll
+proclaim on the house-top what others dare not say, and we'll see
+if I don't succeed in organizing a little crusade against you."
+And animated by the sound of his own words, his anger came back to
+him, and in a louder and ever louder voice he continued: "Ah! you
+prate of the scandal that would be created by my resistance to
+your demands.  That's your system; but, with me, it won't succeed. 
+You threaten me with a law-suit; very good.  I'll take it upon
+myself to enlighten Paris, for I know your secrets, Mr.
+Dressmaker.  I know the goings on in your establishment.  It isn't
+always to talk about dress that ladies stop at your place on
+returning from the Bois.  You sell silks and satins no doubt; but
+you sell Madeira, and excellent cigarettes as well, and there are
+some who don't walk very straight on leaving your establishment,
+but smell suspiciously of tobacco and absinthe.  Oh, yes, let us
+go to law, by all means! I shall have an advocate who will know
+how to explain the parts your customers pay, and who will reveal
+how, with your assistance, they obtain money from other sources
+than their husband's cash-box."
+
+When M. Van Klopen was addressed in this style, he was not at all
+pleased.  "And I!" he exclaimed, "I will tell people that Baron
+Trigault, after losing all his money at play, repays his creditors
+with curses."
+
+The noise of an overturned chair told Pascal that the baron had
+sprung up in a furious passion "You may say what you like, you
+rascally fool! but not in my house," he shouted.  "Leave--leave,
+or I will ring----"
+
+"Monsieur----"
+
+"Leave, leave, I tell you, or I sha'n't have the patience to wait
+for a servant!"
+
+He must have joined action to word, and have seized Van Klopen by
+the collar to thrust him into the hall, for Pascal heard a sound
+of scuffling, a series of oaths worthy of a coal-heaver, two or
+three frightened cries from the baroness, and several guttural
+exclamations in German.  Then a door closed with such violence
+that the whole house shook, and a magnificent clock, fixed to the
+wall of the smoking-room, fell on to the floor.
+
+If Pascal had not heard this scene, he would have deemed it
+incredible.  How could one suppose that a creditor would leave
+this princely mansion with his bill unpaid? But more and more
+clearly he understood that there must be some greater cause of
+difference between husband and wife than this bill of twenty-eight
+thousand francs.  For what was this amount to a confirmed gambler
+who, without as much as a frown, gained or lost a fortune every
+evening of his life.  Evidently there was some skeleton in this
+household--one of those terrible secrets which make a man and his
+wife enemies, and all the more bitter enemies as they are bound
+together by a chain which it is impossible to break.  And
+undoubtedly, a good many of the insults which the baron had heaped
+upon Van Klopen must have been intended for the baroness.  These
+thoughts darted through Pascal's mind with the rapidity of
+lightning, and showed him the horrible position in which he was
+placed.  The baron, who had been so favorably disposed toward him,
+and from whom he was expecting a great service, would undoubtedly
+hate him, undoubtedly become his enemy, when he learned that he
+had been a listener, although an involuntary one, to this
+conversation with Van Klopen.  How did it happen that he had been
+placed in this dangerous position? What had become of the footman
+who had taken his card? These were questions which he was unable
+to answer.  And what was he to do? If he could have retired
+noiselessly, if he could have reached the courtyard and have made
+his escape without being observed he would not have hesitated. 
+But was this plan practicable? And would not his card betray him?
+Would it not be discovered sooner or later that he had been in the
+smoking-room while M. Van Klopen was in the dining-room? In any
+case, delicacy of feeling as well as his own interest forbade him
+to remain any longer a listener to the private conversation of the
+baron and his wife.
+
+He therefore noisily moved a chair, and coughed in that affected
+style which means in every country: "Take care--I'm here!" But he
+did not succeed in attracting attention.  And yet the silence was
+profound; he could distinctly hear the creaking of the baron's
+boots, as he paced to and fro, and the sound of fingers nervously
+beating a tattoo on the table.  If he desired to avoid hearing the
+confidential conversation, which would no doubt ensue between the
+baron and his wife, there was but one course for him to pursue,
+and that was to reveal his presence at once.  He was about to do
+so, when some one opened a door which must have led from the hall
+into the dining-room.  He listened attentively, but only heard a
+few confused words, to which the baron replied: "Very well. 
+That's sufficient.  I will see him in a moment."
+
+Pascal breathed freely once more.  "They have just given him my
+card," he thought.  "I can remain now; he will come here in a
+moment."
+
+The baron must really have started to leave the room, for his wife
+exclaimed: "One word more: have you quite decided?"
+
+"Oh, fully!"
+
+"You are resolved to leave me exposed to the persecutions of my
+dressmaker?"
+
+"Van Klopen is too charming and polite to cause you the least
+worry."
+
+"You will brave the disgrace of a law-suit?"
+
+"Nonsense! You know very well that he won't bring any action
+against me--unfortunately.  And, besides, pray tell me where the
+disgrace would be? I have a foolish wife--is that my fault? I
+oppose her absurd extravagance--haven't I a right to do so? If all
+husbands were as courageous, we should soon close the
+establishments of these artful men, who minister to your vanity,
+and use you ladies as puppets, or living advertisements, to
+display the absurd fashions which enrich them."
+
+The baron took two or three more steps forward, as if about to
+leave the room, but his wife interposed: "The Baroness Trigault,
+whose husband has an income of seven or eight hundred thousand
+francs a year, can't go about clad like a simple woman of the
+middle classes."
+
+"I should see nothing so very improper in that."
+
+"Oh, I know.  Only your ideas don't coincide with mine.  I shall
+never consent to make myself ridiculous among the ladies of my
+set--among my friends."
+
+"It would indeed be a pity to arouse the disapproval of your
+friends."
+
+This sneering remark certainly irritated the baroness, for it was
+with the greatest vehemence that she replied: "All my friends are
+ladies of the highest rank in society--noble ladies!"
+
+The baron no doubt shrugged his shoulders, for in a tone of
+crushing irony and scorn, he exclaimed: "Noble ladies! whom do you
+call noble ladies, pray? The brainless fools who only think of
+displaying themselves and making themselves notorious?--the
+senseless idiots who pique themselves on surpassing lewd women in
+audacity, extravagance, and effrontery, who fleece their husbands
+as cleverly as courtesans fleece their lovers? Noble ladies! who
+drink, and smoke, and carouse, who attend masked balls, and talk
+slang! Noble ladies! the idiots who long for the applause of the
+crowd, and consider notoriety to be desirable and flattering.  A
+woman is only noble by her virtues--and the chief of all virtues,
+modesty, is entirely wanting in your illustrious friends----"
+
+"Monsieur," interrupted the baroness, in a voice husky with anger,
+"you forget yourself--you----"
+
+But the baron was well under way.  "If it is scandal that crowns
+one a great lady, you ARE one--and one of the greatest; for you
+are notorious--almost as notorious as Jenny Fancy.  Can't I learn
+from the newspapers all your sayings and gestures, your
+amusements, your occupations, and the toilettes you wear? It is
+impossible to read of a first performance at a theatre, or of a
+horse-race, without finding your name coupled with that of Jenny
+Fancy, or Cora Pearl, or Ninette Simplon.  I should be a very
+strange husband indeed, if I wasn't proud and delighted.  Ah! you
+are a treasure to the reporters.  On the day before yesterday the
+Baroness Trigault skated in the Bois.  Yesterday she was driving
+in her pony-carriage.  To-day she distinguished herself by her
+skill at pigeon-shooting.  To-morrow she will display herself half
+nude in some tableaux vivants.  On the day after to-morrow she
+will inaugurate a new style of hair-dressing, and take part in a
+comedy.  It is always the Baroness Trigault who is the observed of
+all observers at Vincennes.  The Baroness Trigault has lost five
+hundred louis in betting.  The Baroness Trigault uses her
+lorgnette with charming impertinence.  It is she who has declared
+it proper form to take a 'drop' on returning from the Bois.  No
+one is so famed for 'form,' as the baroness--and silk merchants
+have bestowed her name upon a color.  People rave of the Trigault
+blue--what glory! There are also costumes Trigault, for the witty,
+elegant baroness has a host of admirers who follow her everywhere,
+and loudly sing her praises.  This is what I, a plain, honest man,
+read every day in the newspapers.  The whole world not only knows
+how my wife dresses, but how she looks en dishabille, and how she
+is formed; folks are aware that she has an exquisite foot, a
+divinely-shaped leg, and a perfect hand.  No one is ignorant of
+the fact that my wife's shoulders are of dazzling whiteness, and
+that high on the left shoulder there is a most enticing little
+mole.  I had the satisfaction of reading this particular last
+evening.  It is charming, upon my word! and I am truly a fortunate
+man!"
+
+In the smoking-room, Pascal could hear the baroness angrily stamp
+her foot, as she exclaimed: "It is an outrageous insult--your
+journalists are most impertinent."
+
+"Why? Do they ever trouble honest women?"
+
+"They wouldn't trouble me if I had a husband who knew how to make
+them treat me with respect!"
+
+The baron laughed a strident, nervous laugh, which it was not
+pleasant to hear, and which revealed the fact that intense
+suffering was hidden beneath all this banter.  "Would you like me
+to fight a duel then? After twenty years has the idea of ridding
+yourself of me occurred to you again? I can scarcely believe it. 
+You know too well that you would receive none of my money, that I
+have guarded against that.  Besides, you would be inconsolable if
+the newspapers ceased talking about you for a single day.  Respect
+yourself, and you will be respected.  The publicity you complain
+of is the last anchor which prevents society from drifting one
+knows not where.  Those who would not listen to the warning voice
+of honor and conscience are restrained by the fear of a little
+paragraph which might disclose their shame.  Now that a woman no
+longer has a conscience, the newspapers act in place of it.  And I
+think it quite right, for it is our only hope of salvation."
+
+By the stir in the adjoining room, Pascal felt sure that the
+baroness had stationed herself before the door to prevent her
+husband from leaving her.  "Ah! well, monsieur," she exclaimed, "I
+declare to you that I must have Van Klopen's twenty-eight thousand
+francs before this evening.  I will have them, too; I am resolved
+to have them, and you will give them to me."
+
+"Oh!" thundered the baron, "you WILL have them--you will----" He
+paused, and then, after a moment's reflection, he said: "Very
+well.  So be it! I will give you this amount, but not just now. 
+Still if, as you say, it is absolutely necessary that you should
+have it to-day, there is a means of procuring it.  Pawn your
+diamonds for thirty thousand francs--I authorize you to do so; and
+I give you my word of honor that I will redeem them within a week. 
+Say, will you do this?"  And, as the baroness made no reply, he
+continued: "You don't answer! shall I tell you why? It is because
+your diamonds were long since sold and replaced by imitation ones;
+it is because you are head over heels in debt; it is because you
+have stooped so low as to borrow your maid's savings; it is
+because you already owe three thousand francs to one of my
+coachmen; it is because our steward lends you money at the rate of
+thirty or forty per cent."
+
+"It is false!"
+
+The baron sneered.  "You certainly must think me a much greater
+fool than I really am!" he replied.  "I'm not often at home, it's
+true--the sight of you exasperates me; but I know what's going on. 
+You believe me your dupe, but you are altogether mistaken.  It is
+not twenty-seven thousand francs you owe Van Klopen, but fifty or
+sixty thousand.  However, he is careful not to demand payment.  If
+he brought me a bill this morning, it was only because you had
+begged him to do so, and because it had been agreed he should give
+you the money back if I paid him.  In short, if you require
+twenty-eight thousand francs before to-night, it is because M.
+Fernand de Coralth has demanded that sum, and because you have
+promised to give it to him!"
+
+Leaning against the wall of the smoking-room, speechless and
+motionless, holding his breath, with his hands pressed upon his
+heart, as if to stop its throbbings, Pascal Ferailleur listened. 
+He no longer thought of flying; he no longer thought of
+reproaching himself for his enforced indiscretion.  He had lost
+all consciousness of his position.  The name of the Viscount de
+Coralth, thus mentioned in the course of this frightful scene,
+came as a revelation to him.  He now understood the meaning of the
+baron's conduct.  His visit to the Rue d'Ulm, and his promises of
+help were all explained.  "My mother was right," he thought; "the
+baron hates that miserable viscount mortally.  He will do all in
+his power to assist me."
+
+Meanwhile, the baroness energetically denied her husband's
+charges.  She swore that she did not know what he meant.  What had
+M. de Coralth to do with all this? She commanded her husband to
+speak more plainly--to explain his odious insinuations.
+
+He allowed her to speak for a moment, and then suddenly, in a
+harsh, sarcastic voice, he interrupted her by saying: "Oh! enough!
+No more hypocrisy! Why do you try to defend yourself? What matters
+one crime more? I know only too well that what I say is true; and
+if you desire proofs, they shall be in your hands in less than
+half an hour.  It is a long time since I was blind--full twenty
+years! Nothing concerning you has escaped my knowledge and
+observation since the cursed day when I discovered the depths of
+your disgrace and infamy--since the terrible evening when I heard
+you plan to murder me in cold blood.  You had grown accustomed to
+freedom of action; while I, who had gone off with the first gold-
+seekers, was braving a thousand dangers in California, so as to
+win wealth and luxury for you more quickly.  Fool that I was! No
+task seemed too hard or too distasteful when I thought of you--and
+I was always thinking of you.  My mind was at peace--I had perfect
+faith in you.  We had a daughter; and if a fear or a doubt entered
+my mind, I told myself that the sight of her cradle would drive
+all evil thoughts from your heart.  The adultery of a childless
+wife may be forgiven or explained; but that of a mother, never!
+Fool! idiot! that I was! With what joyous pride, on my return
+after an absence of eighteen months, I showed you the treasures I
+had brought back with me! I had two hundred thousand francs! I
+said to you as I embraced you: 'It is yours, my well-beloved, the
+source of all my happiness!' But you did not care for me--I
+wearied you! You loved another! And while you were deceiving me
+with your caresses, you were, with fiendish skill, preparing a
+conspiracy which, if it had succeeded, would have resulted in my
+death! I should consider myself amply revenged if I could make you
+suffer for a single day all the torments that I endured for long
+months.  For this was not all! You had not even the excuse, if
+excuse it be, of a powerful, all-absorbing passion.  Convinced of
+your treachery, I resolved to ascertain everything, and I
+discovered that in my absence you had become a mother.  Why didn't
+I kill you? How did I have the courage to remain silent and
+conceal what I knew? Ah! it was because, by watching you, I hoped
+to discover the cursed bastard and your accomplice.  It was
+because I dreamed of a vengeance as terrible as the offence.  I
+said to myself that the day would come when, at any risk, you
+would try to see your child again, to embrace her, and provide for
+her future.  Fool! fool that I was! You had already forgotten her!
+When you received news of my intended return, she was sent to some
+foundling asylum, or left to die upon some door-step.  Have you
+ever thought of her? Have you ever asked what has become of her?
+ever asked yourself if she had needed bread while you have been
+living in almost regal luxury? ever asked yourself into what
+depths of vice she may have fallen?"
+
+"Always the same ridiculous accusation!" exclaimed the baroness.
+
+"Yes, always!"
+
+"You must know, however, that this story of a child is only a vile
+slander.  I told you so when you spoke of it to me a dozen years
+afterward.  I have repeated it a thousand times since."
+
+The baron uttered a sigh that was very like a sob, and without
+paying any heed to his wife's words, he continued: "If I consented
+to allow you to remain under my roof, it was only for the sake of
+our daughter.  I trembled lest the scandal of a separation should
+fall upon her.  But it was useless suffering on my part.  She was
+as surely lost as you yourself were; and it was your work, too!"
+
+"What! you blame me for that?"
+
+"Whom ought I to blame, then? Who took her to balls, and theatres
+and races--to every place where a young girl ought NOT to be
+taken? Who initiated her into what you call high life? and who
+used her as a discreet and easy chaperon? Who married her to a
+wretch who is a disgrace to the title he bears, and who has
+completed the work of demoralization you began? And what is your
+daughter to-day? Her extravagance has made her notorious even
+among the shameless women who pretend to be leaders of society. 
+She is scarcely twenty-two, and there is not a single prejudice
+left for her to brave! Her husband is the companion of actresses
+and courtesans; her own companions are no better--and in less than
+two years the million of francs which I bestowed on her as a dowry
+has been squandered, recklessly squandered--for there isn't a
+penny of it left.  And, at this very hour, my daughter and my son-
+in-law are plotting to extort money from me.  On the day before
+yesterday--listen carefully to this--my son-in-law came to ask me
+for a hundred thousand francs, and when I refused them, he
+threatened if I did not give them to him that he would publish
+some letters written by my daughter--by his wife--to some low
+scoundrel.  I was horrified and gave him what he asked.  But that
+same evening I learned that the husband and wife, my daughter and
+my son-in-law, had concocted this vile conspiracy together.  Yes,
+I have positive proofs of it.  Leaving here, and not wishing to
+return home that day, he telegraphed the good news to his wife. 
+But in his delight he made a mistake in the address, and the
+telegram was brought here.  I opened it, and read: 'Papa has
+fallen into the trap, my darling.  I beat my drum, and he
+surrendered at once.' Yes, that is what he dared to write, and
+sign with his own name, and then send to his wife--my daughter!"
+
+Pascal was absolutely terrified.  He wondered if he were not the
+victim of some absurd nightmare--if his senses were not playing
+him false.  He had little conception of the terrible dramas which
+are constantly enacted in these superb mansions, so admired and
+envied by the passing crowd.  He thought that the baroness would
+be crushed--that she would fall on her knees before her husband. 
+What a mistake! The tone of her voice told him that, instead of
+yielding, she was only bent on retaliation.
+
+"Does your son-in-law do anything worse than you?" she exclaimed. 
+"How dare you censure him--you who drag your name through all the
+gambling dens of Europe?"
+
+"Wretch!" interrupted the baron, "wretch!" But quickly mastering
+himself, he remarked: "Yes, it's true that I gamble.  People say,
+'That great Baron Trigault is never without cards in his hands!'
+But you know very well that I really hold gambling in horror--that
+I loathe it.  But when I play, I sometimes forget--for I must
+forget.  I tried drink, but it wouldn't drown thought, so I had
+recourse to cards; and when the stakes are large, and my fortune
+is imperilled, I sometimes lose consciousness of my misery!"
+
+The baroness gave vent to a cold, sneering laugh, and, in a tone
+of mocking commiseration, she said: "Poor baron! It is no doubt in
+the hope of forgetting your sorrows that you spend all your time--
+when you are not gambling--with a woman named Lia d'Argeles. 
+She's rather pretty.  I have seen her several times in the Bois----"
+
+"Be silent!" exclaimed the baron, "be silent! Don't insult an
+unfortunate woman who is a thousand times better than yourself."
+And, feeling that he could endure no more--that he could no longer
+restrain his passion, he cried: "Out of my sight! Go! or I sha'n't
+be responsible for my acts!"
+
+Pascal heard a chair move, the floor creak, and a moment afterward
+a lady passed quickly through the smoking-room.  How was it that
+she did not perceive him? No doubt, because she was greatly
+agitated, in spite of her bravado.  And, besides, he was standing
+a little back in the shade.  But he saw her, and his brain reeled. 
+"Good Lord! what a likeness!" he murmured.
+
+
+
+III.
+
+
+It was as if he had seen an apparition, and he was vainly striving
+to drive away a terrible, mysterious fear, when a heavy footfall
+made the floor of the dining-room creak anew.  The noise restored
+him to consciousness of his position.  "It is the baron!" he
+thought; "he is coming this way! If he finds me here I am lost; he
+will never consent to help me.  A man would never forgive another
+man for hearing what I have just heard."
+
+Why should he not try to make his escape? The card, bearing the
+name of Maumejan, would be no proof of his visit.  He could see
+the baron somewhere else some other day--elsewhere than at his own
+house, so that he need not fear the recognition of the servants. 
+These thoughts flashed through his mind, and he was about to fly,
+when a harsh cry held him spell-bound.  Baron Trigault was
+standing on the threshold.  His emotion, as is almost always the
+case with corpulent people, was evinced by a frightful distortion
+of his features.  His face was transformed, his lips had become
+perfectly white, and his eyes seemed to be starting from their
+sockets.  "How came you here?" he asked, in a husky voice.
+
+"Your servants ushered me into this room."
+
+"Who are you?"
+
+"What! monsieur, don't you recognize me?" rejoined Pascal, who in
+his agitation forgot that the baron had seen him only twice
+before.  He forgot the absence of his beard, his almost ragged
+clothing, and all the precautions he had taken to render
+recognition impossible.
+
+"I have never met any person named Maumejan," said the baron.
+
+"Ah! monsieur, that's not my name.  Have you forgotten the
+innocent man who was caught in that infamous snare set for him by
+the Viscount de Coralth?"
+
+"Yes, yes," replied the baron, "I remember you now." And then
+recollecting the terrible scene that had just taken place in the
+adjoining room: "How long have you been here?" he asked.
+
+Should Pascal tell a falsehood, or confess the truth? He
+hesitated, but his hesitation lasted scarcely the tenth part of a
+second.  "I have been here about half an hour," he replied.
+
+The baron's livid cheeks suddenly became purple, his eyes
+glittered, and it seemed by his threatening gesture as if he were
+strongly tempted to murder this man, who had discovered the
+terrible, disgraceful secrets of his domestic life.  But it was a
+mere flash of energy.  The terrible ordeal which he had just
+passed through had exhausted him mentally and physically, and it
+was in a faltering voice that he resumed: "Then you have not lost
+a word--a word of what was said in the other room?"
+
+"Not a word."
+
+The baron sank on to the divan.  "So the knowledge of my disgrace
+is no longer confined to myself!" he exclaimed.  "A stranger's eye
+has penetrated the depths of misery I have fallen into! The secret
+of my wretchedness and shame is mine no longer!"
+
+"Oh, monsieur, monsieur!" interrupted Pascal.  "Before I recross
+the threshold of your home, all shall have been forgotten.  I
+swear it by all that is most sacred!"
+
+He had raised his hand as if to take a solemn oath, when the baron
+caught hold of it, and, pressing it with sorrowful gratitude,
+exclaimed: "I believe you! You are a man of honor--I only needed
+to see your home to be convinced of that.  You will not laugh at
+my misfortunes or my misery!" He must have been suffering
+frightfully, for big tears rolled slowly down his cheeks.  "What
+have I done, my God! that I should be so cruelly punished?" he
+continued.  "I have always been generous and charitable, and ready
+to help all who applied to me.  I am utterly alone! I have a wife
+and a daughter--but they hate me.  They long for my death, which
+would give them possession of my wealth.  What torture! For months
+together I dared not eat a morsel of food, either in my own house,
+or in the house of my son-in-law.  I feared poison; and I never
+partook of a dish until I had seen my daughter or my wife do so. 
+To prevent a crime, I was obliged to resort to the strangest
+expedients.  I made a will, and left my property in such a way
+that if I die, my family will not receive one penny.  So, they now
+have an interest in prolonging my life." As he spoke he sprang up
+with an almost frenzied air, and, seizing Pascal by the arm, again
+continued.  "Nor is this all! This woman--my wife--you know--you
+have heard the extent of her shame and degradation.  Ah, well! I--
+love her!"
+
+Pascal recoiled with an exclamation of mingled horror and
+consternation.
+
+"This amazes you, eh?" rejoined the baron.  "It is indeed
+incomprehensible, monstrous--but it is the truth.  It is to
+gratify her desire for luxury that I have toiled to amass
+millions.  If I purchased a title, which is absurd and ridiculous,
+it was only because I wished to satisfy her vanity.  Do what she
+may, I can only see in her the chaste and beautiful wife of our
+early married life.  It is cowardly, absurd, ridiculous--I realize
+it; but my love is stronger than my reason or my will.  I love her
+madly, passionately; I cannot tear her from my heart!"
+
+So speaking, he sank sobbing on to the divan again.  Was this,
+indeed, the frivolous and jovial Baron Trigault whom Pascal had
+seen at Madame d'Argeles's house--the man of self-satisfied mien
+and superb assurance, the good-natured cynic, the frequenter of
+gambling-dens? Alas, yes! But the baron whom the world knew was
+only a comedian; this was the real man.
+
+After a little while he succeeded in controlling his emotion, and
+in a comparatively calm voice he exclaimed: "But it is useless to
+distract one's mind with an incurable evil.  Let us speak of
+yourself, M. Ferailleur.  To what do I owe the honor of this
+visit?"
+
+"To your own kind offer, monsieur, and the hope that you will help
+me in refuting this slander, and wreaking vengeance upon those who
+have ruined me."
+
+"Oh! yes, I will help you in that to the full extent of my power,"
+exclaimed the baron.  But experience reminded him that
+confidential disclosures ought not to be made with the doors open,
+so he rose, shut them, and returning to Pascal, said: "Explain in
+what way I can be of service to you, monsieur."
+
+It was not without many misgivings that Pascal had presented
+himself at the baron's house, but after what he had heard he felt
+no further hesitation; he could speak with perfect freedom.  "It
+is quite unnecessary for me to tell you, Monsieur le Baron," he
+began, "that the cards which made me win were inserted in the pack
+by M. de Coralth--that is proven beyond question, and whatever the
+consequences may be, I shall have my revenge.  But before striking
+him, I wish to reach the man whose instrument he was."
+
+"What! you suppose----"
+
+"I don't suppose--I am sure that M. de Coralth acted in obedience
+to the instructions of some other scoundrel whose courage does not
+equal his meanness."
+
+"Perhaps so! I think he would shrink from nothing in the way of
+rascality.  But who could have employed him in this vile work of
+dishonoring an honest man?"
+
+"The Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+On hearing this name, the baron bounded to his feet. 
+"Impossible!" he exclaimed; "absolutely impossible! M. de Valorsay
+is incapable of the villainy you ascribe to him.  What do I say?--
+he is even above suspicion.  I have known him for years, and I
+have never met a more loyal, more honorable, or more courageous
+man.  He is one of my few trusted friends; we see each other
+almost every day.  I am expecting a visit from him even now."
+
+"Still it was he who incited M. de Coralth to do the deed."
+
+"But why? What could have been his object?"
+
+"To win a young girl whom I love.  She--loved me, and he saw that
+I was an obstacle.  He put me out of the way more surely than if
+he had murdered me.  If I died, she might mourn for me--
+dishonored, she would spurn me----"
+
+"Is Valorsay so madly in love with the girl, then?"
+
+"I think he cares but very little for her."
+
+"Then why----"
+
+"She is the heiress of several millions."
+
+It was evident that this explanation did not shake Baron
+Trigault's faith in his friend.  "But the marquis has an income of
+a hundred and fifty or two hundred thousand francs," said he;
+"that is an all-sufficient justification.  With his fortune and
+his name, he is in a position to choose his wife from among all
+the heiresses of France.  Why should he address his attentions in
+particular to the woman you love? Ah! if he were poor--if his
+fortune were impaired--if he felt the need of regilding his
+escutcheon, like my son-in-law----"
+
+He paused; there was a rap at the door.  The baron called out:
+"Come in," and a valet appeared, and informed his master that the
+Marquis de Valorsay wished to speak with him.
+
+It was the enemy! Pascal's features were distorted with rage; but
+he did not stir--he did not utter a word.  "Ask the marquis into
+the next room," said the baron.  "I will join him there at once."
+Then as the servant retired, the baron turned to Pascal and said:
+"Well, M. Ferailleur, do you divine my intentions?"
+
+"I think so, monsieur.  You probably intend me to hear the
+conversation you are going to have with M. de Valorsay."
+
+"Exactly.  I shall leave the door open, and you can listen."
+
+This word, "listen," was uttered without bitterness, or even
+reproach; and yet Pascal could not help blushing and hanging his
+head.  "I wish to prove to you that your suspicions are without
+foundation," pursued the baron.  "Rest assured that I shall prove
+this conclusively.  I will conduct the conversation in the form of
+a cross-examination, and after the marquis's departure, you will
+be obliged to confess that you were wrong."
+
+"Or you, that I am right?"
+
+"So be it.  Any one is liable to be mistaken, and I am not
+obstinate."
+
+He was about to leave the room, when Pascal detained him.  "I
+scarcely know how to testify my gratitude even now, monsieur, and
+yet--if I dared--if I did not fear to abuse your kindness, I
+should ask one more favor."
+
+"Speak, Monsieur Ferailleur."
+
+"It is this, I do not know the Marquis de Valorsay; and if,
+instead of leaving the door wide open, you would partially close
+it, I should hear as distinctly, and I could also see him."
+
+"Agreed," replied the baron.  And, opening the door, he passed
+into the dining-room, with his right hand cordially extended, and
+saying, in his most genial tones: "Excuse me, my dear friend, for
+keeping you waiting.  I received your letter this morning, and I
+was expecting you, but some unexpected business required my
+attention just now.  Are you quite well?"
+
+As the baron entered the room, the marquis had stepped quickly
+forward to meet him.  Either he was inspired with fresh hope, or
+else he had wonderful powers of self-control, for never had he
+looked more calm--never had his face evinced haughtier
+indifference, more complete satisfaction with himself, and greater
+contempt for others.  He was dressed with even more than usual
+care, and in perfect taste as well; moreover, his valet had
+surpassed himself in dressing his hair--for one would have sworn
+that his locks were still luxuriant.  If he experienced any secret
+anxiety, it only showed itself in a slightly increased stiffness
+of his right leg--the limb broken in hunting.  "I ought rather to
+inquire concerning your own health," he remarked.  "You seem
+greatly disturbed; your cravat is untied." And, pointing to the
+broken china scattered about the floor, he added: "On seeing this,
+I asked myself if an accident had not happened."
+
+"The baroness was taken suddenly ill at the breakfast table.  Her
+fainting fit startled me a little.  But it was a mere trifle.  She
+has quite recovered already, and you may rely upon her applauding
+your victory at Vincennes to-day.  She has I don't know how many
+hundred louis staked upon your horses."
+
+The marquis's countenance assumed an expression of cordial regret. 
+"I am very sorry, upon my word!" he exclaimed.  "But I sha'n't
+take part in the races at Vincennes.  I have withdrawn my horses. 
+And, in future, I shall have nothing to do with racing."
+
+"Nonsense!"
+
+"It is the truth, however.  I have been led to this determination
+by the infamous slander which has been circulated respecting me."
+
+This answer was a mere trifle, but it somewhat shook Baron
+Trigault's confidence.  "You have been slandered!" he muttered.
+
+"Abominably.  Last Sunday the best horse in my stables, Domingo,
+came in third.  He was the favorite in the ring.  You can
+understand the rest.  I have been accused of manoeuvering to have
+my own horse beaten.  People have declared that it was my interest
+he should be beaten, and that I had an understanding with my
+jockey to that effect.  This is an every-day occurrence, I know
+very well; but, as regards myself, it is none the less an infamous
+lie!"
+
+"Who has dared to circulate such a report?"
+
+"Oh, how can I tell? It is a fact, however, that the story has
+been circulated everywhere, but in such a cautious manner that
+there is no way of calling the authors to account.  They have even
+gone so far as to say that this piece of knavery brought me in an
+enormous sum, and that I used Rochecotte's, Kervaulieu's, and
+Coralth's names in betting against my own horse."
+
+The baron's agitation was so great that M. de Valorsay observed
+it, though he did not understand the cause.  Living in the same
+society with the Baroness Trigault, and knowing her story, he
+thought that Coralth's name might, perhaps, have irritated the
+baron.  "And so," he quickly continued, "don't be surprised if,
+during the coming week, you see the sale of my horses announced."
+
+"What! you are going to sell----"
+
+"All my horses--yes, baron.  I have nineteen; and it will be very
+strange if I don't get eight or ten thousand louis for the lot. 
+Domingo alone is worth more than forty thousand francs."
+
+To talk of selling--of realizing something you possess--rings
+ominously in people's ears.  The person who talks of selling
+proclaims his need of money--and often his approaching ruin.  "It
+will save you at least a hundred and fifty or sixty thousand
+francs a year," observed the baron.
+
+"Double it and you won't come up to the mark.  Ah! my dear baron,
+you have yet to learn that there is nothing so ruinous as a racing
+stable.  It's worse than gambling; and women, in comparison, are a
+real economy.  Ninette costs me less than Domingo, with his
+jockey, his trainer, and his grooms.  My manager declares that the
+twenty-three thousand francs I won last year, cost me at least
+fifty thousand."
+
+Was he boasting, or was he speaking the truth? The baron was
+engaged in a rapid calculation.  "What does Valorsay spend a
+year?" he was saying to himself.  "Let us say two hundred and
+fifty thousand francs for his stable; forty thousand francs for
+Ninette Simplon; eighty thousand for his household expenses, and
+at least thirty thousand for personal matters, travelling, and
+play.  All this amounts to something like four hundred and thirty
+thousand francs a year. Does his income equal that sum? Certainly
+not.  Then he must have been living on the principal--he is
+ruined."
+
+Meanwhile the marquis gayly continued: "You see, I'm going to make
+a change in my mode of life.  Ah! it surprises you! But one must
+make an end of it, sooner or later.  I begin to find a bachelor
+life not so very pleasant after all; there is rheumatism in
+prospect, and my digestion is becoming impaired--in short, I feel
+that it is time for marriage, baron; and--I am about to marry."
+
+"You!"
+
+"Yes, I.  What, haven't you heard of it, yet? It has been talked
+of at the club for three days or more."
+
+"No, this is the first intimation I have received of it.  It is
+true, however, that I have not been to the club for three days.  I
+have made a wager with Kami-Bey, you know--that rich Turk--and as
+our sittings are eight or ten hours long, we play in his
+apartments at the Grand Hotel.  And so you are to be married," the
+baron continued, after a slight pause.  "Ah, well! I know one
+person who won't be pleased."
+
+"Who, pray?"
+
+"Ninette Simplon."
+
+M. de Valorsay laughed heartily.  "As if that would make any
+difference to me!" he exclaimed.  And then in a most confidential
+manner he resumed: "She will soon be consoled.  Ninette Simplon is
+a shrewd girl--a girl whom I have always suspected of having an
+account book in place of a heart.  I know she has at least three
+hundred thousand francs safely invested; her furniture and
+diamonds are worth as much more.  Why should she regret me? Add to
+this that I have promised her fifty thousand francs to dry her
+tears with on my wedding-day, and you will understand that she
+really longs to see me married."
+
+"I understand," replied the baron; "Ninette Simplon won't trouble
+you.  But I can't understand why you should talk of economy on the
+eve of a marriage which will no doubt double your fortune; for I'm
+sure you won't surrender your liberty without good and substantial
+reasons."
+
+"You are mistaken."
+
+"How mistaken?"
+
+"Well, I won't hesitate to confess to you, my dear baron, that the
+girl I am about to marry hasn't a penny of her own.  My future
+wife has no dowry save her black eyes--but they are certainly
+superb ones."
+
+This assertion seemed to disprove Pascal's statements.  "Can it
+really be you who are talking in this strain?" cried the baron. 
+"You, a practical, worldly man, give way to such a burst of
+sentiment?"
+
+"Well, yes."
+
+The baron opened his eyes in astonishment.  "Ah! then you adore
+your future bride!"
+
+"Adore only feebly expresses my feelings."
+
+"I must be dreaming."
+
+Valorsay shrugged his shoulders with the air of a man who has made
+up his mind to accept the banter of his friends; and in a tone of
+mingled sentimentality and irony, he said: "I know that it's
+absurd, and that I shall be the laughing-stock of my
+acquaintances.  Still it doesn't matter; I have never been coward
+enough to hide my feelings.  I'm in love, my dear baron, as madly
+in love as a young collegian--sufficiently in love to watch my
+lady's house at night even when I have no possible hope of seeing
+her.  I thought myself blase, I boasted of being invulnerable. 
+Well, one fine morning I woke up with the heart of a youth of
+twenty beating in my breast--a heart which trembled at the
+slightest glance from the girl I love, and sent purple flushes to
+my face.  Naturally I tried to reason with myself.  I was ashamed
+of my weakness; but the more clearly I showed myself my folly, the
+more obstinate my heart became.  And perhaps my folly is not such
+a great one after all.  Such perfect beauty united with such
+modesty, grace, and nobility of soul, such passion, candor and
+talent, cannot be met twice in a lifetime.  I intend to leave
+Paris.  We shall first of all go to Italy, my wife and I.  After a
+while we shall return and install ourselves at Valorsay, like two
+turtle-doves.  Upon my word, my imagination paints a charming
+picture of the calm and happy life we shall lead there! I don't
+deserve such good fortune.  I must have been born under a lucky
+star!"
+
+Had he been less engrossed in his narrative, he would have heard
+the sound of a stifled oath in the adjoining room; and had he been
+less absorbed in the part he was playing, he would have observed a
+cloud on his companion's brow.  The baron was a keen observer, and
+he had detected a false ring in this apparently vehement outburst
+of passion.  "I understand it now, my dear marquis," said he; "you
+have met the descendant of some illustrious but impoverished
+family."
+
+"You are wrong.  My future bride has no other name than her
+Christian name of Marguerite."
+
+"It is a regular romance then!"
+
+"You are quite right; it is a romance.  Were you acquainted with
+the Count de Chalusse, who died a few days ago?"
+
+"No; but I have often heard him spoken of."
+
+"Well, it is his daughter whom I am about to marry--his
+illegitimate daughter."
+
+The baron started.  "Excuse me," said he; "M. de Chalusse was
+immensely rich, and he was a bachelor.  How does it happen then
+that his daughter, even though she be his illegitimate child,
+should find herself penniless?"
+
+"A mere chance--a fatality.  M. de Chalusse died very suddenly; he
+had no time to make a will or to acknowledge his daughter."
+
+"But why had he not taken some precautions?"
+
+"A formal recognition of his daughter was attended by too many
+difficulties, and even dangers.  Mademoiselle Marguerite had been
+abandoned by her mother when only five or six months old; it is
+only a few years since M. de Chalusse, after a thousand vain
+attempts, at last succeeded in finding her."
+
+It was no longer on Pascal's account, but on his own, that Baron
+Trigault listened with breathless attention.  "How very strange,"
+he exclaimed, in default of something better to say.  "How very
+strange!"
+
+"Isn't it? It is as good as a novel."
+
+"Would it be--indiscreet----"
+
+"To inquire? Certainly not.  The count told me the whole story,
+without entering into particulars--you understand.  When he was
+quite young, M. de Chalusse became enamoured of a charming young
+lady, whose husband had gone to tempt fortune in America.  Being
+an honest woman, she resisted the count's advances for awhile--a
+very little while; but in less than a year after her husband's
+departure, she gave birth to a pretty little daughter,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite.  But then why had the husband gone to
+America?"
+
+"Yes," faltered the baron; "why--why, indeed?"
+
+"Everything was progressing finely, when M. de Chalusse was in his
+turn obliged to start for Germany, having been informed that a
+sister of his, who had fled from the paternal roof with nobody
+knows who, had been seen there.  He had been absent some four
+months or so, when one morning the post brought him a letter from
+his pretty mistress, who wrote: 'We are lost! My husband is at
+Marseilles: he will be here to-morrow.  Never attempt to see me
+again.  Fear everything from him.  Farewell.' On receiving this
+letter, M. de Chalusse flung himself into a postchaise, and
+returned to Paris.  He was determined, absolutely determined, to
+have his daughter.  But he arrived too late.  On hearing of her
+husband's return, the young wife had lost her head.  She had but
+one thought--to conceal her fault, at any cost; and one night,
+being completely disguised, she left her child on a doorstep in
+the vicinity of the central markets----"
+
+The marquis suddenly paused in his story to exclaim: "Why, what is
+the matter with you, my dear baron? What is the matter? Are you
+ill? Shall I ring?"
+
+The baron was as pale as if the last drop of blood had been drawn
+from his veins, and there were dark purple circles about his eyes. 
+Still, on being questioned, he managed to answer in a choked
+voice, but not without a terrible effort: "Nothing! It is nothing. 
+A mere trifle! It will be over in a moment.  It IS over!" Still
+his limbs trembled so much that he could not stand, and he sank on
+to a chair, murmuring: "I entreat you, marquis--continue.  It is
+very interesting--very interesting indeed."
+
+M. de Valorsay resumed his narrative.  "The husband was
+incontestably an artless fellow: but he was also, it appears, a
+man of remarkable energy and determination.  Having somehow
+ascertained that his wife had given birth to a child in his
+absence, he moved heaven and earth not only to discover the child,
+but its father also.  He had sworn to kill them both; and he was a
+man to keep his vow unmoved by a thought of the guillotine.  And
+if you require a proof of his strength of character, here it is:
+He said nothing to his wife on the subject, he did not utter a
+single reproach; he treated her exactly as he had done before his
+absence.  But he watched her, or employed others to watch her,
+both and night, convinced that she would finally commit some act
+of imprudence which would give him the clue he wanted. 
+Fortunately, she was very shrewd.  She soon discovered that her
+husband knew everything, and she warned M. de Chalusse, thus
+saving his life."
+
+It is not at all remarkable that the Marquis de Valorsay should
+have failed to see any connection between his narrative and the
+baron's agitation.  What possible connection could there be
+between opulent Baron Trigault and the poor devil who went to seek
+his fortune in America? What imaginable connection could there be
+between the confirmed gambler, who was Kami-Bey's companion, Lia
+d'Argeles's friend, and the husband who for ten long years had
+pursued the man who, by seducing his wife, had robbed him of all
+the happiness of life? Another point that would have dispelled any
+suspicions on the marquis's part was that he had found the baron
+greatly agitated on arriving, and that he now seemed to be
+gradually regaining his composure.  So he continued his story in
+his customary light, mocking tone.  It is the perfection of good
+taste and high breeding--"proper form," indeed, not to be
+astonished or moved by anything, in fact to sneer at everything,
+and hold one's self quite above the emotions which disturb the
+minds of plebeians.
+
+Thus the marquis continued: "I am necessarily compelled to omit
+many particulars, my dear baron.  The count was not very explicit
+when he reached this part of his story; but, in spite of his
+reticence, I learned that he had been tricked in his turn, that
+certain papers had been stolen from him, and that he had been
+defrauded in many ways by his inamorata.  I also know that M. de
+Chalusse's whole life was haunted by the thought of the husband he
+had wronged.  He felt a presentiment that he would die by this
+man's hand.  He saw danger on every side.  If he went out alone in
+the evening, which was an exceedingly rare occurrence, he turned
+the street corners with infinite caution; it seemed to him that he
+could always see the gleam of a poniard or a pistol in the shade. 
+I should never have believed in this constant terror on the part
+of a really brave man, if he had not confessed it to me with his
+own lips.  Ten or twelve years passed before he dared to make the
+slightest attempt to find his daughter, so much did he fear to
+arouse his enemy's attention.  It was not until he had discovered
+that the husband had become discouraged and had discontinued his
+search, that the count began his.  It was a long and arduous one,
+but at last it succeeded, thanks to the assistance of a clever
+scoundrel named Fortunat."
+
+The baron with difficulty repressed a movement of eager curiosity,
+and remarked: "What a peculiar name!"
+
+"And his first name is Isidore.  Ah! he's a smooth-tongued
+scoundrel, a rascal of the most dangerous kind, who richly
+deserves to be in jail.  How it is that he is allowed to prosecute
+his dishonorable calling I can't understand; but it is none the
+less true that he does follow it, and without the slightest
+attempt at concealment, at an office he has on the Place de la
+Bourse."
+
+This name and address were engraved upon the baron's memory, never
+to be effaced.
+
+"However," resumed M. de Valorsay, "the poor count was fated to
+have no peace.  The husband had scarcely ceased to torment him, he
+had scarcely begun to breathe freely, when the wife attacked him
+in her turn.  She must have been one of those vile and despicable
+women who make a man hate the entire sex.  Pretending that the
+count had turned her from the path of duty, and destroyed her life
+and happiness, she lost no opportunity of tormenting him.  She
+would not allow M. de Chalusse to keep the child with him, nor
+would she consent to his adopting the girl.  She declared it an
+act of imprudence, which would surely set her husband upon the
+track, sooner or later.  And when the count announced his
+intention of legally adopting the child, in spite of her protests,
+she declared that, rather than allow it, she would confess
+everything to her husband."
+
+"The count was a patient man," sneered the baron.
+
+"Not so patient as you may suppose.  His submission was due to
+some secret cause which he never confided to me.  There must have
+been some great crime under all this.  In any case, the poor count
+found it impossible to escape this terrible woman.  He took refuge
+at Cannes; but she followed him.  He travelled through Italy, for
+I don't know how many months under an assumed name, but all in
+vain.  He was at last compelled to conceal his daughter in some
+provincial convent.  During the last few months of his life he
+obtained peace--that is to say, he bought it.  This lady's husband
+must either be very poor or exceedingly stingy; and as she was
+exceedingly fond of luxury, M. de Chalusse effected a compromise
+by giving her a large sum monthly, and also by paying her dress-
+maker's bills."
+
+The baron sprang to his feet with a passionate exclamation.  "The
+vile wretch!" he said.
+
+But he quickly reseated himself, and the exclamation astonished M.
+de Valorsay so little that he quietly concluded by saying: "And
+this is the reason, baron, why my beloved Marguerite, the future
+Marquise de Valorsay, has no dowry."
+
+The baron cast a look of positive anguish at the door of the
+smoking-room.  He had heard a slight movement there; and he
+trembled with fear lest Pascal, maddened with anger and jealousy,
+should rush in and throw himself upon the marquis.  Plainly
+enough, this perilous situation could not last much longer.  The
+baron's own powers of self-control and dissimulation were almost
+exhausted, and so postponing until another time the many questions
+he still wished to ask M. de Valorsay, he made haste to check
+these confidential disclosures.  "Upon my word," he exclaimed,
+with a forced laugh, "I was expecting something quite different. 
+This affair begins like a genuine romance, and ends, as everything
+ends nowadays, in money!"
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+
+As a millionaire and a gambler, Baron Trigault enjoyed all sorts
+of privileges.  He assumed the right to be brutal, ill-bred,
+cynical and bold; to be one of those persons who declare that
+folks must take them as they find them.  But his rudeness now was
+so thoroughly offensive that under any other circumstances the
+marquis would have resented it.  However, he had special reasons
+for preserving his temper, so he decided to laugh.
+
+"Yes, these stories always end in the same way, baron," said he. 
+"You haven't touched a card this morning, and I know your hands
+are itching.  Excuse me for making you waste precious time, as you
+say; but what you have just heard was only a necessary preface."
+
+"Only a preface?"
+
+"Yes; but don't be discouraged.  I have arrived at the object of
+my visit now."
+
+As Baron Trigault was supposed to enjoy an income of at least
+eight hundred thousand francs a year, he received in the course of
+a twelvemonth at least a million applications for money or help,
+and for this reason he had not an equal for detecting a coming
+appeal.  "Good heavens!" he thought, "Valorsay is going to ask me
+for money." In fact, he felt certain that the marquis's pretended
+carelessness concealed real embarrassment, and that it was
+difficult for him to find the words he wanted.
+
+"So I am about to marry," M. de Valorsay resumed--"I wish to break
+off my former life, to turn over a new leaf.  And now the wedding
+gifts, the two fetes that I propose giving, the repairs at
+Valorsay, and the honeymoon with my wife--all these things will
+cost a nice little sum."
+
+"A nice little sum, indeed!"
+
+"Ah, well! as I'm not going to wed an heiress, I fear I shall run
+a trifle short.  The matter was worrying me a little, when I
+thought of you.  I said to myself: 'The baron, who always has
+money at his disposal, will no doubt let me have the use of five
+thousand louis for a year.'"
+
+The baron's eyes were fixed upon his companion's face.  "Zounds!"
+he exclaimed in a half-grieved, half-petulant tone; "I haven't the
+amount!"
+
+It was not disappointment that showed itself on the marquis's
+face; it was absolute despair, quickly concealed.
+
+But the baron had detected it; and he realized his applicant's
+urgent need.  He felt certain that M. de Valorsay was financially
+ruined--and yet, as it did not suit his plans to refuse, he
+hastily added: "When I say I haven't that amount, I mean that I
+haven't got it on hand just at this moment.  But I shall have it
+within forty-eight hours; and if you are at home at this time on
+the day after to-morrow, I will send you one of my agents, who
+will arrange the matter with you."
+
+A moment before, the marquis had allowed his consternation to show
+itself; but this time he knew how to conceal the joy that filled
+his soul.  So it was in the most indifferent manner, as if the
+affair were one of trivial importance, that he thanked the baron
+for being so obliging.  Plainly enough, he now longed to make his
+escape, and indeed, after rattling off a few commonplace remarks. 
+he rose to his feet and took his leave, exclaiming: "Till the day
+after to-morrow, then!"
+
+The baron sank into an arm-chair, completely overcome.  A martyr
+to a passion that was stronger than reason itself, the victim of a
+fatal love which he had not been able to drive from his heart,
+Baron Trigault had passed many terrible hours, but never had he
+been so completely crushed as at this moment when chance revealed
+the secret which he had vainly pursued for years.  The old wounds
+in his heart opened afresh, and his sufferings were poignant
+beyond description.  All his efforts to save this woman whom he at
+once loved and hated from the depths of degradation, had proved
+unavailing.  "And she has extorted money from the Count de
+Chalusse," he thought; "she sold him the right to adopt their own
+daughter." And so strange are the workings of the human heart,
+that this circumstance, trivial in comparison with many others,
+drove the unfortunate baron almost frantic with rage.  What did it
+avail him that he had become one of the richest men in Paris? He
+allowed his wife eight thousand francs a month, almost one hundred
+thousand francs a year, merely for her dresses and fancies.  Not a
+quarter-day passed, but what he paid her debts to a large amount,
+and in spite of all this, she had sunk so low as to extort money
+from a man who had once loved her.  "What can she do with it all?"
+muttered the baron, overcome with sorrow and indignation.  "How
+can she succeed in spending the income of several millions?"
+
+A name, the name of Ferdinand de Coralth, rose to his lips; but he
+did not pronounce it.  He saw Pascal emerging from the smoking-
+room; and though he had forgotten the young advocate's very
+existence, his appearance now restored him to a consciousness of
+reality.  "Ah, well! M. Ferailleur?" he said, like a man suddenly
+aroused from some terrible nightmare.  Pascal tried to make some
+reply, but he was unable to do so--such a flood of incoherent
+thoughts was seething and foaming in his brain.  "Did you hear, M.
+de Valorsay?" continued the baron.  "Now we know, beyond the
+possibility of doubt, who Mademoiselle Marguerite's mother is. 
+What is to be done? What would you do in my place?"
+
+"Ah, monsieur! how can I tell?"
+
+"Wouldn't your first thought be of vengeance! It is mine.  But
+upon whom can I wreak my vengeance? Upon the Count de Chalusse? He
+is dead.  Upon my wife? Yes, I might do so; but I lack the
+courage--Mademoiselle Marguerite remains."
+
+"But she is innocent, monsieur; she has never wronged you."
+
+The baron did not seem to hear this exclamation.  "And to make
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's life one long misery," said he, "I need
+only favor her marriage with the marquis.  Ah, he would make her
+cruelly expiate the crime of her birth."
+
+"But you won't do so!" cried Pascal, in a transport, "it would be
+shameful; I won't allow it.  Never, I swear before high Heaven!
+never, while I live, shall Valorsay marry Marguerite.  He may
+perhaps vanquish me in the coming struggle; he may lead her to the
+threshold of the church, but there he will find me--armed--and I
+will have justice--human justice in default of legal satisfaction. 
+And, afterward, the law may take its course!"
+
+The baron looked at him with deep emotion.  "Ah, you know what it
+is to love!" he exclaimed; and in a hollow voice, he added: "and
+thus it was that I loved Marguerite's mother."
+
+The breakfast-table had not been cleared, and a large decanter of
+water was still standing on it.  The baron poured out two large
+glasses, which he drained with feverish avidity, and then he began
+to walk aimlessly about the room.
+
+Pascal held his peace.  It seemed to him that his own destiny was
+being decided in this man's mind, that his whole future depended
+upon the determination he arrived at.  A prisoner awaiting the
+verdict of the jury could not have suffered more intense anxiety. 
+At last, when a minute, which seemed a century, had elapsed, the
+baron paused.  "Now as before, M. Ferailleur," he said, roughly,
+"I'm for you and with you.  Give me your hand--that's right. 
+Honest people ought to protect and assist one another when
+scoundrels assail them.  We will reinstate you in public esteem,
+monsieur.  We will unmask Coralth, and we will crush Valorsay if
+we find that he is really the instigator of the infamous plot that
+ruined you."
+
+"What, monsieur! Can you doubt it after your conversation with
+him?"
+
+The baron shook his head.  "I've no doubt but what Valorsay is
+ruined financially," said he.  "I am certain that my hundred
+thousand francs will be lost forever if I lend them to him.  I
+would be willing to swear that he bet against his own horse and
+prevented the animal from winning, as he is accused of doing."
+
+"You must see, then--"
+
+"Excuse me--all this does NOT explain the great discrepancy
+between your allegations and his story.  You assure me that he
+cares nothing whatever for Mademoiselle Marguerite; he pretends
+that he adores her."
+
+"Yes, monsieur, yes--the scoundrel dared to say so.  Ah! if I had
+not been deterred by a fear of losing my revenge!"
+
+"I understand; but allow me to conclude.  According to you,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite possesses several millions.  According to
+him, she hasn't a penny of her own.  Which is right? I believe he
+is.  His desire to borrow a hundred thousand francs of me proves
+it; and, besides, he wouldn't have come this morning to tell me a
+falsehood, which would be discovered to-morrow.  Still, if he is
+telling the truth, it is impossible to explain the foul conspiracy
+you have suffered by."
+
+This objection had previously presented itself to Pascal's mind,
+and he had found an explanation which seemed to him a plausible
+one.  "M. de Chalusse was not dead," said he, "when M. de Coralth
+and M. de Valorsay decided on this plan of ridding themselves of
+me.  Consequently, Mademoiselle Marguerite was still an heiress."
+
+"That's true; but the very day after the commission of the crime,
+the accomplices must have discovered that it could do them no
+good; so, why have they still persisted in their scheme?"
+
+Pascal tried to find a satisfactory answer, but failed.
+
+"There must be some iniquitous mystery in this affair, which
+neither you nor I suspect," remarked the baron.
+
+"That is exactly what my mother told me."
+
+"Ah! that's Madame Ferailleur's opinion? Then it is a good one. 
+Come, let us reason a little.  Mademoiselle Marguerite loved you,
+you say?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And she has suddenly broken off the engagement?"
+
+"She wrote to me that the Count de Chalusse extorted from her a
+promise on his death-bed, that she would marry the Marquis de
+Valorsay."
+
+The baron sprang to his feet.  "Stop," he cried--"stop! We now
+have a clue to the truth, perhaps.  Ah! so Mademoiselle Marguerite
+has written to you that M. de Chalusse commanded her to marry the
+marquis! Then the count must have been fully restored to
+consciousness before he breathed his last.  On the other hand,
+Valorsay pretends that Mademoiselle Marguerite is left without
+resources, simply because the count died too suddenly to be able
+to write or to sign a couple of lines.  Can you reconcile these
+two versions of the affair, M. Ferailleur? Certainly not.  Then
+which version is false? We must ascertain that point.  When shall
+you see Mademoiselle Marguerite again?"
+
+"She has requested me NEVER to try to see her again."
+
+"Very well! She must be disobeyed.  You must discover some way of
+seeing her without anyone's knowledge.  She is undoubtedly
+watched, so don't write on any account." He reflected for a
+moment, and then added: "We shall, perhaps, become morally certain
+of Valorsay's and Coralth's guilt, but there's a wide difference
+between this and the establishment of their guilt by material
+proofs.  Two scoundrels who league to ruin an honest man don't
+sign a contract to that effect before a notary.  Proofs! Ah! where
+shall we find them? We must gain an intimate knowledge of
+Valorsay's private life.  The best plan would be to find some man
+devoted to our interests who would watch him, and insinuate
+himself into his confidence."
+
+Pascal interrupted the baron with an eager gesture. Hope glittered
+in his eyes.  "Yes!" he exclaimed, "yes; it is necessary that M.
+de Valorsay should be watched by a man of quick perception--a man
+clever enough to make himself useful to the marquis, and capable
+of rendering him an important service in case of need.  I will be
+the man, monsieur, if you will allow me.  The thought occurred to
+me just now while I was listening to you.  You promised to send
+some one to Valorsay's house with money.  I entreat you to allow
+me to take the place of the man you intended to send.  The marquis
+doesn't know me, and I am sufficiently sure of myself to promise
+you that I will not betray my identity.  I will present myself as
+your agent; he will give me his confidence.  I shall take him
+money or fair promises, I shall be well received, and I have a
+plan----"
+
+He was interrupted by a rap at the door.  The next moment a
+footman entered, and informed his master that a messenger wished
+to speak to him on urgent business.  "Let him come in," said the
+baron.
+
+It was Job, Madame Lia d'Argeles's confidential servant, who
+entered the room.  He bowed respectfully, and, with an air of
+profound mystery exclaimed: "I have been looking for the baron
+everywhere.  I was ordered by madame not to return without him."
+
+"Very well," said M. Trigault.  "I will go with you at once."
+
+
+
+V.
+
+
+How was it that a clever man like M. Fortunat made such a blunder
+as to choose a Sunday, and a racing Sunday too, to call on M.
+Wilkie.  His anxiety might explain the mistake, but it did not
+justify it.  He felt certain, that under any other circumstances
+he would not have been dismissed so cavalierly.  He would at least
+have been allowed to develop his proposals, and then who knows
+what might have happened?
+
+But the races had interfered with his plans.  M. Wilkie had been
+compelled to attend to Pompier de Nanterre, that famous
+steeplechaser, of which he owned one-third part, and he had,
+moreover, to give orders to the jockey, whose lord and master he
+was to an equal extent.  These were sacred duties, since Wilkie's
+share in a race-horse constituted his only claim to a footing in
+fashionable society.  But it was a strong claim--a claim that
+justified the display of whips and spurs that decorated his
+apartments in the Rue du Helder, and allowed him to aspire to the
+character of a sporting man.  Wilkie really imagined that folks
+were waiting for him at Vincennes; and that the fete would not be
+complete without his presence.
+
+Still, when he presented himself inside the enclosure, a cigar in
+his mouth, and his racing card dangling from his button-hole, he
+was obliged to confess that his entrance did not create much of a
+sensation.  An astonishing bit of news had imparted unusual
+excitement to the ring.  People were eagerly discussing the
+Marquis de Valorsay's sudden determination to pay forfeit and
+withdraw his horses from the contest; and the best informed
+declared that in the betting-rooms the evening before he had
+openly announced his intention of selling his racing stable.  If
+the marquis had hoped that by adopting this course he would
+silence the suspicions which had been aroused, he was doomed to
+grievous disappointment.  The rumor that he had secretly bet
+against his own horse, Domingo, on the previous Sunday, and that
+he had given orders not to let the animal win the race, was
+steadily gaining credence.
+
+Large sums had been staked on Domingo's success.  He had been the
+favorite in the betting ring and the losers were by no means
+pleased.  Some declared that they had seen the jockey hold Domingo
+back; and they insisted that it was necessary to make an example,
+and disqualify both the marquis and his jockey.  Still one weighty
+circumstance pleaded in M. de Valorsay's favor--his fortune, or,
+at least, the fortune he was supposed to possess.  "Why should
+such a rich man stoop to cheat?" asked his defenders.  "To put
+money into one's pocket in this way is even worse than to cheat at
+cards! Besides, it's impossible! Valorsay is above such
+contemptible charges.  He is a perfect gentleman."
+
+"Perhaps so," replied the skeptical bystanders.  "But people said
+exactly the same of Croisenois, of the Duc de H., and Baron P.,
+who were finally convicted of the same rascality that Valorsay is
+accused of."
+
+"It's an infamous slander! If he had been inclined to cheat, he
+could have easily diverted suspicion.  He would have let Domingo
+come in second, not third!"
+
+"If he were not guilty, and afraid of detection, he wouldn't pay
+forfeit to-day nor sell his horses."
+
+"He only retires from the turf because he's going to marry----"
+
+"Nonsense! That's no reason whatever."
+
+Like all gamblers, the frequenters of the turf are distrustful and
+inclined to be quarrelsome.  No one is above their suspicions when
+they lose nor above their wrath when they are duped.  And this
+Domingo affair united all the losers against Valorsay; they formed
+a little battalion of enemies who were no doubt powerless for the
+time being, but who were ready to take a startling revenge
+whenever a good opportunity presented itself.  Naturally enough,
+M. Wilkie sided with the marquis, whom he had heard his friend, M.
+de Coralth, speak of on several occasions.  "Accuse the dear
+marquis!" he exclaimed.  "It's contemptible, outrageous.  Why,
+only last evening he said to me, 'My good friend, Domingo's defeat
+cost me two thousand louis!'" M. de Valorsay had said nothing of
+the kind, for the very good reason that he did not even know
+Wilkie by sight; still, no one paid much heed to the assertion,
+whereat Wilkie felt vexed, and resolved to turn his attention to
+his jockey.
+
+The latter was a lazy, worthless fellow, who had been dismissed
+from every stable he had previously served in, and who swindled
+and robbed the young gentlemen who employed him without either
+limit or shame.  Although he made them pay him a very high salary--
+something like eight thousand francs a year--on the plea that it
+was most repugnant to his feelings to act as a groom, trainer, and
+jockey at the same time, he regularly every month presented them
+with fabulous bills from the grain merchant, the veterinary
+surgeon, and the harness-maker.  In addition, he regularly sold
+Pompier's oats in order to obtain liquor, and in fact the poor
+animal was so nearly starved that he could scarcely stand on his
+legs.  The jockey ascribed the horse's extreme thinness to a
+system of rigorous training; and the owners did not question the
+statement in the least.  He had made them believe, and they in
+turn had made many others believe, that Pompier de Nanterre would
+certainly win such and such a race; and, trusting in this
+fallacious promise, they risked their money on the poor animal--
+and lost it.
+
+In point of fact, this jockey would have been the happiest mortal
+in the world if such things as steeple-chases had never existed. 
+In the first place, he judged, with no little reason, that it was
+dangerous to leap hurdles on such an animal as Pompier; and,
+secondly, nothing irritated him so much as to be obliged to
+promenade with his three employers in turn.  But how could he
+refuse, since he knew that if these young men hired him, it was
+chiefly, or only in view of, displaying themselves in his company. 
+It afforded them untold satisfaction to walk to and fro along the
+course in front of the grand stand, with their jockey in his
+orange jacket with green sleeves.  They were firmly convinced that
+he reflected enormous credit upon them, and their hearts swelled
+with joy at the thought of the envy they no doubt inspired.  This
+conviction gave rise indeed to terrible quarrels, in which each of
+the three owners was wont to accuse the others of monopolizing the
+jockey.
+
+On this occasion, M. Wilkie--being fortunate enough to arrive the
+first--immediately repaired to Pompier de Nanterre's stall.  Never
+had circumstances been more favorable for a display of the
+animal's speed.  The day was magnificent; the stands were crowded,
+and thousands of eager spectators were pushing and jostling one
+another beyond the ropes which limited the course.  M. Wilkie
+seemed to be everywhere; he showed himself in a dozen different
+places at once, always followed by his jockey, whom he ordered
+about in a loud voice, with many excited gesticulations.  And how
+great his delight was when, as he passed through the crowd, he
+heard people exclaim: "That gentleman has a racing stable.  His
+horses are going to compete!" What bliss thrilled his heart when
+he overheard the admiring exclamation of some worthy shopkeeper
+who was greatly impressed by the gay silk jacket and the top-
+boots!
+
+But, unfortunately, this happiness could not last forever.  His
+partners arrived, and claimed the jockey in their turn.  So M.
+Wilkie left the course and strolled about among the carriages,
+until at last he found an equipage which was occupied by the young
+ladies who had accepted his invitation to supper the evening
+before, and who were now making a profuse display of the very
+yellowest hair they possessed.  This afforded him another
+opportunity of attracting public attention, and to giving proofs
+of his "form," for he had not filled the box of his carriage with
+champagne for nothing.  At last the decisive moment came, and he
+made himself conspicuous by shouting.  "Now! Now! Here he is!
+Look! Bravo, Pompier! One hundred on Pompier!"
+
+But, alas! poor Pompier de Nanterre fell exhausted before half the
+distance was accomplished; and that evening Wilkie described his
+defeat, with a profusion of technical terms that inspired the
+uninitiated with the deepest awe.  "What a disaster, my friends,"
+he exclaimed.  "Pompier de Nanterre, an incomparable
+steeplechaser, to break down in such a fashion! And beaten by
+whom? My Mustapha, an outsider, without any record whatever! The
+ring was intensely excited--and I was simply crazed."
+
+However, his defeat did not affect him very deeply.  It was
+forgotten at thought of the inheritance which his friend Coralth
+had spoken to him about.  And to-morrow M. de Coralth would tell
+him the secret.  He had only twenty hours longer to wait!" To-
+morrow! to-morrow!" he said to himself again and again, with a
+thrill of mingled joy and impatience.  And what bright visions of
+future glory haunted him! He saw himself the possessor of a
+magnificent stud, of sufficient wealth to gratify every fancy; he
+would splash mud upon all the passers-by, and especially upon his
+former acquaintances, as he dashed past them in his superb
+equipage; the best tailor should invent astonishing garments for
+him; he would make himself conspicuous at all the first
+performances in a stage-box, with the most notorious women in
+Paris; his fetes would be described in the papers; he would be the
+continual subject of comment; he would be credited with splendid,
+perfect "form."
+
+It is true that M. de Coralth had promised him all this, without a
+word of explanation; but what did that matter? Should he doubt his
+friend's word? Never! The viscount was not merely his model, but
+his oracle as well.  By the way in which he spoke of him, it might
+have been supposed that they had been friends from their
+childhood, or, at least, that they had known each other for years. 
+Such was not the case, however.  Their acquaintance dated only
+seven or eight months back, and their first meeting had apparently
+been the result of chance; though it is needless to say, perhaps,
+that this chance had been carefully prepared by M. de Coralth. 
+Having discovered Madame Lia d'Argeles's secret, the viscount
+watched Wilkie, ascertained where he spent his evenings, contrived
+a way of introducing himself into his society, and on their third
+meeting was skilful enough to render him a service--in other
+words, to lend him some money.  From that moment the conquest was
+assured; for M. de Coralth possessed in an eminent degree all the
+attributes that were likely to dazzle and charm the gifted owner
+of Pompier de Nanterre.  First of all, there was his title, then
+his impudent assurance and his apparent wealth, and last, but by
+no means least, his numerous and fashionable acquaintances.  He
+was not long in discovering his advantage, and in profiting by it. 
+And without giving M. Wilkie an inkling of the truth, he succeeded
+in obtaining from him as accurate a knowledge of his past career
+as the young fellow himself possessed.
+
+M. Wilkie did not know much concerning his origin or his early
+life; and his history, so far as he was acquainted with it, could
+be told in a few words.  His earliest recollection was of the
+ocean.  He was sure, perfectly sure, that he had made a very long
+sea voyage when only a little child, and he looked upon America as
+his birthplace.  The French language was certainly not the first
+he had learned, for he still remembered a limited number of
+English phrases.  The English word "father" was among those that
+lingered in his memory; and now, after a lapse of twenty years, he
+pronounced it without the least foreign accent.  But while he
+remembered the word perfectly well, no recollection remained to
+him of the person he had called by that name.  His first
+sensations were those of hunger, weariness, and cold.  He
+recollected, and very distinctly too, how on one long winter
+night, a woman had dragged him after her through the streets of
+Paris, in an icy rain.  He could still see himself as he wandered
+on, crying with weariness, and begging for something to eat.  And
+then the poor woman who held him by the hand lifted him in her
+arms and carried him on--on, until her own strength failed, and
+she was obliged to set him on the ground again.  A vague portrait
+of this woman, who was most probably his mother, still lingered in
+his memory.  According to his description, she was extremely
+handsome, tall, and very fair.  He had been particularly impressed
+with the pale tint and profusion of her beautiful hair.
+
+Their poverty had not lasted long.  He remembered being installed
+with his mother in a very handsome suite of rooms.  A man, who was
+still young, and whom he called "Monsieur Jacques," came every
+day, and brought him sweetmeats and playthings.  He thought he
+must have been about four years old at that time.  However, he had
+enjoyed this comfortable state of things scarcely a month, when
+one morning a stranger presented himself.  The visitor held a long
+conference with his mother, or, at least, with the person whom he
+called by that name.  He did not understand what they were talking
+about, but he was none the less very uneasy.  The result of the
+interview must have justified his instinctive fear, for his mother
+took him on her lap, and embraced him with convulsive tenderness. 
+She sobbed violently, and repeated again and again in a faltering
+voice: "Poor child! my beloved Wilkie! I shall never kiss you
+again--never, never! 'Alas! It must be so! Give me courage, my
+God!"
+
+Those were the exact words; Wilkie was sure on that point.  It
+seemed to him he could still hear that despairing farewell.  For
+it was indeed a farewell.  The stranger took him in his arms and
+carried him away, in spite of his cries and struggles to escape. 
+This person to whose care he was confined was the master of a
+small boarding-school, and his wife was the kindest and most
+patient of women.  However, this did not prevent Wilkie from
+crying and begging for his mother at first; but gradually he
+forgot her.  He was not unhappy, for he was petted and indulged
+more than any of the other pupils, and he spent most of his time
+playing on the terrace or wandering about the garden.  But this
+charming life could not last for ever.  According to his
+calculation, he was just ten years old when, one Sunday, toward
+the end of October, a grave-looking, red-whiskered gentleman, clad
+in solemn black with a white necktie, presented himself at the
+school, and declared that he had been instructed by Wilkie's
+relatives to place him in a college to continue his education.
+
+Young Wilkie's lamentations were long and loud; but they did not
+prevent M. Patterson--for that was the gentleman's name--from
+taking him to the college of Louis-the-Great, where he was entered
+as a boarder.  As he did not study, and as he was only endowed
+with a small amount of intelligence, he learned scarcely anything
+during the years he remained there.  Every Sunday and every fete
+day, M. Patterson made his appearance at ten o'clock precisely,
+took Wilkie for a walk in Paris or the environs, gave him his
+breakfast and dinner at some of the best restaurants, bought
+everything he expressed a desire to have, and at nine o'clock
+precisely took him back to the college again.  During the holidays
+M. Patterson kept the boy with him, refusing him nothing in the
+way of pleasure, granting all his wishes, but never losing sight
+of him for a moment.  And if Wilkie complained of this constant
+watchfulness, M. Patterson always replied, "I must obey orders;"
+and this answer invariably put an end to the discussion.
+
+So things went on until it became time for Wilkie to take his
+degree.  He presented himself for examination; and, of course, he
+failed.  Fortunately, however, M. Patterson was not at a loss for
+an expedient.  He placed his charge in a private school; and the
+following year, at a cost of five thousand francs, he beguiled a
+poor devil into running the risk of three years' imprisonment, by
+assuming M. Wilkie's name, and passing the examination in his
+place.  In possession of the precious diploma which opens the door
+of every career, M. Wilkie now hoped that his pockets would be
+filled, and that he would then be set at liberty.  But the hope
+was vain! M. Patterson placed him in the hands of an old tutor who
+had been engaged to travel with him through Europe; and as this
+tutor held the purse-strings, Wilkie was obliged to follow him
+through Germany, England, and Italy.
+
+When he returned to Paris he was just twenty years old, and the
+very next day M. Patterson conducted him to the suite of rooms
+which he still occupied in the Rue du Helder.  "You are now in
+your own home, M. Wilkie," said M. Patterson in his most
+impressive manner.  "You are now old enough to be responsible for
+your own actions, and I hope you will conduct yourself like an
+honest man.  From this moment you are your own master.  Those who
+gave you your education desire you to study law.  If I were in
+your place, I should obey them.  If you wish to be somebody, and
+to acquire a fortune, work, for you have no property, nor anything
+to expect from any one.  The allowance which is granted you, a far
+too liberal one in my opinion, may be cut off at any moment.  I
+don't think it right to conceal this fact from you.  But at all
+events until then.  I am instructed to pay you five thousand
+francs quarterly.  Here is the amount for the first quarter, and
+in three months' time I shall send you a similar amount.  I say
+'shall SEND,' because my business compels me to return to England,
+and take up my abode there.  Here is my London address; and if any
+serious trouble befalls you, write to me.  Now, my duty being
+fulfilled, farewell."
+
+"Go to the devil, you old preacher!" growled Wilkie, as he saw the
+door close on the retreating figure of M. Patterson, who had acted
+as his guardian for ten years.  None of M. Patterson's wise advice
+lingered in the young fellow's mind.  To use a familiar
+expression, "It went in through one ear and came out through the
+other." Only two facts had made an impression upon him: that he
+was to be his own master henceforth, and that he had a fortune at
+his command.  There it lay upon the table, five thousand francs in
+glittering gold.
+
+If M. Wilkie had taken the trouble to attentively examine the
+rooms which had suddenly become his own, he would perhaps have
+recognized the fact that a loving hand had prepared them for his
+reception.  Countless details revealed the delicate taste of a
+woman, and the thoughtful tenderness of a mother.  None of those
+little superfluities which delight a young man had been forgotten. 
+There was a box of choice cigars upon the table, and a jar of
+tobacco on the mantel-shelf.  But Wilkie did not take time to
+discover this.  He hastily slipped five hundred francs into his
+pocket, locked the rest of his money in a drawer, and went out
+with as lofty an air as if all Paris belonged to him, or as if he
+had enough money to purchase it.
+
+He had resolved to give a fete in honor of his deliverance, and so
+he hurried off in search of some of his old college chums.  He
+found two of them; and, although it was very wounding to his self-
+love, M. Wilkie was obliged to confess to them that this was his
+first taste of liberty, and that he scarcely knew what to do with
+himself.  Of course his friends assured him that they could
+quickly make him acquainted with the only life that it was worth
+while living; and, to prove it, they accepted the invitation to
+dinner which he immediately offered them.  It was a remarkable
+repast.  Other acquaintances dropped in, the wine flowed in
+rivers; and after dinner they danced.  And at day-break, having
+served his apprenticeship at baccarat, M. Wilkie found himself
+without a penny in his pocket, and face to face with a bill of
+four hundred francs, for which amount he was obliged to go to his
+rooms, under the escort of one of the waiters.  This first
+experiment ought to have disgusted him, or at least have made him
+reflect.  But no.  He felt quite in his element in the society of
+dissipated young men and enamelled women.  He swore that he would
+win a place in their midst, and an influential place too.  But it
+was easier to form this plan than to carry it into execution, as
+he discovered when, at the end of the month, he counted his money
+to see what remained of the five thousand francs that had been
+given him for his quarterly allowance.  He had just three hundred
+francs left.
+
+Twenty thousand francs a year is what one chooses to make it--
+wealth or poverty.  Twenty thousand francs a year represents about
+sixty francs a day; but what are sixty francs to a high liver, who
+breakfasts and dines at the best restaurants, whose clothes are
+designed by an illustrious tailor, who declines to make a pair of
+trousers for less than a hundred francs? What are three louis a
+day to a man who hires a box for first performances at the opera,
+to a man who gambles and gives expensive suppers, to a man who
+drives out with yellow-haired demoiselles, and who owns a race-
+horse? Measuring his purse and his ambition, M. Wilkie discovered
+that he should never succeed in making both ends meet.  "How do
+other people manage?" he wondered.  A puzzling question! Every
+evening a thousand gorgeously apparelled gentlemen, with a cigar
+in their mouth and a flower in their button-hole, may be seen
+promenading between the Chaussee d'Antin and the Faubourg
+Montmartre.  Everybody knows them, and they know everybody, but
+how they exist is a problem which it is impossible to solve.  How
+do they live, and what do they live on? Everybody knows that they
+have no property; they do nothing, and yet they are reckless in
+their expenditures, and rail at work and jeer at economy.  What
+source do they derive their money from? What vile business are
+they engaged in?
+
+However, M.  Wilkie did not devote much time to solving this
+question.  "My relatives must wish me to starve," he said to
+himself.  "Not I--I'm not that sort of a person, as I'll soon let
+them know." And thereupon he wrote to M. Patterson.  By return of
+post that gentleman sent him a cheque for one thousand francs--a
+mere drop in the bucket.  M. Wilkie felt indignant and so he wrote
+again.  This time he was obliged to wait for a reply.  Still at
+last it came.  M. Patterson sent him two thousand francs, and an
+interminable epistle full of reproaches.  The interesting young
+man threw the letter into the fire, and went out to hire a
+carriage by the month and a servant.
+
+From that day forward, his life was spent in demanding money and
+waiting for it.  He employed in quick succession every pretext
+that could soften the hearts of obdurate relatives, or find the
+way to the most closely guarded cash-box.  He was ill--he had
+contracted a debt of honor--he had imprudently lent money to an
+unscrupulous friend--he was about to be arrested for debt.  And in
+accordance with the favorable or unfavorable character of the
+replies his manner became humble or impertinent, so that his
+friends soon learned to judge very accurately of the condition of
+his purse by the way he wore his mustaches.  He became wise with
+experience, however; and on adding all the sums he had received
+together, he decided that his family must be very rich to allow
+him so much money.  And this thought made him anxious to fathom
+the mystery of his birth and his infancy.  He finally persuaded
+himself that he was the son of a great English nobleman--a member
+of the House of Lords, who was twenty times a millionaire.  And he
+more than half believed it when he told his creditors that his
+lordship, his father, would some day or other come to Paris and
+pay all his debts.  Unfortunately it was not M. Wilkie's noble
+father that arrived, but a letter from M. Patterson, which was
+couched as follows:
+
+
+"MY DEAR SIR, a considerable sum was placed in my hands to meet
+your unexpected requirements; and in compliance with your repeated
+appeals, I have remitted the entire amount to you.  Not a penny
+remains in my possession--so that my instructions have been
+fulfilled.  Spare yourself the trouble of making any fresh
+demands; they will meet with no reply.  In future you will not
+receive a penny above your allowance, which in my opinion is
+already too large a one for a young man of your age."
+
+
+This letter proved a terrible blow to Wilkie.  What should he do?
+He felt that M. Patterson would not revoke his decision; and
+indeed he wrote him several imploring letters, in vain.  Yet never
+had his need of money been so urgent.  His creditors were becoming
+uneasy; bills actually rained in upon his concierge; his next
+quarterly allowance was not due for some time to come, and it was
+only through the pawnbroker that he could obtain money for his
+more pressing requirements.  He had begun to consider himself
+ruined.  He saw himself reduced to dismissing his carriage, to
+selling his third share of Pompier de Nanterre and losing the
+esteem of all his witty friends.
+
+He was in the depths of despair, when one morning his servant woke
+him up with the announcement that the Viscount de Coralth was in
+the sitting-room and wished to speak with him on very important
+business.  It was not usually an easy task to entice M. Wilkie
+from his bed, but the name his servant mentioned seemed to have a
+prodigious effect upon him.  He bounded on to the floor, and as he
+hastily dressed himself, he muttered: "The viscount here, at this
+hour! It's astonishing! What if he's going to fight a duel and
+wishes me to be his second? That would be a piece of grand good
+luck and no mistake.  It would assure my position at once. 
+Certainly something must have happened!"
+
+This last remark was by no means a proof of any remarkable
+perspicuity on M. Wilkie's part.  As M. de Coralth never went to
+bed until two or three o'clock in the morning, he was by no means
+an early riser, and only some very powerful reason could explain
+the presence of his blue-lined brougham in the street before nine
+o'clock A.M. And the influence that had made him rise betimes in
+the present case had indeed been extremely powerful.  Although the
+brilliant viscount had discovered Madame d'Argeles's secret,
+several months previously, he had so far disclosed it to no one. 
+It was certainly not from any delicacy of feeling that he had held
+his peace; but only because it had not been for his interest to
+speak.  Now, however, the sudden death of the Count de Chalusse
+changed the situation.  He heard of the catastrophe at his club on
+the evening after the count's death, and his emotion was so great
+that he actually declined to take part in a game of baccarat that
+was just beginning.  "The devil!" he exclaimed.  "Let me think a
+moment.  Madame d'Argeles is the heiress of all these millions--
+will she come forward and claim them? From what I know of her, I
+am inclined to think that she won't.  Will she ever go to Wilkie
+and confess that she, Lia d'Argeles, is a Chalusse, and that he is
+her illegitimate son? Never! She would rather relinquish her
+millions, both for herself and for him, than take such a step. 
+She is so ridiculously antiquated in her notions."  And then he
+began to study what advantages he might derive from his knowledge
+of the situation.
+
+M. de Coralth, like all persons whose present is more or less
+uncertain, had great misgivings concerning his future.  Just now
+he was cunning enough to find a means of procuring the thirty or
+forty thousand francs a year that were indispensable to his
+comfort; but he had not a farthing laid by, and the vein of silver
+he was now working might fail him at any moment.  The slightest
+indiscretion, the least blunder, might hurl him from his splendor
+into the mire.  The perspiration started out on his forehead when
+he thought of his peril.  He passionately longed for a more
+assured position--for a little capital that would insure him his
+bread until the end of his days, and rid him of the grim phantom
+of poverty forever.  And it was this desire which inspired him
+with the same plan that M. Fortunat had formed.  "Why shouldn't I
+inform Wilkie?" he said to himself.  "If I present him with a
+fortune, the simpleton ought certainly to give me some reward."
+But to carry this plan into execution it would be necessary to
+brave Madame d'Argeles's anger; and that was attended by no little
+danger.  If he knew something about her, she on her side knew
+everything connected with his past life.  She had only to speak to
+ruin him forever.  Still, after weighing all the advantages and
+all the dangers, he decided to act, convinced that Madame
+d'Argeles might be kept ignorant of his treason, providing he only
+played his cards skilfully.  And his matutinal visit to M. Wilkie
+was caused by a fear that he might not be the only person knowing
+the truth, and that some one else might forestall him.
+
+"You here, at sunrise, my friend!" exclaimed Wilkie, as he entered
+the room where the viscount was seated.  "What has happened?"
+
+"To me?--nothing," replied the viscount.  "It was solely on your
+account that I deviated from my usual habits."
+
+"What is it? You frighten me."
+
+"Oh! don't be alarmed.  I have only some good news to
+communicate," and in a careless tone which cleverly concealed his
+anxiety, the viscount added: "I have come, my dear Wilkie, to ask
+you what you would be willing to give the man who put you in
+possession of a fortune of several millions?"
+
+M. Wilkie's face turned from white to purple at least three times
+in ten seconds; and it was in a strangely altered voice that he
+replied: "Ah! that's good--very good--excellent!" He tried his
+best to laugh, but he was completely overcome; and, in fact, he
+had cherished so many extravagant hopes that nothing seemed
+impossible to him.
+
+"Never in all my life have I spoken more seriously," insisted the
+viscount.
+
+His companion at first made no reply.  It was easy to divine the
+conflict that was raging in his mind, between the hope that the
+news was true and the fear of being made the victim of a practical
+joke.  "Come, my friend," he said at last, "do you want to poke
+fun at me? That wouldn't be polite.  A debtor is always sacred,
+and I owe you twenty-five louis.  This is scarcely the time to
+talk of millions.  My relatives have cut off my supplies; and my
+creditors are overwhelming me with their bills----"
+
+But M. de Coralth checked him, saying gravely: "Upon my honor, I
+am not jesting.  What would you give a man who--"
+
+"I would give him half of the fortune he gave me."
+
+"That's too much!"
+
+"No, no!"
+
+He was in earnest, certainly.  What wouldn't a man promise in all
+sincerity of soul to a fellow mortal who gave him money when he
+had none--when he needed it urgently and must have it to save
+himself from ruin?
+
+At such a moment no commission, however large, seems exorbitant. 
+It is afterward, when the day of settlement comes, that people
+begin to find fault with the rate of interest.
+
+"If I tell you that one-half is too much, it is because such is
+really the case.  And I am the best judge of the matter, since I
+am the man who can put you in possession of this enormous
+fortune."
+
+M. Wilkie started back in speechless amazement.
+
+"This astonishes you!" said the viscount; "and why, pray? Is it
+because I ask for a commission?"
+
+"Oh! not at all!"
+
+"It is not perhaps a very gentlemanly proceeding, but it is a
+sensible one.  Business is business.  In the afternoon, when I am
+in a restaurant, at the club, or in a lady's boudoir, I am merely
+the viscount and the grand seigneur.  All money questions sicken
+me.  I am careless, liberal, and obliging to a fault.  But in the
+morning I am simply Coralth, a man of the middle classes who
+doesn't pay his bills without examining them, and who watches his
+money, because he doesn't wish to be ruined and end his brilliant
+career as a common soldier in some foreign legion."
+
+M. Wilkie did not allow him to continue.  He believed, and his joy
+was wild--delirious.  "Enough, enough!" he interrupted.  "A
+difficulty between us! Never! I am yours without reserve! Do you
+understand me? How much must you have? Do you wish for it all?"
+
+But the viscount was unmoved.  "It is not fitting that I should
+fix upon the indemnity which is due to me.  I will consult a man
+of business; and I will decide upon this point on the day after
+to-morrow, when I shall explain everything to you."
+
+"On the day after to-morrow! You won't leave me in suspense for
+forty-eight hours?"
+
+"It is unavoidable.  I have still some important information to
+procure.  I lost no time in coming to you, so that I might put you
+on your guard.  If any scoundrel comes to you with proposals, be
+extremely careful.  Some agents, when they obtain a hold on an
+estate, leave nothing for the rightful owner.  So don't treat with
+any one."
+
+"Oh, no! You may rest assured I won't."
+
+"I should be quieter in mind if I had your promise in writing."
+
+Without a word, Wilkie darted to a table, and wrote a short
+contract by which he bound himself to give M. Ferdinand de Coralth
+one-half of the inheritance which the aforesaid Coralth might
+prove him to be entitled to.  The viscount read the document,
+placed it in his pocket, and then said, as he took up his hat:
+
+"Very well.  I will see you again on Monday."
+
+But M. Wilkie's doubts were beginning to return.  "Monday, so be
+it!" said he; "but swear that you are not deceiving me."
+
+"What, do you still doubt me?"
+
+M. Wilkie reflected for a moment; and suddenly a brilliant
+inspiration darted through his brain.  "If you are speaking the
+truth, I shall soon be rich," said he.  "But, in the meantime,
+life is hard.  I haven't a penny, and it isn't a pleasant
+situation.  I have a horse entered for the race to-morrow, Pompier
+de Nanterre.  You know the animal very well.  The chances are
+enormously in his favor.  So, if it wouldn't inconvenience you to
+lend me fifty louis "
+
+"Certainly," interrupted the viscount, cordially.  "Certainly;
+with the greatest pleasure."
+
+And drawing a beautiful little notebook from his pocket he took
+from it not one, but two bank-notes of a thousand francs, and
+handed them to M. Wilkie, saying: "Monsieur believes me now, does
+he not?"
+
+As will be readily believed, it was not for his own pleasure that
+M. de Coralth postponed his confidential disclosures for a couple
+of days.  He knew Wilkie perfectly well, and felt that it was
+dangerous to let him roam about Paris with half of an important
+secret. Postponement generally furnishes fate with weapons against
+oneself.  But it was impossible for the viscount to act otherwise. 
+He had not seen the Marquis de Valorsay since the Count de
+Chalusse's death and he dared not conclude the contract with
+Wilkie before he had conferred with him, for he was completely in
+the marquis's power.  At the least suspicion of treason, M. de
+Valorsay would close his hand, and he, Coralth, would be crushed
+like an egg-shell.  It was to the house of his formidable
+associate that he repaired on leaving M. Wilkie; and in a single
+breath he told the marquis all that he knew, and the plans that he
+had formed.
+
+M. de Valorsay's astonishment must have been intense when he heard
+that Lia d'Argeles was a Chalusse, but he knew how to maintain his
+composure.  He listened quietly, and when the viscount had
+completed his story, he asked: "Why did you wait so long before
+telling me all this?"
+
+"I didn't see how it could interest you in the least."
+
+The marquis looked at him keenly, and then calmly said: "In other
+words, you were waiting to see whether it would be most
+advantageous to you to be with me or against me."
+
+"How can you think----"
+
+"I don't think, I'm sure of it.  As long as I was strong support
+for you, you were devoted to me.  But now I am tottering, and you
+are ready to betray me."
+
+"Excuse me! The step I am about to take----"
+
+"What, haven't you taken it already?" interrupted the marquis,
+quickly.  And shrugging his shoulders, he added: "Observe that I
+don't reproach you in the least.  Only remember this: we survive
+or we perish together."
+
+By the angry gleam in M. de Coralth's eyes, the marquis must have
+realized that his companion was disposed to rebel; still this
+knowledge did not seem to disquiet him, for it was in the same icy
+tone that he continued: "Besides, your plans, far from conflicting
+with mine, will be of service to me.  Yes, Madame d'Argeles must
+lay claim to the count's estate.  If she hesitates, her son will
+compel her to urge her claims, will he not?"
+
+"Oh, you may rest assured of that."
+
+"And when he becomes rich, will you be able to retain your
+influence over him?"
+
+"Rich or poor, I can mould him like wax."
+
+"Very good.  Marguerite was escaping me, but I shall soon have her
+in my power.  I have a plan.  The Fondeges think they can outwit
+me, but we shall soon see about that." The viscount was watching
+his companion stealthily; as the latter perceived, and so in a
+tone of brusque cordiality, he resumed: "Excuse me for not keeping
+you to breakfast, but I must go out immediately--Baron Trigault is
+waiting for me at his house.  Let us part friends--au revoir--and,
+above all, keep me well posted about matters in general."
+
+M. de Coralth's temper was already somewhat ruffled when he
+entered Valorsay's house; and he was in a furious passion when he
+left it.  "So we are to survive or perish together," he growled. 
+"Thanks for the preference you display for my society.  Is it my
+fault that the fool has squandered his fortune? I fancy I've had
+enough of his threats and airs."
+
+Still his wrath was not so violent as to make him forget his own
+interests.  He at once went to inquire if the agreement which M.
+Wilkie had just signed would be binding.  The lawyer whom he
+consulted replied that, at all events, a reasonable compensation
+would most probably be granted by the courts, in case of any
+difficulty; and he suggested a little plan which was a chef
+d'oeuvre in its way, at the same time advising his client to
+strike the iron while it was hot.
+
+It was not yet noon, and the viscount determined to act upon the
+suggestion at once; he now bitterly regretted the delay he had
+specified.  "I must find Wilkie at once," he said to himself.  But
+he did not succeed in meeting him until the evening, when he found
+him at the Cafe Riche--and in what a condition too! The two
+bottles of wine which the young fool had drank at dinner had gone
+to his head, and he was enumerating, in a loud voice, the desires
+he meant to gratify as soon as he came into possession of his
+millions.  "What a brute!" thought the enraged viscount.  "If I
+leave him to himself, no one knows what foolish thing he may do or
+say.  I must remain with him until he becomes sober again."
+
+So he followed him to the theatre, and thence to Brebant's, where
+he was sitting feeling terribly bored, when M. Wilkie conceived
+the unfortunate idea of inviting Victor Chupin to come up and take
+some refreshment.  The scene which followed greatly alarmed the
+viscount.  Who could this young man be? He did not remember having
+ever seen him before, and yet the young scamp was evidently well
+acquainted with his past life, for he had cast the name of Paul in
+his face, as a deadly insult.  Surely this was enough to make the
+viscount shudder! How did it happen that this young man had been
+just on the spot ready to pick up Wilkie's hat? Was it mere
+chance? Certainly not.  He could not believe it.  Then why was the
+fellow there? Evidently to watch somebody.  And whom? Why, him--
+Coralth--undoubtedly.
+
+In going through life as he had done, a man makes enemies at every
+step; and he had an imposing number of foes, whom he only held in
+check by his unbounded impudence and his renown as a duellist. 
+Thus it was not strange if some one had set a snare for him; it
+was rather a miracle that he had not fallen into one before.  The
+dangers that threatened him were so formidable that he was almost
+tempted to relinquish his attack on Madame d'Argeles.  Was it
+prudent to incur the risk of making this woman an enemy? All
+Sunday he hesitated.  It would be very easy to get out of the
+scrape.  He could concoct some story for Wilkie's benefit, and
+that would be the end of it.  But on the other hand, there was the
+prospect of netting at least five hundred thousand francs--a
+fortune--a competency, and the idea was too tempting to be
+relinquished.
+
+So on Monday morning, at about ten o'clock, he presented himself
+at Wilkie's house, looking pale with anxiety, and far more solemn
+in manner than usual.  "Let us say but little, and that to the
+point," he remarked on entering.  "The secret I am about to reveal
+to you will make you rich; but it might ruin me if it were known
+that you obtained this information through me.  You will therefore
+swear, upon your honor as a gentleman, never to betray me, under
+any circumstances, or for any reason."
+
+M. Wilkie extended his hand and solemnly exclaimed: "I swear!"
+
+"Very well, then.  Now my mind is at rest.  It is scarcely
+necessary for me to add that if you break your faith you are a
+dead man.  You know me.  You know how I handle a sword; and don't
+forget it." His manner was so threatening that Wilkie shuddered. 
+"You will certainly be questioned," continued M. de Coralth; "but
+you must reply that you received the information through one of
+Mr. Patterson's friends.  Now let us sign our formal contract in
+lieu of the temporary one you gave me the other day."
+
+It is needless to say that Wilkie signed it eagerly.  Not so the
+viscount; he read the document through carefully, before appending
+his signature, and then exclaimed: "The estate that belongs to you
+is that of the Count de Chalusse, your uncle.  He leaves, I am
+informed, at least eight or ten millions of property."
+
+By M. Wilkie's excited gestures, by the glitter in his eyes, it
+might have been supposed that this wonderful good fortune was too
+much for him, and that he was going mad.  "I knew that I belonged
+to a noble family," he began.  "The Count de Chalusse my uncle!  I
+shall have a coronet on the corner of my visiting cards."
+
+But with a gesture M. de Coralth silenced him.  "Wait a little
+before you rejoice," said he.  "Yes, your mother is the sister of
+the Count de Chalusse, and it is through her that you are an heir
+to the estate.  But--don't grieve too much--there are similar
+misfortunes in many of our most distinguished families--
+circumstances--the obstinacy of parents--a love more powerful than
+reason----" The viscount paused, certainly he had no prejudices;
+but at the moment of telling this interesting young man who his
+mother really was, he hesitated.
+
+"Go on," insisted M. Wilkie.
+
+"Well--when your mother was a young girl, about twenty, she fled
+from her paternal home with a man she loved.  Forsaken afterward,
+she found herself in the depths of poverty.  She was obliged to
+live.  You were starving.  So she changed her name, and now she is
+known as Lia d'Argeles."
+
+M. Wilkie sprang to his feet.  "Lia d'Argeles!" he exclaimed. 
+Then, with a burst of laughter, he added: "Nevertheless, I think
+it a piece of grand good luck!"
+
+
+
+VI.
+
+
+"This man carries away your secret; you are lost." A sinister
+voice whispered these words in Madame Lia d'Argeles's heart when
+M. Isidore Fortunat, after being rudely dismissed, closed the door
+of her drawing-room behind him.  This man had addressed her by the
+ancient and illustrious name of Chalusse which she had not heard
+for twenty years, and which she had forbidden her own lips to
+pronounce.  This man knew that she, Lia d'Argeles, was really a
+Durtal de Chalusse.
+
+This frightful certainty overwhelmed her.  It is true this man
+Fortunat had declared that his visit was entirely disinterested. 
+He had pretended that his regard for the Chalusse family, and the
+compassion aroused in his heart by the unfortunate plight of
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, were the only motives that has influenced
+him in taking this step.  However, Madame d'Argeles's experience
+in life had left her but limited faith in apparent or pretended
+disinterestedness.  This is a practical age; chivalrous sentiments
+are expensive--as she had learned conclusively.  "If the man came
+here," she murmured, "it was only because he thought he might
+derive some benefit from the prosecution of my claim to my poor
+brother's estate.  In refusing to listen to his entreaties, I have
+deprived him of this expected profit and so I have made him my
+enemy.  Ah! I was foolish to send him away like that! I ought to
+have pretended to listen--I ought to have bound him by all sorts
+of promises."
+
+She suddenly paused.  It occurred to her that M. Fortunat could
+not have gone very far; so that, if she sent for him to come back,
+she might perhaps be able to repair her blunder.  Without losing a
+second, she rushed downstairs, and ordered her concierge and a
+servant to run after the gentleman who had just left the house,
+and ask him to return; to tell him that she had reflected, and
+wished to speak to him again.  They rushed out in pursuit, and she
+remained in the courtyard, her heart heavy with anxiety.  Too
+late! About a quarter of an hour afterward her emissaries
+returned.  They had made all possible haste in contrary
+directions, but they had seen no one in the street who at all
+resembled the person they were looking for.  They had questioned
+the shopkeepers, but no one had seen him pass.  "It doesn't
+matter," faltered Madame d'Argeles, in a tone that belied her
+words.  And, anxious to escape the evident curiosity of her
+servants, she hastened back to the little boudoir where she
+usually spent her mornings.
+
+M. Fortunat had left his card--that is to say, his address--and it
+would have been an easy matter to send a servant to his house. 
+She was strongly tempted to do so; but she ultimately decided that
+it would be better to wait--that an hour more or less would make
+but little difference.  She had sent her trusty servant, Job, for
+Baron Trigault; he would probably return with the baron at any
+moment; and the baron would advise her.  He would know at once
+what was the best course for her to pursue.  And so she waited for
+his coming in breathless anxiety; and the more she reflected, the
+more imminent her peril seemed, for she realized that M. Fortunat
+must be a very dangerous and cunning man.  He had set a trap for
+her, and she had allowed herself to be caught.  Perhaps he had
+only suspected the truth when he presented himself at the house. 
+He had suddenly announced the death of the Count de Chalusse; she
+had betrayed herself; and any doubts he might have entertained
+were dispelled.  "If I had only had sufficient presence of mind to
+deny it," she murmured.  "If I had only been courageous enough to
+reply that I knew absolutely nothing about the person he spoke of. 
+Ah! then he would have gone away convinced that he was mistaken."
+
+But would the smooth-spoken visitor have declared that he knew
+everything, if he had not really penetrated the mystery of her
+life? It was scarcely probable.  He had implored her to accept the
+property, if not for her own sake at least for the sake of
+another.  And when she asked him whom he meant he had answered,
+"Mademoiselle Marguerite," but he was undoubtedly thinking of
+Wilkie.  So this man, this Isidore Fortunat, knew that she had a
+son.  Perhaps he was even acquainted with him personally.  In his
+anger he would very likely hasten to Wilkie's rooms and tell him
+everything.  This thought filled the wretched woman's heart with 
+despair.  What! Had she not yet expiated her fault? Must she
+suffer again?
+
+For the first time a terrible doubt came over her.  What she had
+formerly regarded as a most sublime effort of maternal love, was,
+perhaps, even a greater crime than the first she had committed. 
+She had given her honor as the price of her son's happiness and
+prosperity.  Had she a right to do so? Did not the money she had
+lavished upon him contain every germ of corruption, misfortune,
+and shame? How terrible Wilkie's grief and rage would be if he
+chanced to hear the truth!
+
+Alas! he would certainly pay no heed to the extenuating
+circumstances; he would close his ears to all attempts at
+justification.  He would be pitiless.  He would have naught but
+hatred and scorn to bestow upon a mother who had fallen from the
+highest rank in society down to everlasting infamy.  She fancied
+she heard him saying in an indignant voice, "It would have been
+better to have allowed me to die of starvation than to have given
+me bread purchased at such a price! Why have you dishonored me by
+your ill-gotten wealth? Fallen, you might have raised yourself by
+honest toil.  You ought to have made me a laborer, and not a
+spoiled idler, incapable of earning an honest livelihood.  As the
+son of a poor, betrayed, and deserted woman, with whom I could
+have shared my scanty earnings, I might have looked the world
+proudly in the face.  But where can the son of Lia d'Argeles hide
+his disgrace after playing the gentleman for twenty years with Lia
+d'Argeles's money?" Yes, Wilkie would certainly say this if he
+ever learned the truth; and he would learn it--she felt sure of
+it.  How could she hope to keep a secret which was known to Baron
+Trigault, M. Patterson, the Viscount de Coralth, and M. Fortunat--
+four persons! She had confidence in the first two; she believed
+she had a hold on the third, but the fourth--Fortunat!
+
+The hours went by; and still Job did not return.  What was the
+meaning of this delay? Had he failed to find the baron? At last
+the sound of carriage-wheels in the courtyard made her start. 
+"That's Job!" she said to herself.  "He brings the baron."
+
+Alas! no.  Job returned alone.  And yet the honest fellow had
+spared neither pains nor horseflesh.  He had visited every place
+where there was the least probability of finding the baron, and he
+was everywhere told that Baron Trigault had not been seen for
+several days.  "In that case, you ought to have gone to his house. 
+Perhaps he is there," remarked Madame d'Argeles.
+
+"Madame knows that the baron is never at home.  I did go there,
+however, but in vain."
+
+This chanced to be one of three consecutive days which Baron
+Trigault had spent with Kami-Bey, the Turkish ambassador.  It had
+been agreed between them that they should play until one or the
+other had lost five hundred thousand francs; and, in order to
+prevent any waste of "precious time," as the baron was wont to
+remark, they neither of them stirred from the Grand Hotel, where
+Kami-Bey had a suite of rooms.  They ate and slept there.  By some
+strange chance, Madame d'Argeles had not heard of this duel with
+bank-notes, although nothing else was talked of at the clubs;
+indeed, the Figaro had already published a minute description of
+the apartment where the contest was going on; and every evening it
+gave the results.  According to the latest accounts, the baron had
+the advantage; he had won about two hundred and eighty thousand
+francs.
+
+"I only returned to inform madame that I had so far been
+unsuccessful," said Job.  "But I will recommence the search at
+once."
+
+"That is unnecessary," replied Madame d'Argeles.  "The baron will
+undoubtedly drop in this evening, after dinner, as usual."
+
+She said this, and tried her best to believe it; but in her secret
+heart she felt that she could no longer depend upon the baron's
+assistance.  "I wounded him this morning," she thought.  "He went
+away more angry than I had ever seen him before.  He is incensed
+with me; and who knows how long it will be before he comes again?"
+
+Still she waited, with feverish anxiety, listening breathlessly to
+every sound in the street, and trembling each time she heard or
+fancied she heard a carriage stop at the door.  However, at two
+o'clock in the morning the baron had not made his appearance.  "It
+is too late--he won't come!" she murmured.
+
+But now her sufferings were less intolerable, for excess of
+wretchedness had deadened her sensibility.  Utter prostration
+paralyzed her energies and benumbed her mind.  Ruin seemed so
+inevitable that she no longer thought of avoiding it; she awaited
+it with that blind resignation displayed by Spanish women, who,
+when they hear the roll of thunder, fall upon their knees,
+convinced that lightning is about to strike their defenceless
+heads.  She tottered to her room, flung herself on the bed, and
+instantly fell asleep.  Yes, she slept the heavy, leaden slumber
+which always follows a great mental crisis, and which falls like
+God's blessing upon a tortured mind.  On waking up, her first act
+was to ring for her maid, in order to send a message to Job, to go
+out again in search of the baron.  But the faithful servant had
+divined his mistress's wishes, and had already started off of his
+own accord.  It was past mid-day when he returned, but his face
+was radiant; and it was in a triumphant voice that he announced:
+"Monsieur le Baron Trigault."
+
+Madame d'Argeles sprang up, and greeted the baron with a joyful
+exclamation.  "Ah! how kind of you to come!" she exclaimed.  "You
+are most welcome.  If you knew how anxiously I have been waiting
+for you!" He made no reply.  "If you knew," continued Madame
+d'Argeles, "if you only knew "
+
+But she paused, for in spite of her own agitation, she was
+suddenly struck by the peculiar expression on her visitor's face. 
+He was standing silent and motionless in the centre of the room,
+and his eyes were fixed upon her with a strange, persistent stare
+in which she could read all the contradictory feelings which were
+battling for mastery in his mind--anger, hatred, pity, and
+forgiveness.  Madame d'Argeles shuddered.  So her cup of sorrow
+was not yet full.  A new misfortune was about to fall upon her. 
+She had hoped that the baron would be able to alleviate her
+wretchedness, but it seemed as if he were fated to increase it. 
+"Why do you look at me like that?" she asked, anxiously.  "What
+have I done?"
+
+"You, my poor Lia--nothing!"
+
+"Then--what is it? Oh, my God! you frighten me."
+
+"What is it? Well, I am going to tell you," he said, as he stepped
+forward and took her hand in his own.  "You know that I have been
+infamously duped and deceived, that the happiness of my life has
+been destroyed by a scoundrel who tempted the wife I so fondly
+loved to forget her duty, and trample her honor under foot.  You
+have heard my vows of vengeance if I ever succeeded in discovering
+him.  Ah, well, Lia, I have discovered him.  The man who stole my
+share of earthly happiness was the Count de Chalusse, your
+brother."
+
+With a sudden gesture Madame d'Argeles freed her hand from the
+baron's grasp, and recoiled as terrified as if she had seen a
+spectre rise up before her.  Then with her hands extended as if to
+ward off the horrible apparition, she exclaimed: "O, my God!"
+
+A bitter smile curved the baron's lips.  "What do you fear?" he
+asked.  "Isn't your brother dead? He has defrauded me alike of
+happiness and vengeance!"
+
+If her son's life had depended on a single word, Madame d'Argeles
+could not have uttered it.  She knew what mental agony had urged
+the baron to a sort of moral suicide, and led him to contract the
+vice in which he wasted his life and squandered, or, at least
+risk, his millions.
+
+"Nor is this all," he continued.  "Listen.  As I have often told
+you, I was sure that my wife became a mother in my absence.  I
+sought the child for years, hoping that through the offspring I
+might discover the father.  Ah, well! I've found what I sought, at
+last.  The child is now a beautiful young girl.  She lives at the
+Hotel de Chalusse as your brother's daughter.  She is known as
+Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+Madame d'Argeles listened, leaning against the wall for support,
+and trembling like a leaf.  Her reason was shaken by so many
+repeated blows, and her son, her brother, Marguerite, Pascal
+Ferailleur, Coralth, Valorsay--all those whom she loved or feared,
+or hated--rose like spectres before her troubled brain.  The 
+horror of the truth exceeded her most frightful apprehensions. 
+The strangeness of the reality surpassed every flight of fancy. 
+And, moreover, the baron's calmness increased her stupor.  She so
+often had heard him give vent to his rage and despair in terrible
+threats, that she could not believe he would be thus resigned. 
+But was his calmness real? Was it not a mask, would not his fury
+suddenly break forth?
+
+However, he continued, "It is thus that destiny makes us its
+sport--it is thus that it laughs at our plans.  Do you remember,
+Lia, the day when I met you wandering through the streets of
+Paris--with your child in your arms--pale and half dead with
+fatigue, faint for want of food, homeless and penniless? You saw
+no refuge but in death, as you have since told me.  How could I
+imagine when I rescued you that I was saving my greatest enemy's
+sister from suicide--the sister of the man whom I was vainly
+pursuing? And yet this might not be the end, if I chose to have it
+otherwise.  The count is dead, but I can still return him disgrace
+for disgrace.  He dishonored me.  What prevents me from casting
+ineffaceable opprobrium upon the great name of Chalusse, of which
+he was so proud? He seduced my wife.  To-day I can tell all Paris
+what his sister has been and what she is to-day."
+
+Ah! it was this--yes, it was this that Madame d'Argeles had
+dreaded.  She fell upon her knees, and, with clasped hands she
+entreated: "Pity!--oh! have pity--forgive me! Have mercy! Have I
+not always been a faithful and devoted friend to you? Think of the
+past you have just invoked! Who helped you then to bear your
+intolerable sufferings? Don't you remember the day when you,
+yourself, had determined to die by your own hand? There was a
+woman who persuaded you to abandon the thought of suicide.  It was
+I!"
+
+He looked at her for a moment with a softer expression, tears came
+to his eyes, and rolled down his cheeks.  Then suddenly he raised
+her, and placed her in an arm-chair, exclaiming: "Ah! you know
+very well that I shall not do what I said.  Don't you know me
+better than that? Are you not sure of my affection, are you not
+aware that you are sacred in my eyes?" He was evidently striving
+hard to master his emotion.  "Besides," he added, "I had already
+pardoned before coming here.  It was foolish on my part, perhaps,
+and for nothing in the world would I confess it to my
+acquaintances, but it is none the less true.  I shall have my
+revenge in a certain fashion, however.  I need only hold my peace,
+and the daughter of M. de Chalusse and Madame Trigault would
+become a lost woman.  Is this not so? Very well, I shall offer her
+my assistance.  It may, or may not, be another absurd and
+ridiculous fancy added to the many I have been guilty of.  But no
+matter.  I have promised.  And why, indeed, should this poor girl
+be held responsible for the sins of her parents? I--I declare
+myself on her side against the world!"
+
+Madame d'Argeles rose, her face radiant with joy and hope.  "Then
+perhaps we are saved!" she exclaimed.  "Ah! I knew when I sent for
+you that I should not appeal to your heart in vain!"
+
+She took hold of his hand as if to raise it to her lips; but he
+gently withdrew it, and inquired, with an air of astonishment:
+"What do you mean?"
+
+"That I have been cruelly punished for not wishing you to assist
+that unfortunate man who was dishonored here the other evening."
+
+"Pascal Ferailleur?"
+
+"Yes, he is innocent.  The Viscount de Coralth is a scoundrel.  It
+was he who slipped the cards which made M. Ferailleur win, into
+the pack, and he did it at the Marquis de Valorsay's instigation."
+
+The baron looked at Madame d'Argeles with pro-found amazement. 
+"What!" said he; "you knew this and you allowed it? You were cruel
+enough to remain silent when that innocent man entreated you to
+testify on his behalf! You allowed this atrocious crime to be
+executed under your own roof, and under your very eyes?"
+
+"I was then ignorant of Mademoiselle Marguerite's existence.  I
+did not know that the young man was beloved by my brother's
+daughter--I did not know--"
+
+The baron interrupted her, and exclaimed, indignantly: "Ah! what
+does that matter? It was none the less an abominable action."
+
+She hung her head, and in a scarcely audible voice replied: "I was
+not free.  I submitted to a will that was stronger than my own. 
+If you had heard M. de Coralth's threats you would not censure me
+so severely.  He has discovered my secret; he knows Wilkie--I am
+in his power.  Don't frown--I make no attempt to excuse myself--I
+am only explaining the position in which I was placed.  My peril
+is imminent; I have only confidence in you--you alone can aid me;
+listen!"
+
+Thereupon she hastily explained M. de Coralth's position
+respecting herself, what she had been able to ascertain concerning
+the Marquis de Valorsay's plans, the alarming visit she had
+received from M. Fortunat, his advice and insinuations, the
+dangers she apprehended, and her firm determination to deliver
+Mademoiselle Marguerite from the machinations of her enemies. 
+Madame d'Argeles's disclosures formed, as it were, a sequel to the
+confidential revelations of Pascal Ferailleur, and the involuntary
+confession of the Marquis de Valorsay; and the baron could no
+longer doubt the existence of the shameful intrigue which had been
+planned in view of obtaining possession of the count's millions. 
+And if he did not, at first, understand the motives, he at least
+began to discern what means had been employed.  He now understood
+why Valorsay persisted in his plan of marrying Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, even without a fortune.  "The wretch knows through
+Coralth that Madame d'Argeles is a Chalusse," he said to himself;
+"and when Mademoiselle Marguerite has become his wife, he intends
+to oblige Madame d'Argeles to accept her brother's estate and
+share it with him."
+
+At that same moment Madame d'Argeles finished her narrative.  "And
+now, what shall I do?" she added.
+
+The baron was stroking his chin, as was his usual habit when his
+mind was deeply exercised.  "The first thing to be done," he
+replied, "is to show Coralth in his real colors, and prove M.
+Ferailleur's innocence.  It will probably cost me a hundred
+thousand francs to do so, but I shall not grudge the money.  I
+should probably spend as much or even more in play next summer;
+and the amount had better be spent in a good cause than in
+swelling the dividends of my friend Blanc, at Baden."
+
+"But M. de Coralth will speak out as soon as he finds that I have
+revealed his shameful past."
+
+"Let him speak."
+
+Madame d'Argeles shuddered.  "Then the name of Chalusse will be
+disgraced," said she; "and Wilkie will know who his mother is."
+
+"No."
+
+"But----"
+
+"Ah! allow me to finish, my dear friend.  I have my plan, and it
+is as plain as daylight.  This evening you will write to your
+London correspondent.  Request M. Patterson to summon your son to
+England, under any pretext whatever; let him pretend that he
+wishes to give him some money, for instance.  He will go there, of
+course, and then we will keep him there.  Coralth certainly won't
+run after him, and we shall have nothing more to fear on that
+score."
+
+"Great heavens!" murmured Madame d'Argeles, "why did this idea
+never occur to me?"
+
+The baron had now completely recovered his composure.  "As regards
+yourself," said he, "the plan you ought to adopt is still more
+simple.  What is your furniture worth? About a hundred thousand
+francs, isn't it? Very well, then.  You will sign me notes, dated
+some time back, to the amount of a hundred thousand francs.  On
+the day these notes fall due, on Monday, for instance, they will
+be presented for payment.  You will refuse to pay them.  A writ
+will be served, and an attachment placed upon your furniture; but
+you will offer no resistance.  I don't know if I explain my
+meaning very clearly."
+
+"Oh, very clearly!"
+
+"So your property is seized.  You make no opposition, and next
+week we shall have flaming posters on all the walls, telling Paris
+that the furniture, wardrobe, cashmeres, laces, and diamonds of
+Madame Lia d'Argeles will be sold without reserve, at public
+auction, in the Rue Drouot, with the view of satisfying the claims
+of her creditors.  You can imagine the sensation this announcement
+will create.  I can see your friends and the frequenters of your
+drawing-room meeting one another in the street, and saying: 'Ah,
+well! what's this about poor d'Argeles?' 'Pshaw!--no doubt it's a
+voluntary sale.' 'Not at all; she's really ruined.  Everything is
+mortgaged above its value.' 'Indeed, I'm very sorry to hear it. 
+She was a good creature.' 'Oh, excellent; a deal of amusement
+could be found at her house,--only between you and me----' 'Well?'
+'Well, she was no longer young.' 'That's true.  However, I shall
+attend the sale, and I think I shall bid.' And, in fact, your
+acquaintances won't fail to repair to the Hotel Drouot, and maybe
+your most intimate friends will yield to their generous impulses
+sufficiently to offer twenty sous for one of the dainty trifles on
+your etageres."
+
+Overcome with shame, Madame d'Argeles hung her head.  She had
+never before so keenly felt the disgrace of her situation.  She
+had never so clearly realized what a deep abyss she had fallen
+into.  And this crushing humiliation came from whom? From the only
+friend she possessed--from the man who was her only hope, Baron
+Trigault.
+
+And what made it all the more frightful was, that he did not seem
+to be in the least degree conscious of the cruelty of his words. 
+Indeed, he continued, in a tone of bitter irony: "Of course, you
+will have an exhibition before the sale, and you will see all the
+dolls that hairdressers, milliners and fools call great ladies,
+come running to the show.  They will come to see how a notorious
+woman lives, and to ascertain if there are any good bargains to be
+had.  This is the right form.  These great ladies would be 
+delighted to display diamonds purchased at the sale of a woman of
+the demi monde.  Oh! don't fear--your exhibition will be visited
+by my wife and daughter, by the Viscountess de Bois d'Ardon, by
+Madame de Rochecote, her five daughters, and a great many more. 
+Then the papers will take up the refrain; they will give an
+account of your financial difficulties, and tell the public what
+you paid for your pictures."
+
+It was with a sort of terror-stricken curiosity that Madame
+d'Argeles watched the baron.  It had been many years since she had
+seen him in such a frame of mind--since she had heard him talk in
+such a cynical fashion.  "I am ready to follow your advice," said
+she, "but afterward?"
+
+"What, don't you understand the object I have in view?  Afterward
+you will disappear.  I know five or six journalists; and it would
+be very strange if I could not convince one of them that you had
+died upon an hospital pallet.  It will furnish the subject of a
+touching, and what is better, a moral article.  The papers will
+say, 'Another star has disappeared.  This is the miserable end of
+all the poor wretches whose passing luxury scandalizes honest
+women.'"
+
+"And what will become of me?"
+
+"A respected woman, Lia.  You will go to England, install yourself
+in some pretty cottage near London, and create a new identity for
+yourself.  The proceeds of your sale will supply your wants and
+Wilkie's for more than a year.  Before that time has elapsed you
+will have succeeded in accumulating the necessary proofs of your
+identity, and then you can assert your claims and take possession
+of your brother's estate."
+
+Madame d'Argeles sprang to her feet.  "Never never!" she
+exclaimed, vehemently.
+
+The baron evidently thought he must have misunderstood her. 
+"What!" he stammered; "you will relinquish the millions that are
+legally yours, to the government?"
+
+"Yes--I am resolved--it must be so."
+
+"Will you sacrifice your son's future in this style?"
+
+"No, it isn't in my power to do that; but Wilkie will do so,
+later, on, I'm sure of it."
+
+"But this is simply folly."
+
+A feverish agitation had now succeeded Madame d'Argeles's torpor;
+there was an expression of scorn and anger on her rigid features,
+and her eyes, usually so dull and lifeless, fairly blazed.  "It is
+not folly," she exclaimed, "but vengeance!" And as the astonished
+baron opened his lips to question her: "Let me finish," she said
+imperiously, "and then you shall judge me.  I have told you with
+perfect frankness everything concerning my past life, save this--
+this--that I am married, Monsieur le Baron, legally married.  I am
+bound by a chain that nothing can break, and my husband is a
+scoundrel.  You would be frightened if you knew half the extent of
+his villainy.  Oh! do not shake your head.  I ought not to be
+suspected of exaggeration when I speak in this style of a man whom
+I once loved so devotedly.  For I loved him, alas!--even to
+madness--loved him so much that I forgot self, family, honor, and
+all the most sacred duties.  I loved him so madly that I was
+willing to follow him, while his hands were still wet with my
+brother's blood.  Ah! chastisement could not fail to come, and it
+was terrible, like the sin.  This man for whom I had abandoned
+everything--whom I had made my idol--do you know what he said to
+me the third day after my flight from home? 'You must be more
+stupid than an owl to have forgotten to take your jewels.' Yes,
+those were the very words he said to me, with a furious air.  And
+then I could measure the depths of the abyss into which I had
+plunged.  This man, with whom I had been so infatuated, did not
+love me at all, he had never loved me.  It had only been cold
+calculation on his part.  He had devoted months to the task of
+winning my heart, just as he would have devoted them to some
+business transaction.  He only saw in me the fortune that I was to
+inherit.  Oh! he didn't conceal it from me.  'If your parents are
+not monsters,' he was always saying, 'they will finally become
+reconciled to our marriage.  They will give you a handsome fortune
+and we will divide it.  I will give you back your liberty, and
+then we can each of us be happy in our own way.' It was for this
+reason that he wished to marry me.  I consented on account of my
+unborn child.  My father and mother had died, and he hoped to
+prevail upon me to claim my share of the paternal fortune.  As for
+claiming it himself, he dared not.  He was a coward, and he was
+afraid of my brother.  But I took a solemn oath that he should
+never have a farthing of the wealth he coveted, and neither
+threats nor BLOWS could compel me to assert my claim.  God only
+knows how much I had suffered from his brutality when I at last
+succeeded in making my escape with Wilkie.  He has sought us
+everywhere for fifteen years, but he has not yet succeeded in
+finding a trace of us.  Still he has not ceased to watch my
+brother.  I am sure of that, my presentiments never deceive me. 
+So, if I followed your advice--if I claimed possession of my
+brother's fortune--my husband would instantly appear with our
+marriage contract in his hands, and demand everything.  Shall I
+enrich him? No, never, never! I would rather die of want! I would
+rather see Wilkie die of starvation before my very eyes!"
+
+Madame d'Argeles spoke in that tone of concentrated rage which
+betrays years of repressed passion and unflinching resolution. 
+One could scarcely hope to modify her views even by the wisest and
+most practical advice.  The baron did not even think of attempting
+to do so.  He had known Madame d'Argeles for years; he had seen so
+many proofs of her invincible energy and determination.  She
+possessed the distinguishing characteristic of her family in a
+remarkable degree--that proverbial Chalusse obstinacy which Madame
+Vantrasson had alluded to in her conversation with M. Fortunat.
+
+She was silent for a moment, and then, in a firm tone she said:
+"Still, I will follow your advice in part, baron.  This evening I
+will write to M. Patterson and request him to send for Wilkie.  In
+less than a fortnight I shall have sold my furniture and
+disappeared.  I shall remain poor.  My fortune is not so large as
+people suppose.  No matter.  My son is a man; he must learn to
+earn his own living."
+
+"My banking account is always at your disposal, Lia."
+
+"Thanks, my friend, thanks a thousand times; but it will not be
+necessary for me to accept your kind offer.  When Wilkie was a
+child I did not refuse.  But now I would dig the ground with my
+own hands, rather than give him a louis that came from you.  You
+think me full of contradictions! Perhaps I am.  It is certain that
+I am no longer what I was yesterday.  This trouble has torn away
+the bandage that covered my eyes.  I can see my conduct clearly
+now, and I condemn it.  I sinned for my son's sake, more than for
+my own.  But I might have rehabilitated myself through him, and
+now he will perhaps be dishonored through me." Her breathing came
+short and hard, and it was in a choked voice that she continued:
+"Wilkie shall work for me and for himself.  If he is strong, he
+will save us.  If he is weak--ah, well! we shall perish.  But
+there has been cowardice and shame enough! It shall never be said
+that I sacrificed the honor of a noble name and the happiness of
+my brother's child to my son.  I see what my duty is, and I shall
+do it."
+
+The baron nodded approvingly.  "That's no doubt right," said he. 
+"Only allow me to tell you that all is not lost yet.  The code has
+a weapon for every just cause.  Perhaps there will be a way for
+you to obtain and hold your fortune independent of your husband."
+
+"Alas! I made inquiries on the subject years ago, and I was told
+that it would be impossible.  Still, you might investigate the
+matter.  I have confidence in you.  I know that you would not
+advise me rashly;--but don't delay.  The worst misfortune would be
+less intolerable than this suspense."
+
+"I will lose no time.  M. Ferailleur is a very clever lawyer, I am
+told.  I will consult him."
+
+"And what shall I do about this man Fortunat, who called upon me?"
+
+The baron reflected for a moment.  "The safest thing would be to
+take no action whatever at present," he replied.  "If he has any
+evil designs, a visit or a letter from you would only hasten
+them."
+
+By the way Madame d'Argeles shook her head, it was easy to see
+that she had very little hope.  "All this will end badly," she
+murmured.
+
+The baron shared her opinion, but he did not think it wise or kind
+to discourage her.  "Nonsense!" he said lightly, "luck is going to
+change; it is always changing."
+
+Then as he heard the clock strike, he sprang from his arm-chair in
+dismay.  "Two o'clock," he exclaimed, "and Kami-Bey is waiting for
+me.  I certainly haven't been wasting time here, but I ought to
+have been at the Grand Hotel at noon.  Kami is quite capable of
+suspecting a man of any knavery.  These Turks are strange
+creatures.  It's true that I am now a winner to the tune of two
+hundred and eighty thousand francs." He settled his hat firmly on
+his head, and opening the door, he added: "Good-by, my dear
+madame, I will soon see you again, and in the meantime don't
+deviate in the least from your usual habits.  Our success depends,
+in a great measure, upon the fancied security of our enemies!"
+
+Madame d'Argeles considered this advice so sensible that half an
+hour later she went out for her daily drive in the Bois, little
+suspecting that M. Fortunat's spy, Victor Chupin, was dogging her
+carriage.  It was most imprudent on her part to have gone to
+Wilkie's house on her return.  She incurred such a risk of
+awakening suspicion by wandering about near her son's home that
+she seldom allowed herself that pleasure, but sometimes her
+anxiety overpowered her reason.  So, on this occasion, she ordered
+the coachman to stop near the Rue du Helder, and she reached the
+street just in time to betray her secret to Victor Chupin, and
+receive a foul insult from M. Wilkie.  The latter's cruel words
+stabbed her to the heart, and yet she tried to construe them as
+mere proofs of her son's honesty of feeling--as proof of his scorn
+for the depraved creatures who haunt the boulevards each evening. 
+But though her energy was indomitable, her physical strength was
+not equal to her will.  On returning home, she felt so ill that
+she was obliged to go to bed.  She shivered with cold, and yet the
+blood that flowed in her veins seemed to her like molten lead. 
+The physician who was summoned declared that her illness was a
+mere trifle, but prescribed rest and quiet.  And as he was a very
+discerning man, he added, not without a malicious smile, that any
+excess is injurious--excess of pleasure as well as any other.  As
+it was Sunday, Madame d'Argeles was able to obey the physician,
+and so she closed her doors against every one, the baron excepted. 
+Still, fearing that this seclusion might seem a little strange,
+she ordered her concierge to tell any visitors that she had gone
+into the country, and would not return until her usual reception-
+day.  She would then be compelled to open her doors as usual.  For
+what would the habitues of the house, who had played there every
+Monday for years, say if they found the doors closed? She was less
+her own mistress than an actress--she had no right to weep or
+suffer in solitude.
+
+So, at about seven o'clock on Monday evening, although still
+grievously suffering both in mind and body, she arranged herself
+to receive her guests.  From among all her dresses, she chose the
+same dark robe she had worn on the night when Pascal Ferailleur
+was ruined at her house; and as she was even paler than usual, she
+tried to conceal the fact by a prodigal use of rouge.  At ten
+o'clock, when the first arrivals entered the brilliantly lighted
+rooms, they found her seated as usual on the sofa, near the fire,
+with the same eternal, unchangeable smile upon her lips.  There
+were at least forty persons in the room, and the gambling had
+become quite animated when the baron entered.  Madame d'Argeles
+read in his eyes that he was the bearer of good news.  "Everything
+is going on well," he whispered, as he shook hands with her.  "I
+have seen M. Ferailleur--I wouldn't give ten sous for Valorsay's
+and Coralth's chances."
+
+This intelligence revived Madame d'Argeles's drooping spirits, and
+she received M. de Coralth with perfect composure when he came to
+pay his respects to her soon afterward.  For he had the impudence
+to come, in order to dispel any suspicions that might have been
+aroused anent his complicity in the card-cheating affair.  The
+hostess's calmness amazed him.  Was she still ignorant of her
+brother's death and the complications arising from it, or was she
+only acting a part? He was so anxious and undecided, that instead
+of mingling with the groups of talkers, he at once took a seat at
+the card-table, whence he could watch the poor woman's every
+movement.
+
+Both rooms were full, and almost everybody was engaged in play,
+when, shortly after midnight, a servant entered the room,
+whispered a few words in his mistress's ear, and handed her a
+card.  She took it, glanced at it, and uttered so harsh, so
+terrible, so heart-broken a cry, that several of the guests sprang
+to their feet.  "What is it? What is it?" they asked.  She tried
+to reply, but could not.  Her lips parted, she opened her mouth,
+but no sound came forth.  She turned ghastly white under her
+rouge, and a wild, unnatural light gleamed in her eyes.  One
+curious guest, without a thought of harm, tried to take the card,
+which she still held in her clinched hand; but she repulsed him
+with such an imperious gesture that he recoiled in terror.  "What
+is it? What is the matter with her?" was the astonished query on
+every side.
+
+At last, with a terrible effort, she managed to reply, "Nothing."
+And then, after clinging for a moment to the mantel-shelf, in
+order to steady herself, she tottered out of the room.
+
+
+
+VII.
+
+
+It was not enough to tell M. Wilkie the secret of his birth.  He
+must be taught how to utilize the knowledge.  The Viscount de
+Coralth devoted himself to this task, and burdened Wilkie with
+such a host of injunctions, that it was quite evident he had but a
+poor opinion of his pupil's sagacity.  "That woman d'Argeles," he
+thought, "is as sharp as steel.  She will deceive this young idiot
+completely, if I don't warn him."
+
+So he did warn him; and Wilkie was instructed exactly what to do
+and say, how to answer any questions, and what position to take up
+according to circumstances.  Moreover, he was especially enjoined
+to distrust tears, and not to let himself be put out of
+countenance by haughty airs.  The Viscount spent at least an hour
+in giving explanations and advice, to the great disgust of M.
+Wilkie, who, feeling that he was being treated like a child,
+somewhat testily declared that he was no fool, and that he knew
+how to take care of himself as well as any one else.  Still, this
+did not prevent M. de Coralth from persisting in his instructions
+until he was persuaded that he had prepared his pupil for all
+possible emergencies.  He then rose to depart.  "That's all, I
+think," he remarked, with a shade of uneasiness.  "I've traced the
+plan--you must execute it, and keep cool, or the game's lost."
+
+His companion rose proudly.  "If it fails, it won't be from any
+fault of mine," he answered with unmistakable petulance.
+
+"Lose no time."
+
+"There's no danger of that."
+
+"And understand, that whatever happens, my name is not to be
+mentioned."
+
+"Yes, yes."
+
+"If there should be any new revelations, I will inform you."
+
+"At the club?"
+
+"Yes, but don't be uneasy; the affair is as good as concluded."
+
+"I hope so, indeed."
+
+Wilkie gave a sigh of relief as he saw his visitor depart.  He
+wished to be alone, so as to brood over the delights that the
+future had in store for him.  He was no longer to be limited to a
+paltry allowance of twenty thousand francs! No more debts, no more
+ungratified longings.  He would have millions at his disposal! He
+seemed to see them, to hold them, to feel them gliding in golden
+waves between his fingers! What horses he would have! what
+carriages! what mistresses! And a gleam of envy that he had
+detected in M. de Coralth's eyes put the finishing touch to his
+bliss.  To be envied by this brilliant viscount, his model and his
+ideal, what happiness it was!
+
+The reputation that Madame d'Argeles bore had at first cast a
+shadow over his joy; but this shadow had soon vanished.  He was
+troubled by no foolish prejudices, and personally he cared little
+or nothing for his mother's reputation.  The prejudices of society
+must, of course, be considered.  But nonsense! society has no
+prejudices nowadays when millionaires are concerned, and asks no
+questions respecting their parents.  Society only requires
+passports of the indigent.  Besides, no matter what Madame
+d'Argeles might have done, she was none the less a Chalusse, the
+descendant of one of the most aristocratic families in France.
+
+Such were Wilkie's meditations while he was engaged in dressing
+himself with more than usual care.  He had been quite shocked by
+the suggestion that Madame d'Argeles might try to deny him, and he
+wished to appear before her in the most advantageous light.  His
+toilette was consequently a lengthy operation.  However, shortly
+after twelve o'clock he was ready.  He cast a last admiring glance
+at himself in the mirror, twirled his mustaches, and departed on
+his mission.  He even went on foot, which was a concession to what
+he considered M. de Coralth's absurd ideas.  The aspect of the
+Hotel d'Argeles, in the Rue de Berry, impressed him favorably,
+but, at the same time, it somewhat disturbed his superb assurance. 
+"Everything is very stylish here," he muttered.
+
+A couple of servants--the concierge and Job--were standing at the
+door engaged in conversation.  M. Wilkie approached them, and in
+his most imposing manner, but not without a slight tremble in his
+voice, requested to see Madame d'Argeles.  "Madame is in the
+country," replied the concierge; "she will not return before this
+evening.  If monsieur will leave his card "
+
+"Oh! that's quite unnecessary.  I shall be passing again."
+
+This, too, was in obedience to the instructions of M. de Coralth,
+who had advised him not to send in his name, but to gain admission
+into Madame d'Argeles's presence as speedily as possible, without
+giving her time to prepare herself for the interview; and Wilkie
+had ultimately decided that these precautions might not prove as
+superfluous as he had at first supposed.  But this first mishap
+annoyed him extremely.  What should he do? how should he kill time
+till the evening? A cab was passing.  He hired it for a drive to
+the Bois, whence he returned to the boulevards, played a game of
+billiards with one of the co-proprietors of Pompier de Nanterre,
+and finally dined at the Cafe Riche, devoting as much time as
+possible to the operation.  He was finishing his coffee when the
+clock struck eight.  He caught up his hat, drew on his gloves, and
+hastened to the Hotel d'Argeles again.
+
+"Madame has not yet returned," said the concierge, who knew that
+his mistress had only just risen from her bed, "but I don't think
+it will be long.  And if monsieur wishes--"
+
+"No," replied M. Wilkie brusquely, and he was going off in a
+furious passion, when, on crossing the street, he chanced to turn
+his head and notice that the reception rooms were brilliantly
+lighted up.  "Ah! I think that a very shabby trick!" grumbled the
+intelligent youth.  "They won't succeed in playing that game on me
+again.  Why, she's there now!"
+
+It occurred to him that Madame d'Argeles had perhaps described him
+to her servants, and had given them strict orders not to admit
+him.  "I'll find out if that is the case, even if I have to wait
+here until to-morrow morning," he thought, angrily.  However, he
+had not been on guard very long, when he saw a brougham stop in
+front of the mansion, whereupon the gate opened, as if by
+enchantment.  The vehicle entered the courtyard, deposited its
+occupants, and drove away.  A second carriage soon appeared, then
+a third, and then five or six in quick succession.  "And does she
+think I'll wear out my shoe-leather here, while everybody else is
+allowed to enter?" he grumbled.  "Never!--I've an idea." And,
+without giving himself time for further deliberation, he returned
+to his rooms, arrayed himself in evening-dress, and sent for his
+carriage.  "You will drive to No.--in the Rue de Berry," he said. 
+"There is a soiree there, and you can drive directly into the
+courtyard."  The coachman obeyed, and M. Wilkie realized that his
+idea was really an excellent one.
+
+As soon as he alighted, the doors were thrown open, and he
+ascended a handsome staircase, heavily carpeted, and adorned with
+flowers.  Two liveried footmen were standing at the door of the
+drawing-room, and one of them advanced to relieve Wilkie of his
+overcoat, but his services were declined.  "I don't wish to go
+in," said the young man roughly.  "I wish to speak with Madame
+d'Argeles in private.  She is expecting me--inform her.  Here is
+my card."
+
+The servant was hesitating, when Job, suspecting some mystery
+perhaps, approached.  "Take in the gentleman's card," he said,
+with an air of authority; and, opening the door of a small room on
+the left-hand side of the staircase, he invited Wilkie to enter,
+saying, "If monsieur will be kind enough to take a seat, I will
+summon madame at once."
+
+M. Wilkie sank into an arm-chair, considerably overcome.  The air
+of luxury that pervaded the entire establishment, the liveried
+servants, the lights and flowers, all impressed him much more
+deeply than he would have been willing to confess.  And in spite
+of his affected arrogance, he felt that the superb assurance which
+was the dominant trait in his character was deserting him.  In his
+breast, moreover, in the place where physiologists locate the
+heart, he felt certain extraordinary movements which strongly
+resembled palpitations.  For the first time it occurred to him
+that this woman, whose peace he had come to destroy, was not only
+the heiress of the Count de Chalusse's millions, but also his
+mother, that is to say, the good fairy whose protection had
+followed him everywhere since he entered the world.  The thought
+that he was about to commit an atrocious act entered his mind, but
+he drove it away.  It was too late now to draw back, or even to
+reflect.
+
+Suddenly a door opposite the one by which he had entered opened,
+and Madame d'Argeles appeared on the threshold.  She was no longer
+the woman whose anguish and terror had alarmed her guests.  During
+the brief moment of respite which fate had granted her, she had
+summoned all her energy and courage, and had mastered her despair. 
+She felt that her salvation depended upon her calmness, and she
+had succeeded in appearing calm, haughty, and disdainful--as
+impassive as if she had been a statue.  "Was it you, sir, who sent
+me this card?" she inquired.
+
+Greatly disconcerted, M. Wilkie could only bow and stammer out an
+almost unintelligible answer.  "Excuse me! I am much grieved, upon
+my word! I disturb you, perhaps----"
+
+"You are Monsieur Wilkie!" interrupted Madame d'Argeles, in a tone
+of mingled irony and disdain.
+
+"Yes," he replied, drawling out the name affectedly, "I am M.
+Wilkie."
+
+"Did you desire to speak with me?" inquired Madame d'Argeles,
+dryly.
+
+"In fact--yes.  I should like----"
+
+"Very well.  I will listen to you, although your visit is most
+inopportune, for I have eighty guests or more in my drawing-room. 
+Still, speak!"
+
+It was very easy to say "speak," but unfortunately for M. Wilkie
+he could not articulate a syllable.  His tongue was as stiff, and
+as dry, as if it had been paralyzed.  He nervously passed and
+repassed his fingers between his neck and his collar, but although
+this gave full play to his cravat, his words did not leave his
+throat any more readily.  For he had imagined that Madame
+d'Argeles would be like other women he had known, but not at all. 
+He found her to be an extremely proud and awe-inspiring creature,
+who, to use his own vocabulary, SQUELCHED him completely.  "I
+wished to say to you," he repeated, "I wished to say to you----"
+But the words he was seeking would not come; and, so at last,
+angry with himself, he exclaimed: "Ah! you know as well as I, why
+I have come.  Do you dare to pretend that you don't know?"
+
+She looked at him with admirably feigned astonishment, glanced
+despairingly at the ceiling, shrugged her shoulders, and replied:
+"Most certainly I don't know--unless indeed it be a wager."
+
+"A wager!" M. Wilkie wondered if he were not the victim of some
+practical joke, and if there were not a crowd of listeners hidden
+somewhere, who, after enjoying his discomfiture, would suddenly
+make their appearance, holding their sides.  This fear restored
+his presence of mind.  "Well, then," he replied, huskily, "this is
+my reason.  I know nothing respecting my parents.  This morning, a
+man with whom you are well acquainted, assured me that I was--your
+son.  I was completely stunned at first, but after a while I
+recovered sufficiently to call here, and found that you had gone
+out."
+
+He was interrupted by a nervous laugh from Madame d'Argeles.  For
+she was heroic enough to laugh, although death was in her heart,
+and although the nails of her clinched hands were embedded deep in
+her quivering flesh.  "And you believed him, monsieur?" she
+exclaimed.  "Really, this is too absurd! I--your mother! Why, look
+at me----"
+
+He was doing nothing else, he was watching her with all the powers
+of penetration he possessed.  Madame d'Argeles's laugh had an
+unnatural ring that awakened his suspicions.  All Coralth's
+recommendations buzzed confusedly in his ears, and he judged that
+the moment had come "to do the sentimental," as he would have
+expressed it.  So he lowered his head, and in an aggrieved tone,
+exclaimed: "Ah! you think it very amusing, I don't.  Do you
+realize how wretched it makes one to live as utterly alone as a
+leper, without a soul to love or care for you? Other young men
+have a mother, sisters, relatives.  I have no one! Ah! if---- But
+I only have friends while my money lasts." He wiped his eyes, dry
+as they were, with his handkerchief, and in a still more pathetic
+tone, resumed: "Not that I want for anything; I receive a very
+handsome allowance.  But when my relatives have given me the
+wherewithal to keep me from starving, they imagine their duty is
+fulfilled.  I think this very hard.  I didn't come into the world
+at my own request, did I? I didn't ask to be born.  If I was such
+an annoyance to them when I came into existence, why didn't they
+throw me into the river? Then they would have been well rid of me,
+and I should be out of my misery!"
+
+He stopped short, struck dumb with amazement, for Madame d'Argeles
+had thrown herself on her knees at his feet.  "Have mercy!" she
+faltered; "Wilkie; my son, forgive me!" Alas! the unfortunate
+woman had failed in playing a part which was too difficult for a
+mother's heart.  "You have suffered cruelly, my son," she
+continued; "but I--I--Ah! you can't conceive the frightful agony
+it costs a mother to separate from her child! But you were not
+deserted, Wilkie; don't say that.  Have you not felt my love in
+the air around you? YOU forgotten? Know, then, that for years and
+years I have seen you every day, and that all my thoughts and all
+my hopes are centered in you alone! Wilkie!"
+
+She dragged herself toward him with her hands clasped in an agony
+of supplication, while he recoiled, frightened by this outburst of
+passion, and utterly amazed by his easily won victory.  The poor
+woman misunderstood this movement.  "Great God!" she exclaimed,
+"he spurns me; he loathes me.  Ah! I knew it would be so.  Oh! why
+did you come? What infamous wretch sent you here? Name him,
+Wilkie! Do you understand, now, why I concealed myself from you? I
+dreaded the day when I should blush before you, before my own son. 
+And yet it was for your sake.  Death would have been a rest, a
+welcome release for me.  But your breath was ebbing away, your
+poor little arms no longer had strength to clasp me round the
+neck.  And then I cried: 'Perish my soul and body, if only my
+child can be saved!' I believed such a sacrifice permissible in a
+mother.  I am punished for it as if it were a crime.  I thought
+you would be happy, my Wilkie.  I said to myself that you, my
+pride and joy, would move freely and proudly far above me and my
+shame.  I accepted ignominy, so that your honor might be preserved
+intact.  I knew the horrors of abject poverty, and I wished to
+save my son from it.  I would have licked up the very mire in your
+pathway to save you from a stain.  I renounced all hope for
+myself, and I consecrated all that was noble and generous in my
+nature to you.  Oh! I will discover the vile coward who sent you
+here, who betrayed my secret.  I will discover him and I will have
+my revenge! You were never to know this, Wilkie.  In parting from
+you, I took a solemn oath never to see you again, and to die
+without the supreme consolation of feeling your lips upon my
+forehead."
+
+She could not continue; sobs choked her utterance.  And for more
+than a minute the silence was so profound that one could hear the
+sound of low conversation in the hall outside, the exclamations of
+the players as they greeted each unexpected turn of luck, and
+occasionally a cry of "Banco!" or "I stake one hundred louis!"
+Standing silent and motionless near the window, Wilkie gazed with
+consternation at Madame d'Argeles, his mother, who was crouching
+in the middle of the room with her face hidden in her hands, and
+sobbing as if her heart would break.  He would willingly have
+given his third share in Pompier de Nanterre to have made his
+escape.  The strangeness of the scene appalled him.  It was not
+emotion that he felt, but an instinctive fear mingled with
+commiseration.  And he was not only ill at ease, but he was angry
+with himself for what he secretly styled his weakness.  "Women are
+incomprehensible," he thought.  "It would be so easy to explain
+things quietly and properly, but they must always cry and have a
+sort of melodrama."
+
+Suddenly the sound of footsteps near the door roused him from his
+stupor.  He shuddered at the thought that some one might come in. 
+He hated the very idea of ridicule.  So summoning all his courage
+he went toward Madame d'Argeles, and, raising her from the floor,
+he exclaimed: "Don't cry so.  You grieve me, upon my word! Pray
+get up.  Some one is coming.  Do you hear me? Some one is coming."
+Thereupon, as she offered no resistance, he half led, half carried
+her to an arm-chair, into which she sank heavily.  "Now she is
+going to faint!" thought Wilkie, in despair.  What should he do?
+Call for help? He dared not.  However, necessity inspired him.  He
+knelt at Madame d'Argeles's feet, and gently said: "Come, come, be
+reasonable! Why do you give way like this? I don't reproach you!"
+
+Slowly, with an air of humility which was indescribably touching,
+she took her hands from her face, and for the first time raised
+her tear-stained eyes to her son's.  "Wilkie," she murmured.
+
+"Madame!"
+
+She heaved a deep sigh, and in a half-stifled voice:
+
+"MADAME!" she repeated.  "Will you not call me mother?"
+
+"Yes, of course--certainly.  But--only you know it will take me
+some time to acquire the habit.  I shall do so, of course; but I
+shall have to get used to it, you know."
+
+"True, very true!--but tell me it is not mere pity that leads you
+to make this promise? If you should hate me--if you should curse
+me--how should I bear it! Ah! when a woman reaches the years of
+understanding one should never cease repeating to her: 'Take care!
+Your son will be twenty some day, and you will have to meet his
+searching gaze.  You will have to render an account of your honor
+to him!' My God! If women thought of this, they would never sin. 
+To be reduced to such a state of abject misery that one dares not
+lift one's head before one's own son! Alas! Wilkie, I know only
+too well that you cannot help despising me."
+
+"No, indeed.  Not at all! What an idea!"
+
+"Tell me that you forgive me!"
+
+"I do, upon my word I do."
+
+Poor woman, her face brightened.  She so longed to believe him!
+And her son was beside her, so near that she felt his breath upon
+her cheek.  It was he indeed.  Had they ever been separated? She
+almost doubted it, she had lived so near him in thought.  It was
+with a sort of ecstasy that she looked at him.  There was a world
+of entreaty in her eyes; they seemed to be begging a caress; she
+raised her quivering lips to his, but he did not observe it.  For
+a long time she hesitated, fearing he might spurn her; but at
+last, yielding to a supreme impulse, she threw her arms around his
+neck, drew him toward her, and pressed him to her heart in a close
+embrace.  "My son! my son!" she repeated; "to have you with me
+again, after all these years!"
+
+Unfortunately, no whirlwind of passion was capable of carrying M.
+Wilkie beyond himself.  His emotion was now spent and his mind had
+regained its usual indifference.  He flattered himself that he was
+a man of mettle--and he remained as cold as ice beneath his
+mother's kisses.  Indeed, he barely tolerated them; and if he did
+allow her to embrace him, it was only because he did not know how
+to refuse.  "Will she never have done?" he thought.  "This is a
+pretty state of things! I must be very attractive.  How Costard
+and Serpillon would laugh if they saw me now." Costard and
+Serpillon were his intimate friends, the co-proprietors of the
+famous steeplechaser.
+
+In her rapture, however, Madame d'Argeles did not observe the
+peculiar expression on her son's face.  She had compelled him to
+take a chair opposite her, and, with nervous volubility, she
+continued: "If I don't deny myself the happiness of embracing you
+again, it is because I have not broken the vow I took never to
+make myself known to you.  When I entered this room, I was firmly
+resolved to convince you, no matter how, that you had been
+deceived.  God knows that it was not my fault if I did not
+succeed.  There are some sacrifices that are above human
+strength."
+
+M. Wilkie deigned to smile.  "Oh! yes, I saw your little game," he
+said, with a knowing air.  "But I had been well posted, and
+besides, it is not very easy to fool me."
+
+Madame d'Argeles did not even hear him.  "Perhaps destiny is weary
+of afflicting us," she continued; "perhaps a new life is about to
+begin.  Through you, Wilkie.  I can again be happy.  I, who for
+years have lived without even hope.  But will you have courage to
+forget?"
+
+"What?"
+
+She hung her head, and in an almost inaudible voice replied, "The
+past, Wilkie."
+
+But with an air of the greatest indifference, he snapped his
+fingers, and exclaimed: "Nonsense! What is past is past.  Such
+things are soon forgotten.  Paris has known many such cases.  You
+are my mother; I care very little for public opinion.  I begin by
+pleasing myself, and I consult other people afterward; and when
+they are dissatisfied, I tell them to mind their own business."
+
+The poor woman listened to these words with a joy bordering on
+rapture.  One might have supposed that the strangeness of her
+son's expressions would have surprised her--have enlightened her
+in regard to his true character--but no.  She only saw and
+understood one thing--that he had no intention of casting her off,
+but was indeed ready to devote himself to her.  "My God!" she
+faltered, "is this really true? Will you allow me to remain with
+you? Oh, don't reply rashly! Consider well, before you promise to
+make such a sacrifice.  Think how much sorrow and pain it will
+cost you."
+
+"I have considered.  It is decided--mother."
+
+She sprang up, wild with hope and enthusiasm.  "Then we are
+saved!" she cried.  "Blessed be he who betrayed my secret! And I
+doubted your courage, my Wilkie! At last I can escape from this
+hell! This very night we will fly from this house, without one
+backward glance.  I will never set foot in these rooms again--the
+detested gamblers who are sitting here shall never see me again. 
+From this moment Lia d'Argeles is dead."
+
+M. Wilkie positively felt like a man who had just fallen from the
+clouds.  "What, fly?" he stammered.  "Where shall we go, then?"
+
+"To a country where we are unknown, Wilkie--to a land where you
+will not have to blush for your mother."
+
+"But--"
+
+"Trust yourself to me, my son.  I know a pleasant village near
+London where we can find a refuge.  My connections in England are
+such that you need not fear the obstacles one generally meets with
+among foreigners.  M. Patterson, who manages a large manufacturing
+establishment, will, I know, be happy to be of service to us--but
+we shall not be indebted to any one for long, now that you have
+resolved to work."
+
+On hearing these words, M. Wilkie sprang up in dismay.  "Excuse
+me," he said, "I don't understand you.  You propose to set me to
+work in M. Patterson's factory?  Well, to tell the truth, that
+doesn't suit me at all."
+
+It was impossible to mistake M. Wilkie's manner, his tone, or
+gesture.  They revealed him in his true character.  Madame
+d'Argeles saw her terrible mistake at once.  The bandage fell from
+her eyes.  She had taken her dreams for realities, and the desires
+of her own heart for those of her son.  She rose, trembling with
+sorrow and with indignation.  "Wilkie!" she exclaimed, "Wilkie,
+wretched boy! what did you dare to hope?"
+
+And, without giving him time to reply, she continued: "Then it was
+only idle curiosity that brought you here.  You wished to know the
+source of the money which you spend like water.  Very well, you
+may see for yourself.  This is a gambling house; one of those
+establishments frequented by distinguished personages, which the
+police ignore, or which they cannot suppress.  The hubbub you hear
+is made by the players.  Men are ruined here.  Some poor wretches
+have blown their brains out on leaving the house; others have
+parted with the last vestige of honor here.  And the business pays
+me well.  One louis out of every hundred that change hands falls
+to my share.  This is the source of your wealth, my son."
+
+This anger, which succeeded such deep grief--this outburst of
+disdain, following such abject humility--considerably astonished
+M. Wilkie.  "Allow me to ask----" he began.
+
+But he was not allowed a hearing.  "Fool!" continued Madame
+d'Argeles, "did nothing warn you that in coming here you would
+deprive yourself forever of the income you received? Did no inward
+voice tell you that all would be changed when you compelled me,
+Lia d'Argeles, to say, 'Well, yes, it is true; you are my son? '
+So long as you did not know who and what I was, I had a mother's
+right to watch over you.  I could help you without disgracing you,
+without despising you.  But now that you know me, and know what I
+am, I can do nothing more for you--nothing! I would rather let you
+starve than succor you, for I would rather see you dead than
+dishonored by my money."
+
+"But--"
+
+"What! would you still consent to receive the allowance I have
+made you, even if I consented to continue it?"
+
+Had a viper raised its head in M. Wilkie's path he would not have
+recoiled more quickly.  "Never!" he exclaimed.  "Ah, no! What do
+you take me for?"
+
+This repugnance was sincere; there could be no doubt of that, and
+it seemed to give Madame d'Argeles a ray of hope.  "I have
+misjudged him," she thought.  "Poor Wilkie! Evil advice has led
+him astray; but he is not bad at heart.  In that case, my poor
+child," she said aloud, "you must see that a new life is about to
+commence for you.  What do you intend to do? How will you gain a
+livelihood? People must have food, and clothes, and a roof to
+shelter them.  These things cost money.  And where will you obtain
+it--you who rebel at the very word work? Ah! if I had only
+listened to M. Patterson.  He was not blind like myself.  He was
+always telling me that I was spoiling you, and ruining your future
+by giving you so much money.  Do you know that you have spent more
+than fifty thousand francs during the past two years? How have you
+squandered them? Have you been to the law-school a dozen times? 
+No.  But you can be seen at the races, at the opera, in the
+fashionable restaurants, and at every place of amusement where a
+young man can squander money.  And who are your associates?
+Dissipated and heartless idlers, grooms, gamblers, and abandoned
+women."
+
+A sneer from M. Wilkie interrupted her.  To think that any one
+should dare to attack his friends, his tastes, and his pleasures. 
+Such a thing was not to be tolerated.  "This is astonishing--
+astonishing, upon my word!" said he.  "You moralizing! that's
+really too good! I should like a few minutes to laugh; it is too
+ridiculous!"
+
+Was he really conscious of the cruelty of his ironical words? The
+blow was so terrible that Madame d'Argeles staggered beneath it. 
+She was prepared for anything and everything except this insult
+from her son.  Still, she accepted it without rebellion, although
+it was in a tone of heart-broken anguish that she replied:
+"Perhaps I have no right to tell you the truth.  I hope the future
+will prove that I am wrong.  However, you are without resources,
+and you have no profession.  Pray Heaven that you may never know
+what it is to be hungry and to have no bread."
+
+For some time already the ingenious young man had shown
+unmistakable signs of impatience.  This gloomy prediction
+irritated him beyond endurance.
+
+"All this is empty talk," he interrupted.  "I don't mean to work,
+for it's not at all in my line.  Still, I don't expect to want for
+anything! That's plain enough, I hope."
+
+Madame d'Argeles did not wince.  "What do you mean to do then?"
+she asked, coldly.  "I don't understand you."
+
+He shrugged his shoulders impatiently.  "Are we to keep up this
+farce for ever?" he petulantly exclaimed.  "It doesn't take with
+me.  You know what I mean as well as I do.  Why do you talk to me
+about dying of starvation? What about the fortune?"
+
+"What fortune?"
+
+"Eh? why, my uncle's, of course! Your brother's, the Count de
+Chalusse."
+
+Now M. Wilkie's visit, manner, assurance, wheedling, and
+contradictions were all explained.  That maternal confidence which
+is so strong in the hearts of mothers vanished from Madame
+d'Argeles's for ever.  The depths of selfishness and cunning she
+discerned in Wilkie's mind appalled her.  She now understood why
+he had declared himself ready to brave public opinion--why he had
+proved willing to accept his share of the past ignominy.  It was
+not his mother's, but the Count de Chalusse's estate that he
+claimed.  "Ah! so you've heard of that," she said, in a tone of
+bitter irony.  And then, remembering M. Isidore Fortunat, she
+asked: "Some one has sold you this valuable secret.  How much have
+you promised to pay him in case of success?"
+
+Although Wilkie prided himself on being very clever, he did not
+pretend to be a diplomatist, and, indeed, he was greatly
+disconcerted by this question; still, recovering himself, he
+replied: "It doesn't matter how I obtained the information--
+whether I paid for it, or whether it cost me nothing--but I know
+that you are a Chalusse, and that you are the heiress of the
+count's property, which is valued at eight or ten millions of
+francs.  Do you deny it?"
+
+Madame d'Argeles sadly shook her head.  "I deny nothing," she
+replied, "but I am about to tell you something which will destroy
+all your plans and extinguish your hopes.  I am resolved,
+understand, and my resolution is irrevocable, never to assert my
+rights.  To receive this fortune, I should be obliged to confess
+that Lia d'Argeles is a Chalusse--and that is a confession which
+no consideration whatever will wring from me."
+
+She imagined that this declaration would silence and discomfit
+Wilkie, but she was mistaken.  If he had been obliged to depend
+upon himself he would perhaps have been conquered by it; but he
+was armed with weapons which had been furnished by the cunning
+viscount.  So he shrugged his shoulders, and coolly replied: "In
+that case we should remain poor, and the government would take
+possession of our millions.  One moment.  I have something to say
+in this matter.  You may renounce your claim, but I shall not
+renounce mine.  I am your son, and I shall claim the property."
+
+"Even if I entreated you on my knees not to do so?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+Madame d'Argeles's eyes flashed.  "Very well.  I will show you
+that this estate can never be yours.  By what right will you lay
+claim to it? Because you are my son? But I will deny that you are. 
+I will declare upon oath that you are nothing to me, and that I
+don't even know you."
+
+But even this did not daunt Wilkie.  He drew from his pocket a
+scrap of paper, and flourishing it triumphantly, he exclaimed: "It
+would be extremely cruel on your part to deny me, but I foresaw
+such a contingency, and here is my answer, copied from the civil
+code: 'Article 341.  Inquiry as to maternity allowed, etc., etc.'"
+
+What the exact bearing of Wilkie's threat might be Madame
+d'Argeles did not know.  But she felt that this Article 341 would
+no doubt destroy her last hope; for the person who had chosen this
+weapon from the code to place it in Wilkie's hand must have chosen
+it carefully.  She understood the situation perfectly.  With her
+experience of life, she could not fail to understand the
+despicable part Wilkie was playing.  And though it was not her son
+who had conceived this odious plot, it was more than enough to
+know that he had consented to carry it into execution.  Should she
+try to persuade Wilkie to abandon this shameful scheme? She might
+have done so if she had not been so horrified by the utter want of
+principle which she had discovered in his character.  But, under
+the circumstances, she realized that any effort in this direction
+would prove unavailing.  So it was purely from a sense of duty and
+to prevent her conscience from reproaching her that she exclaimed:
+"So you will apply to the courts in order to constrain me to
+acknowledge you as my son?"
+
+"If you are not reasonable----"
+
+"That is to say, you care nothing for the scandal that will be
+created by such a course.  In order to prove yourself a member of
+the Chalusse family you will begin by disgracing the name and
+dragging it through the mire."
+
+Wilkie had no wish to prolong this discussion.  So much talk about
+an affair, which, in his opinion, at least, was an extremely
+simple one, seemed to him utterly ridiculous, and irritated him
+beyond endurance.  "It strikes me this is much ado about nothing,"
+he remarked.  "One would suppose, to hear you talk, that you were
+the greatest criminal in the world.  Goodness is all very well in
+its way, but there is such a thing as having too much of it! Break
+loose from this life to-morrow, assume your rightful name, install
+yourself at the Hotel de Chalusse, and in a week from now no one
+will remember that you were once known as Lia d'Argeles.  I wager
+one hundred louis on it.  Why, if people attempted to rake up the
+past life of their acquaintances, they should have far too much to
+do.  Folks do not trouble themselves as to whether a person has
+done this or that; the essential thing is to have plenty of money. 
+And if any fool speaks slightingly of you, you can reply: 'I have
+an income of five hundred thousand francs,' and he'll say no
+more."
+
+Madame d'Argeles listened, speechless with horror and disgust. 
+Was it really her son who was speaking in this style, and to her
+of all people in the world? M. Wilkie misunderstood her silence. 
+He had an excellent opinion of himself, but he was rather
+surprised at the effect of his eloquence.  "Besides, I'm tired of
+vegetating, and having only one name," he continued.  "I want to
+be on the move.  Even with the small allowance I've had, I have
+gained a very good position in society; and if I had plenty of
+money I should be the most stylish man in Paris.  The count's
+estate belongs to me, and so I must have it--in fact, I will have
+it.  So believe me when I tell you that it will be much better for
+you if you acknowledge me without any fuss! Now, will you do so?
+No? Once, twice, three times? Is it still no? Very well then; to-
+morrow, then, you may expect an official notice.  I wish you good-
+evening."
+
+He bowed; he was really going, for his hand was already on the
+door-knob.  But Madame d'Argeles detained him with a gesture. 
+"One word more," she said, in a voice hoarse with emotion.
+
+He scarcely deigned to come back, and he made no attempt to
+conceal his impatience.  "Well, what is it?" he asked, hastily.
+
+"I wish to give you a bit of parting advice.  The court will
+undoubtedly decide in your favor; I shall be placed in possession
+of my brother's estate; but neither you nor I will have the
+disposal of these millions."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because, though this fortune belongs to me, the control of it
+belongs to your father."
+
+M. Wilkie was thunderstruck.  "To my father?" he exclaimed. 
+"Impossible!"
+
+"It is so, however; and you would not have been ignorant of the
+fact, if your greed for money had not made you forget to question
+me.  You believe yourself an illegitimate child.  Wilkie, you are
+mistaken.  You are my legitimate child.  I am a married woman----"
+
+"Bah!"
+
+"And my husband--your father--is not dead.  If he is not here now,
+threatening our safety, it is because I have succeeded in eluding
+him.  He lost all trace of us eighteen years ago.  Since then he
+has been constantly striving to discover us, but in vain.  He is
+still watching, you may be sure of that; and as soon as there is
+any talk of a law-suit respecting the Chalusse property, you will
+see him appear, armed with his rights.  He is the head of the
+family--your master and mine.  Ah! this seems to disturb you.  You
+will find him full of insatiable greed for wealth, a greed which
+has been whetted by twenty years' waiting.  You may yet see the
+day when you will regret the paltry twenty thousand francs a year
+formerly given you by your poor mother."
+
+Wilkie's face was whiter than his shirt.  "You are deceiving me,"
+he stammered.
+
+"To-morrow I will show you my marriage certificate."
+
+"Why not this evening?"
+
+"Because it is locked up in a room which is now full of people."
+
+"And what was my father's name?"
+
+"Arthur Gordon--he is an American."
+
+"Then my name is Wilkie Gordon?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And---is my father rich?" he inquired.
+
+"No."
+
+"What does he do?"
+
+"Everything that a man can do when he has a taste for luxury and a
+horror for work."
+
+This reply was so explicit in its brevity, and implied so many
+terrible accusations, that Wilkie was dismayed.  "The devil!" he
+exclaimed, "and where does he live!"
+
+"He lives at Baden or Homburg in the summer; in Paris or at Monaco
+in the winter."
+
+"Oh! oh! oh!" ejaculated Wilkie, in three different tones.  He
+knew what he had to expect from such a father as that.  Anger now
+followed stupor--one of those terrible, white rages which stir the
+bile and not the blood.  He saw his hopes and his cherished
+visions fade.  Luxury and notoriety, high-stepping horses, yellow-
+haired mistresses, all vanished.  He pictured himself reduced to a
+mere pittance, and held in check and domineered over by a brutal
+father.  "Ah! I understand your game," he hissed through his set
+teeth.  "If you would only quietly assert your rights, everything
+could be arranged privately, and I should have time to put the
+property out of my father's reach before he could claim it. 
+Instead of doing that--as you hate me--you compel me to make the
+affair public, so that my father will hear of it and defraud me of
+everything.  But you won't play this trick on me.  You are going
+to write at once, and make known your claim to your brother's
+estate."
+
+"No."
+
+"Ah! you won't? You refuse----" He approached threateningly, and
+caught hold of her arm.  "Take care!" he vociferated; "take care!
+Do not infuriate me beyond endurance----"
+
+As cold and rigid as marble, Madame d'Argeles faced him with the
+undaunted glance of a martyr whose spirit no violence can subdue. 
+"You will obtain nothing from me," she said, firmly; "nothing,
+nothing, nothing!"
+
+Maddened with rage and disappointment, M. Wilkie dared to lift his
+hand as if about to strike her.  But at this moment the door was
+flung open, and a man sprang upon him.  It was Baron Trigault.
+
+Like the other guests, the baron had seen the terrible effect
+produced upon Madame d'Argeles by a simple visiting card.  But he
+had this advantage over the others: he thought he could divine and
+explain the reason of this sudden, seemingly incomprehensible
+terror.  "The poor woman has been betrayed," he thought; "her son
+is here!" Still, while the other players crowded around their
+hostess, he did not leave the card-table.  He was sitting opposite
+M. de Coralth, and he had seen the dashing viscount start and
+change color.  His suspicions were instantly aroused, and he
+wished to verify them.  He therefore pretended to be more than
+ever absorbed in the cards, and swore lustily at the deserters who
+had broken up the game.  "Come back, gentleman, come back," he
+cried, angrily.  "We are wasting precious time.  While you have
+been trifling there, I might have gained--or lost--a hundred
+louis."
+
+He was nevertheless greatly alarmed, and the prolonged absence of
+Madame d'Argeles increased his fears each moment.  At the end of
+an hour he could restrain himself no longer.  So taking advantage
+of a heavy loss, he rose from the table, swearing that the beastly
+turmoil of a few moments before had changed the luck.  Then
+passing into the adjoining drawing-room, he managed to make his
+escape unobserved.  "Where is madame?" he inquired of the first
+servant he met.
+
+"In the little sitting-room."
+
+"Alone?"
+
+"No; a young gentleman is with her."
+
+The baron no longer doubted the correctness of his conjectures,
+and his disquietude increased.  Quickly, and as if he had been in
+his own house, he hastened to the door of the little sitting-room
+and listened.  At that moment rage was imparting a truly frightful
+intonation to M. Wilkie's voice.  The baron really felt alarmed. 
+He stooped, applied his eye to the keyhole, and seeing M. Wilkie
+with his hand uplifted, he burst open the door and went in.  He
+arrived only just in time to fell Wilkie to the floor, and save
+Madame d'Argeles from that most terrible of humiliations: the
+degradation of being struck by her own son.  "Ah, you rascal!"
+cried the worthy baron, transported with indignation, "you
+beggarly rascal! you brigand! Is this the way you treat an
+unfortunate woman who has sacrificed herself for you--your mother?
+You try to strike your mother, when you ought to kiss her very
+footprints!"
+
+As livid as if his blood had been suddenly turned to gall--with
+quivering lips and eyes starting from their sockets--M. Wilkie
+rose, with difficulty, to his feet, at the same time rubbing his
+left elbow which had struck against the corner of a piece of
+furniture, in his fall.  "Scoundrel! You brutal scoundrel!" he
+growled, ferociously.  And then, retreating a step: "Who gave you
+permission to come in here?" he added.  "Who are you? By what
+right do you meddle with my affairs?"
+
+"By the right that every honest man possesses to chastise a
+cowardly rascal."
+
+M. Wilkie shook his fist at the baron.  "You are a coward
+yourself," he retorted.  "You had better learn who you are talking
+to! You must mend your manners a little, you old----"
+
+The word he uttered was so vile that no man could fail to resent
+it, much less the baron, who was already frantic with passion. 
+His faced turned as purple as if he were stricken with apoplexy,
+and such furious rage gleamed in his eyes that Madame d'Argeles
+was frightened.  She feared she should see her son butchered
+before her very eyes, and she extended her arms as if to protect
+him.  "Jacques," she said beseechingly, "Jacques!"
+
+This was the name which was indelibly impressed upon Wilkie's
+memory--the name he had heard when he was but a child.  Jacques--
+that was the name of the man who had brought him cakes and toys in
+the comfortable rooms where he had remained only a few days.  He
+understood, or at least he thought he understood, everything. 
+"Ah, ha!" he exclaimed, with a laugh that was at once both
+ferocious and idiotic.  "This is very fine--monsieur is the lover. 
+He has the say here--he--"
+
+He did not have time to finish his sentence, for quick as thought
+the baron caught him by the collar, lifted him from the ground
+with irresistible strength, and flung him on his knees at Madame
+d'Argeles's feet, exclaiming: "Ask her pardon, you vile wretch!
+Ask her pardon, or----" "Or" meant the baron's clinched fist
+descending like a sledge-hammer on M. Wilkie's head.
+
+The worthy youth was frightened--so terribly frightened that his
+teeth chattered.  "Pardon!" he faltered.
+
+"Louder--speak up better than that.  Your mother must answer you!"
+
+Alas! the poor woman could no longer hear.  She had endured so
+much during the past hour that her strength was exhausted, and she
+had fallen back in her arm-chair in a deep swoon.  The baron
+waited for a moment, and seeing that her eyes remained obstinately
+closed, he exclaimed: "This is your work, wretch!"
+
+And lifting him again, as easily as if he had been a child, he set
+him on his feet, saying in a calmer tone, but in one that admitted
+of no reply: "Arrange your clothes and go."
+
+This advice was not unnecessary.  Baron Trigault had a powerful
+hand; and M. Wilkie's attire was decidedly the worse for the
+encounter.  He had lost his cravat, his shirt-front was crumpled
+and torn, and his waistcoat--one of those that open to the waist
+and are fastened by a single button--hung down in the most
+dejected manner.  He obeyed the baron's order without a word, but
+not without considerable difficulty, for his hands trembled like a
+leaf.  When he had finished, the baron exclaimed: "Now be off; and
+never set foot here again--understand me--never set foot here
+again, never!"
+
+M. Wilkie made no reply until he reached the door leading into the
+hall.  But when he had opened it, he suddenly regained his powers
+of speech.  "I'm not afraid of you," he cried, with frantic
+violence.  "You have taken advantage of your superior strength--
+you are a coward.  But this shall not end here.  No!--you shall
+answer for it.  I shall find your address, and to-morrow you will
+receive a visit from my friends M. Costard and M. Serpillon.  I am
+the insulted party--and I choose swords!"
+
+A frightful oath from the baron somewhat hastened M. Wilkie's
+exit.  He went out into the hall, and holding the door open, in a
+way that would enable him to close it at the shortest notice, he
+shouted back, so as to be heard by all the servants: "Yes; I will
+have satisfaction.  I will not stand such treatment.  Is it any
+fault of mine that Madame d'Argeles is a Chalusse, and that she
+wishes to defraud me of my fortune.  To-morrow, I call you all to
+witness, there will be a lawyer here.  You don't frighten me. 
+Here is my card!" And actually, before he closed the door, he
+threw one of his cards into the middle of the room.
+
+The baron did not trouble himself to pick it up; his attention was
+devoted to Madame d'Argeles.  She was lying back in her arm-chair,
+white, motionless and rigid, to all appearance dead.  What should
+the baron do? He did not wish to call the servants; they had heard
+too much already--but he had almost decided to do so, when his
+eyes fell upon a tiny aquarium, in a corner of the room.  He
+dipped his handkerchief in it; and alternately bathed Madame
+d'Argeles's temples and chafed her hands.  It was not long before
+the cold water revived her.  She trembled, a convulsive shudder
+shook her from head to foot, and at last she opened her eyes,
+murmuring: "Wilkie!"
+
+"I have sent him away," replied the baron.
+
+Poor woman! with returning life came the consciousness of the
+terrible reality.  "He is my son!" she moaned, "my son, my
+Wilkie!" Then with a despairing gesture she pressed her hands to
+her forehead as if to calm its throbbings.  "And I believed that
+my sin was expiated," she pursued.  "I thought I had been
+sufficiently punished.  Fool that I was! This is my chastisement,
+Jacques.  Ah! women like me have no right to be mothers!"
+
+A burning tear coursed down the baron's cheek; but he concealed
+his emotion as well as he could, and said, in a tone of assumed
+gayety: "Nonsense! Wilkie is young--he will mend his ways! We were
+all ridiculous when we were twenty.  We have all caused our
+mothers many anxious nights.  Time will set everything to rights,
+and put some ballast in this young madcap's brains.  Besides, your
+friend Patterson doesn't seem to me quite free from blame.  In
+knowledge of books, he may have been unequalled; but as a guardian
+for youth, he must have been the worst of fools.  After keeping
+your son on a short allowance for years, he suddenly gorges him
+with oats--or I should say, money--lets him loose; and then seems
+surprised because the boy is guilty of acts of folly.  It would be
+a miracle if he were not.  So take courage, and hope for the best,
+my dear Lia."
+
+She shook her head despondingly.  "Do you suppose that my heart
+hasn't pleaded for him?" she said.  "I am his mother; I can never
+cease to love him, whatever he may do.  Even now I am ready to
+give a drop of blood for each tear I can save him.  But I am not
+blind; I have read his nature.  Wilkie has no heart."
+
+"Ah! my dear friend, how do you know what shameful advice he may
+have received before coming to you?"
+
+Madame d'Argeles half rose, and said, in an agitated voice: "What!
+you try to make me believe that? 'Advice!' Then he must have found
+a man who said to him: 'Go to the house of this unfortunate woman
+who gave you birth, and order her to publish her dishonor and
+yours.  If she refuses, insult and beat her! 'You know, even
+better than I, baron, that this is impossible.  In the vilest
+natures, and when every other honorable feeling has been lost,
+love for one's mother survives.  Even convicts deprive themselves
+of their wine, and sell their rations, in order to send a trifle
+now and then to their mothers--while he----"
+
+She paused, not because she shrunk from what she was about to say,
+but because she was exhausted and out of breath.  She rested for a
+moment, and then resumed in a calmer tone: "Besides, the person
+who sent him here had counselled coolness and prudence.  I 
+discovered this at once.  It was only toward the close of the
+interview, and after an unexpected revelation from me, that he
+lost all control over himself.  The thought that he would lose my
+brother's millions crazed him.  Oh! that fatal and accursed money!
+Wilkie's adviser wished him to employ legal means to obtain an
+acknowledgment of his parentage; and he had copied from the Code a
+clause which is applicable to this case.  By this one circumstance
+I am convinced that his adviser is a man of experience in such
+matters--in other words, the business agent----"
+
+"What business agent?" inquired the baron.
+
+"The person who called here the other day, M. Isidore Fortunat. 
+Ah! why didn't I not bribe him to hold his peace?"
+
+The baron had entirely forgotten the existence of Victor Chupin's
+honorable employer.  "You are mistaken, Lia," he replied.  "M.
+Fortunat has had no hand in this."
+
+"Then who could have betrayed my secret?"
+
+"Why, your former ally, the rascal for whose sake you allowed
+Pascal Ferailleur to be sacrificed--the Viscount de Coralth!"
+
+The bare supposition of such treachery on the viscount's part
+brought a flush of indignant anger to Madame d'Argeles's cheek. 
+"Ah! if I thought that!" she exclaimed.  And then, remembering
+what reasons the baron had for hating M. de Coralth, she murmured:
+"No! Your animosity misleads you--he wouldn't dare!"
+
+The baron read her thoughts.  "So you are persuaded that it is
+personal vengeance that I am pursuing?" said he.  "You think that
+fear of ridicule and public odium prevents me from striking M. de
+Coralth in my own name, and that I am endeavoring to find some
+other excuse to crush him.  This might have been so once; but it
+is not the case now.  When I promised M. Ferailleur to do all in
+my power to save the young girl he loves, Mademoiselle Marguerite,
+my wife's daughter, I renounced all thought of self, all my former
+plans.  And why should you doubt Coralth's treachery?  You,
+yourself, promised me to unmask HIM.  If he has betrayed YOU, my
+poor Lia, he has only been a little in advance of you."
+
+She hung her head and made no reply.  She had forgotten this.
+
+"Besides," continued the baron, "you ought to know that when I
+make such a statement I have some better foundation for it than
+mere conjecture.  It was to some purpose that I watched M. de
+Coralth during your absence.  When the servant handed you that
+card he turned extremely pale.  Why? Because he knew whose card it
+was.  After you left the room his hands trembled like leaves, and
+his mind was no longer occupied with the game.  He--who is usually
+such a cautious player--risked his money recklessly.  When the
+cards came to him he did still worse; and though luck favored him,
+he made the strangest blunders, and lost.  His agitation and
+preoccupation were so marked as to attract attention; and one
+acquaintance laughingly inquired if he were ill, while another
+jestingly remarked that he had dined and wined a little too much. 
+The traitor was evidently on coals of fire.  I could see the
+perspiration on his forehead, and each time the door opened or
+shut, he changed color, as if he expected to see you and Wilkie
+enter.  A dozen times I surprised him listening eagerly, as if by
+dint of attention, or by the magnetic force of his will, he hoped
+to hear what you and your son were saying.  With a single word I
+could have wrung a confession from him."
+
+This explanation was so plausible that Madame d'Argeles felt half
+convinced.  "Ah! if you had only spoken that word!" she murmured. 
+The baron smiled a crafty and malicious smile, which would have
+chilled M. de Coralth's very blood if he had chanced to see it. 
+"I am not so stupid!" he replied.  "We mustn't frighten the fish
+till we are quite ready.  Our net is the Chalusse estate, and
+Coralth and Valorsay will enter it of their own accord.  It is not
+my plan, but M. Ferailleur's.  There's a man for you! and if
+Mademoiselle Marguerite is worthy of him they will make a noble
+pair.  Without suspecting it, your son has perhaps rendered us an
+important service this evening--"
+
+"Alas!" faltered Madame d'Argeles, "I am none the less ruined--the
+name of Chalusse is none the less dishonored!"
+
+She wanted to return to the drawing-room; but she was compelled to
+relinquish this idea.  The expression of her face betrayed too
+plainly the terrible ordeal she had passed through.  The servants
+had heard M. Wilkie's parting words; and news of this sort flies
+about with the rapidity of lightning.  That very night, indeed, it
+was currently reported at the clubs that there would be no more
+card-playing at the d'Argeles establishment, as that lady was a
+Chalusse, and consequently the aunt of the beautiful young girl
+whom M. and Madame de Fondege had taken under their protection.
+
+
+
+VIII.
+
+
+
+Unusual strength of character, unbounded confidence in one's own
+energy, with thorough contempt of danger, and an invincible
+determination to triumph or perish, are all required of the person
+who, like Mademoiselle Marguerite, intrusts herself to the care of
+strangers--worse yet, to the care of actual enemies.  It is no
+small matter to place yourself in the power of smooth-tongued
+hypocrites and impostors, who are anxious for your ruin, and whom
+you know to be capable of anything.  And the task is a mighty one--
+to brave unknown dangers, perilous seductions, perfidious
+counsels, and perhaps even violence, at the same time retaining a
+calm eye and smiling lips.  Yet such was the heroism that
+Marguerite, although scarcely twenty, displayed when she left the
+Hotel de Chalusse to accept the hospitality of the Fondege family. 
+And, to crown all, she took Madame Leon with her--Madame Leon,
+whom she knew to be the Marquis de Valorsay's spy.
+
+But, brave as she was, when the moment of departure came her heart
+almost failed her.  There was despair in the parting glance she
+cast upon the princely mansion and the familiar faces of the
+servants.  And there was no one to encourage or sustain her.  Ah,
+yes! standing at a window on the second floor, with his forehead
+pressed close against the pane of glass, she saw the only friend
+she had in the world--the old magistrate who had defended,
+encouraged, and sustained her--the man who had promised her his
+assistance and advice, and prophesied ultimate success.
+
+"Shall I be a coward?" she thought; "shall I be unworthy of
+Pascal?" And she resolutely entered the carriage, mentally
+exclaiming: "The die is cast!"
+
+The General insisted that she should take a place beside Madame de
+Fondege on the back seat; while he found a place next to Madame
+Leon on the seat facing them.  The drive was a silent and tedious
+one.  The night was coming on; it was a time when all Paris was on
+the move, and the carriage was delayed at each street corner by a
+crowd of passing vehicles.  The conversation was solely kept alive
+by the exertions of Madame de Fondege, whose shrill voice rose
+above the rumble of the wheels, as she chronicled the virtues of
+the late Count de Chalusse, and congratulated Mademoiselle
+Marguerite on the wisdom of her decision.  Her remarks were of a
+commonplace description, and yet each word she uttered evinced
+intense satisfaction, almost delight, as if she had won some
+unexpected victory.  Occasionally, the General leaned from the
+carriage window to see if the vehicle laden with Mademoiselle
+Marguerite's trunks was following them, but he said nothing.
+
+At last they reached his residence in the Rue Pigalle.  He
+alighted first, offered his hand successively to his wife,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, and Madame Leon, and motioned the
+coachman to drive away.
+
+But the man did not stir.  "Pardon--excuse me, monsieur," he said,
+"but my employers bade--requested me----"
+
+"What?"
+
+"To ask you--you know, for the fare--thirty-five francs--not
+counting the little gratuity."
+
+"Very well!--I will pay you to-morrow."
+
+"Excuse me, monsieur; but if it is all the same to you, would you
+do so this evening? My employer said that the bill had been
+standing a long time already."
+
+"What, scoundrel!"
+
+But Madame de Fondege, who was on the point of entering the house,
+suddenly stepped back, and drawing out her pocketbook, exclaimed:
+"That's enough! Here are thirty-five francs."
+
+The man went to his carriage lamp to count the money, and seeing
+that he had the exact amount--"And my gratuity?" he asked.
+
+"I give none to insolent people," replied the General.
+
+"You should take a cab if you haven't money enough to pay for
+coaches," replied the driver with an oath.  "I'll be even with you
+yet."
+
+Marguerite heard no more, for Madame de Fondege caught her by the
+arm and hurried her up the staircase, saying: "Quick! we must make
+haste.  Your baggage is here already, and we must see if the rooms
+I intended for you--for you and your companion--suit you."
+
+When Marguerite reached the second floor, Madame de Fondege hunted
+in her pocket for her latch-key.  Not finding it, she rang.  A
+tall man-servant of impudent appearance and arrayed in a glaring
+livery opened the door, carrying an old battered iron candlestick,
+in which a tiny scrap of candle was glaring and flickering. 
+"What!" exclaimed Madame de Fondege, "the reception-room not
+lighted yet? This is scandalous! What have you been doing in my
+absence? Come, make haste.  Light the lamp.  Tell the cook that I
+have some guests to dine with me.  Call my maid.  See that M.
+Gustave's room is in order.  Go down and see if the General
+doesn't need your assistance about the baggage."
+
+Finding it difficult to choose between so many contradictory
+orders, the servant did not choose at all.  He placed his rusty
+candlestick on one of the side-tables in the reception-room, and
+gravely, without saying a single word, went out into the passage
+leading to the kitchen.  "Evariste!" cried Madame de Fondege,
+crimson with anger, "Evariste, you insolent fellow!"
+
+As he deigned no reply, she rushed out in pursuit of him.  And
+soon the sound of a violent altercation arose; the servant
+lavishing insults upon his mistress, and she unable to find any
+response, save, "I dismiss you; you are an insolent scamp--I
+dismiss you."
+
+Madame Leon, who was standing near Mademoiselle Marguerite in the
+reception-room, seemed greatly amused.  "This is a strange
+household," said she.  "A fine beginning, upon my word."
+
+But the worthy housekeeper was the last person on earth to whom
+Mademoiselle Marguerite wished to reveal her thoughts.  "Hush,
+Leon," she replied.  "We are the cause of all this disturbance,
+and I am very sorry for it."
+
+The retort that rose to the housekeeper's lips was checked by the
+return of Madame de Fondege, followed by a servant-girl with a
+turn-up nose, a pert manner, and who carried a lighted candle in
+her hand.
+
+"How can I apologize, madame," began Mademoiselle Marguerite, "for
+all the trouble I am giving you?"
+
+"Ah! my dear child, I've never been so happy.  Come, come, and see
+your room." And while they crossed several scantily-furnished
+apartments, Madame de Fondege continued: "It is I who ought to
+apologize to you.  I fear you will pine for the splendors of the
+Hotel de Chalusse.  We are not millionaires like your poor father. 
+We have only a modest competence, no more.  But here we are!"
+
+The maid had opened a door, and Mademoiselle Marguerite entered a
+good-sized room lighted by two windows, hung with soiled wall
+paper, and adorned with chintz curtains, from which the sun had
+extracted most of the coloring.  Everything was in disorder here,
+and in fact, the whole room was extremely dirty.  The bed was not
+made, the washstand was dirty, some woollen stockings were hanging
+over the side of the rumpled bed, and on the mantel-shelf stood an
+ancient clock, an empty beer bottle, and some glasses.  On the
+floor, on the furniture, in the corners, everywhere in fact,
+stumps of cigars were scattered in profusion, as if they had
+positively rained down.
+
+"What!" gasped Madame de Fondege, "you haven't put this room in
+order, Justine?"
+
+"Indeed, madame, I haven't had time."
+
+"But it's more than a month since M. Gustave slept here?"
+
+"I know it; but madame must remember that I have been very much
+hurried this last month, having to do all the washing and ironing
+since the laundress----"
+
+"That's sufficient," interrupted Madame de Fondege.  And turning
+to Marguerite, she said: "You will, I am sure, excuse this
+disorder, my dear child.  By this time to-morrow the room shall be
+transformed into one of those dainty nests of muslin and flowers
+which young girls delight in."
+
+Connected with this apartment, which was known to the household as
+the lieutenant's room, there was a much smaller chamber lighted
+only by a single window, and originally intended for a dressing-
+room.  It had two doors, one of them communicating with
+Marguerite's room, and the other with the passage; and it was now
+offered to Madame Leon, who on comparing these quarters with the
+spacious suite of rooms she had occupied at the Hotel de Chalusse,
+had considerable difficulty in repressing a grimace.  Still she
+did not hesitate nor even murmur.  M. de Valorsay's orders bound
+her to Marguerite, and she deemed it fortunate that she was
+allowed to follow her.  And whether the marquis succeeded or not,
+he had promised her a sufficiently liberal reward to compensate
+for all personal discomfort.  So, in the sweetest of voices, and
+with a feigned humility of manner, she declared this little room
+to be even much too good for a poor widow whose misfortunes had
+compelled her to abdicate her position in society.
+
+The attentions which M. and Madame de Fondege showed her
+contributed not a little to her resignation.  Without knowing
+exactly what the General and his wife expected from Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, she was shrewd enough to divine that they hoped to
+gain some important advantage.  Now her "dear child" had declared
+her to be a trusted friend, who was indispensable to her existence
+and comfort.  "So these people will pay assiduous court to me,"
+she thought.  And being quite ready to play a double part as the
+spy of the Marquis de Valorsay, and the Fondege family, and quite
+willing to espouse the latter's cause should that prove to be the
+more remunerative course, she saw a long series of polite
+attentions and gifts before her.
+
+That very evening her prophecies were realized; and she received a
+proof of consideration which positively delighted her.  It was
+decided that she should take her meals at the family table, a
+thing which had never happened at the Hotel de Chalusse. 
+Mademoiselle Marguerite raised a few objections, which Madame Leon
+answered with a venomous look, but Madame de Fondege insisted upon
+the arrangement, not understanding, she said, graciously, why they
+need deprive themselves of the society of such an agreeable and
+distinguished person.  Madame Leon in no wise doubted but this
+favor was due to her merit alone, but Mademoiselle Marguerite, who
+was more discerning, saw that their hostess was really furious at
+the idea, but was compelled to submit to it by the imperious
+necessity of preventing Madame Leon from coming in contact with
+the servants, who might make some decidedly compromising
+disclosures.  For there were evidently many little mysteries and
+make-shifts to be concealed in this household.  For instance,
+while the servants were carrying the luggage upstairs, Marguerite
+discovered Madame de Fondege and her maid in close consultation,
+whispering with that volubility which betrays an unexpected and
+pressing perplexity.  What were they talking about? She listened
+without any compunctions of conscience, and the words "a pair of
+sheets," repeated again and again, furnished her with abundant
+food for reflection.  "Is it possible," she thought, "that they
+have no sheets to give us?"
+
+It did not take her long to discover the maid's opinion of the
+establishment in which she served; for while she brandished her
+broom and duster, this girl, exasperated undoubtedly by the
+increase of work she saw in store for her, growled and cursed the
+old barrack where one was worked to death, where one never had
+enough to eat, and where the wages were always in arrears. 
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was doing her best to aid the maid, who
+was greatly surprised to find this handsome, queenly young lady so
+obliging, when Evariste, the same who had received warning an hour
+before, made his appearance, and announced in an insolent tone
+that "Madame la Comtesse was served."
+
+For Madame de Fondege exacted this title.  She had improvised it,
+as her husband had improvised his title of General, and without
+much more difficulty.  By a search in the family archives she had
+discovered--so she declared to her intimate friends--that she was
+the descendant of a noble family, and that one of her ancestors
+had held a most important position at the court of Francis I.  or
+of Louis XII.  Indeed, she sometimes confounded them.  However,
+people who had not known her father, the wood merchant, saw
+nothing impossible in the statements.
+
+Evariste was dressed as a butler should be dressed when he
+announces dinner to a person of rank.  In the daytime when he
+discharged the duties of footman, he was gorgeous in gold lace;
+but in the evening, he arrayed himself in severe black, such as is
+appropriate to the butler of an aristocratic household. 
+Immediately after his announcement everybody repaired to the
+sumptuous dining-room which, with its huge side-boards, loaded
+with silver and rare china, looked not unlike a museum.  Such was
+the display, indeed, that when Mademoiselle Marguerite took a seat
+at the table, between the General and his wife, and opposite
+Madame Leon, she asked herself if she had not been the victim of
+that dangerous optical delusion known as prejudice.  She noticed
+that the supply of knives and forks was rather scanty; but many
+economical housewives keep most of their silver under lock and
+key; besides the china was very handsome and marked with the
+General's monogram, surmounted by his wife's coronet.
+
+However, the dinner was badly cooked and poorly served.  One might
+have supposed it to be a scullery maid's first attempt.  Still the
+General devoured it with delight.  He partook ravenously of every
+dish, a flush rose to his cheeks, and an expression of profound
+satisfaction was visible upon his countenance.  "From this,"
+thought Mademoiselle Marguerite, "I must infer that he usually
+goes hungry, and that this seems a positive feast to him." In
+fact, he seemed bubbling over with contentment.  He twirled his
+mustaches a la Victor Emmanuel, and rolled his "r," as he said,
+"Sacr-r-r-r-r-e bleu!" even more ferociously than usual.  It was
+only by a powerful effort that he restrained himself from
+indulging in various witticisms which would have been most
+unseemly in the presence of a poor girl who had just lost her
+father and all her hopes of fortune.  But he did forget himself so
+much as to say that the drive to the cemetery had whetted his
+appetite, and to address his wife as Madame Range-a-bord, a title
+which had been bestowed upon her by a sailor brother.
+
+Crimson with anger to the very roots of her coarse, sandy hair--
+amazed to see her husband deport himself in this style, and almost
+suffocated by the necessity of restraining her wrath, Madame de
+Fondege was heroic enough to smile, though her eyes flashed
+ominously.  But the General was not at all dismayed.  On the
+contrary, he cared so little for his wife's displeasure that, when
+the dessert was served, he turned to the servant, and, with a wink
+that Mademoiselle Marguerite noticed, "Evariste," he ordered, "go
+to the wine-cellar, and bring me a bottle of old Bordeaux."
+
+The valet, who had just received a week's notice, was only too
+glad of an opportunity for revenge.  So with a malicious smile,
+and in a drawling tone, he replied: "Then monsieur must give me
+the money.  Monsieur knows very well that neither the grocer nor
+the wine-merchant will trust him any longer."
+
+M. de Fondege rose from the table, looking very pale; but before
+he had time to utter a word, his wife came to the rescue.  "You
+know, my dear, that I don't trust the key of my cellar to this
+lad.  Evariste, call Justine."
+
+The pert-looking chambermaid appeared, and her mistress told her
+where she would find the key of the famous cellar.  About a
+quarter of an hour afterward, one of those bottles which grocers
+and wine-merchants prepare for the benefit of credulous customers
+was brought in--a bottle duly covered with dust and mould to give
+it a venerable appearance, and festooned with cobwebs, such as the
+urchins of Paris collect and sell at from fifteen sous to two
+francs a pound, according to quality.  But the Bordeaux did not
+restore the General's equanimity.  He was silent and subdued; and
+his relief was evident when, after the coffee had been served, his
+wife exclaimed: "We won't keep you from your club, my dear.  I
+want a chat with our dear child."
+
+Since she dismissed the General so unceremoniously, Madame de
+Fondege evidently wished for a tete-a-tete with Mademoiselle
+Marguerite.  At least Madame Leon thought so, or feigned to think
+so, and addressing the young girl, she said: "I shall be obliged
+to leave you for a couple of hours, my dear young lady.  My
+relatives would never forgive me if I did not inform them of my
+change of residence."
+
+This was the first time since she had been engaged by the Count de
+Chalusse, that the estimable "companion" had ever made any direct
+allusion to her relatives, and what is more, to relatives residing
+in Paris.  She had previously only spoken of them in general
+terms, giving people to understand that her relatives had not been
+unfortunate like herself--that they still retained their exalted
+rank, though she had fallen, and that she found it difficult to
+decline the favors they longed to heap upon her.
+
+However, Mademoiselle Marguerite evinced no surprise.  "Go at once
+and inform your relatives, my dear Leon," she said, without a
+shade of sarcasm in her manner.  "I hope they won't be offended by
+your devotion to me." But in her secret heart, she thought: "This
+hypocrite is going to report to the Marquis de Valorsay, and these
+relatives of hers will furnish her with excuses for future visits
+to him."
+
+The General went off, the servants began to clear the table, and
+Mademoiselle Marguerite followed her hostess to the drawing-room. 
+It was a lofty and spacious apartment, lighted by three windows,
+and even more sumptuous in its appointments than the dining-room. 
+Furniture, carpets, and hangings, were all in rather poor taste,
+perhaps, but costly, very costly.  As the evening was a cold one,
+Madame de Fondege ordered the fire to be lighted.  She seated
+herself on a sofa near the mantelpiece, and when Mademoiselle
+Marguerite had taken a chair opposite her, she began, "Now, my
+dear child, let us have a quiet talk."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite expected some important communication, so
+that she was not a little surprised when Madame de Fondege
+resumed: "Have you thought about your mourning?"
+
+"About my mourning, madame?"
+
+"Yes.  I mean, have you decided what dresses you will purchase? It
+is an important matter, my dear--more important than you suppose. 
+They are making costumes entirely of crepe now, puffed and
+plaited, and extremely stylish.  I saw one that would suit you
+well.  You may think that a costume for deep mourning made with
+puffs would be a trifle LOUD, but that depends upon tastes.  The
+Duchess de Veljo wore one only eleven days after her husband's
+death; and she allowed some of her hair, which is superb, to fall
+over her shoulders, a la pleureuse, and the effect was extremely
+touching." Was Madame de Fondege speaking sincerely? There could
+be no doubt of it.  Her features, which had been distorted with
+anger when the General took it into his head to order the bottle
+of Bordeaux, had regained their usual placidity of expression, and
+had even brightened a little.  "I am entirely at your service, my
+dear, if you wish any shopping done," she continued.  "And if you
+are not quite pleased with your dressmaker, I will take you to
+mine, who works like an angel.  But how absurd I am.  You will of
+course employ Van Klopen.  I go to him occasionally myself, but
+only on great occasions.  Between you and me, I think him a trifle
+too high in his charges."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite could scarcely repress a smile.  "I must
+confess, madame, that from my infancy I have been in the habit of
+making almost all my dresses myself."
+
+The General's wife raised her eyes to Heaven in real or feigned
+astonishment.  "Yourself!" she repeated four or five times, as if
+to make sure that she had heard aright.  "Yourself! That is
+incomprehensible! You, the daughter of a man who possessed an
+income of five or six hundred thousand francs a year! Still I know
+that poor M. de Chalusse, though unquestionably a very worthy and
+excellent man, was peculiar in some of his ideas."
+
+"Excuse me, madame.  What I did, I did for my own pleasure."
+
+But this assertion exceeded Madame de Fondege's powers of
+comprehension.  "Impossible!" she murmured, "impossible! But, my
+poor child, what did you do for fashions--for patterns?"
+
+The immense importance she attached to the matter was so manifest
+that Marguerite could not refrain from smiling.  "I was probably
+not a very close follower of the fashions," she replied.  "The
+dress that I am wearing now----."
+
+"Is very pretty, my child, and it becomes you extremely; that's
+the truth.  Only, to be frank, I must confess that this style is
+no longer worn--no--not at all.  You must have your new dresses
+made in quite a different way."
+
+"But I already have more dresses than I need, madame."
+
+"What! black dresses?"
+
+"I seldom wear anything but black."
+
+Evidently her hostess had never heard anything like this before. 
+"Oh! all right," said she, "these dresses will doubtless do very
+well for your first months of mourning--but afterward? Do you
+suppose, my poor dear, that I'm going to allow you to shut
+yourself up as you did at the Hotel de Chalusse? Good heavens! how
+dull it must have been for you, alone in that big house, without
+society or friends."
+
+A tear fell from Marguerite's long lashes.  "I was very happy
+there, madame," she murmured.
+
+"You think so; but you will change your mind.  When one has never
+tasted real pleasure, one cannot realize how gloomy one's life
+really is.  No doubt, you were very unhappy alone with M. de
+Chalusse."
+
+"Oh! madame----"
+
+"Tut! tut! my dear, I know what I am talking about.  Wait until
+you have been introduced into society before you boast of the
+charms of solitude.  Poor dear! I doubt if you have ever attended
+a ball in your whole life.  No! I was sure of it, and you are
+twenty! Fortunately, I am here.  I will take your mother's place,
+and we will make up for lost time! Beautiful as you are, my child--
+for you are divinely beautiful--you will reign as a queen
+wherever you appear.  Doesn't that thought make that cold little
+heart of yours throb more quickly? Ah! fetes and music, wonderful
+toilettes and the flashing of diamonds, the admiration of
+gentlemen, the envy of rivals, the consciousness of one's own
+beauty, are these delights not enough to fill any woman's life? It
+is intoxication, perhaps, but an intoxication which is happiness."
+
+Was she sincere, or did she hope to dazzle this lonely girl, and
+then rule her through the tastes she might succeed in giving her?
+As is not unfrequently the case with callous natures, Madame de
+Fondege was a compound of frankness and cunning.  What she was
+saying now she really meant; and as it was to her interest to say
+it, she urged her opinions boldly and even eloquently.  Twenty-
+four hours earlier, proud and truthful Marguerite would have
+silenced her at once.  She would have told her that such pleasures
+could never have any charm for her, and that she felt only scorn
+and disgust for such worthless aims and sordid desires.  But
+having resolved to appear a dupe, she concealed her real feelings
+under an air of surprise, and was astonished and even ashamed to
+find that she could dissemble so well.
+
+"Besides," continued Madame de Fondege, "a marriageable young girl
+should never shut herself up like a nun.  She will never find a
+husband if she remains at home--and she must marry.  Indeed,
+marriage is a sensible woman's only object in life, since it is
+her emancipation."
+
+Was Madame de Fondege going to plead her son's cause? Mademoiselle
+Marguerite almost believed it--but the lady was too shrewd for
+that.  She took good care not to mention as much as Lieutenant
+Gustave's name.
+
+"The season will certainly be unusually brilliant," she said, "and
+it will begin very early.  On the fifth of November, the Countess
+de Commarin will give a superb fete; all Paris will be there.  On
+the seventh, there will be a ball at the house of the Viscountess
+de Bois d'Ardon.  On the eleventh, there will be a concert,
+followed by a ball, at the superb mansion of the Baroness
+Trigault--you know--the wife of that strange man who spends all
+his time in playing cards."
+
+"This is the first time I ever heard the name mentioned."
+
+"Really! and you have been living in Paris for years.  It seems
+incomprehensible.  You must know then, my dear little ignoramus,
+that the Baroness Trigault is one of the most distinguished ladies
+in Paris, and certainly the best dressed.  I am sure her bill at
+Van Klopen's is not less than a hundred thousand francs a year--
+and that is saying enough, is it not?" And with genuine pride, she
+added: "The baroness is my friend.  I will introduce you to her."
+
+Having once started on this theme, Madame de Fondege was not
+easily silenced.  It was evidently her ambition to be considered a
+woman of the world, and to be acquainted with all the leaders of
+fashionable society; and, in fact, if one listened to her
+conversation for an hour one could learn all the gossip of the
+day.  Though she was unable to interest herself in this tittle-
+tattle, Marguerite was pretending to listen to it with profound
+attention when the drawing-room door suddenly opened and Evariste
+appeared with an impudent smile on his face.  "Madame Landoire,
+the milliner, is here, and desires to speak with Madame la
+Comtesse," he said.
+
+On hearing this name, Madame de Fondege started as if she had been
+stung by a viper.  "Let her wait," she said quickly.  "I will see
+her in a moment."
+
+The order was useless, for the visitor was already on the
+threshold.  She was a tall, dark-haired, ill-mannered woman.  "Ah!
+I've found you at last," she said, rudely, "and I'm not sorry. 
+This is the fourth time I've come here with my bill."
+
+Madame de Fondege pointed to Mademoiselle Marguerite, and
+exclaimed: "Wait, at least, until I am alone before you speak to
+me on business."
+
+Madame Landoire shrugged her shoulders.  "As if you were ever
+alone," she growled.  "I wish to put an end to this."
+
+"Step into my room then, and we will put an end to it, and at
+once."
+
+This opportunity to escape from Madame de Fondege must not be
+allowed to pass; so Marguerite asked permission to withdraw,
+declaring, what was really the truth, that she felt completely
+tired out.  After receiving a maternal kiss from her hostess,
+accompanied by a "sleep well, my dear child," she retired to her
+own room.  Thanks to Madame Leon's absence, she found herself
+alone, and, drawing a blotting-pad from one of her trunks, she
+hastily wrote a note to M. Isidore Fortunat, telling him that she
+would call upon him on the following Tuesday.  "I must be very
+awkward," she thought, "if to-morrow, on going to mass, I can't
+find an opportunity to throw this note into a letter-box without
+being observed."
+
+It was fortunate that she had lost no time, for her writing-case
+was scarcely in its place again before Madame Leon entered,
+evidently out of sorts.  "Well," asked Marguerite, "did you see
+your friends?"
+
+"Don't speak of it, my dear young lady; they were all of them away
+from home--they had gone to the play."
+
+"Ah?"
+
+"So I shall go again early to-morrow morning; you must realize how
+important it is."
+
+"Yes, I understand."
+
+But Madame Leon, who was usually so loquacious, did not seem to be
+in a talkative mood that evening, and, after kissing her dear
+young lady, she went into her own room.
+
+"She did not succeed in finding the Marquis de Valorsay," thought
+Marguerite, "and being in doubt as to the part she is to play, she
+feels furious."
+
+The young girl tried to sum up the impressions of the evening, and
+to decide upon a plan of conduct, but she felt sad and very weary. 
+She said to herself that rest would be more beneficial than
+anything else, and that her mind would be clearer on the morrow;
+so after a fervent prayer in which Pascal Ferailleur's name was
+mentioned several times, she prepared for bed.  But before she
+fell asleep she was able to collect another bit of evidence.  The
+sheets on her bed were new.
+
+If Marguerite had been born in the Hotel de Chalusse, if she had
+known a father's and a mother's tender care from her infancy, if
+she had always been protected by a large fortune from the stern
+realities of life, there would have been no hope for her now that
+she was left poor and alone--for how can a girl avoid dangers she
+is ignorant of? But from her earliest childhood Marguerite had
+studied the difficult science of real life under the best of
+teachers--misfortune.  Cast upon her own resources at the age of
+thirteen, she had learned to look upon everybody and everything
+with distrust; and by relying only on herself, she had become
+strangely cautious and clear-sighted.  She knew how to watch and
+how to listen, how to deliberate and how to act.  Two men, the
+Marquis de Valorsay and M. de Fondege's son, coveted her hand; and
+one of the two, the marquis, so she believed, was capable of any
+crime.  Still she felt no fears.  She had been in danger once
+before when she was little more than a child, when the brother of
+her employer insulted her with his attentions, but she had escaped
+unharmed.
+
+Deceit was certainly most repugnant to her truth-loving nature;
+but it was the only weapon of defence she possessed.  And so on
+the following day she carefully studied the abode of her
+entertainers.  And certainly the study was instructive.  The
+General's household was truly Parisian in character; or, at least,
+it was what a Parisian household inevitably becomes when its
+inmates fall a prey to the constantly increasing passion for
+luxury and display, to the furore for aping the habits and
+expenditure of millionaires, and to the noble and elevated desire
+of humiliating and outshining their neighbors.  Ease, health, and
+comfort had been unscrupulously sacrificed to show.  The dining-
+room was magnificent, the drawing-room superb; but these were the
+only comfortably furnished apartments in the establishment.  The
+other rooms were bare and desolate.  It is true that Madame de
+Fondege had a handsome wardrobe with glass doors in her own room,
+but this was an article which the friend of the fashionable
+Baroness Trigault could not possibly dispense with.  On the other
+hand, her bed had no curtains.
+
+The aspect of the place fittingly explained the habits and manners
+of the inmates.  What sinister fears must have haunted them! for
+how could this extreme destitution in one part of the
+establishment be reconciled with the luxury noticeable in the
+other, except by the fact that a desperate struggle to keep up
+appearances was constantly going on? And this constant anxiety
+made out-door noise, excitement, and gayety a necessity of their
+existence, and caused them to welcome anything that took them from
+the home where they had barely sufficient to deceive society, and
+not enough to impose upon their creditors.  "And they keep three
+servants," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite--"three enemies who
+spend their time in ridiculing them, and torturing their vanity."
+
+Thus, on the very first day after her arrival, she realized the
+real situation of the General and his wife.  They were certainly
+on the verge of ruin when Mademoiselle Marguerite accepted their
+hospitality.  Everything went to prove this: the coachman's
+insolent demand, the servants' impudence, the grocer's refusal to
+furnish a single bottle of wine on credit, the milliner's
+persistence, and, lastly, the new sheets on the visitors' beds. 
+"Yes," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite to herself, "the Fondeges
+were ruined when I came here.  They would never have sunk so low
+if they had not been utterly destitute of resources.  So, if they
+rise again, if money and credit come back again, then the old
+magistrate is right--they have obtained possession of the Chalusse
+millions!"
+
+
+
+IX
+
+
+On this side, at least, Mademoiselle Marguerite had no very wide
+field of investigation to explore.  Her common sense told her that
+her task would merely consist in carefully watching the behavior
+of the General and his wife, in noting their expenditure, and so
+on.  It was a matter of close attention, and of infinitesimal
+trifles.  Nor was she much encouraged by her first success.  It
+was, perhaps, important; and yet it might be nothing.  For she
+felt that the real difficulties would not begin until she became
+morally certain that the General had stolen the millions that were
+missing from the count's escritoire.  Even then it would remain
+for her to discover how he had obtained possession of this money. 
+And when she had succeeded in doing this, would her task be ended?
+Certainly not.  She must obtain sufficient evidence to give her
+the right of accusing the General openly, and in the face of every
+one.  She must have material and indisputable proofs before she
+could say: "A robbery has been committed.  I was accused of it.  I
+was innocent.  Here is the culprit!"
+
+What a long journey must be made before this goal was reached! No
+matter! Now that she had a positive and fixed point of departure,
+she felt that she possessed enough energy to sustain her in her
+endeavors for years, if need be.  What troubled her most was that
+she could not logically explain the conduct of her enemies from
+the time M. de Fondege had asked her hand for his son up to the
+present moment.  And first, why had they been so audacious or so
+imprudent as to bring her to their own home if they had really
+stolen one of those immense amounts that are sure to betray their
+possessors?" They are mad," she thought, "or else they must deem
+me blind, deaf, and more stupid than mortal ever was!" Secondly,
+why should they be so anxious to marry her to their son,
+Lieutenant Gustave? This also was a puzzling question.  However,
+she was fully decided on one point: the suspicions of the Fondege
+family must not be aroused.  If they were on their guard, it would
+be the easiest thing in the world for them to pay their debts
+quietly, and increase their expenditure so imperceptibly that she
+would not be able to prove a sudden acquisition of wealth.
+
+But the events of the next few days dispelled these apprehensions. 
+That very afternoon, although it was Sunday, it became evident
+that a shower of gold had fallen on the General's abode.  The
+door-bell rang incessantly for several hours, and an interminable
+procession of tradesmen entered.  It looked very much as if M. de
+Fondege had called a meeting of his creditors.  They came in
+haughty and arrogant, with their hats upon their heads, and surly
+of speech, like people who have made up their minds to accept
+their loss, but who intend to pay themselves in rudeness.  They
+were ushered into the drawing-room where the General was holding
+his levee; they remained there from five to ten minutes, and then,
+bowing low with hat in hand, they retired with radiant
+countenances, and an obsequious smile on their lips.  So they had
+been paid.  And as if to prove to Mademoiselle Marguerite that her
+suspicions were correct, she chanced to be present when the livery
+stable-keeper presented his bill.
+
+Madame de Fondege received him very haughtily.  "Ah! here you
+are!" she exclaimed, rudely, as soon as he appeared.  "So you are
+the man who teaches his drivers to insult his customers? That is
+an excellent way to gain patronage.  What! I hire a one-horse
+carriage from you by the month, and because I happen to wish for a
+two-horse vehicle for a single day, you make me pay the
+difference.  You should demand payment in advance if you are so
+suspicious."
+
+The stable-keeper, who had a bill for nearly four thousand francs
+in his pocket, stood listening with the air of a man who is
+meditating some crushing reply; but she did not give him time to
+deliver it.  "When I have cause to complain of the people I
+employ, I dismiss them and replace them by others.  Insolence is
+one of those things that I never forgive.  Give me your bill."
+
+The man, in whose face doubt, fear, and hope had succeeded each
+other in swift succession, thereupon drew an interminable bill
+from his pocket.  And when he saw the bank-notes, when he saw the
+bill paid without dispute or even examination, he was seized with
+a wondering respect, and his voice became sweeter than honey. 
+They say the payment of a bad debt delights a merchant a thousand
+times more than the settlement of fifty good ones.  The truth of
+this assertion became apparent in the present case.  Mademoiselle
+Marguerite thought the man was going to beg "Madame la Comtesse to
+do him the favor to withhold a portion of the small amount." For
+the Parisian tradesman is so constituted that very frequently it
+is not necessary to pay him money, but only to show it.
+
+However, this creditor's abnegation did not extend so far; still
+he did entreat Madame la Comtesse not to leave him on account of a
+blunder--for it was a blunder--he swore it on his children's
+heads.  His coachman was only a fool and a drunkard, who had
+misunderstood him entirely, and whom he should ignominiously
+dismiss on returning to his establishment.  But "Madame la
+Comtesse" was inflexible.  She sent the man about his business,
+saying, "I never place myself in a position to be treated with
+disrespect a second time."
+
+This probably accounted for the fact that Evariste, the footman,
+who had been so wanting in respect the previous evening, had been
+sent away that very morning.  Mademoiselle Marguerite did not see
+him again.  Dinner was served by a new servant, who had been sent
+by an Employment Office, and engaged without a question, no doubt
+because Evariste's livery fitted him like a glove.  Had the cook
+also been replaced? Mademoiselle Marguerite thought so, though she
+had no means of convincing herself on this point.  It was certain,
+however, that the Sunday dinner was utterly unlike that of the
+evening before.  Quality had replaced quantity, and care,
+profusion.  It was not necessary to send to the cellar for a
+bottle of Chateau-Laroze; it made its appearance at the proper
+moment, warmed to the precise degree of temperature, and seemed
+quite to the taste of excellent Madame Leon.
+
+In twenty-four hours the Fondege family had been raised to such
+affluence that they must have asked themselves if it were possible
+they had ever known the agonies of that life of false appearances
+and sham luxury which is a thousand times worse than an existence
+of abject poverty.  "Is it possible that I am deceived?"
+Marguerite said to herself, on retiring to her room that evening. 
+For it surprised her that a keen-sighted person like Madame Leon
+should not have remarked this revolution; but the worthy companion
+merely declared the General and his wife to be charming people,
+and did not cease to congratulate her dear young lady upon having
+accepted their hospitality.  "I feel quite at home here," said
+she; "and though my room is a trifle small, I shall have nothing
+to wish for when it has been refurnished."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite spent a restless and uncomfortable night. 
+In spite of her reason, in spite of the convincing proofs she had
+seen, the most disturbing doubts returned.  Might she not have
+judged the situation with a prejudiced mind? Had the Fondeges
+really been as reduced in circumstances as she supposed? Like
+every one who has been unfortunate, she feared illusions, and was
+extremely distrustful of everything that seemed to favor her hopes
+and wishes.  The only thing that really encouraged her was the
+thought that she could consult the old magistrate, and that M. de
+Chalusse's former agent might succeed in finding Pascal
+Ferailleur.  M. Fortunat must have received her letter by this
+time: he would undoubtedly expect her on Tuesday, and it only
+remained for her to invent some excuse which would give her a
+couple of hours' liberty without awakening suspicion.
+
+She rose early the next morning, and had almost completed her
+toilette, when she heard some one in the passage outside rapping
+at the door of Madame Leon's room.  "Who's there?" inquired that
+worthy lady.
+
+It was Justine, Madame de Fondege's maid, who answered in a pert
+voice, "Here is a letter, madame, which has just been sent up by
+the concierge.  It is addressed to Madame Leon.  That is your
+name, is it not?"
+
+Marguerite staggered as if she had received a heavy blow.  "My
+God! a letter from the Marquis de Valorsay!" she thought.
+
+It was evident that the estimable lady was expecting this missive
+by the eagerness with which she sprang out of bed and opened the
+door.  And Marguerite heard her say to the servant in her sweetest
+voice: "A thousand thanks, my child! Ah! this is a great relief, I
+have heard from my brother-in-law at last.  I recognize his hand-
+writing." And then the door closed again.
+
+Standing silent and motionless in the middle of her room,
+Marguerite listened with that feverish anxiety that excites the
+perceptive faculties to the utmost degree.  An inward voice,
+stronger than reason, told her that this letter threatened her
+happiness, her future, perhaps her life! But how could she
+convince herself of the truth of this presentiment? If she had
+followed her first impulse, she would have rushed into Madame
+Leon's room and have snatched the letter from her hands.  But if
+she did this, she would betray herself, and prove that she was not
+the dupe they supposed her to be, and this supposition on the part
+of her enemies constituted her only chance of salvation.
+
+If she could only watch Madame Leon as she read the letter, and
+gain some information from the expression of her face; but this
+seemed impossible, for the keyhole was blocked up by the key,
+which had been left in the lock on the other side.  Suddenly a
+crack in the partition attracted her attention, and finding that
+it extended through the wall, she realized she might watch what
+was passing in the adjoining room.  So she approached the spot on
+tiptoe, and, with bated breath, stooped and looked in.
+
+In her impatience to learn the contents of her letter, Madame Leon
+had not gone back to bed.  She had broken the seal, and was
+reading the missive, standing barefooted in her night-dress,
+directly opposite the little crevice.  She read line after line,
+and word after word, and her knitted brows and compressed lips
+suggested deep concentration of thought mingled with discontent. 
+At last she shrugged her shoulders, muttered a few inaudible
+words, and laid the open letter upon the rickety chest of drawers,
+which, with two chairs and a bed, constituted the entire furniture
+of her apartment.
+
+"My God!" exclaimed Marguerite, with bated breath, "if she would
+only forget it!"
+
+But she did not forget it.  She began to dress, and when she had
+finished she read the letter again, and then placed it carefully
+in one of the drawers, which she locked, putting the key in her
+pocket.
+
+"I shall never know, then," thought Marguerite; "no, I shall never
+know.  But I must know--and I will!" she added vehemently.
+
+From that moment a firm determination to obtain that letter took
+possession of her mind; and so deeply was she occupied in seeking
+for some means to surmount the difficulties which stood in her way
+that she did not say a dozen words during breakfast.  "I must be a
+fool if I can't find some way of gaining possession of that
+letter," she said to herself again and again.  "I'm sure I could
+find in it the explanation of the abominable intrigue which Pascal
+and I are the victims of."
+
+Happily, her preoccupation was not remarked.  Each person present
+was too deeply engrossed in his or her own concerns to notice the
+behavior of the others.  Madame Leon's mind was occupied with the
+news she had just received; and, besides, her attention was
+considerably attracted by some partridges garnished with truffles,
+and a bottle of Chateau-Laroze.  For she was rather fond of good
+living, the dear lady, as she confessed herself, adding that no
+one is perfect.  The General talked of nothing but a certain pair
+of horses which he was to look at that afternoon, and which he
+thought of buying--being quite disgusted with job-masters, so he
+declared.  Besides, he expected to get the animals at a bargain,
+as they were the property of a young gentleman who had been led to
+commit certain misdemeanors by his love of gambling and his
+passion for a notorious woman who was addicted with an insatiable
+desire for jewelry.
+
+As for Madame de Fondege, her head seemed to have been completely
+turned by the prospect of the approaching fete at the Countess de
+Commarin's.  She had only a fortnight left to make her
+preparations.  All the evening before, through part of the night,
+and ever since she had been awake that morning, she had been
+racking her brain to arrive at an effective combination of colors
+and materials.  And at the cost of a terrible headache, she had at
+last conceived one of those toilettes which are sure to make a
+sensation, and which the newspaper reporters will mention as
+noticeable for its "chic." "Picture to yourself," she said, all
+ablaze with enthusiasm, "picture to yourself a robe of tea-flower
+silk, trimmed with bands of heavy holland-tinted satin, thickly
+embroidered with flowers.  A wide flounce of Valenciennes at the
+bottom of the skirt.  Over this, I shall wear a tunic of pearl-
+gray crepe, edged with a fringe of the various shades in the
+dress, and forming a panier behind."
+
+But how much trouble, time and labor must be expended before such
+an elaborate chef-d'oeuvre could be completed! How many
+conferences with the dressmaker, with the florist, and the
+embroiderer! How many doubts, how many inevitable mistakes! Ah!
+there was not a moment to lose! Madame de Fondege, who was dressed
+to go out, and who had already sent for a carriage, insisted that
+Mademoiselle Marguerite should accompany her.  And certainly, the
+General's wife deemed the proposal a seductive one.  It is a very
+fashionable amusement to run from one shop to another, even when
+one cannot, or will not, buy.  It is a custom, which some noble
+ladies have imported from America, to the despair of the poor
+shopkeepers.  And thus every fine afternoon, the swell shops are
+filled to overflowing with richly-attired dames and damsels, who
+ask to see all the new goods.  It is far more amusing than
+remaining at home.  And when they return to dinner in the evening,
+after inspecting hundreds of yards of silk and satin, they are
+very well pleased with themselves, for they have not lost the day. 
+Nor do the shrewdest always return from these expeditions empty-
+handed.  A dozen gloves or a piece of lace can be hidden so easily
+in the folds of a mantle!
+
+And yet, to Madame de Fondege's great surprise, Marguerite
+declined the invitation.  "I have so many things to put in order,"
+she added, feeling that an excuse was indispensable.
+
+But Madame Leon, who had not the same reasons as her dear child
+for wishing to remain at home, kindly offered her services.  She
+was acquainted with several of the best shops, she declared,
+particularly with the establishment of a dealer in laces, in the
+Rue de Mulhouse, and thanks to an introduction from her, Madame de
+Fondege could not fail to conclude a very advantageous bargain
+there.  "Very well," replied Madame de Fondege, "I will take you 
+with me, then; but make haste and dress while I put on my bonnet."
+
+They left the breakfast-room at the same time, closely followed by
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, who was disturbed by a hope which she
+scarcely dared confess to herself.  With her forehead resting
+against the wall, and her eye peering through the tiny crack, she
+watched her governess change her dress, throw a shawl over her
+shoulders, put on her best bonnet, and, after a glance at the
+looking-glass, rush from the room, exclaiming: "Here I am, my dear
+countess.  I'm ready."
+
+And a few moments afterward they left the house together.
+
+As the outer door closed after them, Marguerite's brain whirled. 
+If she were not deceived, Madame Leon had left the key of the
+drawers in the pocket of the dress she had just taken off.  So it
+was with a wildly throbbing heart that she opened the
+communicating door and entered her "companion's" room.  She
+hastily approached the bed on which the dress was lying, and, with
+a trembling hand, she began to search for the pocket.  Fortune
+favored her! The key was there.  The letter was within her reach. 
+But she was about to do a deed against which her whole nature
+revolted.  To steal a key, to force an article of furniture open,
+and violate the secret of a private correspondence, these were
+actions so repugnant to her sense of honor, and her pride, that
+for some time she stood irresolute.  At last the instinct of self-
+preservation overpowered her scruples.  Was not her honor, and
+Pascal's honor also, at stake--as well as their mutual love and
+happiness?" It would be folly to hesitate." she murmured.  And
+with a firm hand she placed the key in the lock.
+
+The latter was out of order and the drawer was only opened with
+difficulty.  But there, on some clothes which Madame Leon had not
+yet found time to arrange, Marguerite saw the letter.  She eagerly
+snatched it up, unfolded it, and read: "Dear Madame Leon--" "Dear
+me," she muttered, "here is the name in full.  This is an
+indiscretion which will render denial difficult." And she resumed
+her perusal: "Your letter, which I have just received, confirms
+what my servants had already told me: that twice during my
+absence--on Saturday evening and Sunday morning--you called at my
+house to see me." So Mademoiselle Marguerite's penetration had
+served her well.  All this talk about anxious relatives had only
+been an excuse invented by Madame Leon to enable her to absent
+herself whenever occasion required.  "I regret," continued the
+letter, "that you did not find me at home, for I have instructions
+of the greatest importance to give you.  We are approaching the
+decisive moment.  I have formed a plan which will completely, and
+forever, efface all remembrance of that cursed P. F., in case any
+one condescended to think of him after the disgrace we fastened
+upon him the other evening at the house of Madame d'Argeles." P.
+F.--these initials of course meant Pascal Ferailleur.  Then he was
+innocent, and she held an undeniable, irrefutable proof of his
+innocence in her hands.  How coolly and impudently Valorsay
+confessed his atrocious crime!" A bold stroke is in contemplation
+which, if no unfortunate and well-nigh impossible accident occur,
+will throw the girl into my arms." Marguerite shuddered.  "The
+girl" referred to her, of course.  "Thanks to the assistance of
+one of my friends," added the letter "I can place this proud
+damsel in a perilous, terribly perilous position, from which she
+cannot possibly extricate herself unaided.  But, just as she gives
+herself up for lost, I shall interpose.  I shall save her; and it
+will be strange if gratitude does not work the necessary miracle
+in my favor.  The plan is certain to succeed.  Still, it will be
+all the better if the physician who attended M. de C---- in his
+last moments, and whom you spoke to me about (Dr. Jodon, if I
+remember rightly), will consent to lend us a helping hand.  What
+kind of a man is he? If he is accessible to the seductive
+influence of a few thousand francs, I shall consider the business
+as good as concluded.  Your conduct up to the present time has
+been a chef-d'oeuvre, for which you shall be amply compensated. 
+You have cause to know that I am not ungrateful.  Let the F's
+continue their intrigues, and even pretend to favor them.  I am
+not afraid of these people.  I understand their game perfectly,
+and know why they wish my little one to marry their son.  But when
+they become troublesome, I shall crush them like glass.  In spite
+of these explanations, which I have just given you for your
+guidance, it is very necessary that I should see you.  I shall
+look for you on Tuesday afternoon, between three and four o'clock. 
+Above all, don't fail to bring me the desired information
+respecting Dr. Jodon.  I am, my dear madame, devotedly yours--V." 
+Below ran a postscript which read as follows: "When you come on
+Tuesday bring this letter with you.  We will burn it together. 
+Don't imagine that I distrust you--but there is nothing so
+dangerous as letters."
+
+For some time Marguerite stood, stunned and appalled by the
+Marquis de Valorsay's audacity, and by the language of this
+letter, which was at once so obscure and so clear, every line of
+it threatening her future. The reality surpassed her worst
+apprehensions, but realizing the gravity of the situation, she
+shook off the torpor stealing over her.  She felt that every
+second was precious, and that she must act, and act at once.  But
+what should she do? Simply return the letter to its place, and
+continue to act the role of a dupe, as if nothing had happened?
+No; that must not be.  It would be madness not to seize this
+flagrant proof of the Marquis de Valorsay's infamy.  But on the
+other hand, if she kept the letter, Madame Leon would immediately
+discover its loss, and an explanation would be unavoidable.  M. de
+Valorsay would be worsted, but not annihilated, and the plans
+which made the physician's intervention a necessity would never be
+revealed.  She thought of hastening to her friend the old
+magistrate; but he lived a long way off, and time was pressing. 
+Besides she might not find him at home.  Then she thought of going
+to a notary, to a judge.  She would show them the letter, and they
+could take a copy of it.  But no--this would do no good--the
+marquis could still deny it.  She was becoming desperate, and was
+accusing herself of stupidity, when a sudden inspiration illumined
+her mind, turning night into day, as it were.  "Oh, Pascal, we are
+saved!" she exclaimed.  And without pausing to deliberate any
+longer, she threw a mantle over her shoulders, hastily tied on her
+bonnet, and hurried from the house, without saying a word to any
+one.
+
+Unfortunately she was not acquainted with this part of Paris, and
+on reaching the Rue Pigalle she was at a loss for her way. 
+Unwilling to waste any more time, she hastily entered a grocer's
+shop at the corner of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue Notre Dame de
+Lorette, and anxiously inquired: "Do you know any photographer in
+this neighborhood, monsieur?"
+
+Her agitation made this question seem so singular that the grocer
+looked at her closely for a moment, as if to make sure that she
+was not jesting.  "You have only to go down the Rue Notre Dame de
+Lorette," he replied, "and on the left-hand side, at the foot of
+the hill, you will find the photographer Carjat."
+
+"Thank you."
+
+The grocer stepped to the door to watch her.  "That girl's
+certainly light-headed," he thought.
+
+Her demeanor was really so extraordinary that it attracted the
+attention of the passers-by.  She saw this, and slackening her
+pace, tried to become more composed.  At the spot the grocer had
+indicated, she perceived several show frames filled with
+photographs hanging on either side of a broad, open gateway, above
+which ran the name, "E. Carjat." She went in, and seeing a man
+standing at the door of an elegant pavilion on the right-hand side
+of a large courtyard, she approached him, and asked for his
+employer.
+
+"He is here," replied the man.  "Does madame come for a
+photograph?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Then will madame be so kind as to pass in.  She will not be
+obliged to wait long.  There are only four or five persons before
+her."
+
+Four or five persons! How long would she be obliged to wait?--half
+an hour--two hours? She had not the slightest idea.  But she DID
+know that she had not a second to lose, that Madame Leon might
+return at any moment, and find the letter missing; and, to crown
+all, she remembered now that she had not even locked the drawer
+again.  "I cannot wait," she said, imperiously.  "I must speak to
+M. Carjat at once."
+
+"But----"
+
+"At once, I tell you.  Go and tell him that he must come."
+
+Her tone was so commanding, and there was so much authority in her
+glance, that the servant hesitated no longer.  He ushered her into
+a little sitting-room, and said, "If madame will take a seat, I
+will call monsieur."
+
+She sank on to a chair, for her limbs were failing her.  She was
+beginning to realize the strangeness of the step she had taken--to
+fear the result it might lead to--and to be astonished at her own
+boldness.  But she had no time to prepare what she wished to say,
+for a man of five-and-thirty, wearing a mustache and imperial, and
+clad in a velvet coat, entered the room, and bowing with an air of
+surprise, exclaimed: "You desire to speak with me, madame?"
+
+"I have a great favor to ask of you, monsieur."
+
+"Of me?"
+
+She drew M. de Valorsay's letter from her pocket, and, showing it
+to the photographer, she said, "I have come to you, monsieur, to
+ask you to photograph this letter--but at once--before me--and
+quickly--very quickly.  The honor of two persons is imperilled by
+each moment I lose here."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's embarrassment was extreme.  Her cheeks
+were crimson, and she trembled like a leaf.  Still her attitude
+was proud, generous enthusiasm glowed in her dark eyes, and her
+tone of voice revealed the serenity of a lofty soul ready to dare
+anything for a just and noble cause.  This striking contrast--this
+struggle between girlish timidity and a lover's virgil energy,
+endowed her with a strange and powerful charm, which the
+photographer made no attempt to resist.  Unusual as was the
+request, he did not hesitate.  "I am ready to do what you desire,
+madame," he replied, bowing again.
+
+"Oh! monsieur, how can I ever thank you?"
+
+He did not stop to listen to her thanks.  Not wishing to return to
+the reception-room, where five or six clients were impatiently
+awaiting their turn, he called one of his subordinates, and
+ordered him to bring the necessary apparatus at once.  While he
+was speaking, Mademoiselle Marguerite paused; but, as soon as his
+instructions were concluded, she remarked: "Perhaps you are too
+hasty, sir.  You have not allowed me to explain; and perhaps what
+I desire is impossible.  I came on the impulse of the moment,
+without any knowledge on the subject.  Before you set to work, I
+must know if what you can do will answer my purpose."
+
+"Speak, madame."
+
+"Will the copy you obtain be precisely like the original in every
+particular?"
+
+"In every particular."
+
+"The writing will be the same--exactly the same?"
+
+"Absolutely the same."
+
+"So like, that if one of your photographs should be presented to
+the person who wrote this letter----"
+
+"He could no more deny his handwriting than he could if some one
+handed him the letter itself."
+
+"And the operation will leave no trace on the original?"
+
+"None."
+
+A smile of triumph played upon Mademoiselle Marguerite's lips.  It
+was as she had thought; the defensive plan which she had suddenly
+conceived was a good one.  "One more question, sir," she resumed. 
+"I am only a poor, ignorant girl: excuse me, and give me the
+benefit of your knowledge.  This letter will be returned to its
+author to-morrow, and he will burn it.  But afterward, in case of
+any difficulty--in case of a law-suit--or in case it should be
+necessary for me to prove certain things which one might establish
+by means of this letter, would one of your photographs be admitted
+as evidence?"
+
+The photographer did not answer for a moment.  Now he understood
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's motive, and the importance she attached
+to a facsimile.  But this imparted an unexpected gravity to the
+service he was called upon to perform.  He therefore wished some
+time for reflection, and he scrutinized Mademoiselle Marguerite as
+if he were trying to read her very soul.  Was it possible that
+this young girl, with such a pure and noble brow, and with such
+frank, honest eyes, could be meditating any cowardly, dishonorable
+act? No, he could not believe it.  In whom, or in what, could he
+trust if such a countenance deceived him?" My facsimile would
+certainly be admitted as evidence," he replied at last; "and this
+would not be the first time that the decision of a court has
+depended on proofs which have been photographed by me."
+
+Meanwhile, his assistant had returned, bringing the necessary
+apparatus with him.  When all was ready, the photographer asked
+her, "Will you give me the letter, madame?"
+
+She hesitated for a second--only for a second.  The man's honest,
+kindly face told her that he would not betray her, that he would
+rather give her assistance.  So she handed him the Marquis de
+Valorsay's letter, saying, with melancholy dignity, "It is my
+happiness and my future that I place in your hands--and I have no
+fears."
+
+He read her thoughts, and understood that she either dared not ask
+for a pledge of secrecy, or else that she thought it unnecessary. 
+He took pity on her, and his last doubt fled.  "I shall read this
+letter, madame," said he, "but I am the only person who will read
+it.  I give you my word on that! No one but myself will see the
+proofs."
+
+Greatly moved, she offered him her hand, and simply said, "Thanks;
+I am more than repaid."
+
+To obtain an absolutely perfect facsimile of a letter is a
+delicate and sometimes lengthy operation.  However, at the end of
+about twenty minutes, the photographer possessed two negatives
+that promised him perfect proofs.  He looked at them with a
+satisfied air; and then returning the letter to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, he said, "In less than three days the facsimiles will
+be ready, madame; and if you will tell me to what address I ought
+to send them----"
+
+She trembled on hearing these words, and quickly answered, "Don't
+send them, sir--keep them carefully.  Great heavens! all would be
+lost if it came to the knowledge of any one.  I will send for
+them, or come myself." And, feeling the extent of her obligation,
+she added, "But I will not go without introducing myself--I am
+Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse." And, thereupon, she went
+off, leaving the photographer surprised at the adventure and
+dazzled by his strange visitor's beauty.
+
+Rather more than an hour had elapsed since Marguerite left M. de
+Fondege's house.  "How time flies!" she murmured, quickening her
+pace as much as she could without exciting remark--"how time
+flies!" But, hurried as she was, she stopped and spent five
+minutes at a shop in the Rue Notre Dame de Lorette where she
+purchased some black ribbon and a few other trifles.  How else
+could she explain and justify her absence, if the servants, who
+had probably discovered she had gone out, chanced to speak of it?
+
+But her heart throbbed as if it would burst as she ascended the
+General's staircase, and anxiety checked her breathing as she rang
+the bell.  "What if Madame de Fondege and Madame Leon had
+returned, and the abstraction of the letter been discovered!"
+Fortunately, Madame de Fondege required more than an hour to
+purchase the materials for the elaborate toilette she had dreamt
+of.  The ladies were still out, and Mademoiselle Marguerite found
+everything in the same condition as she had left it.  She
+carefully placed the letter in the drawer again, locked it, and
+put the key in the pocket of Madame Leon's dress.  Then she
+breathed freely once more; and, for the first time in six days,
+she felt something very like joy in her heart.  Now she had no
+fear of the Marquis de Valorsay.  She had him in her power.  He
+would destroy his letter the next day, and think that he was
+annihilating all proofs of his infamy.  Not so.  At the decisive
+moment, at the very moment of his triumph, she would produce the
+photograph of this letter, and crush him.  And she--only a young
+girl--had outwitted this consummate scoundrel!" I have not been
+unworthy of Pascal," she said to herself, with a flash of pride.
+
+However, her nature was not one of those weak ones which are
+become intoxicated by the first symptom of success, and then relax
+in their efforts.  When her excitement had abated a little, she
+was inclined to disparage rather than to exaggerate the advantage
+she had gained.  What she desired was a complete, startling,
+incontestable victory.  It was not enough to prove Valorsay's
+GUILT--she was resolved to penetrate his designs, to discover why
+he pursued her so desperately.  And, though she felt that she
+possessed a formidable weapon of defence, she could not drive away
+her gloomy forebodings when she thought of the threats contained
+in the marquis's letter.  "Thanks to the assistance of one of my
+friends," he wrote, "I can place this proud girl in a perilous,
+terribly perilous, position, from which she cannot possibly
+extricate herself unaided."
+
+These words persistently lingered in Mademoiselle Marguerite's
+mind.  What was the danger hanging over her? whence would it come?
+and in what form? What abominable machination might she not expect
+from the villain who had deliberately dishonored Pascal? How would
+he attack her? Would he strive to ruin her reputation, or did he
+intend to forcibly abduct her? Would he attempt to decoy her into
+a trap where she would be subjected to the insults of the vilest
+wretches?  A thousand frightful memories of the time when she was
+an apprentice drove her nearly frantic.  "I will never go out
+unarmed," she thought, "and woe to the man who raises his hand
+against me!"
+
+The vagueness of the threat increased her fears.  No one is
+courageous enough to confront an unknown, mysterious, and always
+imminent danger without sometimes faltering.  Nor was this all. 
+The marquis was not her only enemy.  She had the Fondege family to
+dread--these dangerous hypocrites, who had taken her to their home
+so that they might ruin her the more surely.  M. de Valorsay wrote
+that he had no fears of the Fondeges--that he understood their
+little game.  What was their little game? No doubt they were
+resolved that she should become their son's wife, even if they
+were obliged to use force to win her consent.  At this thought a
+sudden terror seized her soul, so full of peace and hope an
+instant before.  When she was attacked, would she have time to
+produce and use the facsimile of Valorsay's letter?" I must reveal
+my secret to a friend--to a trusty friend--who will avenge me!"
+she muttered.
+
+Fortunately she had a friend in whom she could safely confide--the
+old magistrate who had given her such proofs of sympathy.  She
+felt that she needed the advice of a riper experience than her
+own, and the thought of consulting him at once occurred to her. 
+She was alone; she had no spy to fear; and it would be folly not
+to profit by the few moments of liberty that remained.  So she
+drew her writing-case from her trunk, and, after barricading her
+door to prevent a surprise, she wrote her friend an account of the
+events which had taken place since their last interview.  She told
+him everything with rare precision and accuracy of detail, sending
+him a copy of Valorsay's letter, and informing him that, in case
+any misfortune befell her, he could obtain the facsimiles from
+Carjat.  She finished her letter, but did not seal it.  "If
+anything should happen before I have an opportunity to post it, I
+will add a postscript," she said to herself.
+
+She had made all possible haste, fearing that Madame de Fondege
+and Madame Leon might return at any moment.  But this was truly a
+chimerical apprehension.  It was nearly six o'clock when the two
+shoppers made their appearance, wearied with the labors of the
+day, but in fine spirits.  Besides purchasing every requisite for
+that wonderful costume of hers, the General's wife had found some
+laces of rare beauty, which she had secured for the mere trifle of
+four thousand francs.  "It was one of those opportunities one
+ought always to profit by," she said, as she displayed her
+purchase.  "Besides, it is the same with lace as with diamonds,
+you should purchase them when you can--then you have them.  It
+isn't an outlay--it's an investment." Subtle reasoning that has
+cost many a husband dear!
+
+On her side, Madame Leon proudly showed her dear young lady a very
+pretty present which Madame de Fondege had given her.  "So money
+is no longer lacking in this household," thought Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, all the more confirmed in her suspicions.
+
+The General came in a little later, accompanied by a friend, and
+Marguerite soon discovered that the worthy man had spent the day
+as profitably as his wife.  He too was quite tired out; and he had
+reason to be fatigued.  First, he had purchased the horses
+belonging to the ruined spendthrift, and he had paid five thousand
+francs for them, a mere trifle for such animals.  Less than an
+hour after the purchase he had refused almost double that amount
+from a celebrated connoisseur in horse-flesh, M. de Breulh-
+Faverlay.  This excellent speculation had put him in such good
+humor that he had been unable to resist the temptation of
+purchasing a beautiful saddle-horse, which they let him have for a
+hundred louis.  He had not been foolish, for he was sure that he
+could sell the animal again at an advance of a thousand francs
+whenever he wished to do so.  "So," remarked his friend, "if you
+bought such a horse every day, you would make three hundred and
+sixty-five thousand francs a year."
+
+Was this only a jest--one of those witticisms which people who
+boast of wonderful bargains must expect to parry, or had the
+remark a more serious meaning? Marguerite could not determine. 
+One thing is certain, the General did not lose his temper, but
+gayly continued his account of the way in which he had spent his
+time.  Having purchased the horses, his next task was to find a
+carriage, and he had heard of a barouche which a Russian prince
+had ordered but didn't take, so that the builder was willing to
+sell it at less than cost price; and to recoup this worthy man,
+the General had purchased a brougham as well.  He had, moreover,
+hired stabling in the Rue Pigalle, only a few steps from the
+house, and he expected a coachman and a groom the following
+morning.
+
+"And all this will cost us less than the miserable vehicle we have
+been hiring by the year," observed Madame de Fondege, gravely. 
+"Oh, I know what I say.  I've counted the cost.  What with
+gratuities and extras, it costs us now fully a thousand francs a
+month, and three horses and a coachman won't cost you more.  And
+what a difference! I shall no longer be obliged to blush for the
+skinny horses the stable-keeper sends me, nor to endure the
+insolence of his men.  The first outlay frightened me a little;
+but that is made now, and I am delighted.  We will save it in
+something else."
+
+"In laces, no doubt," thought Mademoiselle Marguerite.  She was
+intensely exasperated, and on regaining her chamber she said to
+herself, for the tenth time, "What do they take me for? Do they
+think me an idiot to flaunt the millions they have stolen from my
+father--that they have stolen from me--before my eyes in this
+fashion? A common thief would take care not to excite suspicion by
+a foolish expenditure of the fruits of his knavery, but they--they
+have lost their senses."
+
+Madame Leon was already in bed, and when Mademoiselle Marguerite
+was satisfied that she was asleep, she took her letter from her
+trunk, and added this post-script: "P. S.--It is impossible to
+retain the shadow of a doubt, M. and Madame de Fondege have spent
+certainly twenty thousand francs to-day.  This audacity must arise
+from a conviction that no proofs of the crime they have committed
+exist.  Still they continue to talk to me about their son,
+Lieutenant Gustave.  He will be presented to me to-morrow.  To-
+morrow, also, between three and four, I shall be at the house of a
+man who can perhaps discover Pascal's hiding-place for me,--the
+house of M. Isidore Fortunat.  I hope to make my escape easily
+enough, for at that same hour, Madame Leon has an appointment with
+the Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+
+
+X.
+
+
+The old legend of Achilles's heel will be eternally true.  A man
+may be humble or powerful, feeble or strong, but there are none of
+us without some weak spot in our armor, a spot vulnerable beyond
+all others, a certain place where wounds prove most dangerous and
+painful.  M. Isidore Fortunat's weak place was his cash-box.  To
+attack him there was to endanger his life--to wound him at a point
+where all his sensibility centred.  For it was in this cash-box
+and not in his breast that his heart really throbbed.  His safe
+made him happy or dejected.  Happy when it was filled to
+overflowing by some brilliant operation, and dejected when he saw
+it become empty as some imprudent transaction failed.
+
+This then explains his frenzy on that ill-fated Sunday, when,
+after being brutally dismissed by M. Wilkie, he returned to his
+rooms in the company of his clerk, Victor Chupin.  This explains,
+too, the intensity of the hatred he now felt for the Marquis de
+Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth.  The former, the marquis,
+had defrauded him of forty thousand francs in glittering gold. 
+The other, the viscount, had suddenly sprung up out of the ground,
+and carried off from under his very nose that magnificent prize,
+the Chalusse inheritance, which he had considered as good as won. 
+And he had not only been defrauded and swindled--such were his own
+expressions--but he had been tricked, deceived, duped, and
+outwitted, and by whom?  By people who did not make it their
+profession to be shrewd, like he did himself.  Just fancy, his
+business was to outwit others, and a couple of mere amateurs had
+outgeneraled him.  He had not only suffered in pocket, he had been
+humiliated as well, and so he indulged in threats of such terrible
+import.
+
+However, at the very moment when he was dreaming of wreaking
+vengeance on the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount de Coralth,
+his housekeeper, austere Madame Dodelin, handed him Mademoiselle
+Marguerite's letter.  He read it with intense astonishment,
+rubbing his eyes as if to assure himself that he were really
+awake.  "Tuesday," he repeated, "the day after to-morrow--at your
+house--between three and four o'clock--I must speak with you."
+
+His manner was so strange, and his usually impassive face so
+disturbed by conflicting feelings, that Madame Dodelin's curiosity
+overcame her prudence, and she remained standing in front of him
+with open mouth, staring with all her eyes and listening with all
+her ears.  He perceived this, and angrily exclaimed: "What are you
+doing here? You are watching me, I do believe.  Get back to your
+kitchen, or----"
+
+She fled in alarm, and he then entered his private office.  His
+heart was leaping with joy, and he laughed wickedly at the hope of
+a speedy revenge.  "She's on the scent," he muttered; "and she has
+luck in her favor.  She has chanced to apply to me on the very day
+that I had resolved to defend and rehabilitate her lover, the
+honest fool who allowed himself to be dishonored by those
+unscrupulous blackguards.  Just as I was thinking of going in
+search of her, she comes to me.  As I was about to write to her,
+she writes to me.  Who can deny the existence of Providence after
+this?" Like many other people, M. Fortunat piously believed in
+Providence when things went to his liking, but it is sad to add
+that in the contrary case he denied its existence.  "If she has
+any courage," he resumed, "and she seems to have plenty of it,
+Valorsay and Coralth will be in a tight place soon.  And if it
+takes ten thousand francs to put them there, and if neither
+Mademoiselle Marguerite nor M. Ferailleur has the amount--ah,
+well! I'll advance--well, at least five thousand--without charging
+them any commission.  I'll even pay the expenses out of my own
+pocket, if necessary.  Ah, my fine fellows, you've laughed too
+soon.  In a week's time we'll see who laughs last."
+
+He paused, for Victor Chupin, who had lingered behind to pay the
+driver, had just entered the room.  "You gave me twenty francs,
+m'sieur," he remarked to his employer.  "I paid the driver four
+francs and five sous, here's the change."
+
+"Keep it yourself, Victor," said M. Fortunat.
+
+What! keep fifteen francs and fifteen sous? Under any other
+circumstances such unusual generosity would have drawn a grimace
+of satisfaction from young Chupin.  But to-day he did not even
+smile; he slipped the money carelessly into his pocket, and
+scarcely deigned to say "thanks," in the coldest possible tone.
+
+Absorbed in thought, M. Fortunat did not remark this little
+circumstance.  "We have them, Victor," he resumed.  "I told you
+that Valorsay and Coralth should pay me for their treason. 
+Vengeance is near.  Read this letter." Victor read it slowly, and
+as soon as he had finished his employer ejaculated, "Well?"
+
+But Chupin was not a person to give advice lightly.  "Excuse me,
+m'sieur," said he, "but in order to answer you, I must have some
+knowledge of the affair.  I only know what you've told me--which
+is little enough--and what I've guessed.  In fact, I know nothing
+at all."
+
+M. Fortunat reflected for a moment.  "You are right, Victor," he
+said, at last.  "So far the explanation I gave you was all that
+was necessary; but now that I expect more important services from
+you, I ought to tell you the whole truth, or at least all I know
+about the affair.  This will prove my great confidence in you." 
+Whereupon, he acquainted Chupin with everything he knew concerning
+the history of M. de Chalusse, the Marquis de Valorsay, and
+Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+
+However, if he expected these disclosures to elevate him in his
+subordinate's estimation he was greatly mistaken.  Chupin had
+sufficient experience and common sense to read his master's
+character and discern his motives.  He saw plainly enough that
+this honest impulse on M. Fortunat's part came from disappointed
+avarice and wounded vanity, and that the agent would have allowed
+the Marquis de Valorsay to carry out his infamous scheme without
+any compunctions of conscience, providing he, himself, had not
+been injured by it.  Still, the young fellow did not allow his
+real feelings to appear on his face.  First, it was not his
+business to tell M. Fortunat his opinion of him; and in the second
+place, he did not deem it an opportune moment for a declaration of
+his sentiments.  So, when his employer paused, he exclaimed:
+"Well, we must outwit these scoundrels--for I'll join you,
+m'sieur; and I flatter myself that I can be very useful to you. 
+Do you want the particulars of the viscount's past life?  If so, I
+can furnish them.  I know the brigand.  He's married, as I told
+you before, and I'll find his wife for you in a few days.  I don't
+know exactly where she lives, but she keeps a tobacco store,
+somewhere, and that's enough.  She'll tell you how much he's a
+viscount.  Ha! ha! Viscount just as much as I am--and no more.  I
+can tell you the scrapes he has been in."
+
+"No doubt; but the most important thing is to know how he's living
+now, and on what!"
+
+"Not by honest work, I can tell you.  But give me a little time,
+and I'll find out for sure.  As soon as I can go home, change my
+clothes, and disguise myself, I'll start after him; and may I be
+hung, if I don't return with a complete report before Tuesday."
+
+A smile of satisfaction appeared on M. Fortunat's face.  "Good,
+Victor!" he said, approvingly, "very good! I see that you will
+serve me with your usual zeal and intelligence.  Rest assured that
+you will be rewarded as you have never been rewarded before.  As
+long as you are engaged in this affair, you shall have ten francs
+a day; and I'll pay your board, your cab-hire, and all your
+expenses."
+
+This was a most liberal offer, and yet, far from seeming
+delighted, Chupin gravely shook his head.  "You know how I value
+money, m'sieur," he began.
+
+"Too much, Victor, my boy, too much----"
+
+"Excuse me, it's because I have responsibilities, m'sieur.  You
+know my establishment"--he spoke this word with a grandiloquent
+air--"you have seen my good mother--my expenses are heavy----"
+
+"In short, you don't think I offer you enough?"
+
+"On the contrary, sir--but you don't allow me to finish.  I love
+money, don't I? But no matter, I don't want to be paid for this
+business.  I don't want either my board or my expenses, not a
+penny--nothing.  I'll serve you, but for my own sake, for my own
+pleasure--gratis."
+
+M. Fortunat could not restrain an exclamation of astonishment. 
+Chupin, who was as eager for gain as an old usurer--Chupin, as
+grasping as avarice itself, refuse money! This was something which
+he had never seen before, and which he would no doubt never see
+again.
+
+Victor had become very much excited; his usually pale cheeks were
+crimson, and in a harsh voice, he continued: "It's a fancy of
+mine--that's all.  I have eight hundred francs hidden in my room,
+the fruit of years of work.  I'll spend the last penny of it if
+need be; and if I can see Coralth in the mire, I shall say, 'My
+money has been well expended.' I'd rather see that day dawn than
+be the possessor of a hundred thousand francs.  If a horrible
+vision haunted you every night, and prevented you from sleeping,
+wouldn't you give something to get rid of it?  Very well! that
+brigand's my nightmare.  There must be an end to it."
+
+M. de Coralth, who was a man of wide experience, would certainly
+have felt alarmed if he had seen his unknown enemy at the present
+moment, for Victor's eyes, usually a pale and undecided blue, were
+glittering like steel, and his hands were clinched most
+threateningly.  "For he was the cause of all my trouble," he
+continued, gloomily.  "I've told you, sir, that I was guilty of an
+infamous deed once upon a time.  If it hadn't been for a miracle I
+should have killed a man--the king of men.  Ah, well! if Monsieur
+Andre had broken his back by falling from a fifth-floor window, my
+Coralth would be the Duc de Champdoce to-day.  And shall he be
+allowed to ride about in his carriage, and deceive and ruin honest
+people? No--there are too many such villains at large for public
+safety.  Wait a little, Coralth--I owe you something, and I always
+pay my debts.  When M. Andre saved me, though I richly deserved to
+have my throat cut, he made no conditions.  He only said, 'If you
+are not irredeemably bad you will be honest after this.' And he
+said these words as he was lying there as pale as death with his
+shoulder broken, and his body mangled from his fall.  Great
+heavens! I felt smaller than--than nothing before him.  But I
+swore that I would do honor to his teachings--and when evil
+thoughts enter my mind, and when I feel a thirst for liquor, I say
+to myself, 'Wait a bit, and--and M. Andre will take a glass with
+you.' And that quenches my thirst instantly.  I have his portrait
+at home, and every night, before going to bed, I tell him the
+history of the day--and sometimes I fancy that he smiles at me. 
+All this is very absurd, perhaps, but I'm not ashamed of it.  M.
+Andre and my good mother, they are my supports, my crutches, and
+with them I'm not afraid of making a false step." Schebel, the
+German philosopher, who has written a treatise on Volition, in
+four volumes, was no greater a man than Chupin.  "So you may keep
+your money, sir," he resumed.  "I'm an honest fellow, and honest
+men ought to ask no reward for the performance of a duty.  Coralth
+mustn't be allowed to triumph over the innocent chap he ruined. 
+What did you call him? Ferailleur? It's an odd name.  Never mind--
+we'll get him out of this scrape; he shall marry his sweetheart
+after all; and I'll dance at the wedding."
+
+As he finished speaking he laughed a shrill, dangerous laugh,
+which revealed his sharp teeth--but such invincible determination
+was apparent on his face, that M. Fortunat felt no misgivings.  He
+was sure that this volunteer would be of more service than the
+highest-priced hireling.  "So I can count on you, Victor?" he
+inquired.
+
+"As upon yourself."
+
+"And you hope to have some positive information by Tuesday?"
+
+"Before then, I hope, if nothing goes amiss."
+
+"Very well; I will devote my attention to Ferailleur then.  As to
+Valorsay's affairs, I am better acquainted with them than he is
+himself.  We must be prepared to enter upon the campaign when
+Mademoiselle Marguerite comes, and we will act in accordance with
+her instructions."
+
+Chupin had already caught up his hat; but just as he was leaving
+the room, he paused abruptly.  "How stupid!" he exclaimed.  "I had
+forgotten the principal thing.  Where does Coralth live?"
+
+"Unfortunately, I don't know."
+
+According to his habit when things did not go to his liking,
+Chupin began to scratch his head furiously.  "That's bad," growled
+he.  "Viscounts of his stamp don't parade their addresses in the
+directory.  Still, I shall find him." However, although he
+expressed this conviction he went off decidedly out of temper.
+
+"I shall lose the entire evening hunting up the rascal's address,"
+he grumbled, as he hastened homeward.  "And whom shall I ask for
+it?--Madame d'Argeles's concierge? Would he know it--M. Wilkie's
+servant? That would be dangerous." He thought of roaming sound
+about M. de Valorsay's residence, and of bribing one of the
+valets; but while crossing the boulevard, the sight of Brebant's
+Restaurant put a new idea into his head.  "I have it!" he
+muttered; "my man's caught!" And he darted into the nearest cafe
+where he ordered some beer and writing materials.
+
+Under other circumstances, he would have hesitated to employ so
+hazardous an expedient as the one he was about to resort to, but
+the character of his adversaries justified any course; besides,
+time was passing, and he had no choice of resources.  As soon as
+the waiter served him, he drained his glass of beer to give
+himself an inspiration, and then, in his finest hand, he wrote:
+
+
+MY DEAR VISCOUNT--Here's the amount--one hundred francs--that I
+lost to you last evening at piquet.  When shall I have my revenge?   
+Your friend,
+                                         VALORSAY."
+
+
+When he had finished this letter he read it over three or four
+times, asking himself if this were the style of composition that
+very fashionable folks employ in repaying their debts.  To tell
+the truth, he doubted it.  In the rough draft which he penned at
+first, he had written bezique, but in the copy he wrote piquet,
+which he deemed a more aristocratic game.  "However," said he, "no
+one will examine it closely!"
+
+Then, as soon as the ink was dry, he folded the letter and slipped
+it into an envelope with a hundred franc-note which he drew from
+an old pocketbook.  He next addressed the envelope as follows:
+"Monsieur le Vicomte de Coralth, En Ville," and having completed
+his preparations, he paid his score, and hastened to Brebant's. 
+Two waiters were standing at the doorway, and, showing them the
+letter, he politely asked: "Do you happen to know this name?  A
+gentleman dropped this letter on leaving your place last evening. 
+I ran after him to return it; but I couldn't overtake him."
+
+The waiters examined the address.  "Coralth!" they replied.  "We
+scarcely know him.  He isn't a regular customer, but he comes here
+occasionally."
+
+"And where does he live?"
+
+"Why do you wish to know?"
+
+"So as to take him this letter, to be sure!"
+
+The waiters shrugged their shoulders.  "Let the letter go; it is
+not worth while to trouble yourself."
+
+Chupin had foreseen this objection, and was prepared for it.  "But
+there's money in the letter," he remonstrated.  And opening the
+envelope, he showed the bank-note which he had taken from his own
+pocket-book.
+
+This changed the matter entirely.  "That is quite a different
+thing," remarked one of the waiters.  "If you find money, you are,
+of course, responsible for it.  But just leave it here at the
+desk, and the next time the viscount comes in, the cashier will
+give it to him."
+
+A cold chill crept over Chupin at the thought of losing his bank-
+note in this way.  "Ah! I don't fancy that idea!" he exclaimed. 
+"Leave it here? Never in life! Who'd get the reward? A viscount is
+always generous; it is quite likely he would give me twenty francs
+as a reward for my honesty.  And that's why I want his address."
+
+The argument was of a nature to touch the waiters; they thought
+the young man quite right; but they did not know M. de Coralth's
+address, and they saw no way of procuring it.  "Unless perhaps the
+porter knows," observed one of them.
+
+The porter, on being called, remembered that he had once been sent
+to M. de Coralth's house for an overcoat.  "I've forgotten his
+number," he declared; "but he lives in the Rue d'Anjou, near the
+corner of the Rue de la Ville l'Eveque."
+
+This direction was not remarkable for its precision, but it was
+more than sufficient for a pure-blooded Parisian like Victor
+Chupin.  "Many thanks for your kindness," he said to the porter. 
+"A blind man, perhaps, might not be able to go straight to M. de
+Coralth's house from your directions, but I have eyes and a tongue
+as well.  And, believe me, if there's any reward, you shall see
+that I know how to repay a good turn."
+
+"And if you don't find the viscount," added the waiters, "bring
+the money here, and it will be returned to him."
+
+"Naturally!" replied Chupin.  And he strode hurriedly away. 
+"Return!" he muttered; "not I!  I thought for a moment they had
+their hands on my precious bank-note."
+
+But he had already recovered from his fright, and as he turned his
+steps homeward he congratulated himself on the success of his
+stratagem.  "For my viscount is caught," he said to himself.  "The
+Rue d'Anjou Saint Honore hasn't a hundred numbers in it, and even
+if I'm compelled to go from door to door, my task will soon be
+accomplished."
+
+On reaching home he found his mother engaged in knitting, as
+usual.  This was the only avocation that her almost complete
+blindness allowed her to pursue; and she followed it constantly. 
+"Ah! here you are, Toto," she exclaimed, joyously.  "I didn't
+expect you so soon.  Don't you scent a savory smell? As you must
+be greatly tired after being up all night, I'm making you a stew."
+
+As customary when he returned, Chupin embraced the good woman with
+the respectful tenderness which had so surprised M. Fortunat. 
+"You are always kind," said he, "but, unfortunately, I can't
+remain to dine with you."
+
+"But you promised me."
+
+"That's true, mamma; but business, you see--business."
+
+The worthy woman shook her head.  "Always business!" she
+exclaimed.
+
+"Yes--when a fellow hasn't ten thousand francs a year."
+
+"You have become a worker, Toto, and that makes me very happy; but
+you are too eager for money, and that frightens me."
+
+"That's to say, you fear I shall do something dishonest.  Ah!
+mother! do you think I can forget you and Monsieur Andre?"
+
+His mother said no more, and he entered the tiny nook which he so
+pompously styled his chamber, and quickly changed the clothes he
+was wearing (his Sunday toggery) for an old pair of checked
+trousers, a black blouse, and a glazed cap.  And when he had
+finished, and given a peculiar turn to his hair, no one would have
+recognized him.  In place of M. Fortunat's respectable clerk,
+there appeared one of those vagabonds who hang about cafes and
+theatres from six in the evening till midnight, and spend the rest
+of their time playing cards in the low drinking dens near the
+barrieres.  It was the old Chupin come to life once more--Toto
+Chupin as he had appeared before his conversion.  And as he took a
+last look in the little glass hanging over the table, he was
+himself astonished at the transformation.  "Ah!" he muttered, "I
+was a sorry looking devil in those days."
+
+Although he had cautiously avoided making any noise in dressing,
+his mother, with the wonderfully acute hearing of the blind, had
+followed each of his movements as surely as if she had been
+standing near watching him.  "You have changed your clothes,
+Toto," she remarked.
+
+"Yes, mother."
+
+"But why have you put on your blouse, my son?"
+
+Although accustomed to his mother's remarkable quickness of
+perception, he was amazed.  Still he did not think of denying it. 
+She would only have to extend her hand to prove that he was
+telling a falsehood.  The blind woman's usually placid face had
+become stern.  "So it is necessary to disguise yourself," she
+said, gravely.
+
+"But, mother----"
+
+"Hush, my son! When a man doesn't wish to be recognized, he's
+evidently doing something he's ashamed of.  Ever since your
+employer came here, you have been concealing something from me. 
+Take care, Toto! Since I heard that man's voice, I'm sure that he
+is quite as capable of urging you to commit a crime as others were
+in days gone by."
+
+The blind woman was preaching to a convert; for during the past
+three days, M. Fortunat had shown himself in such a light that
+Chupin had secretly resolved to change his employer.  "I promise
+you I'll leave him, mother," he declared, "so you may be quite
+easy in mind."
+
+"Very well; but now, at this moment, where are you going?"
+
+There was only one way of completely reassuring the good woman,
+and that was to tell her all.  Chupin did so with absolute
+frankness.  "Ah, well!" she said, when the narrative was finished. 
+"You see now how easy it is to lead you astray! How could you be
+induced to play the part of a spy, when you know so well what it
+leads to? It's only God's protecting care that has saved you again
+from an act which you would have reproached yourself for all your
+life.  Your employer's intentions are good now; but they WERE
+criminal when he ordered you to follow Madame d'Argeles.  Poor
+woman! She had sacrificed herself for her son, she had concealed
+herself from him, and you were working to betray her.  Poor
+creature! how she must have suffered, and how much I pity her! To
+be what she is, and to see herself denounced by her own son! I,
+who am only a poor plebeian, should die of shame under such
+circumstances."
+
+Chupin blew his nose so loudly that the window-panes rattled; this
+was his way of repressing his emotion whenever it threatened to
+overcome him.  "You speak like the good mother that you are," he
+exclaimed at last," and I'm prouder of you than if you were the
+handsomest and richest lady in Paris, for you're certainly the
+most honest and virtuous; and I should be a thorough scoundrel if
+I caused you a moment's sorrow.  And if ever I set my foot in such
+a mess again, I hope some one will cut it off.  But for this once----"
+
+"For this once, you may go, Toto; I give my consent."
+
+He went off with a lighter heart; and on reaching the Rue d'Anjou
+he immediately began his investigations. They were not successful
+at first.  At every house where he made inquiries nobody had any
+knowledge of the Viscount de Coralth.  He had visited half the
+buildings in the street, when he reached one of the handsomest
+houses, in front of which stood a cart laden with plants and
+flowers.  An old man, who seemed to be the concierge, and a valet
+in a red waistcoat, were removing the plants from the vehicle and
+arranging them in a line under the porte cochere.  As soon as the
+cart was emptied, it drove away, whereupon Chupin stepped forward,
+and addressing the concierge, asked: "Does the Viscount de Coralth
+live here?"
+
+"Yes.  What do you want with him?"
+
+Having foreseen this question, Chupin had prepared a reply.  "I
+certainly don't come to call on him," he answered.  "My reason for
+inquiring is this: just now, as I passed near the Madeleine, a
+very elegant lady called me, and said: 'M. de Coralth lives in the
+Rue d'Anjou, but I've forgotten the number.  I can't go about from
+door to door making inquiries, so if you'll go there and ascertain
+his address for me, I'll give you five francs for yourself,' so my
+money's made."
+
+Profiting by his old Parisian experience, Chupin had chosen such a
+clever excuse that both his listeners heartily laughed.  "Well,
+Father Moulinet," cried the servant in the red waistcoat, "what do
+you say to that? Are there any elegant ladies who give five francs
+for YOUR address?"
+
+"Is there any lady who's likely to send such flowers as these to
+YOU?" was the response.
+
+Chupin was about to retire with a bow, when the concierge stopped
+him.  "You accomplish your errands so well that perhaps you'd be
+willing to take these flower-pots up to the second floor, if we
+gave you a glass of wine!"
+
+No proposal could have suited Chupin better.  Although he was
+prone to exaggerate his own powers and the fecundity of his
+resources, he had not flattered himself with the hope that he
+should succeed in crossing the threshold of M. de Coralth's rooms. 
+For, without any great mental effort, he had realized that the
+servant arrayed in the red waistcoat was in the viscount's employ,
+and these flowers were to be carried to his apartments.  However
+any signs of satisfaction would have seemed singular under the
+circumstances, and so he sulkily replied: "A glass of wine! you
+had better say two."
+
+"Well, I'll say a whole bottleful.  my boy, if that suits you any
+better," replied the servant, with the charming good-nature so
+often displayed by people who are giving other folk's property
+away.
+
+"Then I'm at your service!" exclaimed Chupin.  And, loading
+himself with a host of flower-pots as skilfully as if he had been
+accustomed to handling them all his life, he added: "Now, lead the
+way."
+
+The valet and the concierge preceded him with empty hands, of
+course; and, on reaching the second floor, they opened a door, and
+said: "This is the place.  Come in."
+
+Chupin had expected to find that M. de Coralth's apartments were
+handsomer than his own in the Faubourg Saint Denis; but he had
+scarcely imagined such luxury as pervaded this establishment.  The
+chandeliers seemed marvels in his eyes; and the sumptuous chairs
+and couches eclipsed M. Fortunat's wonderful sofa completely.  "So
+he no longer amuses himself with petty rascalities," thought
+Chupin, as he surveyed the rooms.  "Monsieur's working on a grand
+scale now.  Decidedly this mustn't be allowed to continue."
+
+Thereupon he busied himself placing the flowers in the numerous
+jardinieres scattered about the rooms, as well as in a tiny
+conservatory, cleverly contrived on the balcony, and adjoining a
+little apartment with silk hangings, that was used as a smoking-
+room.  Under the surveillance of the concierge and the valet he
+was allowed to visit the whole apartments.  He admired the
+drawing-room, filled to overflowing with costly trifles; the
+dining-room, furnished in old oak; the luxurious bed-room with its
+bed mounted upon a platform, as if it were a throne, and the
+library filled with richly bound volumes.  Everything was
+beautiful, sumptuous and magnificent, and Chupin admired, though
+he did not envy, this luxury.  He said to himself that, if ever he
+became rich, his establishment should be quite different.  He
+would have preferred rather more simplicity, a trifle less satin,
+velvet, hangings, mirrors and gilding.  Still this did not prevent
+him from going into ecstasies over each room he entered; and he
+expressed his admiration so artlessly that the valet, feeling as
+much flattered as if he were the owner of the place, took a sort
+of pride in exhibiting everything.
+
+He showed Chupin the target which the viscount practised at with
+pistols for an hour every morning; for Monsieur le Vicomte was a
+capital marksman, and could lodge eight balls out of ten in the
+neck of a bottle at a distance of twenty paces.  He also displayed
+his master's swords; for Monsieur le Vicomte handled side arms as
+adroitly as pistols.  He took a lesson every day from one of the
+best fencing-masters in Paris; and his duels had always terminated
+fortunately.  He also showed the viscount's blue velvet dressing-
+gown, his fur-trimmed slippers, and even his elaborately
+embroidered night-shirts.  But it was the dressing-room that most
+astonished and stupefied Chupin.  He stood gazing in open-mouthed
+wonder at the immense white marble table, with its water spigots
+and its basins, its sponges and boxes, its pots and vials and
+cups; and he counted the brushes by the dozen--brushes hard and
+soft, brushes for the hair, for the beard, for the hands, and the
+application of cosmetic to the mustaches and eyebrows.  Never had
+he seen in one collection such a variety of steel and silver
+instruments, knives, pincers, scissors, and files.  "One might
+think oneself in a chiropodist's, or a dentist's establishment,"
+remarked Chupin to the servant.  "Does your master use all these
+every day?"
+
+"Certainly, or rather twice a day--morning and evening--at his
+toilette."
+
+Chupin expressed his feelings with a grimace and an exclamation of
+mocking wonder.  "Ah, well! he must have a clean skin," he said.
+
+His listeners laughed heartily; and the concierge, after
+exchanging a significant glance with the valet, said sotto voce,
+"Zounds! it's his business to be a handsome fellow!" The mystery
+was solved.
+
+While Chupin changed the contents of the jardinieres, and remained
+upstairs in the intervals between the nine or ten journeys he made
+to the porte-cochere for more flowers, he listened attentively to
+the conversation between the concierge and the valet, and heard
+snatches of sentences that enlightened him wonderfully.  Moreover,
+whenever a question arose as to placing a plant in one place
+rather than another, the valet stated as a conclusive argument
+that the baroness liked it in such or such a place, or that she
+would be better pleased with this or that arrangement, or that he
+must comply with the instructions she had given him.  Chupin was
+therefore obliged to conclude that the flowers had been sent here
+by a baroness who possessed certain rights in the establishment. 
+But who was she?
+
+He was manoeuvering cleverly in the hope of ascertaining this
+point, when a carriage was heard driving into the courtyard below. 
+"Monsieur must have returned!" exclaimed the valet, darting to the
+window.
+
+Chupin also ran to look out, and saw a very elegant blue-lined
+brougham, drawn by a superb horse, but he did not perceive the
+viscount.  In point of fact, M. de Coralth was already climbing
+the stairs, four at a time, and, a moment later, he entered the
+room, angrily exclaiming, "Florent, what does this mean? Why have
+you left all the doors open?"
+
+Florent was the servant in the red waistcoat.  He slightly
+shrugged his shoulders like a servant who knows too many of his
+master's secrets to have anything to fear, and in the calmest
+possible tone replied, "If the doors are open, it is only because
+the baroness has just sent some flowers.  On Sunday, too, what a
+funny idea! And I have been treating Father Moulinet and this
+worthy fellow" (pointing to Chupin) "to a glass of wine, to
+acknowledge their kindness in assisting me."
+
+Fearing recognition, Chupin hid his face as much as possible; but
+M. de Coralth did not pay the slightest attention to him.  There
+was a dark frown on his handsome, usually smiling countenance, and
+his hair was in great disorder.  Evidently enough, something had
+greatly annoyed him.  "I am going out again," he remarked to his
+valet, "but first of all I must write two letters which you must
+deliver immediately."
+
+He passed into the drawing-room as he spoke, and Florent scarcely
+waited till the door was closed before uttering an oath.  "May the
+devil take him!" he exclaimed.  "Here he sets me on the go again. 
+It is five o'clock, too, and I have an appointment in half an
+hour.
+
+A sudden hope quickened the throbbings of Chupin's heart.  He
+touched the valet's arm, and in his most persuasive tone remarked:
+"I've nothing to do, and as your wine was so good, I'll do your
+errands for you, if you'll pay me for the wear and tear of shoe-
+leather."
+
+Chupin's appearance must have inspired confidence, for the servant
+replied:--"Well--I don't refuse--but we'll see."
+
+The viscount did not spend much time in writing; he speedily
+reappeared holding two letters which he flung upon the table,
+saying: "One of these is for the baroness.  You must deliver it
+into HER hands or into the hands of her maid--there will be no
+answer.  You will afterward take the other to the person it is
+addressed to, and you must wait for an answer which you will place
+on my writing-table--and make haste." So saying, the viscount went
+off as he had entered--on the run--and a moment later, his
+brougham was heard rolling out of the courtyard.
+
+Florent was crimson with rage.  "There," said he, addressing
+Chupin rather than the concierge, "what did I tell you? A letter
+to be placed in madame's own hands or in the hands of her maid,
+and to be concealed from the baron, who is on the watch, of
+course.  Naturally no one can execute that commission but myself."
+
+"That's true!" replied Chupin; "but how about the other?"
+
+The valet had not yet examined the second letter.  He now took it
+from the table, and glanced at the address.  "Ah," said he, "I can
+confide this one to you, my good fellow, and it's very fortunate,
+for it is to be taken to a place on the other side of the river. 
+Upon my word! masters are strange creatures!  You manage your work
+so as to have a little leisure, and the moment you think yourself
+free, pouf!--they send you anywhere in creation without even
+asking if it suits your convenience.  If it hadn't been for you, I
+should have missed a dinner with some very charming ladies.  But,
+above all, don't loiter on the way.  I don't mind paying your
+omnibus fare if you like.  And you heard him say there would be an
+answer.  You can give it to Moulinet, and in exchange, he'll give
+you fifteen sous for your trouble, and six sous for your omnibus
+fare.  Besides, if you can extract anything from the party the
+letter's intended for, you are quite welcome to it."
+
+"Agreed, sir! Grant me time enough to give an answer to the lady
+who is waiting at the Madeleine, and I'm on my way.  Give me the
+letter."
+
+"Here it is, said the valet, handing it to Chupin.  But as the
+latter glanced at the address he turned deadly pale, and his eyes
+almost started from their sockets.  For this is what he read:
+"Madame Paul.  Dealer in Tobacco.  Quai de la Seine."  Great as
+was his self-control, his emotion was too evident to escape
+notice.  "What's the matter with you?" asked the concierge and the
+valet in the same breath.  "What has happened to you?"
+
+A powerful effort of will restored this young fellow's coolness,
+and ready in an instant with an excuse for his blunder, he
+replied, "I have changed my mind.  What! you'd only give me
+fifteen sous to measure such a distance as that! Why, it isn't a
+walk--it's a journey!"
+
+His explanation was accepted without demur.  His listeners thought
+he was only taking advantage of the need they had of his services--
+as was perfectly natural under the circumstances.  "What! So you
+are dissatisfied!" cried the valet.  "Very well! you shall have
+thirty sous--but be off!"
+
+"So I will, at once," replied Chupin.  And, imitating the whistle
+of a locomotive with wonderful perfection, he darted away at a
+pace which augured a speedy return.
+
+However, when he was some twenty yards from the house he stopped
+short, glanced around him, and espying a dark corner slipped into
+it.  "That fool in the red waistcoat will be coming out to take
+the letter to that famous baroness," he thought.  "I'm here, and
+I'll watch him and see where he goes.  I should like to find out
+the name of the kind and charitable lady who watches over his
+brigand of a master with such tender care."
+
+The day and the hour were in his favor.  Night was coming on,
+hastened by a thick fog; the street lamps were not yet lighted,
+and as it was Sunday most of the shops were closed.  It grew dark
+so rapidly that Chupin was scarcely able to recognize Florent when
+he at last emerged from the house.  It is true that he looked
+altogether unlike the servant in the red waist-coat.  As he had
+the key to the wardrobe containing his master's clothes, he did
+not hesitate to use them whenever an opportunity offered.  On this
+occasion he had appropriated a pair of those delicately tinted
+trousers which were M. de Coralth's specialty, with a handsome
+overcoat, a trifle too small for him, and a very elegant hat.
+
+"Fine doings, indeed!" growled Chupin as he started in pursuit. 
+"My servants sha'n't serve me in that way if I ever have any."
+
+But he paused in his soliloquy, and prudently hid himself under a
+neighboring gateway.  The gorgeous Florent was ringing at the door
+of one of the most magnificent mansions in the Rue de la Ville
+l'Eveque.  The door was opened, and he went in.  "Ah! ah!" thought
+Chupin, "he hadn't far to go.  The viscount and the baroness are
+shrewd.  When you have flowers to send to anybody it's convenient
+to be neighbors!"
+
+He glanced round, and seeing an old man smoking his pipe on the
+threshold of a shop, he approached him and asked politely "Can you
+tell me whom that big house belongs to?"
+
+"To Baron Trigault," replied the man, without releasing his hold
+on his pipe.
+
+"Thank you, monsieur," replied Chupin, gravely.  "I inquired,
+because I think of buying a house "And repeating the name of
+Trigault several times to impress it upon his memory he darted off
+on his errand.
+
+It might be supposed that his unexpected success had delighted
+him, but, on the contrary, it rendered him even more exacting. 
+The letter he carried burned his pocket like a red-hot iron. 
+"Madame Paul," he muttered, "that must be the rascal's wife. 
+First, Paul is his Christian name; secondly, I've been told that
+his wife keeps a tobacco shop--so the case is plain.  But the
+strangest thing about it is that this husband and wife should
+write to each other, when I fancied them at dagger's ends." Chupin
+would have given a pint of his own blood to know the contents of
+the missive.  The idea of opening it occurred to him, and it must
+be confessed that it was not a feeling of delicacy that prevented
+him.  He was deterred by a large seal which had been carefully
+affixed, and which would plainly furnish evidence if the letter
+were tampered with.  Thus Chupin was punished for Florent's
+faults, for this seal was the viscount's' invariable precaution
+against his servant's prying curiosity.  So our enterprising youth
+could only read and re-read the superscription and smell the
+paper, which was strongly scented with verbena.  He fancied that
+there was some mysterious connection between this letter intended
+for M. de Coralth's wife and the missive sent to the baroness. 
+And why should it not be so? Had they not both been written under
+the influence of anger? Still he failed to perceive any possible
+connection between the rich baroness and the poor tobacco dealer,
+and his cogitations only made him more perplexed than ever. 
+However, his efforts to solve the mystery did not interfere with
+the free use of his limbs, and he soon found himself on the Quai
+de la Seine.  "Here I am," he muttered.  "I've come more quickly
+than an omnibus."
+
+The Quai de la Seine is a broad road, connecting the Rue de
+Flandres with the canal de l'Ourcq.  On the left-hand side it is
+bordered with miserable shanties interspersed with some tiny
+shops, and several huge coal depots.  On the right-hand side--that
+next to the canal--there are also a few provision stores.  In the
+daytime there is no noisier nor livelier place than this same
+Quai; but nothing could be more gloomy at night-time when the
+shops are closed, when the few gas-lamps only increase the
+grimness of the shadows, and when the only sound that breaks the
+silence is the rippling of the water as its smooth surface is
+ruffled by some boatman propelling his skiff through the canal.
+
+"The Viscount must certainly have made a mistake," thought Chupin;
+"there is no such shop on the Quai."  He was wrong, however; for
+after passing the Rue de Soissons he espied the red lantern of a
+tobacco-shop, glimmering through the fog.
+
+
+
+XI.
+
+
+Having almost reached the goal, Chupin slackened his pace.  He
+approached the shop very cautiously and peered inside, deeming it
+prudent to reconnoitre a little before he went in.  And certainly
+there was nothing to prevent a prolonged scrutiny.  The night was
+very dark, the quay deserted.  No one was to be seen; not a sound
+broke the stillness.  The darkness, the surroundings, and the
+silence were sinister enough to make even Chupin shudder, though
+he was usually as thoroughly at home in the loneliest and most
+dangerous by-ways of Paris as an honest man of the middle classes
+would be in the different apartments of his modest household. 
+"That scoundrel's wife must have less than a hundred thousand a
+year if she takes up her abode here!" thought Chupin.
+
+And, in fact, nothing could be more repulsive than the tenement in
+which Madame Paul had installed herself.  It was but one story
+high, and built of clay, and it had fallen to ruin to such an
+extent that it had been found necessary to prop it up with timber,
+and to nail some old boards over the yawning fissures in the
+walls.  "If I lived here, I certainly shouldn't feel quite at ease
+on a windy day," continued Chupin, sotto voce.
+
+The shop itself was of a fair size, but most wretched in its
+appointments, and disgustingly dirty.  The floor was covered with
+that black and glutinous coal-dust which forms the soil of the
+Quai de la Seine.  An auctioneer would have sold the entire stock
+and fixtures for a few shillings.  Four stone jars, and a couple
+of pairs of scales, a few odd tumblers, filled with pipes and
+packets of cigarettes, some wine-glasses, and three or four
+labelled bottles, five or six boxes of cigars, and as many
+packages of musty tobacco, constituted the entire stock in trade.
+
+As Chupin compared this vile den with the viscount's luxurious
+abode, his blood fairly boiled in his veins.  "He ought to be shot
+for this, if for nothing else," he muttered through his set teeth. 
+"To let his wife die of starvation here!" For it was M. de
+Coralth's wife who kept this shop.  Chupin, who had seen her years
+before, recognized her now as she sat behind her counter, although
+she was cruelly changed.  "That's her," he murmured.  "That's
+certainly Mademoiselle Flavie."
+
+He had used her maiden name in speaking of her.  Poor woman! She
+was undoubtedly still young--but sorrow, regret, and privations,
+days spent in hard work to earn a miserable subsistence, and
+nights spent in weeping, had made her old, haggard, and wrinkled
+before her time.  Of her once remarkable beauty naught remained
+but her hair, which was still magnificent, though it was in wild
+disorder, and looked as if it had not been touched by a comb for
+weeks; and her big black eyes, which gleamed with the
+phosphorescent and destructive brilliancy of fever.  Everything
+about her person bespoke terrible reverses, borne without dignity. 
+Even if she had struggled at first, it was easy to see that she
+struggled no longer.  Her attire--her torn and soiled silk dress,
+and her dirty cap--revealed thorough indolence, and that morbid
+indifference which at times follows great misfortunes with weak
+natures.
+
+"Such is life," thought Chupin, philosophically.  "Here's a girl
+who was brought up like a queen and allowed to have her own way in
+everything! If any one had predicted this in those days, how she
+would have sneered! I can see her now as she looked that day when
+I met her driving her gray ponies.  If people didn't clear the
+road it was so much the worse for them! In those times Paris was
+like some great shop where she could select whatever she chose. 
+She said: 'I want this,' and she got it.  She saw a handsome young
+fellow and wanted him for her husband; her father, who could
+refuse her nothing, consented, and now behold the result!"
+
+He had lingered longer at the window than he had meant to do,
+perhaps because he could see that the young woman was talking with
+some person in a back room, the door of which stood open.  Chupin
+tried to find out who this person was, but he did not succeed; and
+he was about to go in when suddenly he saw Madame Paul rise from
+her seat and say a few words with an air of displeasure.  And this
+time her eyes, instead of turning to the open door, were fixed on
+a part of the shop directly opposite her.  "Is there some one
+there as well, then?" Chupin wondered.
+
+He changed his post of observation, and, by standing on tiptoe, he
+succeeded in distinguishing a puny little boy, some three or four
+years old, and clad in rags, who was playing with the remnants of
+a toy-horse.  The sight of this child increased Chupin's
+indignation.  "So there's a child?" he growled.  "The rascal not
+only deserts his wife, but he leaves his child to starve!  We may
+as well make a note of that: and when we settle up our accounts,
+he shall pay dearly for his villainy." With this threat he
+brusquely entered the shop.
+
+"What do you wish, sir?" asked the woman.
+
+"Nothing; I bring you a letter, madame."
+
+"A letter for me! You must be mistaken."
+
+"Excuse me; aren't you Madame Paul?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Then this is for you." And he handed her the missive which
+Florent had confided to his care.
+
+Madame Paul took hold of it with some hesitation, eying the
+messenger suspiciously meanwhile; but, on seeing the handwriting,
+she uttered a cry of surprise.  And, turning toward the open door,
+she called, "M. Mouchon! M. Mouchon! It's from him--it's from my
+husband; from Paul.  Come, come!"
+
+A bald-headed, corpulent man, who looked some fifty years of age,
+now timidly emerged from the room behind the shop with a cap in
+his hand.  "Ah, well! my dear child," he said, in an oily voice,
+"what was I telling you just now? Everything comes to those who
+know how to wait."
+
+However she had already broken the seal, and she was now reading
+the letter eagerly, clapping her hands with delight as she
+finished its perusal.  "He consents!" she exclaimed.  "He's
+frightened--he begs me to wait a little--look--read!"
+
+But M. Mouchon could not read without his spectacles, and he lost
+at least two minutes in searching his pockets before he found
+them.  And when they were adjusted, the light was so dim that it
+took him at least three minutes more to decipher the missive. 
+Chupin had spent this time in scrutinizing--in appraising the man,
+as it were.  "What is this venerable gentleman doing here?" he
+thought.  "He's a middle class man, that's evident from his linen. 
+He's married--there's a wedding-ring on his finger; he has a
+daughter, for the ends of his necktie are embroidered.  He lives
+in the neighborhood, for, well dressed as he is, he wears a cap. 
+But what was he doing there in that back room in the dark?"
+
+Meanwhile M. Mouchon had finished reading the letter.  "What did I
+tell you?" he said complacently.
+
+"Yes, you were right!" answered Madame Paul as she took up the
+letter and read it again with her eyes sparkling with joy.  "And
+now what shall I do?" she asked.  "Wait, shall I not?"
+
+"No, no!" exclaimed the elderly gentleman, in evident dismay. 
+"You must strike the iron while it's hot."
+
+"But he promises me----"
+
+"To promise and to keep one's promises are two different things."
+
+"He wants a reply."
+
+"Tell him----" But he stopped short, calling her attention with a
+gesture to the messenger, whose eyes were glittering with intense
+curiosity.
+
+She understood.  So filling a glass with some liquor, she placed
+it before Chupin, and offered him a cigar, saying: "Take a seat--
+here's something to keep you from feeling impatient while you wait
+here." Thereupon she followed the old gentleman into the adjoining
+room, and closed the door.
+
+Even if Chupin had not possessed the precocious penetration he
+owed to his life of adventure, the young woman and the old
+gentleman had said enough to enable him to form a correct estimate
+of the situation.  He was certain now that he knew the contents of
+the letter as perfectly as if he had read it.  M. de Coralth's
+anger, and his order to make haste, were both explained. 
+Moreover, Chupin distinctly saw what connection there was between
+the letter to the baroness and the letter to Madame Paul.  He
+understood that one was the natural consequence of the other. 
+Deserted by her husband, Madame Paul had at last become weary of
+poverty and privations.  She had instituted a search for her
+husband, and, having found him, she had written to him in this
+style: "I consent to abstain from interfering with you, but only
+on conditions that you provide means of subsistence for me, your
+lawfully wedded wife, and for your child.  If you refuse, I shall
+urge my claims, and ruin you.  The scandal won't be of much use to
+me, it's true, but at least I shall no longer be obliged to endure
+the torture of knowing that you are surrounded by every luxury
+while I am dying of starvation."
+
+Yes, she had evidently written that.  It might not be the precise
+text; but no doubt it was the purport of her letter.  On receiving
+it, Coralth had become alarmed.  He knew only too well that if his
+wife made herself known and revealed his past, it would be all
+over with him.  But he had no money.  Charming young men like the
+Viscount de Coralth never have any money on hand.  So, in this
+emergency, the dashing young fellow had written to his wife
+imploring her to have patience, and to the baroness, entreating,
+or rather commanding her to advance him a certain sum at once.
+
+This was no doubt the case, and yet there was one circumstance
+which puzzled Chupin exceedingly.  In former years, he had heard
+it asserted that Mademoiselle Flavie was the very personification
+of pride, and that she adored her husband even to madness.  Had
+this great love vanished? Had poverty and sorrow broken her spirit
+to such a degree that she was willing to stoop to such shameful
+concessions! If she were acquainted with her husband's present
+life, how did it happen that she did not prefer starvation, or the
+alms-house and a pauper's grave to his assistance? Chupin could
+understand how, in a moment of passion, she might be driven to
+denounce her husband in the presence of his fashionable
+acquaintances, how she might be impelled to ruin him so as to
+avenge herself; but he could not possibly understand how she could
+consent to profit by the ignominy of the man she loved.  "The plan
+isn't hers," said Chupin to himself, after a moment's reflection. 
+"It's probably the work of that stout old gentleman."
+
+There was a means of verifying his suspicions, for on returning
+into the adjoining room, Madame Paul had not taken her son with
+her.  He was still sitting on the muddy floor of the shop, playing
+with his dilapidated horse.  Chupin called him.  "Come here, my
+little fellow," said he.
+
+The child rose, and timidly approached, his eyes dilating with
+distrust and astonishment.  The poor boy's repulsive uncleanliness
+was a terrible charge against the mother.  Did she no longer love
+her own offspring? The untidiness of sorrow and poverty has its
+bounds.  A long time must have passed since the child's face and
+hands had been washed, and his soiled clothes were literally
+falling to rags.  Still, he was a handsome little fellow, and
+seemed fairly intelligent, in spite of his bashfulness.  He was
+very light-haired, and in features he was extremely like M. de
+Coralth.  Chupin took him on his knees, and, after looking to see
+if the door communicating with the inner room were securely
+closed, he asked: "What's your name, little chap?"
+
+"Paul."
+
+"Do you know your father?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Doesn't your mother ever talk to you about him?"
+
+"Oh, yes!"
+
+"And what does she say?"
+
+"That he's rich--very rich."
+
+"And what else?"
+
+The child did not reply; perhaps his mother had forbidden him to
+say anything on the subject--perhaps that instinct which precedes
+intelligence, just as the dawn precedes daylight, warned him to be
+prudent with a stranger.  "Doesn't your papa ever come to see
+you?" insisted Chupin.
+
+"Never."
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Mamma is very poor."
+
+"And wouldn't you like to go and see him?"
+
+"I don't know.  But he'll come some day, and take us away with him
+to a large house.  We shall be all right, then; and he will give
+us a deal of money and pretty dresses, and I shall have plenty of
+toys."
+
+Satisfied on this point, Chupin, pushed his investigations
+farther.  "And do you know this old gentleman who is with your
+mamma in the other room?"
+
+"Oh, yes!--that's Mouchon."
+
+"And who's Mouchon?"
+
+"He's the gentleman who owns that beautiful garden at the corner
+of the Rue Riquet, where there are such splendid grapes.  I'm
+going with him to get some."
+
+"Does he often come to see you?"
+
+"Every evening.  He always has goodies in his pocket for mamma and
+me."
+
+"Why does he sit in that back room without any light?"
+
+"Oh, he says that the customers mustn't see him."
+
+It would have been an abominable act to continue this examination,
+and make this child the innocent accuser of his own mother. 
+Chupin felt conscience-smitten even now.  So he kissed the
+cleanest spot he could find on the boy's face, and set him on the
+floor again, saying, "Go and play."
+
+The child had revealed his mother's character with cruel
+precision.  What had she told him about his father? That he was
+rich, and that, in case he returned, he would give them plenty of
+money and fine clothes.  The woman's nature stood revealed in all
+its deformity.  Chupin had good cause to feel proud of his
+discernment--all his suppositions had been confirmed.  He had read
+Mouchon's character at a glance.  He had recognized him as one of
+those wily evil-minded men who employ their leisure to the profit
+of their depravity--one of those patient, cold-blooded hypocrites
+who make poverty their purveyor, and whose passion is prodigal
+only in advice.  "So he's paying his court to Madame Paul,"
+thought Chupin.  "Isn't it shameful? The old villain! he might at
+least give her enough to eat!"
+
+So far his preoccupation had made him forget his wine and his
+cigar.  He emptied the glass at a single draught, but it proved
+far more difficult to light the cigar.  "Zounds! this is a non-
+combustible," he growled.  "When I arrive at smoking ten sous
+cigars, I sha'n't come here to buy them."
+
+However, with the help of several matches and a great deal of
+drawing, he had almost succeeded, when the door opened, and Madame
+Paul reappeared with a letter in her hand.  She seemed greatly
+agitated; her anxiety was unmistakable.  "I can't decide," she was
+saying to Mouchon, whose figure Chupin could only dimly
+distinguish in the darkness.  "No, I can't.  If I send this
+letter, I must forever renounce all hope of my husband's return. 
+Whatever happens, he will never forgive me."
+
+"He can't treat you worse than he does now, at all events,"
+replied the old gentleman.  "Besides, a gloved cat has never
+caught a mouse yet."
+
+"He'll hate me."
+
+"The man who wants his dog to love him, beats it; and, besides,
+when the wine is drawn, one must drink it."
+
+This singular logic seemed to decide her.  She handed the letter
+to Chupin, and drawing a franc from her pocket she offered it to
+him.  "This is for your trouble," she said.
+
+He involuntarily held out his hand to take the money, but quickly
+withdrew it, exclaiming: "No, thank you; keep it.  I've been paid
+already." And, thereupon, he left the shop.
+
+Chupin's mother--his poor good mother, as he called her--would
+certainly have felt proud and delighted at her son's
+disinterestedness.  That very morning, he had refused the ten
+francs a day that M. Fortunat had offered him, and this evening he
+declined the twenty sous proffered him by Madame Paul.  This was
+apparently a trifle, and yet in reality it was something
+marvellous, unprecedented, on the part of this poor lad, who,
+having neither trade nor profession, was obliged to earn his daily
+bread through the medium of those chance opportunities which the
+lower classes of Paris are continually seeking.  As he returned to
+the Rue de Flandres, he muttered: "Take twenty sous from that poor
+creature, who hasn't had enough to satisfy her hunger for heaven
+knows how long! That would be altogether unworthy of a man."
+
+It is only just to say that money had never given him a feeling of
+satisfaction at all comparable with that which he now experienced. 
+He was impressed, too, with a sense of vastly-increased importance
+on thinking that all the faculties, and all the energy he had once
+employed in the service of evil, were now consecrated to the
+service of good.  By becoming the instrument of Pascal
+Ferailleur's salvation he would, in some measure, atone for the
+crime he had committed years before.
+
+Chupin's mind was so busily occupied with these thoughts that he
+reached the Rue d'Anjou and M. de Coralth's house almost before he
+was aware of it.  To his great surprise, the concierge and his
+wife were not alone.  Florent was there, taking coffee with them. 
+The valet had divested himself of his borrowed finery, and had
+donned his red waistcoat again.  He seemed to be in a savage
+humor; and his anger was not at all strange under the
+circumstances.  There was but a step from M. de Coralth's house to
+the baroness's residence, but fatalities may attend even a step!
+The baroness, on receiving the letter from her maid, had sent a
+message to Florent requesting him to wait, as she desired to speak
+with him! and she had been so inconsiderate as to keep him waiting
+for more than an hour, so that he had missed his appointment with
+the charming ladies he had spoken of.  In his despair he had
+returned home to seek consolation in the society of his friend the
+concierge.  "Have you the answer?" he asked.
+
+"Yes, here it is," replied Chupin, and Florent had just slipped
+the letter into his pocket, and was engaged in counting out the
+thirty sous which he had promised his messenger, when the familiar
+cry, "Open, please," was heard outside.
+
+M. de Coralth had returned.  He sprang to the ground as soon as
+the carriage entered the courtyard, and on perceiving his servant,
+he exclaimed: "Have you executed my commissions?"
+
+"They have been executed, monsieur."
+
+"Did you see the baroness?"
+
+"She made me wait two hours to tell me that the viscount need not
+be worried in the least; that she would certainly be able to
+comply with his request to-morrow."
+
+M. de Coralth seemed to breathe more freely.  "And the other
+party?" he inquired.
+
+"Gave me this for monsieur."
+
+The viscount seized the missive, with an eager hand, tore it open,
+read it at one glance, and flew into such a paroxysm of passion
+that he quite forgot those around him, and began to tear the
+letter, and utter a string of oaths which would have astonished a
+cab-driver.  But suddenly realizing his imprudence, he mastered
+his rage, and exclaimed, with a forced laugh: "Ah! these women!
+they are enough to drive one mad!" And deeming this a sufficient
+explanation, he added, addressing Florent.  "Come and undress me;
+I must be up early to-morrow morning."
+
+This remark was not lost upon Chupin, and at seven o'clock the
+next morning he mounted guard at M. de Coralth's door.  All
+through the day he followed the viscount about, first to the
+Marquis de Valorsay's, then to the office of a business agent,
+then to M. Wilkie's, then, in the afternoon, to Baroness
+Trigault's, and finally, in the evening, to the house of Madame
+d'Argeles.  Here, by making himself useful to the servants, by his
+zeal in opening and shutting the doors of the carriages that left
+the house, he succeeded in gathering some information concerning
+the frightful scene which had taken place between the mother and
+the son.  He perceived M. Wilkie leave the house with his clothes
+in disorder, and subsequently he saw the viscount emerge.  He
+followed him, first to the house of the Marquis de Valorsay, and
+afterward to M. Wilkie's rooms, where he remained till nearly
+daybreak.
+
+Thus, when Chupin presented himself in M. Fortunat's office at two
+o'clock on the Tuesday afternoon, he felt that he held every
+possible clue to the shameful intrigue which would ruin the
+viscount as soon as it was made public.
+
+M. Fortunat knew that his agent was shrewd, but he had not done
+justice to his abilities; and it was, indeed, with something very
+like envy that he listened to Chupin's clear and circumstantial
+report.  "I have not been as successful," he remarked, when
+Chupin's story was ended.  But he had not time to explain how or
+why, for just as he was about to do so, Madame Dodelin appeared,
+and announced that the young lady he expected was there.  "Let her
+come in!" exclaimed M. Fortunat, eagerly--"let her come in!"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had not been compelled to resort to any
+subterfuge to make her escape from Madame de Fondege's house.  The
+General had decamped early in the morning to try his horses and
+his carriages, announcing, moreover, that he would breakfast at
+the club.  And as soon as her breakfast was concluded, Madame de
+Fondege had hurried off to her dressmaker's, warning the household
+that she would not return before dinner-time.  A little while
+later, Madame Leon had suddenly remembered that her noble relative
+would certainly be expecting a visit from her, and so she dressed
+herself in haste, and went off, first to Dr. Jodon's and thence to
+the Marquis de Valorsay's.
+
+Thus, Mademoiselle Marguerite had been able to make her escape
+without attracting any one's attention, and she would be able to
+remain away as many hours as she chose, since the servants would
+not know how long she had been absent even if they saw her when
+she returned.  An empty cab was passing as she left the house, so
+she hailed it and got in.  The step she was about to take cost her
+a terrible effort.  It was a difficult task for her, a girl
+naturally so reserved, to confide in a stranger, and open to him
+her maidenly heart, filled with love for Pascal Ferailleur! Still,
+she was much calmer than she had been on the previous evening,
+when she called on the photographer for a facsimile of M. de
+Valorsay's letter.  Several circumstances combined to reassure
+her.  M. Fortunat knew her already, since he was the agent whom
+the Count de Chalusse had employed to carry on the investigations
+which had resulted in her discovery at the foundling asylum.  A
+vague presentiment told her that this man was better acquainted
+with her past life than she was herself, and that he could, if he
+chose, tell her her mother's name--the name of the woman whom the
+count so dreaded, and who had so pitilessly deserted her. 
+However, her heart beat more quickly, and she felt that she was
+turning pale when, at Madame Dodelin's invitation, she at last
+entered M. Fortunat's private office.  She took in the room and
+its occupants with a single glance.  The handsome appointments of
+the office surprised her, for she had expected to see a den.  The
+agent's polite manner and rather elegant appearance disconcerted
+her, for she had expected to meet a coarse and illiterate boor;
+and finally, Victor Chupin, who was standing twisting his cap near
+the fireplace, attired in a blouse and a pair of ragged trousers,
+fairly alarmed her.  Still, no sign of her agitation was
+perceptible on her countenance.  Not a muscle of her beautiful,
+proud face moved--her glance remained clear and haughty, and she
+exclaimed in a ringing voice: "I am the late Count de Chalusse's
+ward, Mademoiselle Marguerite.  You have received my letter, I
+suppose?"
+
+M. Fortunat bowed with all the grace of manner he was wont to
+display in the circles where he went wife-hunting, and with a
+somewhat pretentious gesture he advanced an arm-chair, and asked
+his visitor to sit down.  "Your letter reached me, mademoiselle,"
+he replied, "and I was expecting you--flattered and honored beyond
+expression by your confidence.  My door, indeed, was closed to any
+one but you."
+
+Marguerite took the proffered seat, and there was a moment's
+silence.  M. Fortunat found it difficult to believe that this
+beautiful, imposing young girl could be the poor little apprentice
+whom he had seen in the book-bindery, years before, clad in a
+coarse serge frock, with dishevelled hair covered with scraps of
+paper.  In the meantime, Marguerite was regretting the necessity
+of confiding in this man, for the more she looked at him, the more
+she was convinced that he was not an honest, straightforward
+person; and she would infinitely have preferred a cynical
+scoundrel to this plausible and polite gentleman, whom she
+strongly suspected of being a hypocrite.  She remained silent,
+waiting for M. Fortunat to dismiss the young man in the blouse,
+whose presence she could not explain, and who stood in a sort of
+mute ecstasy, staring at her with eyes expressive of the most
+intense surprise and the liveliest admiration.  But weary at last
+of this fruitless delay, she exclaimed: "I have come, monsieur, to
+confer with you respecting certain matters which require the most
+profound secrecy."
+
+Chupin understood her, for he blushed to the tips of his ears, and
+started as if to leave the room.  But his employer detained him
+with a gesture.
+
+"Remain, Victor," he said kindly, and, turning to Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, he added: "You have no indiscretion to fear from this
+worthy fellow, mademoiselle.  He knows everything, and he has
+already been actively at work--and with the best result--on your
+behalf."
+
+"I don't understand you, sir," replied the girl.
+
+M. Fortunat smiled sweetly.  "I have already taken your business
+in hand, mademoiselle," said he.  "An hour after the receipt of
+your letter I began the campaign."
+
+"But I had not told you----"
+
+"What you wished of me--that's true.  But I allowed myself to
+suspect----"
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"I fancied I might conclude that you wished the help of my
+experience and poor ability in clearing an innocent man who has
+been vilely slandered, M. Pascal Ferailleur."
+
+Marguerite sprang to her feet, at once agitated and alarmed.  "How
+did you know this?" she exclaimed.
+
+M. Fortunat had left his arm-chair, and was now leaning against
+the mantel-shelf, in what he considered a most becoming and awe-
+inspiring attitude, with his thumb in the armhole of his
+waistcoat.  "Ah! nothing could be more simple," he answered, in
+much the same tone as a conqueror might assume to explain his
+feat.  "It is part of my profession to penetrate the intentions of
+persons who deign to honor me with their confidence.  So my
+surmises are correct; at least you have not said the contrary?"
+
+She had said nothing.  When her first surprise was over, she
+vainly endeavored to find a plausible explanation of M. Fortunat's
+acquaintance with her affairs, for she was not at all deceived by
+his pretended perspicacity.  Meanwhile, delighted by the supposed
+effect he had produced, he recklessly continued: "Reserve your
+amazement for what I am about to disclose, for I have made several
+important discoveries.  It must have been your good angel who
+inspired you with the idea of coming to me.  You would have
+shuddered if you had realized the dangers that threatened you. 
+But now you have nothing to fear; I am watching.  I am here, and I
+hold in my hand all the threads of the abominable intrigue for
+ruining you.  For it is you, your person, and your fortune that
+are imperilled.  It was solely on your account that M. Ferailleur
+was attacked.  And I can tell you the names of the scoundrels who
+ruined him.  The crime originated with the person who had the most
+powerful interest in the matter--the Marquis de Valorsay.  His
+agent was a scoundrel who is generally known as the Viscount de
+Coralth; but Chupin here can tell you his real name and his
+shameful past.  You preferred M. Ferailleur, hence it was
+necessary to put him out of the way.  M. de Chalusse had promised
+your hand to the Marquis de Valorsay.  This marriage was
+Valorsay's only resource--the plank that might save the drowning
+man.  People fancy he is rich; but he is ruined.  Yes, ruined
+completely, irretrievably.  He was in such desperate straits that
+he had almost determined to blow his brains out before the hope of
+marrying you entered his mind."
+
+"Ah!" thought Chupin, "my employer is well under way."
+
+This was indeed the case.  The name of Valorsay was quite
+sufficient to set all M. Fortunat's bile in motion.  All thought
+of his ex-client irritated him beyond endurance.  Unfortunately
+for him, however, his anger in the present instance had ruined his
+plans.  He had intended to take Mademoiselle Marguerite by
+surprise, to work upon her imagination, to make her talk without
+saying anything himself, and to remain master of the situation. 
+But on the contrary he had revealed everything; and he did not
+discover this until it was too late to retrieve his blunder.  "How
+the Marquis de Valorsay has kept his head above water is a wonder
+to me," he continued.  "His creditors have been threatening to sue
+him for more than six months.  How he has been able to keep them
+quiet since M. de Chalusse's death, I cannot understand.  However,
+this much is certain, mademoiselle: the marquis has not renounced
+his intention of becoming your husband; and to attain that object
+he won't hesitate to employ any means that may promise to prove
+effectual."
+
+Completely mistress of herself, Mademoiselle Marguerite listened
+with an impassive face.  "I know all this," she replied, in a
+frigid tone.
+
+"What! you know----"
+
+"Yes; but there is one thing that baffles my powers of
+comprehension.  My dowry was the only temptation to M. de
+Valorsay, was it not? Why does he still wish to marry me, now that
+I have no fortune?"
+
+M. Fortunat had gradually lost all his advantage.  "I have asked
+myself the same question," he replied, "and I think I have found
+an answer.  I believe that the marquis has in his possession a
+letter, or a will, or a document of some sort, written by M. de
+Chalusse--in fact an instrument in which the count acknowledges
+you as his daughter, and which consequently establishes; your
+right to his property."
+
+"And the marquis could urge this claim if he became my husband?"
+
+"Certainly he could."
+
+M. Fortunat explained M. de Valorsay's conduct exactly as the old
+magistrate had done.  However, Mademoiselle Marguerite discreetly
+refrained from committing herself.  The great interest that M.
+Fortunat seemed to take in her affairs aroused her distrust; and
+she decided to do what he had attempted in vain--that is, allow
+him to do all the talking, and to conceal all that she knew
+herself.  "Perhaps you are right," she remarked, "but it is
+necessary to prove the truth of your assertion."
+
+"I can prove that Valorsay hasn't a shilling, and that he has
+lived for a year by expedients which render him liable to arrest
+and prosecution at any time.  I can prove that he deceived M. de
+Chalusse as to his financial position.  I can prove that he
+conspired with M. de Coralth to ruin your lover.  Wouldn't this be
+something?"
+
+She smiled in a way that was exceedingly irritating to his vanity,
+and in a tone of good-natured incredulity, she remarked: "It is
+easy to SAY these things."
+
+"And to do them," rejoined M. Fortunat, quickly.  "I never promise
+what I cannot perform.  A man should never touch a pen when he is
+meditating any evil act.  Of course, no one is fool enough to
+write down his infamy in detail.  But a man cannot always be on
+the qui vive.  There will be a word in one letter, a sentence in
+another, an allusion in a third.  And by combining these words,
+phrases, and allusions, one may finally discover the truth."
+
+He suddenly checked himself, warned of his fresh imprudence by the
+expression on Mademoiselle Marguerite's face.  She drew back, and
+looking him full in the eyes, she exclaimed: "Then you have been
+in M. de Valorsay's confidence, sir? Would you be willing to swear
+that you never helped him in his designs?"
+
+A silent and ignored witness of this scene, Victor Chupin was
+secretly delighted.  "Hit!" he thought--"hit just in the bull's-
+eye.  Zounds! there's a woman for you! She has beaten the guv'nor
+on every point."
+
+M. Fortunat was so taken by surprise that he made no attempt to
+deny his guilt.  "I confess that I acted as M. de Valorsay's
+adviser for some time," he replied, "and he frequently spoke to me
+of his intention of marrying a rich wife in order to retrieve his
+shattered fortunes.  Upon my word, I see nothing so very bad about
+that! It is not a strictly honest proceeding, perhaps, but it is
+done every day.  What is marriage in this age? Merely a business
+transaction, is it not? Perhaps it would be more correct to say
+that it is a transaction in which one person tries to cheat the
+other.  The fathers-in-law are deceived, or the husband, or the
+wife, and sometimes all of them together.  But when I discovered
+this scheme for mining M. Ferailleur, I cried 'halt!'  My
+conscience revolted at that.  Dishonor an innocent man! It was
+base, cowardly, outrageous! And not being able to prevent this
+infamous act, I swore that I would avenge it."
+
+Would Mademoiselle Marguerite accept this explanation? Chupin
+feared so, and accordingly turning quickly to his employer, he
+remarked: "To say nothing of the fact that this fine gentleman has
+swindled you outrageously, shrewd as you are--cheating you out of
+the forty thousand francs you lent him, and which he was to pay
+you eighty thousand for."
+
+M. Fortunat cast a withering look at his clerk, but the mischief
+was done: denial was useless.  He seemed fated to blunder in this
+affair.  "Well, yes," he declared, "it's true.  Valorsay HAS
+defrauded me, and I have sworn to have my revenge.  I won't rest
+until I see him ruined."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was partially reassured, for she
+understood his zeal now.  Her scorn for the man was only
+increased; but she was convinced that he would serve her
+faithfully.  "I like this much better," said she.  "It is better
+to have no concealment.  You desire M. de Valorsay's ruin.  I
+desire the rehabilitation of M. Ferailleur.  So our interests are
+in common.  But before acting in this matter, we must know M.
+Ferailleur's wishes."
+
+"They cannot be considered."
+
+"And why?"
+
+"Because no one knows what has become of him.  When the desire for
+revenge first took possession of me, I at once thought of him.  I
+procured his address, and went to the Rue d'Ulm.  But he had gone
+away.  The very day after his misfortune, M. Ferailleur sold his
+furniture and went away with his mother."
+
+"I am aware of that, and I have come to ask you to search for him. 
+To discover his hiding-place will be only child's play to you."
+
+"Do you suppose I haven't thought of this?" replied M. Fortunat. 
+"Why, I spent all day yesterday searching for him.  By questioning
+the people in the neighborhood I finally succeeded in ascertaining
+that Madame Ferailleur left her home in a cab several hours after
+her son, and took a very large quantity of baggage with her. 
+Well, do you know where she drove? To the Western railway station. 
+I am sure of this, and I know she told a porter there that her
+destination was London.  M. Ferailleur is now en route for
+America, and we shall never hear of him again!"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite shook her head.  "You are mistaken, sir,"
+said she.
+
+"There can be no mistake about what I have just told you."
+
+"I don't question the result of your investigations, but
+appearances are deceitful.  I thoroughly understand M.
+Ferailleur's character, and he is not the man to be crushed by an
+infamous calumny.  He may seem to fly, he may disappear, he may
+conceal himself for a time, but it is only to make his vengeance
+more certain.  What! Pascal, who is energy itself, who possesses
+an iron will, and invincible determination, would he renounce his
+honor, his future, and the woman he loves without a struggle? If
+he had felt that his case was hopeless, he would have destroyed
+himself, and as he has not done so, he is not without hope.  He
+has not left Paris; I am sure of it."
+
+M. Fortunat was not convinced.  In his opinion this was only
+sentiment and rubbish.  Still there was one person present who was
+deeply impressed by the confidence of this young girl, who was the
+most beautiful creature he had ever seen, and whose devotion and
+energy filled his heart with admiration, and this person was
+Chupin.  He stepped forward with his eyes sparkling with
+enthusiasm, and in a feeling voice he exclaimed: "I understand
+your idea! Yes, M. Ferailleur is in Paris.  And I shall be
+unworthy of the name of Chupin, if I don't find him for you in
+less than a fortnight!"
+
+
+
+XII.
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite knew Pascal Ferailleur.  Suddenly struck
+down in the full sunlight of happiness by a terrible misfortune,
+he, of course, experienced moments of frenzy and terrible
+depression; but he was incapable of the cowardice which M.
+Fortunat had accused him of.
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite only did him justice when she said that
+the sole condition on which he could consent to live was that of
+consecrating his life, and all his strength, intelligence and will
+to confounding this infamous calumny.  And still she did not know
+the extent of Pascal's misfortune.  How could she suppose that he
+believed himself deserted by her? How could she know the doubts
+and fears and the anguish that had been roused in his heart by the
+note which Madame Leon had given him at the garden gate? What did
+she know of the poignant suspicions that had rent his mind, after
+listening to Madame Vantrasson's disparaging insinuations?
+
+It must be admitted that he was indebted to his mother alone for
+his escape from suicide--that grim madness that seizes hold of so
+many desperate, despairing men.  And it was still to his mother--
+the incomparable guardian of his honor--that he owed his
+resolution on the morning he applied to Baron Trigault.  And his
+courage met with its first reward.
+
+He was no longer the same man when he left the princely mansion
+which he had entered with his heart so full of anguish.  He was
+still somewhat bewildered with the strange scenes which he had
+involuntarily witnessed, the secrets he had overheard, and the
+revelations which had been made to him; but a light gleamed on the
+horizon--a fitful and uncertain light, it is true, but
+nevertheless a hopeful gleam.  At least, he would no longer have
+to struggle alone.  An honest and experienced man, powerful by
+reason of his reputation, his connections and his fortune, had
+promised him his help.  Thanks to this man whom misfortune had
+made a truer friend than years could have done, he would have
+access to the wretch who had deprived him both of his honor and of
+the woman he loved.  He knew the weak spot in the marquis's armor
+now; he knew where and how to strike, and he felt sure that he
+should succeed in winning Valorsay's confidence, and in obtaining
+irrefutable proofs of his villainy.
+
+Pascal was eager to inform his mother of the fortunate result of
+his visit, but certain arrangements which were needful for the
+success of his plans required his attention, and it was nearly
+five o'clock when he reached the Route de la Revolte.  Madame
+Ferailleur was just returning home when he arrived, which
+surprised him considerably, for he had not known that she had
+intended going out.  The cab she had used was still standing
+before the door, and she had not had time to take off her shawl
+and bonnet when he entered the house.  She uttered a joyful cry on
+perceiving her son.  She was so accustomed to read his secret
+thoughts on his face, that it was unnecessary for him to say a
+word; before he had even opened his lips, she cried: "So you have
+succeeded?"
+
+"Yes, mother, beyond my hopes."
+
+"I was not deceived, then, in the worthy man who came to offer us
+his assistance?"
+
+"No, certainly not.  Do what I may, I can never repay him for his
+generosity and self-denial.  If you knew, my dear mother, if you
+only knew----"
+
+"What?"
+
+He kissed her as if he wished to apologize for what he was about
+to say, and then he quickly replied: "Marguerite is the daughter
+of Baroness Trigault."
+
+Madame Ferailleur started back, as if she had seen a reptile
+spring up in her pathway.  "The daughter of the baroness!" she
+faltered.  "Great Heavens!"
+
+"It is the truth, mother; listen to me." And in a voice that
+trembled with emotion, he rapidly related all he had learned by
+his visit to the baron, softening the truth as much as he could
+without concealing it.  But prevarication was useless.  Madame
+Ferailleur's indignation and disgust were none the less evident. 
+"That woman is a shameless creature," she said, coldly, when her
+son's narrative was concluded.
+
+Pascal made no reply.  He knew only too well that his mother was
+right, and yet it wounded him cruelly to hear her speak in this
+style.  For the baroness was Marguerite's mother after all.
+
+"So," continued Madame Ferailleur, with increasing indignation,
+"creatures do exist who are destitute even of the maternal
+instincts of animals.  I am an honest woman myself; I don't say it
+in self-glorification, it's no credit to me; my mother was a
+saint, and I loved my husband; what some people call duty was my
+happiness, so I may be allowed to speak on this subject. I don't
+excuse infidelity, but I can understand how such a thing is
+possible.  Yes, I can understand how a beautiful young woman, who 
+is left alone in a city like Paris, may lose her senses, and
+forget the worthy man who has exiled himself for her sake, and who
+is braving a thousand dangers to win a fortune for her.  The
+husband who exposes his honor and happiness to such terrible risk,
+is an imprudent man.  But when this woman has erred, when she has
+given birth to a child, how she can abandon it, how she can cast
+it off as if it were a dog, I cannot comprehend.  I could imagine
+infanticide more easily.  No, such a woman has no heart, no bowels
+of compassion.  There is nothing human in her! For how could she
+live, how could she sleep with the thought that somewhere in the
+world her own child, the flesh of her flesh, was exposed to all
+the temptations of poverty, and the horrors of shame and vice? And
+she, the possessor of millions, she, the inmate of a palace,
+thinking only of dress and pleasure! How was it that she didn't
+ask herself every minute, 'Where is my daughter now, and what is
+she doing? What is she living on? Has she shelter, clothes and
+food? To what depths of degradation she may have sunk? Perhaps she
+has so far lived by honest toil, and perhaps at this very moment
+this support fails her, and she is abandoning herself to a life of
+infamy.' Great God! how does this woman dare to step out of doors?
+On seeing the poor wretches who have been driven to vice by want,
+how can she fail to say to herself: 'That, perhaps, is my
+daughter!'"
+
+Pascal turned pale, moved to the depths of his soul by his
+mother's extraordinary vehemence.  He trembled lest she should
+say: "And you, my son, would you marry the child of such a
+mother?" For he knew his mother's prejudices, and the great
+importance she attached to a spotless reputation transmitted from
+parent to child, from generation to generation.  "The baroness
+knew that her husband adored her, and hearing of his return she
+became terrified; she lost her senses," he ventured to say in
+extenuation.
+
+"Would you try to defend her?" exclaimed Madame Ferailleur.  "Do
+you really think one can atone for a fault by a crime?"
+
+"No, certainly not, but----"
+
+"Perhaps you would censure the baroness more severely if you knew
+what her daughter has suffered--if you knew the perils and
+miseries she has been exposed to from the moment her mother left
+her on a door-step, near the central markets, till the day when
+her father found her.  It is a miracle that she did not perish."
+
+Where had Madame Ferailleur learned these particulars? Pascal
+asked himself this question without being able to answer it.  "I
+don't understand you, mother," he faltered.
+
+"Then you know nothing of Mademoiselle Marguerite's past life.  Is
+it possible she never told you anything about it?"
+
+"I only know that she has been very unhappy."
+
+"Has she never alluded to the time when she was an apprentice?"
+
+"She has only told me that she earned her living with her own
+hands at one time of her life."
+
+"Well, I am better informed on the subject."
+
+Pascal's amazement was changed to terror.  "You, mother, you!"
+
+"Yes; I--I have been to the asylum where she was received and
+educated.  I have had a conversation with two Sisters of Charity
+who remember her, and it is scarcely an hour since I left the
+people to whom she was formerly bound as an apprentice."
+
+Standing opposite his mother with one hand convulsively clutching
+the back of the chair he was leaning on, Pascal tried to nerve
+himself for some terrible blow.  For was not his life at stake?
+Did not his whole future depend upon the revelations Madame
+Ferailleur was about to make?" So this was your object in going
+out, mother?" he faltered.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And you went without warning me?"
+
+"Was it necessary? What! you love a young girl, you swear in my
+presence that she shall be your wife, and you think it strange
+that I should try to ascertain whether she is worthy of you or
+not? It would be very strange if I did not do so."
+
+"This idea occurred to you so suddenly!"
+
+Madame Ferailleur gave an almost imperceptible shrug of the
+shoulders, as if she were astonished to have to answer such
+puerile objections.  "Have you already forgotten the disparaging
+remarks made by our new servant, Madame Vantrasson?"
+
+"Good Heavens!"
+
+"I understood her base insinuations as well as you did, and after
+your departure I questioned her, or rather I allowed her to tell
+her story, and I ascertained that Mademoiselle Marguerite had once
+been an apprentice of Vantrasson's brother-in-law, a man named
+Greloux, who was formerly a bookbinder in the Rue Saint-Denis, but
+who has now retired from business.  It was there that Vantrasson
+met Mademoiselle Marguerite, and this is why he was so greatly
+surprised to see her doing the mistress at the Hotel de Chalusse."
+
+It seemed to Pascal that the throbbing of his heart stopped his
+breath.
+
+"By a little tact I obtained the Greloux's address from Madame
+Vantrasson," resumed his mother.  "Then I sent for a cab and drove
+there at once."
+
+"And you saw them?"
+
+"Yes; thanks to a falsehood which doesn't trouble my conscience
+much, I succeeded in effecting an entrance, and had an hour's
+conversation with them." His mother's icy tones frightened Pascal. 
+Her slowness tortured him, and still he dared not press her.  "The
+Greloux family," she continued, "seem to be what are called worthy
+people, that is, incapable of committing any crime that is
+punishable by the code, and very proud of their income of seven
+thousand francs a year.  They must have been very much attached to
+Mademoiselle Marguerite, for they were lavish in their
+protestations of affection when I mentioned her name.  The husband
+in particular seemed to regard her with a feeling of something
+like gratitude."
+
+"Ah! you see, mother, you see!"
+
+"As for the wife, it was easy to see that she had sincerely
+regretted the loss of the best apprentice, the most honest
+servant, and the best worker she had ever seen in her life.  And
+yet, from her own story, I should be willing to swear that she had
+abused the poor child, and had made a slave of her." Tears
+glittered in Pascal's eyes, but he breathed freely once more.  "As
+for Vantrasson," resumed Madame Ferailleur, "it is certain that he
+took a violent fancy to his sister's apprentice.  This man, who
+has since become an infamous scoundrel, was then only a rake, an
+unprincipled drunkard and libertine.  He fancied the poor little
+apprentice--she was then but thirteen years old--would be only too
+glad to become the mistress of her employer's brother; but she
+scornfully repulsed him, and his vanity was so deeply wounded that
+he persecuted the poor girl to such an extent that she was obliged
+to complain, first to Madame Greloux, who--to her shame be it
+said--treated these insults as mere nonsense; and afterward to
+Greloux himself, who was probably delighted to have an opportunity
+of ridding himself of his indolent brother-in-law, for he turned
+him out of the house."
+
+The thought that so vile a rascal as this man Vantrasson should
+have dared to insult Marguerite made Pascal frantic with
+indignation.  "The wretch!" he exclaimed; "the wretch!" But
+without seeming to notice her son's anger, Madame Ferailleur
+continued: "They pretended they had not seen their former
+apprentice since she had been living in grandeur, as they
+expressed it.  But in this they lied to me.  For they saw her at
+least once, and that was on the day she brought them twenty
+thousand francs, which proved the nucleus of their fortune.  They
+did not mention this fact, however."
+
+"Dear Marguerite!" murmured Pascal, "dear Marguerite!" And then
+aloud: "But where did you learn these last details, mother?" he
+inquired.
+
+"At the asylum where Mademoiselle Marguerite was brought up, and
+there, too, I only heard words of praise.  'Never,' said the
+superior, 'have I had a more gifted, sweeter-tempered or more
+attractive charge.' They had reproached her sometimes for being
+too reserved, and her self-respect had often been mistaken for
+inordinate pride; but she had not forgotten the asylum any more
+than she had forgotten her former patrons.  On one occasion the
+superior received from her the sum of twenty-five thousand francs,
+and a year ago she presented the institution with one hundred
+thousand francs, the yearly income of which is to constitute the
+marriage dowry of some deserving orphan."
+
+Pascal was greatly elated.  "Well, mother!" he exclaimed, "well,
+is it strange that I love her?" Madame Ferailleur made no reply,
+and a sorrowful apprehension seized hold of him.  "You are
+silent," said he, "and why? When the blessed day that will allow
+me to wed Marguerite arrives, you surely won't oppose our
+marriage?"
+
+"No, my son, nothing that I have learned gives me the right to do
+so."
+
+"The right! Ah, you are unjust, mother."
+
+"Unjust! Haven't I faithfully reported all that was told me,
+although I knew it would only increase your passion?"
+
+"That's true, but----"
+
+Madame Ferailleur sadly shook her head.  "Do you think," she
+interrupted, "that I can, without sorrow, see you choose a girl of
+no family, a girl who is outside the pale of social recognition?
+Don't you understand my disquietude when I think that the girl
+that you will marry is the daughter of such a woman as Baroness
+Trigault, an unfortunate girl whom her mother cannot even
+recognize, since her mother is a married woman----"
+
+"Ah! mother, is that Marguerite's fault?"
+
+"Did I say it was her fault? No--I only pray God that you may
+never have to repent of choosing a wife whose past life must ever
+remain an impenetrable mystery!"
+
+Pascal had become very pale.  "Mother!" he said in a quivering
+voice, "mother!"
+
+"I mean that you will only know so much of Mademoiselle
+Marguerite's past life as she may choose to tell you," continued
+the obdurate old lady.  "You heard Madame Vantrasson's ignoble
+allegations.  It has been said that she was the mistress, not the
+daughter, of the Count de Chalusse.  Who knows what vile
+accusations you may be forced to meet? And what is your refuge, if
+doubts should ever assail you? Mademoiselle Marguerite's word!
+Will this be sufficient? It is now, perhaps; but will it suffice
+in years to come? I would have my son's wife above suspicion; and
+she--why, there is not a single episode in her life that does not
+expose her to the most atrocious calumny."
+
+"What does calumny matter? it will never shake my faith in her. 
+The misfortunes which you reproach Marguerite for sanctify her in
+my eyes."
+
+"Pascal!"
+
+"What! Am I to scorn her because she has been unfortunate? Am I to
+regard her birth as a crime? Am I to despise her because her
+MOTHER is a despicable woman? No--God be praised! the day when
+illegitimate children, the innocent victims of their mother's
+faults, were branded as outcasts, is past."
+
+But Madame Ferailleur's prejudices were too deeply rooted to be
+shaken by these arguments.  "I won't discuss this question, my
+son," she interrupted, "but take care.  By declaring children
+irresponsible for their mother's faults, you will break the
+strongest tie that binds a woman to duty.  If the son of a pure
+and virtuous wife, and the son of an adulterous woman meet upon
+equal ground, those who are held in check only by the thought of
+their children will finally say to themselves, what does it
+matter?"
+
+It was the first time that a cloud had ever arisen between mother
+and son.  On hearing his dearest hopes thus attacked, Pascal was 
+tempted to rebel, and a flood of bitter words rose to his lips. 
+However he had strength enough to control himself.  "Marguerite
+alone can triumph over these implacable prejudices," he thought;
+"when my mother knows her, she will feel how unjust they are!"
+
+And as he found it difficult to remain master of himself, he
+stammered some excuse, and abruptly retired to his own room, where
+he threw himself on his bed.  He felt that it was not his place to
+reproach his mother or censure her for her opinions.  What mother
+had ever been so devoted as she had been? And who knows?--it was,
+perhaps, from these same rigid prejudices that this simple-minded
+and heroic woman had derived her energy, her enthusiastic love of
+God, her hatred of evil, and that virility of spirit which
+misfortune had been powerless to daunt.  Besides, had she not
+promised to offer no opposition to his marriage! And was not this
+a great concession, a sacrifice which must have cost her a severe
+struggle? And where can one find the mother who does not count as
+one of the sublime joys of maternity the task of seeking a wife
+for her son, of choosing from among all others the young girl who
+will be the companion of his life, the angel of his dark and of
+his prosperous days? His mind was occupied with these thoughts
+when his door suddenly opened, and he sprang up, exclaiming: "Who
+is it?"
+
+It was Madame Vantrasson, who came to announce that dinner was
+ready--a dinner which she had herself prepared, for on going out
+Madame Ferailleur had left her in charge of the household.  On
+seeing this woman, Pascal was overcome with rage and indignation,
+and felt a wild desire to annihilate her.  He knew that she was
+only a vile slanderer, but she might meet other beings as vile as
+herself who would be only too glad to believe her falsehoods.  And
+to think that he was powerless to punish her! He now realized the
+suffering his mother had spoken of--the most atrocious suffering
+which the lover can endure--powerlessness to protect the object of
+his affections, when she is assailed.  Engrossed in these gloomy
+thoughts, Pascal preserved a sullen silence during the repast.  He
+ate because his mother filled his plate; but if he had been
+questioned, he could scarcely have told what he was eating.  And
+yet, the modest dinner was excellent.  Madame Vantrasson was
+really a good cook, and in this first effort in her new situation
+she had surpassed herself.  Her vanity as a cordon-bleu was piqued
+because she did not receive the compliments she expected, and
+which she felt she deserved.  Four or five times she asked
+impatiently, "Isn't that good?" and as the only reply was a
+scarcely enthusiastic "Very good," she vowed she would never again
+waste so much care and talent upon such unappreciative people.
+
+Madame Ferailleur was as silent as her son, and seemed equally
+anxious to finish with the repast.  She evidently wanted to get
+rid of Madame Vantrasson, and in fact as soon as the simple
+dessert had been placed on the table, she turned to her, and said:
+"You may go home now.  I will attend to the rest."
+
+Irritated by the taciturnity of these strange folks, the landlady
+of the Model Lodging House withdrew, and they soon heard the
+street door close behind her with a loud bang as she left the
+house.  Pascal drew a long breath as if relieved of a heavy
+weight.  While Madame Vantrasson had been in the room he had
+scarcely dared to raise his eyes, so great was his dread of
+encountering the gaze of this woman, whose malignity was but
+poorly veiled by her smooth-tongued hypocrisy.  He really feared
+he should not be able to resist his desire to strangle her. 
+However, Madame Ferailleur must have understood her son's
+agitation, for as soon as they were alone, she said: "So you have
+not forgiven me for my plain speaking?"
+
+"How can I be angry with you, mother, when I know that you are
+thinking only of my happiness? But how sorry I shall be if your
+prejudices----"
+
+Madame Ferailleur checked him with a gesture.  "Let us say no more
+on the subject," she remarked.  "Mademoiselle Marguerite will be
+the innocent cause of one of the greatest disappointments of my
+life; but I have no reason to hate her--and I have always been
+able to show justice even to the persons I loved the least.  I
+have done so in this instance, and I am going perhaps to give you
+a convincing proof of it."
+
+"A proof?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+She reflected for a moment and then she asked: "Did you not tell
+me, my son, that Mademoiselle Marguerite's education has not
+suffered on account of her neglected childhood?"
+
+"And it's quite true, mother."
+
+"She worked diligently, you said, so as to improve herself?"
+
+"Marguerite knows all that an unusually talented girl can learn in
+four years, when she finds herself very unhappy, and study proves
+her only refuge and consolation."
+
+"If she wrote you a note would it be written grammatically, and be
+free from any mistakes in spelling?"
+
+"Oh, certainly!" exclaimed Pascal, and a sudden inspiration made
+him pause abruptly.  He darted to his own room, and a minute later
+he returned with a package of letters, which he laid on the table,
+saying: "Here, mother, read and see for yourself."
+
+Madame Ferailleur drew her spectacles from their case, and, after
+adjusting them, she began to read.
+
+With his elbows on the table, and his head resting upon his hands,
+Pascal eagerly watched his mother, anxious to read her impressions
+on her face.  She was evidently astonished.  She had not expected
+these letters would express such nobility of sentiment, an energy
+no whit inferior to her own, and even an echo of her own
+prejudices.  For this strange young girl shared Madame
+Ferailleur's rather bigoted opinions.  Again and again she asked
+herself if her birth and past had not created an impassable abyss
+between Pascal and herself.  And she had not felt satisfied on
+this point until the day when the gray-haired magistrate, after
+hearing her story, said: "If I had a son, I should be proud to
+have him beloved by you!"
+
+It soon became apparent that Madame Ferailleur was deeply moved,
+and once she even raised her glasses to wipe away a furtive tear
+which made Pascal's heart leap with very joy.  "These letters are
+admirable," she said at last; "and no young girl, reared by a
+virtuous mother, could have given better expression to nobler
+sentiments; but----" She paused, not wishing to wound her son's
+feelings, and as he insisted, she added:
+
+"But, these letters have the irreparable fault of being addressed
+to you, Pascal!"
+
+This, however, was the expiring cry of her intractable obstinacy. 
+"Now," she resumed, "wait before you censure your mother." So
+saying, she rose, opened a drawer, and taking from it a torn and
+crumpled scrap of paper, she handed it to her son, exclaiming:
+"Read this attentively."
+
+This proved to be the note in pencil which Madame Leon had given
+to Pascal, and which he had divined rather than read by the light
+of the street-lamp; he had handed it to his mother on his return,
+and she had kept it.  He had scarcely been in his right mind the
+evening he received it, but now he was enjoying the free exercise
+of all his faculties.  He no sooner glanced at the note than he
+sprang up, and in an excited voice, exclaimed, "Marguerite never
+wrote this!"
+
+The strange discovery seemed to stupefy him.  "I was mad, raving
+mad!" he muttered.  "The fraud is palpable, unmistakable.  How
+could I have failed to discover it?" And as if he felt the need of
+convincing himself that he was not deceived, he continued,
+speaking to himself rather than to his mother: "The hand-writing
+is not unlike Marguerite's, it's true; but it's only a clever
+counterfeit.  And who doesn't know that all writings in pencil
+resemble each other more or less? Besides, it's certain that
+Marguerite, who is simplicity itself, would not have made use of
+such pretentious melodramatic phrases.  How could I have been so
+stupid as to believe that she ever thought or wrote this: 'One
+cannot break a promise made to the dying; I shall keep mine even
+though my heart break.' And again: 'Forget, therefore, the girl
+who has loved you so much: she is now the betrothed of another,
+and honor requires she should forget even your name!'"  He read
+these passages with an extravagant emphasis, which heightened
+their absurdity.  "And what shall I say of these mistakes in
+spelling?" he resumed.  "You noticed them, of course, mother?--
+command is written with a single 'm,' and supplicate with one 'p.'
+These are certainly not mistakes that we can attribute to haste!
+Ignorance is proved since the blunder is always the same.  The
+forger is evidently in the habit of omitting one of the double
+letters."
+
+Madame Ferailleur listened with an impassive face.  "And these
+mistakes are all the more inexcusable since this letter is only a
+copy," she observed, quietly.
+
+"What?"
+
+"Yes; a verbatim copy.  Yesterday evening, while I was examining
+it for the twentieth time, it occurred to me that I had read some
+portions of it before.  Where, and under what circumstances? It
+was a puzzle which kept me awake most of the night.  But this
+morning I suddenly remembered a book which I had seen in the hands
+of the workmen at the factory, and which I had often laughed over. 
+So, while I was out this morning I entered a book-shop, and
+purchased the volume.  That's it, there on the corner of the
+mantel-shelf.  Take it and see."
+
+Pascal obeyed, and noticed with surprise that the work was
+entitled, "The Indispensable and Complete Letter-writer, for Both
+Sexes, in Every Condition of Life."
+
+"Now turn to the page I have marked," said Madame Ferailleur.
+
+He did so, and read: "(Model 198).  Letter from a young lady who
+has promised her dying father to renounce the man she loves, and
+to bestow her hand upon another." Doubt was no longer possible. 
+Line for line and word for word, the mistakes in spelling
+excepted, the note was an exact copy of the stilted prose of the
+"Indispensable Letter-writer."
+
+It seemed to Pascal as if the scales had suddenly fallen from his
+eyes, and that he could now understand the whole intrigue which
+had been planned to separate him from Marguerite.  His enemies had
+dishonored him in the hope that she would reject and scorn him,
+and, disappointed in their expectations, they had planned this
+pretended rupture of the engagement to prevent him from making any
+attempt at self-justification.  So, in spite of some short-lived
+doubts, his love had been more clear-sighted than reason, and
+stronger than appearances.  He had been quite right, then, in
+saying to his mother: "I can never believe that Marguerite deserts
+me at a moment when I am so wretched--that she condemns me
+unheard, and has no greater confidence in me than in my accusers. 
+Appearances may indicate the contrary, but I am right." Certain
+circumstances, which had previously seemed contradictory, now
+strengthened this belief.  "How is it," he said to himself, "that
+Marguerite writes to me that her father, on his death-bed, made
+her promise to renounce me, while Valorsay declares the Count de
+Chalusse died so suddenly, that he had not even time to
+acknowledge his daughter or to bequeath her his immense fortune?
+One of these stories must be false; and which of them? The one in
+this note most probably.  As for the letter itself, it must have
+been the work of Madame Leon."
+
+If he had not already possessed irrefutable proofs of this, the
+"Indispensable Letter-writer" would have shown it.  The
+housekeeper's perturbation when she met him at the garden gate was
+now explained.  She was shuddering at the thought that she might
+be followed and watched, and that Marguerite might appear at any
+moment, and discover everything.
+
+"I think it would be a good plan to let this poor young girl know
+that her companion is Valorsay's spy," remarked Madame Ferailleur.
+
+Pascal was about to approve this suggestion, when a sudden thought
+deterred him.  "They must be watching Marguerite very closely," he
+replied, "and if I attempt to see her, if I even venture to write
+to her, our enemies would undoubtedly discover it.  And then,
+farewell to the success of my plans."
+
+"Then you prefer to leave her exposed to these dangers?"
+
+"Yes, even admitting there is danger, which is by no means
+certain.  Owing to her past life, Marguerite's experience is far
+in advance of her years, and if some one told me that she had
+fathomed Madame Leon's character, I should not be at all
+surprised."
+
+It was necessary to ascertain what had become of Marguerite; and
+Pascal was puzzling his brain to discover how this might be done,
+when suddenly he exclaimed: "Madame Vantrasson! We have her; let
+us make use of her.  It will be easy to find some excuse for
+sending her to the Hotel de Chalusse: she will gossip with the
+servants there, and in that way we can discover the changes that
+have taken place."
+
+This was a heroic resolution on Pascal's part, and one which he
+would have recoiled from the evening before.  But it is easy to be
+brave when one is hopeful; and he saw his chances of success
+increase so rapidly that he no longer feared the obstacles that
+had once seemed almost insurmountable.  Even his mother's
+opposition had ceased to alarm him.  For why should he fear after
+the surprising proof she had given him of her love of justice,
+proving that the pretended letter from Mademoiselle Marguerite was
+really a forgery?
+
+He slept but little that night and did not stir from the house on
+the following day.  He was busily engaged in perfecting his plan
+of attack against the marquis.  His advantages were considerable,
+thanks to Baron Trigault, who had placed a hundred thousand francs
+at his disposal; but the essential point was to use this amount in
+such a way as to win Valorsay's confidence, and induce him to
+betray himself.  Pascal's hours of meditation were not spent in
+vain, and when it became time for him to repair to his enemy's
+house, he said to his mother: "I've found a plan; and if the baron
+will let me follow it out, Valorsay is mine!"
+
+
+
+XIII.
+
+
+It was pure childishness on Pascal's part to doubt Baron
+Trigault's willingness to agree even with closed eyes to any
+measures he might propose.  He ought to have recollected that
+their interests were identical, that they hated the same men with
+equal hatred, and that they were equally resolved upon vengeance. 
+And certainly the events which had occurred since their last
+interview had not been of a nature to modify the baron's
+intentions.  However, misfortune had rendered Pascal timid and
+suspicious, and it was not until he reached the baron's house that
+his fears vanished.  The manner in which the servants received him
+proved that the baron greatly esteemed him: for the man must be
+stupid indeed who does not know that the greeting of the servants
+is ever in harmony with the feelings of the master of the house. 
+"Will you be kind enough to follow me?" said the servant to whom
+he handed his card.  "The baron is very busy, but that doesn't
+matter.  He gave orders that monsieur should be shown up as soon
+as he arrived."
+
+Pascal followed without a word.  The elegance of this princely
+abode never varied.  The same careless, prodigal, regal luxury was
+apparent everywhere.  The servants--whose name was legion--were
+always passing noiselessly to and fro.  A pair of horses, worth at
+least a thousand louis, and harnessed to the baroness's brougham,
+were stamping and neighing in the courtyard; and the hall was, as
+usual, fragrant with the perfume of rare flowers, renewed every
+morning.
+
+On his first visit Pascal had only seen the apartments on the
+ground floor.  This time his guide remarked that he would take him
+upstairs to the baron's private room.  He was slowly ascending the
+broad marble staircase and admiring the bronze balustrade, the
+rich carpet, the magnificent frescoes, and the costly statuary,
+when a rustle of silk resounded near him.  He had only time to
+step aside, and a lady passed him rapidly, without turning her
+head, or even deigning to look at him.  She did not appear more
+than forty, and she was still very beautiful, with her golden hair
+dressed high on the back of her head.  Her costume, brilliant
+enough in hue to frighten a cab horse, was extremely eccentric in
+cut; but it certainly set off her peculiar style of beauty to
+admirable advantage.
+
+"That's the baroness," whispered the servant, after she had
+passed.
+
+Pascal did not need to be told this.  He had seen her but once,
+and then only for a second; but it had been under such
+circumstances that he should never forget her so long as he lived. 
+And now he understood the strange and terrible impression which
+had been produced upon him when he saw her first.  Mademoiselle
+Marguerite was the living prototype of this lady, save as regards
+the color of her hair.  And there would have been no difference in
+this respect had the baroness allowed her locks to retain their
+natural tint.  Her hair had been black, like Marguerite's, and
+black it had remained until she was thirty-five, when she bleached
+it to the fashionable color of the time.  And every fourth day
+even now her hairdresser came to apply a certain compound to her
+head, after which she remained in the bright sunlight for several
+hours, so as to impart a livelier shade of gold to her dyed locks.
+
+Pascal had scarcely regained his composure, when the servant
+opened the door of an immense apartment as large as a handsome
+suite of rooms, and magnificently furnished.  Here sat the baron,
+surrounded by several clerks, who were busily engaged in putting a
+pile of papers and documents in order.
+
+But as soon as Pascal entered, the baron rose, and cordially
+holding out his hand, exclaimed, "Ah! here you are at last,
+Monsieur Maumejan!"
+
+So he had not forgotten the name which Pascal had assumed.  This
+was a favorable omen.  "I called, monsieur----" began the young
+man.
+
+"Yes--I know--I know!" interrupted the baron.  "Come, we must have
+a talk."
+
+And, taking Pascal's arm, he led him into his private sanctum,
+separated from the large apartment by folding-doors, which had
+been removed, and replaced by hangings.  Once there he indicated
+by a gesture that they could be heard in the adjoining room, and
+that it was necessary to speak in a low tone.  "You have no doubt
+come," said he, "for the money I promised that dear Marquis de
+Valorsay--I have it all ready for you; here it is." So saying, he
+opened an escritoire, and took out a large roll of bank-notes,
+which he handed to Pascal.  "Here, count it," he added, "and see
+if the amount is correct."
+
+But Pascal, whose face had suddenly become as red as fire, did not
+utter a word in reply.  On receiving this money a new but quite
+natural thought had entered his mind for the first time.  "What is
+the matter?" inquired the baron, surprised by this sudden
+embarrassment.  "What has happened to you?"
+
+"Nothing, monsieur, nothing! Only I was asking myself--if I ought--
+if I can accept this money."
+
+"Bah! and why not?"
+
+"Because if you lend it to M. de Valorsay, it is perhaps lost."
+
+"PERHAPS! You are polite----"
+
+"Yes, monsieur, you are right.  I ought to have said that it is
+sure to be lost; and hence my embarrassment.  Is it not solely on
+my account that you sacrifice a sum which would be a fortune to
+many men?  Yes.  Very well, then.  I am asking myself if it is
+right for me to accept such a sacrifice, when it is by no means
+certain that I shall ever be able to requite it.  Shall I ever
+have a hundred thousand francs to repay you?"
+
+"But isn't this money absolutely necessary to enable you to win
+Valorsay's confidence?"
+
+"Yes, and if it belonged to me I should not hesitate."
+
+Though the baron had formed a high estimate of Pascal's character,
+he was astonished and deeply touched by these scruples, and this
+excessive delicacy of feeling.  Like most opulent men, he knew few
+poor people who wore their poverty with grace and dignity, and who
+did not snatch at a twenty-franc piece wherever they chanced to
+find it.  "Ah, well, my dear Ferailleur," he said, kindly, "don't
+trouble yourself on this score.  It's not at your request nor
+solely on your account that I make this sacrifice."
+
+"Oh!"
+
+"No; I give you my word of honor it isn't.  Leaving you quite out
+of the question, I should still have lent Valorsay this money; and
+if you do not wish to take it to him, I shall send it by some one
+else."
+
+After that, Pascal could not demur any further.  He took the
+baron's proffered hand and pressed it warmly, uttering only this
+one word, made more eloquent than any protestations by the fervor
+with which it was spoken: "Thanks!"
+
+The baron shrugged his shoulders good-naturedly, like a man who
+fails to see that he has done anything at all meritorious, or even
+worthy of the slightest acknowledgment.  "And you must understand,
+my dear sir," he resumed, "that you can employ this sum as you
+choose, in advancing your interests, which are identical with
+mine.  You can give the money to Valorsay at such a time and under
+such conditions as will best serve your plans.  Give it to him in
+an hour or in a month, all at once or in fifty different
+instalments, as you please.  Only use it like the rope one ties
+round a dog's neck before drowning him."
+
+The keenest penetration was concealed beneath the baron's careless 
+good-nature.  Pascal knew this, and feeling that his protector
+understood him, he said: "You overpower me with kindness."
+
+"Nonsense!"
+
+"You offer me just what I came to ask for."
+
+"So much the better."
+
+"But you will allow me to explain my intentions?"
+
+"It is quite unnecessary, my dear sir."
+
+"Excuse me; if I follow my present plan, I shall be obliged to
+ascribe certain sentiments, words, and even acts, to you, which
+you might perhaps disavow, and--"
+
+With a careless toss of the head, accompanied by a disdainful snap
+of the fingers, the baron interrupted him.  "Set to work, and
+don't give yourself the slightest uneasiness about that.  You may
+do whatever you like, if you only succeed in unmasking this dear
+marquis, and Coralth, his worthy acolyte.  Show me up in whatever
+light you choose.  Who will you be in Valorsay's eyes?  Why,
+Maumejan, one of my business agents, and I can always throw the
+blame on you." And as if to prove that he had divined even the
+details of the scheme devised by his young friend, he added:
+"Besides, every one knows that a millionaire's business agent is
+anything but a pleasant person to deal with.  A millionaire, who
+is not a fool, must always smile, and no matter how absurd the
+demands upon him may be, he must always answer: 'Yes, certainly,
+certainly--I should be only too happy!' But then he adds: 'You
+must arrange the matter with my agent.  Confer with him.' And it
+is the unlucky agent who must object, declare that his employer
+has no money at his disposal just now, and finally say, 'No.'"
+
+Pascal was still disposed to insist, but the baron was obdurate. 
+"Oh! enough, enough!" he exclaimed.  "Don't waste precious time in
+idle discussion.  The days are only twenty-four hours long: and as
+you see, I'm very busy, so busy that I've not touched a card since
+the day before yesterday.  I am preparing a delightful surprise
+for Madame Trigault, my daughter, and my son-in-law.  It has been
+rather a delicate operation, but I flatter myself that I have
+succeeded finely." And he laughed a laugh that was not pleasant to
+hear.  "You see, I've had enough of paying several hundred
+thousand francs a year for the privilege of being sneered at by my
+wife, scorned by my daughter, swindled by my son-in-law, and
+vilified and anathematized by all three of them.  I am still
+willing to go on paying, but only on conditions that they give me
+in return for my money, if not the reality, at least a show of
+love, affection, and respect.  I'm determined to have the
+semblance of these things; I'm quite resolved on that.  Yes, I
+will have myself treated with deference.  I'll be petted and
+coddled and made much of, or else I'll suspend payment.  It was
+one of my old friends, a parvenu like myself--a man whose domestic
+happiness I have envied for many years--who gave me this receipt:
+'At home,' said he, 'with my wife, my daughters, and my sons-in-
+law, I'm like a peer of England at an hotel.  I order first-class
+happiness at so much a month.  If I get it I pay for it; if I
+don't get it, I cut off the supplies.  When I get extras I pay for
+them cheerfully, without haggling.  Follow my example, my old
+friend, and you'll have a comfortable life.' And I shall follow
+his advice, M. Ferailleur, for I am convinced that his theory is
+sound and practicable.  I have led this life long enough.  I'll
+spend my last days in peace, or, as God hears me, I'll let my
+family die of starvation!"
+
+His face was purple, and the veins on his forehead stood out like
+whipcords, but not so much from anger as from the constraint he
+imposed upon himself by speaking in a whisper.  He drew a long
+breath, and then in a calmer tone, resumed: "But you must make
+haste and succeed, M. Ferailleur, if you don't want the young girl
+you love to be deprived of her rightful heritage.  You do not know
+into what unworthy hands the Chalusse property is about to fall." 
+He was on the point of telling Pascal the story of Madame
+d'Argeles and M. Wilkie, when he was interrupted by the sound of a
+lively controversy in the hall.
+
+"Who's taking such liberty in my house?" the baron began.  But the
+next instant he heard some one fling open the door of the large
+room adjoining, and then a coarse, guttural voice called out:
+"What! he isn't here! This is too much!"
+
+The baron made an angry gesture.  "That's Kami-Bey," said he, "the
+Turk whom I am playing that great game of cards with.  The devil
+take him! He will be sure to force his way in here--so we may as
+well join him, M. Ferailleur."
+
+On reentering the adjoining apartment Pascal beheld a very
+corpulent man, with a very red face, a straggling beard, a flat
+nose, small, beadlike eyes, and sensual lips.  He was clad in a
+black frock-coat, buttoned tight to the throat, and he wore a fez. 
+This costume gave him the appearance of a chunky bottle, sealed
+with red wax.  Such, indeed, was Kami-Bey, a specimen of those
+semi-barbarians, loaded with gold who are not attracted to Paris
+by its splendors and glories, but rather by its corruption--people
+who come there persuaded that money will purchase anything and
+everything, and who often return home with the same conviction. 
+Kami was no doubt more impudent, more cynical and more arrogant
+than others of his class.  As he was more wealthy, he had more
+followers; he had been more toadied and flattered, and victimized
+to a greater extent by the host of female intriguers, who look
+upon every foreigner as their rightful prey.
+
+He spoke French passably well, but with an abominable accent. 
+"Here you are at last!" he exclaimed, as the baron entered the
+room.  "I was becoming very anxious."
+
+"About what, prince?"
+
+Why Kami-Bey was called prince no one knew, not even the man
+himself.  Perhaps it was because the lackey who opened his
+carriage door on his arrival at the Grand Hotel had addressed him
+by that title.
+
+"About what!" he repeated.  "You have won more than three hundred
+thousand francs from me, and I was wondering if you intended to
+give me the slip."
+
+The baron frowned, and this time he omitted the title of prince
+altogether.  "It seems to me, sir, that according to our
+agreement, we were to play until one of us had won five hundred
+thousand francs," he said haughtily.
+
+"That's true--but we ought to play every day."
+
+"Possibly: but I'm very busy just now.  I wrote to you explaining
+this, did I not? If you are at all uneasy, tear up the book in
+which the results of our games are noted, and that shall be the
+end of it.  You will gain considerably by the operation."
+
+Kami-Bey felt that the baron would not tolerate his arrogance, and
+so with more moderation he exclaimed: "It isn't strange that I've
+become suspicious.  I'm so victimized on every side.  Because I'm
+a foreigner and immensely rich, everybody fancies he has a right
+to plunder me.  Men, women, hotel-keepers and merchants, all unite
+in defrauding me.  If I buy pictures, they sell me vile daubs at
+fabulous prices.  They ask ridiculous amounts for horses, and then
+give me worthless, worn-out animals.  Everybody borrows money from
+me--and I'm never repaid.  I shall be ruined if this sort of thing
+goes on much longer."
+
+He had taken a seat, and the baron saw that he was not likely to
+get rid of his guest very soon; so approaching Pascal he
+whispered: "You had better go off, or you may miss Valorsay.  And
+be careful, mind; for he is exceedingly shrewd.  Courage and good
+luck!"
+
+Courage! It was not necessary to recommend that to Pascal.  He who
+had triumphed over his despair in the terrible hours, when he had
+reason to suppose that Marguerite believed him guilty and had
+abandoned him, could scarcely lack courage.  While he was
+condemned to inaction, his mind had no doubt been assailed by
+countless doubts and fears; but now that he knew whom he was to
+attack--now that the decisive moment had come, he was endowed with
+indomitable energy; he had turned to bronze, and he felt sure that
+nothing could disconcert or even trouble him in future.  The
+weapons he had to use were not at all to his taste, but he had not
+been allowed a choice in the matter; and since his enemies had
+decided on a warfare of duplicity, he was resolved to surpass them
+in cunning, and vanquish them by deception.
+
+So, while hastening to the Marquis de Valorsay's residence, he
+took stock of his chances, and recapitulated his resources,
+striving to foresee and remember everything.  Thus if he failed--
+for he admitted the possibility of defeat, without believing in
+it--he would have no cause to reproach himself.  Only fools find
+consolation in saying: "Who could have foreseen that?" Great minds
+do foresee.  And Pascal felt almost certain that he was fully
+prepared for any emergency.
+
+That morning, before leaving home, he had dressed with extreme
+care, realizing that the shabby clothes he had worn on his first
+visit to the Trigault mansion would not be appropriate on such an
+occasion as this.  The baron's agent could scarcely have a
+poverty-stricken appearance, for contact with millionaires is
+supposed to procure wealth as surely as proximity to fire insures
+warmth.  So he arrayed himself in a suit of black, which was
+neither too elegant nor too much worn, and donned a broad white
+necktie.  He could see only one immediate, decisive chance against
+him.  M. de Valorsay might possibly recognize him.  He thought
+not, but he was not sure; and anxious on this account, he at first
+decided to disguise himself.  However, on reflection, he concluded
+not to do so.  An imperfect disguise would attract attention and
+awaken suspicion; and could he really disguise his physiognomy? He
+was certain he could not.  Very few men are capable of doing so
+successfully, even after long experience.  Only two or three
+detectives and half a dozen actors possess the art of really
+changing their lineaments.  Thus after weighing the pros and cons,
+Pascal determined to present himself as he was at the marquis's
+house.
+
+On approaching M. de Valorsay's residence in the Avenue des Champs
+Elysees, he slackened his pace.  The mansion, which stood between
+a courtyard and a garden, was very large and handsome.  The
+stables and carriage-house--really elegant structures--stood on
+either side of the courtyard, near the half-open gate of which
+five or six servants were amusing themselves by teasing a large
+dog.  Pascal was just saying to himself that the coast was clear,
+and that he should incur no danger by going in, when he saw the
+servants step aside, the gate swing back, and M. de Coralth
+emerged, accompanied by a young, fair-haired man, whose mustaches
+were waxed and turned up in the most audacious fashion.  They were
+arm in arm, and turned in the direction of the Arc de Triomphe. 
+Pascal's heart thrilled with joy.  "Fate favors me!" he said to
+himself.  "If it hadn't been for Kami-Bey, who detained me a full
+quarter of an hour at Baron Trigault's, I should have found myself
+face to face with that miserable viscount, and then all would have
+been lost.  But now I'm safe!"
+
+It was with this encouraging thought that he approached the house.
+
+"The marquis is very busy this morning," said the servant to whom
+Pascal addressed himself at the gate.  "I doubt if he can see
+you." But when Pascal handed him one of his visiting cards,
+bearing the name of Maumejan, with this addition in pencil: "Who
+calls as the representative of Baron Trigault," the valet's face
+changed as if by enchantment.  "Oh!" said he, "that's quite a
+different matter.  If you come from Baron Trigault, you will be
+received with all the respect due to the Messiah.  Come in.  I
+will announce you myself."
+
+Everything in M. de Valorsay's house, as at the baron's residence,
+indicated great wealth, and yet a close observer would have
+detected a difference.  The luxury of the Rue de la Ville-l'Eveque
+was of a real and substantial character, which one did not find in
+the Avenue des Champs Elysees.  Everything in the marquis's abode
+bore marks of the haste which mars the merest trifle produced at
+the present age.  "Take a seat here, and I will see where the
+marquis is," said the servant, as he ushered Pascal into a large
+drawing-room.  The apartment was elegantly furnished, but had
+somewhat lost its freshness; the carpet, which had once been a
+marvel of beauty, was stained in several places, and as the
+servants had not always been careful to keep the shutters closed,
+the sunlight had perceptibly faded the curtains.  The attention of
+visitors was at once attracted by the number of gold and silver
+cups, vases, and statuettes scattered about on side-tables and
+cheffoniers.  Each of these objects bore an inscription, setting
+forth that it had been won at such a race, in such a year, by such
+a horse, belonging to the Marquis de Valorsay.  These were indeed
+the marquis's chief claims to glory, and had cost him at least
+half of the immense fortune he had inherited.  However, Pascal did
+not take much interest in these trophies, so the time of waiting
+seemed long.  "Valorsay is playing the diplomat," he thought.  "He
+doesn't wish to appear to be anxious.  Unfortunately, his servant
+has betrayed him."
+
+At last the valet returned.  "The marquis will see you now,
+monsieur," said he.
+
+This summons affected Pascal's heart like the first roll of a drum
+beating the charge.  But his coolness did not desert him.  "Now is
+the decisive moment," he thought.  "Heaven grant that he may not 
+recognize me!" And with a firm step he followed the valet.
+
+M. de Valorsay was seated in the apartment he usually occupied
+when he remained at home--a little smoking-room connected with his
+bedroom.  He was to all intents busily engaged in examining some
+sporting journals.  A bottle of Madeira and a partially filled
+glass stood near him.  As the servant announced "Monsieur
+Maumejan!" he looked up and his eyes met Pascal's.  But his glance
+did not waver; not a muscle of his face moved; his countenance
+retained its usually cold and disdainful expression.  Evidently he
+had not the slightest suspicion that the man he had tried to ruin--
+his mortal enemy--was standing there before him.
+
+"M. Maumejan," said he, "Baron Trigault's agent?"
+
+"Yes, monsieur----"
+
+"Pray be seated.  I am just finishing here; I shall be at leisure
+in a moment."
+
+Pascal took a chair.  He had feared that he might not be able to
+retain his self-control when he found himself in the presence of
+the scoundrel who, after destroying his happiness, ruining his
+future, and depriving him of his honor--dearer than life itself--
+was at that moment endeavoring, by the most infamous manoeuvres,
+to rob him of the woman he loved.  "If my blood mounted to my
+brain," he had thought, "I should spring upon him and strangle
+him!" But no.  His arteries did not throb more quickly; it was
+with perfect calmness--the calmness of a strong nature--that he
+stealthily watched M. de Valorsay.  If he had seen him a week
+before he would have been startled by the change which the past
+few days had wrought in this brilliant nobleman's appearance.  He
+was little more than a shadow of his former self.  And seen at
+this hour, before placing himself in his valet's hands, before his
+premature decrepitude had been concealed by the artifices of the
+toilet, he was really frightful.  His face was haggard, and his
+red and swollen eyelids betrayed a long-continued want of sleep.
+
+The fact is, he had suffered terribly during the past week.  A man
+may be a scapegrace and a spendthrift and may boast of it; he may
+have no principle and no conscience; he may be immoral, he may
+defy God and the devil, but it is nevertheless true that he
+suffers fearful anguish of mind when he is guilty, for the first
+time, of a positive crime, forbidden by the laws and punishable
+with the galleys.  And who can say how many crimes the Marquis de
+Valorsay had committed since the day he provided his accomplice,
+the Viscount de Coralth, with those fatal cards? And apart from
+this there was something extremely appalling in the position of
+this ruined millionaire, who was contending desperately against
+his creditors for the vain appearance of splendor, with the
+despairing energy of a ship-wrecked mariner struggling for the
+possession of a floating spar.  Had he not confessed to M.
+Fortunat that he had suffered the tortures of the damned in his
+struggle to maintain a show of wealth, while he was often without
+a penny in his pocket, and was ever subject to the pitiless
+surveillance of thirty servants? His agony, when he thought of his
+precarious condition, could only be compared to that of a miner,
+who, while ascending from the bowels of the earth, finds that the
+rope, upon which his life depends, is slowly parting strand by
+strand, and who asks himself, in terror, if the few threads that
+still remain unsevered will be strong enough to raise him to the
+mouth of the pit.
+
+However, the moment which M. de Valorsay had asked for had
+lengthened into a quarter of an hour, and he had not yet finished
+his work.  "What the devil is he doing?" wondered Pascal, who was
+following his enemy's slightest movement with eager curiosity.
+
+Countless sporting newspapers were strewn over the table, the
+chairs, and the floor around the marquis, who took them up one
+after another, glanced rapidly through their columns, and threw
+them on the floor again.  or placed them on a pile before him,
+first marking certain passages with a red pencil.  At last,
+probably fearing that Pascal was growing impatient, he looked up
+and said:
+
+"I am really very sorry to keep you waiting so long, but some one
+is waiting for this work to be completed."
+
+"Oh! pray continue, Monsieur le Marquis," interrupted Pascal. 
+"Strange to say, I have a little leisure at my command just now."
+
+The marquis seemed to feel that it was necessary to make some
+remark in acknowledgment of this courtesy on his visitor's part,
+and so, as he continued his work, he condescended to explain its
+purpose.  "I am playing the part of a commentator," he remarked. 
+"I sold seven of my horses a few days ago, and the purchaser,
+before paying the stipulated price, naturally required an exact
+and authentic statement of each animal's performances.  However,
+even this does not seem to have satisfied the gentleman, for he
+has now taken it into his head to ask for such copies of the
+sporting journals as record the victories or defeats of the
+animals he has purchased.  A gentleman is not so exacting
+generally.  It is true, however, that I have a foreigner to deal
+with--one of those half-civilized nabobs who come here every year
+to astonish the Parisians with their wealth and display, and who,
+by their idiotic prodigality, have so increased the price of
+everything that life has become well-nigh an impossibility to such
+of us as don't care to squander an entire fortune in a couple of
+years.  These folks are the curse of Paris, for, with but few
+exceptions, they only use their millions to enrich notorious
+women, scoundrels, hotel-keepers, and jockeys."
+
+Pascal at once thought of the foreigner, Kami-Bey, whom he had met
+at Baron Trigault's half an hour before, and who had complained so
+bitterly of having had worthless scrubs palmed off upon him when
+he fancied he had purchased valuable animals.  "Kami-Bey must be
+this exacting purchaser," thought Pascal, "and it's probable that
+the marquis, desperately straitened as he is, has committed one of
+those frauds which lead their perpetrator to prison?" The surmise
+was by no means far-fetched, for in sporting matters, at least,
+there was cause to suspect Valorsay of great elasticity of
+conscience.  Had he not already been accused of defrauding
+Domingo's champions by a conspiracy?
+
+At last the marquis heaved a sigh of relief.  "I've finished," he
+muttered, as he tied up the bundle of papers he had laid aside,
+and after ringing the bell, he said to the servant who answered
+the summons: "Here, take this package to Prince Kami at the Grand
+Hotel."
+
+Pascal's presentiments had not deceived him, and he said to
+himself: "This is a good thing to know.  Before this evening I
+shall look into this affair a little."
+
+A storm was decidedly gathering over the Marquis de Valorsay's
+head.  Did he know it? Certainly he must have expected it.  Still
+he had sworn to stand fast until the end.  Besides, he would not
+concede that all was lost; and, like most great gamblers, he told
+himself that since he had so much at stake, he might reasonably
+hope to succeed.  He rose, stretched himself, as a man is apt to
+do after the conclusion of a tiresome task, and then, leaning
+against the mantel-shelf, he exclaimed: "Now, Monsieur Maumejan,
+let us speak of the business that brings you here." His negligent
+attitude and his careless tone were admirably assumed, but a
+shrewd observer would not have been deceived by them, or by the
+indifferent manner in which he added: "You bring me some money
+from Baron Trigault?"
+
+Pascal shook his head, as he replied: "I regret to say that I
+don't, Monsieur le Marquis."
+
+This response had the same effect as a heavy rock falling upon M.
+de Valorsay's bald pate.  He turned whiter than his linen, and
+even tottered, as if his lame leg, which was so much affected by
+sudden changes in the weather, had utterly refused all service. 
+"What! You haven't--this is undoubtedly a joke."
+
+"It is only too serious!"
+
+"But I had the baron's word."
+
+"Oh! his word!"
+
+"I had his solemn promise."
+
+"It is sometimes impossible to keep one's promises, sir."
+
+The consequences of this disappointment must have been terrible,
+for the marquis could not maintain his self-control.  Still he
+strove valiantly to conceal his emotion.  He thought to himself
+that if he allowed this man to see what a terrible blow this
+really was, he would virtually confess his absolute ruin, and have
+to renounce the struggle, and own himself vanquished and lost. 
+So, summoning all his energy, he mastered his emotion in some
+degree, and, instead of appearing desperate, succeeded in looking
+only irritated and annoyed.  "In short," he resumed, angrily, "you
+have brought no money! I counted on a hundred thousand francs this
+morning.  Nothing! This is kind on the baron's part! But probably
+he doesn't understand the embarrassing position in which he places
+me."
+
+"Excuse me, Monsieur le Marquis, he understands it so well that,
+instead of informing you by a simple note.  he sent me to acquaint
+you with his sincere regret. When I left him an hour ago, he was
+really disconsolate.  He was particularly anxious I should tell
+you that it was not his fault.  He counted upon the payment of two
+very large amounts, and both of these have failed him."
+
+The marquis had now recovered a little from the shock, though he
+was still very pale.  He looked at Pascal with evident distrust,
+for he knew with what sweet excuses well-bred people envelope
+their refusals.  "So the baron is disconsolate," he remarked, in a
+tone of perceptible irony.
+
+"He is indeed!"
+
+"Poor baron! Ah! I pity him--pity him deeply."
+
+As cold and as unmoved as a statue, Pascal seemed quite
+unconscious of the effect of the message he had brought--quite
+unconscious of Valorsay's sufferings and self-constraint.  "You
+think I am jesting, monsieur," he said, quietly, "but I assure you
+that the baron is very short of money just now."
+
+"Nonsense! a man worth seven or eight millions of francs."
+
+"I should say ten millions, at least."
+
+"Then the excuse is all the more absurd."
+
+Pascal shrugged his shoulders disdainfully.  "It astonishes me,
+Monsieur le Marquis, to hear YOU speak in this way.  It is not the
+magnitude of a man's income that constitutes affluence, but rather
+the way in which that income is spent.  In this foolish age,
+almost all rich people are in arrears.  What income does the baron
+derive from his ten millions of francs? Not more than five hundred
+thousand.  A very handsome fortune, no doubt, and I should be more
+than content with it.  But the baron gambles, and the baroness is
+the most elegant--in other words, the most extravagant--woman in
+Paris.  They both of them love luxury, and their establishment is
+kept up in princely style.  What are five hundred thousand francs
+under such circumstances as those? Their situation must be
+something like that of several millionaires of my acquaintance,
+who are obliged to take their silver to the pawn-broker's while
+waiting for their rents to fall due."
+
+This excuse might not be true, but it was certainly a very
+plausible one.  Had not a recent lawsuit revealed the fact that
+certain rich folks, who had an income of more than a hundred
+thousand francs a year, had kept a thieving coachman for six
+months, simply because, in all that time, they were not able to
+raise the eight hundred francs they owed him, and which must be
+paid before he was dismissed? M. de Valorsay knew this, but a
+terrible disquietude seized him.  Had people begun to suspect HIS
+embarrassment? Had any rumor of it reached Baron Trigault's ears?
+This was what he wished to ascertain.  "Let us understand each
+other, Monsieur Maumejan," said he; "the baron was unable to
+procure this money he had promised me to-day--but when will he let
+me have it?"
+
+Pascal opened his eyes in pretended astonishment, and it was with
+an air of the utmost simplicity that he replied, "I concluded the
+baron would take no further action in the matter.  I judged so
+from his parting words: 'It consoles me a little,' he said, 'to
+think that the Marquis de Valorsay is very rich and very well
+known, and that he has a dozen friends who will be delighted to do
+him this trifling service.'"
+
+Until now, M. de Valorsay had cherished a hope that the loan was
+only delayed, and the certainty that the decision was final,
+crushed him.  "My ruin's known," he thought, and feeling that his
+strength was deserting him, he poured out a brimming glass of
+Madeira, which he emptied at a single draught.  The wine lent him
+fictitious energy.  Fury mounted to his brain; he lost all control
+over himself, and springing up, with his face purple with rage, he
+exclaimed: "It's a shame! an infamous shame! and Trigault deserves
+to be severely punished.  He has no business to keep a man in hot
+water for three days about such a trifle.  If he had said 'No' in
+the first place, I should have made other arrangements, and I
+shouldn't now find myself in a dilemma from which I see no
+possible way of escape.  No gentleman would have been guilty of
+such a contemptible act--no one but a shopkeeper or a thief would
+have stooped to such meanness! This is the result of admitting
+these ridiculous parvenus into society, just because they happen
+to have money."
+
+It certainly hurt Pascal to hear these insults heaped upon the
+baron, and it hurt him all the more since they were entirely due
+to the course he had personally adopted.
+
+However, a gesture, even a frown, might endanger the success of
+his undertaking, so he preserved an impassive countenance.  "I
+must say that I don't understand your indignation, Monsieur le
+Marquis," he said, coldly.  "I can see why you might feel annoyed,
+but why you should fly into a passion--"
+
+"Ah! you don't know----" began M. de Valorsay, but he stopped
+short.  It was time.  The truth had almost escaped his lips.
+
+"Know what?" inquired Pascal.
+
+But the marquis was again upon his guard.  "I have a debt that
+must be paid this evening, at all hazards--a sacred obligation--in
+short, a debt of honor."
+
+"A debt of one hundred thousand francs?"
+
+"No, it is only twenty-five thousand."
+
+"Is it possible that a rich man like you can be troubled about
+such a trifling sum, which any one would lend you?"
+
+M. de Valorsay interrupted him with a contemptuous sneer.  "Didn't
+you just tell me that we were living in an age when no one has any
+money except those who are in business? The richest of my friends
+have only enough for themselves, even if they have enough.  The
+time of old stockings, stuffed full of savings, is past! Shall I
+apply to a banker? He would ask two days for reflection, and he
+would require the names of two or three of my friends on the note. 
+If I go to my notary, there will be endless forms to be gone
+through, and remonstrances without number."
+
+For a moment or more already, Pascal had been moving about
+uneasily on his chair, like a man who is waiting for an
+opportunity to make a suggestion, and as soon as M. de Valorsay
+paused to take breath, he exclaimed: "Upon my word! if I dared----"
+
+"Well?"
+
+"I would offer to obtain you these twenty-five thousand francs."
+
+"You?"
+
+"Yes, I."
+
+"Before six o'clock this evening?"
+
+"Certainly."
+
+A glass of ice-water presented to a parched traveller while
+journeying over the desert sands of Sahara could not impart
+greater relief and delight than the marquis experienced on hearing
+Pascal's offer.  He literally felt that he was restored to life.
+
+For ruin was inevitable if he did not succeed in obtaining twenty-
+five thousand francs that day.  If he could procure that amount he
+might obtain a momentary respite, and to gain time was the main
+thing.  Moreover, the offer was a sufficient proof that his
+financial difficulties were not known.  "Ah! I have had a
+fortunate escape," he thought.  "What if I had revealed the
+truth!"
+
+But he was careful to conceal the secret joy that filled his
+heart.  He feared lest he might say "Yes" too quickly, so betray
+his secret, and place himself at the mercy of the baron's envoy. 
+"I would willingly accept your offer," he exclaimed, "if----"
+
+"If what?"
+
+"Would it be proper for me, after the baron has treated me in such
+a contemptible manner, to have any dealings with one of his
+subordinates?"
+
+Pascal protested vigorously.  "Allow me to say," he exclaimed,
+"that I am not any one's subordinate.  Trigault is my client, like
+thirty or forty others--nothing more.  He employs me in certain
+difficult and delicate negotiations, which I conduct to the best
+of my ability.  He pays me, and we are each of us perfectly
+independent of the other."
+
+From the look which Valorsay gave Pascal, one would have sworn
+that he suspected who his visitor really was.  But such was not
+the case.  It was simply this: a strange, but by no means
+impossible, idea had flashed through the marquis's mind--"Oh!"
+thought he, "this unknown party with whom Maumejan offers to
+negotiate the loan, is probably none other than the baron himself. 
+That worthy gambler has invented this ingenious method of obliging
+me so as to extort a rate of interest which he would not dare to
+demand openly.  And why not? There have been plenty of such
+instances.  Isn't it a well-known fact that the N---- Brothers,
+the most rigidly honest financiers in the world, have never under
+any circumstances directly obliged one of their friends? If their
+own father, of whom they always speak with the greatest
+veneration, asked them to lend him fifty francs for a month, they
+would say to him as they do to every one else: 'We are rather
+cramped just now; but see that rascal B----.' And that rascal B----,
+who is the most pliable tool in existence, will, providing
+father N---- offers unquestionable security, lend the old
+gentleman his son's money at from twelve to fifteen per cent.
+interest, plus a small commission."
+
+These ideas and recollections were of considerable assistance in
+restoring Valorsay's composure.  "Enough said, then," he answered,
+lightly.  "I accept with pleasure.  But----"
+
+"Ah! so there is a but!"
+
+"There is always one.  I must warn you that it will be difficult
+for me to repay this loan in less than two months."
+
+This, then, was the time he thought necessary for the
+accomplishment of his designs.
+
+"That does not matter," replied Pascal, "and even if you desire a
+longer delay "
+
+"That will be unnecessary, thank you! But there is one thing
+more."
+
+"What is that?"
+
+"What will this negotiation cost me?"
+
+Pascal had expected this question, and he had prepared a reply
+which was in perfect keeping with the spirit of the role he had
+assumed.  "I shall charge you the ordinary rates," he answered,
+"six per cent. interest, plus one-and-a-half per cent.
+commission."
+
+"Bah!"
+
+"Plus the remuneration for my trouble and services."
+
+"And what remuneration will satisfy you?"
+
+"One thousand francs.  Is it too much?"
+
+If the marquis had retained the shadow of a doubt, it vanished
+now.  "Ah!" he sneered, "that strikes me as a very liberal
+compensation for your services!"
+
+But he would gladly have recalled the sneer when he saw how the
+agent received it.  Pascal drew up his head with a deeply injured
+air, and remarked in the chilling tone of a person who is strongly
+tempted to retract his word, "Then there is nothing more to be
+said, M. le Marquis; and since you find the conditions onerous----"
+
+"I did not say so," interrupted M. de Valorsay, quickly--"I did
+not even think it!"
+
+This gave Pascal an opportunity to present his programme, and he
+availed himself of it.  "Others may pretend to oblige people
+merely from motives of friendship," he remarked.  "But I am more
+honest.  If I do anything in the way of business, I expect to be
+paid for it; and I vary my terms according to my clients' need. 
+It would be impossible to have a fixed price for services like
+mine.  When, on two different occasions, I saved a gentleman of
+your acquaintance from bankruptcy, I asked ten thousand francs the
+first time, and fifteen thousand the second.  Was that an
+exaggerated estimate of my services? I might boast with truth that
+I once assured the marriage of a brilliant viscount by keeping his
+creditors quiet while his courtship was in progress.  The day
+after the wedding he paid me twenty thousand francs.  Didn't he
+owe them to me? If, instead of being a trifle short of money, you
+happened to be ruined, I should not ask you merely for a thousand
+francs.  I should study your position, and fix my terms according
+to the magnitude of the peril from which I rescued you."
+
+There was not a sentence, not a word of this cynical explanation
+which had not been carefully studied beforehand.  There was not an
+expression which was not a tempting bait to the marquis's evil
+instincts.  But M de Valorsay made no sign.  "I see that you are a
+shrewd man, Monsieur Maumejan," said he, "and if I am ever in
+difficulty I shall apply to you."
+
+Pascal bowed with an air of assumed modesty; but he was inwardly
+jubilant, for he felt that his enemy would certainly fall into the
+trap which had been set for him.  "And now, when shall I have this
+money?" inquired the marquis.
+
+"By four o'clock."
+
+"And I need fear no disappointment as in the baron's case?"
+
+"Certainly not.  What interest would M. Trigault have in lending
+you a hundred thousand francs? None whatever.  With me it is quite
+a different thing.  The profit I'm to realize is your security. 
+In business matters distrust your friends.  Apply to usurers
+rather than to them.  Question people who are in difficulties, and
+ninety-five out of a hundred will tell you that their worst
+troubles have been caused by those who called themselves their
+best friends."
+
+He had risen to take leave, when the door of the smoking-room
+opened, and a servant appeared and said in an undertone: "Madame
+Leon is in the drawing-room with Dr. Jodon.  They wish to see you,
+monsieur."
+
+Though Pascal had armed himself well against any unexpected
+mischance, he changed color on hearing the name of the worthy
+housekeeper.  "All is lost if this creature sees and recognizes
+me!" he thought.
+
+Fortunately the Marquis was too much engrossed in his own affairs
+to note the momentary agitation of Baron Trigault's envoy.  "It is
+strange that I can't have five minutes' peace and quietness," he
+said.  "I told you that I was at home to no one."
+
+"But----"
+
+"Enough! Let the lady and gentleman wait."
+
+The servant withdrew.
+
+The thought of passing out through the drawing-room filled Pascal
+with consternation.  How could he hope to escape Madame Leon's
+keen eyes? Fortunately M. de Valorsay came to his relief, for as
+Pascal was about to open the same door by which he had entered,
+the marquis exclaimed: "Not that way! Pass out here--this is the
+shortest way."
+
+And leading him through his bedroom the marquis conducted him to
+the staircase, where he even feigned to offer him his hand,
+saying: "A speedy return, dear M. Maumejan."
+
+It is not at the moment of peril that people endure the worst
+agony; it is afterward, when they have escaped it.  As he went
+down the staircase, Pascal wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. 
+"Ah! it was a narrow escape!" he exclaimed, under his breath.
+
+He felt proud of the manner in which he had sustained a part so
+repugnant to his nature.  He was amazed to find that he could
+utter falsehoods with such a calm, unblushing face--he was
+astonished at his own audacity.  And what a success he had
+achieved! He felt certain that he had just slipped round M. de
+Valorsay's neck the noose which would strangle him later on. 
+Still he was considerably disturbed by Madame Leon's visit to the
+marquis.  "What is she doing here with this physician?" he asked
+himself again and again.  "Who is this man? What new piece of
+infamy are they plotting to require his services?" One of those
+presentiments which are prompted by the logic of events, told him
+that this physician had been, or would be, one of the actors in
+the vile conspiracy of which he and Mademoiselle Marguerite were
+the victims.  But he had no leisure to devote to the solution of
+this enigma.  Time was flying, and before returning to the
+marquis's house he must find out what had aroused the suspicions
+of the purchaser of those horses, the biographies of which had
+been so rigidly exacted.  Through the baron, he might hope to
+obtain an interview with Kami-Bey--and so it was to the baron's
+house that Pascal directed his steps.
+
+After the more than cordial reception which the baron had granted
+him that morning, it was quite natural that the servants should
+receive him as a friend of the household.  They would scarcely
+allow him to explain what he desired.  It was the pompous head
+valet in person who ushered him into one of the small reception-
+rooms, exclaiming: "The baron's engaged, but I'm sure he would be
+annoyed if he failed to see you; and I will inform him at once."
+
+A moment later, the baron entered quite breathless from his
+hurried descent of the staircase.  "Ah! you have been successful,"
+he exclaimed, on seeing Pascal's face.
+
+"Everything is progressing as favorably as I could wish, Monsieur
+le Baron, but I must speak with that foreigner whom I met here
+this morning."
+
+"Kami-Bey?"
+
+"Yes." And in a few words, Pascal explained the situation.
+
+"Providence is certainly on our side," said the baron,
+thoughtfully.  "Kami is still here."
+
+"Is it possible?"
+
+"It's a fact.  Did you think it would be easy to get rid of this
+confounded Turk! He invited himself to breakfast without the
+slightest ceremony, and would give me no peace until I promised to
+play with him for two hours.  I was closeted with him, cards in
+hand, when they told me you were here.  Come, we'll go and
+question him."
+
+They found the interesting foreigner in a savage mood.  He had
+been winning when the servant came for the baron, and he feared
+that an interruption would change the luck.  "What the devil took
+you away?" he exclaimed, with that coarseness of manner which was
+habitual with him, and which the flatterers around him styled
+"form."  "A man should no more be disturbed when he's playing than
+when he's eating."
+
+"Come, come, prince," said the baron, good-naturedly, "don't be
+angry, and I'll give you three hours instead of two.  But I have a
+favor to ask of you."
+
+The foreigner at once thrust his hand into his pocket, with such a
+natural gesture, that neither the baron nor Pascal could repress a
+smile, and he himself understanding the cause of their merriment
+broke into a hearty laugh.  "It's purely from force of habit,"
+said he.  "Ah! since I've been in Paris---- But what do you wish?"
+
+The baron sat down, and gravely replied: "You told us scarcely an
+hour ago that you had been cheated in the purchase of some
+horses."
+
+"Cheated! it was worse than highway robbery."
+
+"Would it be indiscreet to ask you by whom you have been
+defrauded?"
+
+Kami-Bey's purple cheeks became a trifle pale.  "Hum!" said he, in
+an altered tone of voice, "that is a delicate question.  My
+defrauder appears to be a dangerous fellow--a duellist--and if I
+disclose his knavery, he is quite capable of picking a quarrel
+with me--not that I am afraid of him, I assure you, but my
+principles don't allow me to fight.  When a man has an income of a
+million, he doesn't care to expose himself to the dangers of a
+duel."
+
+"But, prince, in France folks don't do a scoundrel the honor to
+cross swords with him."
+
+"That's just what my steward, who is a Frenchman, told me; but no
+matter.  Besides, I am not sufficiently sure of the man's guilt to
+noise it abroad.  I have no positive proofs as yet."
+
+He was evidently terribly frightened, and the first thing to be
+done was to reassure him.  "Come," insisted the baron, "tell us
+the man's name.  This gentleman here"--pointing to Pascal--"is one
+of my most esteemed friends.  I will answer for him as I would for
+myself; and we will swear upon our honor not to reveal the secret
+we ask you for, without your permission."
+
+"Truly?"
+
+"You have our word of honor," replied both the baron and Pascal in
+a breath.
+
+After casting a half-frightened glance around him, the worthy Turk
+seemed to gather courage.  But no! He deliberated some time, and
+then rejoined: "Really, I'm not sufficiently convinced of the
+accuracy of my suspicions to incur the risk of accusing a man who
+belongs in the very best society; a man who is very rich and very
+highly respected, and who would tolerate no imputations upon his
+character."
+
+It was plain that he would not speak.  The baron shrugged his
+shoulders, but Pascal stepped bravely forward.  "Then I will tell
+you, prince," he said, "the name that you are determined to hide
+from us."
+
+"Oh!"
+
+"But you must allow me to remark that the baron and myself retract
+the promise we made you just now."
+
+"Naturally."
+
+"Then, your defrauder is the Marquis de Valorsay!"
+
+If Kami-Bey had seen an emissary of his sovereign enter the room
+carrying the fatal bow-string he would not have seemed more
+terror-stricken.  He sprang nervously on to his short, fat legs,
+his eyes wildly dilating and his hands fluttering despairingly. 
+"Don't speak so loud! don't speak so loud!" he exclaimed,
+imploringly.
+
+As he did not even attempt to deny it, the truth of the assertion
+might be taken for granted.  But Pascal was not content with this. 
+"Now that we know the fact, I hope, Prince, that you will be
+sufficiently obliging to tell us how it all happened," he
+remarked.
+
+Poor Kami.  He was in despair.  "Alas!" he replied, reluctantly,
+"nothing could be more simple.  I wanted to set up a racing
+stable.  Not that I care much for sport.  I can scarcely
+distinguish a horse from a mule--but morning and evening,
+everybody says to me: 'Prince, a man like you ought to make your
+name celebrated on the turf.'  Besides I never open a paper
+without reading: 'Such a man ought to be a patron of the noblest
+of sports.'  At last, I said to myself: 'Yes, they are right.  I
+ought to take part in racing.'  So I began to look about for some
+horses.  I had purchased several, when the Marquis de Valorsay
+proposed to sell me some of his, some that were very well known,
+and that had--so he assured me--won at least ten times the amount
+they had cost him.  I accepted his offer, and visited his stables,
+where I selected seven of his best horses and paid for them; and I
+paid a good round price, I assure you.  Now comes the knavery.  He
+has not given me the horses I purchased.  The real animals, the
+valuable ones--have been sold in England under false names, and
+although the horses sent to me may be like the others in
+appearance, they are really only common animals, wanting both in
+blood and speed."
+
+Pascal and the baron exchanged astonished glances.  It must be
+confessed that frauds of every description are common enough in
+the racing world, and a great deal of dishonest manoeuvring
+results from greed for gain united with the fever of gambling. 
+But never before had any one been accused of such an audacious and
+impudent piece of rascality as that which Kami-Bey imputed to
+Valorsay.
+
+"How did you fail to discover this at the outset, prince?"
+inquired Pascal in an incredulous tone.
+
+"Because my time was so much occupied."
+
+"But your servants?"
+
+"Ah! that's another thing.  I shouldn't be at all surprised if it
+were proved that the man who has charge of my stables had been
+bribed by the marquis."
+
+"Then, how were your suspicions aroused?"
+
+"It was only by the merest chance.  A jockey whom I thought of
+employing had often ridden one of the animals which I fancied
+myself the owner of.  Naturally, I showed him the horse, but he
+had no sooner set eyes on it than he exclaimed: 'That the horse!
+Never! You've been cheated, prince!' Then we examined the others,
+and the fraud became apparent."
+
+Knowing Kami's character better than Pascal, the baron had good
+reason to distrust the accuracy of these statements.  For the
+Turkish millionaire's superb contempt of money was only affected. 
+Vanity alone unloosed his purse-strings.  He was quite capable of
+presenting Jenny Fancy with a necklace costing five-and-twenty
+thousand francs for the sake of seeing his generosity recorded in
+the Gaulois or the Figaro the next day; but he would refuse to
+give a trifle to the mother of a starving family.  Besides, it was
+his ambition to be regarded as the most swindled man in Europe. 
+But though he was shamefully imposed upon, it was not voluntarily--
+for there was a strong dose of Arabian avarice and distrust in
+his composition.
+
+"Frankly, prince," said the baron, "your story sounds like one of
+the wild legends of your native land.  Valorsay is certainly no
+fool.  How is it possible that he could have been guilty of so
+gross a fraud--a fraud which might be, which could not fail to be
+discovered in twenty-four hours--and which, once proven, would
+dishonor him forever?"
+
+"Before perpetrating such a piece of deception upon any one else,
+he would have thought twice; but upon me it's different.  Isn't it
+an established fact that a person incurs no risk in robbing Kami-
+Bey?"
+
+"Had I been in your place I should have quietly instituted an
+investigation."
+
+"What good would that have done? Besides, the sale was only
+conditional, and took place under the seal of secrecy.  The
+marquis reserved the right to take his horses back on payment of a
+stipulated sum, and the time he was to have for consideration only
+expired on the day before yesterday."
+
+"Eh! why didn't you tell us that at first?" cried the baron.
+
+The marquis's rascality was now easily explained.  Finding himself
+in a desperate strait, and feeling that his salvation was certain
+if he could only gain a little time, he had yielded to temptation,
+saying to himself, like unfaithful cashiers when they first
+appropriate their employers' money: "I will pay it back, and no
+one will ever know it!" However, when the day of settlement came
+he had found himself in as deplorable a plight as on the day of
+the robbery, and he had been compelled to yield to the force of
+circumstances.
+
+"And what do you intend to do, prince?" asked Pascal.
+
+"Ah! I am still in doubt.  I have compelled the marquis to give me
+the papers in which the exploits of these horses are recorded. 
+These statements will be of service in case of a law-suit.  But
+shall I or shall I not enter a complaint against him? If it were a
+mere question of money I should let the matter drop; but he has
+defrauded and deceived me so outrageously that it annoys me.  On
+the other hand, to confess that he has cheated me in this fashion
+would cover me with ridicule.  Besides, the man is a dangerous
+enemy.  And what would become of me if I happened to side against
+him? I should be compelled to leave Paris.  Ah! I'd give ten
+thousand francs to any one who'd settle this cursed affair for
+me!"
+
+His perplexity was so great, and his anger so intense, for that
+once he tore off his eternal fez and flung it on to the table,
+swearing like a drayman.  However, controlling himself at last, he
+exclaimed in a tone of assumed indifference: "No matter, there's
+been enough said on this subject for one day--I'm here to play--so
+let us begin, baron.  For we are wasting precious time, as you so
+often remark."
+
+Pascal had nothing more to learn; so he shook hands with the
+baron, made an appointment with him for the same evening, and went
+away.
+
+It was only half-past two; a good hour and a half remained at his
+disposal.  "I will profit by this opportunity to eat something,"
+he thought; a sudden faintness reminding him that he had taken
+nothing but a cup of chocolate that day.  Thereupon perceiving a
+cafe near by, he entered it, ordered breakfast, and lingered there
+until it was time to return to the Marquis de Valorsay's.  He
+would have gone there before the appointed time if he had merely
+listened to the promptings of his impatience, so thoroughly was he
+persuaded that this second interview would be decisive.  But
+prudence advised him not to expose himself to the danger of an
+encounter with Madame Leon and Dr.  Jodon.
+
+"Well! Monsieur Maumejan," cried the marquis, as soon as Pascal
+made his appearance.  He had been counting the seconds with
+intense anxiety, as his tone of voice unmistakably revealed.
+
+In reply Pascal gravely drew from his pocket twenty-four bank-
+notes, of a thousand francs each, and he placed them upon the
+table, saying: "Here is the amount, Monsieur le Marquis.  I have,
+of course, deducted my commission.  Now, if you will write and
+sign a note for twenty-five thousand francs, payable to my order
+two months hence, our business for to-day will be concluded."
+
+M. de Valorsay's hand trembled nervously as he penned the desired
+note, for, until the very last moment, he had doubted the promises
+of this unknown agent who had made his appearance so opportunely
+Then, when the document was signed, he carelessly slipped the
+money into a drawer and exclaimed: "So here's the needful to pay
+my debt of honor; but my embarrassment is none the less great. 
+These twenty-four thousand francs won't take the place of the
+hundred thousand which Baron Trigault promised me."
+
+And, as Pascal made no reply, the marquis began a desultory tramp
+up and down the smoking-room.  He was very pale, his brows were
+knit; he looked like a man who was meditating a decisive step, and
+who was calculating the consequences.  But having no time to waste
+in hesitation, he soon paused in front of Pascal, and exclaimed:
+"Since you have just lent me twenty-four thousand francs, why
+won't you lend me the rest?"
+
+But Pascal shook his head.  "One risks nothing by advancing
+twenty-five thousand francs to a person in your position, Monsieur
+le Marquis.  Whatever happens, such a sum as that can always be
+gathered from the wreck.  But double or triple the amount! The
+deuce! that requires reflection, and I must understand the
+situation thoroughly."
+
+"And if I told you that I am--almost ruined, what would you
+reply?"
+
+"I shouldn't be so very much surprised."
+
+M. de Valorsay had now gone too far to draw back.  "Ah, well!" he
+resumed, "the truth is this--my affairs are terribly involved."
+
+"The devil! You should have told me that sooner."
+
+"Wait; I am about to retrieve my fortune--to make it even larger
+than it has ever been.  I am on the point of contracting a
+marriage which will make me one of the richest men in Paris; but I
+must have a little time to bring the affair to a successful
+termination, and I need money--and my creditors are pressing me
+unmercifully.  You told me this morning that you once assisted a
+man who was in a similar position.  Will you help me? You can set
+your own price on your services."
+
+More easily overcome by joy than by sorrow, Pascal almost betrayed
+himself.  He had attained his object.  Still, he succeeded in
+conquering his emotion, and it was in a perfectly calm voice that
+he replied: "I can promise nothing until I understand the
+situation, Monsieur le Marquis.  Will you explain it to me? I am
+listening."
+
+
+
+XIV.
+
+
+It was nearly midnight when M. Wilkie left the Hotel d'Argeles
+after the terrible scene in which he had revealed his true
+character.  On seeing him pass out with haggard eyes, colorless
+lips, and disordered clothing, the servants gathered in the
+vestibule took him at first for another of those ruined gamblers
+who not unfrequently left the house with despair in their hearts.
+
+"Another fellow who's had bad luck!" they remarked sneeringly to
+one another.
+
+"No doubt about that.  He is pretty effectually used up, judging
+from appearances," one of them remarked.
+
+It was not until some moments later that they learned a portion of
+the truth through the servants who had been on duty upstairs, and
+who now ran down in great terror, crying that Madame d'Argeles was
+dying, and that a physician must be summoned at once.
+
+M. Wilkie was already far away, hastening up the boulevard with an
+agile step.  Any one else would have been overcome with shame and
+sorrow--would have been frightened by the thought of what he had
+done, and have striven to find some way to conceal his disgrace;
+but he, not in the least.  In this frightful crisis, he was only
+conscious of one fact--that just as he raised his hand to strike
+Madame Lia d'Argeles, his mother, a big, burly individual had
+burst into the room, like a bombshell, caught him by the throat,
+forced him upon his knees, and compelled him to ask the lady's
+pardon.  He, Wilkie, to be humiliated in this style! He would
+never endure that.  This was an affront he could not swallow, one
+of those insults that cry out for vengeance and for blood.  "Ah!
+the great brute shall pay for it," he repeated, again and again,
+grinding his teeth.  And if he hastened up the boulevard, it was
+only because he hoped to meet his two chosen friends, M. Costard
+and the Viscount de Serpillon, the co-proprietors of Pompier de
+Nanterre.
+
+For he intended to place his outraged honor in their care.  They
+should be his seconds, and present his demand for satisfaction to
+the man who had insulted him.  A duel was the only thing that
+could appease his furious anger and heal his wounded pride.  And a
+great scandal, which he would be the hero of, was not without a
+certain charm for him.  What a glorious chance to win notoriety at
+an epoch when newspapers have become public laundries, in which
+every one washes his soiled linen and dries it in the glare of
+publicity! He saw his already remarkable reputation enhanced by
+the interest that always attaches to people who are talked about,
+and he could hear in advance the flattering whisper which would
+greet his appearance everywhere: "You see that young man?--he is
+the hero of that famous adventure," etc.  Moreover, he was already
+twisting and turning the terms of the notice which his seconds
+must have inserted in the Figaro, hesitating between two or three
+equally startling beginnings: "Another famous duel," or
+"Yesterday, after a scandalous scene, an encounter," etc., etc.
+
+Unfortunately, he did not meet either M. Costard or the Viscount
+de Serpillon.  Strange to say, they were not in any of the cafes,
+where the flower of French chivalry usually congregates, in the
+company of golden-haired young women, from nine in the evening
+until one o'clock in the morning.  This disappointment grieved M.
+Wilkie sorely, although he derived some benefit from it, for his
+disordered attire attracted attention at each place he entered,
+and acquaintances eagerly inquired: "Where have you come from, and
+what has happened to you?" Whereupon he replied with an air of
+profound secrecy: "Pray don't speak of it.  A shocking affair! If
+it were noised abroad I should be inconsolable."
+
+At last the cafes began to close, and promenaders became rare.  M.
+Wilkie, much to his regret, was obliged to go home.  When he had
+locked his door and donned his dressing-gown, he sat down to think
+over the events of the day, and collect his scattered wits.  What
+most troubled and disquieted him was not the condition in which he
+had left Madame Lia d'Argeles, his mother, who was, perhaps,
+dying, through his fault! It was not the terrible sacrifice that
+this poor woman had made for him in a transport of maternal love!
+It was not the thought of the source from which the money he had
+squandered for so many years had been derived.  No, M. Wilkie was
+quite above such paltry considerations--good enough for
+commonplace and antiquated people. "He was too clever for that. 
+Ah! yes.  He had a stronger stomach, and was up with the times!"
+If he were sorely vexed in spirit it was because he thought that
+the immense property which he had believed his own had slipped,
+perhaps for ever, from his grasp.  For rising threateningly
+between the Chalusse millions and himself, he pictured the form of
+his father, this man whom he did not know, but whose very name had
+made Madame d'Argeles shudder.
+
+M. Wilkie was seized with terror when he looked his actual
+situation in the face.  What was to become of him? He was certain
+that Madame d'Argeles would not give him another sou.  She could
+not--he recognized that fact.  His intelligence was equal to that. 
+On the other hand, if he ever obtained anything from the count's
+estate, which was more than doubtful, would he not be obliged to
+wait a long time for it? Yes, in all probability such would be the
+case.  Then how should he live, how would he be able to obtain
+food in the meantime? His despair was so poignant that tears came
+to his eyes; and he bitterly deplored the step he had taken.  Yes,
+he actually sighed for the past; he longed to live over again the
+very years in which he had so often complained of his destiny. 
+Then, though not a millionaire by any means, he at least wanted
+for nothing.  Every quarter-day a very considerable allowance was
+promptly paid him, and, in great emergencies, he could apply to
+Mr. Patterson, who always sent a favorable answer if not drawn
+upon too heavily.  Yes, he sighed for that time! Ah! if he had
+only then realized how fortunate he was! Had he not been one of
+the most opulent members of the society in which he moved? Had he
+not been flattered and admired more than any of his companions?
+Had he not found the most exquisite happiness in his part
+ownership of Pompier de Nanterre!
+
+Now, what remained? Nothing, save anxiety concerning the future,
+and all sorts of uncertainties and terrors! What a mistake! What a
+blunder he had made! Ah! if he could only begin again.  He
+sincerely wished that the great adversary of mankind had the
+Viscount de Coralth in his clutches.  For, in his despair, it was
+the once dear viscount that he blamed, accused, and cursed.
+
+He was in this ungrateful frame of mind when a loud, almost
+savage, ring came at his door.  As his servant slept in an attic
+upstairs, Wilkie was quite alone in his rooms, so he took the lamp
+and went to open the door himself.  At this hour of the night, the
+visitor could only be M. Costard or the Viscount de Serpillon, or
+perhaps both of them.  "They have heard that I was looking for
+them, and so they have hastened here," he thought.
+
+But he was mistaken.  The visitor was neither of these gentlemen,
+but M. Ferdinand de Coralth in person.  Prudence had compelled the
+viscount to leave Madame d'Argeles's card-party one of the last,
+but as soon as he was out of the house he had rushed to the
+Marquis de Valorsay's to hold a conference with him, far from
+suspecting that he was followed, and that an auxiliary of Pascal
+Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite was even then waiting for
+him below--an enemy as formidable as he was humble--Victor Chupin.
+
+At sight of the man who had so long been his model--the friend who
+had advised what he styled his blunder--Wilkie was so surprised
+that he almost dropped his lamp.  Then as his wrath kindled, "Ah!
+so it's you!" he exclaimed, angrily.  "You come at a good time!"
+
+But M. de Coralth was too much exasperated to notice Wilkie's
+strange greeting.  Seizing him roughly by the arm, and closing the
+door with a kick, he dragged Wilkie back into the little drawing-
+room.  "Yes, it's I," he said, curtly.  "It's I--come to inquire
+if you have gone mad?"
+
+"Viscount!"
+
+"I can find no other explanation of your conduct! What! You choose
+Madame d'Argeles's reception day, and an hour when there are fifty
+guests in her drawing-room to present yourself!"
+
+"Ah, well! it wasn't from choice.  I had been there twice before,
+and had the doors shut in my face."
+
+"You ought to have gone back ten times, a hundred times, a
+thousand times, rather than have accomplished such an idiotic
+prank as this."
+
+"Excuse me."
+
+"What did I recommend?  Prudence, calmness and moderation,
+persuasive gentleness, sentiments of the loftiest nature,
+tenderness, a shower of tears----"
+
+"Possibly, but----"
+
+"But instead of that, you fall upon this woman like a thunderbolt,
+and set the whole household in the wildest commotion.  What could
+you be thinking of, to make such an absurd and frightful scene?
+For you howled and shrieked like a street hawker, and we could
+hear you in the drawing-room.  If all is not irretrievably lost,
+there must be a special Providence for the benefit of fools!"
+
+In his dismay, Wilkie endeavored to falter some excuses, but he
+was only able to begin a few sentences which died away,
+uncompleted in his throat.  The violence shown by M. de Coralth,
+who was usually as cold and as polished as marble, quieted his own
+wrath.  Still toward the last he felt disposed to rebel against
+the insults that were being heaped upon him.  "Do you know,
+viscount, that I begin to think this very strange," he exclaimed. 
+"If any one else had led me into such a scrape, I should have
+called him to account in double-quick time."
+
+M. de Coralth shrugged his shoulders with an air of contempt, and
+threateningly replied: "Understand, once for all, that you had
+better not attempt to bully me! Now, tell me what passed between
+your mother and yourself?"
+
+"First I should like----"
+
+"Dash it all! Do you suppose that I intend to remain here all
+night? Tell me what occurred, and be quick about it.  And try to
+speak the truth."
+
+It was one of M. Wilkie's greatest boasts that he had an
+indomitable will--an iron nature.  But the viscount exercised
+powerful influence over him, and, to tell the truth, inspired him
+with a form of emotion which was nearly akin to fear.  Moreover, a
+glimmer of reason had at last penetrated his befogged brain: he
+saw that M. de Coralth was right--that he had acted like a fool,
+and that, if he hoped to escape from the dangers that threatened
+him, he must take the advice of more experienced men than himself. 
+So, ceasing his recriminations, he began to describe what he
+styled his explanation with Madame d'Argeles.  All went well at
+first; for he dared not misrepresent the facts.
+
+But when he came to the intervention of the man who had prevented
+him from striking his mother, he turned crimson, and rage again
+filled his heart.  "I'm sorry I let myself get into such a mess!"
+he exclaimed.  "You should have seen my condition.  My shirt-
+collar was torn, and my cravat hung in tatters.  He was much
+stronger than I--the contemptible scoundrel!--ah! if it hadn't
+been for that---- But I shall have my revenge.  Yes, he shall
+learn that he can't trample a man under foot with impunity.  To-
+morrow two of my friends will call upon him; and if he refuses to
+apologize or to give me satisfaction, I'll cane him."
+
+It was evident enough that M. de Coralth had to exercise
+considerable constraint to listen to these fine projects.  "I must
+warn you that you ought to speak in other terms of an honorable
+and honored gentleman," he interrupted, at last.
+
+"Eh! what! You know him then?"
+
+"Yes, Madame d'Argeles's defender is Baron Trigault."
+
+M. Wilkie's heart bounded with joy, as he heard this name.  "Ah!
+this is capital!" he exclaimed.  "What! So it was Baron Trigault--
+the noted gambler--who owns such a magnificent house in the Rue de
+la Ville l'Eveque, the husband of that extremely stylish lady,
+that notorious cocotte----"
+
+The viscount sprang from his chair, and interrupting M. Wilkie: "I
+advise you, for the sake of your own safety," he said, measuring
+his words to give them greater weight, "never to mention the
+Baroness Trigault's name except in terms of the most profound
+respect."
+
+There was no misunderstanding M. de Coralth's tone, and his glance
+said plainly that he would not allow much time to pass before
+putting his threat into execution.  Having always lived in a lower
+circle to that in which the baroness sparkled with such lively
+brilliancy, M. Wilkie was ignorant of the reasons that induced his
+distinguished friend to defend her so warmly; but he DID
+understand that it would be highly imprudent to insist, or even to
+discuss the matter.  So, in his most persuasive manner, he
+resumed: "Let us say no more about the wife, but give our
+attention to the husband.  So it was the baron who insulted me! A
+duel with him--what good luck! Well! he may sleep in peace to-
+night, but as soon as he is up in the morning he will find Costard
+and Serpillon on hand.  Serpillon has not an equal as a second. 
+First, he knows the best places for a meeting; then he lends the
+combatants weapons when they have none; he procures a physician;
+and he is on excellent terms with the journalists, who publish
+reports of these encounters."
+
+The viscount had never had a very exalted opinion of Wilkie's
+intelligence, but now he was amazed to see how greatly he had
+overestimated it.  "Enough of such foolishness," he interrupted,
+curtly.  "This duel will never take place."
+
+"I should like to know who will prevent it?"
+
+"I will, if you persist in such an absurd idea.  You ought to have
+sense enough to know that the baron would kick Serpillon out of
+the house, and that you would only cover yourself with ridicule. 
+So, between your duel and my help make your choice, and quickly."
+
+The prospect of sending his seconds to demand satisfaction from
+Baron Trigault was certainly a very attractive one.  But, on the
+other hand, Wilkie could not afford to dispense with M. de
+Coralth's services.  "But the baron has insulted me," he urged.
+
+"Well, you can demand satisfaction when you obtain possession of
+your property: but the least scandal now would spoil your last
+chances."
+
+"I will abandon the project, then," sighed Wilkie, despondently;
+"but pray advise me.  What do you think of my situation?"
+
+M. de Coralth seemed to consider a moment, and then gravely
+replied: "I think that, UNASSISTED, you have no chance whatever. 
+You have no standing, no influential connections, no position--you
+are not even a Frenchman."
+
+"Alas! that is precisely what I have said to myself."
+
+"Still, I am convinced that with some assistance you might
+overcome your mother's resistance, and even your father's
+pretentions."
+
+"Yes, but where could I find protectors?"
+
+The viscount's gravity seemed to increase.  "Listen to me," said
+he; "I will do for you what I would not do for any one else.  I
+will endeavor to interest in your cause one of my friends, who is
+all powerful by reason of his name, his fortune, and his
+connections--the Marquis de Valorsay, in fact."
+
+"The one who is so well known upon the turf?"
+
+"The same."
+
+"And you will introduce me to him?"
+
+"Yes.  Be ready to-morrow at eleven o'clock, and I will call for
+you and take you to his house.  If he interests himself in your
+cause, it is as good as gained."  And as his companion overwhelmed
+him with thanks, he rose, and said: "I must go now.  No more
+foolishness, and be ready to-morrow at the appointed time."
+
+Thanks to the surprising mutability of temper which was the most
+striking characteristic of his nature, M. Wilkie was already
+consoled for his blunder.
+
+He had received M. de Coralth as an enemy; but he now escorted him
+to the door with every obsequious attention--in fact, just as if
+he looked upon him as his preserver.  A word which the viscount
+had dropped during the conversation had considerably helped to
+bring about this sudden revulsion of feelings.  "You cannot fail
+to understand that if the Marquis de Valorsay espouses your cause,
+you will want for nothing.  And if a lawsuit is unavoidable, he
+will be perfectly willing to advance the necessary funds." How
+could M. Wilkie lack confidence after that? The brightest hopes,
+the most ecstatic visions had succeeded the gloomy forebodings of
+a few hours before.  The mere thought of being presented to M. de
+Valorsay, a nobleman celebrated for his adventures, his horses,
+and his fortune, more than sufficed to make him forget his
+troubles.  What rapture to become that illustrious nobleman's
+acquaintance, perhaps his friend! To move in the same orbit as
+this star of the first magnitude which would inevitably cast some
+of its lustre upon him! Now he would be a somebody in the world. 
+He felt that he had grown a head taller, and Heaven only knows
+with what disdain poor Costard and Serpillon would have been
+received had they chanced to present themselves at that moment.
+
+It is needless to say that Wilkie dressed with infinite care on
+the following morning, no doubt in the hope of making a conquest
+of the marquis at first sight.  He tried his best to solve the
+problem of appearing at the same time most recherche but at ease,
+excessively elegant and yet unostentatious; and he devoted himself
+to the task so unreservedly that he lost all conception of the
+flight of time: so that on seeing M. de Coralth enter his rooms,
+he exclaimed in unfeigned astonishment: "You here already?"
+
+It seemed to him that barely five minutes had elapsed since he
+took his place before the looking-glass to study attitudes and
+gestures, with a new and elegant mode of bowing and sitting down,
+like an actor practising the effects which are to win him
+applause.
+
+"Why do you say 'already?'" replied the viscount.  "I am a quarter
+of an hour behind time.  Are you not ready?"
+
+"Yes, certainly."
+
+"Let us start at once, then; my brougham is outside."
+
+The drive was a silent one.  M. Ferdinand de Coralth, whose smooth
+white skin would ordinarily have excited the envy of a young girl,
+did not look like himself.  His face was swollen and covered with
+blotches, and there were dark blue circles round his eyes.  He
+seemed, moreover, to be in a most savage humor.  "He hasn't had
+sleep enough," thought M. Wilkie, with his usual discernment; "he
+hasn't a bronze constitution like myself."
+
+M. Wilkie himself was insensible to fatigue, and although he had
+not closed his eyes the previous night, he only felt that nervous
+trepidation which invariably attacks debutants, and makes the
+throat so marvellously dry.  For the first, and probably the last
+time in his life, M. Wilkie distrusted his own powers, and feared
+that he was not "quite up to the mark," as he elegantly expressed
+it.
+
+The sight of the Marquis de Valorsay's handsome mansion was not
+likely to restore his assurance.  When he entered the courtyard,
+where the master's mail-phaeton stood in waiting; when through the
+open doors of the handsome stables he espied the many valuable
+horses neighing in their stalls, and the numerous carriages
+shrouded in linen covers; when he counted the valets on duty in
+the vestibule, and when he ascended the staircase behind a lackey
+attired in a black dress-coat, and as serious in mien as a notary;
+when he passed through the handsome drawing-rooms, filled to
+overflowing with pictures, armor, statuary, and all the trophies
+gained by the marquis's horses upon the turf, M. Wilkie mentally
+acknowledged that he knew nothing of high life, and that what he
+had considered luxury was scarcely the shadow of the reality.  He
+felt actually ashamed of his own ignorance.  This feeling of
+inferiority became so powerful that he was almost tempted to turn
+and fly, when the man clothed in black opened the door and
+announced, in a clear voice: "M. le Vicomte de Coralth!--M.
+Wilkie."
+
+With a most gracious and dignified air--the air of a true GRAND
+seigneur--the only portion of his inheritance which he had
+preserved intact, the marquis rose to his feet, and, offering his
+hand to M. de Coralth, exclaimed: "You are most welcome, viscount. 
+This gentleman is undoubtedly the young friend you spoke of in the
+note I received from you this morning?"
+
+"The same; and really he stands greatly in need of your kindness. 
+He finds himself in an extremely delicate position, and knows no
+one who can lend him a helping hand."
+
+"Ah, well, I will lend him one with pleasure, since he is your
+friend.  But I must know the circumstances before I can act.  Sit
+down, gentlemen, and enlighten me."
+
+M. Wilkie had prepared his story in advance, a touching and witty
+narrative; but when the moment came to begin it, he found himself
+unable to speak.  He opened his mouth, but no sound issued from
+his lips, and it seemed as if he had been stricken dumb. 
+Accordingly it was M. de Coralth who made a statement of the case,
+and he did it well.  The narrative thus gained considerably in
+clearness and precision; and even M. Wilkie noticed that his
+friend understood how to present the events in their most
+favorable light, and how to omit them altogether when his
+heartless conduct would have appeared too odious.  He also
+noticed--and he considered it an excellent omen--that M. de
+Valorsay was listening with the closest attention.
+
+Worthy marquis! if his own interests had been in jeopardy he could
+not have appeared more deeply concerned.  When the viscount had
+concluded his story, he gravely exclaimed: "Your young friend is
+indeed in a most critical position, a position from which he
+cannot escape without being terribly victimized, if he's left
+dependent on his own resources."
+
+"But it is understood that you will help him, is it not?"
+
+M. de Valorsay reflected for a little, and then, addressing M.
+Wilkie, replied: "Yes, I consent to assist you, monsieur.  First,
+because your cause seems to me just, and, also, because you are M.
+de Coralth's friend.  I promise you my aid on one condition--that
+you will follow my advice implicitly."
+
+The interesting young man lifted his hand, and, by dint of a
+powerful effort, he succeeded in articulating: "Anything you
+wish!--upon my sacred word!"
+
+"You must understand that when I engage in an enterprise, it must
+not fail.  The eye of the public is upon me, and I have my
+PRESTIGE to maintain.  I have given you a great mark of
+confidence, for in lending you my influence I become, in some
+measure at least, your sponsor.  But I cannot accept this great
+responsibility unless I am allowed absolute control of the
+affair."
+
+"And I think that we ought to begin operations this very day.  The
+main thing is to circumvent your father, the terrible man with
+whom your mother has threatened you."
+
+"Ah! but how?"
+
+"I shall dress at once and go to the Hotel de Chalusse, in order
+to ascertain what has occurred there.  You on your side must
+hasten to Madame d'Argeles and request her politely, but firmly,
+to furnish you with the necessary proofs to assert your rights. 
+If she consents, well and good! If she refuses, we will consult
+some lawyer as to the next step.  In any case, call here again at
+four o'clock."
+
+But the thought of meeting Madame d'Argeles again was anything but
+pleasing to Wilkie.  "I would willingly yield that undertaking to
+some one else," said he.  "Cannot some one else go in my place?"
+
+Fortunately M. de Coralth knew how to encourage him.  "What! are
+you afraid?" he asked.
+
+Afraid! he?--never! It was easy to see that by the way he settled
+his hat on his head and went off, slamming the door noisily behind
+him.
+
+"What an idiot!" muttered M. de Coralth.  "And to think that there
+are ten thousand in Paris built upon the very same plan!"
+
+M. de Valorsay gravely shook his head.  "Let us thank fortune that
+he is as he is.  No youth who possessed either heart or
+intelligence would play the part that I intend for him, and enable
+me to obtain proud Marguerite and her millions.  But I fear he
+won't go to Madame d'Argeles's house.  You noticed his
+repugnance!"
+
+"Oh, you needn't trouble yourself in the least on that account--
+he'll go.  He would go to the devil if the noble Marquis de
+Valorsay ordered him to do so."
+
+M. de Coralth understood Wilkie perfectly.  The fear of being
+considered a coward by a nobleman like the Marquis de Valorsay was
+more than sufficient, not only to divest him of all his scruples,
+but even to induce him to commit any act of folly, or actually a
+crime.  For if he had looked upon M. de Coralth as an oracle, he
+considered the marquis to be a perfect god.
+
+Accordingly, as he hastened toward Madame d'Argeles's residence,
+he said to himself: "Why shouldn't I go to her house?  I've done
+her no injury.  Besides, she won't eat me."  And remembering that
+he should be obliged to render a report of this interview, he
+resolved to assert his superiority and to remain cool and unmoved,
+as he had seen M. de Coralth do so often.
+
+However, the unusual aspect of the house excited his surprise, and
+puzzled him not a little.  Three huge furniture vans, heavily
+laden, were standing outside the gate.  In the courtyard there
+were two more vehicles of the same description, which a dozen men
+or so were busily engaged in loading.  "Ah, ha!" muttered M.
+Wilkie, "it was fortunate that I came--very fortunate; so she was
+going to run away!" Thereupon, approaching a group of servants who
+were in close conference in the hall, he demanded, in his most
+imperious manner: "Madame d'Argeles!"
+
+The servants remembered the visitor perfectly; they now knew who
+he really was, and they could not understand how he could have the
+impudence and audacity to come there again so soon after the
+shameful scene of the previous evening.  "Madame is at home,"
+replied one of the men, in anything but a polite tone; "and I will
+go and see if she will consent to see you.  Wait here."
+
+He went off, leaving M. Wilkie in the vestibule to settle his
+collar and twirl his puny mustaches, with affected indifference;
+but in reality he was far from comfortable.  For the servants did
+not hesitate to stare at him, and it was quite impossible not to
+read their contempt in their glances.  They even sneered audibly
+and pointed at him; and he heard five or six epithets more
+expressive than elegant which could only have been meant for
+himself.  "The fools!" thought he, boiling with anger.  "The
+scoundrels!  Ah! if I dared.  If a gentleman like myself was
+allowed to notice such blackguards, how I'd chastise them!"
+
+But the valet who had gone to warn Madame d'Argeles soon
+reappeared and put an end to his sufferings.  "Madame will see
+you," said the man, impudently.  "Ah! if I were in her place----"
+
+"Come, make haste," rejoined Wilkie, indignantly, and following
+the servant, he was ushered into a room which had already been
+divested of its hangings, curtains, and furniture.  He here found
+Madame d'Argeles engaged in packing a large trunk with household
+linen and sundry articles of clothing.
+
+By a sort of miracle the unfortunate woman had survived the
+terrible shock which had at first threatened to have an
+immediately fatal effect.  Still she had none the less received
+her death-blow.  It was only necessary to look at her to be
+assured of that.  She was so greatly changed that when M. Wilkie's
+eyes first fell on her, he asked himself if this were really the
+same person whom he had met on the previous evening.  Henceforth
+she would be an old woman.  You would have taken her for over
+fifty, so terrible had been the sufferings caused her by the
+shameful conduct of her son.  In this sad-eyed, haggard-faced
+woman, clad in black, no one would have recognized the notorious
+Lia d'Argeles, who, only the evening before, had driven round the
+lake, reclining on the cushions of her victoria, and eclipsing all
+the women around her by the splendor of her toilette.  Nothing now
+remained of the gay worldling but the golden hair which she was
+condemned to see always the same, since its tint had been fixed by
+dyes as indelible as the stains upon her past.
+
+She rose with difficulty when M. Wilkie entered, and in the
+expressionless voice of those who are without hope, she asked:
+"What do you wish of me?"
+
+As usual, when the time came to carry out his happiest
+conceptions, his courage failed him.  "I came to talk about our
+affairs, you know," he replied, "and I find you moving."
+
+"I am not moving."
+
+"Nonsense! you can't make me believe that! What's the meaning of
+these carts in the courtyard?"
+
+"They are here to convey all the furniture in the house to the
+auction-rooms."
+
+Wilkie was struck dumb for a moment, but eventually recovering
+himself a little, he exclaimed: "What! you are going to sell
+everything?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Astonishing, upon my honor! But afterward?"
+
+"I shall leave Paris."
+
+"Bah! and where are you going?"
+
+With a gesture of utter indifference, she gently replied: "I don't
+know; I shall go where no one will know me, and where it will be
+possible for me to hide my shame."
+
+A terrible disquietude seized hold of Wilkie.  This sudden change
+of residence, this departure which so strongly resembled flight,
+this cold greeting when he expected passionate reproaches, seemed
+to indicate that Madame d'Argeles's resolution would successfully
+resist any amount of entreaty on his part.  "The devil," he
+remarked, "I don't think this at all pleasant!  What is to become
+of me?  How am I to obtain possession of the Count de Chalusse's
+estate? That's what I am after! It's rightfully mine, and I'm
+determined to have it, as I told you once before.  And when I've
+once taken anything into my head----"
+
+He paused, for he could no longer face the scornful glances that
+Madame d'Argeles was giving him.  "Don't be alarmed," she replied
+bitterly, "I shall leave you the means of asserting your right to
+my parents' estate."
+
+"Ah--so----"
+
+"Your threats obliged me to decide contrary to my own wishes.  I
+felt that no amount of slander or disgrace would daunt you."
+
+"Of course not, when so many millions are at stake."
+
+"I reflected, and I saw that nothing would arrest you upon your
+downward path except a large fortune.  If you were poor and
+compelled to earn your daily bread--a task which you are probably
+incapable of performing--who can tell what depths of degradation
+you might descend to? With your instincts and your vices, who
+knows what crime you wouldn't commit to obtain money? It wouldn't
+be long before you were in the dock, and I should hear of you only
+through your disgrace.  But, on the other hand, if you were rich,
+you would probably lead an honest life, like many others, who,
+wanting for nothing, are not tempted to do wrong, who, in fact,
+show virtue in which there is nothing worthy of praise.  For real
+virtue implies temptation--a struggle and victory."
+
+Although he did not understand these remarks very well, M. Wilkie
+evinced a desire to offer some objections; but Madame d'Argeles
+had already resumed: "So I went to my notary this morning.  I told
+him everything; and by this time my renunciation of my rights to
+the estate of the Count de Chalusse is already recorded."
+
+"What! your renunciation.  Oh! no."
+
+"Allow me to finish since you don't understand me.  As soon as I
+renounce the inheritance it becomes yours."
+
+"Truly?"
+
+"I have no wish to deceive you.  I only desire that the name of
+Lia d'Argeles should not be mentioned.  I will give you the
+necessary proofs to establish your identity; my marriage contract
+and your certificate of birth."
+
+It was joy that made M. Wilkie speechless now.  "And when will you
+give me these documents?" he faltered, after a short pause.
+
+"You shall have them before you leave this house; but first of all
+I must talk with you."
+
+
+
+XV.
+
+
+Agitated and excited though he was, M. Wilkie had not once ceased
+to think of M. de Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay.  What would
+they do in such a position, and how should he act to conform
+himself to the probable example of these models of deportment? 
+Manifestly he ought to assume that stolid and insolent air of
+boredom which is considered a sure indication of birth and
+breeding.  Convinced of this, and seized with a laudable desire to
+emulate such distinguished examples, he had perched himself upon a
+trunk, where he still sat with his legs crossed.  He now pretended
+to suppress a yawn, as he growled, "What! some more long phrases--
+and another melodramatic display?"
+
+Absorbed in the memories she had invoked, Madame d'Argeles paid no
+heed to Wilkie's impertinence.  "Yes, I must talk with you," she
+said, "and more for your sake than for my own.  I must tell you
+who I am, and through what strange vicissitudes I have passed. 
+You know what family I belong to.  I will tell you, however--for
+you may be ignorant of the fact--that our house is the equal of
+any in France in lineage, splendor of alliance, and fortune.  When
+I was a child, my parents lived at the Hotel de Chalusse, in the
+Faubourg Saint Germain, a perfect palace, surrounded by one of
+those immense gardens, which are no longer seen in Paris--a real
+park, shaded with century-old trees.  Certainly everything that
+money could procure, or vanity desire, was within my reach; and
+yet my youth was wretchedly unhappy.  I scarcely knew my father,
+who was devoured by ambition, and had thrown himself body and soul
+into the vortex of politics.  Either my mother did not love me, or
+thought it beneath her dignity to make any display of sensibility;
+but at all events her reserve had raised a wall of ice between
+herself and me.  As for my brother he was too much engrossed in
+pleasure to think of a mere child.  So I lived quite alone, too
+proud to accept the love and friendship of my inferiors--abandoned
+to the dangerous inspirations of solitude, and with no other
+consolation than my books--books which had been chosen for me by
+my mother's confessor, and which were calculated to fill my
+imagination with visionary and romantic fancies. The only
+conversation I heard dealt with the means of leaving all the
+family fortune to my brother, so that he might uphold the splendor
+of the name, and with the necessity of marrying me to some
+superannuated nobleman who would take me without a dowry, or of
+compelling me to enter one of those aristocratic convents, which
+are the refuge, and often the prison, of poor girls of noble
+birth.
+
+"I do not pretend to justify my fault, I am only explaining it.  I
+thought myself the most unfortunate being in the world--and such I
+really was, since I honestly believed it--when I happened to meet
+Arthur Gordon, your father.  I saw him for the first time at a
+fete given at the house of the Comte de Commarin.  How he, a mere
+adventurer, had succeeded in forcing his way into the most
+exclusive society in the world, is a point which I have never been
+able to explain.  But, alas! it is only too true that when our
+glances met for the first time, my heart was stirred to its inmost
+depths; I felt that it was no longer mine--that I was no longer
+free! Ah! why does not God allow a man's face to reflect at least
+something of his nature? This man, who was a corrupt and audacious
+hypocrite, had that air of apparent nobility and frankness which
+inspires you with unlimited confidence, and the melancholy
+expression on his features seemed to indicate that he had known
+sorrow, and had good cause to rail at destiny.  In his whole
+appearance there was certainly a mysterious and fatal charm.  I
+afterward learned that this was only a natural result of the wild
+life he had led.  He was only twenty-six, and he had already been
+the commander of a slave ship, and had fought in Mexico at the
+head of one of those guerilla bands which make politics an excuse
+for pillage and murder.  He divined only too well the impression
+he had made upon my heart.  I met him twice afterward in society. 
+He did not speak to me; he even pretended to avoid me, but
+standing a little on one side, he watched my every movement with
+burning eyes in which I fancied I could read a passion as
+absorbing as my own.  At last he ventured to write to me.  The
+moment a letter addressed to me in an unknown hand was covertly
+handed me by my maid, I divined that it came from him.  I was
+frightened, and my first impulse was to take it, not to my mother--
+whom I regarded as my natural enemy--but to my father.  However,
+he chanced to be absent; I kept the letter, I read it, I answered
+it--and he wrote again.
+
+"Alas! from that moment my conduct was inexcusable.  I knew that
+it was worse than a fault to continue this clandestine
+correspondence.  I knew my parents would never give my hand in
+marriage to a man who was not of noble birth.  I knew that I was
+risking my reputation, the spotless honor of our house, my
+happiness, and life! Still I persisted--I was possessed with a
+strange madness that made me ready to brave every danger. 
+Besides, he gave me no time to breathe, or reflect.  Everywhere,
+constantly, every instant, he compelled me to think of him.  By
+some miracle of address and audacity, he had discovered a means of
+intruding upon my presence, even in my father's house.  For
+instance, every morning I found the vases in my room full of
+choice flowers, though I was never able to discover what hands had
+placed them there.  Ah! how can one help believing in an
+omnipresent passion which one inhales with the very air one
+breathes!  How can one resist it?
+
+"I only discovered Arthur Gordon's object when it was too late. 
+He had come to Paris with the fixed determination of trapping some
+rich heiress, and forcing her family to give her to him with a
+large dowry, after one of those disgraceful scandals which render
+a marriage inevitable.  At the very same time he was pursuing two
+other rich young girls, persuaded that one of the three would
+certainly become his victim.
+
+"I was the first to yield.  One of those unforeseen events which
+are the work of Providence, was destined to decide my fate. 
+Several times, already, in compliance with Arthur's urgent
+entreaties, I had met him at night time in a little pavilion in
+our garden.  This pavilion contained a billiard-room and a
+spacious gallery in which my brother practised fencing and pistol
+shooting with his masters and friends.  There, thanks to the
+liberty I enjoyed, we thought ourselves perfectly secure from
+observation, and we were imprudent enough to light the candles. 
+One night when I had just joined Arthur in the pavilion, I thought
+I heard the sound of hoarse, heavy breathing behind me.  I turned
+round in a fright and saw my brother standing on the threshold. 
+Oh! then I realized how guilty I had been! I felt that one or the
+other of these two men--my lover or my brother--would not leave
+that room alive.
+
+"I tried to speak, to throw myself between them, but I found I
+could neither speak nor move; it was as if I had been turned to
+stone.  Nor did they exchange a word at first.  But at last my
+brother drew two swords from their scabbards, and throwing one at
+Arthur's feet, exclaimed: 'I have no wish to assassinate you. 
+Defend yourself, and save your life if you can!' And as Arthur
+hesitated, and seemed to be trying to gain time instead of picking
+up the weapon that was lying on the floor near him, my brother
+struck him in the face with the flat side of his sword, and cried:
+'Now will you fight, you coward!  In an instant it was all over. 
+Arthur caught up the sword, and springing upon my brother,
+disarmed him, and wounded him in the breast.  I saw this.  I saw
+the blood spurt out upon my lover's hands.  I saw my brother
+stagger, beat the air wildly with his hands, and fall apparently
+lifeless to the floor.  Then I, too, lost consciousness and fell!"
+
+Any one who had seen Madame d'Argeles as she stood there recoiling
+in horror, with her features contracted, and her eyes dilated,
+would have realized that by strength of will she had dispelled the
+mists enshrouding the past, and distinctly beheld the scene she
+was describing.  She seemed to experience anew the same agony of
+terror she had felt twenty years before; and this lent such
+poignant intensity to the interest of her narrative that if M.
+Wilkie's heart was not exactly touched, he was, as he afterward
+confessed, at least rather interested.  But Madame d'Argeles
+seemed to have forgotten his existence.  She wiped away the foam-
+flecked blood which had risen to her lips, and in the same
+mournful voice resumed her story.
+
+"When I regained my senses it was morning, and I was lying, still
+dressed, on a bed in a strange room.  Arthur Gordon was standing
+at the foot of the bed anxiously watching my movements.  He did
+not give me time to question him.  'You are in my house,' said he. 
+'Your brother is dead!' Almighty God!  I thought I should die as
+well.  I hoped so.  I prayed for death.  But, in spite of my sobs,
+he pitilessly continued: 'It is a terrible misfortune which I
+shall never cease to regret.  And yet, it was his own fault.  You,
+who witnessed the scene.  know that it was so.  You can still see
+on my face the mark of the blow he dealt me.  I only defended
+myself and you.' I was ignorant then of the accepted code of
+duelling.  I did not know that by throwing himself upon my brother
+before he was on guard, Arthur Gordon had virtually assassinated
+him.  He relied upon my ignorance for the success of the sinister
+farce he was playing.  'When I saw your brother fall,' he
+continued, 'I was wild with terror; and not knowing what I did, I
+caught you up in my arms and brought you here.  But don't tremble,
+I know that you are not in my house of your own free will.  A
+carriage is below and awaits your orders to convey you to your
+parents' home.  It will be easy to find an explanation for last
+night's catastrophe.  Slander will not venture to attack such a
+family as yours.' He spoke in the constrained tone, and with that
+air which a brave man, condemned to death, would assume in giving
+utterance to his last wishes.  I felt as if I were going mad. 
+'And you!' I exclaimed, 'you!  What will become of you?' He shook
+his head, and with a look of anguish, replied: 'Me! What does it
+matter about me! I am ruined undoubtedly.  So much the better. 
+Nothing matters now that I must live apart from you'!  Ah! he knew
+my heart.  He knew his power!  Swayed by an emotion which was
+madness rather than heroism, I sprang toward him, and clasped him
+in my arms: 'Then I, too, am lost!' I cried.  'Since fate united
+us, nothing but death shall separate us.  I love you.  I am your
+accomplice.  Let the curse fall upon both!'
+
+"A keen observer would certainly have detected a gleam of fiendish
+joy in his eyes.  But he protested, or pretended to protest.  With
+feigned energy he refused to accept such a sacrifice.  He could
+not link my destiny to his, for misery had ever been his lot; and
+now that this last and most terrible misfortune had overtaken him,
+he was more than ever convinced that there was a curse hanging
+over him! He would not suffer me to bring misery upon myself, and
+eternal remorse upon him.  But the more he repulsed me, the more
+obstinately I clung to him.  The more forcibly he showed the
+horror of the sacrifice, the more I was convinced that my honor
+compelled me to make it.  So at last he yielded, or seemed to
+yield, with transports of gratitude and love.  'Well! yes, I
+accept your sacrifice, my darling!' he exclaimed.  'I accept it;
+and before the God who is looking down upon us, I swear that I
+will do all that is in human power to repay such sublime and
+marvellous devotion.' And, bending over me, he printed a kiss upon
+my forehead.  'But we must fly!' he resumed, quickly.  'I have my
+happiness to defend now! I will not suffer any one to discover us
+and separate us now.  We must start at once, without losing a
+moment, and gain my native land, America.  There, we shall be
+safe.  For rest assured they will search for us.  Who knows but
+even now the officers of the law are upon our track? Your family
+is all-powerful--I am a mere nobody--we should be crushed if they
+discover us.  They would bury you in a gloomy cloister, and I
+should be tried as a common thief, or as a vile assassin.' My only
+answer was: 'Let us go! Let us go at once!'
+
+"It had been easy for him to foresee what the result of this
+interview would be.  A vehicle was indeed waiting at the door, but
+not for the purpose of conveying me to the Hotel de Chalusse--as
+was proved conclusively by the fact that his trunks were already
+strapped upon it.  Besides, the coachman must have received his
+instructions in advance for he drove us straight to the Havre
+Railway station without a word.  It was not until some months
+afterward that these trifles, which entirely escaped my notice at
+the time, opened my eyes to the truth.  When we reached the
+station we found a train ready to start, and we took our places in
+it.  I tried to quiet my conscience with miserable sophistries. 
+Remembering that God has said to woman: To follow thy husband thou
+shalt abandon all else, native land, paternal home, parents and
+friends, I told myself that this was the husband whom my heart had
+instinctively chosen, and that it was my duty to follow him and
+share his destiny.  And thus I fled with him, although I thought I
+left a corpse behind me--the corpse of my only brother."
+
+M. Wilkie was actually so much interested that he forgot his
+anxiety concerning his attitude, and no longer thought of M. de
+Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay.  He even sprang up, and
+exclaimed: "Amazing!"
+
+But Madame d'Argeles had already resumed: "Such was my great,
+inexcusable, irreparable fault.  I have told you the whole truth,
+without trying either to conceal or justify anything.  Listen to
+my chastisement!  On our arrival at Le Havre the next day, Arthur
+confessed that he was greatly embarrassed financially.  Owing to
+our precipitate flight, he had not had time to realize the
+property he possessed--at least so he told me--a banker, on whom
+he had depended, had moreover failed him, and he had not
+sufficient money to pay our passage to New York.  This amazed me. 
+My education had been absurd, like that of most young girls in my
+station.  I knew nothing of real life, of its requirements and
+difficulties.  I knew, of course, that there were rich people and
+poor people, that money was a necessity, and that those who did
+not possess it would stoop to any meanness to obtain it.  But all
+this was not very clear in my mind, and I never suspected that a
+few francs more or less would be a matter of vital importance.  So
+I was not in the least prepared for the request to which this
+confession served as preface, and Arthur Gordon was obliged to ask
+me point-blank if I did not happen to have some money about me, or
+some jewelry which could be converted into money.  I gave him all
+I had, my purse containing a few louis, a ring and a necklace,
+with a handsome diamond cross attached to it.  However, the total
+value was comparatively small, and such was Arthur's
+disappointment that he made a remark which frightened me even
+then, though I did not fully understand its shameful meaning until
+afterward: 'A woman who repairs to a rendezvous should always have
+all the valuables she possesses about her.  One never knows what
+may happen.'
+
+"Want of money was keeping us prisoners at Le Havre, when Arthur
+Gordon chanced to meet an old acquaintance, who was the captain of
+an American sailing vessel.  He confided his embarrassment to his
+friend, and the latter, whose vessel was to sail at the end of the
+same week, kindly offered us a free passage.  The voyage was one
+long torture to me, for it was then that I first served my
+apprenticeship in shame and disgrace.  By the captain's offensive
+gallantry, the lower officers' familiarity of manner, and the
+sailors' ironical glances whenever I appeared on deck, I saw that
+my position was a secret for no one.  Everybody knew that I was
+the mistress and not the wife of the man whom I called my husband:
+and, without being really conscious of it, perhaps, they made me
+cruelly expiate my fault.  Moreover, reason had regained its
+ascendency, my eyes were gradually opening to the truth, and I was
+beginning to learn the real character of the scoundrel for whom I
+had sacrificed all that makes life desirable.
+
+"Not that he had wholly ceased to practise dissimulation.  But
+after the evening meal he often lingered at table smoking and
+drinking with his friend the captain, and when he joined me
+afterward, heated with alcohol, he shocked me by advocating
+theories which were both novel and repulsive to me.  Once, after
+drinking more than usual, he entirely forgot his assumed part, and
+revealed himself in his true character.  He declared he bitterly
+regretted that our love affair had ended so disastrously.  It was
+deplorable to think that so happily conceived and so skilfully
+conducted a scheme should have terminated in bloodshed.  And the
+blow had fallen just as he fancied he had reached the goal; just
+as he thought he would reap the reward of his labor.  In a few
+weeks' more time he would undoubtedly have gained sufficient
+influence over me to persuade me to elope with him.  This would,
+of course, have caused a great scandal; the next day there would
+have been a family conclave; a compromise would have been
+effected, and finally, a marriage arranged with a large dowry, to
+hush up the affair.  'And I should now be a rich man,' he added,
+'a very rich man--I should be rolling through the streets of Paris
+in my carriage, instead of being on board this cursed ship, eating
+salt cod twice a day, and living on charity.'
+
+"Ah! it was no longer possible to doubt.  The truth was as clear
+as daylight.  I had never been loved, not even an hour, not even a
+moment.  The loving letters which had blinded me, the
+protestations of affection which had deceived me, had been
+addressed to my father's millions, not to myself.  And not
+unfrequently I saw Arthur Gordon's face darken, as he talked with
+evident anxiety about what he could do to earn a living for
+himself and me in America.  'I have had trouble enough to get on
+alone,' he grumbled.  'What will it be now?  To burden myself with
+a penniless wife!  What egregious folly!  And yet I couldn't have
+acted differently--I was compelled to do it.'  Why had he been
+compelled to do it? why had he not acted differently?--that was
+what I vainly puzzled my brain to explain.  However, his gloomy
+fears of poverty were not realized.  A delightful surprise awaited
+him at New York.  A relative had recently died, leaving him a
+legacy of fifty thousand dollars--a small fortune.  I hoped that
+he would now cease his constant complaints, but he seemed even
+more displeased than before.  'Such is the irony of fate,' he
+repeated again and again.  'With this money, I might easily have
+married a wife worth a hundred thousand dollars, and then I should
+be rich at last!' After that, I had good reason to expect that I
+should soon be forsaken--but no, shortly after our arrival, he
+married me.  Had he done so out of respect for his word?  I
+believed so.  But, alas! this marriage was the result of
+calculation, like everything else he did.
+
+"We were living in New York, when one evening he came home,
+looking very pale and agitated.  He had a French newspaper in his
+hand.  'Read this,' he said, handing it to me.  I took the paper
+as he bade me, and read that my brother had not been killed, that
+he was improving, and that his recovery was now certain.  And as I
+fell on my knees, bursting into tears, and thanking God for
+freeing me from such terrible remorse, he exclaimed: 'We are in a
+nice fix! I advise you to congratulate yourself!  'From that time
+forward, I noticed he displayed the feverish anxiety of a man who
+feels that he is constantly threatened with some great danger.  A
+few days afterward, he said to me: 'I cannot endure this! Have our
+trunks ready to-morrow, and we will start South.  Instead of
+calling ourselves Gordon, we'll travel under the name of Grant.' I
+did not venture to question him.  He had quite mastered me by his
+cruel tyranny, and I was accustomed to obey him like a slave in
+terror of the lash.  However, during our long journey, I learned
+the cause of our flight and change of name.
+
+"'Your brother, d--n him,' he said, one day, 'is hunting for me
+everywhere! He wants to kill me or to deliver me up to justice, I
+don't know which.  He pretends that I tried to murder him!'  It
+was strange; but Arthur Gordon, who was bravery personified, and
+who exposed himself again and again to the most frightful dangers,
+felt a wild, unreasoning, inconceivable fear of my brother.  It
+was this dread that had decided him to burden himself with me.  He
+feared that if he left me, lying unconscious beside my brother's
+lifeless form, I might on recovering my senses reveal the truth,
+and unconsciously act as his accuser.  You were born in Richmond,
+Wilkie, where we remained nearly a month, during which time I saw
+but little of your father.  He had formed the acquaintance of
+several rich planters, and spent his time hunting and gambling
+with them.  Unfortunately, fifty thousand dollars could not last
+long at this rate; and, in spite of his skill as a gambler, he
+returned home one morning ruined.  A fortnight later when he had
+sold our effects, and borrowed all the money he could, we embarked
+again for France.  It was not until we reached Paris that I
+discovered the reasons that had influenced him in returning to
+Europe.  He had heard of my father and mother's death, and
+intended to compel me to claim my share of the property.  He dared
+not appear in person on account of my brother.  At last the hour
+of my vengeance had arrived; for I had taken a solemn oath that
+this scoundrel who had ruined me should never enjoy the fortune
+which had been his only object in seducing me.  I had sworn to die
+inch by inch and by the most frightful tortures rather than give
+him one penny of the Chalusse millions.  And I kept my word.
+
+"When I told him that I was resolved not to assert my rights, he
+seemed utterly confounded.  He could not understand how the down-
+trodden slave dared to revolt against him.  And when he found that
+my decision was irrevocable, I thought he would have an attack of
+apoplexy.  It made him wild with rage to think that he was only
+separated from this immense fortune--the dream of his life--by a
+single word of mine, and to find that he had not the power to
+extort that word from me.  Then began a struggle between us, which
+became more and more frightful as the money he possessed gradually
+dwindled away.  But it was in vain that he resorted to brutal
+treatment; in vain that he struck me, tortured me, and dragged me
+about the floor by the hair of my head! The thought that I was
+avenged, that his sufferings equalled mine, increased my courage a
+hundredfold, and made me almost insensible to physical pain.  He
+would certainly have been the first to grow weary of the struggle,
+if a fiendish plan had not occurred to him.  He said to himself
+that if he could not conquer the wife, he COULD conquer the mother
+and he threatened to turn his brutatity to you, Wilkie.  To save
+you--for I knew what he was capable of--I pretended to waver, and
+I asked twenty-four hours for reflection.  He granted them.  But
+the next day I left him forever, flying from him with you in my
+arms."
+
+M. Wilkie turned white, and a cold chill crept up his spine. 
+However, it was not pity for his mother's sufferings, nor shame
+for his father's infamy that agitated him, but ever the same
+terrible fear of incurring the enmity of this dangerous coveter of
+the Chalusse millions.  Would he be able to hold his father at bay
+even with the assistance of M. de Coralth and the Marquis de
+Valorsay?  A thousand questions rose to his lips, for he was eager
+to hear the particulars of his mother's flight; but Madame
+d'Argeles hurried on with her story as if she feared her strength
+would fail before she reached the end.
+
+"I was alone with you, Wilkie, in this great city," she resumed. 
+"A hundred francs was all that I possessed.  My first care was to
+find a place of shelter.  For sixteen francs a month, which I was
+compelled to pay in advance, I found a small, meagrely furnished
+room in the Faubourg Saint Martin.  It was badly ventilated and
+miserably lighted, but still it was shelter.  I said to myself
+that we could live there together by my work, Wilkie.  I was a
+proficient in feminine accomplishments; I was an excellent
+musician, and I thought I should have no difficulty in earning the
+four or five francs a day which I considered absolutely necessary
+for our subsistence.  Alas! I discovered only too soon what
+chimerical hopes I had cherished.  To give music lessons it is
+necessary to obtain pupils.  Where should I find them? I had no
+one to recommend me, and I scarcely dared show myself in the
+streets, so great was my fear that your father would discover our
+hiding-place.  At last, I decided to try to find some employment
+in needlework, and timidly offered my services at several shops. 
+Alas! it is only those who have gone about from door to door
+soliciting work who know the misery of the thing.  To ask alms
+would be scarcely more humiliating.  People sneered at me, and
+replied (when they deigned to reply at all) that 'there was no
+business doing, and they had all the help they wanted.'  My
+evident inexperience was probably the cause of many of these
+refusals, as well as my attire, for I still had the appearance of
+being a rich woman.  Who knows what they took me for? Still the
+thought of you sustained me, Wilkie, and nothing daunted me.
+
+"I finally succeeded in obtaining some bands of muslin to
+embroider, and some pieces of tapestry work to fill in. 
+Unremunerative employment, no doubt, especially to one ignorant of
+the art of working quickly, rather than well.  By rising with
+daylight, and working until late at night, I scarcely succeeded in
+earning twenty sous a day.  And it was not long before even this
+scanty resource failed me.  Winter came, and the cold weather with
+it.  One morning I changed my last five-franc piece--it lasted us
+a week.  Then I pawned and sold everything that was not absolutely
+indispensable until nothing was left me but my patched dress and a
+single skirt.  And soon an evening came when the owner of our
+miserable den turned us into the street because I could no longer
+pay the rent.
+
+"This was the final blow!  I tottered away, clinging to the walls
+for support; too weak from lack of food to carry you.  The rain
+was falling, and chilled us to the bones.  You were crying
+bitterly.  And all that night and all the next day, aimless and
+hopeless, we wandered about the streets.  I must either die of
+want or return to your father.  I preferred death.  Toward
+evening--instinct having led me to the Seine--I sat down on one of
+the stone benches of the Point-Neuf, holding you on my knees and
+watching the flow of the dark river below.  There was a strange
+fascination--a promise of peace in its depths--that impelled me
+almost irresistibly to plunge into the flood.  If I had been alone
+in the world, I should not have stopped to consider a second, but
+on your account, Wilkie, I hesitated."
+
+Moved by the thought of the danger he had escaped, M. Wilkie
+shuddered.  "B-r-r-r!" he growled.  "You did well to hesitate."
+
+She did not even hear him, but continued: "I at last decided that
+it was best to put an end to this misery, and rising with
+difficulty, I was approaching the parapet, when a gruff voice
+beside us exclaimed: 'What are you doing there?' I turned,
+thinking some police officer had spoken, but I was mistaken.  By
+the light of the street lamp, I perceived a man who looked some
+thirty years of age, and had a frank and rather genial face.  Why
+this stranger instantly inspired me with unlimited confidence I
+don't know.  Perhaps it was an unconscious horror of death that
+made me long for any token of human sympathy.  However it may have
+been, I told him my story, but not without changing the names, and
+omitting many particulars.  He had taken a seat beside me on the
+bench, and I saw big tears roll down his cheeks as I proceeded
+with my narrative.  'It is ever so! it is ever so!' he muttered. 
+'To love is to incur the risk of martyrdom.  It is to offer one's
+self as a victim to every perfidy, to the basest treason and
+ingratitude.'  The man who spoke in this fashion was Baron
+Trigault.  He did not allow me to finish my story.  'Enough!' he
+suddenly exclaimed, 'follow me!'  A cab was passing, he made us
+get in, and an hour later we were in a comfortable room, beside a
+blazing fire, with a generously spread table before us.  The next
+day, moreover, we were installed in a pleasant home.  Alas! why
+wasn't the baron generous to the last? You were saved, Wilkie, but
+at what a price!"
+
+She paused for a moment, her face redder than fire; but soon
+mastering her agitation, she resumed: "There was one great cause
+of dissension between the baron and myself.  I wished you to be
+educated, Wilkie, like the son of a noble family, while he desired
+you should receive the practical training suited to a youth who
+would have to make his own way in the world, and win position,
+fortune, and even name for himself.  Ah! he was a thousand times
+right, as events have since proved only too well! But maternal
+love blinded me, and, after an angry discussion, he went away,
+declaring he would not see me again until I became more
+reasonable.  He thought that reflection would cure me of my folly. 
+Unfortunately, he was not acquainted with the fatal obstinacy
+which is the distinguishing characteristic of the Chalusse family. 
+While I was wondering how I could find the means of carrying the
+plans I had formed for you into execution, two of the baron's
+acquaintances presented themselves, with the following proposal:
+Aware of the enormous profits derived by clandestine gambling
+dens, they had conceived the project of opening a public
+establishment on a large scale, where any Parisian or foreigner,
+if he seemed to be a gentleman, and possessed of means, would find
+no difficulty in obtaining admission.  By taking certain
+precautions, and by establishing this gambling den in a private
+drawing-room, they believed the scheme practicable, and came to
+suggest that I should keep the drawing-room in question, and be
+their partner in the enterprise.  Scarcely knowing what I pledged
+myself to, I accepted their offer, influenced--I should rather say
+decided--by the exalted positions which both these gentlemen
+occupied, by the public consideration they enjoyed, and the
+honored names they bore.  And that same week this house was rented
+and furnished, and I was installed in it under the name of Lia
+d'Argeles.
+
+"But this was not all.  There still remained the task of creating
+for myself one of those scandalous reputations that attract public
+attention.  This proved an easy task, thanks to the assistance of
+my silent partners, and the innocent simplicity of several of
+their friends and certain journalists.  As for myself, I did my
+best to insure the success of the horrible farce which was to lend
+infamous notoriety to the name of Lia d'Argeles.  I had
+magnificent equipages and superb dresses, and I made myself
+conspicuous at the theatres and all places of public resort.  As
+is generally the case when one is acting contrary to conscience, I
+called the most absurd sophistries to my assistance.  I tried to
+convince myself that appearances are nothing, that reality is
+everything, and that it did not matter if I were known as a
+courtesan since rumor lied, and my life WAS really chaste.  When
+the baron hastened to me and tried to rescue me from the abyss
+into which I had flung myself.  it was too late.  I had discovered
+that the business would prove successful; and for your sake, I
+longed for money as passionately, as madly, as any miser.  Last
+year my gaming-room yielded more than one hundred and fifty
+thousand francs clear profit, and I received as my share the
+thirty-five thousand francs which you squandered.  Now you know me
+as I really am.  My associates, my partners, the men whose secret
+I have faithfully kept, walk the streets with their heads erect. 
+They boast of their unsullied honor, and they are respected by
+every one.  Such is the truth, and I have no reason to make their
+disgrace known.  Besides, if I proclaimed it from the house-tops,
+no one would believe me.  But you are my son, and I owe you the
+truth, the whole truth!"
+
+In any age but the present, Madame d'Argeles's story would have
+seemed absolutely incredible.  Nowadays, however, such episodes
+are by no means rare.  Two men--two men of exalted rank and highly
+respected, to use a common expression--associate in opening a
+gaming-house under the very eyes of the police, and in coining
+money out of a woman's supposed disgrace.  'Tis after all but an
+everyday occurrence.
+
+The unhappy woman had told her story with apparent coldness, and
+yet, in her secret heart, she perhaps hoped that by disclosing her
+terrible sacrifice and long martyrdom, she would draw a burst of
+gratitude and tenderness from her son, calculated to repay her for
+all her sufferings.  But the hope was vain.  It would have been 
+easier to draw water from a solid rock than to, extract a
+sympathetic tear from Wilkie's eyes.  He was only alive to the
+practical side of this narrative, and what impressed him most was
+the impudent assurance of Madame d'Argeles's business associates. 
+"Not a bad idea; not bad at all," he exclaimed.  And, boiling over
+with curiosity, he continued: "I would give something handsome to
+know those men's names.  Really you ought to tell me.  It would be
+worth one's while to know."
+
+Any other person than this interesting young man would have been
+crushed by the look his mother gave him--a look embodying the
+deepest disappointment and contempt.  "I think you must be mad,"
+she remarked coldly.  And as he sprang up, astonished that any one
+should doubt his abundant supply of good sense, "Let us put an end
+to this," she sternly added.
+
+Thereupon she hastily went into the adjoining room, reappearing a
+moment later with a roll of papers in her hand.  "Here," she
+remarked, "is my marriage certificate, your certificate of birth,
+and a copy of my renunciation--a perfectly valid document, since
+the court has authorized it, owing to my husband's absence.  All
+these proofs I am ready and willing to place at your disposal, but
+on one condition."
+
+This last word fell like a cold shower-bath upon Wilkie's exultant
+joy.  "What is this condition?" he anxiously inquired.
+
+"It is that you should sign this deed, which has been drawn up by
+my notary--a deed by which you pledge yourself to hand me the sum
+of two million francs on the day you come into possession of the
+Chalusse property."
+
+Two millions! The immensity of the sum struck Wilkie dumb with
+consternation.  Nor did he forget that he would be compelled to
+give the Viscount de Coralth the large reward he had promised him--
+a reward promised in writing, unfortunately.  "I shall have
+nothing left," he began, piteously.
+
+But with a disdainful gesture Madame d'Argeles interrupted him. 
+"Set your mind at rest," said she.  "You will still be immensely
+rich.  All the estimates which have been made are far below the
+mark.  When I was a girl I often heard my father say that his
+income amounted to more than eight hundred thousand francs a year. 
+My brother inherited the whole property, and I would be willing to
+swear that he never spent more than half of his income."
+
+Wilkie's nerves had never been subjected to so severe a shock.  He
+tottered and his brain whirled.  "Oh! oh!" he stammered.  This was
+all he could say.
+
+"Only I must warn you of a more than probable deception," pursued
+Madame d'Argeles.  "As my brother was firmly resolved to deprive
+me even of my rightful portion of the estate, he concealed his
+fortune in every possible way.  It will undoubtedly require
+considerable time and trouble to gain possession of the whole. 
+However I know a man, formerly the Count de Chalusse's
+confidential agent, who might aid you in this task."
+
+"And this man's name?"
+
+"Is Isidore Fortunat.  I saved his card for you.  Here it is."
+
+M. Wilkie took it up, placed it carefully in his pocket, and then
+exclaimed: "That being the case, I consent to sign, but after this
+you need not complain.  Two millions at five per cent. ought to
+greatly alleviate one's sufferings."
+
+Madame d'Argeles did not deign to notice this delicate irony.  "I
+will tell you in advance to what purpose I intend to apply this
+sum," she said.
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"I intend one of these two millions to serve as the dowry of a
+young girl who would have been the Count de Chalusse's sole
+legatee, if his death had not been so sudden and so unexpected."
+
+"And the other one?"
+
+"The other I intend to invest for you in such a way that you can
+only touch the interest of it, so that you will not want for bread
+after you have squandered your inheritance, even to the very last
+penny."
+
+This wise precaution could not fail to shock such a brilliant
+young man as M. Wilkie.  "Do you take me for a fool?" he
+exclaimed.  "I may appear very generous, but I am shrewd enough,
+never you fear."
+
+"Sign," interrupted Madame d'Argeles, coldly.
+
+But he attempted to prove that he was no fool by reading and
+rereading the contract before he would consent to append his name
+to it.  At last, however, he did so, and stowed away the proofs
+which insured him the much-coveted property.
+
+"Now," said Madame d'Argeles, "I have one request to make of you. 
+Whenever your father makes his appearance and lays claim to this
+fortune, I entreat you to avoid a lawsuit, which would only make
+your mother's shame and the disgrace attached to the hitherto
+stainless name of Chalusse still more widely known.  Compromise
+with him.  You will be rich enough to satisfy his greed without
+feeling it."
+
+M. Wilkie remained silent for a moment, as if he were deliberating
+upon the course he ought to pursue.  "If my father is reasonable,
+I will be the same," he said at last.  "I will choose as an
+arbiter between us one of my friends--a man who acts on the
+square, like myself--the Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+"My God! do you know him?"
+
+"He is one of my most intimate friends."
+
+Madame d'Argeles had become very pale.  "Wretched boy!" she
+exclaimed.  "You don't know that it's the marquis----" She paused
+abruptly.  One word more and she would have betrayed Pascal
+Ferailleur's secret plans, with which she had been made acquainted
+by Baron Trigault.  Had she a right to do this, even to put her
+son on his guard against a man whom she considered the greatest
+villain in the world?
+
+"Well?" insisted M. Wilkie, in surprise.
+
+But Madame d'Argeles had recovered her self-possession.  "I only
+wished to warn you against too close a connection with the Marquis
+de Valorsay.  He has an excellent position in society, but yours
+will be far more brilliant.  His star is on the wane; yours is
+just rising.  All that he is regretting, you have a right to hope
+for.  Perhaps even now he is jealous of you, and wishes to
+persuade you to take some false step."
+
+"Ah! you little know him!"
+
+"I have warned you."
+
+M. Wilkie took up his hat, but, though he was longing to depart,
+embarrassment kept him to the spot.  He vaguely felt that he ought
+not to leave his mother in this style.  "I hope I shall soon have
+some good news to bring you," he began.
+
+"Before night I shall have left this house," she answered.
+
+"Of course.  But you are going to give me your new address."
+
+"No."
+
+"What?--No!"
+
+She shook her head sadly, and in a scarcely audible voice 
+responded: "It is not likely that we shall meet again."
+
+"And the two millions that I am to turn over to you?"
+
+"Mr. Patterson will collect the money.  As for me, say to yourself
+that I'm dead.  You have broken the only link that bound me to
+life, by proving the futility of the most terrible sacrifices. 
+However, I am a mother, and I forgive you."  Then as he did not
+move, and as she felt that her strength was deserting her, she
+dragged herself from the room, murmuring, "Farewell!"
+
+
+
+XVI.
+
+
+Stupefied with astonishment, M. Wilkie stood for a moment silent
+and motionless.  "Allow me," he faltered at last; "Allow me--I
+wish to explain." But Madame d'Argeles did not even turn her head;
+the door closed behind her and he was left alone.
+
+However strong a man's nature may be, he always has certain
+moments of weakness.  For instance, at the present moment Wilkie
+was completely at a loss what to do.  Not that he repented, he was
+incapable of that; but there are hours when the most hardened
+conscience is touched, and when long dormant instincts at last
+assert their rights.  If he had obeyed his first impulse, he would
+have darted after his mother and thrown himself on his knees
+before her.  But reflection, remembrance of the Viscount de
+Coralth, and the Marquis de Valorsay, made him silent the noblest
+voice that had spoken in his soul for many a long day.  So, with
+his head proudly erect, he went off, twirling his mustaches and
+followed by the whispers of the servants--whispers which were
+ready to change into hisses at any moment.
+
+But what did he care for the opinion of these plebeians!  Before
+he was a hundred paces from the house his emotion had vanished,
+and he was thinking how he could most agreeably spend the time
+until the hour appointed for his second interview with M. de
+Valorsay.  He had not breakfasted, but "his stomach was out of
+sorts," as he said to himself, and it would really have been
+impossible for him to swallow a morsel.  Thus not caring to return
+home, he started in quest of one of his former intimates, with the
+generous intention of overpowering him with the great news. 
+Unfortunately he failed to find this friend, and eager to vent the
+pride that was suffocating him, in some way or other, he entered
+the shop of an engraver, whom he crushed by his importance, and
+ordered some visiting cards bearing the inscription W. de Gordon-
+Chalusse, with a count's coronet in one of the corners.
+
+Thus occupied, time flew by so quickly that he was a trifle late
+in keeping his appointment with his dear friend the marquis. 
+Wilkie found M. de Valorsay as he had left him--in his smoking-
+room, talking with the Viscount de Coralth.  Not that the marquis
+had been idle, but it had barely taken him an hour to set in
+motion the machinery which he had had in complete readiness since
+the evening before.  "Victory!" cried Wilkie, as he appeared on
+the threshold.  "It was a hard battle, but I asserted my rights. 
+I am the acknowledged heir! the millions are mine!" And without
+giving his friends time to congratulate him, he began to describe
+his interview with Madame d'Argeles, presenting his conduct in the
+most odious light possible, pretending he had indulged in all
+sorts of harsh rejoinders, and making himself out to be "a man of
+bronze," or "a block of marble," as he said.
+
+"You are certainly more courageous than I fancied," said M. de
+Valorsay gravely, when the narrative was ended.
+
+"Is that really so?"
+
+"It is, indeed.  Now the world is before you.  Let your story be
+noised abroad--and it will be noised abroad--and you will become a
+hero.  Imagine the amazement of Paris when it learns that Lia
+d'Argeles was a virtuous woman, who sacrificed her reputation for
+the sake of her son--a martyr, whose disgrace was only a shameful
+falsehood invented by two men of rank to increase the attractions
+of their gambling-den! It will take the newspapers a month to
+digest this strange romance.  And whom will all this notoriety
+fall upon? Upon you, my dear sir; and as your millions will lend
+an additional charm to the romance, you will become the lion of
+the season."
+
+M. Wilkie was really too much overwhelmed to feel elated.  "Upon
+my word, you overpower me, my dear marquis--you quite overpower
+me," he stammered.
+
+"I too have been at work," resumed the marquis.  "And I have made
+numerous inquiries, in accordance with my promise.  I almost
+regret it, for what I have discovered is--very singular, to say 
+the least.  I was just saying so to Coralth when you came in. 
+What I have learned makes it extremely unpleasant for me, to find
+myself mixed up in the affair; accordingly, I have requested the
+persons who gave me this information to call here.  You shall hear
+their story, and then you must decide for yourself." So saying, he
+rang the bell, and as soon as a servant answered the summons, he
+exclaimed: "Show M. Casimir in."
+
+When the lackey had retired to carry out this order, the marquis
+remarked: "Casimir was the deceased count's valet.  He is a clever
+fellow, honest, intelligent, and well up in his business--such a
+man as you will need, in fact, and I won't try to conceal the fact
+that the hope of entering your service has aided considerably in
+unloosening his tongue."
+
+M. Casimir, who was irreproachably clad in black, with a white
+cambric tie round his neck, entered the room at this very moment,
+smiling and bowing obsequiously.  "This gentleman, my good
+fellow," said M. de Valorsay, pointing to Wilkie, "is your former
+master's only heir.  A proof of devotion might induce him to keep
+you with him.  What you told me a little while ago is of great
+importance to him; see if you can repeat it now for his benefit."
+
+In his anxiety to secure a good situation, M. Casimir had ventured
+to apply to the Marquis de Valorsay; he had talked a good deal,
+and the marquis had conceived the plan of making him an
+unsuspecting accomplice.  "I never deny my words," replied the
+valet, "and since monsieur is the heir to the property, I won't
+hesitate to tell him that immense sums have been stolen from the
+late count's estate."
+
+M. Wilkie bounded from his chair.  "Immense sums!" he exclaimed. 
+"Is it possible!"
+
+"Monsieur shall judge.  On the morning preceding his death, the
+count had more than two millions in bank-notes and bonds stowed
+away in his escritoire, but when the justice of the peace came to
+take the inventory, the money could not be found.  We servants
+were terribly alarmed, for we feared that suspicion would fall
+upon us."
+
+Ah! if Wilkie had only been alone he would have given vent to his
+true feelings.  But here, under the eyes of the marquis and M. de
+Coralth, he felt that he must maintain an air of stoical
+indifference.  He ALMOST succeeded in doing so, and in a tolerably
+firm voice he remarked: "This is not very pleasant news.  Two
+millions! that's a good haul.  Tell me, my friend, have you any
+clue to the thief?"
+
+The valet's troubled glance betrayed an uneasy conscience, but he
+had gone too far to draw back.  "I shouldn't like to accuse an
+innocent person," he replied, "but there was some one who
+constantly had access to that escritoire."
+
+"And who was that?"
+
+"Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+"I don't know the lady."
+
+"She's a young girl who is--at least people say--the count's
+illegitimate daughter.  Her word was law in the house."
+
+"What has become of her?"
+
+"She has gone to live with General de Fondege, one of the count's
+friends.  She wouldn't take her jewels and diamonds away with her,
+which seemed very strange, for they are worth more than a hundred
+thousand francs.  Even Bourigeau said to me: 'That's unnatural, M.
+Casimir.' Borigeau is the concierge of the house, a very worthy
+man.  Monsieur will not find his equal."
+
+Unfortunately, this tribute to the merits of the valet's friend
+was interrupted by the arrival of a footman, who, after tapping
+respectfully at the door, entered the room and exclaimed: "The
+doctor is here, and desires to speak with Monsieur le Marquis."
+
+"Very well," replied M. de Valorsay, "ask him to wait.  When I
+ring, you can usher him in." Then addressing M. Casimir, he added:
+
+"You may retire for the present, but don't leave the house.  M.
+Wilkie will acquaint you with his intentions by and by."
+
+The valet thereupon backed out of the room, bowing profoundly.
+
+"There is a story for you!" exclaimed M. Wilkie as soon as the
+door was closed.  "A robbery of two millions!"
+
+The marquis shook his head, and remarked, gravely: "That's a mere
+nothing.  I suspect something far more terrible."
+
+"What, pray? Upon my word! you frighten me."
+
+"Wait! I may be mistaken.  Even the doctor may lie deceived.  But
+you shall judge for yourself." As he spoke, he pulled the bell-
+rope, and an instant after, the servant announced: "Dr. Jodon."
+
+It was, indeed, the same physician who had annoyed Mademoiselle
+Marguerite by his persistent curiosity and impertinent questions,
+at the Count de Chalusse's bedside; the same crafty and ambitious
+man, constantly tormented by covetousness, and ready to do
+anything to gratify it--the man of the period, in short, who
+sacrificed everything to the display by which he hoped to deceive
+other people, and who was almost starving in the midst of his mock
+splendor.
+
+M. Casimir was an innocent accomplice, but the doctor knew what he
+was doing.  Interviewed on behalf of the Marquis de Valorsay by
+Madame Leon, he had fathomed the whole mystery at once.  These two
+crafty natures had read and understood each other.  No definite
+words had passed between them--they were both too shrewd for that;
+and yet, a compact had been concluded by which each had tacitly
+agreed to serve the other according to his need.
+
+As soon as the physician appeared, M. de Valorsay rose and shook
+hands with him; then, offering him an arm-chair, he remarked: "I
+will not conceal from you, doctor, that I have in some measure
+prepared this gentleman"--designating M. Wilkie--"for your
+terrible revelation."
+
+By the doctor's attitude, a keen observer might have divined the
+secret trepidation that always precedes a bad action which has
+been conceived and decided upon in cold blood.
+
+"To tell the truth," he began, speaking slowly, and with some
+difficulty, "now that the moment for speaking has come, I almost
+hesitate.  Our profession has painful exigencies.  Perhaps it is
+now too late.  If there had been any of the count's relatives in
+the house, or even an heir at the time, I should have insisted
+upon an autopsy.  But now----"
+
+On hearing the word "autopsy," M. Wilkie looked round with
+startled eyes.  He opened his lips to interrupt the speaker, but
+the physician had already resumed his narrative.  "Besides, I had
+only suspicions," he said, "suspicions based, it is true, upon
+strange and alarming circumstances.  I am a man, that is to say, I
+am liable to error.  In the kingdom of science it would be
+unpardonable temerity on my part to affirm----"
+
+"To affirm what?" interrupted M. Wilkie.
+
+The physician did not seem to hear him, but continued in the same
+dogmatic tone.  "The count apparently died from an attack of
+apoplexy, but certain poisons produce similar and even identical
+symptoms which are apt to deceive the most experienced medical
+men.  The persistent efforts of the count's intellect, his
+muscular rigidity alternating with utter relaxation, the dilation
+of the pupils of his eyes, and more than aught else the violence
+of his last convulsions, have led me to ask myself if some
+criminal had not hastened his end."
+
+Whiter than his shirt, and trembling like a leaf, M. Wilkie sprang
+from his chair.  "I understand!" he exclaimed.  "The count was
+murdered--poisoned."
+
+But the physician replied with an energetic protest.  "Oh, not so
+fast!" said he.  "Don't mistake my conjectures for assertions. 
+Still, I ought not to conceal the circumstances which awakened my
+suspicions.  On the morning preceding his attack, the count took
+two spoonfuls of the contents of a vial which the people in charge
+could not or would not produce.  When I asked what this vial
+contained, the answer was: 'A medicine to prevent apoplexy.' I
+don't say that this is false, but prove it.  As for the motive
+that led to the crime, it is apparent at once.  The escritoire
+contained two millions of francs, and the money has disappeared. 
+Show me the vial, find the money, and I will admit that I am
+wrong.  But until then, I shall have my suspicions."
+
+He did not speak like a physician but like an examining
+magistrate, and his alarming deductions found their way even to M.
+Wilkie's dull brain.  "Who could have committed the crime?" he
+asked.
+
+"It could only have been the person likely to profit by it; and
+only one person besides the count knew that the money was in the
+house, and had possession of the key of this escritoire."
+
+"And this person?"
+
+"Is the count's illegitimate daughter, who lived in the house with 
+him--Mademoiselle Marguerite."
+
+M. Wilkie sank into his chair again, completely overwhelmed.  The
+coincidence between the doctor's deposition and M. Casimir's
+testimony was too remarkable to pass unnoticed.  Further doubt
+seemed impossible.  "Ah! this is most unfortunate!" faltered
+Wilkie. "What a pity! Such difficulties never assail any one but
+me! What am I to do?" And in his distress he glanced from the
+doctor to the Marquis de Valorsay, and then at M. de Coralth, as
+if seeking inspiration from each of them.
+
+"My profession forbids my acting as an adviser in such cases,"
+replied the physician, "but these gentlemen have not the same
+reasons for keeping silent."
+
+"Excuse me," interrupted the marquis quickly; "but this is one of
+those cases in which a man must be left to his own inspirations. 
+The most I can do, is to say what course I should pursue if I were
+one of the deceased count's relatives or heirs."
+
+"Pray tell me, my dear marquis," sighed Wilkie.  "You would render
+me an immense service by doing so."
+
+M. de Valorsay seemed to reflect for a moment; and then he
+solemnly exclaimed: "I should feel that my honor required me to
+investigate every circumstance connected with this mysterious
+affair.  Before receiving a man's estate, one must know the cause
+of his death, so as to avenge him if he has been foully murdered."
+
+For M. Wilkie the oracle had spoken.  "Such is my opinion
+exactly," he declared.  "But what course would you pursue, my dear
+marquis? How would you set about solving this mystery?"
+
+"I should appeal to the authorities."
+
+"Ah!"
+
+"And this very day, this very hour, without losing a second, I
+should address a communication to the public prosecutor, informing
+him of the robbery which is patent to any one, and referring to
+the possibility of foul play."
+
+"Yes, that would be an excellent idea; but there is one slight
+drawback--I don't know how to draw up such a communication."
+
+"I know no more about it than you do yourself; but any lawyer or
+notary will give you the necessary information.  Are you
+acquainted with any such person? Would you like me to give you the
+address of my business man? He is a very clever fellow, who has
+almost all the members of my club as his clients."
+
+This last reason was more than sufficient to fix M. Wilkie's
+choice.  "Where can I find him?" he inquired.
+
+"At his house--he is always there at this hour.  Come! here is a
+scrap of paper and a pencil.  You had better make a note of his
+address.  Write: 'Maumejan, Route de la Revolte.'  Tell him that I
+sent you, and he will treat you with the same consideration as he
+would show to me.  He lives a long way off, but my brougham is
+standing in the courtyard; so take it, and when your consultation
+is over, come back and dine with me."
+
+"Ah! you are too kind!" exclaimed M. Wilkie.  "You overpower me,
+my dear marquis, you do, upon my word! I shall fly and be back in
+a moment."
+
+He went off looking radiant; and a moment later the carriage which
+was to take him to M. Maumejan's was heard rolling out of the
+courtyard.
+
+The doctor had already taken up his hat and cane.
+
+"You will excuse me for leaving you so abruptly, Monsieur le
+Marquis," said he, "but I have an engagement to discuss a business
+matter."
+
+"Indeed!"
+
+"I am negotiating for the purchase of a dentist's establishment."
+
+"What, you?"
+
+"Yes, I.  You may tell me that this is a downfall, but I will
+answer, 'It will give me a living.' Medicine is becoming a more 
+and more unremunerative profession.  However hard a physician may
+work, he can scarcely pay for the water he uses in washing his
+hands.  I have an opportunity of purchasing the business of a
+well-established and well-known dentist, in an excellent
+neighborhood.  Why not avail myself of it? Only one thing worries
+me--the lack of funds."
+
+The marquis had expected the doctor would require remuneration for
+his services.  Before compromising himself any further, M. Jodon
+wished to knew what compensation he was to receive.  The marquis
+was so sure of this, that he quickly exclaimed: "Ah, my dear
+doctor, if you have need of twenty thousand francs, I shall be
+only too happy to offer them to you."
+
+"Really?"
+
+"Upon my honor!"
+
+"And when can you let me have the money?"
+
+"In three or four days' time."
+
+The bargain was concluded.  The doctor was now ready to find
+traces of any poison whatsoever in the Count de Chalusse's exhumed
+remains.  He pressed the marquis's hand and then went off,
+exclaiming: "Whatever happens you can count upon me."
+
+Left alone with the Viscount de Coralth, and consequently freed
+from all restraint, M. de Valorsay rose with a long-drawn sigh of
+relief.  "What an interminable seance!" he growled.  And,
+approaching his acolyte, who was sitting silent and motionless in
+an arm-chair, he slapped him on the shoulder, exclaiming: "Are you
+ill that you sit there like that, as still as a mummy?"
+
+The viscount turned as if he had been suddenly aroused from
+slumber.  "I'm well enough," he answered somewhat roughly.  "I was
+only thinking."
+
+"Your thoughts are not very pleasant, to judge from the look on
+your face."
+
+"No.  I was thinking of the fate that you are preparing for us."
+
+"Oh! A truce to disagreeable prophecies, please! Besides, it's too
+late to draw back, or to even think of retreat.  The Rubicon is
+passed."
+
+"Alas! that is the cause of my anxiety.  If it hadn't been for my
+wretched past, which you have threatened me with like a dagger, I
+should long ago have left you to incur this danger alone.  You
+were useful to me in times past, I admit.  You presented me to the
+Baroness Trigault, to whose patronage I owe my present means, but
+I am paying too dearly for your services in allowing myself to be
+made the instrument of your dangerous schemes.  Who aided you in
+defrauding Kami-Bey? Who bet for you against your own horse
+Domingo? Who risked his life in slipping those cards in the pack
+which Pascal Ferailleur held? It was Coralth, always Coralth."
+
+A gesture of anger escaped the marquis, but resolving to restrain
+himself, he made no rejoinder.  It was not until after he had
+walked five or six times round the smoking-room and grown more
+calm that he returned to the viscount's side.  "Really, I don't
+recognize you," he began.  "Is it really you who have turned
+coward? And at what a moment, pray? Why, on the very eve of
+success."
+
+"I wish I could believe you."
+
+"Facts shall convince you.  This morning I might have doubted, but
+now, thanks to that vain idiot who goes by the name of Wilkie, I
+am sure, perfectly, mathematically sure of success.  Maumejan, who
+is entirely devoted to me, and who is the greediest, most
+avaricious scoundrel alive, will draw up such a complaint that
+Marguerite will sleep in prison.  Moreover, other witnesses will
+be summoned.  By what Casimir has said, you can judge what the
+other servants will say.  This testimony will be sufficient to
+convict her of the robbery.  As for the poisoning, you heard Dr.
+Jodon.  Can I depend upon him? Evidently, if I pay without
+haggling.  Very well; I shall pay."
+
+But all this did not reassure M. de Coralth.  "The accusation will
+fall to the ground," said he, "as soon as the famous vial from
+which M. de Chalusse took two spoonfuls is found."
+
+"Excuse me; it won't be found."
+
+"But why?"
+
+"Because I know where it is, my dear friend.  It is in the count's
+escritoire, but it won't be there any longer on the day after to-
+morrow."
+
+"Who will remove it?"
+
+"A skilful fellow whom Madame Leon has found for me.  Everything
+has been carefully arranged.  To-morrow night at the latest Madame
+Leon will let this man into the Hotel de Chalusse by the garden
+gate, which she has kept the key of.  Vantrasson, as the man is
+called, knows the management of the house, and he will break open
+the escritoire and take the vial away.  You may say that there are
+seals upon the furniture, placed there by the justice of the
+peace.  That's true, but this man tells me that he can remove and
+replace them in such a way as to defy detection; and as the lock
+has been forced once already--the day after the count's death--a
+second attempt to break the escritoire open will not be detected."
+
+The viscount remarked, with an ironical air: "All that is perfect;
+but the autopsy will reveal the falseness of the accusation."
+
+"Naturally--but an autopsy will require time, and that will suit
+my plans admirably.  After eight or ten days' solitary confinement
+and several rigid examinations, Mademoiselle Marguerite's energy
+and courage will flag.  What do you think she will reply to the
+man who says to her: 'I love you, and for your sake I will attempt
+the impossible.  Swear to become my wife and I will establish your
+innocence?'"
+
+"I think she will say: 'Save me and I will marry you!'"
+
+M. de Valorsay clapped his hands.  "Bravo!" he exclaimed; "you
+have spoken the truth.  Remember, now, that your dark forebodings
+are only chimeras! Yes, she will swear it, and I know she is the
+woman to keep her vow, even if she died of sorrow.  And the very
+next day I will go to the examining magistrate and say to him:
+'Marguerite a thief! Ah, what a frightful mistake.  A robbery has
+been committed, it's true; but I know the real culprit--a
+scoundrel who fancied that by destroying a single letter he would
+annihilate all traces of the breach of fidelity he had committed. 
+Fortunately, the Count de Chalusse distrusted this man, and proof
+of his breach of trust is in existence.  I have this proof in my
+hands.' And I will show a letter establishing the truth of my
+assertion."
+
+No forebodings clouded the marquis's joy; he saw no obstacles; it
+seemed to him as if he had already triumphed.  "And the day
+following," he resumed, "when Marguerite becomes my wife, I shall
+take from a certain drawer a certain document, given to me by M.
+de Chalusse when I was on the point of becoming his son-in-law,
+and in which he recognizes Marguerite as his daughter, and makes
+her his sole legatee.  And this document is perfectly en regle,
+and unattackable.  Maumejan, who has examined it, guarantees that
+the value of the count's estate cannot be less than ten millions. 
+Five will go to Madame d'Argeles, or her son Wilkie, as their
+share of the property.  The remaining five will be mine.  Come,
+confess that the plan is admirable!"
+
+"Admirable, undoubtedly; but terribly complicated.  When there are
+so many wheels within wheels, one of them is always sure to get
+out of order."
+
+"Nonsense!"
+
+"Besides, you have I don't know how many accomplices--Maumejan,
+the doctor, Madame Leon, and Vantrasson, not counting myself. 
+Will all these people perform their duties satisfactorily?"
+
+"Each of them is as much interested in my success as I am myself."
+
+"But we have enemies--Madame d'Argeles, Fortunat----"
+
+"Madame d'Argeles is about to leave Paris.  If Fortunat is
+troublesome I will purchase his silence; Maumejan has promised me
+money."
+
+But M. de Coralth had kept his strongest argument until the last. 
+"And Pascal Ferailleur?" said he.  "You have forgotten him."
+
+No; M. de Valorsay had not forgotten him.  You do not forget the
+man you have ruined and dishonored.  Still, it was in a careless
+tone that ill accorded with his state of mind that the marquis
+replied: "The poor devil must be en route for America by this
+time."
+
+The viscount shook his head.  "That's what I've in vain been
+trying to convince myself of," said he.  "Do you know that Pascal
+was virtually expelled from the Palais de Justice, and that his
+name has been struck off the list of advocates? If he hasn't blown
+his brains out, it is only because he hopes to prove his
+innocence.  Ah! if you knew him as well as I do, you wouldn't be
+so tranquil in mind!"
+
+He stopped short for the door had suddenly opened.  The
+interruption made the marquis frown, but anger gave way to anxiety
+when he perceived Madame Leon, who entered the room out of breath
+and extremely red in the face.
+
+"There wasn't a cab to be had!" she groaned.  "Just my luck.  I
+came on foot, and ran the whole way.  I'm utterly exhausted;" and
+so saying, she sank into an arm-chair.
+
+M. de Valorsay had turned very pale.  "Defer your complaints until
+another time," he said, harshly.  "What has happened? Tell me."
+
+The estimable woman raised her hands to heaven, as she plaintively
+replied: "There is so much to tell? First, Mademoiselle Marguerite
+has written two letters, but I have failed to discover to whom
+they were sent.  Secondly, she remained for more than an hour
+yesterday evening in the drawing-room with the General's son,
+Lieutenant Gustave, and, on parting, they shook hands like a
+couple of friends, and said, 'It is agreed.'"
+
+"And is that all?"
+
+"One moment and you'll see.  This morning Mademoiselle went out
+with Madame de Fondege to call on the Baroness Trigault.  I do not
+know what took place there, but there must have been a terrible
+scene; for they brought Mademoiselle Marguerite back unconscious,
+in one of the baron's carriages."
+
+"Do you hear that, viscount?" exclaimed M. de Valorsay.
+
+"Yes! You shall have the explanation to-morrow," answered M. de
+Coralth.
+
+"And last, but not least," resumed Madame Leon, "on returning home
+this evening at about five o'clock, I fancied I saw Mademoiselle
+Marguerite leave the house and go up the Rue Pigalle.  I had
+thought she was ill and in bed, and I said to myself, 'This is
+very strange.' So I hastened after her.  It was indeed she.  Of
+course, I followed her.  And what did I see? Why, Mademoiselle
+paused to talk with a vagabond, clad in a blouse.  They exchanged
+notes, and Mademoiselle Marguerite returned home.  And here I am. 
+She must certainly suspect something.  What is to be done?"
+
+If M. de Valorsay were frightened, he did not show it.  "Many
+thanks for your zeal, my dear lady," he replied, "but all this is
+a mere nothing.  Return home at once; you will receive my
+instructions to-morrow."
+
+
+
+XVII.
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had been greatly surprised on the occasion
+of her visit to M. Fortunat when she saw Victor Chupin suddenly
+step forward and eagerly exclaim: "I shall be unworthy of the name
+I bear if I do not find M. Ferailleur for you in less than a
+fortnight."
+
+It is true that M. Fortunat's clerk did not appear to the best
+advantage on this occasion.  In order to watch M. de Coralth, he
+had again arrayed himself in his cast-off clothes, and with his
+blouse and his worn-out shoes, his "knockers" and his glazed cap,
+he looked the vagabond to perfection.  Still, strange as it may
+seem, Mademoiselle Marguerite did not once doubt the devotion of
+this strange auxiliary.  Without an instant's hesitation she
+replied, "I accept your services, monsieur.
+
+Chupin felt at least a head taller as he heard this beautiful
+young girl speak to him in a voice as clear and as sonorous as
+crystal.  "Ah! you are right to trust me," he rejoined, striking
+his chest with his clinched hand, "for I have a heart--but----"
+
+"But what, monsieur?"
+
+"I am wondering if you would consent to do what I wish.  It would
+be a very good plan, but if it displeases you, we will say no more
+about it."
+
+"And what do you wish?"
+
+"To see you every day, so as to tell you what I've done, and to
+obtain such directions as I may require.  I'm well aware that I
+can't go to M. de Fondege's door and ask to speak to you; but
+there are other ways of seeing each other.  For instance, every
+evening at five o-clock precisely, I might pass along the Rue
+Pigalle, and warn you of my presence by such a signal as this:
+'Pi-ouit!'"  So saying he gave vent to the peculiar call, half
+whistle, half ejaculation, which is familiar to the Parisian
+working-classes.  "Then," he resumed, "you might come down and I
+would tell you the news; besides, I might often help you by doing
+errands."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite reflected for a moment, and then bowing
+her head, she replied:
+
+"What you suggest is quite practicable.  On and after to-morrow
+evening I will watch for you; and if I don't come down at the end
+of half an hour, you will know that I am unavoidably detained."
+
+Chupin ought to have been satisfied.  But no, he had still another
+request to make; and instinct, supplying the lack of education,
+told him that it was a delicate one.  Indeed, he dared not present
+his petition; but his embarrassment was so evident, and he twisted
+his poor cap so despairingly, that at last the young girl gently
+asked him: "Is there anything more?"
+
+He still hesitated, but eventually, mustering all his courage, he
+replied: "Well, yes, mademoiselle.  I've never seen Monsieur
+Ferailleur.  Is he tall or short, light or dark, stout or thin? I
+do not know.  I might stand face to face with him without being
+able to say, 'It's he.' But it would be quite a different thing if
+I only had a photograph of him."
+
+A crimson flush spread over Mademoiselle Marguerite's face.  Still
+she answered, unaffectedly, "I will give you M. Ferailleur's
+photograph to-morrow, monsieur."
+
+"Then I shall be all right!" exclaimed Chupin.  "Have no fears,
+mademoiselle, we shall outwit these scoundrels!"
+
+So far a silent witness of this scene, M. Fortunat now felt it his
+duty to interfere.  He was not particularly pleased by his clerk's
+suddenly increased importance; and yet it mattered little to him,
+for his only object was to revenge himself on Valorsay.  "Victor
+is a capable and trustworthy young fellow, mademoiselle," he
+declared; "he has grown up under my training, and I think you will
+find him a faithful servant."
+
+A "have you finished, you old liar?" rose to Chupin's lips, but
+respect for Mademoiselle Marguerite prevented him from uttering
+the words.  "Then everything is decided," she said, pleasantly. 
+And with a smile she offered her hand to Chupin as one does in
+concluding a bargain.
+
+If he had yielded to his first impulse he would have thrown
+himself on his knees and kissed this hand of hers, the whitest and
+most beautiful he had ever seen.  As it was, he only ventured to
+touch it with his finger-tips, and yet he changed color two or
+three times.  "What a woman!" he exclaimed, when she had left
+them.  "A perfect queen! A man would willingly allow himself to be
+chopped in pieces for her sake; and she's as good and as clever as
+she's handsome.  Did you notice, monsieur, that she did not offer
+to pay me.  She understood that I offered to work for her for my
+own pleasure, for my own satisfaction and honor.  Heavens! how I
+should have chafed if she had offered me money.  How provoked I
+should have been!"
+
+Chupin was so fascinated that he wished no reward for his toil!
+This was so astonishing that M. Fortunat remained for a moment
+speechless with surprise.  "Have you gone mad, Victor?" he
+inquired at last.
+
+"Mad! I?--not at all; I'm only becoming----" He stopped short.  He
+was going to add: "an honest man." But it is scarcely proper to
+talk about the rope in the hangman's house, and there are certain
+words which should never be pronounced in the presence of certain
+people.  Chupin knew this, and so he quickly resumed: "When I
+become rich, when I'm a great banker, and have a host of clerks
+who spend their time in counting my gold behind a grating, I
+should like to have a wife of my own like that.  But I must be off
+about my business now, so till we meet again, monsieur."
+
+The foregoing conversation will explain how it happened that
+Madame Leon chanced to surprise her dear young lady in close
+conversation with a vagabond clad in a blouse.  Victor Chupin was
+not a person to make promises and then leave them unfulfilled. 
+Though he was usually unimpressionable, like all who lead a
+precarious existence, still, when his emotions were once aroused,
+they did not spend themselves in empty protestations.  It became
+his fixed determination to find Pascal Ferailleur, and the
+difficulties of the task in no wise weakened his resolution.  His
+starting point was that Pascal had lived in the Rue d'Ulm, and had
+suddenly gone off with his mother, with the apparent intention of
+sailing for America.  This was all he knew positively, and
+everything else was mere conjecture.  Still Mademoiselle
+Marguerite had convinced him that instead of leaving Paris, Pascal
+was really still there, only waiting for an opportunity to
+establish his innocence, and to wreak his vengeance upon M. de
+Coralth and the Marquis de Valorsay.  On the other hand, with such
+a slight basis to depend upon, was it not almost madness to hope
+to discover a man who had such strong reasons for concealing
+himself? Chupin did not think so in fact, when he declared his
+determination to perform this feat, his plan was already
+perfected.
+
+On leaving M. Fortunat's office, he hastened straight to the Rue
+d'Ulm, at the top of his speed.  The concierge of the house where
+Pascal had formerly resided was by no means a polite individual. 
+He was the very same man who had answered Mademoiselle
+Marguerite's questions so rudely; but Chupin had a way of
+conciliating even the most crabbish doorkeeper, and of drawing
+from him such information as he desired.  He learned that at nine
+o'clock on the sixteenth of October Madame Ferailleur, after
+seeing her trunks securely strapped on to a cab had entered the
+vehicle, ordering the driver to take her to the Railway Station in
+the Place du Havre! Chupin wished to ascertain the number of the
+cab, but the concierge could not give it. He mentioned, however,
+that this cab had been procured by Madame Ferailleur's servant-
+woman, who lived only a few steps from the house.  A moment later
+Chupin was knocking at this woman's door.  She was a very worthy
+person, and bitterly regretted the misfortunes which had befallen
+her former employers.  She confirmed the doorkeeper's story, but
+unfortunately she, too, had quite forgotten the number of the
+vehicle.  All she could say was that she had hired it at the cab
+stand in the Rue Soufflot, and that the driver was a portly,
+pleasant-faced man.
+
+Chupin repaired at once to the Rue Soufflot, where he found the
+man in charge of the stand in the most savage mood imaginable.  He
+began by asking Chupin what right he had to question him, why he
+wished to do so, and if he took him for a spy.  He added that his
+duty only consisted in noting the arrivals and departures of the
+drivers, and that he could give no information whatever.  There
+was evidently nothing to be gained from this ferocious personage;
+and yet Chupin bowed none the less politely as he left the little
+office.  "This is bad," he growled, as he walked away, for he was
+really at a loss what to do next; and if not discouraged, he was
+at least extremely disconcerted and perplexed.  Ah! if he had only
+had a card from the prefecture of police in his pocket, or if he
+had been more imposing in appearance, he would have encountered no
+obstacles; he might then have tracked this cab through the streets
+of Paris as easily as he could have followed a man bearing a
+lighted lantern through the darkness.  But poor and humble,
+without letters of recommendation, and with no other auxiliaries
+than his own shrewdness and experience, he had a great deal to
+contend against.  Pausing in his walk, he had taken off his cap
+and was scratching his head furiously, when suddenly he exclaimed:
+"What an ass I am!" in so loud a tone that several passers-by
+turned to see who was applying this unflattering epithet to
+himself.
+
+Chupin had just remembered one of M. Isidore Fortunat's debtors, a
+man whom he often visited in the hope of extorting some trifling
+amount from him, and who was employed in the Central office of the
+Paris Cab Company.  "If any one can help me out of this
+difficulty, it must be that fellow," he said to himself.  "I hope
+I shall find him at his desk! Come, Victor, my boy, you must look
+alive!"
+
+However, he could not present himself at the office in the garb he
+then wore, and so, much against his will, he went home and changed
+his clothes.  Then he took a cab at his own expense, and drove
+with all possible speed to the main office of the Cab Company, in
+the Avenue de Segur.  Nevertheless it was already ten o'clock when
+he arrived there.  He was more fortunate than he had dared to
+hope.  The man he wanted had charge of a certain department, and
+was compelled to return to the office every evening after dinner. 
+He was there now.
+
+He was a poor devil who, while receiving a salary of fifteen
+hundred francs a year, spent a couple of thousand, and utilized
+his wits in defending his meagre salary from his creditors.  On
+perceiving Chupin, he made a wrathful gesture, and his first words
+were: "I haven't got a penny."
+
+But Chupin smiled his most genial smile.  "What!" said he, "do you
+fancy I've come to collect money from you here, and at this hour?
+You don't know me.  I merely came to ask a favor of you."
+
+The clerk's clouded face brightened.  "Since that is the case,
+pray take a seat, and tell me how I can serve you," he replied.
+
+"Very well.  At nine o'clock in the evening, on the sixteenth of
+October, a lady living in the Rue d'Ulm sent to the stand in the
+Rue Soufflot for a cab.  Her baggage was placed upon it, and she
+went away no one knows where.  However, this lady is a relative of
+my employer, and he so much wishes to find her that he would
+willingly give a hundred francs over and above the amount you owe
+him, to ascertain the number of the vehicle.  He pretends that you
+can give him this number if you choose; and it isn't an
+impossibility, is it?"
+
+"On the contrary, nothing could be easier," replied the clerk,
+glad of an opportunity to explain the ingenious mechanism of the
+office to an outsider.  "Have you ten minutes to spare?"
+
+"Ten days, if necessary," rejoined Chupin.
+
+"Then you shall see." So saying the clerk rose and went into the
+adjoining room, whence a moment later he returned carrying a large
+green box.  "This contains the October reports sent in every
+evening by the branch offices," he remarked in explanation.  He
+next opened the box, glanced over the documents it contained, and
+joyfully exclaimed: "Here we have it.  This is the report sent in
+by the superintendent of the cab-stand in the Rue Soumot on the
+16th October.  Here is a list of the vehicles that arrived or left
+from a quarter to nine o'clock till a quarter past nine.  Five
+cabs came in, but we need not trouble ourselves about them.  Three
+went out bearing the numbers 1781, 3025, and 2140.  One of these
+three must have taken your employer's relative."
+
+"Then I must question the three drivers."
+
+The clerk shrugged his shoulders.  "What is the use of doing
+that?" he said, disdainfully.  "Ah! you don't understand the way
+in which we manage our business! The drivers are artful, but the
+company isn't a fool.  By expending a hundred and fifty thousand
+francs on its detective force every year, it knows what each cab
+is doing at each hour of the day.  I will now look for the reports
+sent in respecting these three drivers.  One of the three will
+give us the desired information."
+
+This time the search was a considerably longer one, and Chupin was
+beginning to grow impatient, when the clerk waved a soiled and
+crumpled sheet of paper triumphantly in the air, and cried: "What
+did I tell you?  This is the report concerning the driver of No.
+2140.  Listen: Friday, at ten minutes past nine, sent to the Rue
+d'Ulm---- What do you think of that?"
+
+"It's astonishing! But where can I find this driver?"
+
+"I can't say, just at this moment; he's on duty now.  But as he
+belongs to this division he will be back sooner or later, so you
+had better wait."
+
+"I will wait then; only as I've had no dinner, I'll go out and get
+a mouthful to eat.  I can promise you that M. Fortunat will send
+you back your note cancelled."
+
+Chupin was really very hungry, and so he rushed off to a little
+eating-house which he had remarked on his way to the office. 
+There for eighteen sous he dined, or rather supped, like a prince;
+and as he subsequently treated himself to a cup of coffee and a
+glass of brandy, as a reward for his toil, some little time had
+elapsed when he returned to the office.  However, No. 2140 had not
+returned in his absence, so he stationed himself at the door to
+wait for it.
+
+His patience was severely tried, for it was past midnight when
+Chupin saw the long-looked-for vehicle enter the courtyard.  The
+driver slowly descended from his box and then went into the
+cashier's office to pay over his day's earnings, and hand in his
+report.  Then he came out again evidently bound for home.  As the
+servant-woman had said, he was a stout, jovial-faced man, and he
+did not hesitate to accept a glass of "no matter what" in a wine-
+shop that was still open.  Whether he believed the story that
+Chupin told to excuse his questions or not, at all events he
+answered them very readily.  He perfectly remembered having been
+sent to the Rue d'Ulm, and spoke of his "fare" as a respectable-
+looking old lady, enumerated the number of her trunks, boxes, and
+packages, and even described their form.  He had taken her to the
+railway station, stopping at the entrance in the Rue d'Amsterdam;
+and when the porters inquired, as usual, "Where is this baggage to
+go?" the old lady had answered, "To London."
+
+Chupin felt decidedly crestfallen on hearing this.  He had fancied
+that Madame Ferailleur had merely announced her intention of
+driving to the Havre railway station so as to set possible spies
+on the wrong track, and he would have willingly wagered anything,
+that after going a short distance she had given the cabman
+different instructions.  Not so, however, he had taken her
+straight to the station.  Was Mademoiselle Marguerite deceived
+then? Had Pascal really fled from his enemies without an attempt
+at resistance? Such a course seemed impossible on his part. 
+Thinking over all this, Chupin slept but little that night, and
+the next morning, before five o'clock, he was wandering about the
+Rue d'Amsterdam peering into the wine-shops in search of some
+railway porter.  It did not take him long to find one, and having
+done so, he made him the best of friends in less than no time. 
+Although this porter knew nothing about the matter himself, he
+took Chupin to a comrade who remembered handling the baggage of an
+old lady bound for London, on the evening of the sixteenth. 
+However, this baggage was not put into the train after all; the
+old lady had left it in the cloak-room, and the next day a fat
+woman of unprepossessing appearance had called for the things, and
+had taken them away, after paying the charges for storage.  This
+circumstance had been impressed on the porter's mind by the fact
+that the woman had not given him a farthing gratuity, although he
+had been much more obliging than the regulations required. 
+However, when she went off, she remarked in a honeyed voice, but
+with an exceedingly impudent air: "I'll repay you for your
+kindness, my lad.  I keep a wine-shop on the Route d'Asnieres, and
+if you ever happen to pass that way with one of your comrades,
+come in, and I'll reward you with a famous drink!"
+
+What had exasperated the porter almost beyond endurance, was the
+certainty he felt that she was mocking him.  "For she didn't give
+me her name or address, the old witch!" he growled.  "She had
+better look out, if I ever get hold of her again!"
+
+But Chupin had already gone off, unmoved by his informant's
+grievances.  Now that he had discovered the stratagem which Madame
+Ferailleur had employed to elude her pursuers, his conjectures
+were changed into certainties.  This information proved that
+Pascal WAS concealed somewhere in Paris; but where? If he could
+only find out this woman who had called for the trunks, it would
+lead to the discovery of Madame Ferailleur and her son hut how was
+he to ascertain the woman's whereabouts? She had said that she
+kept a wine-shop on the Route d'Asnieres.  Was this true? Was it
+not more likely that this vague direction was only a fresh
+precaution?
+
+This much was certain: Chupin, who knew every wine-shop on the
+Route d'Asnieres, did not remember any such powerful matron as the
+porter had described.  He had not forgotten Madame Vantrasson. 
+But to imagine any bond of interest between Pascal and such a
+woman as she was, seemed absurd in the extreme.  However, as he
+found himself in such a plight and could not afford to let any
+chance escape, he repaired merely for form's sake to the
+Vantrasson establishment.  It had not changed in the least since
+the evening he visited it in company with M. Fortunat--but seen in
+the full light of day, it appeared even more dingy and
+dilapidated.  Madame Vantrasson was not in her accustomed place,
+behind the counter, between her black cat--her latest idol--and
+the bottles from which she prepared her ratafia, now her supreme
+consolation here below.  There was no one in the shop but the
+landlord.  Seated at a table, with a lighted candle near him, he
+was engaged in an occupation which would have set Chupin's mind
+working if he had noticed it.  Vantrasson had taken some wax from
+a sealed bottle, and, after melting it at the flame of the candle,
+he let it drop slowly on to the table.  He then pressed a sou upon
+it, and when the wax had become sufficiently cool and stiff, he
+removed it from the table without destroying the impression, by
+means of a thin bladed knife similar to those which glaziers use. 
+However, Chupin did not remark this singular employment.  He was
+engaged in mentally ejaculating, "Good! the old woman isn't here."
+And as his plan of campaign was already prepared, he entered
+without further hesitation.
+
+As Vantrasson heard the door turn upon its hinges, he rose so
+awkwardly, or rather so skilfully, as to let all his implements,
+wax, knife, and impressions, fall on the floor behind the counter. 
+"What can I do to serve you?" he asked, in a husky voice.
+
+"Nothing.  I wished to speak with your wife."
+
+"She has gone out.  She works for a family in the morning."
+
+This was a gleam of light.  Chupin had not thought of the only
+hypothesis that could explain what seemed inexplicable to him. 
+However, he knew how to conceal his satisfaction, and so with an
+air of disappointment, he remarked: "That's too bad! I shall be
+obliged to call again."
+
+"So you have a secret to tell my wife?"
+
+"Not at all."
+
+"Won't I do as well, then?"
+
+"I'll tell you how it is.  I'm employed in the baggage room of the
+western railway station, and I wanted to know if your wife didn't
+call there a few days ago for some trunks?"
+
+The landlord's features betrayed the vague perturbation of a
+person who can count the days by his mistakes, and it was with
+evident hesitation that he replied:
+
+"Yes, my wife went to the Havre station for some baggage last
+Sunday."
+
+"I thought so.  Well, this is my errand: either the clerk forgot
+to ask her for her receipt, or else he lost it.  He can't find it
+anywhere.  I came to ask your wife if she hadn't kept it.  When
+she returns, please deliver my message; and if she has the
+receipt, pray send it to me through the post."
+
+The ruse was not particularly clever, but it was sufficiently so
+to deceive Vantrasson.  "To whom am I to send this receipt?" he
+asked.
+
+"To me, Victor Chupin, Faubourg Saint Denis," was the reply.
+
+Imprudent youth! alas, he little suspected what a liberty M.
+Fortunat had taken with his name on the evening he visited the
+Vantrassons.  But on his side the landlord of the Model Lodging
+House had not forgotten the name mentioned by the agent.  He
+turned pale with anger on beholding his supposed creditor, and
+quickly slipping between the visitor and the door, he said: "So
+your name is Victor Chupin?"
+
+"Yes, certainly."
+
+"And you are in the employment of the Railway Company?"
+
+"As I just told you."
+
+"That doesn't prevent you from acting as a collector, does it?"
+
+Chupin instinctively recoiled, convinced that he had betrayed
+himself by some blunder, but unable to discover in what he had
+erred.  "I did do something in that line formerly," he faltered.
+
+Vantrasson doubted no longer.  "So you confess that you are a vile
+scoundrel!" he exclaimed.  "You confess that you purchased an old
+promissory note of mine for fourpence, and then sent a man here to
+seize my goods! Ah! you'd like to trample the poor under foot,
+would you! Very well.  I have you now, and I'll settle your
+account! Take that!" And so saying, he dealt his supposed creditor
+a terrible blow with his clinched fist that sent him reeling to
+the other end of the shop.
+
+Fortunately, Chupin was very nimble.  He did not lose his footing,
+but sprung over a table and used it as a rampart to shield himself
+from his dangerous assailant.  In the open field, he could easily
+have protected himself; but here in this narrow space, and hemmed
+in a corner, he felt that despite this barrier he was lost.  "What
+a devil of a mess!" he thought, as with wonderful agility he
+avoided Vantrasson's fist, a fist that would have felled an ox. 
+He had an idea of calling for assistance.  But would any one hear
+him?  Would any one reply?  And if help came, would not the police
+be sure to hear of the broil?  And if they did, would there not be
+an investigation which would perhaps disturb Pascal's plans? 
+Fearing to injure those whom he wished to serve, he resolved to
+let himself be hacked to pieces rather than allow a cry to escape
+him; but he changed his tactics, and instead of attempting to
+parry the blows as he had done before, he now only thought of
+gaining the door, inch by inch.
+
+He had almost reached it, not without suffering considerable
+injury, when it suddenly opened, and a young man clad in black,
+with a smooth shaven face, entered the shop, and sternly
+exclaimed: "Why! what's all this?"
+
+The sight of the newcomer seemed to stupefy Vantrasson.  "Ah! it
+is you, Monsieur Maumejan?" he faltered, with a crestfallen air. 
+"It's nothing; we were only in fun."
+
+M. Maumejan seemed perfectly satisfied with this explanation; and
+in the indifferent tone of a man who is delivering a message, the
+meaning of which he scarcely understood, he said: "A person who
+knows that your wife is in my employ requested me to ask you if
+you would be ready to attend to that little matter she spoke of."
+
+"Certainly.  I was preparing for it a moment ago."
+
+Chupin heard no more.  He had hurried out, his clothes in
+disorder, and himself not a little hurt; but his delight made him
+lose all thought of his injuries.  "That's M. Ferailleur," he
+muttered, "I'm sure of it, and I'm going to prove it." So saying
+he hid himself in the doorway of a vacant house a few paces
+distant from the Vantrassons', and waited.
+
+Then as soon as M. Maumejan emerged from the Model Lodging House,
+he followed him.  The young man with the clean shaven face walked
+up the Route d'Asnieres, turned to the right into the Route de la
+Revolte, and at last paused before a house of humble aspect.  At
+that moment Chupin darted toward him, and softly called, "M'sieur
+Ferailleur!"
+
+The young man turned instinctively.  Then seeing his mistake, and
+feeling that he had betrayed himself, he sprang upon Chupin, and
+caught him by the wrists: "Scoundrel! who are you?" he exclaimed. 
+"Who has hired you to follow me! What do you want of me?"
+
+"Not so fast, m'sieur! Don't be so rough! You hurt me.  I'm sent
+by Mademoiselle Marguerite!"
+
+
+
+XVIII.
+
+
+"O God! send Pascal to my aid," prayed Mademoiselle Marguerite, as
+she left M. Fortunat's house.  Now she understood the intrigue she
+had been the victim of; but, instead of reassuring her the agent
+had frightened her, by revealing the Marquis de Valorsay's
+desperate plight.  She realized what frenzied rage must fill this
+man's heart as he felt himself gradually slipping from the heights
+of opulence, down into the depths of poverty and crime.  What
+might he not dare, in order to preserve even the semblance of
+grandeur for a year, or a month, or a day longer! Had they
+measured the extent of his villainy? Would he even hesitate at
+murder?  And the poor girl asked herself with a shudder if Pascal
+were still living; and a vision of his bleeding corpse, lying
+lifeless in some deserted street, rose before her.  And who could
+tell what dangers threatened her personally?  For, though she knew
+the past, she could not read the future.  What did M. de
+Valorsay's letter mean? and what was the fate that he held in
+reserve for her, and that made him so sanguine of success?  The
+impression produced upon her mind was so terrible that for a
+moment she thought of hastening to the old justice of the peace to
+ask for his protection and a refuge.  But this weakness did not
+last long.  Should she lose her energy?  Should her will fail her
+at the decisive moment?  "No, a thousand times no!" she said to
+herself again and again.  "I will die if needs be, but I will die
+fighting!" And the nearer she approached the Rue Pigalle, the more
+energetically she drove away her apprehension, and sought for an
+excuse calculated to satisfy any one who might have noticed her
+long absence.
+
+An unnecessary precaution.  She found the house as when she left
+it, abandoned to the mercy of the servants--the strangers sent the
+evening before from the employment office.  Important matters
+still kept the General and his wife from home.  The husband had to
+show his horses; and the wife was intent upon shopping.  As for
+Madame Leon, most of her time seemed to be taken up by the family
+of relatives she had so suddenly discovered.  Alone, free from all
+espionage, and wishing to ward off despondency by occupation,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was just beginning a letter to her friend
+the old magistrate, when a servant entered and announced that her
+dressmaker was there and wished to speak with her.  "Let her come
+in," replied Marguerite, with unusual vivacity.  "Let her come in
+at once."
+
+A lady who looked some forty years of age, plainly dressed, but of
+distinguished appearance, was thereupon ushered into the room. 
+Like any well-bred modiste, she bowed respectfully while the
+servant was present, but as soon as he had left the room she
+approached Mademoiselle Marguerite and took hold of her hands: "My
+dear young lady," said she, "I am the sister-in-law of your old
+friend, the magistrate.  Having an important message to send to
+you, he was trying to find a person whom he could trust to play
+the part of a dressmaker, as had been agreed upon between you,
+when I offered my services, thinking he could find no one more
+trusty than myself."
+
+Tears glittered in Mademoiselle Marguerite's eyes.  The slightest
+token of sympathy is so sweet to the heart of the lonely and
+unfortunate!  "How can I ever thank you, madame?" she faltered.
+
+"By not attempting to thank me at all, and by reading this letter
+as soon as possible.:
+
+The note she now produced ran as follows:
+
+
+
+"MY DEAR CHILD--At last I am on the track of the thieves.  By
+conferring with the people from whom M. de Chalusse received the
+money a couple of days before his death, I have been fortunate
+enough to obtain from them some minute details respecting the
+missing bonds, as well as the numbers of the bank-notes which were
+deposited in the escritoire.  With this information, we cannot
+fail to prove the guilt of the culprits sooner or later.  You
+write me word that the Fondeges are spending money lavishly; try
+and find out the names of the people they deal with, and
+communicate them to me.  Once more, I tell you that I am sure of
+success.  Courage!"
+
+
+
+"Well!" said the spurious dressmaker, when she saw that Marguerite
+had finished reading the letter.  "What answer shall I take my
+brother-in-law?"
+
+"Tell him that he shall certainly have the information he requires
+to-morrow.  To-day, I can only give him the name of the carriage
+builder, from whom M. de Fondege has purchased his new carriages."
+
+"Give it to me in writing, it is much the safest way."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite did so, and her visitor who, as a woman,
+was delighted to find herself mixed up in an intrigue, then went
+off repeating the old magistrate's advice: "Courage!"
+
+But it was no longer necessary to encourage Mademoiselle
+Marguerite.  The assurance of being so effectually helped, had
+already increased her courage an hundredfold.  The future that had
+seemed so gloomy only a moment before, had now suddenly
+brightened.  By means of the negative in the keeping of the
+photographer, Carjat, she had the Marquis de Valorsay in her
+power, and the magistrate, thanks to the numbers of the bank-
+notes, could soon prove the guilt of the Fondeges.  The protection
+of Providence was made evident in an unmistakable manner.  Thus it
+was with a placid and almost smiling face that she successively
+greeted Madame Leon, who returned home quite played out, then
+Madame de Fondege, who made her appearance attended by two shop-
+boys overladen with packages, and finally the General, who brought
+his son, Lieutenant Gustave, with him to dinner.
+
+The lieutenant was a good-looking fellow of twenty-seven, or
+thereabouts, with laughing eyes and a heavy mustache.  He made a
+great clanking with his spurs, and wore the somewhat theatrical
+uniform of the 13th Hussars rather ostentatiously.  He bowed to
+Mademoiselle Marguerite with a smile that was too becoming to be
+displeasing; and he offered her his arm with an air of triumph to
+lead her to the dining-room, as soon as the servant came to
+announce that "Madame la Comtesse was served."
+
+Seated opposite to him at table, the young girl could not refrain
+from furtively watching the man whom they wished to compel her to
+marry.  Never had she seen such intense self-complacency coupled
+with such utter mediocrity.  It was evident that he was doing his
+best to produce a favorable impression; but as the dinner
+progressed, his conversation became rather venturesome.  He
+gradually grew extremely animated; and three or four adventures of
+garrison life which he persisted in relating despite his mother's
+frowns, were calculated to convince his hearers that he was a
+great favorite with the fair sex.  It was the good cheer that
+loosened his tongue.  There could be no possible doubt on that
+score; and, indeed, while drinking a glass of the Chateau Laroze,
+to which Madame Leon had taken such a liking, he was indiscreet
+enough to declare that if his mother had always kept house in this
+fashion, he should have been inclined to ask for more frequent
+leaves of absence.
+
+However, strange to say, after the coffee was served, the
+conversation languished till at last it died out almost entirely. 
+Madame de Fondege was the first to disappear on the pretext that
+some domestic affairs required her attention.  The General was the
+next to rise and go out, in order to smoke a cigar; and finally
+Madame Leon made her escape without saying a word.  So
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was left quite alone with Lieutenant
+Gustave.  It was evident enough to the young girl that this had
+been preconcerted; and she asked herself what kind of an opinion
+M. and Madame de Fondege could have of her delicacy.  The
+proceeding made her so indignant that she was on the point of
+rising from the table and of retiring like the others, when reason
+restrained her.  She said to herself that perhaps she might gain
+some useful information from this young man, and so she remained.
+
+His face was crimson, and he seemed by far the more embarrassed of
+the two.  He sat with one elbow resting on the table, and with his
+gaze persistently fixed upon a tiny glass half full of brandy
+which he held in his hand, as if he hoped to gain some sublime
+inspiration from it.  At last, after an interval of irksome
+silence, he ventured to exclaim: "Mademoiselle, should you like to
+be an officer's wife?"
+
+"I don't know," answered Marguerite.
+
+"Really! But at least you understand my motive in asking this
+question?"
+
+"No."
+
+Any one but the complacent lieutenant would have been disconcerted
+by Mademoiselle Marguerite's dry tone; but he did not even notice
+it.  The effort that he was making in his intense desire to be
+eloquent and persuasive absorbed the attention of all his
+faculties.  "Then permit me to explain, mademoiselle," he resumed. 
+"We meet this evening for the first time, but our acquaintance is
+not the affair of a day.  For I know not how long my father and
+mother have continually been chanting your praises.  'Mademoiselle
+Marguerite does this; Mademoiselle Marguerite does that.' They
+never cease talking of you, declaring that heart, wit, talent,
+beauty, all womanly charms are united in your person.  And they
+have never wearied of telling me that the man whom you honored
+with your preference would be the happiest of mortals.  However,
+so far I had no desire to marry, and I distrusted them.  In fact,
+I had conceived a most violent prejudice against you.  Yes, upon
+my honor! I felt sure that I should dislike you; but I have seen
+you and all is changed.  As soon as my eyes fell upon you, I
+experienced a powerful revulsion of feeling.  I was never so
+smitten in my life--and I said to myself, 'Lieutenant, it is all
+over--you are caught at last!'"
+
+Pale with anger, astonished and humiliated beyond measure, the
+young girl listened with her head lowered, vainly trying to find
+words to express the feelings which disturbed her; but M. Gustave,
+misunderstanding her silence, and congratulating himself upon the
+effect he had produced, grew bolder, and with the tenderest and
+most impassioned inflection he could impart to his voice,
+continued: "Who could fail to be impressed as I have been? How
+could one behold, without rapturous admiration, such beautiful
+eyes, such glorious black hair, such smiling lips, such a graceful
+mien, such wonderful charms of person and of mind? How would it be
+possible to listen, unmoved, to a voice which is clearer and purer
+than crystal? Ah! my mother's descriptions fell far short of the
+truth.  But how can one describe the perfections of an angel? To
+any one who has the happiness or the misfortune of knowing you,
+there can only be one woman in the world!"
+
+He had gradually approached her chair, and now extended his hand
+to take hold of Marguerite's, and probably raise it to his lips. 
+But she shrank from the contact as from red-hot iron, and rising
+hurriedly, with her eyes flashing, and her voice quivering with
+indignation: "Monsieur!" she exclaimed, "Monsieur!"
+
+He was so surprised that he stood as if petrified, with his eyes
+wide open and his hand still extended.  "Permit me--allow me to
+explain," he stammered.  But she declined to listen.  "Who has
+told you that you could address such words to me with impunity?"
+she continued.  "Your parents, I suppose; I daresay they told you
+to be bold.  And that is why they have left us, and why no servant
+has appeared.  Ah! they make me pay dearly for the hospitality
+they have given me!" As she spoke the tears started from her eyes
+and glistened on her long lashes.  "Whom did you fancy you were
+speaking to?" she added.  "Would you have been so audacious if I
+had a father or a brother to resent your insults?"
+
+The lieutenant started as if he had been lashed with a whip.  "Ah!
+you are severe!" he exclaimed.
+
+And a happy inspiration entering his mind, he continued: "A man
+does not insult a woman, mademoiselle, when, while telling her
+that he loves her and thinks her beautiful, he offers her his name
+and life."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite shrugged her shoulders ironically, and
+remained for a moment silent.  She was very proud, and her pride
+had been cruelly wounded; but reason told her that a continuation
+of this scene would render a prolonged sojourn in the General's
+house impossible; and where could she go, without exciting
+malevolent remarks? Whom could she ask an asylum of? Still this
+consideration alone would not have sufficed to silence her.  But
+she remembered that a quarrel and a rupture with the Fondeges
+would certainly imperil the success of her plans.  "So I will
+swallow even this affront," she said to herself; and then in a
+tone of melancholy bitterness, she remarked, aloud: "A man cannot
+set a very high value on his name when he offers it to a woman
+whom he knows absolutely nothing about."
+
+"Excuse me--you forget that my mother----"
+
+"Your mother has only known me for a week."
+
+An expression of intense surprise appeared on the lieutenant's
+face.  "Is it possible?" he murmured.
+
+"Your father has met me five or six times at the table of the
+Count de Chalusse, who was his friend--but what does he know of
+me?" resumed Mademoiselle Marguerite.  "That I came to the Hotel
+de Chalusse a year ago, and that the count treated me like a
+daughter--that is all! Who I am, where I was reared, and how, and
+what my past life has been, these are matters that M. de Fondege
+knows nothing whatever about."
+
+"My parents told me that you were the daughter of the Count de
+Chalusse, mademoiselle."
+
+"What proof have they of it? They ought to have told you that I
+was an unfortunate foundling, with no other name than that of
+Marguerite."
+
+"Oh!"
+
+"They ought to have told you that I am poor, very poor, and that I
+should probably have been reduced to the necessity of toiling for
+my daily bread, if it had not been for them."
+
+An incredulous smile curved the lieutenant's lips.  He fancied
+that Mademoiselle Marguerite only wished to prove his
+disinterestedness, and this thought restored his assurance. 
+"Perhaps you are exaggerating a little, mademoiselle," he replied.
+
+"I am not exaggerating--I possess but ten thousand francs in the
+world--I swear it by all that I hold sacred."
+
+"That would not even be the dowry required of an officer's wife by
+law," muttered the lieutenant.
+
+Was his incredulity sincere or affected? What had his parents
+really told him? Had they confided everything to him, and was he
+their accomplice? or had they told him nothing? All these
+questions flashed rapidly through Marguerite's mind.  "You suppose
+that I am rich, monsieur," she resumed at last.  "I understand
+that only too well.  If I was, you ought to shun me as you would
+shun a criminal, for I could only be wealthy through a crime."
+
+"Mademoiselle----"
+
+"Yes, through a crime.  After M. de Chalusse's death, two million
+francs that had been placed in his escritoire for safe keeping,
+could not be found.  Who stole the money? I myself have been
+accused of the theft.  Your father must have told you of this, as
+well as of the cloud of suspicion that is still hanging over me."
+
+She paused, for the lieutenant had become whiter than his shirt. 
+"Good God!" he exclaimed in a tone of horror, as if a terrible
+light had suddenly broken upon his mind.  He made a movement as if
+to leave the room, but suddenly changing his mind, he bowed low
+before Mademoiselle Marguerite, and said, in a husky voice:
+"Forgive me, mademoiselle, I did not know what I was doing.  I
+have been misinformed.  I have been beguiled by false hopes.  I
+entreat you to say that you forgive me."
+
+"I forgive you, monsieur."
+
+But still he lingered.  "I am only a poor devil of a lieutenant,"
+he resumed, "with no other fortune than my epaulettes, no other
+prospects than an uncertain advancement.  I have been foolish and
+thoughtless.  I have committed many acts of folly; but there is
+nothing in my past life for which I have cause to blush." He
+looked fixedly at Mademoiselle Marguerite, as if he were striving
+to read her inmost soul; and in a solemn tone, that contrasted
+strangely with his usual levity of manner, he added: "If the name
+I bear should ever be compromised, my prospects would be blighted
+forever! The only course left for me would be to tender my
+resignation.  I will leave nothing undone to preserve my honor in
+the eyes of the world, and to right those who have been wronged. 
+Promise me not to interfere with my plans."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite trembled like a leaf.  She now realized
+her terrible imprudence.  He had divined everything.  As she
+remained silent, he continued wildly: "I entreat you.  Do you wish
+me to beg you at your feet?"
+
+Ah! it was a terrible sacrifice that he demanded of her.  But how
+could she remain obdurate in the presence of such intense anguish? 
+"I will remain neutral," she replied, "that is all I can promise. 
+Providence shall decide."
+
+"Thank you," he said, sadly, suspecting that perhaps it was
+already too late--"thank you." Then he turned to go, and, in fact,
+he had already opened the door, when a forlorn hope brought him
+back to Mademoiselle Marguerite, whose hand he took, timidly
+faltering, "We are friends, are we not?"
+
+She did not withdraw her icy hand, and in a scarcely audible
+voice, she repeated: "We are friends?"
+
+Convinced that he could obtain nothing more from her than her
+promised neutrality, the lieutenant thereupon hastily left the
+room, and she sank back in her chair more dead than alive.  "Great
+God! what is coming now?" she murmured.
+
+She thought she could understand the unfortunate young man's
+intentions, and she listened with a throbbing heart, expecting to
+hear a stormy explanation between his parents and himself.  In
+point of fact, she almost immediately afterward heard the
+lieutenant inquire in a stern, imperious voice: "Where is my
+father?"
+
+"The General has just gone to his club."
+
+"And my mother?"
+
+"A friend of hers called a few moments ago to take her to the
+opera."
+
+"What madness!"
+
+That was all.  The outer door opened and closed again with extreme
+violence, and then Marguerite heard nothing save the sneering
+remarks of the servants.
+
+It was, indeed, madness on the part of M. and Madame de Fondege
+not to have waited to learn the result of this interview, planned
+by themselves, and upon which their very lives depended.  But
+delirium seemed to have seized them since, thanks to a still
+inexplicable crime, they had suddenly found themselves in
+possession of an immense fortune.  Perhaps in this wild pursuit of
+pleasure, in the haste they displayed to satisfy their covetous
+longings, they hoped to forget or silence the threatening voice of
+conscience.  Such was Mademoiselle Marguerite's conclusion; but
+she was not long left to undisturbed meditation.  By the
+lieutenant's departure the restrictions which had been placed upon
+the servants' movements had evidently been removed, for they came
+in to clear the table.
+
+Having with some little difficulty obtained a candle from one of
+these model servants, Mademoiselle Marguerite now retired to her
+own room.  In her anxiety, she forgot Madame Leon, but the latter
+had not forgotten her; she was even now listening at the drawing-
+room door, inconsolable to think that she had not succeeded in
+hearing at least part of the conversation between the lieutenant
+and her dear young lady.  Marguerite had no wish to reflect over
+what had occurred.  As she was determined to keep the promise
+which Lieutenant Gustave had wrung from her, it mattered little
+whether she had committed a great mistake in allowing him to
+discover her knowledge of his parent's guilt, and in listening to
+his entreaties.  A secret presentiment warned her that the
+punishment which would overtake the General and his wife would be
+none the less terrible, despite her own forbearance, and that they
+would find their son more inexorable than the severest judge.
+
+The essential thing was to warn the old magistrate; and so in a
+couple of pages she summarized the scene of the evening, feeling
+sure that she would find an opportunity to post her letter on the
+following day.  This duty accomplished, she took a book and went
+to bed, hoping to drive away her gloomy thoughts by reading.  But
+the hope was vain.  Her eyes read the words, followed the lines
+and crossed the pages, but her mind utterly refused to obey her
+will, and in spite of all her efforts persisted in turning to the
+shrewd youth who had solemnly sworn to find Pascal for her.  A
+little after midnight Madame de Fondege returned from the opera,
+and at once proceeded to reprimand her maid for not having lighted
+a fire.  The General returned some time afterward, and he was
+evidently in the best of spirits.
+
+They have not seen their son," said Mademoiselle Marguerite to
+herself, and this anxiety, combined with many others, tortured her
+so cruelly, that she did not fall asleep until near daybreak. 
+Even then she did not slumber long.  It was scarcely half-past
+seven when she was aroused by a strange commotion and a loud sound
+of hammering.  She was trying to imagine the cause of all this
+uproar, when Madame de Fondege, already arrayed in a marvellous
+robe composed of three skirts and an enormous puff, entered the
+room.  "I have come to take you away, my dear child," she
+exclaimed.  "The owner of the house has decided to make some
+repairs, and the workmen have already invaded our apartments.  The
+General has taken flight, let us follow his example--so make
+yourself beautiful and we'll go at once."
+
+Without a word, the young girl hastened to obey, while Madame de
+Fondege expiated on the delightful drive they would take together
+in the wonderful brougham which the General had purchased a couple
+of days before.  As for Lieutenant Gustave, she did not even
+mention his name.
+
+Accustomed to the superb equipages of the Chalusse establishment,
+Mademoiselle Marguerite did not consider the much-lauded brougham
+at all remarkable.  At the most, it was very showy, having
+apparently been selected with a view to attracting as much
+attention as possible.  Madame de Fondege was not in a mood to
+consider an objection that morning.  She was evidently in a
+nervous state of mind, extremely restless and excited indeed, it
+seemed impossible for her to keep still.  In default of something
+better to do, she visited at least a dozen shops, asking to see
+everything, finding everything frightful, and purchasing without
+regard to price.  It might have been fancied that she wished to
+buy all Paris.  About ten o'clock she dragged Marguerite to Van
+Klopen's.  Received as a habituee of the establishment, thanks to
+the numerous orders she had given within the past few days, she
+was even allowed to enter the mysterious saloon in which the
+illustrious ruler of Fashion served such of his clients as had a
+predilection for absinthe or madeira.  On leaving the place, and
+before entering the carriage again, Madame de Fondege turned to
+Marguerite and inquired:  "Where shall we go now?  I have given
+the servants an 'outing' on account of the workmen, and we cannot
+breakfast at home.  Why can't we go to a restaurant, we two?  Many
+of the most distinguished ladies are in the habit of doing so. 
+You will see how people will look at us!  I am sure it will amuse
+you immensely."
+
+"Ah! madame, you forget that it is not a fortnight since the
+count's death!"
+
+Madame de Fondege was about to make an impatient reply, but she
+mastered the impulse, and in a tone of hypocritical compassion,
+exclaimed: "Poor child! poor, dear child! that's true.  I had
+forgotten.  Well, such being the case, we'll go and ask Baroness
+Trigault to give us our breakfast.  You will see a lovely woman." 
+And addressing the coachman she instructed him to drive to the
+Trigault mansion in the Rue de la Ville l'Eveque.
+
+When Madame de Fondege's brougham drew up before the door, the
+baron was standing in the courtyard with a cigar between his
+teeth, examining a pair of horses which had  been sent him on
+approbation.  He did not like his wife's friend, and he usually
+avoided her.  But precisely because he was acquainted with the
+General's crime and Pascal's plans, he thought it politic to seem
+amiable.  So, on recognizing Madame de Fondege through the
+carriage window, he hastened forward with outstretched hand to
+assist her in alighting.  "Did you come to take breakfast with
+us?" he asked.  "That would be a most delightful----"
+
+The remainder of the sentence died unuttered upon his lips.  His
+face became crimson, and the cigar he was holding slipped from his
+fingers.  He had just perceived Mademoiselle Marguerite, and his
+consternation was so apparent that Madame de Fondege could not
+fail to remark it; however, she attributed it to the girl's
+remarkable beauty.  "This is Mademoiselle de Chalusse, my dear
+baron," said she, "the daughter of the noble and esteemed friend
+whom we so bitterly lament."
+
+Ah! it was not necessary to tell the baron who this young girl
+was; he knew it only too well.  He was not overcome for long; a
+thought of vengeance speedily flashed through his mind.  It seemed
+to him that Providence itself offered him the means of putting an
+end to an intolerable situation.  Regaining his self-control by a
+powerful effort, he preceded Madame de Fondege through the
+magnificent apartments of the mansion, lightly saying: "My wife is
+in her boudoir.  She will be delighted to see you.  But first of
+all, I have a good secret to confide to you.  So let me take this
+young lady to the baroness, and you and I can join them in a
+moment!" Thereupon, without waiting for any rejoinder, he took
+Marguerite's arm and led her toward the end of the hall.  Then
+opening a door, he exclaimed in a mocking voice: "Madame Trigault,
+allow me to present to you the daughter of the Count de Chalusse." 
+And adding in a whisper: "This is your mother, young girl," he
+pushed the astonished Marguerite into the room, closed the door,
+and returned to Madame de Fondege.
+
+Paler than her white muslin wrapper, the Baroness Trigault sprang
+from her chair.  This was the woman who, while her husband was
+braving death to win fortune for her, had been dazzled by the
+Count de Chalusse's wealth, and who, later in life, when she was
+the richest of the rich, had sunk into the very depths of
+degradation--had stooped, indeed, to a Coralth! The baroness had
+once been marvellously beautiful, and even now, many murmurs of
+admiration greeted her when she dashed through the Champs Elysees
+in her magnificent equipage, attired in one of those eccentric
+costumes which she alone dared to wear.  She was a type of the
+wife created by the customs of fashionable society; the woman who
+feels elated when her name appears in the newspapers and in the
+chronicles of Parisian "high life"; who has no thought of her
+deserted fireside, but is ever tormented by a terrible thirst for
+bustle and excitement; whose head is empty, and whose heart is
+dry--the woman who only exists for the world; and who is devoured
+by unappeasable covetousness, and who, at times, envies an
+actress's liberty, and the notoriety of the leaders of the demi-
+monde; the woman who is always in quest of fresh excitement, and
+fails to find it; the woman who is blase, and prematurely old in
+mind and body, and who yet still clings despairingly to her
+fleeting youth.
+
+Inaccessible to any emotion but vanity, the baroness had never
+shed a tear over her husband's sufferings.  She was sure of her
+absolute power over him.  What did the rest matter? She even
+gloried in her knowledge that she could make this man--who loved
+her in spite of everything--at one moment furious with rage or
+wild with grief, and then an instant afterward plunge him into the
+rapture of a senseless ecstasy by a word, a smile, or a caress. 
+For such was her power, and she often exercised it mercilessly. 
+Even after the frightful scene that Pascal had witnessed, she had
+made another appeal to the baron, and he had been weak enough to
+give her the thirty thousand francs which M. de Coralth needed to
+purchase his wife's silence.
+
+However, this time the baroness trembled.  Her usual shrewdness
+had not deserted her, and she perfectly understood all that
+Marguerite's presence in that house portended.  Since her husband
+brought this young girl--her daughter--to her he must know
+everything, and have taken some fatal resolution.  Had she,
+indeed, exhausted the patience which she had fancied
+inexhaustible?  She was not ignorant of the fact that her husband
+had disposed of his immense fortune in a way that would enable him
+to say and prove that he was insolvent whenever occasion required;
+and if he found courage to apply for a legal separation, what
+could she hope to obtain from the courts?  A bare living, almost
+nothing.  In such a case, how could she exist?  She would be
+compelled to spend her last years in the same poverty that had
+made her youth so wretched.  She saw herself--ah! what a frightful
+misfortune--turfed out of her princely home, and reduced to
+furnished apartments rented for five hundred francs a year!
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was no less startled and horror-stricken
+than Madame Trigault, and she stood rooted to the spot, exactly
+where the baron had left her.  Silent and motionless, they
+confronted each other for a moment which seemed a century to both
+of them.  The resemblance--which had astonished Pascal could not
+fail to strike them, for it was still more noticeable now that
+they stood face to face.  But anything was preferable to this
+torturing suspense, and so, summoning all her courage, the
+baroness broke the silence by saying: "You are the daughter of the
+Count de Chalusse?"
+
+"I think so, but I have no proofs of it."
+
+"And--your mother?"
+
+"I don't know her; madame, and I have no desire to know her."
+
+Disconcerted by this brief but implacable reply, Madame Trigault
+hung her head. 
+
+"What could I have to say to my mother?" continued Marguerite. 
+"That I hate her? My courage would fail me to do so.  And yet, how
+can I think without bitterness of the woman who, after abandoning
+me herself, endeavored to deprive me of my father's love and
+protection?  I could have forgiven anything but that.  Ah! I have
+not always been so patient and resigned!  The laws of our country
+do not forbid illigitimate children to search for their parents,
+and more than once I have said to myself that I would discover my
+mother, and have my revenge."
+
+"But you have no means of discovering her?"
+
+"In this you are greatly mistaken, madame.  After the Count de
+Chalusse's death, a package of letters, a glove and some withered
+flowers were found in one of the drawers of his escritoire."
+
+The baroness started back as if a yawning chasm had suddenly
+opened at her feet.  "My letters!" she exclaimed.  "Ah! wretched
+woman that I am, he kept them.  It is all over!  I am lost, for of
+course, they have been read?"
+
+"The ribbon securing them together has never been untied."
+
+"Is that true? Don t deceive me! Where are they, then--where are
+they?"
+
+"Under the protection of the seals affixed by the justice of the
+peace."
+
+Madame Trigault tottered, as if she were about to fall.  "Then it
+is only a reprieve," she moaned, "and I am none the less ruined. 
+Those cursed letters will necessarily be read, and all will be
+discovered.  They will see----"  The thought of what they would
+see endowed her with the energy of despair, and clutching hold of
+Marguerite's wrists: "Listen!" said she, approaching so near that
+her hot breath scorched the girl's cheeks, "no one must be allowed
+to see those letters!--it must not be! I will tell you what they
+contain.  I hated my husband; I loved the Count de Chalusse madly,
+and he had sworn that he would marry me if ever I became a widow. 
+Do you understand now? The name of the poison I obtained--how I
+proposed to administer it, and what its effects would be--all this
+is plainly written in my own handwriting and signed--yes, signed--
+with my own name.  The plot failed, but it was none the less real,
+positive, palpable--and those letters are a proof of it.  But they
+shall never be read--no--not if I am obliged to set fire to the
+Hotel de Chalusse with my own hand."
+
+Now the count's constant terror, the fear with which this woman
+had inspired him, were explained.  He was an accomplice--he also
+had written no doubt, and she had preserved his letters as he had
+preserved hers.  Crime had bound them indissolubly together.
+
+Horrified beyond expression, Marguerite freed herself from Madame
+Trigault's grasp.  "I swear to you, madame, that everything any
+human being can do to save your letters shall be done by me," she
+exclaimed.
+
+"And have you any hope of success?"
+
+"Yes," replied the girl, remembering her friend, the magistrate.
+
+Moved by a far more powerful emotion than any she had ever known
+before, the baroness uttered an exclamation of joy.  "Ah! how good
+you are!" she exclaimed--"how generous! how noble! You take your
+revenge in giving me back life, honor, everything--for you are my
+daughter; do you not know it?  Did they not tell you, before
+bringing you here, that I was the hated and unnatural mother who
+abandoned you?"
+
+She advanced with tearful eyes and outstretched arms, but
+Marguerite sternly waved her back.  "Spare yourself, madame, and
+spare me, the humiliation of an unnecessary explanation."
+
+"Marguerite! Good God! you repulse me.  After all you have
+promised to do for me, will you not forgive me?"
+
+"I will try to forget, madame," replied the girl and she was
+already stepping toward the door when the baroness threw herself
+at her feet, crying, in a heart-rending tone: "Have pity,
+Marguerite, I am your mother.  One has no right to deny one's own
+mother."
+
+But the young girl passed on.  "My mother is dead, madame; I do
+not know you!" And she left the room without even turning her
+head, without even glancing at the baroness, who had fallen upon
+the floor in a deep swoon.
+
+
+
+XIX
+
+
+Baron Trigault still held Madame de Fondege a prisoner in the
+hall.  What did he say to her in justification of the expedient he
+had improvised?  His own agitation was so great that he scarcely
+knew, and it mattered but little after all, for the good lady did
+not even pretend to listen to his apologies.  Although by no means
+overshrewd, she suspected some great mystery, some bit of scandal,
+perhaps, and her eyes never once wandered from the door leading to
+the boudoir.  At last this door opened and Mademoiselle Marguerite
+reappeared.  "Great heavens!" exclaimed Madame de Fondege; "what
+has happened to my poor child?"
+
+For the unfortunate girl advanced with an automatic tread, her
+eyes fixed on vacancy, and her hands outstretched, as if feeling
+her way.  It indeed seemed to her as if the floor swayed to and
+fro under her feet, as if the walls tottered, as if the ceiling
+were about to fall and crush her.
+
+Madame de Fondege sprang forward.  "What is the matter, my
+dearest?"
+
+Alas! the poor girl was utterly overcome.  "It is but a trifle,"
+she faltered.  But her eyes closed, her hands clutched wildly for
+some support, and she would have fallen to the ground if the baron
+had not caught her in his arms and carried her to a sofa.  "Help!"
+cried Madame de Fondege, "help, she is dying!--a physician!"
+
+But there was no need of a physician.  One of the maids came with
+some fresh water and a bottle of smelling salts, and Marguerite
+soon recovered sufficiently to sit up, and cast a frightened
+glance around her, while she mechanically passed her hand again
+and again over her cold forehead.  "Do you feel better my
+darling?" inquired Madame de Fondege at last.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Ah! you gave me a terrible fright; see how I tremble."  But the
+worthy lady's fright was as nothing in comparison with the
+curiosity that tortured her.  It was so powerful, indeed, that she
+could not control it.  "What has happened?" she asked.
+
+"Nothing, madame, nothing."
+
+"But----"
+
+"I am subject to such attacks.  I was very cold, and the heat of
+the room made me feel faint."
+
+Although she could only speak with the greatest difficulty, the
+baron realized by her tone that she would never reveal what had
+taken place, and his attitude and relief knew no bounds.  "Don't
+tire the poor child," he said to Madame de Fondege.  "The best
+thing you can do would be to take her home and put her to bed."
+
+I agree with you; but unfortunately, I have sent away my brougham
+with orders not to return for me until one o'clock."
+
+"Is that the only difficulty? If so, you shall have a carriage at
+once, my dear madame."  So saying, the baron made a sign to one of
+the servants, and the man started on his mission at once.
+
+Madame de Fondege was silent but furious.  "He is actually putting
+me out of doors," she thought.  "This is a little too much!  And
+why doesn't the baroness make her appearance--she must certainly
+have heard my voice?  What does it all mean?  However, I'm sure
+Marguerite will tell me when we are alone."
+
+But Madame de Fondege was wrong, for she vainly plied the girl
+with questions all the way from the Rue de la Ville l'Eveque to
+the Rue Pigalle.  She could only obtain this unvarying and
+obstinate reply: "Nothing has happened.  What do you suppose could
+have happened?"
+
+Never in her whole life had Madame de Fondege been so incensed. 
+"The blockhead!" she mentally exclaimed.  "Who ever saw such
+obstinacy! Hateful creature!--I could beat her!"
+
+She did not beat her, but on reaching the house she eagerly asked:
+"Do you feel strong enough to go up stairs alone?"
+
+"Yes, madame."
+
+"Then I will leave you.  You know Van Klopen expects me again at
+one o'clock precisely; and I have not breakfasted yet.  Remember
+that my servants are at your disposal, and don't hesitate to call
+them.  You are at home, recollect."
+
+It was not without considerable difficulty--not without being
+compelled to stop and rest several times on her way up stairs--
+that Mademoiselle Marguerite succeeded in reaching the apartments
+of the Fondege family.  "Where is madame?" inquired the servant
+who opened the door.
+
+"She is still out."
+
+"Will she return to dinner?"
+
+"I don't know."
+
+"M. Gustave has been here three times already; he was very angry
+when he found that there was no one at home--he went on terribly. 
+Besides, the workmen have turned everything topsy-turvy."
+
+However, Marguerite had already reached her own room, and thrown
+herself on the bed.  She was suffering terribly.  Her brave spirit
+still retained its energy; but the flesh had succumbed.  Every
+vein and artery throbbed with violence, and while a chill seemed
+to come to her heart, her head burned as if it had been on fire. 
+"My Lord," she thought, "am I going to fall ill at the last
+moment, just when I have most need of all my strength?"
+
+She tried to sleep, but was unable to do so.  How could she free
+herself from the thought that haunted her? Her mother! To think
+that such a woman was her mother! Was it not enough to make her
+die of sorrow and shame? And yet this woman must be saved--the
+proofs of her crime must be annihilated with her letters. 
+Marguerite asked herself whether the old magistrate would have it
+in his power to help her in this respect.  Perhaps not, and then
+what could she do? She asked herself if she had not been too
+cruel, too severe.  Guilty or not, the baroness was still her
+mother.  Had she the right to be pitiless, when by stretching out
+her hand she might, perhaps, have rescued the wretched woman from
+her terrible life.
+
+Thus thinking, the young girl sat alone and forgotten in her
+little room.  The hours went by, and daylight had begun to wane,
+when suddenly a shrill whistle resounded in the street, under her
+windows.  "Pi-ouit."  It came upon her like an electric shock, and
+with a bound she sprang to her feet.  For this cry was the signal
+that had been agreed upon between herself and the young man who
+had so abruptly offered to help her on the occasion of her visit
+to M. Fortunat's office.  Was she mistaken? No--for on listening
+she heard the cry resound a second time, even more shrill and
+prolonged than before.
+
+This was no time for hesitation, and so she went down-stairs at
+once.  Hope sent new blood coursing through her veins and endowed
+her with invincible energy.  On reaching the street-door, she
+paused and looked around her.  At a short distance off she
+perceived a young fellow clad in a blouse, who was apparently
+engaged in examining the goods displayed in a shop window. 
+Despite his position, he hurriedly exclaimed: "Follow me at a
+little; distance in the rear until I stop."
+
+Marguerite, obeyed him in breathless suspense.  The young fellow
+was our friend Victor Chupin, now somewhat the worse for his
+encounter with Vantrasson that same morning.  His face was
+considerably disfigured, and one of his eyes was black and
+swollen; nevertheless he was in a state of ecstatic happiness. 
+Happy, and yet anxious; for, as he preceded Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, he said to himself: "How shall I tell her that I have
+succeeded? There must be no folly.  If I tell her the news
+suddenly, she will most likely faint, so  I must break the news 
+gently."
+
+On reaching the Rue Boursault, he turned the corner, and paused,
+waiting for Mademoiselle Marguerite to join him.  "What is the
+news?" she anxiously asked.
+
+"Everything is progressing finely--slowly, but finely."
+
+"You know something, monsieur!  Speak! Don't you see how anxious I
+am?"
+
+He did see it only too well; and his embarrassment increased to
+such a pitch that he began to scratch his head furiously.  At last
+he decided on a plan.  "First of all, mademoiselle, brace yourself
+against the wall, and now stand firm.  Yes, like that.  Now, are
+you all right?  Well, I have found M. Ferailleur!"
+
+Chupin's precaution was a wise one, for Marguerite tottered.  Such
+a success, so quickly gained, was indeed astounding.  "Is it
+possible?" she murmured.
+
+"So possible that I have a letter for you from M. Ferailleur in my
+pocket mademoiselle.  Here it is--I am to wait for an answer."
+
+She took the note he handed her, broke the seal with trembling
+hand, and read as follows:
+
+
+
+"We are approaching the end, my dearest.  One step more and we
+shall triumph.  But I must see you to-day at any risk.  Leave the
+house this evening at eight o'clock.  My mother will be waiting
+for you in a cab, at the corner of the Rue Pigalle and the Rue
+Boursault.  Come, and let no fear of arousing suspicions of the
+Fondeges deter you.  They are henceforth powerless to injure you.
+                                            PASCAL
+
+
+"I will go!" replied Marguerite at once, careless of the obstacles
+that might impede the fulfilment of her promise.  For it was quite
+possible that serious difficulties might arise.  Madame Leon, who
+had been invisible since the morning, might suddenly reappear, or
+the General and his wife might return to dinner.  And what could
+Marguerite answer if they asked her where she wanted to go alone,
+and at such an hour of the evening?  And if they attempted to
+prevent her from keeping her appointment, how could she resist? 
+All these were weighty questions and yet she did not hesitate. 
+Pascal had spoken, that sufficed, and she was determined to obey
+him implicitly, cost what it might.  If he advised such a step, it
+was because  he deemed it best and necessary; and she willingly
+submitted to the instructions of the man in whom she felt such
+unbounded confidence.
+
+Having told Chupin that she might be relied upon for the evening,
+she was retracing her way home, when suddenly the thought occurred
+to her that she ought not to neglect this opportunity to place a
+decisive weapon in Pascal's hands.  She was close to the Rue Notre
+Dame de Lorette and so without more ado she hurried to the
+establishment of Carjat the photographer.  He was fortunately
+disengaged, and she at once obtained from him a proof of the
+compromising letter written by the Marquis de Valorsay to Madame
+Leon.  She placed it carefully in her pocket, thanked the
+photographer, and then hurried back to the Rue Pigalle to wait for
+the hour appointed in Pascal's letter.  Fortunately none of her
+unpleasant apprehensions were realized.  The dinner-hour came and
+passed, and still the house remained deserted.  The workmen had
+gone off and the laughter and chatter of the servants in the
+kitchen were the only sounds that broke the stillness.  Faint for
+want of food--for she had taken no nourishment during the day--
+Marguerite had considerable difficulty in obtaining something to
+eat from the servants.  At last, however, they gave her some soup
+and cold meat, served on a corner of the bare table in the dining-
+room.  It was half-past seven when she finished this frugal meal. 
+She waited a moment, and then fearing she might keep Madame
+Ferailleur waiting, she went down into the street.
+
+A cab was waiting at the corner of the Rue Boursault, as
+indicated.  Its windows were lowered, and in the shade one could
+discern the face and white hair of an elderly lady.  Glancing
+behind her to assure herself that she had not been followed,
+Marguerite eagerly approached the vehicle, whereupon a kindly
+voice exclaimed: "Jump in quickly, mademoiselle "
+
+Marguerite obeyed, and the door was scarcely closed behind her
+before the driver had urged his horse into a gallop.  He had
+evidently received his instructions in advance, as well as the
+promise of a magnificent gratuity.
+
+Sitting side by side on the back seat, the old lady and the young
+girl remained silent, but this did not prevent them from casting
+stealthy glances at each other, and striving to distinguish one
+another's features whenever the vehicle passed in front of some
+brilliantly lighted shop.  They had never met before, and their
+anxiety to become acquainted was intense, for they each felt that
+the other would exert a decisive influence upon her life.  All of
+Madame Ferailleur's friends would undoubtedly have been surprised
+at the step she had taken, and yet it was quite in accordance with
+her character.  As long as she had entertained any hope of
+preventing this marriage she had not hesitated to express and even
+exaggerate her objections and repugnance.  But her point of view
+was entirely changed when conquered by the strength of her son's
+passion, she at last yielded a reluctant consent.  The young girl
+who was destined to be her daughter-in-law at once became sacred
+in her eyes; and it seemed to her an act of duty to watch over
+Marguerite, and shield her reputation.  Having considered the
+subject, she had decided that it was not proper for her son's
+betrothed to run about the streets alone in the evening.  Might it
+not compromise her honor? and later on might it not furnish
+venomous Madame de Fondege with an opportunity to exercise her
+slanderous tongue? Thus the puritanical old lady had come to fetch
+Marguerite, so that whenever occasion required she might be able
+to say: "I was there!"
+
+As for Marguerite, after the trials of the day, she yielded
+without reserve to the feeling of rest and happiness that now
+filled her heart.  Again and again had Pascal spoken of his
+mother's prejudices and the inflexibility of her principles.  But
+he had also spoken of her dauntless energy, the nobility of her
+nature, and of her love and devotion to him.  With Marguerite,
+moreover, one consideration--one which she would scarcely have
+admitted, perhaps--outweighed all others: Madame Ferailleur was
+Pascal's mother.  For that reason alone, if for no other, she was
+prepared to worship her.  How fervently she blessed this noble
+woman, who, a widow.  and ruined in fortune by an unprincipled
+scoundrel, had bravely toiled to educate her son, making him the
+man whom Marguerite had freely chosen from among all others.  She
+would have knelt before this grand but simple-hearted mother had
+she dared; she would have kissed her hands.  And a poignant regret
+came to her heart when she remembered her own mother, Baroness
+Trigault, and compared her with this matchless woman.
+
+Meanwhile the cab had passed the outer boulevards, and was now
+whirling along the Route d'Asnieres, as fast as the horse could
+drag it.  "We are almost there," remarked Madame Ferailleur,
+speaking for the first time.
+
+Marguerite's response was inaudible, she was so overcome with
+emotion.  The driver had just turned the corner of the Route de la
+Revolte; and it was not long before he checked his panting horse. 
+"Look, mademoiselle," said Madame Ferailleur again, "this is our
+home."
+
+Upon the threshold, bareheaded, and breathless with impatience and
+hope, stood a man who was counting the seconds with the violent
+throbbings of his heart.  He did not wait for the cab to stop, but
+springing to the door, he opened it; and then, catching Marguerite
+in his arms, he carried her into the house with a cry of joy.  She
+had not even time to look around her, ere he had placed her in an
+arm-chair, and fallen on his knees before her.  "At last I see you
+again, my beloved Marguerite," he exclaimed.  "You are mine--
+nothing shall part us again!"
+
+They sobbed in each other's arms.  They could bear adversity
+unmoved; but their composure deserted them in this excess of
+happiness; and standing in the door-way, Madame Ferailleur felt
+the tears come to her eyes as she stood watching them.
+
+"How can I tell you all that I have suffered!" said Pascal, whose
+voice was hoarse with feeling.  "The papers have told you all the
+details, I suppose.  How I was accused of cheating at cards; how
+the vile epithet 'thief' was cast in my face; how they tried to
+search me; how my most intimate friends deserted me; how I was
+virtually expelled from the Palais de Justice.  All this is
+terrible, is it not? Ah, well! it is nothing in comparison with
+the intense, unendurable anguish I experienced in thinking that
+you believed the infamous calumny which disgraced me."
+
+Marguerite rose to her feet.  "You thought that!" she exclaimed. 
+"You believed that I doubted you? I! Like you, I have been accused
+of robbery myself.  Do you believe me guilty?"
+
+"Good God!  I suspect you!"
+
+"Then why----"
+
+"I was mad, Marguerite, my only love, I was mad! But who would not
+have lost his senses under such circumstances? It was the very day
+after this atrocious conspiracy.  I had seen Madame Leon, and had
+trusted her with a letter for you in which I entreated you to
+grant me five minutes' Conversation."
+
+"Alas! I never received it."
+
+"I know that now; but then I was deceived.  I went  to the little
+garden gate to await your coming, but it was Madame Leon who
+appeared.  She brought me a note written in pencil and signed with
+your name, bidding me an eternal farewell.  And, fool that I was,
+I did not see that the note was a forgery!"
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was amazed.  The veil was now torn aside,
+and the truth revealed to her.  Now she remembered Madame Leon's
+embarrassment when she met her returning from the garden on the
+night following the count's death.  "Ah, well! Pascal," she said,
+"do you know what I was doing at almost the same moment? Alarmed
+at having received no news from you, I hastened to the Rue d'Ulm,
+where I learned that you had sold your furniture and started for
+America.  Any other woman might have believed herself deserted
+under such circumstances, but not I.  I felt sure that you had not
+fled in ignominious fashion.  I was convinced that you had only
+concealed yourself for a time in order to strike your enemies more
+surely."
+
+"Do not shame me, Marguerite.  It is true that of us two I showed
+myself the weaker."
+
+Lost in the rapture of the present moment, they had forgotten the
+past and the future, the agony they had endured, the dangers that
+still threatened them, and even the existence of their enemies.
+
+But Madame Ferailleur was watching.  She pointed to the clock, and
+earnestly exclaimed: "Time is passing, my son.  Each moment that
+is wasted endangers our success.  Should any suspicion bring
+Madame Vantrasson here, all would be lost."
+
+"She cannot come upon us unawares, my dear mother.  Chupin has
+promised not to lose sight of her.  If she stirs from her shop, he
+will hasten here and throw a stone against the shutters to warn
+us."
+
+But even this did not satisfy Madame Ferailleur.
+
+"You forget, Pascal." she insisted, "that Mademoiselle Marguerite
+must be at home again by ten o'clock, if she consents to the
+ordeal you feel obliged to impose upon her."
+
+This was the voice of duty recalling Pascal to the stern realities
+of life.  He slowly rose, conquered his emotion, and, after
+reflecting for a moment, said: "First of all, Marguerite, I owe
+you the truth and an exact statement of our situation. 
+Circumstances have compelled me to act without consulting you. 
+Have I done right or wrong? You shall judge." And without stopping
+to listen to the girl's protestations, he rapidly explained how he
+had managed to win M. de Valorsay's confidence, discover his
+plans, and become his trusted accomplice.  "This scoundrel's plan
+is very simple," he continued.  "He is determined to marry you. 
+Why? Because, though you are not aware of it, you are rich, and
+the sole heiress to the fortune of the Count de Chalusse, your
+father.  This surprises you, does it not? Very well! listen to me. 
+Deceived by the Marquis de Valorsay, the Count de Chalusse had
+promised him your hand.  These arrangements were nearly completed,
+though you had not been informed of them.  In fact, everything had
+been decided.  At the outset, however, a grave difficulty had
+presented itself.  The marquis wished your father to acknowledge
+you before your marriage, but this he refused to do.  'It would
+expose me to the most frightful dangers,' he declared.  'However,
+I will recognize Marguerite as my daughter in my will, and, at the
+same time, leave all my property to her.' But the marquis would
+not listen to this proposal. 'I don't doubt your good intentions,
+my dear count,' said he,' but suppose this will should be
+contested, your property might pass into other hands.' This
+difficulty put a stop to the proceedings for some time.  The
+marquis asked for guarantees; the other refused to give them--
+until, at last, M. de Chalusse discovered an expedient which would
+satisfy both parties.  He confided to M. de Valorsay's keeping a
+will in which he recognized you as his daughter, and bequeathed
+you his entire fortune.  This document, the validity of which is
+unquestionable, has been carefully preserved by the marquis.  He
+has not spoken of its existence; and he would destroy it rather
+than restore it to you at present.  But as soon as you became his
+wife, he intended to produce it and thus obtain possession of the
+count's millions."
+
+"Ah! the old justice of the peace was not mistaken," murmured
+Mademoiselle Marguerite.
+
+Pascal did not hear her.  All his faculties were absorbed in the
+attempt he was making to give a clear and concise explanation, for
+he had much to say, and it was growing late.  "As for the enormous
+sum you have been accused of taking," he continued, "I know what
+has become of it; it is in the hands of M. de Fondege."
+
+"I know that, Pascal--I'm sure of it; but the proof, the proof!"
+
+"The proof exists, and, like the will, it is in the hands of the
+Marquis de Valorsay."
+
+"Is it possible! Great Heavens! You are sure you are not
+deceived?"
+
+"I have seen the proof, and it is overpowering, irrefutable! I
+have touched it--I have held it in my hands.  And it explains
+everything which may have seemed strange and incomprehensible to
+you.  The letter which M. de Chalusse received on the day of his
+death was written by his sister.  She asked in it for her share of
+the family estate, threatening him with a terrible scandal if he
+refused to comply with her request.  Had the count decided to
+brave this scandal rather than yield? We have good reason to
+suppose so.  However, this much is certain: he had a terrible
+hatred, not so much for his sister, perhaps, as for the man who
+had seduced her, and afterward married her, actuated by avaricious
+motives alone.  He had sworn thousands of times that neither
+husband nor wife should ever have a penny of the large fortune
+which really belonged to them.  Believing that a lawsuit was now
+inevitable, and wishing to conceal his wealth, he was greatly
+embarrassed by the large amount of money he had on hand.  What
+should he do with it? Where could he hide it? He finally decided
+to intrust it to the keeping of M. de Fondege, who was known as an
+eccentric man, but whose honesty seemed to be above suspicion. 
+So, when he left home, on the afternoon of his illness, he took
+the package of bank-notes and bonds, which you had noticed in the
+escritoire that morning, away with him.  We shall never know what
+passed between your father and the General--we can only surmise. 
+But what I do know, and what I shall be able to prove, is that M.
+de Fondege accepted the trust, and that he gave an acknowledgment
+of it in the form of a letter, which read as follows:
+
+
+
+"'MY DEAR COUNT DE CHALUSSE--I hereby acknowledge the receipt, on
+Thursday, October 15, 186-, of the sum of two millions, two
+hundred and fifty thousand francs, which I shall deposit, in my
+name, at the Bank of France, subject to the orders of Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, your daughter, on the day she presents this letter. 
+And believe, my dear count, in the absolute devotion of your old
+comrade,
+
+                             "GENERAL DE FONDEGE.'"
+
+
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite was thunderstruck.  "Who can have
+furnished you with these particulars?" she inquired.
+
+"The Marquis de Valorsay, my dearest; and I will explain how he
+was enabled to do so.  M. de Fondege wrote the address of his 'old
+comrade' on this letter, which was folded and sealed, but not
+enclosed in an envelope.  M. de Chalusse proposed to post it
+himself, so that the official stamp might authenticate its date. 
+But on reflection, he became uneasy.  He felt that this tiny,
+perishable scrap of paper would be the only proof of the deposit
+which he had confided to M. de Fondege's honor.  This scrap might
+be lost, burned, or stolen.  Then what would happen? He had so
+often seen trustees betray the confidence of which they had seemed
+worthy.  So M. de Chalusse racked his brains to discover a means
+of protection from an improbable but possible misfortune.  He
+found it.  Passing a stationer's shop, he went in, purchased one
+of those letter-presses which merchants use in their
+correspondence, and, under pretext of trying it, took a copy of M.
+de Fondege's letter.  Having done this, he placed the copy in an
+envelope addressed to the Marquis de Valorsay, and, with his heart
+relieved of all anxiety, posted it at the same time as the
+original letter.  A few moments later he got into the cab in which
+he was stricken down with apoplexy."
+
+Extraordinary as Pascal's explanations must have seemed to her,
+Marguerite did not doubt their accuracy in the least.  "Then it is
+the copy of this letter which you saw in the possession of the
+Marquis de Valorsay?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"And the original?"
+
+"M. de Fondege alone can tell what has become of that.  It is
+evident that he has somehow succeeded in obtaining possession of
+it.  Would he have dared to squander money as he has done if he
+had not been convinced that there was no proof of his guilt in
+existence? Perhaps on hearing of the count's sudden death he
+bribed the concierge at the Hotel de Chalusse to watch for this
+letter and return it to him.  But on this subject I have only
+conjectures to offer.  If they wish you to marry their son, it is
+probably because it seems too hard that you should be left in
+abject poverty while they are enjoying the fortune they have
+stolen from you.  The vilest scoundrels have their scruples. 
+Besides, a marriage with their son would protect them against any
+possible mischance in the future."
+
+He was silent for a moment, and then more slowly resumed: "You
+see, Marguerite, we have clear, palpable, and irrefutable proofs
+of YOUR innocence; but in my efforts to clear my own name of
+disgrace, I have been far less fortunate.  I have tried in vain to
+collect material proofs of the conspiracy against me.  It is only
+by proving the guilt of the Marquis de Valorsay and the Viscount
+de Coralth that I can establish my innocence, and so far I am
+powerless to do so."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite's face brightened with supreme joy.  "Then
+I can serve you, in my turn, my only love," she exclaimed.  "Ah!
+blessed be God who inspired me, and who thus rewards me for an
+hour of courage.  My poor father's plan also occurred to me,
+Pascal.  Was it not strange? The material proof of your innocence
+which you have sought for in vain, is in my possession, written
+and signed by the Marquis de Valorsay.  Like M. de Fondege, he
+believes that the letter which proves his guilt is annihilated. 
+He burned it himself, and yet it exists." So saying, she drew from
+her bosom one of the copies which she had received from Carjat the
+photographer, and handed it to Pascal, adding, "Look!"
+
+Pascal eagerly perused the marvellous facsimile of the letter
+which the marquis had written to Madame Leon.  "Ah! this is the
+scoundrel's death warrant." he exclaimed, exultantly.  And
+approaching Madame Ferailleur, who still stood leaning against the
+door, silent and motionless: "Look, mother," he repeated, "look!"
+
+And he pointed to this paragraph which was so convincing and so
+explicit, that the most exacting jury would have asked for no
+further evidence.  "I have formed a plan which will completely
+efface all remembrance of that cursed P. F., in case any one could
+condescend to think of him, after the disgrace we fastened upon
+him the other evening at the house of Madame d'A----."
+
+"Nor is this all," resumed Mademoiselle Marguerite.  "There are
+other letters which will prove that this plot was the marquis's
+work and which give the name of his accomplice, Coralth.  And
+these letters are in the possession of a man of dubious integrity,
+who was once the marquis's ally, but who has now become his enemy. 
+He is known as Isidore Fortunat, and lives in the Place de la
+Bourse."
+
+Marguerite felt that Madame Ferailleur's keen glance was riveted
+upon her.  She intuitively divined what was passing in the mind of
+the puritanical old lady, and realized that her whole future, and
+the happiness of her entire wedded life, depended upon her conduct
+at that moment.  So, desirous of making a full confession, she
+hastily exclaimed: "My conduct may have seemed strange in a young
+girl, Pascal.  A timid, inexperienced girl, who had been carefully
+kept from all knowledge of life and evil, would have been crushed
+by such a burden of disgrace, and could only have wept and prayed. 
+I did weep and pray; but I also struggled and fought.  In the hour
+of peril I found myself endowed with some of the courage and
+energy which distinguished the poor women of the people among whom
+I formerly earned my bread.  The teachings and miseries of the
+past were not lost to me!" And as simply as if she were telling
+the most natural thing in the world, she described the struggle
+she had undertaken against the world, strong in her faith in
+Pascal and in his love.
+
+"Ah, you are a noble and courageous girl!" exclaimed Madame
+Ferailleur.  "You are worthy of my son, and you will proudly guard
+our honest name!"
+
+For some little time already the obstinate old lady had been
+struggling against the sympathetic emotion that filled her heart,
+and big tears were coursing down her wrinkled cheeks.
+
+Unable to restrain herself any longer, she now threw both arms
+around Marguerite's neck, and drew her toward her in a long
+embrace, murmuring: "Marguerite, my daughter! Ah! how unjust my
+prejudices were!"
+
+It might be thought that Pascal was transported with joy on
+hearing this, but no: the lines of care on his forehead deepened,
+as he said: "Happiness is so near! Why must a final test, another
+humiliation, separate us from it?"
+
+But Marguerite now felt strong enough to meet even martyrdom with
+a smile.  "Speak, Pascal!" said she, "don't you see that it is
+almost ten o'clock?"
+
+He hesitated; there was grief in his eyes and his breath came
+quick and hard, as he resumed: "For your sake and mine, we must
+conquer, at any price.  This is the only reason that can justify
+the horrible expedient I have to suggest.  M. de Valorsay, as you
+know, has boasted of his power to overcome your resistance, and he
+really believes that he possesses this power.  Why I have not
+killed him again and again when he has been at my mercy, I can
+scarcely understand.  The only thing that gave me power to
+restrain myself was my desire for as sure, as terrible, and as
+public a revenge as the humiliation he inflicted on me.  His plan
+for your ruin is such as only a scoundrel like himself could
+conceive.  With the assistance of his vile tool, Coralth, he has
+formed a league, offensive and defensive, with the son of the
+Count de Chalusse's sister, who is the only acknowledged heir at
+this moment--a young man destitute of heart and intelligence, and
+inordinately vain, but neither better nor worse than many others
+who figure respectably in society.  His name is Wilkie Gordon. 
+The marquis has acquired great influence over him, and has
+persuaded him that it is his duty to denounce you to the
+authorities.  He has, in short, accused you of defrauding the
+heirs of the Chalusse estate of two millions of francs and also of
+poisoning the count."
+
+The girl shrugged her shoulders disdainfully.  "As for the
+robbery, we have an answer to that," she answered, "and as regards
+the poisoning--really the accusation is too absurd!"
+
+But Pascal still looked gloomy.  "The matter is more serious than
+you suppose," he replied.  "They have found a physician--a vile,
+cowardly scoundrel--who for a certain sum has consented to appear
+in support of the accusation."
+
+"Dr. Jodon, I presume!"
+
+"Yes; and this is not all.  The count's escritoire contains the
+vial of medicine of which he drank a portion on the day of his
+death.  Well, to-morrow night, Madame Leon will open the garden
+gate of the Hotel de Chalusse and admit a rascal who will abstract
+the vial."
+
+Marguerite shuddered.  Now she understood the fiendish cunning of
+the plot.  "It might ruin me!" she murmured.
+
+Pascal nodded affirmatively.  "M. de Valorsay wishes you to
+consider yourself as irretrievably lost, and then he intends to
+offer to save you on condition that you consent to marry him.  I
+should say, however, that M. Wilkie is ignorant of the atrocious
+projects he is abetting.  They are known only to the marquis and
+M. de Coralth; and it is I who, under the name of Maumejan, act as
+their adviser.  It was to me that the marquis sent M. Wilkie for
+assistance in drawing up this accusation.  I myself wrote out the
+denunciation, which was as terrible and as formidable as our
+bitterest enemy could possibly desire, combining, as it did, with
+perfidious art, the reports of the valets and the suspicions of
+the physician, and establishing the connection between the robbery
+and the murder.  It finished by demanding a thorough
+investigation.  And M. Wilkie copied and signed this document, and
+carried it to the prosecution office himself."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite sank half-fainting into an arm-chair. 
+"You have done this!" she faltered.
+
+"It was necessary, my daughter," whispered Madame Ferailleur.
+
+"Yes, it was necessary, absolutely necessary," repeated Pascal, 
+"as you will see.  Justice, which is a human institution, and
+limited in its powers, cannot fathom motives, read thoughts, or
+interfere with plans, however abominable they may be, or however
+near realization.  Before it can interfere, the law must have
+material, tangible proof, convincing to the senses.  Until you are
+arrested, the crimes committed by M. de Valorsay, and those
+associated with him, do not come within the reach of human
+justice; but as soon as you are in prison, I can hasten to our
+friend the justice of the peace, and we shall go at once to the
+investigating magistrate and explain everything.  Now, when your
+innocence and the guilt of your accusers have been established,
+what do you fancy the authorities will do? They will wait until
+your enemies declare themselves, in order to capture them all at
+once, and prevent the escape of a single one.  To-morrow night
+some clever detectives will watch the Hotel de Chalusse, and just
+as Madame Leon and the wretch with her think themselves sure of
+success, they will be caught in the very act and arrested.  When
+they are examined by a magistrate, who is conversant with the
+whole affair, can they deny their guilt? No; certainly not. 
+Acting upon their confession, the authorities will force an
+entrance into Valorsay's house, where they will find your father's
+will and the receipt given by M. de Fondege--in a word, all the
+proofs of their guilt.  And while this search is going on, all
+your enemies, reassured by your arrest, will be at a grand soiree
+given by Baron Trigault.  I shall be there as well."
+
+Mademoiselle Marguerite had mastered her momentary weakness.  She
+rose to her feet, and in a firm voice exclaimed: "You have acted
+rightly."
+
+"Ah! there was no other way.  And yet I wished to see you, to
+learn if this course were too repugnant to you."
+
+She interrupted him with a gesture.  "When shall I be arrested?"
+she asked, quietly.
+
+"This evening or to-morrow." was his answer.
+
+"Very well! I have only one request to make.  The Fondeges have a
+son who has no hand in the affair, but who will be more severely
+punished than his parents, if we do not spare them.  Could you
+not----"
+
+"I can do nothing, Marguerite.  I am powerless now."
+
+Everything was soon arranged.  Marguerite raised her forehead to
+Pascal for his parting kiss, and went away accompanied by Madame
+Ferailleur, who escorted her to the corner of the Rue Boursault. 
+The General and his wife had returned home in advance of 
+Marguerite.  She found them sitting in the drawing-room, with
+distorted faces and teeth chattering with fear.  With them was a
+bearded man who, as soon as she appeared, exclaimed:
+
+"You are Mademoiselle Marguerite, are you not?  I arrest you in
+the name of the law.  There is my warrant." And without more ado
+he led her away.
+
+
+
+XX.
+
+
+Money, which nowadays has taken the place of the good fairies of
+former times, had gratified M. Wilkie's every longing in a single
+night.  Without any period of transition, dreamlike as it were, he
+had passed from what he called "straitened circumstances" to the
+splendid enjoyment of a princely fortune.  Madame d'Argeles's
+renunciation had been so correctly drawn up, that as soon as he
+presented his claims and displayed his credentials he was placed
+in possession of the Chalusse estate.  It is true that a few
+trifling difficulties presented themselves.  For instance, the old
+justice of the peace who had affixed the seals refused to remove
+them from certain articles of furniture, especially from the late
+count's escritoire, without an order from the court, and several
+days were needed to obtain this.  But what did that matter to M.
+Wilkie? The house, with its splendid reception-rooms, pictures,
+statuary and gardens, was at his disposal, and he installed
+himself therein at once.  Twenty horses neighed and stamped in his
+stables; there were at least a dozen carriages in the coach-house. 
+He devoted his attention exclusively to the horses and vehicles;
+but acting upon the advice of Casimir, who had become his valet
+and oracle, he retained all the former servants of the house, from
+Bourigeau the concierge down to the humblest scullery maid. 
+Still, he gave them to understand that this was only a temporary
+arrangement.  A man like himself, living in this progressive age,
+could scarcely be expected to content himself with what had
+satisfied the Count de Chalusse.  "For I have my plans," he
+remarked to Casimir, "but let Paris wait awhile."
+
+He repudiated his former friends.  Costard and Serpillon,
+pretended viscounts though they were, were quite beneath the
+notice of a Gordon-Chalusse, as M. Wilkie styled himself on his
+visiting cards.  However, he purchased their share of Pompier de
+Nanterre, feeling convinced that this remarkable steeplechaser had
+a brilliant future before him.  He did not trouble himself to any
+great extent about his mother.  Like every one else, he knew that
+she had disappeared, but nothing further.  On the other hand, the
+thought of his father, the terrible chevalier d'industrie, hung
+over his joy like a pall; and each time the great entrance bell
+announced a visitor, he trembled, turned pale, and muttered:
+"Perhaps it's he!"
+
+Tortured by this fear, he clung closely to the Marquis de Valorsay
+as if he felt that this distinguished friend was a powerful
+support.  Besides, people of rank and distinction naturally
+exercised a powerful attraction over him, and he fancied he grew 
+several inches taller when, in some public place, in the street,
+or a restaurant, he was able to call out, "I say, Valorsay, my
+good friend," or, "Upon my word! my dear marquis!"
+
+M. de Valorsay received these effusions graciously enough,
+although, in point of fact, he was terribly bored by the
+platitudes of his new acquaintance.  He intended to send him to
+Coventry later on, but just now M. Wilkie was too useful to be
+ignored.  So he had introduced him to his club, and was seen with
+him everywhere--in the Bois, at the restaurants, and the theatres. 
+At times, some of his friends inquired: "Who is that queer little
+fellow?" with a touch of irony in their tone, but when the marquis
+carelessly answered: "A poor devil who has just come into
+possession of a property worth twenty millions!" they became
+serious, and requested the pleasure and honor of an introduction
+to this fortunate young man.
+
+So M. de Valorsay had invited Gordon-Chalusse to accompany him to
+Baron Trigault's approaching fete.  It was to be an entertainment
+for gentlemen only, a monster card-party; but every one knew the
+wealthy baron, and no doubt with a view of stimulating curiosity
+he had declared, and the Figaro had repeated, that he had a great
+surprise in store for his guests.  Oh! such a surprise! They could
+have no idea what it was! This fete was to take place on the
+second day after Mademoiselle Marguerite's arrest; and on the
+appointed evening, between nine and ten o'clock, M. de Valorsay
+and his friend Coralth sat together in the former's smoking-room
+waiting for Wilkie to call for them, as had been agreed upon. 
+They were both in the best of spirits.  The viscount's
+apprehensions had been entirely dispelled; and the marquis had
+quite forgotten the twinges of pain in his injured limb. 
+"Marguerite will only leave prison to marry me," said M. de
+Valorsay, triumphantly; and he added: "What a willing tool this
+Wilkie is! A single word sufficed to make him give all his
+servants leave of absence.  The Hotel de Chalusse will be
+deserted, and Madame Leon and Vantrasson can operate at their
+leisure."
+
+It was ten o'clock when M. Wilkie made his appearance.  "Come, my
+good friends!" said he, "my carriage is below."
+
+They started off at once, and five minutes later they were ushered
+into the presence of Baron Trigault, who received M. Wilkie as if
+he had never seen him before.  There was quite a crowd already. 
+At least three or four hundred people had assembled in the Baron's
+reception-rooms, and among them were several former habitues of
+Madame d'Argeles's house; one could also espy M. de Fondege
+ferociously twirling his mustaches as usual, together with Kami-
+Bey, who was conspicuous by reason of his portly form and eternal
+red fez.  However, among these men, all noticeable for their
+studied elegance of attire and manner, and all of them known to M.
+de Valorsay, there moved numerous others of very different
+appearance.  Their waistcoats were less open, and their clothes
+did not fit them as perfectly; on the other hand, there was
+something else than a look of idiotic self-complacency on their
+faces.  "Who can these people be?" whispered the marquis to M. de
+Coralth.  "They look like lawyers or magistrates." But although he
+said this he did not really believe it, and it was without the
+slightest feeling of anxiety that he strolled from group to group,
+shaking hands with his friends and introducing M. Wilkie.
+
+A strange rumor was in circulation among the guests.  Many of them
+declared--where could they have heard such a thing?--that in
+consequence of a quarrel with her husband, Madame Trigault had
+left Paris the evening before.  They even went so far as to repeat
+her parting words to the Baron: "You will never see me again," she
+had said.  "You are amply avenged.  Farewell!"  However, the best
+informed among the guests, the folks who were thoroughly
+acquainted with all the scandals of the day, declared the story
+false, and said that if the baroness had really fled, handsome
+Viscount de Coralth would not appear so calm and smiling.
+
+The report WAS true, however.  But M. de Coralth did not trouble
+himself much about the baroness now.  Had he not got in his pocket
+M. Wilkie's signature insuring him upward of half a million?
+Standing near one of the windows in the main reception-room,
+between the Marquis de Valorsay and M. Wilkie, the brilliant
+viscount was gayly chatting with them, when a footman, in a voice
+loud enough to interrupt all conversation, suddenly announced: "M.
+Maumejan!"
+
+It seemed such a perfectly natural thing to M. de Valorsay that
+Maumejan, as one of the baron's business agents, should be
+received at his house, that he was not in the least disturbed. 
+But M. de Coralth, having heard the name, wished to see the man
+who had aided and advised the marquius so effectually.  He
+abruptly turned, and as he did so the words he would have spoken
+died upon his lips.  He became livid, his eyes seemed to start
+from their sockets, and it was with difficulty that he ejaculated:
+"He!"
+
+"Who?" inquired the astonished marquis.
+
+"Look!"
+
+M. de Valorsay did so, and to his utter amazement he perceived a
+numerous party in the rear of the man announced under the name of
+Maumejan.  First came Mademoiselle Marguerite, leaning on the arm
+of the white-haired magistrate, and then Madame Ferailleur; next
+M. Isidore Fortunat, and finally Chupin--Victor Chupin,
+resplendent in a handsome, bran-new, black dress-suit.
+
+The marquis could no longer fail to understand the truth.  He
+realized who Maumejan really was, and the audacious comedy he had
+been duped by.  He was so frightfully agitated that five or six
+persons sprang forward exclaiming: "What is the matter, marquis? 
+Are you ill?"  But he made no reply.  He felt that he was caught
+in a trap, and he glanced wildly around him seeking for some
+loophole of escape.
+
+However, the word of command had evidently been given.  Suddenly
+all the guests scattered about the various drawing-rooms poured
+into the main hall, and the doors were closed.  Then, with a
+solemnity of manner which no one had ever seen him display before,
+Baron Trigault took the so-called Maumejan by the hand and led him
+into the centre of the apartment opposite the lofty chimney-piece. 
+"Gentlemen," he began, in a commanding tone, "this is M. Pascal
+Ferailleur, the honorable man who was falsely accused of cheating
+at cards at Madame d'Argeles's house.  You owe him a hearing."
+
+Pascal was greatly agitated.  The strangeness of the situation,
+the certainty of speedy and startling rehabilitation, perhaps the
+joy of vengeance, the silence, which was so profound that he could
+hear his own panting breath, and the many eyes riveted upon him,
+all combined to unnerve him.  But only for a moment.  He swiftly
+conquered his weakness, and surveying his audience with flashing
+eyes, he explained, in a clear and ringing voice, the shameful
+conspiracy to obtain possession of the count's millions, and the
+abominable machinations by which Mademoiselle Marguerite and
+himself had been victimized.  Then when he had finished his
+explanations he added, in a still more commanding voice, "Now
+look; you can read the culprits' guilt on their faces.  One is the
+scoundrel known to you as the Viscount de Coralth, but Paul
+Violaine is his true name.  He was formerly an accomplice of the
+notorious Mascarot; he is a cowardly villain, for he is married,
+and leaves his wife and children to die of starvation!" The
+Viscount de Coralth fairly bellowed with rage.  But Pascal did not
+heed him.  "The other criminal is the Marquis de Valorsay," he
+added, in the same ringing tone.  There was, moreover, a third
+culprit who would have inspired mingled pity and disgust if any
+one had noticed him shrinking into a corner, terrified and
+muttering: "It wasn't my fault, my wife compelled me to do it!"
+This was General de Fondege.
+
+Pascal did not mention his name.  But it was not absolutely
+necessary he should do so, and besides, he remembered Marguerite's
+entreaty respecting the son.
+
+However, while the young lawyer was speaking, the marquis had
+summoned all his energy and assurance to his aid.  Desperate as
+his plight might be, he would not surrender.  "This is an infamous
+conspiracy," he exclaimed.  "Baron, you shall atone for this.  The
+man's an impostor!--he lies!--all that he says is false!"
+
+"Yes, it is false!" echoed M. de Coralth.
+
+But a clamor arose, drowning these protestations, and the most
+opprobrious epithets could be heard on every side.
+
+"How will you prove your assertion?" cried M. de Valorsay.
+
+"Don't try that dodge on us!" shouted Chupin.  "Vantrasson and
+mother Leon have confessed everything."
+
+"Who defrauded us all with Domingo?" cried several people; and,
+loud above all the others, Kami-Bey bawled out: "To say nothing of
+the fact that the sale of your racing stud was a complete
+swindle!"
+
+Meanwhile, Pascal's former friends and associates, his brother
+advocates and the magistrates who had listened to his first
+efforts at the bar, crowded round him, pressing his hands,
+embracing him almost to suffocation, censuring themselves for
+having suspected him, the very soul of honor, and pleading in
+self-justification the degenerate age in which we live--an age in
+which we daily see those whom we had considered immaculate
+suddenly yield to temptation.  And a murmur of respectful
+admiration rose from the throng when the excitement had subsided a
+little, and the guests had an opportunity to observe Mademoiselle
+Marguerite, whose eyes sparkled more brightly than ever through
+her happy tears; and whose beauty acquired an almost sublime
+expression from her deep emotion.
+
+The wretched Valorsay felt that all was over--that he was
+irretrievably lost.  Seized by a blind fury like that which impels
+a hunted animal to turn and face the hounds that pursue him, and
+bid them defiance, he confronted the throng with his face
+distorted with passion, his eyes bloodshot, and foam upon his
+lips; he was absolutely frightful in his cynicism, hatred, and
+scorn.  "Ah! well, yes!" he exclaimed--"yes, all that you have
+just heard is true.  I was sinking, and I tried to save myself as
+best I could.  Beggars cannot be choosers; I staked my all upon a
+single die.  If I had won, you would have been at my feet; but I
+have lost and you spurn me.  Cowards! hypocrites! that you are,
+insult me if you like, but tell me how many among you all are
+sufficiently pure and upright to have a right to despise me! Are
+there a hundred among you? are there even fifty?"
+
+A tempest of hisses momentarily drowned his voice, but as soon as
+the uproar had ceased, he resumed, sneeringly: "Ah! the truth
+wounds you, my dear friends.  Pray, don't pretend to be so
+distressingly virtuous! I was ruined--that is the long and short
+of it.  But what man of you is not embarrassed? Who among you
+finds his income sufficient? Which one of you is not encroaching
+upon his capital?  And when you have come to your last louis, you
+will do what I have done, or something worse.  Do not deny it, for
+not one among you has a more uncompromising conscience, more moral
+firmness, or more generous aspirations than I once possessed.  You
+are pursuing what I pursued.  You desire what I desired--a life of
+luxury, brief if it must be, but happy--a life of gayety, wild
+excitement, and dissipation.  You, too, have a passion for
+pleasure and gambling, race-horses, and notorious women, a table
+always bountifully spread, glasses ever overflowing with wine, all
+the delights of luxury, and everything that gratifies your vanity!
+But an abyss of shame awaits you at the end of it all.  I am in it
+now.  I await you there, for there you will surely, necessarily,
+inevitably come.  Ah, ha! you will not then think my downfall so
+very strange.  Let me pass! make way! if you please."
+
+He advanced with his head haughtily erect, and would actually have
+made his escape if a frightened servant had not at that moment
+appeared crying: "Monsieur--Monsieur le Baron! a commissary of
+police is downstairs.  He is coming up.  He has a warrant!"
+
+The marquis's frenzied assurance deserted him.  He turned even
+paler than he already was if that were possible, and reeled like
+an ox but partially stunned by the butcher's hammer.  Suddenly a
+desperate resolution could be read in his eyes, the resolution of
+the condemned criminal, who, knowing that he cannot escape the
+scaffold, ascends it with a firm step.
+
+He hastily approached Baron Trigault, and asked in a husky voice:
+"Will you allow me to be arrested in your house, baron? me--a
+Valorsay!"
+
+It might have been supposed that the baron had expected this
+reproach, for without a word he led the marquis and M. de Coralth
+to a little room at the end of the hall, pushed them inside, and
+closed the door again.
+
+It was time he did so, for the commissary of police was already
+upon the threshold.  "Which of you gentlemen is the Marquis de
+Valorsay?" he asked.  "Which of you is Paul Violaine, alias the
+Viscount de----"
+
+The sharp report of firearms suddenly interrupted him.  Every one
+at once rushed to the little room, where the wretched men had been
+conducted.  There extended, face upward, on the floor, lay the
+Marquis de Valorsay, with his brains oozing from his fractured
+skull, and his right hand still clutching a revolver.  He was
+dead.  "And the other!" cried the throng; "the other!"
+
+The open window, and a curtain rudely torn from its fastenings and
+secured to the balustrade, told how M. de Coralth had made his
+escape.  It was not till later that people learned what
+precautions the baron had taken.  On the table in that room he had
+laid two revolvers, and two packages containing ten thousand
+francs each.  The viscount had not hesitated.
+
+*          *          *          *          *
+
+Pascal Ferailleur and Mademoiselle Marguerite de Chalusse were
+married at the church of Saint Etienne du Mont, only a few steps
+from the Rue d'Ulm.  Those who knew the mystery connected with the
+bride's parentage were greatly astonished when they saw Baron
+Trigault act as a witness on this occasion, in company with the
+venerable justice of the peace.  But such was the fact,
+nevertheless.  Treated more and more outrageously by his daughter
+and her husband, separated from his wife, who had nearly lost her
+reason, although her letters were saved, the baron has nowadays
+found affection and a home with Pascal and his wife.  He plays
+cards but seldom now--only an occasional game of piquet with
+Madame Ferailleur, and he amuses himself by making her start when
+she is too long in discarding, by ejaculating, in a stentorian
+voice: "We are wasting precious time!" Sometimes they go out
+together, to the great astonishment of such as chance to meet the
+puritanical old lady leaning on the baron's arm.  She often goes
+to visit and console the widow Gordon, formerly known as Lia
+d'Argeles, who now keeps an establishment near Montrouge, where
+she provides poor, betrayed and forsaken girls with a home and
+employment.  She has yet to receive any token of remembrance from
+her son.  As for her husband, she supposes he is dead or
+incarcerated in some prison.
+
+It is to Madame Gordon that the Fondeges are often indebted for
+bread.  Obliged to disgorge their plunder, and left with no
+resources save the fifty francs a month allowed them by their son,
+who has been promoted to the rank of captain, their poverty is
+necessarily extreme.  Oh! those Fondeges!  M. Fortunat only speaks
+of them with horror.  But he is loud in his praises of Madame
+Marguerite, who repaid him the forty thousand francs he had
+advanced to M. de Valorsay.  He speaks in the highest terms of
+Chupin also; but in this, he is scarcely sincere, for Victor, who
+has been set up in business by Pascal, told him very plainly that
+he was determined not to put his hand to any more dirty work, and
+that expression, "dirty work," rankles in M. Fortunat's heart.
+
+Chupin's resolution did not, however, prevent him from attending
+the trial of Vantrasson and Madame Leon--the former of whom was
+sentenced to hard labor for life, and the latter to ten years'
+imprisonment.  Nothing is known concerning M. de Coralth; but his
+wife has disappeared, to the great disappointment of M. Mouchon. 
+As a dentist, Dr. Jodon is successful.  As for M. Wilkie, you can
+learn anything you wish to know concerning him in the newspapers,
+for his sayings, doings, and movements, are constantly being
+chronicled.  The reporters exhaust all the resources of their
+vocabulary in describing his horses, carriages, and stables, and
+the gorgeous liveries of his servants.  His changes of residence
+are always mentioned; his brilliant sayings are quoted.  He is a
+social success; he is admired, fondled, and flattered.  He makes a
+great stir in the fashionable world--in fact, he reigns over it
+like a king.  After all, assurance is the winning card in the game
+of life!
+
+
+
+
+End of The Project Gutenberg Etext of Baron Trigault's Vengeance
+
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